HAS not lately been the scene of any events fo important as a change of adminiftra tion, by which the Right Hon. William Pitt again became, about the middle of May, firft Lord of the Treafury and Chancellor of the Exchequer. A coalition of Mr. Pitt's friends, the friends of Lord Grenville, with Mr. Fox, and the friends of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, had agreed to push their refiftance to the meafures of Mr. Addington's miniftry, to the abfolute interruption of the national bufinefs. The late minifters counfelled their Sovereign to form a new cabinet. Mr. Pitt was accordingly authorized by the King, to prefent to his Majefty a scheme for a new adminiftration, from which only Mr. Fox, and those who would not come into office without him, were to be excluded. Mr. Pitt returned upon this to the appointments of chief financial minifter, and first agent for government in the Houfe of Commons; placed Lord Melville at the head of the treasury, Lord Harrowby in MONTHLY MAG, NO. 115.

1,000

978 2,700

3,977,396 386,250 £4,363,646

two of the offices of fecretaries of ftate affigned to Mr. William Dundas the appointment of fecretary at war; and has compofed a cabinet, in which half the members are of the party called the KING'S FRIENDS; the other half, perfons who will probably in all cafes vote with Mr. Pitt. A fharp parliamentary oppofition is expected.

INDIA.

From India difpatches have been received, in the course of last month, which explain the caufes of the war, in that part of the world, and announce a continuation of the first successes of the British, which feem to have ended in the entire fubjection of the Marhatta Chiefs.

The Peibwab of the Marhattas is, according to a memorial tranfmitted from the Marquis of Wellesley, a Bramin, and as well by the public law of India, as by the Conftitution of the Marhatta govern ment, the acting fovereign of that empire, though inferior, in nominal dignity, to the Rajah of Sattarah. The Peihwah's authority has been recognized by the Eaft 3 S

India

India Company, in many treaties. That prince has been in faithful alliance with the Company for many years. It was the Company's intereft to fupport his authority, because this would tend to confirm -the internal tranquillity of its own dominions; as well as to preserve and establish the general peace of all India. The Peishwah, finding his whole authority ufurped, and his very personal fatety endangered by the ambition of Dowlut Raho Scindia, Jefwunt Rao Holkar, the Rajah of Berar, and others of his great military officers and nobility, threw himself under the immediate protection of the Company's government in India; and on the 31st of December, 1802, concluded a treaty, offenfive and defenfive, with an authorized reprefentative of their authority, in the ifle of Baffein, which was finally ratified by the Governor-general in Council, before the 18th of March, 1803. By that treaty, the Peifhwah and the Company engaged, at all times, and against all enemies, to make common caufe with each other. The Company particularly engaged in it, to maintain in the Peifhwah's fervice, for the fupport of his authority, a fubfidiary military force of not fewer than "6000 regular native infantry, with the ufual proportion of field-pieces and European artillery-men attached, and with the proper equipment of warlike ftores and ammunition; this force to be ftationed in perpetuity, in his Highnefs's dominions.' The Peifhwah, on the other hand, affigned to the Company, in the fame treaty, to defray the expence of this auxiliary force, territories affording a revenue of 2,600,000 rupees, or between three or four hundred thousand pounds fterling.

Under this treaty, inftant preparations were made to restore the Peifhwah to his throne at Poonah. The fubfidiary troops, in a force much more confiderable than had been stipulated, were foon upon their March to the Marhatta capital. On the morning of the 20th of April, 1803, Major-general Wellesley, at the head of a fufficient body of troops. Another detachment to the number of 2475 British and native foldiers, under the immediate command of Colonel Murray, escorted the Peihwah from Baffein to Poonah, in a journey which his Highness performed between April 26, and May 14.

The lawful authority of the ruler of the Marhatta Empire was new restored; but its restoration and its maintenance, by the authority of the British, were fatal to

the ufurpations of Scindia, Holkar, and the other great vaffals who afpired to independence. Scindia affembled an army, and led it into pofitions in which it threatened the fecurity of the British dominions. He was required to with raw this army to a fufficiently remote fituation, within his own immediate poffeffions. He refused. He was informed, that, if he should engage in any confederacy against the British power; the British would immediately commence hoftilities against him, on all fides of his dominions. He replied that, he would decide-"whether it should be peace or war, after he should have had a meeting with the Rajah of Berar." The Rajah of Berar joined Scindia on the 3d of June. Thefe Chiefs, then, with a force of about 24,000 infantry, 38,000 cavalry, and 210 pieces of artillery, took a formidable pofition at Checkly, on the frontier of the territories of the Company's ally and dependent, the Nizam, the Sovereign of the Dekkan. From that pofition, they negotiated to en gage Holkar to join them, in an offenfive alliance against the British; they employed threats and menaces to detach the Nizam from the Company's friendship; they used fimilar folicitations to induce the Peishwah to adhere to them, in contempt of the Treaty of Baflein; and they even issued orders to fome of the Peifhwah's other officers to prepare for hostilities against the British.

