But it was in poetry Cormac delighted to exercife his genius. He compofed feveral fongs and elegies which have met with applaufe. As his Mufe was generally awaken ed by the call of gratitude, his poetical productions are moftly panegyric or elegiac, they extol the living, or lament the dead. Sometimes he indulged in fatire, but not often, though endued with a vein of that dangerous gift.

One

A man of Cormac's turn of mind must be much gratified with anecdotes of the mufic and poetry of his country. As he feldom 'forgets any relation that pleases him, his memory teems with fuch anecdotes. of thefe, refpecting the juftly celebrated song of EIGHLIN A RUIN, the reader will not, I am fure, be difp'eafed to find here. Carrol O' Daly (commonly caled Mac-caomb InfiCreamba) brother to Donnough Moore C'Daly, a man of much confequence in Cannaught about two centuries ago, paid his addreffes to Mifs Elinor Kavanagh. The Lady received him favourably, and at length was induced to promife him her hand. But the match, for fome reafon now forgotten, was broken off, and another gentleman was chofen as an húfband for the fair Elinor. Of this Carroll, who was ftill the fond lover, received information. Difguifing himself as a Jugleur or Gleeman, he haftened to her father's houfe, which he found filled with guefts who were invited to the wedding, Having amufed the company awhile with fome tricks of legerdemain, he took up his harp and played and fung the fong of EIGH LIN A RUIN, which he had compofed for the occafion. This, and a private fign, difcovered him to his miftrefs. The flame which he had lighted in her breast, and which her friends had in vain endevoured to fmother, now glowed afrefh, and fhe determined to reward fo faithful a lover. To do this but one method now remained, and that was an immediate elopement with him. This the effected by contriving to inebriate her father and all his guefts.-But to return from this digreffion.

Cormac was twice married, but is now a widower. He now refides at Sorrell-town, near Dunmore, in the county of Galway, with one of his daughters, who is happily married. Though his utterance is materially injured by dental loffes, and though his voice is impaired by age, yet he continues to practife his profeffion:-fo feldom are we fenfible of our imperfections. It is probable, that where he was once admired, he is now only endured. Mr. Oufley informs me that "one of his grandfons leads him about to the houfes of the neighbouring Gentry, who give him money, diet, and fometimes clothes. His apparel is commonly decent and comfortable; but he is not rich, nor does he feem folicitous about wealth.”

A

LEARNED woman has, of late years, been confidered as a phenomenon; and it has been fashionable to regard the languages and the sciences as accomplishments which ought to be excluded from the prefent system of female education. Among the narrow minded and illiberal, much has been faid of a distinction of sex in mind as in perfon. The endearing tenderneffes, the foftening virtues, the domeftic avocations, have been much expatiated upon; but the cultivation of genius, the enlargement of the understanding, and the acquifition of the languages, or of any kind of fcientific knowledge, have been abfolutely proscribed.

Men of fenfe and candour are doubtless of a different opinion; and the Ladies, it is to be hoped, are too fenfible of their intrinfic worth in the creation, not to defpife the wreched diftinction. It is perhaps an abfurdity to mention the subject with any degree of ferioufnels. One or two arguments, however, in favour of the Female Right to Literature, may be urged as unanfwer able.

From an infinite variety of inftances, which can be produced from the hiftory of all ages, it appears, that the Deity hath equally bestowed his nobleft gifts, Reafon and Genius, upon each of the fexes. Is there a diftinction? It is, perhaps, that the genius of the men, like a vaft building, finished by the flow labour of perfevering effort, rifes into peculiar majefty and ftrength: that of the other fex, like the luxuriant produc tions of nature, puts forth its earlier buds, more fwiftly ripens into beauty, and requires only the eafier and gentler hand of cultivation. Still, in whatever degree the Deity has imparted the heavenly gift, it is abtard to fuppofe, that he intended it not to be as much the object of improvement in the one fex, as in the other. It has been faid, there are certain avocations, which are folely the province of women, to which all attempts to distinguish themselves in learning, would be unavoidable impediments. There would be much in this affertion, if it were a fact. But it is a decifive anfwer to this arge ment, that in the fifteenth and fixteenth cen

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troops to repair the lofs which the Tanjorine army had lately fuftained, but as it required fome time to collect the recruits, major Lawrence requested the prefidency to haflen the junction of Maphuze Khan, and of the reinforcements which were arrived at Madrafs from Bombay and Europe; so that the whole might march from Tanjore to Tritchinopoly in one body. !

