HISTORY OF EUROPE* 



201 



at that time occupy, of a nienacing 

 aspect towards the British govern- 

 ment, or to any of the states or 

 ch.eftains in aliiauce with it; adding, 

 io subsrance, " that if Holkar 

 should advance any claims on (hose 

 states, in his individual capacity, the 

 JBritish government would be dis- 

 posed (o arbitrate such claims, on 

 principles of equity and jusfice." 



" That it was hardly necessary to 

 observe, that Jeswunt Rao iioJkar 

 could advance no claims upon those 

 states which are not founded upon 

 those of Cashce Rao llolkar, the le- 

 jitimate. heir, and legal successor of 

 Tuckogee Holkur, their common fa- 

 ther. That the claims of the last- 

 Bamed personage, for annual tribute 

 levied upon chiefs and states in Hin- 

 «Iostan, were founded upon the pre- 

 tensions o/ the peisliwah, the liege 

 •uperior of the Hoikar family, and 

 <^e ally of the company, and that 

 the adjustment of such claims would 

 therefore form a proper subject of 

 «onsideiati<<n in the general setlle- 

 ment, which would be the natural 

 consequence of the conclusion of 

 peace in Hindostanand the Dcckan." 



In conformity to these instruc- 

 tions, the commander in chief (on 

 the 27th February, 1801) addressed 

 a letter to Jeswunt Rao llolkar, 

 stating, generally, the terms on 

 which tlie British government was 

 disposed to leave him in the unmo- 

 lested exercise of his authority, and 

 inviliiig him to dispatch vakeels, or 

 envoys, to the British camp, for the 

 purpose of making known his wishes, 

 and of afle6ting an amicable ar- 

 rangement on the basis of the go- 

 vernor general's propositions. 



Hoikar, in reply, expressed him- 

 tglf in terms which implied a dispo- 

 Kition to accede to the propositions 

 •r ih» ilriUsii gOTeciuaitat ; ha pro. 



mised, in that letter, to *' withdraw 

 his troops trom the menacing posi- 

 tion" winch they occupied, and an- 

 nounced his intention of dikpatchinj 

 a vakeel to the British camp. 



At ditierent periods of the nego- 

 tiation between Jeswunt Kao Hoi- 

 kar auil the Britisli power, letters ad- 

 dressed by thefoimer to allies and sub- 

 jects oi the company's government, 

 were (aswe have already stated) in- 

 tercepted by the commander in chief. 

 These letters contained proofs of Hol- 

 kar's endeavours to excite those (ler- 

 sons to revolt against the British 

 power, and stated " his intention to 

 dispatch forces for the purpose of 

 ravaging the territories ol the com- 

 pany," 



The commander in chief, howe^ 

 ver, took occasion again to repeat 

 his amicable assurances, and once 

 more urged Hoikar to carry into 

 elfe6t the resolution which he kad 

 avowed, of " retiring within thi^ li- 

 mits of his own dominion." The 

 commander in chief also intimated, 

 in these dispatches, his knowledge 

 of the correspondence which had 

 been detected, and warned him of 

 the danger of such a proceeding. 



The vakeels of flolkar having at 

 length, on the 16th March, 1804, 

 arrived in the British camp, a con- 

 ference was holden between thcai 

 and the commander in chief, at 

 which it appeared, that the vakeels 

 possessed no powers to conclude a- 

 ny arrangement, but were simply 

 iiistru6ttd to state the propositions 

 of llolkar, and to acquaint him with 

 the terms that might, in consequence, 

 be ottered by the company. The 

 demands brought forward by the 

 vakeels, on this occasion, in the name 

 of their master, stipulated, among a 

 number of other extravagant requi- 

 sittous, for acoasiderable j>orfion of 



territory. 



