After the state of the Khan had been ascertained, the march was, therefore, put off, and Meer Moin-ud-dín, otherwise called Syud Sáhib, the nephew of the Meer, who was ennobled by the office of Bukh­shi to a Dustah or regiment of horse, was sent with a strong force to that quarter to bring him to the presence. The Meer* before mentioned, was also detached with his division of troops, to reduce the tributary Poligars of the Souba of Arkat; that is, the Nairs of Kalistri, Vinkutgiri, Bimraj, &c. The Prince Tippoo with five thousand regular foot, two thou­sand (Ahshám)* foot, and a thousand horse was sent to reduce the western forts of that Souba, and to take possession of that part of the frontier.

When Syud Sáhib was despatched on his mission by the Nawaub, he made a forced march by night, and surrounded the fort of Chitore, which he sum­moned to surrender. The officers commanding the garrison of the fort having, however, stated the orders of their master as an excuse or apology for not obeying the summons, and preparing to defend themselves the Syud commenced the siege, and placed the foot of manhood in the field of exertion to capture the fort. On the second day he established some guns on a hill, to the southward of the fort, and at the end of ten days the brave besiegers mounted the walls, and notwithstanding the great strength of the fort, it was taken by assault. The commandant of the fort and others were placed in confinement, and having consigned the fort to the care of his brave and experienced soldiers, the Syud marched towards Chundur Giri. On the first day that he encamped before the town, he despatched a message to the besieged Khan, that the Nawaub wished to see him, and that, if his safety was precious to him, he must attend immediately. Having neither power to resist, nor strength to flee, the Khan was struck with fear and astonishment, and sought advice and assistance in replying to the summons, from his family and his Khans, and thus deferred sending an answer. It happened, at this time, that the cavalry of the Nawaub’s army advanced towards the mountains, to forage for grass and wood, and the careless short-sighted Killadár, without the knowledge of his master, opened a fire from the guns of the fort upon them,— Truly, many kings of great renown, and many princes of great power, have seen the face of ruin, and have been reduced to beggary and want, by foolish and inex­perienced servants.— This conduct threw the com­mander of the Nawaub’s troops into great difficulty, and he became satisfied that the Khan intended to resist the Nawaub. He, therefore, immediately des­patched a detailed account of what had occurred, and of the Khan’s neglect in not sending an answer to his invitation, and selecting a position for a gun on the slope of the mountain, and near the walls, he then fired a few shot into the fort on the summit. It chanced that the first shot fired struck the Zunana or women’s apartments, and caused a great concussion; so much so, that cries of grief and alarm burst forth from the inmates of the Muhl. When the besieged Khan saw the effect of the lightning-raining gun, the order of the Nawaub’s foot and horse, and the promptness with which they had seized the position on the slope of the moun­tain, he gave up all his hesitation and delay, and his fears excited such a tumult in his nerves and veins, that he became paralytic. He, therefore, retired into his Zunana, and, entering the chamber of chagrin, laid himself down on the bed of inex­perience. No sooner had he done this than another ball, like the sighs breathed by the widow and orphan, flew up straight from below, penetrated his kitchen, and struck a cauldron full of victuals on the fire. In short, from the rapid arrival of shot, one after another, the besieged Khan sent a request, on the part of the Begum, his wife, to this effect, that, as her husband was unwell, she begged the artillery men might be directed to desist from firing; and if it was intended to take possession of the fort, and country, they were welcome, and might take them, for they, the besieged, had no choice but to submit to the Nawaub. Syud Sáhib conse­quently took possession of the fort and its dependencies, and, placing there an experienced Foujdár, to superintend the affairs of that country, brought the Khan with his Zunana, or family, to the presence, and the Nawaub, after some time, despatched them under a strong escort to Seringaputtun. The Khan’s son, however, whose name was Abdussumud Khan, and his title Dileer Jung, was honored with the Daroghahship of the Silladár Kutchiri, at a salary of three hundred rupees a month.

During this time, the Prince, (Tippoo,) young and fortunate, in the space of one month took the forts of Mahi Mundul Gurh, and Kylas Gurh, (which is called Husseinabad), near Rai Vellore; and then, with a large force, and abundance of guns and stores, marched towards Sautgurh, which is one of the greatest among the fortresses of the Karnatic; and, like the seven* heavens in strength and height, towers fearfully above all the rest. Wulli Muhammad Khan, the Killadár of this strong place, Syud Mukhdoom, Risaldár, and Muhammad Mowla, who, with two thousand regular infantry, were appointed to defend this fortress, although they had with them good store of provisions, ammunition, and other necessaries to sustain a siege, still the unpropitious salt* of Muhammad Alí Khan had no hold on their gratitude. The Prince, mounted on an elephant, marched on to the plain before this hill fort, with his drums and trumpets sounding and beating before him, and then halted for two or three hours, and forming the lines of his regular and irregular infantry, and his Julowdárs, or body guard, he manœuvred and marched them about, while his horse in troops formed knots* or divisions, and threw the fear of their imposing dis­play into the hearts of the garrison of the fort; they then encamped at the distance of one fur­sung beyond the river. A man with a genius for poetry, who had heard the tramp of the cavalry, and had seen the discipline and order of the columns of march, and the splendour of the ensigns and standards, starred with gold, repeated without hesi­tation this quatrain,— “It may be said the heavens are beneath thy horses feet;”— “the pleiades are the marks of his shoe nails;”— “thy victorious standards on the day of battle, are like the Alifs of”*— “of a truth we have gained a victory.”

In short, when the officers and men in the fort saw the order of the troops, the readiness of the artillery, and the numbers of the cavalry, fear seized on their souls, and they gave up their man­hood gratuitously; and as they could not hope to fight successfully with Hydur’s Ghazies, they made a present of the keys of the fort to the servants of the victorious prince, and asked their lives. The prince gave them security, both private and public, and having appointed a governor, with a strong body of musketeers, to the charge of the fort, he marched to attack Amboor Gurh, which is about three measured Kose distant. The hill fort of Amboor, however, had an European officer in command with a garrison of brave soldiers, and he did justice to his command for fifteen days; until the walls were breached, and the army of the prince having agreeably to his orders, raised batteries on a small hill, to the Northward, and adjoining that of the fort, and having with three guns battered the walls down, the governor, reduced to extremity, surrendered the fort to the servants of Tippoo. Zein ul Abideen Daduni Nayut, who was the son-in-law of Assud Khan Muhkuri, the Foujdár of Kishengiri, was appointed by Hydur to the command there, and had charge also to repair the walls of this hill fort. Tippoo now returned to his father, and was honoured with innumerable gifts and rewards.