Page:Sir Thomas Munro and the British Settlement of the Madras Presidency.djvu/61

 ^AR WITH TIPC ^Q^

Karnatik army, on the north bank of the river, with their approaches, which even on this side were carried within four thousand yards of the wall, and a strong de- tachment occupying the pettah, and half the island — the Bombay army on the south side, about four miles distant, on the Periyapatna road — Parasu Ram Bhao, after ravaging Biddanore, advancing by rapid marches to fill up the interval between the right of the Bombay and the left of the Karnatik army, and complete the blockade — and no possibility of protracting the siege, even by the most determined resistance, beyond fifteen days. In this situation, when extirpation, which had been so long talked of, seemed to be so near, the moderation or the policy of Lord Cornwallis granted him peace, on the easy terms of his relinquishing half his dominions to the confederates. Tipii accepted these conditions on the 24th of February, and orders were instantly issued to stop all working in the trenches. The words which spread such ^ gloom over the army, by disappointing not so much theii' hopes of gain as of revenge, were these : " Lord Cornwallis has great pleasure in announcing to the army that preliminaries of peace have been settled between the Confederate Powers and Tipii Sultan."

' His Lordship probably at this time supposed that everything would soon be finally settled, and that he would be able in a few days to leave a sickly camp, where he was losing great numbers of Europeans ; but Tipu continued to work with more vigour than before the cessation, and used so many delays and evasions in