do not know. My sister came out with the boy,
three or four months ago, to endeavour to obtain some news of him."

"I will make a note of it, Rajah. I have no doubt that he will be of
great use to Colonel Cockerell."

In the last week in July, the Rajah moved with his troop to
Conjeveram, and on the 1st of August the Bengal forces arrived there.
They were joined, at once, by three regiments of Europeans, one of
native cavalry, and a strong force of artillery, raising their numbers
to nine thousand, five hundred men.

Colonel Kelly took command of the force, and begged the Rajah to
advance with his horsemen, at once, to the foot of the ghauts, to
break it up into half troops, and to capture or destroy any small
parties of horse Tippoo might send down, by any of the passes, to
reconnoitre the country and ascertain the movements and strength of
the British forces. He was also to endeavour to obtain as much
information as he could of what was going on in Mysore, and to
ascertain whether Tippoo was still with his army, watching General
Meadows in the west; or was moving, as if with the intention of taking
advantage of the main force of the English being away south, to
descend into the Carnatic.

The order was a very acceptable one to the Rajah. His troop made a
good appearance enough, when in company with those of the Nabob of
Arcot, but he could not but feel that they looked a motley body by the
side of the trained native and European troops; and he was frequently
angered by hearing the jeering comments of English soldiers to each
other, when he rode past them with his troop; and had not a little
astonished the speakers, more than once, by turning round on his
horse, and abusing them hotly in their own language.

He was, therefore, glad to be off. For such work, his men were far
better fitted than were even the native cavalry in the Company's
service. They were stout, active fellows, accustomed to the hills, and
speaking the dialect used by the shepherds and villagers among the
ghauts.

Proceeding northward through Vellore, he there divided his force into
four bodies. He himself, with fifty men, took up a position at the
mouth of the pass of Amboor. Another fifty were sent to the pass of
Moognee, to the west of Chittoor, under the command of Anwar, the
captain of the troop. The rest were distributed among the minor
passes.

Dick remained with his uncle, who established himself in a village,
seven miles up the pas