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 Chap. V.] SUPPRESSION OF UNLICENSED TRADING. 313

other duty for the same ; as also to transport and carry over such number of ad. leeo. men, being willing thereunto, as they shall think fit."

The invasion of the exclusive privileges of the charter by imlicensed traders The suppr&s- had occupied too much of the attention of the Company, and had too often been miiicensed the subject of petition and cum})laint to the crown, to allow it to be overlooked. Several minute and stringent clauses are accordingly devoted to it. Thus " full power and lawful authority" is given "to seize upon the persons of all such English, or any other our subjects in the said East Indies, which shall sail in any India or English vessel, or inhabit in those parts, without the leave and license" of the Company, "or that shall contemn or disobey their orders, and send them to England." The only security against the abuse of these enormous powers was an appeal, but the exercise of it was attended with consequences which must have made it a mockery ; for the moment an appeal was entered the Company were empowered "to seize u])on" the person or persons convicted and sentenced, "and to carry him or them home prisoners into England." As milicensed traders were not the only persons of whom the Company were apprehensive, it was provided that "for the better discovery of injuries and abuses to be done unto the said governor and Company, or their successors, by any of their servants I)y them employed in the said East Indies or voyages thither, it shall and may be lawful to and for the said governor and Company, and their respective presidents, chief agent, or governor in the said East Indies, to examine upon oath all factors, masters, pursers, supercargoes, commanders of castles, forts, fortifications, plantations, or colonies, or other person, touching or concerning any matter or thing as to which by law and usage an oath may be adminis- tered." In spite of all these precautions, it was still possible that by smuggling or otherwise the exclusive privileges conferred by the charter might be invaded ; and therefore, as an additional security, custom-house officers are enjoined not to "permit any entries to be made of any goods or merchandizes of the growth, production, or manufactiu'e of the ports or places aforesaid in Asia, Africa, and America, above limited or appropriated to the trade of the said governor and Company, other than such as from time to time shall be allowed of by the said governor and Company, or their successors, under their common seal, or tlie hand of the officer to be by them appointed to sit in the custom-house for that purpose." Thus the Company who not many years before had been threat- ened with utter extinction, had obtained a charter in which the crown, for the purpose of making their privileges as ann)le as possible, stretched its prero- gative to the very utmost, and took every imaginable precaution for their security both at home and abroad.

At this very time when the Company seemed about to enter on a new course Threatened of prosperity, a severe shock was given to their trade in Bengal by the rashness m ueugai. of their agent at Hooghly. Irritated beyond measure at the oppression practised or countenanced by the governor, he resolved to take the remedy into his own Vol. I. 40


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 3U

HISTORY OF INDIA.

(Book II

A.D. 1662. hands, and seized a country junk in the (junge.s with tiie determination to hold it as a security. Mir Jurnla, the celebrated Mogul general, immediately threat- ened to retaliate both on the inland agencies and on their factory at Hooghly. The agent, now terrified at the result of his own boldnes.s, sought counsel from the president and council of Surat, who directed him at once to repair and re-deliver the junk; and in the event of this concession not being deemed sufficient, to prepare for shipping all the Company's property and leaving the place. In sending these orders, the membei-s of the Surat council put the agent on his guard against the wiles of the Mogul officers, who, they assured him, Acquisition " usually offered civilities at the very moment when they intended to have bytheciown. recoursc to violencB and depredation." The dispute was ultimately arranged,

and the desperate measure of with- drawing entirely from Bengal wa« of course abandoned.

While the Company were thus threatened in the east of India, their footing in the west was about to be- come far firmer than it ever had been before by an event to which it is now necessary to attend. In June, 1661, two months after granting the above charter, Charles II. married the In- fanta Catherine of Portugal, and obtained, as part of her doAvry, "the port and island Bombay in the East Indies, together with all the rights, profits, teiTitories, and appurtenances thereof whatsoever." The island of Bombay, stretching eight miles from north-east to south-west, with an average breadth of three miles, has an estimated area of Httle more than eighteen square miles. Its value, however, must not be judged by its superficial extent. By land-locking a deep bay in a central locality, it forms the very best harbour in India. The use of such a harbour had long been earnestly desired by the Company ; and it was now secured in the be.st possible form by becoming the property of the Briti.sh crown, and consequently not liable to be interfered with on any pretext by the native powers.

In March, 1662, the English government de.spatched to the East Indies a

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 Chap. V.] ACQUISITION OF BOMBAY. 815

fleet of five men-of-war, under the conmiand of the Earl of AJarlboroimh. On ad. iooj.

o

boai'd the fleet were a viceroy from Portugal, authorized formally to complete the cession of the island, and Sir Abraham Shipman, with 500 soldiers, to take possession and thereafter remain as the first English governor. No opposition Difficulties

in obtaining

appears to have been anticipated ; but the Portuguese at Bombay, naturally ixjssossion unwilHng to be handed over to a foreign powei", took advantage of some ambiguities in the treaty by which the island was ceded, and refused to dtdiver it up. The English were themselves partly to blame for the unexpected oppo- sition, because instead of being satisfied with the "port and island Bombay," which was all that the treaty with Portugal expressly granted, they insisted that this grant conferred with it a right to all the Portuguese stations in that locality, and more especially to the i.sland of Salsette, only separated from Bombay by a naiTOw channel. The claim was certainly extravagant, as Salsette, thus represented as an accessory to Boml)ay, has an area of 150 square miles, and is consequently eight times larger than the principal.

The whole business was grossly mismanaged ; and ultimately the English, Temporary

occupation

prohibited from landing, and unwilling or unable to effect it by force, were of Aiyo- obliged to look out for some other station where they might obtain refreshments, and employ ])roper remedies to diminish the mortality which, in consequence of })rotracted confinement in the ships, was now making fearful ravages. In this emergency application was made to Sir George Oxinden, who had been sent out by the Company as president and chief director of all their aflTairs " at Sm'at, and all others their factories in the north parts of India from Zeilon to the Red Sea," for permission to land the troops at Surat, but even this could not be granted for fear of offending the Mogul; and Sir Abraham Shipman was reduced to the necessity of landing the troops on the island of Anjedivah, fifty miles south-east from Goa, where numbei's of them perished. The Earl of Marlborough had in the meantime left them to their fate, and sailed for England.

These untoward events seriously atFected the prospects of the Company. They had hoped much from the presence of the ships of war, which they thought would have the effect of procuring them more respect from the native ]iowers, and of intimidating the Dutch, who were now openly aspiring at an ascendency on the Indian coast as complete as that which they had established in the Eastern islands. It had even been expected that the king's ships might have been made iustrumenttd in opening up new mercantile channels to the Com- pany by receiving on freight Portuguese investments from Goa, and thus forming the commencement of a canying trade which might yield lucrative returns. The failure of the expedition to Bombay disappointed all these expec- tations, and for some time the Conij^anv appear to have done little more than, employ their servants in giving eff'eot to the new clauses in their charter for the hunting down of those whom they stigmatized as interlopers. Indirectly,


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allowed themselves to be systematically plundered during six days — Sevajee, according to the account of one Smith, an Englishman, who was taken prisoner and carried before him, sitting outside the town in his tent ordering heads and hands to be choped off in cases where persons were supposed to be concealing their wealth. While the natives were thus pusillanimous, a better spirit was displayed by the inmates both of the Dutch and English factories. The English, in particular, greatly distinguished themselves. Having put their factory in as good a state of defence as the shortness of the time allowed, and called in the aid of their ships' crews, they met Sevajee's demands and threats with defiance; and when a number of Mahrattas, without venturing on an assault, forced their way into an adjoining house, a sally was made which dislodged them. By this valiant conduct the English saved not only their own property, but that of many natives whom they had taken under their protection, and rose high in the estimation of Aurungzebe himself, who granted them a firman exempting them for ever from a portion of the customs paid by other nations, and also from all transit charges. The visit of Sevajee, which at first threatened the Company with the loss of all their property at Surat,

estimated at £80,000 was thus eventually the indirect means of procuring for them important advantages.

In 1665, the politics of Europe again assumed a threatening appearance. A Dutch war was evidently impending. The Company, well aware that, in that event, the Dutch would sweep the Indian seas, scarcely ventured to prepare an outward voyage, and contented themselves with instructing their agents in India to make all possible haste in completing their investments, and despatching the homeward bound ships. Nor was a Dutch war the only source of their anxiety, as new competitors, who were afterwards to prove the most formidable of all, were about to enter the field. The French had long had an eve to the Indian traffic; and an exclusive company, sharing largely in royal patronage, and invested with important privileges, had been formed This company had


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 •^'•'^ HISTORY OF INDIA. [Book II.

