Page:A history of the military transactions of the British nation in Indostan.djvu/604

580 As soon as this disposition was executed, he rode back to the line of infantry, which were halting, drawn up in two lines according to the order of battle he had issued to the principal officers in the preceding night. He signified his intention of leading the army on to a general action, which was received with acclamations, that left no doubt of the ardour of the troops to engage the enemy they had so long been seeking. The plain dry, hard, and even, admitted of their marching on in the same order they were drawn up, without filing off in columns, so that they were soon upon the ground where the advanced division were halting, when the cavalry wheeled from the right and left, and formed the third line of the main battle, and the five companies of Sepoys took their place again on the right of the first line; but the two field-pieces, still attended by Captain Barker with the two detached companies of Sepoys, kept apart at some distance in front, but to the left of the first line.

In this array the army stood in full view of the French camp, in which no motions were perceived; but no firing was heard against the fort of Yandivash. Colonel Coote having waited half an hour to see the effect of his appearance, rode forward with some officers to reconnoitre the enemy's camp, who suffered them to approach near, without cannonading or sending out a party of cavalry to interrupt them. The day began to wear, and Colonel Coote, as soon as he returned to the troops, ordered the whole to file off to the right; the infantry marched in two lines at the same parallels they had drawn up; the baggage formed a third column on the right, and the cavalry followed in the rear of all the three. They proceeded towards the south side of the mountain, but inclining a little towards the French camp. As soon as the first files of the infantry came to the stony ground which extends from the foot of the mountain, on which the enemy's cavalry could not act, the whole halted, and the two lines of infantry facing to the right, presented themselves again in order of battle, opposite to the French camp, at the distance of a mile and a half, but outstretching it on the right; the baggage falling back at the same time, gave place to the cavalry to resume their former station as the third line.