This conduct was the more plainly hof tile, and the more alarming, because the effective strength of Scindia's army was under the command of French officers. M. Perron, the chief of these, was at the head of a body of 43,650 troops, infantry and cavalry, with 464 pieces of artillery. For the maintenance of thefe troops, Perron held under Scindia a wide and fertile territory, and was even mafter of the person of Shah Aulum, the deposed Emperor of Hindooftan. This French officer was known alfo to be privy to a defign which had been conceived in the councils of Bonaparte, for the French, as foon as they fhould be able to mufter a fufficient military force in India; openly to affume the task of reftoring Shah Aulum to all the ancient dominions of his family; and, under this pretext, to wreft from the English, their dominions in Hindooftan. That defign the French were carrying gradually into effect, by difmiffing officers and foldiers, from time to time, from Pon. dicherry, with directions to enter into the fervice of the native powers. Perron had,

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for fome time, evidently co-operated in this policy, and had artfully removed out of Scindia's fervice, almoft every European officer that was not implicitly devoted to the interes of France. Scindia himself could not be ignorant of the hoftilities between France and England. He was the more prefumptuous, as trufting to a cooperation of France, to overthrow the British power. But for this indirect connection with France, his conduct, and that of the Marhatta Chiefs in confederacy with him, might have had lefs of hoftile alarm in it, than has it now neceffarily ap peared to those who guided the affairs of the English Company.

The Governor-general had made his preparations. He directed an instant attack on the armies, and the whole poffef. fions of Scindia and all his confederates, from Delhi and the Presidencies of Fort William, Fort George, and Bombay, to Poonah, Hyderabad, Guzerat, and Driffa. One army under Major-general Wellesley was directed to oppose the confederate force of Scindia and the Rajah of Berar. General Lake was to commence operations on the north-west frontier of Oude, chiefly to destroy the power of Perron and the French adventurers, and to refcue and protect the perfon of the Emperor Shah Aulum. The fea-ports belonging to the Marhatta Chiefs, were to be, at the fame time, seized. The whole forces affembled, in different parts of India to carry into effect this plan of hoftilities, were about 54,918 men, betides pioneers, gun-lafcars, and perfons belonging to the ftores and ordinance fervice.

After negociation was perceived to be hopeless, the firft enterprize of actual hoftility was accomplished by the troops under the command of Major-general Wellefley. On the 8th of Auguft, they took by fcaling, the fortified town of Ahmednuggur. On the 12th, the fortrefs or caftle of that place was likewife furrendered to them. With Ahmednuggur, territories yielding a revenue of 634,000 rupees annually, fell under the British power. On the night of the 9th of September, Scindia and the Rajah of Berar were furprized in their camp, on the river Goda. very, by the activity of Colonel Stevenfon. On the 23d, Major-general Wellesley, with a force of about 10,500 men, attack ing the confederate army, which consisted of between thirty and forty thousand men, at the village of Affye, drove them from their guns, and fcattered them in general flight, with a lofs on their fide of 1200

men left dead on the field of battle, with ninety-eight pieces of cannon, their camp equipage, a great number of bullocks and camels, and a large quantity of military ftores; while the whole country was covered with their wounded. Colonel Stevenson, with the force under his command, coming up on the evening of the 24th, was ordered to pursue the enemy in their flight. On the 16th of October, the city of Hyderabad, and on the 21ft the fort of Affeerghur, were furrendered to him.

In other quarters, the operations of the campaign were pushed on with equal activity and fuccefs. Lieutenant-col. Woodington from Bombay, with a small, but gallant and well-appointed, force, ftormed and carried fort Baroach, on the 29th of Auguft. He next reduced the town of Champaneer, the fortrefs of Powanghur, and with these all the remaining poffeffions of Scindia, in the province of Guzerat.

With a force of nearly 5000 men, Lieutenant-colonel Harcourt, in the month of September, occupied the province of Cuttack. The feizure of that province was rendered complete, by the storming of the fortrels of Barabutty, on the 14th of October.

General Lake was, in the mean time, in action, on the north-west frontier of Oude. On the 29th of Auguft, he encountered the army under M. Perron, on on a plain by the fortrefs of Allyghur. Perron and his troops quitted the field before it was poffible to bring them into an engagement. The town of Coel was taken by the British immediately after their retreat. On the morning of the 4th of September, Allyghur was taken by storm; more than two thoufand of the enemy were flain in the action. On the 7th of September, Perron, withdrawing himself from Scindia's fervice, obtained leave to pafs, with his family, property, and attendants, unmolefted to Lucknow. Near Delhi, the refidence of Shah Aulum, the English forces were again encountered by the French, under the command of M. Louis Bourquien, who had fucceeded to the authority of M. Perron. The action was defperate. Gen. Lake himself fought at the head of the 76th regiment, had his horfe killed under him, and was faved only by the gallantry and filial affection of his fon. The fuccefs of the British arms was at length, in every point complete. Full three thousand of the enemy fell in the action: fixty-eight pieces of ordnance, thirty-feven tumbrils of ammunition, and two tumbrils of their treasure, 3S2

were