A.D. icco hitherto rested satisHed with j)r(>mi.sing gi-eat things without attempting to perform them; but a new spirit liaving been infused into it, it was now a}>out to act in earnest, and on an extensive scale. On the very first voyage eight vessels well armed, so as to be equally prepared for war and commerce, haxl been despatched. Made aware of the fact only by imperfect rumours, the London Company were at first apprehensive, from the arming of the vessels, that piratical objects might be intended; and sent out instructions that the Iiomeward sliips should sail as a fleet, and be provided with the means of defence. On being better informed, they deemed it necessary only to inculcate the necessity of using caution, and guarding against misunderstandings which miglit lead to discussions between the two crowns. While giving the.se j udicious counsels the court gave evident indications of uneasiness, and used language which miglit be interpreted into an instinctive foreboding of the great struggle which the two nations were afterwards to wage for supremacy in the East. ioient In the desire which the Company now felt for fortified stations, they had

internal .7

dissensions ovcrlookcd 0116 danger. Their object was to secure an asylum against external foes, and it seems never to have occurred to them that foes of a different kind might arise and turn the fortifications against their o"wn employers. A remark- able case of this kind now occurred. Sir Edward Winter had, as already men- tioned, been appointed head of the Company's establishment at Madras, and, by their instructions, had added considerably to the strength of Fort St. George. His subsequent conduct had not given satisfaction ; and, under the impression that he was endeavouring to enrich liimself by private trade, the court had superseded him, and sent out Mr. George Foxcroft as his successor. On that gentleman's arrival in Jime, 1665, he was received with all due respect, and took his place at the head of the coimcil, while his predecessor, agreeably to his instructions, continued, in the interval previous to departure, to act as his second. Sir Edward Winter, though his term for office was nearly expired, had been deeply offended at his dismissal ; and while continuing to officiate in the council, had been constantly on the alert to detect something in the conduct or language of his successor on which he might found a charge against him. While under the influence of siich feelings, he probably had Uttle difficulty in finding what he wanted : and accordingly, Mr. Foxcroft, three months after his arrival, was attacked and violently carried off" to prison, on the extraordinary ground of having uttered seditious and treasonable expressions against the king's government. During the scuffle caused by the apprehension, a Mr. Dawes, a member of the council, lost his life, and Mr. Foxcroft himself, together with his son and Mr. Sambrooke, another member of councU, was wounded Its govern- After this outragcous proceeding. Sir Edward Winter was too far committed

usurped by to bc deterred by any other irregularity, and he at once re-assimied the govern-

Mir Ed wc rd

Winter. ment. It seems that he was not without supporters, for he succeeded in forming a council, including among its members the lieutenant of the gamson.


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 Chap. V.J CONVENTION RESPECTING BOMBAY. 319

During this internal strife, there was no small risk that the fort itself would be a.d. iocs.

lost to the Company. The Dutch, now at war with England — the Portuguese viceroy at Goa, offended by the course of proceedings at Bombay — and the King of Golconda — were all anxious to obtain possession of it. The la.st had even taken steps for that purpose, and was meditating an attack by one of his officers, when he was called away for still more urgent service.

Sir Edward Winter at first took credit for loyalty to his sovereign and disinterested zeal to promote the interests of the Comj)any, and endeavoured to justify himself by numerous letters addressed to infiuential (quarters ; among others, it is said, to the king and the Archbishop of Canterbury. His conduct, however, had been too gross to admit of apology ; and on finding that, with the sanction of government, force was about to be employed against him, he managed, after persisting several years in rebellion, to obtain a free pardon, and disappeared from the scene. The leniency with which he was treated says little for the wisdom and vigour of the Company's management at this period, and was doubtless an incentive to similar acts of rebellion on subsequent occasions.

Sir Abraham Shipman, after making an offer of Bombay to the Company, cnnventiou

with the

as has been already mentioned, had continued with his troops at Anjedivah, Portuguese enduring the misery of seeing them dying around him. At last, in 1664, he HomTm"'^ himself became one of the victim.s. Mr. Cooke, who had been his secretary, assumed the command; and, under the conviction that it was the only chance of saving the lives of the soldiers still sm'viving, entered into a convention with the Viceroy of Goa, by which he agreed to accept of the port and island of Bombay, according to the treaty as interpreted by the Poi-tuguese. In one respect the terms were even worse tiian those originally offered to tiie Earl of Marlborough, for, by an additional article not then mentioned, the Portuguese resident in Bombay were, along with other liberties, to be exempted from the ])ayment of customs. When the survivors on Anjedivah left for Bombay, their numbers did not much exceed 100; the expense incuiTcd by government for the pay and maintenance of the troops, from the date of their embarkation in England, was above £13,000.

Mr. Cooke's convention with the Portuguese was no sooner knowTi in Eng- disavowed land than it was disavowed ; and, with the view of caiTving out the cession as the English had interpreted it, Sir Gervase Lucas was appointed governor of Bombay. Before he sailed he drew up a report, founded on the documents transmitted by Mr. Cooke, and gave it as his opinion that the annual expense of the gamson necessary for the island would, Avithout including contingencies, amount to at least £7371, and that, moreover, a large outlay for new stores would be immediately required. This report appeal's to have made government doubtful as to the propriety of continuing to retiiin Bombay as an immediate possession of the crown. As yet it had yielded nothing, though it had already cost much, and was apparently about to cost more. The conclusion therefore


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 Chap V.| THE TliEATY UF BKEDA. c21

that, as the vessel was trading without license within the limits of the Corn- ad. i667. pany's charter, both it and the goods found in it were forfeited. In terms of the charter, the judgment thus pronounced was subject to review, and Skinner, on making his appeal, was entitled to insist that, for the purpose of carrying it out, he should be sent home in one of the Company's ships to England. This, how- ever, was refused, and he was left to make his way to Europe as he best could, by an overland jom-ney. His complaint, presented at first to the government, impoitjiut was referred successively to a committee of the council, and to the House of tionai Peers. The Company, when ordered to answer, declined, on the ground that the House of Peers had no primtuy jurisdiction, and could only judge by appeal in the last resort. The lords found that they had jurisdiction, and peremptorily ordered the Company to plead. On their continued refusal judgment was given against them, to the amount of £5000. The Company's plea raised a great constitutional ((uestion, which, on their petition, was keenly taken up by the House of Commons and decided in the Company's favour. Two branches of the legislature were thus diametrically opposed, and can-ied on the dispute with more temper than judgment. When Skinner attempted to enforce the judg- ment, the commons interfered and sent him a piisoner to the Tower. The lords were not slow to follow this bad exami)le, and imprisoned the governor, Sir Samuel Barnadiston, and three other members of the court. Not satisfied with this, they declared the petition of the Company to the conmions to be false and scandalous, and the commons retaliated by resolving that any one who should execute the judgment in Skinner's favour was a betrayer of the rights and liberties of the commons of England. The controversy threatened to be interminable, and was not settled till parliament had been adjourned seven times. At last the king held a conference with both houses at Whitehall, and succeeded, by personal persuasion, in inducing them to erase all the proceedings from their journals. In one sense this gave the Company the victory, as the judgment against them was not enforced, and Skinner remained without redress. The next event of this period deserving of particidar notice, is the general })eace concluded by the treaty of Breda, 31st July, IGGT. To this treaty Britain, France, Holland, and Denmark were parties. The benefit which com- merce in general derived from the cessation of hostilities could not but be felt by the London Eaat India Company. It was not, however, without alloy. The principle ado])ted in framing the treaty was that of ut'i possidetis, which of Coiuutions

of theti-eaty

course left the parties, in regard to possession, exactly as they stood at its date, of Bmia. In the case of the Company, the effect was that they finally lost the islands of Polaroon and Damm, because, in the course of the war, the Dutch had availed themselves of their naval superiority to capture them. The loss seemed the more grievous because the Company had been sanguine enough to expect that, by the possession of them, they might be able to secure a share in the envied spice trade. So intent were they on this object that, even after these islands Vol. I. 41


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 322 IIISTOFIY or INIflA. fIV>OK II

A.D. 1609. were wrested from tli(ni, they continued to niaintain an unavailing Htruggle against the ascendency which tlie Dutch had established in the Indian Archi- pelago. The only consolation which the Company received wan, that tin- loss which they sustained by the Brerla treaty was not so serioas as they ajjpre- hended when first made acquainted with its tenns. During the asurfjation <»f' Sir Edward Winter at Fort St. George, information had been received that ht- was in communication with the Dutch governor of Ceylon, and conteini)lating the delivery of the fort. Had this act of treachery been completed, the rule of uti possidetis would have covered it, and thas one of the tlu-ee seats of the presidencies acquired by the Company would in all probability have been lost to them for ever.

Te I begins The Only other incident of this period which it Is necessary to notice is of a

to fonu an *•

investment strictly Commercial nature, and yet, when its consequences are traced, it will l.-e found to have had a far mightier influence, not merely on the fortunes of the Company, but on society at large, than any single event, military' or political, which occurred in the seventeenth century. In a letter dated 24th January, ] 668, and sent out with the Company's ships which made the voyage of that year, the agent at Bantam is desired "to send home by these sliips 100 lbs. waight of the best tey that you can gett." The language evidently implies that the article was already understood; and it is known that several yeai-s before, an order had been given to obtain small quantities of tea as a present to his majesty ; but this is the fu'st instance of a public order, and an order given, it is presumed, for the purpose not of making presents of it as a mere cm-iosity, but of ascertaining whether it mioht not become an article of lucrative invest- ment. Within a century of the date of this order, the quantity imported by the Company approached 3,000,000 lbs.; and in 1834:, the last year of the Company's monopoly, it exceeded 33,000,000 lbs., and paid duty to government to the amount of £3,589,361. Since then the import into the United Kingdom has more than doubled.

Bombay Qu the 27th of March, 1669, the grant of the port and island of Bomba'.

granted to ,

the Com- which government had been for some time contemplating, was completed by a regular charter, issued as usual in the form of letters-patent addi'essed by the king to all his subjects. After stating the nature and extent of the right acquired by the marriage treaty from the Portuguese, eulogizing the Company for having managed the trade to the East Indies " to the lionom- and profit of the nation," and expressing "an earnest desire that the said governor and Company may, by all good and lawful ways and means, be encom'aged in their difficult and hazardous trade and trafiick in those remote parts of the world, ' his majesty bestows the island and its appm^tenances upon them " in as large and ample a manner, to all intents, constructions, and pm-jDoses, as we ourselves now have and enjoy, or may or ought to enjoy the same, by ^■irtue and force of the said gi-ant of our said brother the King of Portugal," constituting them

pany.


