settlement would be imperilled. At the close of 1739 the Maráthás, jealous of Muhammadan preponderance in Southern India, invaded the Karnátik; surprised (May 19, 1740) the army of Dost Alí at the Damálcherí Pass; and completely defeated it. Dost Alí, his second son, and almost all his chief officers, were left dead on the field. The catastrophe, overwhelming in many respects as it seemed, served to illustrate the regard and confidence with which the foreigners at Pondichery had inspired the chiefs and landowners of the Karnátik. With an unanimity which was not the result of concert, these turned at once to Pondichery for protection. No other place on the coast or in the interior offered to their interested eyes so certain a protection. For days and days after the defeat had become known the natives of the surrounding districts poured into Pondichery, bringing with them their families and their valuables. Five days after the battle the widow of the slain Nuwáb, her children, her dependents, and an escort guarding her jewels and other property, were received in state by M. Dumas. That prudent man knew well that such an act might bring upon him the wrath and the armies of the Maráthás. But, he argued, boldness is often prudence. For some days preceding, and for many days to follow, stores of grain had entered and did enter the town. In the face of a great crisis Dumas had deliberately chosen the line, which, if attended with great risk, promised him, should the risk be successfully encountered, the greatest
