=Amīr Khān received at Jodhpur.=—Amir Khan was received by Raja Man with
distinguished honours; a palace in the castle was assigned as his
residence; valuable gifts were presented to him and great rewards held
in perspective, if, through his agency, the rebellion should be
completely subdued. He swore to extirpate Sawai’s faction, and in token
of identity of views with Raja Man, he was admitted to the honour of
that last proof of devotion to his cause, “an interchange of turbans,”
with an advance of three lakhs, or £30,000, for the immediate payment of
his bonds.
On the raising of the siege of Jodhpur, Sawai conducted the pretender to
the appanage of the heirs of Marwar, the city of Nagor. There they were
deliberating as to their future plans, when a message was brought from
Amir Khan from [149] Mundiawar,[5.15.1] ten miles distant, begging
permission to perform his devotions at the shrine of the Muslim saint,
Pir Tarkin, the sole relic of the Islamite, which Bakhta Singh had
spared. His request being complied with, he with a slight cavalcade left
his camp, and having gone through the mummeries of devotion, paid his
respects to Sawai. When about to take leave, he threw out hints of Raja
Man’s ungrateful return for his services, and that his legions might
have been better employed. Sawai greedily caught at the bait; he desired
the Khan to name his terms, and offered £200,000 on the day that Dhonkal
should possess the _gaddi_ of Jodhpur. The Khan accepted the conditions
and ratified the engagement on the Koran, and to add to the solemnity of
the pledge, he exchanged turbans with Sawai. This being done, he was
introduced to the pretender, received the usual gifts, pledged his life
in his cause, took leave, and returned to his camp, whither he invited
the prince and his chiefs on the following day to accept of an
entertainment.
=Amīr Khān massacres the Chiefs.=—On the morning of the 19th of Chait,
S. 1864 (A.D. 1808), Sawai, attended by the chief adherents of the
pretender and about five hundred followers, repaired to the camp of the
Khan, who had made every preparation for the more effectual perpetration
of the bloody and perfidious deed he meditated. A spacious tent was
pitched in the centre of his camp for the reception of his guests, and
cannon were loaded with grape ready to be turned against them. The
visitors were received with the most distinguished courtesy; turbans
were again exchanged; the dancing-girls were introduced, and nothing but
festivity was apparent. The Khan arose, and making an excuse to his
guests for a momentary absence, retired. The dancing continued, when at
the word ‘_dhaga_,’ pronounced by the musicians, down sunk the tent upon
the unsuspicious Rajputs, who fell an easy prey to the ferocious
Pathans. Forty-two chieftains were thus butchered in the very sanctuary
of hospitality, and the heads of the most distinguished were sent to
Raja Man. Their adherents, taken by surprise, were slaughtered by the
soldiery, or by cannon charged with grape, as they fled. The pretender
escaped from Nagor, which was plundered by the Khan, when not only all
the property of the party, but the immense stores left by Bakhta Singh,
including three hundred pieces of cannon, were taken, and sent to
Sambhar and other strongholds held by the Khan. Having thus fulfilled
his instructions, he repaired to Jodhpur, and received ten lakhs or
£100,000, and [150] two large towns, Mundiawar and Kuchilawas, of thirty
thousand rupees annual rent, besides one hundred rupees daily for
table-allowance, as the reward of his signal infamy.
Thus, by the murder of Sawai and his powerful partisans, the confederacy
against Raja Man was extinguished; but though the Raja had thus,
miraculously as it were, defeated the gigantic schemes formed against
him, the mode by which it was effected entailed upon him and upon his
country unexampled miseries. The destruction of the party of the
pretender was followed by retaliation on the various members of the
league. The Jaipur territory was laid waste by the troops of Amir Khan,
and an expedition was planned against Bikaner. An army consisting of
twelve thousand of Raja Man’s feudal levies, under the command of
Induraj, with a brigade of Amir Khan, and that of Hindal Khan with
thirty-five guns, marched against the chief of the independent Rathors.
