Page:History of the French in India.djvu/196

 174 LA BOURDONNAIS AND DUPLEIX. chap. The principals of these conditions were, a promise that _ the treaty he enclosed should be rigidly observed ; that 1746. the Governor should be taken from his officers, and not from Pondichery ; that Madras should be evacuated on January 1, 1747. The treaty contained articles very favourable to the English, especially when it is re- membered that Madras, with its weak garrison, was incapable of further defence when it surrendered. The second article provided that one-half of the munitions of war should be returned to the English ; the fourth, that the residue of the supplies, of which the quantity was large, after the re-victualling of the French squadron, should be restored to them ; the other articles related to the ransom and matters previously noticed. On the following day, the 12 th, he sent another letter, in which he stated that as M. Despremesnil had assured him that Dupleix would agree to the conditions, he was now im- patient to depart. He enclosed five articles, the two principal of which provided that Madras should be evacuated, at the latest, at the end of January, that it should not be attacked by either nation before that period, and that as long as it should remain in the hands of the French, the roadstead should be accessible to the ships of both nations. The Superior Council replied to these letters on the loth and 14th. With reference to the conditions insisted upon by La Bourdonnais, they agreed to keep the engagement entered into with the English, provided the English kept theirs ; but they required that La Bourdonnais should leave them 150 of his troops as he had promised Paradis, that Despremesnil should be Commandant, assisted by a Council of four, two of whom might be named by La Bourdonnais, subordinate to Pondichery ; and that the place should not be evacuated till a complete division of the prize property should have taken place. In their letter of the 14th,* the Council positively refused to agree to evacuate the
 * In reply to La Bourdonnais of the 12th.