The second expedition of the Nawaub Bahadúr, to conquer the country of the Karnatic Payanghaut, at the instigation of the Názim of Hydurabad, and the Poona ministers, in the year 1194, Hijri.— A. D. 1780.— With an account of the victories gained by the lion hunting Moslems in that expedition.

THE causes and materials of the grandeur and power of the house of Hydur increasing day by day, and every one of his Khans and brave officers being distinguished for affection to his person, and devo­tion to his service, the fame of his conquests, and the destruction of his enemies, and the report of his liberality, and the protection afforded to the poor by this nourisher of mankind, penetrated to all quarters of the world; and as at all times, the world shared and enjoyed the benefits dis­pensed from the table of his bounty, and as the shower of gold from his generous hand continually moistened and refreshed the garden of the hopes and desires of all kinds of men, the result was, that the whole of the towns, fortresses, and cities of Mysore assumed a new form of beauty and splendour; for at that period, no Chief of high military talent and power remained, the Nawaub alone excepted, who, with the strong hand of power, and by the art of subduing his enemies, had broken the necks of those who had raised them in pride* and vain glory, and, by his daring and intrepidity, had drawn the whole of the cautious and wily, both infidels and Mussulmans, into the net of subjection and ser­vitude. The heavenly* mind of the Nawaub, there­fore, now that the bride of wealth and dominion had fallen into the close embraces of his conquering fortune, being content and at ease on all sides, resided at Puttun, enjoying himself, and occupied, also, in the collection of warlike stores, brave soldiers, horses of Arabia and Irak, powerful elephants, &c. Viewing, however, the number of his troops, the splendour of his equipments, and the pomp of his court, the thorn of grief and jealousy penetrated the hearts of the envious Chiefs of the Dukhun; that is, the hearts of Nizám Alí Khan, and the Chief of the Mahrattas, and to break down the power of that nourisher of the poor, and, dispenser of benefits, (Hydur), they exerted their utmost endeavours. At this time therefore when the foun­dations of the kingdom and kingly fortunes of Hydur were doubled, he having chastised, and made obe­dient to his will, most of the insubordinate Rajas of that part of the country who in greatness and pride had raised their heads to the clouds; nay, from day to day, had increased his ascendency so rapidly, that their fear was lest he should wrest the whole of the Telingana and Mahratta countries from them, they laid deep schemes and plans, and, agreeing in word and spirit, they both despatched embassadors, with presents and dresses of honour of great value to the capital of the Khodadad state, who, with a friendly tongue, and openly manifesting great regard, delivered their message, to the effect that the blood shedding English had usurped or made themselves masters (of part) of this country, and that they had also taken entire possession of the province of Bengal, “the mole on the cheek of Hind;” that the whole of the province of the Karnatic Pay­anghaut they considered as their military fief, and that their power increased every day; that they, (the English) kept Muhammad Alí Khan as a hired servant, and reigned under the shadow of his name; that, more particularly, the infidel Rag­hoo, the assassin of his son,* had by their assistance effected the plunder and destruction of the country of the Paishwa, that is, the Mahratta empire; that most of the peasantry, payers of taxes, of that country, had been ruined and destroyed by him; that he had cast away from his wicked heart all remembrance of benefits he had received from the Paishwa’s government; and though, by the mercies of the eternal, and the aid of good fortune, he had received signal punishment,* still the present danger was that, from the remaining of the English in this country, the flames of strife would be lighted up again and again. To avert this evil, they urged, that when the conditions of amity should be firmly established between the three families, their enemy would then have no power to contend with or intrigue against them; that it was necessary, therefore, nay, indispensable, for them united to remove the English out of the way, and then they might reign in peace, and without the intermeddling of strangers, and that, they had agreed and sworn to keep the fol­lowing engagement, namely, that whenever either of the contracting parties, should have an object to attain, they should proceed together, and together use their best efforts to effect the same. As, for instance, that they two had agreed and sworn, and had bound the girdle of endeavour tight round the loins of their courage, to do away with the tyranny of the English of Bombay.* What measures, there­fore, did the glory of the house of prosperity and power, (Hydur,) propose or advise in the matter? But at all events Hydur might be certain that, when all the contracting parties united in heart and word, the conquest of the Karnatic Payan­ghaut, and even the whole of Hindustan, might be accomplished in a very easy manner. “When two kings unite in heart, there is no path left for sedition.”— “In peace, if two kings light a lamp”— “their cities and armies will be illuminated;”— “but if they turn their faces to the battle field,”— “they bring calamity upon the earth from heaven.”— “Better is it therefore, that we should turn our faces to peace,”— “and adopt liberal sentiments towards each other.” In these measures it was, they said, necessary no delay nor negligence should occur. God forbid that a difficulty should arise, the remedy of which might not be easily obtained, even by the united strength of the brave troops of all parties.

On hearing this deceitful language, the Nawaub, who, by his caution and penetration surpassed all other the most renowned Kings and Princes, refused to lend a willing ear to their proposals, and, in reply, said, “Your stimulating words of advice are from the tongue, not the heart, and to listen to such fool-deceiving propositions, would doubtless be highly imprudent and dangerous for this rea­son,— that the reins and direction of your govern­ment and policy are in the hands of incompetent, avaricious, and indolent, ministers;— and that, knowingly and willingly, in many places and in the most critical times, shameful deception and treachery have been practised by them, and undoubt­edly the same will occur again; and, that in case of such a recurrence, the contracts and treaties made between the parties, would be cut sharp off.” That nevertheless, following the dictates of his high courage, the protection of the weak, he “had bound up his loins to exertion in this cause,” “and that all the warlike materials to destroy their enemies were ready,” that, his prudence, however, would not allow him to admit, or his frank heart to believe, their assertions, when they declared that, reposing confidence in their boasting troops, and effeminate Ameers, they intended to fight, or fancied they could contend with, the lions,* ranging over the face of the whole earth, or suppose that they could bear the weight of the labour and anxiety of such an undertaking on their indolent minds. He called to their recollection, that the people they so hated (the English,) were united among them­selves, both in heart and language, and it was for this reason that, in all places and times, they were so successful. If, however, they, (Nizám Alí and the Mahratta,) were sincere in the policy on which they had apparently decided, they were to advance towards that country, (the Carnatic,) with their troops in the best order, and, with all the strength of their artillery and warlike stores; and he himself would be ready at that time. But, if they decided otherwise, he requested they would trouble him no more on the subject.