The Bikaner Raja formed an army little inferior in numbers, and gave his
suzerain the meeting at Bapri; but after a partial encounter, in which
the former lost two hundred men, he fell back upon his capital, pursued
by the victors, who halted at Gajner.[5.15.2] Here terms were offered;
two lakhs as the expenses of the war, and the surrender of the bone of
contention, the town of Phalodi, which had been assigned to Bikaner as
the price of joining the confederacy.
=Amīr Khān rules Mārwār.=—The Khan was now the arbiter of Marwar. He
stationed Ghafur Khan with a garrison in Nagor, and partitioned the
lands of Merta amongst his followers. He likewise placed his garrison in
the castle of Nawa, which gave him the command of the salt-lakes of Nawa
and Sambhar. Induraj and the high-priest Deonath were the only
counsellors of Raja Man, and all the oppressions which the chieftains
suffered through this predominant foreign interference, were attributed
to their advice. To cut them off the chiefs in their turn applied to
Amir Khan, who for seven lakhs (£70,000), readily consented to rid them
of their enemies. A plot was laid, in which some of his Pathans, under
pretence of quarrelling with Induraj for their arrears, put this
minister and the high-priest to death.
=Insanity of Mān Singh.=—The loss of Deonath appeared to affect the
reason of Raja Man. He shut himself up in his apartments, refused to
communicate with any one, and soon omitted every duty, whether political
or religious, until at length he was recommended to name his only son
Chhattar Singh as his successor. To this he acceded [151], and with his
own hand made the mark of inauguration on his forehead. But youth and
base panders to his pleasure seduced him from his duties, and he died,
some say the victim of illicit pursuits, others from a wound given by
the hand of one of the chieftains, whose daughter he attempted to
seduce.
The premature death of his only son, before he had attained the years of
majority, still more alienated the mind of Raja Man from all State
affairs, and his suspicions of treacherous attempts on his person
extended even to his wife. He refused all food, except that which was
brought by one faithful menial. He neglected his ablutions, allowed his
face to be covered with hair, and at length either was, or affected to
be insane. He spoke to no one, and listened with the apathy of an idiot
to the communications of the ministers, who were compelled to carry on
the government. By many it is firmly believed that the part he thus
acted was feigned, to escape the snares laid for his life; while others
think that it was a melancholy mania, arising from remorse at having
consented to the murder of Induraj, which incidentally involved that of
the Guru.[5.15.3] In short, his alliance with the atrocious Khan exposed
him to the suspicion of a participation in his crimes, which the bent of
his policy too much favoured. In this condition—the government being
managed by an oligarchy headed by Salim Singh (son of Sawai)—did Raja
Man remain, until the tide of events carried the arms of Britain even to
the desert of Maru.
=British Intervention. Restoration of Mān Singh.=—When, in 1817, we
invited the Rajputs to disunite from the predatory powers, and to join
us in establishing order throughout India, the young son of Raja Man, or
rather his ministers, sent envoys to Delhi. But ere the treaty was
ratified, this dissipated youth was no more. On this event, the Pokaran
faction, dreading Raja Man’s resumption of the government, made an
application to Idar for a son to adopt as their sovereign. But splendid
as was the offer, the Raja, who had but one son, rejected it, unless the
demand were sustained by the unanimous suffrages of the nobles.
Unanimity being unattainable, the faction had no alternative save the
restoration of Raja Man; but it was in vain they explained the new
position of Marwar, the alliance with the English, which awaited his
sanction, and the necessity that he, as the last prop of the royal
family, should resume the reins of power. He listened to all with the
most apathetic indifference [152]. But although he saw in this new
crisis of the political condition of his country, motives for effecting
his escape from bondage, his mind was so tutored by bitter experience
that he never for an instant betrayed its workings. When at length he
allowed himself to comprehend the full nature of the changes which made
even the faction desire his egress from solitude, so far from expressing
any joy, he even disapproved of part of the treaty, and especially the
article relating to the armed contingent of his vassals to be at the
disposal of the protecting power, in which he wisely saw the germ of
discord, from the certainty of interference it would lead to.
