Leaving a detachment in Nijigul, Madhoo Rao marched forward; but the Nawaub’s Kuzzaks made great havoc among his foraging parties, and also attacked his advance and rear guards, and dis­played so much bravery, that the Pindarehs of the Mahratta camp, who, in thieving, cheating, and roguery of all kinds, were the ablest men of their time, were, by the daring and villany of Hydur’s Kuzzaks, completely outdone, and unable to leave their camp. The Mahrattas themselves, also, not­withstanding the strength of their army, were frightened at the Nawaub’s troops. But, to return— in time Madhoo Rao took Balapoor the greater; and intending, in the first place, to reduce the forts in the neighbourhood of Puttun, and make the Poligars of that quarter join and assist him in the conquest of the capital of the Khodadad State, he directed his march towards Balapoor the less. Budruzzuman Khan, who was Foujdár there, see­ing the strength of the Mahratta army, was alarmed, and considered that opposition could be of no avail; nevertheless, Budruzzuman Khan was a brave and faithful man; but the state of a man’s temperament is never long the same, and, according to his view of the case, it seemed to him that his best policy lay in surrendering the fort, and he accordingly gave up the keys, and those of the stores, to Mad­hoo Rao, and, being allowed to depart freely, he retired to Kirpa.

The Mahrattas now marched to Kolar; and, taking a sum of money from Delawur Khan, they allowed him to retain his Jageer. They then besieged the hill and fort of Murwakul, in which was a garrison of the Nawaub’s; and, after several assaults, and the loss of thousands of brave men, the fort was taken, and the Killadár and garrison all put to the sword. From that fort they marched towards Goorum Kondah, which fort was also in charge of one of Hydur’s officers; and, after some opposition, they took that also. Madhoo Rao gave this fort in Jageer to Meer Alí Ruza Khan, who was with him as an Omeidwar,* and whose father and grandfather had, in former times, held its Killadári or command for several generations, with authority to raise a thousand horse, and two or three thou­sand foot, to keep the country on that side in sub­jection, and with strict orders to reduce the Poligars.— Madhoo Rao then marched to attack Puttun.

The Nawaub had however obtained information of his design; and, with the whole body of his cavalry sought cover in the Jungul of Makuri, and waited there, like a hungry lion looking out for his prey. While he was thus waiting, it happened that suddenly the advanced guard of the Mahrattas, which, in the Persian language, is technically called Beeni-i-Usakir,* with a great quantity of stores, provisions, artillery, and the standards of the Paishwa, arrived, and encamped in the neigh­bourhood of Ootri Droog, ignorant of the presence of the Nawaub’s troops. The first day they halted, and the next day resolved to proceed, to besiege the fort of Seringaputtun; all the Mahratta troops being void of apprehension of meeting with the Nawaub’s forces. Having received this information from their encampment, the Nawaub forbade and prevented, for the whole day, a single man of his force from quitting the Jungle, keeping them in constant readiness. But, as soon as night drew on, the Nawaub marched, and, about midnight, came upon the rear of the unwary Mahrattas, and attacked them so vigorously and successfully, that, with all their overwhelming numbers, amounting to between forty and fifty thousand men, they lost the use of their senses; and, unable to stand against the sword and spear, mostly hid themselves in rice and camel bags,* which they had previously emptied, and some, by the active employment of their hands and feet, and by resorting to a hundred tricks and subterfuges, escaped from the battle. Some Chiefs of the Mahrattas, with abject fear, laid their heads under the feet of the horses of the Nawaub’s brave soldiers; and the Commanding Officer of the Mahrattas, mounting a horse without a saddle, fled to his great camp or head quarters. Victorious in a degree above all his former vic­tories, the Nawaub ordered his drums to beat and trumpets to sound for joy, and despatched the whole of the Mahratta spoil, as artillery, standards, &c. to Seringaputtun, and took up his ground of encampment on the same spot.

When Madhoo Rao heard of the shameful defeat which his Beenee, or advanced guard, had received, he was greatly afflicted, his colour fled, and he shed the fast tears of sorrow and anger, and bitterly reproached the pale trembling officer, who, after the destruction of his troops, had found means to escape, saying to him in great displeasure “by thy folly thou hast cut off the Paishwa’s nose,”* mean­ing that he had lost or sacrificed the Paishwa’s honour.

Madhoo Rao after this, left the neighbourhood of Chintamuni, where he was encamped, and went to seek refuge in the mountains of Ambajee Droog. At this time the Nawaub, by a night march, sur­rounded the fort of Balapoor the greater, carried it without difficulty at the head of his cavalry, and put the whole of the Mahratta garrison to the sword, and the next morning he returned to Makurri Droog. When this intelligence reached also Madhoo Rao, it threw him into great perplexity.

About this time, also, an officer from the Mahratta camp, with five or six thousand horse, plun­dering the country, as they went, arrived in the Barh Mahl; they were, however, followed and tracked by Hydur’s Kuzzaks, and by their exer­tions entirely dispersed or destroyed. And here, is it not natural to pause, and consider how won­derful it was, that, notwithstanding the exceeding great number of the Mahratta host, the intrepidity of the Nawaub’s Pindarehs so straightened them that they dared not quit the ground of their encamp­ment. The words of the holy book,* “How often has a small company conquered a large army.”* were thus completely verified.

After this, however, the Nawaub, consulting his good sense and discretion, and adapting his conquer­ing policy, to the times; according also, to the verse, “A wise man will not give cause of offence.”— “To a proud enemy he will be humble:— “When fire flames high water is thrown on it.”— “No one would put out fire by adding fire,”*— he des­patched several able ambassadors to Madhoo Rao, with some presents, which had fallen into his hands in the plunder of their camp, seven lakhs of rupees in money, and a message to this effect; that “it was not just for men of rank and courage, (meaning Madhoo), without cause to slay the poor or plunder the peaceable, but that there was no help for what was past;* that it became the dignity of Madhoo Rao to withhold his hands from slaying and plundering God’s creatures, and restrain his heart from devising injury to mankind; that he should return to his own country, where he would recommend that the money now sent should be deposited in his treasury, and be received by him as the profit or the produce of his invasion; and that he might consider the Khodadad state, (Mysore) as the aid and support of his own.”*

When these able, clear-sighted agents reached Madhoo Rao, they delivered their message to him in distinct terms, and handing over the money, with fair and flattering words, brought him to agree to extinguish the fire of discord, and make peace. Madhoo Rao, who had done nothing in two years and three months, in that time had made no permanent acquisition in Mysore, but on the con­trary, had witnessed on all sides the ruin of his own army; now, therefore, saw his best policy in the terms of the message, and accepted the propositions of the Nawaub; sending to him the prisoners he had made of the Nawaub’s troops, with presents of money and clothes; and, after that, returned to Poona.

The Nawaub, with his army, followed the Mah­rattas as far as Balapoor the less, and then visited the Talookas or districts plundered by them, where he pleased the hearts of the farmers and husband­men, by advances and aids of money, bullocks for the plough, seed and instruments* for the cultiva­tion of the land, and he moreover gave strict orders, to foster the population, and increase the cultivation, and remitted the share of produce belonging to government for one year. He then returned to Bangalore.