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 Chap. V.j BOMBAY GRANTED TO THE COMPANY. ^^23

"the true and absolute proprietors of tlie port and island, and premises afore- ad. ibtss). said, and every part and parcel thereof" Along with the island were granted • all the artillery, and all and singular arms, armour, weapons, ordnance, munition, powder, shot, victuals, magazines, stores, ammunition, and provisions of war, TemiBofthe and other provisions whatsoever; and all and singular ships, junks, vessels, and l)oats, and all manner of merchandize, and wares, cloathing, implements, beasts/' &C., " which shall be or remain upon within the premises, or any part of thereof, and belong unto us at the time when the said port and island and premises sliall be delivered up into the possession of the said governor and Company. ' Power was, moreover, given them " to take into their service, at their own costs and charges, such and so many of our officers and soldiers as shall then be in or uj)on the said port or island, or within the territories and precincts thereof, as they shall think fit, and as shall be contented or willing to serve them either in the said port and island or elsewhere. '

The port and island thus granted were to be held of the crown " as of tlie inanoi- of Ea.st Greenwich, in the county of Kent, in free and common socage, and not in cap'ite nor by kniglit's service, yielding and paying therefore to us, our heirs and successors, at the custom-house, London, the rent or sum of ten pounds of lawful money of England, in gold, on the thirtieth day of September yearly, for ever." The only restrictions and reservations of any importance Restiutions were, that the Company slioidd not " at any time hereafter sell, alien, transfer, tious. or otherwise di.spose of the said island and premises, or any part or parts thereof, to any prince, potentate, or .state, or other person or persons Avhatsoever, but such as are or shall be the subjects and of the allegiance" of the British crown, and that " the inhabitants of the said island, as om* liege people, and subject to our imperial crown and dignity, jurisdiction and government, shall be permitted to remain there, and enjoy the free exerci.se of the Roman Catholic religion in the same manner sis they did at the time of the said gi'ant to us made by our said brother the King of Portugal as aforesaid, and that such order be observed for the exercise and conservation thereof in all things according to the purport and effect of the said article and treaty in that behalf; and further, also, that the said inhabitants, and other our subjects in the said port or island, shall and may peaceably and quietly have, hold, possess, and enjoy all their .several and respective properties, privileges, and advantages wliatsoever, which they or any of them lawfully had or enjoyed, or ought to have had or enjoyed, at the time of the surrender of tlie said port and island to us as aforesaid, or at an}' time since."

All the inhabitants of Bombay, together with all afterwards born in it, or Judicial

.... ., ,. . , . 11 1 Ti • 1 authoritv.

wnthin its precincts and limits, were to have and enjoy all the liberties and privileges of British subjects under the gcn'ernment of the Conmany, who were to have full power to exercise judicial authority by them.selves, their ministers, and agents, to repel force by force, by sea and land, in case of open hostilities

J


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 82 1

IIISTOUY (JF INDIA.

[Book II

A.D. 1600 with foreign enemies; and " in cases of lelx-llion, mutiny, or sedition, of refusing to serve in wars, fleeing to the enemy, forsaking colours or ensigns, or other offences against law, custom, and discipline military, in as large and ample a manner to all intents and purposes whatsoever as any captain-general hy virtue of his office might do."

The very liberal terms on which Charles II. conferred Bombay on the Com- pany, and the very ample powers with which he invested them for the purpose of governing it, justify a suspicion that the act was not quite so disintere.sted I'lobabie in j^g hag bccn represented, and that the Company had already begun the practice

tothegrant they aftcrwards followed of smoothing the difficulties in their way by the free distribution of money in influential quarters. They did this to an enormoas extent, as will afterwards be seen, in the comparatively pure period which immediately followed the Revolution, and endeavoured to ju.stify it by alleging that it had- long been customary. If so, it is not uncharitable to presume that Charles and his corrupt courtiers did not allow the custom to be forgotten in this instance. But whether obtained by a free grant or a corrupt bargain, the port and island of Bombay was unquestionably the most important acquisition which the Company had yet made. Even in a pecuniary view its value was by no means contemptible. According to a statement transmitted to the British government by the deputy-governor, Captain Gary, the year before the Com- jiany entered into possession, the annual revenue, derived principally from rent, produce, and customs, amounted to £6490, 17s. 9d. It was understood that this amount might be largely increased ; and consequently that in Bombay the Company had not only acquired a position which might be rendered impregnable by land and sea, but a revenue which, duly husbanded, might meet all the outlay necessary for fortifications and other improvements. The brightening prospect thus opened appears to have emboldened the Company greatly to extend their operations, and their investments became larger than at any foimer period.

I rejected

improve ments at Bombay.

CHAPTER YL

Administration and progress of Bombay — Difl&culties — State of the other settlements of the Company.

>MBAY was at first made subordinate to Surat. Sir George Oxinden, though still continuing to reside and hold his position as president at the latter, was appointed governor and com-

i^ mander-in-chief of the former; but at the same time authorized to send one of the members of Ids council, as deputy-governor, personally to administer the affairs of the island. With this view a series of directions had been drawn up by the court in England. The fort or castle was


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 Chap. VI. J

PEOJECTED IMPROVEMENTS AT BOMBAY.

32o

^j^ft^no^li

"V

English Fokt, Bombay.— Churchill's Voyages.

to be enlarged and strengthened; a town, so situated as to be under its a d. icoo protection, was to be built on a regular plan ; inhabitants were to be in- duced to settle by exemptions f'.om castoms; and while the English were to be preferred, others also were to be encoui-ao-ed by the free exercise of their re- ligion. The improvement of the revenue, so far as practicable, without imposing new and bur- densome taxes, was not to be forgotten. To foster manufac- tures of cotton and silk goods, looms were to be purchased for the weavers ; and to give new facilities to commerce, a liarbom- and docks were to be constructed.

Before much progress could be made in carrjHing out these arrangements, ii,awb.ickg several untoward events took place, and new difficulties arose from various (luarters. The Portuguese, who had never been reconciled to the ces.sion of Bombay, endeavoured to render it as little lucrative as possible to its new pos- sessors, by taking advantage of their position at Tanna to impose heavy transit duties on all goods passing through it to or from Bombay ; the trade of which was in consequence greatly crippled, as Tanna, situated at the head of Bom- bay harbom', commanded the only proper line of communication with the main- land. While an important branch of traffic was thus in a manner interdicted, the trade of Surat was again suspended by an incursion of Sevajee. Tmme- s„rat again diately after his former visit, a substantial wall of brick, flanked with bastions, i;'"8*' > lijid been commenced and was approaching completion, but as much still remained open as to make it easy for Sevajee to penetrate into the heart of the town and resume his work of plunder. Besides the English and Dutch, there was now also a French factory. The last showed no fight, but obtained an ignominious exemption by giving the Mahrattas a free passage through their factory, and thus enabling them to obtain a rich booty by the plunder of a Tjirtar prince who had returned by way of Surat from a jiilgrimage to Mecca. The Dutch stood upon the defensive, and seemed so well prepared that they were allowed to escape. The English, under President Aungier, who had suc- ceeded on the death of Sir Georije Oxinden, distinmiished them.selves as before by beating off" repeated attacks. On this occasion, however, they were not so fortunate as to obtain the approbation of the Moguls. Sevajee, before he retired, had opened a friendly negotiation with the Englisii, and several conferences had been held with the view of arranging the re-establishment of the Company's factory at Rajahpore. Sevajee was anxious to secure the revenue which had


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 320 IIISTOliY 0|- IM^IA. [Book II

AD. 1673. been lost liy the witlulrawal oi the factory, and the presidency at Surat were disposed to consent, provided they could obtain compensation for past and security against future injuries. These conferences were not unobserved by tlie Mogul authorities, and gave rise to suspicioiLS, of which the results afterwards became apparent.

War with At the very time when the bonds of amity with the Moguls were thua

and aiiiancu looscued, tlic poUtics of Europc had been undergoing a change which threat<jned rauce. ^^ gxposc the Company once more to an unequal contest with the Dutch. Hostili- ties were in fact declared; but, at the same time, by the alliance of England with France, which had nov/ a considerable fleet in the Ea.st, the interests of the Company were better protected than formerly. With a wi.se precaution, however, they endeavoured to make themselves independent of foreign aid, and vigorously pushed on the fortifications of Bombay. They were thus engaged, but the works were far from completed and very inadequately garri.soned, when, in February, 1673, Rickloff van Goen, the Dutch Governor-general of India, made his appearance on the coast with a fleet of twenty- two ships, having 1 000 regular troops on board. Bombay was evidently the object of attack, and could scarcely have resisted had it been made on the instant ; but the Dutch lost time by endeavouring in vain to secure the co-operation of a land force under Seva- jee, and when at last prepared for action, lo.st heart on seeing the kind of reception which awaited them. Pi^esident Aungier, who fortunately happened to be in Bombay at the time, exerted himself, as Orme hyperbolically expresses it, " with the calmness of a philosopher and the courage of a centurion." Besides

Bombay 400 Em'opean soldiers, he succeeded in mustering 1500 militia, chiefly Portu- •ruese and natives. Nor was he destitute of a marine force. In the harbour lay two frigates, a Dutch prize fitted up as a ship of war, and three armed sloops which had been lately built as a protection against the Malabar pirates ; to this force a most important addition was opportunely made by the arrival of four French ships, which, on being informed of the danger, had hastened from Surat. Rickloft^ under these circumstances, satisfied himself with reconnoitring, and then suddenly disappeared.