=Treaty with the British.=—It was in December 1817 that the
treaty[5.15.4] was negotiated at Delhi by a Brahman named Byas Bishan
Ram, on the part of the regent prince, and in December 1818, an officer
of the British government[5.15.5] was deputed to report on its actual
condition. Notwithstanding the total disorganization of the government,
from the combination of causes already described, the court had lost
nothing of its splendour or regularity; the honour of all was concerned
in preserving the dignity of the _gaddi_, though its incumbent was an
object of distrust and even detestation. The ministry at this period was
conducted by Akhai Chand (Diwan), and Salim Singh of Pokaran, as the
representative of the aristocracy, with the title of Bhanjghar. All the
garrisons and offices of trust throughout the country were held by the
creatures of a junto, of which these were the heads. There was, however,
already the nucleus of an opposition in the brother of the murdered
minister, named Fateh Raj, who was entrusted with the care of the city.
The instructions of the agent were to offer the aid of the British
government towards the settlement of Raja Man’s affairs; and at a
private interview, three days after the agent’s arrival, troops were
offered to be placed at his disposal. But the wariness of his character
will be seen in the use he made of this offer. He felt that the lever
was at hand to crush faction to the dust; and with a Machiavellian
caution, he determined that the existence of this engine should suffice;
that its power should be felt, but never seen; that he should enjoy all
the advantages this influence would give, without risking any of its
dangers if called into action. Thus, while he rejected, though with
thanks, the essential benefit tendered, qualifying his refusal with a
sufficient reason—“reliance on himself to restore his State to order”—he
failed not to [153] disseminate the impression amongst his chiefs, which
was enough for his purpose, and which besides checked the dictation and
interference that uniformly result from such unequal alliances.
Energetic counsels and rapid decision are unknown to Asiatic
governments, whose subjects are ever prone to suspicion whenever unusual
activity is visible; and Raja Man had been schooled into circumspection
from his infancy. He appeared anxious to bury the past in oblivion, by
choosing men of both parties for the inferior duties of the ministry;
and the blandness of his manners and his conciliatory address lulled the
most suspicious into security. After a short residence, the Agent
returned to Ajmer, having in vain tried to convince Raja Man that his
affairs were irretrievable without the direct aid of the paramount
power, which he persisted in repudiating, assigning as his reason that
he felt convinced, from “the measures then in train,” he should
accomplish the task himself: of these measures conciliation appeared to
be the basis.
=The Author appointed Envoy to Jodhpur.=—At this period[5.15.6] an envoy
was appointed, with powers direct from the Governor-General to Raja Man,
but he was for some months prevented from proceeding to his court, from
various causes.[5.15.7]
=Demoralization at Jodhpur.=—The Agent, who reached Jodhpur early in the
month of November, found matters [154] in nearly the same state as on
his predecessor’s departure in February. The same faction kept the
prince and all the officers of government at their disposal. The Raja
interfered but little with their measures, except to acquiesce in or
confirm them. The mercenary bands of Sindis or Pathans were in miserable
plight and clamorous for their pay, not having been accounted with for
three years; and they were to be seen begging in the streets of the
capital, or hawking bundles of forage on their heads to preserve them
from starvation. On the approach of the Agent of the British Government,
the forms of accounts were gone through, and they gave in acquittances
in full of demands, on condition of receiving 30 per cent of their
arrears; but this was only a form, and with his departure (in about
three weeks), they despaired even of that.
The name of justice was unknown:—though, in allusion to the religion of
the men in power, it was common to hear it said, “You may commit murder
and no one will notice it; but woe to him who beats or maims a brute,
for dogs are publicly fed while the soldier starves.” In short, the sole
object of the faction was to keep at a distance all interposition that
might lead the prince to emancipate himself from their control. During
the Agent’s stay of nearly three weeks, he had several private
interviews with Raja Man. The knowledge he had of the history of his
ancestry and his own situation, and of the causes which had produced it,
failed not to beget a corresponding confidence; and these interviews
were passed in discussions on the ancient history of the country as well
as on his own immediate affairs. The Agent took leave with these words:
“I know all the perils through which you have passed; I am aware how you
surmounted them. By your resolution, your external enemies are now gone:
you have the British Government as a friend; rely upon it with the same
fortitude, and, in a very short time, all will be as you could desire.”
