Page:The Economic History of India under Early British Rule.djvu/35

Rh Nawab. This last was a strong ruler, and tried to check the abuses of the Company’s servants in the inland trade of Bengal. A war followed; Mir Kasim was beaten and fled; and Mir Jafar was once more made Nawab. The feeble old man died shortly after, and his illegitimate son was then hastily set up as the nominal ruler of Bengal. The administration of Bengal was in the utmost disorder ; the people were grievously oppressed.

Clive came to India for the third and last time in 1765, and initiated a new and a memorable policy. The feeble descendant of the Emperor of Delhi was now a homeless wanderer, but was still recognised asthe titular Sovereign of India. All the kings and chiefs in the vast continent still owned nominal allegiance to him; all pretended to derive from him their power in the kingdoms and provinces which they conquered by force of arms. Clive imitated this example.He had conquered Bengal by force of arms in 1757; in 1765 he obtained from the Emperor of Delhi a charter making the East India Company the Dewan or administrators of that province. The East India Company thus obtained a legal status, and also formally took upon themselves the responsibility of administering the province which they had conquered eight years before. Lord Clive effected some other reforms in civil and military administration, and finally left India in 1767.

His scheme of administration did not succeed.The people of Bengal were grievously oppressed under the dual government of the Nawab and the Company; the revenues failed; and a serious famine carried off one-third of the population of Bengal in 1770-71.

In Madras the British authorities had got themselves involved in a war with Haidar Ali, the most capable military commander that India produced in the latter half of the eighteenth century. Haidar Ali devastated