A History of the Mahrattas v2.c55.108

v2.c55.108

A.D. 1817. The Resident, who had early and exact information of Trimbukjee’s secret proceedings, applied to the minister to ascertain whether the assembly of such troops was authorized or not by the Peishwa; and he was assured, not only that it was not authorized, but that no such assembly existed. Mr. Elphinstone was therefore bound to consider it an insurrection; he told the minister that such levies were going forward; that the principal body was assembling near Nattapoota, a village south of the Neera, within fifty miles of Poona; and he begged that immediate steps might be taken for its dispersion. Although the minister continued to deny the existence of any assembly of troops, a part of Bappoo Gokla’s horse was sent down, as was pretended, for the Resident’s satisfaction. They quietly occupied a position in the very district where the insurgents were collecting, but declared they could hear nothing of them. The Peishwa also persisted in denying all knowledge of Trimbukjee, or of an insurrection, and called on the Resident, if he really did believe such an absurd report, to take his own measures for suppressing it. It was by this time known to the Resident that the Peishwa, during a visit to the country, had invited and positively given Trimbukjee an audience at Phoolshuhur, within seventeen miles of Poona; but what made this meeting the more remarkable is the fact, afterwards ascertained, that Trimbukjee came there attended by a large body of horse, who surrounded the village during the interview. The subsidiary force was then in an advanced position near Jaffeirabad, for the purpose of protecting the country from the ravages of the Pindharees, and of assisting in giving effect to political measures to the northward; but it was now with the consent of the Governor-General ordered to act against the insurgents. Whilst two detachments of the Madras army advanced to the frontiers of the Nizam’s territory, the one to Tooljapoor, the other to Beder, Colonel Lionel Smith, who commanded the Poona subsidiary, marched to the Neera with a light division, leaving his reserve to follow at leisure. The insurgents had moved from Nattapoota to Jhutt; but, on Colonel Smith’s approach, they countermarched, and passed, by a rugged and unfrequented route, through the Mahdeo hills; Colonel Smith followed them, but they had gained many hours march before the division got into their track; the pursuit, however, was taken up by a party of infantry from the reserve, under Major Smith of the Madras native infantry, who, after a persevering march, surprised and killed several of them; but they had previously marked their course by several acts of atrocity, particularly by the murder of Lieutenant Warre of the Madras artillery. The object of this body in moving to the northward was to join another party, assembled in Candeish under Trimbukjee’s relation, Godajee Dainglia; but before their arrival, Lieutenant Evan Davies of the Bombay establishment, at the head of a body of the Nizam’s horse, had attacked and dispersed the troops of Godajee.