Accordingly a detachment of 400 men in battalion, half Europeans and half Topaffes, together with 500 Sepoys, marched to join Maphuze Khan at Conjevaram, and from thence to proceed with him to Tanjore. This man, as fond of being at the head of a body of troops as he was incapable of employing them to any good purpofe, fhewed no inclination to quit the country about Arcot, giving for a reason that Abdulwahab Khan had failed to advance the money neceffary to fatisfy his troops. Under this pretext he moved up and down the country, levying contributions from fuch forts and poligars as were not ftrong enough to refift him. At length receiving affurances from the prefidency that they would furnish him with money, provided he would march immediately to the fouthward, he fet up his ftandard at Conjevaram in the month of May; and affured them that he would proceed without delay; but Mr. Dupleix, well acquainted with his character, confounded this refolution, by ordering the garrifon of gingee, with fome other troops, to take the field. This body although much in favour to Maphuze Khan's force, frightened him fo much that he declared that he could not proceed unless he was joined by a detachment of Europeans: in the mean time the enemy, encouraged by his im becility, advanced from Gingee, and took the fort of Outramaloor, which lay about twenty miles nearly weft from Sadrafs: and flushed by this fuccefs they proceeded to another fort ftill nearer to Conjevaram: but enfign Pichard, who had now joined Maphuze Khan with a platoon of Europeans, prevailed upon him to march against the enemy, who on their approach retreated to Outramaloor; enfign Pichard finding Maphuze Khan not a little elated with this acknowledgment of his fuperiority, perfuaded him to follow them, and attack the fort, which being in a ruinous condition, a general affault was given, which fucceeded, and the enemy ran away in a panick to Gingee, where they fhut themfeives up. This fuccefs, nevertheless, did not induce Maphuze Khan to proceed as he had promifed to Tritchinopoly; but he returned to Conjevaram with a refolution not to quit it again until he had received the money he had fo often demanded. The prefidency finding he was not to be influenced by any other motive, paid him 50,000 rupees, and agreed to pay him as

much more after he had croffed the Coleroon; this and the junction of the large detachment fent to accompany him, left him without any farther pretences for delay, and he began his march from Conjevaram in the beginning of July.

Morari-row returning, after the victory he had gained over Gauderow, to his camp on the other fide of the Colereon, pursued the reft of his fcheme, writing to the nabob, who was then just arrived at Tanjore, that if he would give him fecurity for the payment of 300,000 rupees, he would return to his own country, and never more be an enemy either to him, the English, or the Tanjorines. The nabob having no money, applied as the Marattah had foreseen, to the king of Tanjore, who, after many meetings confented to furnish it, and the articles were drawn up and figned, ftipulating that 50,000 rupees fhould be paid as foon as the Maratahs arrived at Volcondah, 100,000 more when they came to the pass of the western mountains, and the remaining 150,000 when they arrived in their own country. Whilft this tranfaction was carrying on at Tanjore, Morari-row acquainted the regent of Myfore that he was in treaty with the nabob, but offered, if the Myforean would pay him the arrears he had so often demanded, to return to his affiftance; the regent fent him what money he could fpare, about 50,000 rupees, which the Marattah no fooner received than he marched away with all his troops to Volcondah, and in the beginning of July left the province and went to his own country, which lays about a hundred miles north east from Arcot. Here Morari-row, after he furrendered Tritchinopoly to Nizam-almuluck in 1741, was permitted to erect a principality, dependent indeed on the Soubah of the Decan, but independent of his own nation: as all new ftates are conducted with more vigour and attention than fuch as have been long eftablished, he foon made himself admired and refpected by his neighbours, enlifting none of his countrymen but fuch as were of approved valour, and treating them fo well, that they never entertained any thoughts of quitting him: on the contrary, the whole army feemed as one family; the fpirit of exploit which he contrived to keep up amongst them by equi table partitions of plunder, rendered them fond of their fatigues, and they never com plained but when they had nothing to do.

