So mighty a scheme, and such movements could not long remain a secret, far, as well as near; and Ram-naráin, who had at all times regular intelligence, was soon informed of the intended expedition. He gave notice of it to Mr. Amiatt, the chief of the English factory; and forwarded it, at the same time, to his two masters in Bengal. But neither the old Navvab, nor his son were men to march against such an enemy, without the assistance of the English. They applied, therefore, to Colonel Clive, and proposed that he should accompany them in this expedition; but although the English are such cautious people, as to have always their artillery and other necessaries ready, with­out being obliged to make them anew upon an emergency, as is the case with our Hindostany armies and artilleries, which require to be fitted up anew upon every occasion; nevertheless they were not prepared for such a long journey, and could not set out on so short a warning. On the other hand, their con­federates, that is, the Navvab and his son, were so ill prepared, that but for the Colonel, they would have been incapable to move at all; it being impossible for them either to evade, or to satisfy the demands of such multitudes of old troops and new levies. At last, after a deal of time spent in wavering, they found means to move just as Mahmed-c8li-qhan, with the Shah-zada, was arrived on the Keremnassa, which is a little river, that serves as a boundary to the province of Azim-abad.

As soon as it became known at Azim-abad, that the Shah-zada had moved from Banares, Ram-naráin was struck with a panic, especially as neither the English made any motion from Calcutta, nor his two masters from M8rsh8d-abad; and mean­while the enemies’ forces, of whose prowess he had heard wonders, as being part of the famous army of Ab8l-mans8r-qhan’s, were coming down upon him like a storm; and with all the terrors that always precede the Imperial name, were going to pour upon his country like a torrent swelled by heavy rains, or like a calamity that would overwhelm every thing. However, although overcome inwardly by his apprehensions, he thought it incumbent upon him to appoint an hour for putting himself at the head of his army; and he actually came out, and encamped at the garden of Fateh-bagh, close to Variss-qhan’s Reservoir.* The intent of this ambiguous position was, to turn the motions of the Bengal forces to his advantage, should they make their Ram-naráin tempers with the two parties appearance first; in which case he would ascribe this manœuvre to his zeal, and to his readiness in serving his masters; and to close with the Shah-zada, should the Navvab abstain from oppos­ing the enemy, and should his English confederates do the same, on observing the backwardness of their ally, in which last case, such a manœuvre of his would be naturally interpreted as a design of joining the Prince. He therefore remained some days on that spot, eager for intelligence, and anxious to see which of his two wives would first be brought to bed.* In a few days it became ascertained, that neither the Navvab, nor the English, had yet moved from Bengal; and on the other hand, it became notorious, that the Shah-zada had forded the Keremnassa, and was marching to Azim-abad. This last intelligence turned the scales. Ram-naráin thought it prudent to close with the latter; but, first of all, he went to consult Mr. Amiatt, the English chief at Azim-abad; and he told him, “that to this moment, no one had thought of Ram-naráin in Bengal, and none had moved to his assistance; nor was it prudent in him to go to war alone with the Shah-zada and Mahmed-c8li-qhan. He requested, therefore, Mr. Amiatt’s opinion, about what might be proper to be done by a man in his distressed circumstances; and what party he thought convenient for him to take.” Mr. Amiatt answered in these words: With respect to ourselves, if our army comes, we shall remain where we are; else, we shall advance a few days’ journey towards Bengal, and there will stay until we receive orders from the council, and until the times shall point out what is proper to be done. As for yourself, it is convenient that you should manage with some art, and seem to humour the enemy. If, meanwhile, you receive assistance, it is very well; else, if you do not, take your own party.

Ram-naráin having received precisely such an answer as he wished, undertook to manage both parties. To Miren, and to the Colonel, he wrote “That he had come out in military array, and wanted no better than to fight; but that he had not the means in his power; and he added, that if the English should arrive in time, he would not fail to shew his zeal and attachment.” On the other hand, not thinking it proper to write letters to the Western army, he, by the means of convenient persons, assured the Shah-zada and his General, of his good will and attachment.

