Page:A history of the military transactions of the British nation in Indostan.djvu/171

Book VII to Meer Jaffier. The Seats had secured Yar Khan Lattey, and several other commanders had promised their assistance in the hour of need, although they still appeared dutiful to the Nabob. All these, whether Gentoos or Mahometans, confirmed their professions by the usufal oaths of their religions. The Nabob, receiving some confused intelligence of these practices, prepared to attack the palace of Jaffier. Messages of threat and defiance passed between them from the 8th to the 11th, when letters from Calcutta spread a report in the city, that the English were confederated with Jaffier; to which, however, the Nabob did not seem to give credit; but Jaffier concluding that he must believe what was so true, sent a message to Mr. Watts, on the 11th, advising him to make his escape without delay. Mr. Watts was prepared, and all the English property and soldiers had been sent away from the factory at Cossimbuzar. Nevertheless he determined to wait still longer, in expectation of a letter from Clive authorizing his departure. He, however, immediately sent away the Armenian Petrus, who had been the most confidential of his agents in the conspiracy, and Jaffier sent one of his own domestics with Petrus; both were instructed to press Colonel Clive to begin his march. Notwithstanding several other warnings, Mr. Watts persevered until the 13th, when Jaffier informed him there was no longer any safety, since the Nabob's artillery would begin to fire upon his palace the next morning: upon this Mr. Watts immediately left his house in the city, travelling in his palankin towards the English factory at Cossimbuzar, where he had lately been several times on pretence of business. There remained Mr. Collet, Mr. Sykes, and a surgeon, who were to make their escape with him, and they had resided for some time at a country-house called Maudipore, about two miles to the south of Cossimbuzar.

Mr. Watts, stopping at the factory of Cossimbuzar, ordered the domestics to prepare a supper, telling them, that he should return in the evening with those at Maudipore, to which he then proceeded. There was in his retinue an Usbeg Tartar, named Mirza Shah Buzbeg, who had served many years in different armies, was an excellent horseman, and on all occasions void of fear: he had attached him-