Madras On the Coromaudel coast the Dutch had excited similar alarm, and great

fears were entertained for the safety of Fort St. George. Here, however, the French again proved important auxiliaries, and by means of a powerful fleet not (^nly kept the Dutch in check, but made themselves masters of Trincomalee, in the island of Ceylon, and took St. Thom^ by storm. The latter capture, as the place is situated only at a short distance from Madras, gave the Company more alarm than satisfaction, and they were therefore not displeased when, after a short tenvire, the French were expelled and St. Thome returned to the posses- sion of the King of Golconda. Another success of the Dutch gave them deeper concern. On the 22d of August, 1673, the Dutch fleet engaged in the .siege of St. Thome fell in with the Company's homeward bound ships, ten in number, and


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 Chai>. VI. J

I'EACE WITH HOLLAND.

 * i27

t^W'}

Bird's-eye View of Trincomalee — Cliurchill's Voyiiges

richly laden. A running fight commenced oil" the coast to the south of Mixsuli* a d. i6T4 vessels. The others, thouii'li not with- out sustaining con- siderable damage, found their way to Madras In the In- dian Archipelago, where the Dutcli superiority wasstill more decided, it was impos.sible for tlie Company tt)
 * );itam, and issued in the sinking of one and the capture of two of the Company's

traffic with any advantage, tiiuugh they were now alive to the im})oi-tance of carrying their trade still farther east, and endeavouring to establish that direct intercourse with China from which, in cour.se of time, their chief, if not their only connnercial profits were derived.

The danger to which Bombay had been exiiosed from the Dutch ceased i''^"^--' "'"'

® J 1 ^ ^ Holland

entirely in consequence of a new whirl in European politics, by which, in 167-i, peace was concluded, and shortly after happily cemented by the marriage of the Prince of Orange with Mary, daughter of the Duke of York. Another danger, however, immediately succeeded. The Moguls and the Mahrattas were con- stantly at war; and now that the English, by the possession of an island belonging to neither, were gradually beginning to assume the dignity of an independent Indian power, their alliance was naturally courted by both. The true policy of the Company in the meantime was t(^ maintain a perfect neu- trality; but the circmnstances were such as to make this almost impossible. The Mofful fleet, commanded by the Siddee, soujrht shelter from a storm in ti.o M«.gui

^ •' ■ ® _ fleet in bow-

Bombay harbom*. To refuse it was impossible, without provoking tlie Moguls; i.ayi.iii..mr

to grant it was equally impossible, without giving umbrage to Sevajee. In this

dilemma the Bombay government took the only course wiiich lay open to them,

by allowing the Siddee to remain till the storm blew over, and then requesting

him to depart. He refused to obey ; and collecting his vessels in the channel

which separates the island from the mainland, landed a number of armed men

at the villages of Sion and Mazagong, and drove out the inhabitants, apjiarently

with the intention of gaining a permanent footing on the island. This was not

to be tolerated; and after desultory hostilities to the disadvantage of the Siddee,

he purchased permission to prolong his stay by engaging that no more than 300

of his men, armed only with their swords, should be ashore at one time, and that

he would make no attack on the Corlahs — a fertile district of the Concan, stretch-

inof alono- the eastern shore of Bomliav harbour, and belonfrinu to the Mahrattas.


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 •^-8 HISTORY OF INDIA. [Eook II.

A.D it574. Sevajee was luitmaily jcaloas oi' this arrangement, and though, from his

anxiety to see tlie Company's factoiy again e.staljlished at Rajahpore, he entered Treaty with into a formal treaty with them, binding himself to compen-sate them for all the losses which they had sustained by his depredation.s, it soon became apparent that he was determined not to tolerate the continuance of a hostile fleet in Lis Immediate vicinity. His first step was to send his general, Moro Punt, down the Ghauts with 10,000 men, to occupy Callianee or Kallian, opposite to the i.sland of Salsette. By this movement he accomplished two objects — he levied chout on the Portuguese, who had greatly offended him by a fanatical attempt to force the Mahrattas within their territories to become Chri.stians, and he overawed the Siddee, who, afraid for his fleet, made all haste to depart. Bombay har- bour had, however, proved so convenient a station that the Siddee fleet, after a short cruise, during which many devastating descents had been made on the Mahratta coasts, again retm-ned. The Bombay government having again permitted it to occupy its former station, Sevajee was greatly incensed, and resolved to rid himself of it at all hazards. With this view he at first collected a large fleet of boats within his own territory, on the east side of Bombay har- bour ; but finding the attack of the Siddee fleet in this manner impracticable, he made application to the Portuguese at Tanna for permission to cross over to Salsette, from which he anticipated little difficulty in finding access to Bom- bay itself This permission being refused, he turned his attention to an opposite Sevajee quarter, and dexterously availed himself of two small islands, called Kennery

occupies.

Kenuerv. and Hcnery, situated so as to command the southern entrance of Bombay har- bour. The natural strength of this position had hithei-to been overlooked both by Portuguese and English ; and when Sevajee had not only discovered it, but taken possession of Kennery, the larger of the two islands, and began to erect fortifications upon it, the greatest alarm prevailed. It was of no use to attempt negotiation, and therefore action was immediately resolved upon. The plan, however, was very defective, and in the first encounter the advantage was rather in ftivour of Sevajee's party. A second attempt would have been disas- trous to the assailants had not the Revenge, the only English fi-igate present, kept her ground, and, after sinking five of the enemy's vessels, compelled the whole fleet of fifty to seek safety by flight. The Mahrattas still kept possession of Kennery, and, mounting several cannon, fii'ed without much skill or effect. Meanwhile the Moguls, informed of the hostilities, expressed a desire to share m them, and sent a considerable fleet to Bombay. The dislodgment of the Mahrattas might now have been easy ; but the English, having discovered that the Siddee, if he succeeded in capturing it, meant to keep it to liimself, with- held their aid, and left the two native powers to fight it out as they best could. The struggle was in consequence protracted, and was not finished when Sevajee died in 1680.

Though war was thus raging in its vicinity, Bombay continued to make


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 Chap. VI. J PEOGRESS OF BOMBAY. 329

progress, and the propriety of substituting it for Sura^i, as the seat of the western a.d. 1074. presidency, had become so obvious as now to be regarded only as a question of time. Its fortifications had been carried on for a series of years without inter- ruption, and, as early as IGT-i, mounted 100 pieces of cannon; its regular gan-i- son consisted of two companies, each of 200 men ; tluree companies of militia had been regularly organized ; and several well-manned vessels were permanently stationed in its harbour. The progress would have been still more rapid had not a deficiency of funds induced the government to adopt rather questionable means of replenishing their treasury. The inhabitants were burdened with new taxation in the shape of excise duties, and both imports and exports were charged witii customs equalling, and in some instances far exceeding those which the Great Mogul, in the plenitude of his power, levied either from his own subjects or from strangers. On imports, including corn, grain, and timber, nuties levied 2^ per cent, was to be levied as custom, and 1 per cent, to defray the expen.se anUexiwits. of fortifications ; on exports the customs alone was fixed at 3^ per cent. Some articles of little bulk but considerable value, as gold and silver, jewels, mu.sk and amber, were the only exemptions, while Indian tobacco and Indian iron imported, and, still more unaccountably, the whole produce of the island (cocoa- nuts, salt, fish, &c.) exported, were saddled with a custom of 8 per cent. Some of these impositions almost look as if the object had been not to encourage trade, but to extinguish it. The only justification must be sought in the eager desire of the governor to show that the original estimate of the revenue from the island was not overrated, and that it was able not only to pay its expenses, but yield a surplus.

While the governor was thus taxing his ingenuity in the invention of new Mutiny in

° O ts J Bombay.

som-ces of revenue. Captain Shaxton, his deputy, was, if not actively encourag- ing, at least conniving at proceedings of a mutinous tendency. The principal grounds of complaint by the soldiers were, that their period of service, which was limited to three years, had expired, and that a month's pay, which had been promised them, had been withheld. On these groimds they threatened to lay down their arms. If the complaints were well founded, and it is to be presumed that they were, as Bruce in his Annals commends the prudence of President Aungier in granting the demands of the soldiers, it is not easy to see the justice of the praise which the same author bestows upon him for firmness in afterwards seizing the principal leaders and tr}4ng them, not by civil, but by martial law. The charter, it is true, authorized martial law, but it was surely both right and expedient that, in having recourse to it for the fii-st time, the guilt should not oidy have been of a very aggravated description, but that, even after it was proved, judgment should have been tempered with mercy. Nothing of this is seen in President Aungier's proceedings. The men were ])romised pay and then refused it; they had served the full period for which they had enlisted, and

insisted on their discharge. If the justice of the complaint could not be denied, Vol. I. 42


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 •i-^O inSTOKY OF INDIA. [B^jok I!

