gore), Dangereux and Dubois (Company's servants stationed
at Cossimbazar), Beinges (a Company's servant stationed at Patna),
and two private gentlemen, Kerdizien and Gourbin. Besides these, MM.
Anquetil du Perron,[105] La Rue, Desjoux, Villequain, Desbrosses,
and Calve, served as volunteers. His chaplain was the Reverend
Father Onofre, and he had two surgeons, Dubois and Le Page. The last
two were probably the surgeons of Cossimbazar and Patna. He had also
with him M. Lenoir, second of Patna, whose acquaintance with the
language and the people was invaluable. Law seems to have been
always able to recruit his sepoys, but he had no great opinion of
them.
"In fact it may be said that the sepoy is a singular
animal, especially until he has had time to acquire a
proper sense of discipline. As soon as he has received his
red jacket and his gun he thinks he is a different man. He
looks upon himself as a European, and having a very high
estimation of this qualification, he thinks he has the right to
despise all the country people, whom he treats as Kaffirs
and wretched negroes, though he is often just as black as they
are. In every place I have been I have remarked that the
inhabitants have less fear of the European soldier, who in
his disorderly behaviour sometimes shows an amount of
generosity which they would expect in vain from a sepoy."
Law has left the following description of Lucknow:--
"Lucknow, capital of the Subah[106] so called, is 160 miles
north of Allahabad, on the other side of the Ganges, and
about 44 miles from that river. The country is beautiful
and of great fertility, but what can one expect from the best
land without cultivation? It was particularly the fate of
this province and of a large portion of Oudh to have been
exhausted by the wars of Mansur Ali Khan.[107] That prince
at his death left the Treasury empty and a quantity of
debts. Suja-ud-daula, his successor, thought he could
satisfy his creditors, all of them officers of the army, by
giving them orders upon several of the large estates. This
method was too slow for these military gentlemen. In a
short time every officer had become the Farmer,[108] or rather the
Tyrant, of the villages abandoned to him. Forcible executions
quickly reimbursed him to an extent greater than his claim,
but the country suffered. The ill-used inhabitants left it,
and the land remained uncultivated. This mig
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