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Bhosla, reduced the Carnatic Bala-gaut, afterwards called Beja- 
poury ; and descending into the Payen-gaut, conquered the new 
principalities of Tanjore, Trichinopoly, and Ginjee. Meer Jumlah, 
another Mahomedan chief, was at the same time performing simi- 
lar exploits in other quarters: they enjoyed their conquests only a 
very short time; for in 1687, the emperor Aurungzebe subverted 
their dominions, and reduced them to saubahs, or provinces, of 
the Mogul empire, placing them under the command of vice-roys, 
or nabobs; who for some time paid a tribute, and did homage to 
the imperial government at Delhi; but at length, on the imbecility 
and decline of the empire, they also threw off their allegiance, and 
became independent sovereigns. 
Sahoo Bhoosla, or Shajee, was the father of Sevajee, the foun- 
der of the Mahratta empire: his ancestors were leaders in the 
tribe of Mahrattas, so named from their having immemorially in- 
habited the country called Merhat, which comprehends a great 
part of the Peshwa’s dominions in the Deccan. The rise of the 
Mahrattas is fully detailed on a future occasion; nor would it be 
interesting to enter more into the politics or history of this part of 
India: Goa is now of very little consequence, and the influence 
of the Portugueze government very circumscribed. 
Were I master of the subject, I should seldom introduce any 
oriental history previous to the Mahomedan invasion of India; 
having already proved that the pretended antiquity of the Hindoos 
is trifling and absurd: I will only insert one instance out of the 
number which might be quoted in corroboration of this assertion: 
I transcribe it from Dr. Buchanan’s Travels in Malabar, where he 
procured a ring, in which was set a gold fanam, said to have been 