Whilst all this double management was going on, I lived retired in Azim-abad with my mother and all my brothers, being suspicious of the times, and fearful of involving myself in diffi­culties. But Naky-aaly-qhan, my second brother, who lived upon our estate, made cheap of these apprehensions; although I had every reason in the world to fear lest Miren, informed of the great figure which our father actually cut in the enemy’s camp, should so far listen to the dictates of that generosity innate in his character, as to write to his Deputy, Ram-naráin, to effect our total ruin. In fact, he wrote him word that the exciter of all this storm was no other than Séyd-hedáiet-aaly-qhan, the Shah-zada’s great adviser, whose sons, who lived in Azim-abad, had doubtless put that expedition into their father’s head, and were therefore to be carefully watched. Such was the purport of Miren’s letter. Now, I protest, that I was wholly ignorant of the Prince’s, as well as Mahmed-c8li-qhan’s, intentions; and that years had elapsed since I had not wrote to my father; for the old nobleman, trusting altogether to his connections and affinity with Aaly-verdy-qhan, whose grand-mother, was sister to my glorious mother, had married a second time in Shah-djehan-abad, with all the pomp of a mighty nobleman; after which he spent his time in taking fine women into service, pur­chasing pretty girls, to serve as saplings to his seraglio, and giving large salaries to singers and dancers, and especially to those that came from the school of the famous Lal-mia, the Cashmirian; and all this without having ever minded his family, or thought of us in any shape. So that in sixteen years’ time, in which he had been commanding armies, and spending monthly several lacs for his own household, and making the fortunes of an infinity of persons, he had never so much as thought of send­ing a single piece of gold to either my glorious mother or to any of his children. Meanwhile it had pleased the Almighty one, that feeds the whole creation, to make us find, with every one of Aaly-verdy-qhan’s nephews, a subsistence so honourable and plentiful, as put it in our power to live independently, without having been at any time under a necessity of applying to our father, or even of expecting that forgiven nobleman’s attention. We lived on both sides with ease and dignity; in so much, that months and years would elapse before an opportunity could offer to exchange a message or a letter. Will it not be surpris­ing after this preamble, if Ram-naráin, on receiving the above letter from his two masters, should desire my attendance, and read it to me aloud? On hearing the contents, I answered, “That I took God to witness, that I had not the least connections with this affair, nor indeed any good will for it. That it was not probable that a fallen nobleman, like my father, should have conceived such mighty thoughts; but much likelier that the whole expedition originated with Mahmed-c8ly-qhan, who had a whole province at his disposal, with a full treasury, and an army trained by Ab8l-mans8r-qhan; and who, besides, was nearly related to Shudja-ed-döula, himself a powerful Prince, and the Vezir of the Empire. That independently of those con­siderations, it was known to all the world, that our family settled at Azim-abad these many years, had ceased to entertain any connections with our father, or even to keep up a correspondence of letters with that nobleman; article on which we felt our conscience thoroughly clear. But nevertheless, that if his masters found their advantage in injuring, ruining, and demolishing an innocent family; and he thought it prudent in himself to comply with such orders; we are ready, and at his command; nor could we entertain the most distant thought of resistance; nor are we willing, added I, to bring any blame upon you. Please then to execute your orders.” Ram-naráin on hearing these few words cast a glance at M8rly-dur, the head spy, who was one of the principal men of Azim-abad, and had Ram-naráin’s ear entirely at command; and both joined in desir­ing me to be easy, and to give my mind no anxiety at all on that Our author, rendered sus­pected on account of his father, clears himself. subject. I thanked them, but rejoined, you are pleased to say so at this moment; but should Miren come, and order you to make away with us, shall you put yourselves to the trouble of saving us then, or of protecting our persons? “Please, sir, to be easy on that head,” answered calmly Ram-naráin. “We can protect you; we will protect you; and if we should not be able to shelter you, we shall convey you safe out of the province, and recommend you to your own fate.” On hearing these declarations, I returned them my humble acknowledgments for their goodness and grateful remembrance; and I was yet with Ram-naráin, when intelligence came that the Shah-zada, with Mahmed-c8li-qhan, now styled Ytymad-ed-döula,* was arrived, after having been joined at Banares by Séyd-hedáiet-ally-qhan, my father, at the head of a body of troops and a train of artillery. As soon as Ran-naráin had obtained a full information of this event, he imparted it to Mr. Amiatt, who did not seem dejected by it; but yet, as there were no news of any one’s having moved in Bengal, this Chief thought proper to embark on board of a number of badjarows and other boats which he had ready, and to descend the river for twenty or thirty cosses together, in company with a number of English gentlemen, which he had with him. He left in the factory a number of trusty musqueteers, of those since called Talingas; and he recom­mended them, together with the house, to Ram-naráin’s care. The latter seeing the Englishman’s retreat, thought proper to look out for an accommodation with the Shah-zada, and with his General. However, this was contrary to the opinion of Radja M8rly-dur, who, although an illiterate man, was a very extraordinary Brachman indeed, and a man incomparable for taking his party, or for pointing it to others. This man, who could neither read nor write, was a complete accomptant, and under­stood thoroughly every matter relative to revenue or to Govern­ment; but he spoiled all those qualifications by an insatiable ambition, which made him wish to have all the world dependent on his pleasure; and he was so covetous besides, that he end­lessly busied himself in amassing and hoarding up immense quantities of money and wealth. This man objected to any agreement with Mahmed-c8li-qhan, and to any submission to the Shah-zada. He made cheap of their troops, and was firmly of opinion that they would never stand before the Bengal army, if the latter came supported by the English; and the event proved that he had guessed right; and that this man, who could not read in a book, knew very well how to read in futurity.