•^■P- ^''""- the real fault was not in those who complained, hut in the government wlio made it necessary. At all events, there was nothing in the conduct of the so-called mutineers to justify the sentence which condemned three of them to death, and which was actually carried into effect in the wise of one of them This first exercise of martial law in name of the Company took place on 21.>t October, 1 674<. Captain Shaxton, the worst culprit, if there was one, was next tried, and found guilty on several charges, but his station, though it only aggravated his offence, protected him, and he was sent to England to ht dealt with as might there be deemed proper. Principle of The most memorable event in the history of the Company in 1 676 was the

seuiority _ _ _ i *'

estabusiied. formal adoption of the principle of seniority as the rule of succession to offices of trust and emolument. In the letter of the court to the presidency of Surat the mode in which the principle was to be applied is thas stated: — 'For the advancement of our apprentices, we direct that, after they have serv^ed for the first five yeares, they shall have £10 per annum for the two last yeares; and having served these two yeares, to be entertayned, one yeare longer, as Titers, and have writers' sallary ; and having served that yeare, to enter into the degi-ee of factors, which otherwise would have been ten yeares. And knowing that a distinction of titles is in many respects necessary, we do order, that when apprentices have served their times, they be styled vjriters; and when writer.^ have served their times, they be styled factors ; and factors hadng served their times, to be styled merchants ; and merchants having served their times, to be styled senior merchants." By this an-angement many disputes as to advance- ment were obviated, and much discontent in consequence suppressed ; but the principle of seniority, except in mere matters of routine, when the most ordinary qualifications combined with a sufficient amount of practice may suffice, is 'iciou.'i in the extreme, because it removes all stimulus to exertion, and makes no accomit of either ability or industry. It is rather singular that in lajdng down this rule the court saw the necessity of departing from it in one very important particular, by holding out a kind of premium to military talent, enjoining all their civil servants "to apply themselves to acquire a knowledge of military discipline, that, in the event, either of any sudden attack, or of being found better qualified for military than for civil duties, they might receive com- missions, and have the pay of military officers, till the pleasure of the court should be known." Rival In the course of the war carried on between the Moguls and the Mahrattas,

Bombiiy°by the Siddec had made himself master of Henery in the same way as Sevajee had ■vn!i sfvtjee ^^ Kenucry ; and thus by the negligent and irresolute conduct which the local authorities had pursued, Bombay was exposed to a double danger, and its pros- perity was seriously interrupted. The court at home, gi-eatly perplexed at the threatening aspect of affairs, seem not to have been equal to the emergency, and disregarding the dangei" of being ousted altogether, kept insisting on a number


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 Chap. VI] ATTEMPTS ON BOMBAY. 331

of petty deductions, which produced much discontent among their own .servants, ad loss. and imposed various new burdens which were loudly complained of by the other inhabitants. At the same time temporizing expedients became the order of the day; and both the Moguls and Mahrattas, emboldened by the pusillani- mous spirit in which their encroachments were met, set no limits to their arro- gance. As if Bombay had been set up as a prize to be contended for, they were now only intent on deciding whether Siddee or Sevajee was to be the winning The si.uiee

, 111 !• !• .'111(1 Sev.ijei

party. It would almost seem that the Company were gradually makmg up their minds to some sucii disastrous and ignominious result ; for, in the face of remon- strances from India, complaining of the reductions ah-eady made, and distinctly stating that without additional expenditure and reinforcements the island would be lost, the court intimated their final decision that the fortifications having been the source of the heaviest expense, were to be continued in their present state without further improvements — that the manning of the batteries was to be reduced to the lowest scale pos.sible — and that, with the exception of one small frigate, the armed ships stationed for guarding the harbour were to be sold. The letter of the court, after putting the island in jeopardy by these most imj)rovident and niggardly injunctions, ludicrou.sly, or, as some would rather tfrm it, insultingly, concludes with a recommendation to the governor to maintain strict discipline, and liave the garrison always prepared for a vigorous defence.

The above letter, addressed in the beginning of 1679 to Surat, which, by the tnjuaicious

. retrench- way, was also to furnish its quota of reduction, by being degraded from a presi- ment.

dency to the less expensive form of an agency, produced a remonstrance which made the court pause before proceeding further in their reckless career of retrenchment. Surat accordingly resumed its rank as a presidency, and Bombay obtained some slight addition to its gamson. The change of policy thus indi- cated unhappily proved evanescent; and though Samliajee, now at the head of the Mahrattas, in consequence of the death of his father, was known to have aggressive designs on Bombay, its gamson, in Januar^^ 1683, could barely uuister 100 European.s, clamouring for additional ])ay as absolutely necessary to furnish them with the means of subsistence. On a former occa.sion, when similar complaints were made, the only step taken was to tantalize the cora- plainers by obtaining letters-patent from the cro^vn for the e.stablisliment of a mint at Bombay, a measure which, however useful in itself, only increjised the quantity of coin without giving them any larger share of it. On the present occasion tiie conqilaints were similarly treated ; and the letter from home in 1 68+ was chiefly occupied with announcing the erection of a court of admiralty, the judge of which, appointed by royal commission, was to have jurisdiction as far as tile Company's limits extended, and employ it specially for the suppression of unlicensed trading. In this airangement Bombay was thus far interested, that it was not only to become the seat of the new court, but to be regarded in future


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 332 HISTORY OF INDIA. [Book II

A D. 1683 as an independent English settlement, and the seat of the power and tra/le of the English nation in the East Indies.

Kiigwins While the court at home were conferring this magniloquent title on Bombay,

an event had taken place which threatened to render it a mockery. Captain Richard Keigwin, the commander of the gan-ison, in concert with Ensign Thorn- bum and others, suddenly, on the 27th Decemljer, 1683, seized Mr. Ward, the deputy -governor, and the membei"S of council who adhered to him, and issued a proclamation annulling the authority of the Comj)any, and declaring the island to be immediately under the protection of the King of England. Dissatisfaction with the treatment which he had received from Sir Josiali Child, and his brotlier, Mr., afterwards Sir John Child, who had obtained a complete ascendency, the one as governor of the Company and the other as president of Surat and governor of Bombay, had tempted him to turn rebel, while the general discontent pro- duced by the paltry reductions and other impolitic proceedings already adverted to, soon made the rebellion completely successful. With comparatively few exceptions the garrison and the inhabitants, when assembled, approved of his conduct, and recognized him as governor. The whole power of the island was thus in his hands. It is not easy to see on what grounds he could have imagined that his usurpation would receive any countenance in England ; but as if he had been acting with the sanction of the crown, and with a single view to its interests, he required all the inhabitants to renew their allegiance to it, and proceeded to administer the government in its name. Immediately on hearing of the insurrection President Child despatched three of the Company's homeward bound ships from Surat, having on board commissioners authorized to take measiu-es which it was thought would prove effectual. When the}' arrived the frenzy was at its height ; and the crews of the ships, catcliing the infection, so far from assisting in suppressing the revolt, began openly to fraternize with the revolters. The commissioners, alarmed at this new danger, were glad to avert it by allowing the ships to continue their voyage. In the meantime thej' remained on board a country vessel.

Its alarming About a mouth after the insurrection broke out President Child arrived with

j)iogress _ ,

three other Company's ships, and on finding from the spirit which prevailed, both on the island and among his own crews, that force was out of the question, made lavish promises of pardon and redress of grievances. Keigwin listened to his proposals, but it was only to reject them ; and after two months spent in unavailing conferences, the president despatched the ships to England, and with his commissioners returned crest-fallen to Surat, leaving the revolters still masters of the island. Keigwin, aware that appearances were entirel}' against him, drew up a justification, which he transmitted to the king and the Duke of York. His principal pleas were that by the misconduct of the parties in- trusted with the management of the Compan}- at home and abroad, Bombay was on the point of being lost, and nothing but the energetic measures


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A.D. 1683 which he had taken could have secured its continuance as a dependency of the British crown.

On receiving intelligence of the Bombay revolt, and of the attempt which Keigwin had made to justify his proceedings, the Company appointed a committee of secrecy to communicate directly with the crown, and take whatever other measures might seem expedient. In a report specially addressed to the king, they asserted that so for from acting penuriously with their officers and soldiers, their pay and encouragements were superior to those which the Dutch granted to their troops; that their president and governor had given every indulgence to the garrison "compatible with the duty of rendering the revenues equal to the charges of the establishment;" and that, since they had entered to possession of the island, they had expended the sum of £300,000 on fortifications, an excellent harbour, and other improvements In conclusion, they returned to an old complaint by blaming the interlopers as the main instigators to the revolt, endeavoured to arouse the jealousy of the king by reminding him that the revolters had attacked his prerogative by questioning the right of the crown to give exclusive privileges of trade without the authority of the legislature, and hinted that the revolt, so far from being caused by any undue use of their powers, was rather owing to a defect in the powers themselves, which did not permit them to deal summarily and effectually with delinquents.

During these proceedings in England, Keigwin continued not only to maintain his position, but obtained a recognition of his authority from Sambjijee, with whom he negotiated a treaty giving the privilege of free trade within the Mahratta dominions. More than this, Sambajee consented to the payment of a considerable sum due to the Company. This treaty and payment, together with the alleged fact that the island was now entirely supported by its own revenue, furnished Keigwin with plausible grounds for maintaining that his proceedings had advanced the interests both of the crown and the Company. It was impossible, however, that he could be listened to; and despatches were sent off from England, with a commission under the great seal, directed to the president and councils at Surat and Bombay, and to the commanders of the Company's ships, to take the necessary steps for the recovery of the island. In the event of a peaceable delivery, a general pardon was to be proclaimed to all except Keigwin and other three ringleaders. As it seemed probable that force would be necessary. President Child was appointed captain-general and admiral of the Company's sea and land forces, Sir Thomas Grantham vice-admiral, and the senior commander of the Company's ships rear-admiral. Though the revolt was the immediate occasion of these appointments, it will soon be seen that ulterior objects were contemplated by them. Indeed, the necessity of these appointments, so far as related to the revolt, had ceased before the knowledge of them had reached India, Keigwin having in the interval agreed to deliver up the island to Sir Thomas Grantham, on receiving a free pardon for himself and his


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 '■^'■'^ JIISTOHV OF INI>I, [Book 11.

A.D 1084. associates. In terms of this arrangement, tlie i.^lanU va.s formally 8un-en«]ere<l on the 19th of November, 1684. In tlie beginning of the following year a new i-eign commenced by the death of Charles on 6th tV-bniary, 1685, and the acces- .sion of James II. A great change in the policy <A' the Company immediately took place; but before tracing it, it will be proper to attend U) the cllange.'^ which had in the meanwhile been taking place in the other settlements of tin- Company.

