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Captains Kennedy and Gowdie, with the native grenadiers, to attack them; they did so, and succeeded in taking most of the guns, and in driving back the troops who supported them.

But at this moment the heads of the different columns of Hyder's army appeared, (Hyder having passed Sir Hector Munro in the night,) moving down upon the line, which induced Kennedy and Gowdie immediately to call off their detachment from the captured guns to join the main body. At this juncture, Baillie formed his force, consisting of little more than three thousand men, in line upon the bank of an old nullah, or water-course, and opened his guns upon the enemy. But Hyder, too powerful an antagonist for a mere handful of men, so disposed his immense army, as completely to surround him, and commenced a destructive fire upon him from his artillery in every direction.

The various descriptions of this memorable and most unequal contest, however, all agree in confirming the belief, that vast as was the disparity between the contending armies, and although Hyder had upwards of seventy pieces of cannon in the field, the day would have been won by the English, if the fortune of war had not been so decidedly against them. The enemy were repeatedly and continually repulsed, their infantry gave way, while their cavalry were falling in all directions, and, it is said, Hyder was only prevented from

retreating, by the persuasions of Colonel Lally, who represented to him, that retiring would bring him in contact with Sir Hector Munro, who was in his rear; and at this moment, and while the English were actually sustaining the combined attack of Hyder and his son Tippoo, two of their tumbrils exploded, and in an instant the brave men who were on the eve of gaining one of the most splendid victories ever achieved, were deprived of their ammunition, and the services of all their artillery. In this helpless, dreadful state, under a heavy and tremendous fire of cannon and rockets, these gallant but unfortunate soldiers remained from half-past seven until nine o'clock.

The slaughter of the British began to be tremendous, as the enemy closed in upon them on every side. Colonel Fletcher had carried off the grenadier company of the 73d to support the rearguard, and was never heard of more. Hyder Aly came with his whole army on their right flank, charging them with columns of horse, while the infantry kept up a heavy fire of musquetry. These were followed by the elephants and Mysore cavalry, which completed the overthrow of the gallant band of heroes. In the midst of this, Colonel Baillie, wounded as he was, formed his men into a square, and, without ammunition, received and repulsed thirteen different attacks of the enemy's squadrons. At length the case became evidently

hopeless, and the Sepoys, under Captain Lucas, having been broken and dispersed, Colonel Baillie, seeing that further resistance was vain, tied his handkerchief on his sword as a flag of truce, and ordered Captain Baird, who was now second in command, to cease firing.*

The

Hyder's officers refused to attend to Colonel Baillie's signal, pointing to the Sepoys who in their confusion were still continuing to fire; this, however, being explained, they agreed to give quarter, and Colonel Baillie directed Captain Baird to order his men to ground their arms. order was of course obeyed, and the instant it was so, the enemy's cavalry, commanded by Tippoo Saib in person, rushed upon the unarmed troops before they could recover themselves, chopping down every man within their reach.

* In a letter written by Mr. (afterwards Sir Thomas) Munro, and recently published in Mr. Gleig's able and interesting life of that distinguished officer, Mr. Munro, in describing this event, which he does only upon hearsay evidence, says, "Colonel Fletcher, holding up his handkerchief on the point of his sword as a signal for quarter, was wounded in the arm, and wrapping the handkerchief round it, he received a cut across the belly-his bowels dropped out, and he fell dead from his horse." It was Colonel Baillie, and not Colonel Fletcher, who made the signal for quarter, and he was not killed, but lingered long afterwards in captivity. Nothing can more clearly prove the difficulty of ascertaining the truth even in the country where the events have happened. Mr. Munro had heard the account, no doubt, and repeated it as he heard it.

The greater part of Captain Baird's company were literally cut to pieces by these wretches, and he himself having received two sabre wounds on his head, a ball in his thigh, and a pike-wound in his arm, fell senseless on the ground.

CHAPTER III.

ΤΟ

CAPTAIN BAIRD PROVIDENTIALLY ESCAPES DEATH-HYDER RETREATS DAMAL-BARBARITY OF HIS TRIUMPH-COLONEL BAILLIECAPTAIN PHILLIPS-DR. WILSON-CAPTAIN BAIRD'S SUFFERINGS AFTER THE ACTION-SIR HECTOR MUNRO RETREATS TO MADRAS -ARRIVES THERE SAFELY, CLOSELY PURSUED BY HYDER'S CAVALRY-CAPTAIN BAIRD REACHES THE FRENCH CAMP AND SURRENDERS HIMSELF TO M. LALLY.

ON recovering, Captain Baird found himself in the midst of the dead and dying, and still surrounded by the merciless enemy, who were yet busily employed in the horrid work of slaughter. The very circumstances of his moving and opening his eyes, were sufficient to attract the attention of these blood-thirsty barbarians, and in an instant, one of Tippoo's men raised the spear with which he was armed, to despatch him, when another unfortunate soldier happening to stir at the same instant, the new object diverted the fellow's notice, and received the deadly blow. And thus, by an almost miraculous accident, the gallant Baird was preserved by Providence to revenge the fatal

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