dried up this source of supply. Thus, from the economic point of view, the Maratha State had no stable basis, no normal means of growth within itself.
§4. Excess of finesse and intrigue.
Lastly, the Maratha leaders trusted too much to finesse. They did not realise that without a certain amount of fidelity to promises no society can hold together. Stratagem and falsehood may have been necessary at the birth of their State, but it was continued during the maturity of their power. No one could rely on the promise of a Maratha minister or the assurance of a Maratha general. Witness the long and finally fruitless negotiations of the English merchants with Shivaji for compensation for the loss of their Rajapur factory. The Maratha Government could not always be relied on to abide by their treaty obligations.
Shivaji, and to a lesser extent Baji Rao I., preserved an admirable balance between war and diplomacy. But the latter-day Marathas lost this practical ability. They trusted too much to diplomatic trickery, as if empire were a pacific game of chess. Military efficiency was neglected, war at the right moment and in the right fashion was avoided, or, worse still, their forces were frittered away in unseasonable campaigns and raids conducted as a matter of routine, and the highest political wisdom was believed to consist in raj-karan or diplomatic intrigue. Thus, while the Maratha spider was weaving
