Drake, William Watts, James Kilpatrick, and Richard Becker, esquires, to be disposed of by them to whom they think proper. ... VIII. Within the ditch which surrounds the borders of Calcutta are tracts of land belonging to several Zemindars : besides these, I will grant to the English company 600 yards without the ditch. IX. All the land lying south of Calcutta, as far as Culpee, shall be under the Zemindary of the English company; and all the officers of these parts shall be under their jurisdiction, the revenues to be paid by the company in the same manner as other Zemindars. X. Whenever I demand The English the assistance of the English, I will be at the charge of the Company maintenance of their troops. XI. I will not erect any new dar, or tax fortifications near the river Ganges, below Hughley. XII. As collector, of a soon as I am established in the three provinces the aforesaid large district sums shall be faithfully paid. Dated the 15th of the month of Ramadan in the fourth year of the present reign. I swear by God and the Prophet of God to abide by the terms of this treaty whilst I have life. At almost the same time as the occurrences just described in India the dispute between England and France for the country west of the Allegheny Mountains was becoming acute. The following passage consists of some notes made in the French council of ministers in the year 1752, in which the unquestioned right of France to the country drained by the Mississippi and its great branches, especially the Ohio, was clearly asserted. made Zemin of a council It appears from a letter of the Marquis de la Jonquière, 359. Minutes that the efforts the English are making, and the expenses of the ministhey incur to gain over the Indians, are not without success ters of the among several nations. Information has been received last year of the progress they had already made among the Indians in the environs of the river Ohio, where they have undertaken, since the peace, to form some establishments. French gov ernment (1752) French claim to the coun try along the Ohio based on discovery, occupation, and possession Dangers from the English The Marquis de la Jonquière had rendered an account of a plan he had prepared both to drive the English from that river and to chastise the Indians who allowed themselves to be But all the consequent operations reduce gained over. . . The English may pretend that we are bound by the Treaty of Utrecht to permit the Indians to trade with them. But it is certain that nothing can oblige us to suffer this trade on our territory. Accordingly in all the alliances of quasi treaties or propositions we have had with the Fair Indians, we have never obliged them expressly to renounce going to the English to trade; we have merely exhorted them to that effect, and never did we oppose that treaty by force. The river Ohio, otherwise called the Beautiful River, and its tributaries belong indisputably to France, by virtue of its discovery by Sieur de la Salle, of the trading posts the French have had there since, and of possession, which is so much the more unquestionable as it constitutes the most frequent communication from Canada to Louisiana. It is only within a few years that the English have undertaken to trade there and now they pretend to exclude us from it. They have not, up to the present time, however, maintained that these rivers belong to them; they pretend only that the Iroquois are masters of them, and, being the sovereigns of these Indians, that they can exercise their rights. But 't is certain that these Indians have none, and that, besides, the pretended sovereignty of the English over them is a chimera. Meanwhile it is of the greatest importance to arrest the progress of the pretensions and expeditions of the English in that quarter. Should they succeed there, they would cut off the communication between the two colonies of Canada and Louisiana, and would be in a position to trouble them and to ruin both the one and the other, independent of the advantages they would at once experience in their trade to the prejudice of ours. The English claim was just as determined, as is shown in the following extract from orders sent by the English government in the year 1753 to the governors of the American colonies, commanding them to be on their guard against the intrusion of the French upon lands claimed to be under England, and to repel any such intrusion. governors (1753) His Majesty having received information of the march of 360. Instruca considerable number of Indians not in alliance with the tions from the English king, supported by some regular European troops, intending, ministry to as it is apprehended, to commit some hostilities on parts of American his Majesty's dominions in America, I have the king's commands to send you this intelligence, and to direct you to use your utmost diligence to learn how far the same may be well grounded, and to put you upon your guard, that you may, at all events, be in a condition to resist any hostile attempts that may be made upon any parts of his Majesty's dominions within your