deputed to meet him. His first demand was for an offensive and defensive alliance, having in view the co-operation of the English in repelling the repeated attacks of the Maráthás on his territory. He did not succeed in carrying his point in this respect, although the Madras Government consented to a stipulation that in case either of the contracting parties should be attacked by other powers, mutual assistance should be rendered to drive the enemy out. The conference ended in an agreement, dated March 29, 1769, for the restoration on both sides of prisoners and places. Among the latter, Karúr, an old possession of Mysore, but then held by Muhammad Alí, was surrendered to Haidar. It cannot be denied that, both in regard to the military operations which preceded this treaty and to the conditions which it embodied, the Mysore chief evinced high qualities as a tactician and the sagacity of a born diplomatist. On the other hand, the proceedings of the Madras Government were characterized by a mixture of rashness and irresolution, and an absurd confidence in their treacherous ally Muhammad Alí, of whose duplicity Haidar had, on the contrary, formed an accurate estimate[1].
- ↑ A French writer says that, by Haidar's directions, a derisive caricature was affixed to one of the gates of Fort St. George, in which the Governor and his Council were represented as on their knees before Haidar, who held Mr. Du Prè by the nose, drawn in the shape of an elephant's trunk, which poured forth guineas and pagodas. Colonel Smith was shown holding the treaty in his hand, and breaking his sword in two.