A temiits to Notwithstanding the numerous obstructions to which the trade of the Com-

ciiiiiii trade, pany was subjected m the Eastern islands, it was determined still to persevere, and Bantam, as the most convenient intermediate point, continued to engross a considerable share of the annual investments. In the season 1 676-77, the share allotted to it consisted of eight vessels, amounting in the aggregate to 3180 tons. The spice trade was still the great inducement, Vjut a new interest had been created by the prospect of establishing a factory in China. In that case. it was supposed that Bantam would become the entrepot between China and India. This purpose it was already serving to some extent ; and the agent of Bantam was under orders to send annually, on the Company's account, tea of the best quality to the value of 100 dollars. In this season, however, a direct intercourse was to be attempted, by sending a small vessel to Amoy under the charge of a person of known prudence and intelligence. From his information, the expediency of adopting further steps might be judged This hopeful experi- ment was frustrated by an atrocity. In April, 1677, Mr. Miite, the agent, and a number of the principal servants of the agency, while sailing up the river of Bantam in tlieir boats, were waylaid by the natives and barbaroiLsly massacred The king and his sons were suspected of complicity, but denied it, and promised to make every exertion to discover and punish the perpetrators. Whether they did so is very doubtful, but the promise was all that the few survivors could obtain. The effect was a temporary extinction of the agency. In the subse quent season new appointments were made, but they appear not to have been judicious. Instead of attending to their proper duties the pei'sons appointed neglected them, and spent their time in squabbling with each other. In such circumstances trade languished, and before it could be revived the opening which had been anticipated at Amoy was closed by a Chinese civil war. Amid these discouragements, the only favourable incident was an overture from the Viceroy of Canton offering to admit the English to trade. In more prosperous times it would have been eagerly embraced, but the Company contented them- selves with returning a respectful answer, and requesting to know what privi- leges of trade would be mven if an Enijlish factorv were established at that port.

Tra.ievith In the scasou 1679-80, the prospect at Bantam had again brightened; for

three ships, carrying 1600 tons and a stock of £69,000, chiefly bullion, were despatched to it. The inducement does not clearly appear ; but from its being


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 Chap. VI.

TllANSACTIONS WITH BANTAM.

33:

mentioned in tlie instructions that war was a{)preliended between the King of ^^^^^ss Eantam and the Dutcli, it may have been anticipated that in the event of the Icing proving victorious, the Company, in pushing tlieir trade in that quarter, would no longer have to encounter their most formidable competitors. In the Tr.i.Je«iti,

,. -,, ......, 15.lMt.lIll

succeednig seasons the mvestments to Jiantam retained their importance, but from incidental allusions it may be gathered that it was not so much on account of that port itself as of the facilities which it afforded for forming connections with China. Amoy was again accessible, but its inferiority^ as a trading station to Canton had become more and more apparent. As the viceroy of the latter

Genkr.vi. Virw OF C'.tSTus.— Fmiii Nit-uliof.

still continued to profess friendship, instructions were given in the sea.son 1681-82 not only to renew the communication with him, but to make ])resents to him on a moderate scale, and assure him that, if proj)er privileges were granted, large ships with rich cargoes would annually N'isit his jiort

The threatened war A^-ith the Kinjj of Bantam and the Dutch was now about to become a reality. It was ])robably with a view to it, and the hope of securing a powerful })rotector, that the king took the extraordinary step of sending ainbassjidoi-s to England. They an-ived, and had interviews both with the king and tiie Comi)any. The only recorded result is that the Company's ships carried out for him a present of 500 barrels of gunpowder. Before it an-ived the war had been both becrun and ended. The Dutch, witii their usual sagacity, had made the victory easy ])y exciting an internal dissension, and giving their support to the winning ])arty. The king's own son had been induced to take up amis against him, and in 1G82 eftected a revolution which gave him the throne. One of his first steps was to take possession of the Com- the Dutch or to gratify them; but he had soon cause to see that while he sup- posed himself indebted to them for a thmne, they had only been using him as their tool. The whole power wa,s already in their hands, and scarcely a year elapsed before they had proelainu-d tlu'niselvt>s absolute na,resume. was done either at the instigation of

All emb;ia.iy sent by itt king to Kiiglauil.


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 336 JIISTOKV OF INDIA. [Hook II.

A. D 1680. as on former occasions of a similar description, clamoured loudly for redress; and negotiations with that view were (»pened between the English govenirnent and the States- general. These, after promising much, proved abortive, and tht- Company's connection with Bantam was finally closed. It had lasted eighty years.

Trade in ttio Aboiit tliis time tlie Company's trade in the Persian Gulf was threatened With Similar extinction. At a very early penod in their history they had here acquired a permanent revenue, independent of the profits of trade, by a grant of half of the customs of Gomberoon as a reward for assisting the Persians to expel the Portuguese from Ormuz. For a series of years they drew large sums by virtue of this grant, and at the same time carried on an extensive trade, making advantageous exchanges of English and Indian goods .against the raw silks and other produce of Persia. Every new reign in that country-, however, endangered both their revenue and their trade; and they would often have abandoned the latter altogether had they not been aware that the moment they ceased to carry it on the former also would be forfeited. At la.st the revenue became stiU more precarious than the trade, and it continued annually to figure in the Company's books under the name of arrears of customs at Gomberoon. Again and again communications passed on this subject between the court at home and the presidency at Surat.

The Com- The gi'cat question was how the Persian trade could be most effectualh'

])any's un- _ _ . . . '

certain posi- rcvived, and payment of arrears obtained. At one time negotiation, at another force, seemed expedient ; and the Company hung, as it were, su.spended between the two, leaning sometimes to the one and sometimes to the other. In the season 1 675—76, the warlike tendency had so far prevailed that two of the ships consigned to Surat were armed for service in the Persian Gulf; but before the final plunge was taken misgivings arose, and the conclusion arrived at was that could 3000 tomands, equivalent to £9000 sterling per annum, be obtained I y treaty in lieu of the Gomberoon customs, it would be far better to negotiate. This was undoubtedly a very judicious conclusion. Negotiation appears accordingly to have been attempted, but unfortunately without success ; for in 1677-78, we find the Company again agitating the question of peace or war with Persia, and again giving the preference to the former, though it was only hoped that instead of 3000, 1000 tomands might be recovered. During the following season the subject appears to have been overlooked, and in that ( i" 1679-80 it is mentioned only to record the desponding resolution, that unless the trade at Gomberoon should be more advantageous than it had proved for several years it was to be relinquished The very next year the court must have been agreeably surprised to learn that the aiTears which they had thus begun to regard as a desperate debt had become the subject of a special firman, by which the King of Persia had ordered the payment of 1000 tomands as their share of the customs for the previous year, and that their agent was in


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Chap. VI.] PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY. 60 1

ex[)ectation of receiving another 1000 tomands for the current year. It might a.d. i67o.

have been supposed that negotiation, which had already produced such gratify- ing results, would henceforth have the preference, and yet, strange to say, the language <ji" the court in regard to Persia becomes more warlike than ever ; anid in 1 683, while their agent at Gomberoon was informed of " their determination to adopt more spirited measures," a remonstrance was presented to the King of singtiUr Persia himself The purport of this document, as analyzed by Mr. Bruce in his gtrance An7ials, is singular enough to be worth quoting. "The court," he says, "after Kingof" stating their claims to his justice, which was proverbially held in Em'ope to be ^™ unalterable," proceeded to inform his majesty, "that contrary to this justice his ministers or officers at the port at which the English factories were settled, or to which their ships resorted, had obstructed their trade, in direct violation of solemn treaties between tiie two countries ; that though with respectful defer- ence they prayed for relief, yet, possessing a naval power which was unrivalled, if such relief should be withheld by his ministers and officei"s, they trusted that so great and so just a prince would, instead of considering that naval force which they employed for their ])rotection as disrespectful to his dignity, view it only as a necessary expedient for re.storing the amicable relations between Persia and England." The high-flown compliment paid to the shah's justice, however undeserved, may pass as an orientalism ; but nothing can be more ludicrous than the description of their naval power as "unrivalled," and their request that he would consider the employment of it against liim as only a "necessary expedient" for restoring "amicable relations."

For the unsatisfactory state of matters at Bantam and Gomberoon, the Progress of

I'll • 1 1 *'"* (^om-

Company had some compensation m the progi-ess which they continued to make pany at at Madras and in Bengal. The attempt of the Dutch on Bombay had shown the necessity of preparing for a similar attem})t on Fort St. George, and the works had been so strengthened as to be capable of a vigorous resistance. The expense was, as usual, a subject of complaint in the letter from the court; and in 1676 special instructions were given that no new buildings should be ])roceeded with, until ])lans and estimates were sent home and returned approved. This was undoubtedly the regular course, but the emergency justified the neglect of it, and subsequent events proved that the expenditure on fortifi- cations had been wisely made. Sevajee, during an irruption into the Caniatic, had passed within a short distance of Madi-iis, and there is reason to presume tliat nothing but its strength preserved it from treatment similar to that which Sm-at had more than once experienced. By his capture of Gingee and Vellore, he had permanently fixed himself in its vicinity ; and nothing therefore could have been more imprudent than to leave any portion of it exposed to an attack, either by land or sea. Indeed, in the verj' next season, the court had become so much alive to the importance of Fort St. George as a place of security for their property and servants, that they virtually withdrew the censure they had VoT. T. 43


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HISTORY OK INDIA.

[Book II.

A.D. 107(J

Plans for increasing revenue.

Progress of the Com- pany in Bengal.

Fort of R.je Giiur, Ginoee —Daniell's Oriental .'nnnal.

previously passed, and ordered the commanders of ships consigned to the Coro- niandel coast, " to take in as many large stones at Johanna (one of the Comoro

Isles; as they could stow, to be iLsed f<jr the building of the fort, tiiat it might be placed in a .sufficient state of defence again.st any enerny."

