Page:Dupleix and the Struggle for India by the European Nations.djvu/94

Rh blow. Bussy was detached to march on Gingi, a town and fortress fifty miles distant, considered the strongest in South Arcot, and believed to secure to its possessor the command over that province. The natives regarded it as impregnable, for it had baffled even the famous Sívájí. Against this place Bussy marched on the 3rd of September with 250 Frenchmen and 1500 sipáhis, arrived within three miles of it on the 11th, defeated the troops in front of it, the remnants of the army of Muhammad Alí, the same day; and, following up his victory, gained the town before nightfall. There remained still the strong fortress, which consisted of citadels on the summits of three steep mountains, covered by a cordon of advanced works. Waiting till the moon should have hidden her light, Bussy, with three picked detachments, escaladed these simultaneously, and won them. As the day broke, his men had just gained the last citadel. It was a splendid performance, the like of which had never before been witnessed in India.

It made a great impression. It roused Nádir Jang from the careless dissipation of his easy life. It terrified Muhammad Alí. It produced the general conviction that the French were irresistible. Nádir Jang had been just roused from his lethargy, when his terror was increased by the news that D'Auteuil was marching on Arcot The next day brought him a letter from Dupleix, demanding the release of Muzaffar Jang and his restoration to the appointments he had held in his grandfather's lifetime, the