STATE PAPERS. 
retained. The British govern- 
ment had not ceased to hope that 
an amicable adjustment of its dif- 
ferences with the State of Nipaul 
might still be accomplished, when 
the perpetration of this sangui- 
nary and atrocious outrage, by 
which the State of Nipaul at 
once placed itself in the condi- 
tion of a public enemy of the 
British government, put an end 
to the possibility of any accommo- 
dation, except on the basis of un- 
qualified submission and atone- 
ment. Still the Governor Gene- 
ral would not proceed to actual 
hostilities without giving to the 
Rajah of Nipaul one other open- 
ing for avoiding so serious an is- 
sue. Therefore his Excellency 
wrote to the Rajah of Nipaul, to 
apprize him of what must be the 
consequence of the insolent out- 
rage which had taken place, unless 
the government of Nipaul should 
exonerate itself from the act by 
disavowal and punishment of the 
perpetrators. This letter received 
an answer wholly evasive and even 
implying menace. 
The requisite submission and 
atonement having thus been with- 
held, the British government had 
no choice left, but an appeal to 
arms, in order to avenge its in- 
nocent subjects and vindicate its 
insulted dignity and honour, The 
unfavourable season of the year 
alone prevented it from having 
instant recourse to the measures 
necessary for chastising the inso- 
lence, violence, and barbarity of 
the Nipaulese, whose whole con- 
duct not only in the particular 
cases above detailed, but in every 
part of their proceedings towards 
the British government, for a se- 
ries of years, has been marked by 
2n entire disregard of the princi- 
351 
ples of honour, justice, and good 
faith, aggravated by the most fla- 
grant insolence, presumption, and 
audacity, and has manifested the 
existence of a long determined re- 
solution on the part of the court 
of Catmundhoo, to reject all the 
just demands of the British govern 
ment, and to refer the decision of 
the questions depending between 
the two states to the issue of a 
war. 
Ever since ‘the murder of the 
police officers in Bootwul, and 
during the unavoidable interval 
of inaction which followed, the 
Nipaulese, with a baseness and 
barbarity peculiar to themselves, 
have endeavoured to destroy the 
British troops and the subjects of 
the Company on the frontier of 
Strun, by poisoning the water of 
the wells and tanks in a track of 
considerable extent. The fortu- 
nate discovery of this attempt 
baffled the infamous design, and 
placed incontrovertible proof of it 
in the hands of the British go- 
vernment. 
The impediment to military 
operations, arising from the sea- 
son of the year, is now removed, 
and the British government is 
prepared by the active and vigor- 
ous employment of its resources, 
to compel the State of Nipaul to 
make that atonement, which it is 
so justly entitled to demand; the 
British government has long borne 
the conduct of the Nipaulese with 
unexampled patience, opposing 
to their violence, insolence, and 
rapacity, a course of procedure 
uniformly just and moderate. 
But forbearance and moderation 
must have their limits, and the 
British government having been 
compelled to take up arms in de- 
fence of its rights, its interests, 