Meanwhile the subject of revenue was still uppermost in the minds of the court, and they never omitted an occasion of inculcating the necessity of increasing it, and proposing plans for this purpose. Among these the first which suggested itself was a house tax, with a view to which a siu-vey was to be made of all the houses at Madras, both in the Portuguese and black towns. In anticipation of the discontent which this tax, and a duty imposed on articles of consumption, would produce, the authorities were instructed to explain that "those who lived under the English protection must contriljute to the charges by which that protection was maintained." There were two other plans of increasing the revenue, for which less apology was required. The one was to obtain authority from the King of Golconda to establish a mint at Madras, similar to the one which had already, by the authority of the English monarch, been established at Bombay ; the other was to institute a bank, not, however, in the full sense of the term, but merely to receive deposits for a limited time, and to an amoimt not exceeding in all £100,000. The inducement to depositors was the payment of interest at the rate of not more than six per cent. ; and the object of the Company was not merely to procure the means of purchasing goods at the cheapest rates, but to form a stock which would enable the agency and its dependencies to counterbalance the influence of the Dutch. Consider- ing the very humble scale of the proposed bank, it is difficult to understand how so much should have been expected from it.

The progress of the Company's trade in Bengal was at this period consider- able. The principal factory was still Hooghly, to which several others — Bala- sore, Cossimbazar, Dacca, Malda, and Patna — were subordinate. In the season 1 674<-75 the whole amount of stock, principally bullion, sent to the eastern coast of India was £202,000. Of this, £65,000 was destined for Bengal. It seems to have been suspected that it would prove insufficient, and accordingly the factors were authorized to increase it by taking up £20,000 at interest. The invest- ment purchased was to consist chiefly of silks and taffetas of a fine quality,


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 Chap. VI. 1 PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY. 339

and salti)etre. Should any sui'plu.s money remain, it was to be employed in a.d mm. purchasing white sugar, cotton yarn, tm-meric, and bees'- wax, merely to fill up spare tonnage. In the two following years the amount of the investment was nearly the same; but in 1677-78 it rose to £100,000, and was still considered far from its maximum, as the factors were permitted to increase it by borrowing in 1680-81 it amounted to £150,000, and in the following season to £230,000, distributed as follows:— £140,000 to Cossimbazar, £14,500 to Patna, £32,000 to Balasore, £15,000 to Malda, and £12,000 to remain at HooMily. Hitherto Bengal had been subordinate to Fort St. George, but it was now considered of sufficient importance to constitute a distinct and independent agency. Mr. Hedges, who had been a meml^er of the management in England, was sent out with special powers to be agent and governor of the Company's affairs in Bengal. His establishment, however, appears to have been on a very humble scale, as his guard, restricted to twenty soldiers under " a corporal of approved fidelit}- and courage," were to peiform in addition the double duty of ]n-otecting the factory at Hooghly and acting against the interlojiers.

In consequence of the erection of Bengal into a separate agency, vessels Extent of were despatched direct from England to the Ganges, and on a scale which Beiig,ii. shows that the importance of the trade in this quarter was now duly appre- ciated. In 1682-83, one of the vessels carried thirty guns; another was of the size of 700 tons, which was rather unusual at this period. The agent was empowered to borrow £200,000, which, with the unemployed stock and credit of the former season, was expected to yield a pre.sent sum for investment of £350,000 ; and hoyies were held out that the stock of the ensuing season would amount to £600,000, principally in bullion. These hopes, however, were not realized, serious difficulties having arisen both at home and abroad — at home by the unexj^ected failure of .several large houses which used to sup])ly the Company with bullion for ex])ort ; and abroad by the loss of one of the outward bound ships with i.70,000 of bullion on board, the capture of Bantam liy the Dutch, and the imposition of new and heavier customs in Bengal, together with the discovery of irregularities in the Company's factories in that pro nce. In consequence of all these untoward events a panic began to prevail, and a run took place on the Company's treasury- threatening it with insolvency. Instead, state of th.. therefore, of providing foreign investments, the court resolved in the meantime LTi!"^* " to reserve all the produce of their sales for the pajTuent of their debts, and neither to send bullion to India nor make any dividend to their ]>roprietoi-s till these debts were licjuidated. With the view of facilitating this process of liqui- dation, all the settlements abroad were placed on the lowest possible scale ; and Bengal, which had begun to act as an independent agency, wa-s again made subordinate to Madras. Somewhat inconsistently, at the very thne when Benn-al was thus shorn of its independence, the court were seriously contemplatino- a great addition to its importance by endeavouring to actjuii-e possession of an


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 340

IILSTOJIV OF INDIA.

[Book H.

A,i). io»6. island in the moutii of tlie Ganges. Could such an acquisition be made, fortifi- cations were to be immediately commenced. Such was the dubious position of the Company's establishments in Bengal when Charles II. died

OHAPTEK Yll,

Marked change in the Company's policy on the accession of James II. — Hostile preparations — War

with the Mogul — Disastrous results.

Change in the Com- pany's policy.

Company claim to be indepen- dent in power.

HE Duke of York, now James II., had been a considerable shareholder in the Company, and was understood to be willing to employ all the power and influence of the crown in their favour. A new course of prosperity was hence anticipated, and it soon became apparent that the moderation and caution hitherto manifested were no longer deemed necessary. The interlopers were henceforth to be proceeded against with a rigour which, while admitted to be most desirable, had previously been deemed impolitic. In England prosecutions were immediately to be commenced in the Comi, of King's Bench against no fewer than forty-eight individuals, who were charged with violating the Com- pany's exclusive privileges, and several of whom, it was supposed, would be unable to make any effectual defence, because the statements contained in then- petitions to the king were to be laid hold of as admissions of guilt. In India the judge- advocate established at Bombay was furnished with the code of martial law established in the British army, that it might become the rule of his conduct in trying the commanders and officers of the interloping ships ; and the president and council were specially enjoined not to perplex themselves with questions as to the legality of the proceedings, but to be careful in providing that the sen- tences pronounced by the judge should be carried into execution. The Company must have been aware that the outcry which had been raised against them would thus become more clamorous than ever ; but they acted as if they had imbibed the spirit of the last of the Stuarts, and were resolved, if they could not con- ciliate public opinion, to set it at defiance.

In a similar spii'it, the native powers were no longer to be addressed in sub- missive petitions, but given to understand that the Company would henceforth treat with them as an independent power, and when aggrieved would, if neces- sary, compel redress by force of arms. To show that this haughty tone meant as much as it expressed, the Company obtained the king's patent, authorizing them to appoint their president. Sir John Child, " captain-general and admiral of all their forces by sea and land, in the northern parts of India, from Cape


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 Chap. VIT.l WAELIKE SCHEMES. 341

Comorin to the Gulf of Persia." To give effect to this appointment, he wa.s to ad. icss. fix the seat of government at Bombay, while Surat was to be reduced to a simple factory ; and he was to maintain a kind of state, by the attendance of a guaid of English grenadiers under the command of an ensign with the rank of captain. It was presumed that the removal to Bombay would give umbrage to the Mogul government, but under the new policy this was a very secondary consideration, as not only the Mogul, but Sambajee and the native princes generally, were to be given to understand that the Company had now in Bombay an impregnable retreat, from which they woidd be able to retaliate at sea for any exactions and depredations to which they might be subjected on shore. This was no empty menace, for the same vessel which carried out the above pubhc instructions, carried others of a still more important nature, tran.^mitted from a secret com- mittee, with the approbation of the king, and intended not to be made known till the moment for acting upon them had arrived.

An armament on a far larger scale than the Company had ever before fitted wariiko out had .sailed from England. It consisted of ten .ships, mountnig from twelve to seventy guns each, and carrying as many troops as, with those which were ordered to join them on their arrival, would make 1000 regular infantry. Its destination was Bengal. On arriving there, and forming, with the Company's ships, a fleet of nineteen sail, it was to effect a landing at Chittagong, on the north-east side of the Bay of Bengal, and take permanent possession of it, forti- fying it in the best manner, mounting 200 cannons upon it, establishing a mint, and levying five per cent, customs on the inhabitant.s. The possibility of a failure .seems never to have been contemplated. The instructions, accordingly, pre- suming a complete success, enter into a number of minute details for the purpose of regulating future proceedings. After Chittagong was captured and made secure, and all Mogul ships of every description had been seized and declared lawful prizes, the expedition was to proceed up the eastern branch of the Ganges against Dacca. Supposing, as a matter of course, that the nabob and his troops would immediately save themselves by flight, peace was to be offered to him on the following conditions: that he should cede the city and teiritory of Chitta- gong to the Company, and pay the debts he owed them ; that lie should allow the loipees coined at Chittagong to pass current in his district, and restore all privileges according to ancient firmans. Should he claim restitution of the ships and property seized, he was to be told that the parties were to bear their respective losses and expenses diu'ing the war ; and that, while these were the most favourable terms which the Company were disposed to concede, even these would not be binding upon them, unless they were ratified and embodied in a regular treaty by the Great Mogul.

As if a single war were not enouiih at one time, the armament was also to siam t« bo commence hostilities with the King of Siam, and seize his vessels by way of compensation for the losses which the Company had sustained in his dominions.


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 •JJ-S HISTOID' OF INDIA. [Book II.