-The choice he made of his officers ftill more difcovered his capacity, for there was not a commander of an hundred horfe who was not fit to command the whole; notwithstanding which every one was contented in his particular ftation, and they all liv. ed in perfect harmony with each other, and in perfect obedience to their general. So

that

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At this time a revolution, little expected by any one in India, happened in the government of Pondicherry. The directors of the English Eaft India Company had in the preceding year, made representations to the miniftry of Great Britain, on the hoftilities in which they were involved on the coaft of Coromandel, and folicited the fupport of the government either to terminate or carry on a war, which their own refources were little able to continue against the French company, ftrongly fupported by the adminiftration of France. The British miniftry foon conceived the neceffity of interfering vigorously, to ftop the ambitious projects of Mr. Dupleix, and began a negocia tion with the French miniftry on the subject. Mr. Duvelaer, a director of the Frenc company, together with his brother the count de Lude, who had both of them refided for many years in the Eaft-Indies, were deputed from Paris, to treat with the miniftry in London, and had frequent conferences with the earl of Holderneffe, at that time one of his majesty's principal fecretaries of state, who, by much application and frequent enquiries from all perfons capable of giving true information, had gained an extenfive knowledge of the fubject, however intricate and little understood. This minister finding that the French endeavoured, as ufual, to gain time under the pretence of negociating, prevailed on the king, to order a fquadron of men of war to be equipped, on board of which a regiment was to be embarked for the Eaft Indies. This vigorous refolution convinced the French administration, that a perseverance in their schemes of making conquefts, and obtaining dominions in Indoftan, would foon involve the two nations in a general war : for which France was in no wife prepared; and they confented that the difputes of the two companies fhould be adjunca by com umaries in india, on a footing of equality; without any regard to the advantages which either the one or the other might be in poffeffion of, at the time when the treaty fhould be concluded. It now remained only to choose such commiffàries as would implicit ly fulfil these intentions; and the French themselves, were fo fully convinced that Mr. Dupleix was not a man fit to be trufted with a commiffion, which contradicted fo ftrongly every part of his conduct fince the beginning of the war of Coromandel, that they forefaw the English ministry would fufpect the good faith of every pacific profeffion they had lately made, if they should offer to nominate Mr. Dupleix a commissary to adjuft the terms of peace. Having therefore no alternative, they of their own accord, and without any application from the

that this body of troops were, without exception, the beft foldiers of native Indians at this time in Indoftan. Befides the qualities common to the reft of the Marattah nation, fuch as activity, ftratagem, great dexterity in the management of their horfes and fabres, they had by their conflicts against Europeans furmounted in a great degree the terror of fire-arms, although oppofed to them with the steadiest discipline; and what is more extraordinary, were even capable of ftanding against the vivacity of a cannonade from field pieces: although this terrible annoyance, never made use of in India before the war we are commemorating, continued to ftrike all other Indian troops with as much terror as their ancestors felt when regular musketry was first employed against them. Immediately after the departure of the English army, the garrison of Tritchinopoly received two or three convoys from the woods, upon which the enemy croffed the Caveri, and encamped on the plain, first at Chuckley-apollam, and afterwards to the fouth of the city, changing their camp feve ral times, between Elimiferum and the five rocks their patroles conftantly traverfing this line rendered it impoffible for the Sepoys at Kellinore to pafs with any more provifions, and the garrifon were obliged to live on their flock, which with sparing management might laft for three months. More than one had already elapfed before the treaty with the Marattahs was concluded at Tanjore; after which major Lawrence, anxious to return, preffed Monack-jee to march. Few of the generals of India have any notion of the value of time in military operations, and Monack-jee either pretend ed or found fuch difficulties in recruiting his cavalry, that he declared he could not be ready before the end of July. Wearied with thefe delays, and hoping that fuch a mark of his impatience would excite the Tanjorines to follow him, major Lawrence, accompanied by the Nabob, arched away with the English troops from Tanjore on the 22d, and encamped at Atchempettah, a town in the woods belonging to the Colleries, about twelve miles weft from Tanjore; five days after Monack-jee fet up his ftandard and joined him with the Tanjorine army; but he now declared that his troops would be greatly diffatisfied if they proceeded any farther before Maphuze Khan, with the re-inforcement that accompanied him, came up. The nabob likewise preffing major Lawrence to wait for thefe troops; he much against his will confented, but obliged Monack-jee to collect a quantity of provifàons fufficient to replace what fhould be confumed by the English troops in the field and in Tritchinopoly, during the delay occasioned by this refolution.

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