e
command. He had, at his orders, a European force considerably
exceeding any that had hitherto been gathered in India, and he boasted
that he was going to capture Madras, and drive the English out of
India. Nothing could have been more unfortunate for the French than
the choice of such a man, and his appointment was destined to give the
last blow to French influence in India, as the supercession of Dupleix
had given the first.

Monsieur Lally had one virtue. He was personally brave; but he was
arrogant, passionate, and jealous. He had no capacity, whatever, for
either awing or conciliating those with whom he came in contact. He
treated the natives with open contempt, and was soon as much hated, by
them, as by his own soldiers.

His first step had been to order Bussy down, from Hyderabad, with the
whole of his force. Bussy, a man of great genius, of extreme tact, of
perfect knowledge of the Indian character; had, for eight years,
maintained French influence supreme at that court, and had acquired
for France the Northern Sirkars, a splendid and most valuable
province, on the seacoast north of Madras. Salabut Jung, the ruler of
Hyderabad, the protege of the French, heard with dismay the order
which Bussy had received. To Bussy himself, the blow was a heavy one,
and he saw that his departure would entail the ruin of the edifice of
French influence, which he had built up by so many years of thought
and toil.

However, he obeyed at once; and marched, with two hundred and fifty
Europeans and five hundred native troops, into the Sirkars. He made
over the charge of this treaty to the Marquis de Conflans, whom,
although but just arrived from Europe, and entirely new to Indian
affairs, Count de Lally had sent to replace Monsieur Moracin, who had,
for years, ably managed the province. He then marched, with his
troops, to join the main army under Count de Lally.

This force, having taken Fort Saint David, had operated against
Tanjore, where it had suffered a repulse. The news of this reached the
Northern Sirkars, soon after the departure of Bussy; and Anandraz, the
most powerful chief of the country, rose in rebellion, and sent a
messenger to Calcutta, begging the assistance of the English to drive
out the French.

While the rest of the Bengal council, seeing that Bengal was, at the
time, threatened with invasion from the north, and menaced with
troubles within, considered that it would be an act little short of
madness to