AD iiisu Nor was tliis all. The Portuguese were to be dealt with aftei- a similar fashion : and if they continued to exact customs at Tanna and Caranja, the president at Bombay was not only to refu.se them, but to employ the fleet and military forces at his disposal in seizing Salsette and other dependencies, which it was asserted that the grant of the port and island of Bombay ought to have canied along with it. Kxtrava- Xlic extravagancc of these schemes, sufficiently aT)T)arent in itsell' was si£rnall-

gance of ° '^11 ' O.

theschemes. proved bv the re.sult. On the 28th October, 1686, in consequence of a quarrel between three English and some native soldiers in the bazaar at Hooghly, hos- tilities were prematurely commenced. The nabob's troops were defeated, and Hooghly suffered severely by a cannonade of the Company's fleet. Before this event, Shaistah Khan, the nabob, was disposed to compromise matters with the Company, or submit their differences to arbitration. An amicable settlement was now impossible, and indeed was not desired by the Company, who had made up a list of claims exceeding in the aggregate £500,000 sterling, and were indulging the hope that by their warlike succe.sses a considerable portion of it might be secured for their treasury, though they must have been aware that many of the items charged were fictitious, or at least conjectural As a speci- men the following may be mentioned : — " For detaining ye agent with ye silk at Cassumbuzar, 400,000 rupees' (£40,000). "For what extorted from us in presents, &c., 200,000 rupees" (£20,000). 'To demorage of shipping, the three last years, 2,000,000 rupees ' (£200,000). " For charge of 1000 men and twenty ships for ye war, also 2,000,000 rupees" (£200,000;.

Their failure. Immediately after the attack on Hooghly, the Moguls, pretending to be intimidated, but merely with the view of gaining time, obtained a cessation of hostilities, during which the servants of the Company removed with their pro- perty from that town, and on 20tli December, 1686, fixed on Chuttanuttee, or Calcutta, as a safer station while negotiations were pending. How these would issue soon became apparent ; for the nabob, making no secret of his intentions, seized upon the English factory at Patna, and imprisoned all the inmates. The prospects of the Company now became sufficiently alarming. The prematm-e attack had made the Moguls aware of what was intended ; the subsequent delay had enabled them to complete their preparations; and it had become impos.sibIe to disguise the fact, that the armament which had been pro^dded was inadequate to its object. Chittagong could not be attacked with any probability of success. In pi'oportion to the extravagance of the hopes which had been entertained was the despondency produced by failure. ^Ir. Gj'fford, the president of Madras, first took alarm. Aurungzebe's army was approaching. It had already con- quered the kingdom of Bejapoor ; that of Golconda was on the point of sharing the same fate. What then was to prevent it from continuing its victorious career, and advancing upon Madras? Fort St. George, to reinforce the expedi- tion to Bengal, had been left almost entirelv without a garrison and without


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 {{fs85|{{rh|CHAP. VII.]|NEW PLANS.|343}} {{right sidenote|A.D. 1687}} military stores. Thus unprovided with the means of defence, the president saw no safety for it except in negotiation. With this view he opened a communication with the Mogul, and by means of various flimsy excuses for the hostilities {{FI|file=missing|caption={{Sc|Patna.}} From Daniell's Views in India.}} in Bengal, humbly deprecated his displeasure, and prayed for a confirmation of the privileges which Madras had so long enjoyed.

{{right sidenote|Bombay and Madras formed into regencies.}}

The court at home, never dreaming of the gloomy aspect which affairs had assumed, continued to busy themselves with their schemes of aggrandizement, and the various changes which might become necessary by the accomplishment of them. In imitation of the Dutch at Batavia and Colombo, they raised Bombay to the rank of a regency, and declared their wish that it should be fortified "as strong as art and money could make it." As the seat of government, Sir John Child, who presided at it, was to have unlimited power over all the Company's settlements in India. Madras, too, though subordinate to Bombay, was also raised to the rank of a regency, and at the same time (1687) received a charter of incorporation. Before this charter was granted the governor and deputy- governor of the Company were commanded to attend his majesty at the cabinet council. The subject of the intended charter was then largely debated, though the only question which appears to have excited much interest was—whether the charter should pass immediately by the king, under the great seal, or whether it should pass under the common seal of the Company. One member of council argued in favour of the former method, but the governor, when the king asked his opinion, replied as follows:-"What his majesty thought best the Company would always think so; but if his majesty expected the governor's private opinion, he had ever been of opinion, that no person in India should be employed by immediate commission from his majesty, because if they were they would be prejudicial to our service by their arrogancy, and prejudicial to themselves, because the wind of extraordinary honour in their heads would probably make them so haughty and overbearing that we should be forced to remove them." {{smallrefs}} {{sidenotes end}}


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 344>

IFls'I"l;^■ or india.

fTV>0K II.

A.I), loss.

Tenure of M;i(lriui.

TliLs view of the matter so fai- prevailed, that the charter was made to paas under the common seal of the Company. Under thi.s charter the coq)oration was t<» consist of a niay(r and ten aldermen (tiiree Company's servants and seven natives), who were to be justices of the peace, and wear thin silk scarlet gowas, and of 1 20 burgesses with black silk gowns.

At the ])eriod when this charter was granted, the population of the city of Madi-as, the town of Fort St. George, and the villages within the Company s bounds was estimated at 300,000. The whole was held of the King of Golcond;i at a quit-rent of 1200 pagodas, or about £430. The obligation to pay this sum could not be disputed ; and yet, as if the Company under their new policy had considered themselves entitled to dispense with justice wherever force could effect their object, they caused intimation to be made to the king that theii- future payment to him would depend on his keeping St. Thom^ in such a manner as not to become an annoyance to Fort St. George. If he would not let it on lease or farm to the Company, the president, " as repre.senting an independent power, was not only to refuse pajonent of the quit-rent, but to declare the place the property of the Company. ' For the gross fraud and violence thus propo.sed to be perpetrated, the only justification attempted was that the King of Golconda's power had been " much decreased by the victories of the Mogul, and his expul- sion from Masulipatam by the Dutch," and that "it was impracticable to can-y on trade, or maintain a seat of government without revenue." Such were the Machiavellian principles shamelessly advocated by the court in their lettei-s to Madras in the season 1687-88. Continued When the failure of the expedition to Bengal was annoimced in England,

Wtir with

the Mogul the court, instead of attributing it to the tortuous policy which they had begun

to pursue, were ungenerous enough to throw the whole blame on their ser'ants

in India. The agency of Bengal were censured for their timid conduct, charged

with having selfishly pursued their own ends, regardless of the honour and

interests of the king and Company who had confided in them, and threatened

with expulsion from the service if, by their sinister schemes, the objects of the

war should not be accomplished. These objects the Company were not 'et

willing to abandon; and therefore, when despatching a large ship, called the

Defence, under the command of Captain Heath, and a small frigate, fully

armed, and carrying a reinforcement of 1 60 soldiers, to assist in the war, the}'

intimated their determination that "imless a fortification and a district around

it should be ceded, to be held as an independent sovereignty, the charges of the

armament 1 )e defrayed, and permission to coin money in Bengal, to pass cuiTent

in the Mogul's and nabob's dominions, be gi'anted, they would not consent to

a peace, or send any more stock or goods to the Ganges." These boastings and

menaces become ludicrous when viewed in connection with the actual position

of affairs, and only ]n-oclaim the ignorance, presumption, and foll}^ of those to

whom the home management of the Company was at this time intrusted


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 H.Bartlett

HILL BULL FROM N - EST CROW

AL.Dick


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 346 JIJSTORY OF INDIA. [Book II.

A.D. 1C89. authority. In the ca.se supposed, thei-efore, Sir John Child was to l;e treated apparently as if he had incurred the displeasuie of the Company, and they were to follow out the wretched sy.stem of duplicity by negotiating with the Mogul " for the restoration of their privileges and trade, upon the same basLs as they were anterior to his apparently unwise proceedings."

Came of At this game of deceit it was not easy to overmatch the Mogul, and the

Company's experience ere long furnished a new illastration of the old a^lage, that "honesty is the best policy." Sir John Child di-sjjlayed considerable dexterity. At first he despatched two of the Company's ships to Mocha and Bu.ssorah, and two others to China, with secret orders to seize all the Mogul or Siamese vessels they might fall in with. At the same time he de.spatched a ship to Surat to lie off the mouth of the estuary, and endeavour if possible to bring off all the members and property of the factory. The governor of Sm-at was too well informed, and too much on the alert to be thus imposed upon. Without pro- ceeding to acts of violence, he kept such a strict watch that the escape of the agent and factors was impracticable. Craft being thus unavailing, Sir John Child tried the effect of force, and suddenly seized all the Surat ships in the port of Bombay. The governor, affecting an intimidation which he did not feel, sent one of the English factors to him with a complimentary letter, in which he expressed an anxious wish to come to an accommodation, and to know what terms would satisfy the Company, and induce them to resume trade. The factor returned to Surat with a statement of grievances, comprising thirty-five articles, including, inter alia, satisfaction for stoppage of goods at the custom- house, for the obstruction of investments, for the demurrage of vessels detained, for the refusal to deliver up interlopers and their ships, for the raising of customs from 2 to 3^ per cent., for the refusal of permission to coin money, for the impo- sition of arbitrary taxes, and the seizure of horses and goods for the Mogul's use without paying for them.

Capture of Before any answer was retm'ned to these propositions. Captain Andrews,

commanding one of the ships which had been sent to the Persian Gulf, returned to Bombay, bringing with liim an interloping ship and six Mogul vessels, which were sailing under Dutch colom^s. These captures speedily becoming known, put an end to the trick of concealing actual hostilities, and therefore, without any further attempt at disguise, Sir John Child despatched two large ships to Surat, with orders to seize all Mogul vessels that should be met with, and also to attack the Siddee's fleet, if it should attempt to cross the bar with the view of putting out to sea. During these proceedings a new governor arrived at Svu-at, and professed such friendly feelings, that Sir John Cliild, at the urgent request of the agent, made his appearance off Sm-at, and succeeded, as he thought, in negotiating a provisional convention on the basis of his thirty-five articles. Though these fell far short of what had at one time been anticipated, the Compan}^, now alive to the difficulties in which their fraud and folly had