Page:A history of the military transactions of the British nation in Indostan, Volume 1.djvu/213

Book III as the French rock, when Mr. Pischard, a brave officer, exasperated at the repeated defiances of such a handful of men, formed his troop, and leaving the Moorish cavalry, set out in pursuit of them at full speed. They now flew before the dragoons, until they had led them insensibly out of the reach of the French artillery on the rock, and beyond their own party in ambuscade; when these mounting in an instant, sallied from the hollow way, and charged the dragoons impetuously in the rear, whilst the flying party wheeling, attacked them with equal fury in front. The action was over in an instant; the French had only time to discharge a few pistols, and were all cut to pieces, excepting 10, who had not been able to keep up with the rest. The detachment of Chunda-saheb's cavalry, either from cowardice, or suspicion of the stratagem, never stirred from the rock; but the officer who commanded in that post detached 100 men to succour his unfortunate friends. Lieutenant Trusler, posted in the entrenchment opposite the rock, seeing them march, and not knowing the success of the Morattoes, immediately advanced with the company of Coffrees to oblige the party to return, who finding all lost on the plain, hastened back and saved the rock, which Trusler was on the point of carrying. The success of this ambuscade dispirited the enemy so much, that they suffered their dead to lay on the plain without venturing out to bury them; and when, two days after, the English went to perform this charitable office, they found the bodies devoured by the jackals.

The Morattoes, on the other hand, were so much elevated, and conceived so despicable an opinion of the enemy, that they pressed their allies to march out and offer them battle: promising, that if the English battalion would engage the French, they would prevent it from being incommoded by Chunda-saheb's cavalry, although these were 12,000, and they themselves only 500. The reasonable objections made to this hardy proposal satisfied them, until the arrival of Basin-row with his body of 1000 men from the Arcot country, when thinking that this reinforcement rendered them a full match for the enemy, they aspired at the glory of finishing the war themselves, and became more and more sollicitous for a general engagement.