government; and to direct you in the king's name, that in case the subjects of any foreign prince or state should presume to make any encroachment on the limits of his Majesty's dominions, or to erect forts on his Majesty's land, or commit any other act of hostility, you are immediately to represent the injustice of such proceeding, and to require them forthwith to desist from any such unlawful undertaking; but if notwithstanding your requisition they should still persist, you are then to draw forth the armed force of the province, and to use your best endeavors to repel them by force. Braddock's defeat, which soon followed, is described. from the French side in the following passage: M. de Contrecœur, captain of infantry, commandant of Fort Duquesne, on the Ohio, having been informed that the 361. A contemporary French account of Braddock's defeat English were taking up arms in Virginia for the purpose of coming to attack him, was advised, shortly afterwards, that they were on the march. He dispatched scouts, who reported to him faithfully their progress. On the 17th instant he was advised that their army, consisting of 3000 regulars from Old England, were within six leagues of this fort. That officer employed the next day in making his arrangements; and on the ninth detached M. de Beaujeu, seconded by M. Dumas and M. de Lignery, all three captains, together with 4 lieutenants, 6 ensigns, 20 cadets, 100 soldiers, 100 Canadians, and 600 Indians, with orders to lie in ambush at a favorable spot, which he had reconnoitered the previous evening. The detachment, before it could reach its place of destination, found itself in presence of the enemy within three leagues of that fort. M. de Beaujeu, finding his ambush had failed, decided on an attack. This he made with so much vigor as to astonish the enemy, who were waiting for us in the best possible order; but their artillery, loaded with grape, having opened its fire, our men gave way in turn. The Indians, also, frightened by the report of the cannon rather than by any damage it could inflict, began to yield, when M. de Beaujeu was killed. M. Dumas began to encourage his detachment. He ordered the officers in command of the Indians to spread themselves along the wings so as to take the enemy in the flank, whilst he, M. de Lignery, and the other officers who led the French, were attacking them in front. This order was executed so promptly that the enemy, who were already shouting their "Long live the King," thought now only of defending themselves. The fight was obstinate on both sides and success long doubtful, but the enemy at last gave way. . . The following letter from General Wolfe to Mr. Pitt, written from before Quebec but eleven days before the battle which resulted in the capture of that city and the death of the general, will show how near to failure the expedition had come, how desperate the chances taken in the attack, and how doubtful to all appearance was the outcome of the struggle between England and France in America. The admiral and I have examined the town, with a view to 362. Wolfe to a general assault; but, after consulting with the chief engineer, Pitt from before Quebec who is well acquainted with the interior parts of it, and, after (September viewing it with the utmost attention, we found that though the 2, 1759) batteries of the lower town might be easily silenced by the menof-war, yet the business of an assault would be little advanced by that, since the few passages that lead from the upper to the lower town are carefully intrenched; and the upper batteries cannot be affected by the ships, which must receive considerable damage from them, and from the mortars. The admiral would readily join in this, or in any other measure for the public service, but I could not propose to him an undertaking of so dangerous a nature, and promising so little success. To the uncommon strength of the country the enemy have added, for the defense of the river, a great number of floating batteries and boats. By the vigilance of these, and the Indians round our different posts, it has been impossible to execute anything by surprise. We have had almost daily skirmishes with these savages, in which they are generally defeated, but not without loss on our side. By the list of disabled officers, many of whom are of rank, you may perceive, sir, that the army is much weakened. By the nature of the river the most formidable part of this armament is deprived of the power of acting, yet we have almost the whole force of Canada to oppose. In this situation there is such a choice of difficulties that I own myself at a loss how to determine. The affairs of Great Britain, I know, require the most vigorous measures; but then the courage of a handful of brave men should be exerted only where there is some hope of a favorable event. However, you may be assured, sir, that the small part of the campaign which remains shall be employed, as far as I am able, for the honor of his Majesty and the interest of the nation, in which I am sure of being well seconded by the admiral and by the generals. Happy if |