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was appointed mullah, or priest, at the musjeed of Viziapore. 

 Hyder must have been born about the year 1718, as it is said in 

 the manuscript found at Nellore, that his father Futty Naik, who 

 commanded a considerable body of horse and foot in the service 

 of Abdul Russul Khan, nabob of Sirpy, fell in battle in 1728, 

 when Hyder, Futty Naik's youngest son, was ten years of age. 

 An elder brother and an uncle of Hyder having engaged them- 

 selves in the service of the rajah of Mysore, Hyder accompanied 

 them in all their military operations; thus engaging, from a child, 

 in active scenes, his education was neglected ; and, whether from 

 thoughtlessness on one side, or idleness on the other, Hyder Naik, 

 as he was then called, was not taught either to read or write, nor 

 did he afterwards ever acquire any literary knowledge. 



When thirty years of age, Hyder, as a soldier of fortune, at the 

 head of fifty matchlock peons, and five horses, offered his services 

 to Nunderauz, commander in chief and duan to the rajah of My- 

 sore: here properly commenced his military career. In less than 

 three years he increased his troops to one hundred horse, and five 

 hundred sepoys, whom he armed with European firelocks, and 

 attached two field-pieces to his own little corps. 



Another account, taken like the above, chiefly from Mahomedan 

 historians, says, that in the year of the Hejira 1140,A.D. 1727j Futty 

 Naik, the father of Hyder Ally, whhacorpsof a thousand men, entered 

 into the service of the rajah of Seringapatam; or more properly Sri- 

 rungaputton, so called from the temple of Sriunga, dedicated to the 

 beautiful Hindoo deity Sri, the goddess of fecundity, similar to the 

 Ceres of Greece. This city was then the capital of a powerful kingdom, 

 governed by a Hindoo rajah ; who, on the death of Futty Naik. 



