229 



To J, Forbes,from the Commanding officer at Dhuboy, dated 



28th April 1783. 



f I do indeed rejoice, and that most sincerely, my dear 

 Sir, at your wonderful escape from the Gracias, and safe arrival 

 among your anxious friends at Baroche: but when you wrote to 

 me you knew not half the extent of the robbery and murders 

 among your people, by those cruel banditti: ere this you must 

 have heard the melanchol} r particulars, which I will not recapitu- 

 late. Nothing but the lucky circumstance of your setting out from 

 hence so many hours earlier than usual prevented your falling 

 into the hands of those merciless wretches. They were afraid, as 

 I am informed, of being too early at the rendezvous, lest you 

 should get intelligence of it, and disappoint them ; but they reached 

 the destined spot very soon after you left it. The whole tribe of 

 Gracias in this part of Guzerat are concerned in this horrid plot; 

 Mandwa, Vazeria, Veloria, Rampoor, Meah, and many others. 

 The} 7 have ever since posted a couple of horsemen in all the vil- 

 lages round Dhuboy, to give them the earliest intelligence of our 

 motions. 



" Yesterday we had a flying report that in consequence of the 

 Mahrattas having captured one of the Company's vessels with 

 several king's officers on board, there would be a renewal of the 

 war, and consequently no cession of these purgunnas. This being 

 rather confirmed by your last letter, I immediately communicated 

 the news to the principal inhabitants, who solicited me to fire a 

 salute on the occasion, that the happy intelligence might be com- 

 municated far and near: this, however, I declined, fearful of its 



