Page:Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan.djvu/40

36 In the distracted times when the Vijayanagar dynasty was tottering towards its fall, Ikkeri was considered unsafe as a capital, so the chiefs headquarters were moved in 1640 by Sivappa Náyak to Bednúr, or Bidurúrú, i. e. the town of bamboos. This was a central position in a difficult hilly country, surrounded by thick forests, whilst the Náyak fortified the town with strong outposts extending several miles, which made it, if not impregnable, at any rate sufficiently strong to defy all attacks by undisciplined troops. Horses were rarely found in the country, while no forage could be procured for them without great difficulty. The rough tracks were traversed by pack-bullocks, which, at the risk of fractured limbs, descended the rugged passes leading to the coast, laden with rice and betel-nut, and bringing back cloths and salt, while in every pass and gorge was a guard of soldiers, who not only stopped all hostile invaders, but acted as custom-house officers, and levied toll on all imports and exports.

Sivappa Náyak was an able administrator, who took practical steps to test the real value of land by