tions. Quitting his rank, he galloped towards a tumbril laden with powder, into which he fired his pistol. The frantic wretch was blown to pieces by the explosion of which he had been the cause; and an alarm being thus raised, the guard at the choultry rushed forward to protect their commander. In performing this duty, they were charged by the horsemen; but their steady fire threw the assailants into confusion, and most of them galloped into a tank, which they did not perceive till it was too late to avoid it. In the meantime, the camp was attacked at various points, but the Tanjoreans were compelled to retire with heavy loss; and Lally, after a harassing retreat, at length reached Pondicherry, greatly mortified at the ill success of his campaign.
The pressing wants of the French Government were at length relieved by a small supply of money from various sources, which enabled Lally to put his entire force in motion for the reduction of Madras, in sight of which the French army arrived by the middle of December. Their force consisted of two thousand seven hundred European, and four thousand native troops; while the English had to defend the place nearly one thousand eight hundred European troops, two thousand two hundred Sepoys, and about two hundred of the Nabob's cavalry, upon whom little dependance could be placed.
The enemy soon gained possession of the Black Town, in the plunder of which a quantity of arrack having been found, the consequences were speedily apparent. The English, being apprised of what had taken place, made a sortie under Colonel Draper; and such was the state of the French army that the approach of the English was first made known to them by the beating of their drums in the streets of the town. The fire of the English musketry, aided by that of two field-pieces, was very destructive, and a French regiment which had been drawn up to oppose them soon fell into confusion and fled. The fight was protracted for some time; but the English eventually retired, with a considerable loss of men as well