Raja Man listened eagerly to these observations. His fine features,
though trained to bear no testimony to the workings within, relaxed with
delight as he rapidly replied, “In one twelve-months, my affairs will be
as friendship could wish.” To which the Agent rejoined, “In half the
time, Maharaja, if you are determined”: though the points to which he
had to direct his mind were neither few nor slight, for they involved
every branch of government; as
=Reforms in Mārwār.=—1. Forming an efficient administration [155].
2. Consideration of the finances; the condition of the crown lands; the
feudal confiscations, which, often unjust, had caused great discontent.
3. The reorganization and settlement of the foreign troops, on whose
service the Raja chiefly depended.
4. An effective police on all the frontiers, to put down the wholesale
pillage of the Mers in the south, the Larkhanis in the north, and the
desert Sahariyas and Khosas in the west; reformation of the tariff, or
scale of duties on commerce, which were so heavy as almost to amount to
prohibition; and at the same time to provide for its security.
Scarcely had the Agent left Jodhpur, before the faction, rejoiced at the
removal of the only restraint on their narrow-minded views, proceeded in
the career of disorder. Whether the object were to raise funds, or to
gratify ancient animosities, the course pursued by the Diwan and his
junto was the same. Ghanerao, the chief fief of Godwar, was put under
sequestration, and only released by a fine of more than a year’s
revenue. All the minor chiefs of this rich tract suffered in the same
manner, besides the indignity of having their lands placed under the
control of a brother of the minister. Chandawal[5.15.8] was put under
sequestration, and only released on a very heavy fine. At length the
Diwan had the audacity to put his hand on Awa, the chief fief of Marwar;
but the descendant of Champa replied, “My estate is not of to-day, nor
thus to be relinquished.” Gloom, mistrust, and resentment pervaded the
whole feudal body. They saw a contemptible faction sporting with their
honour and possessions, from an idea they industriously propagated, that
an unseen but mighty power was at hand to support their acts, given out
as those of the prince. If the Raja did dictate them, he took especial
care it should not be seen; for in the absence of the British Agent, he
once more resumed his sequestered habits, and appeared to take no
interest in the government further than to promote a coalition between
Akhai Chand and Fateh Raj, who was supported by a strong party of the
chiefs, and the influence of the favourite queen. But Akhai Chand, who
commanded, through his creatures, all the resources of the country, and
its strongholds, even to the castle of Jodhpur, rejected these
overtures, and feigning that there were plots against his personal
safety, left the city; and the better to exclude his adversaries from
the prince, resided entirely in the citadel.
=Cruelty of Rāja Mān Singh.=—Six months had thus fled. The fiat of Akhai
Chand was supreme; he alone was [156] visible; his orders alone were
obeyed. Raja Man was only heard of as an automaton, moving as the Diwan
pleased. But while the latter was thus basking in the full sunshine of
prosperity, enriching himself and his dependents, execrated by the
nobles and envied by his fellow-citizens, they heard of his fall! Then,
the insanity of his master proved to be but a cloak to the intensity of
his resentment. But a blind revenge would not have satisfied Raja Man.
The victims of his deep dissimulation, now in manacles, were indulged
with hopes of life, which, with the application of torture, made them
reveal the plunder of prince and subject. A schedule of forty lakhs, or
£400,000, was given in by the Diwan and his dependents, and their
accounts being settled in this world, they were summarily dismissed to
the other, with every mark of ignominy which could add to the horrors of
death. Nagji, the Kiladar,[5.15.9] and misleader of the late regent
prince, with Mulji Dandal, one of the old allodial stock, had each a cup
of poison, and their bodies were thrown over the ‘Gate of Victory’
(Fateh Pol). Jivaraj, a brother of the Dandal, with Biharidas Khichi,
and the tailor, had their heads shaved, and their bodies were flung into
the cascade beneath. Even the sacred character of “expounder of the
Vedas,” and that of “revealer of the secrets of heaven,” yielded no
protection; and Byas Sheodas, with Srikishan, Jotishi, the astrologer,
were in the long list of proscriptions. Nagji, commandant of the
citadel, and Mulji, had retired on the death of the regent-prince; and
with the wealth they had accumulated, while administering to his
follies, had erected places of strength. On the restoration of Raja Man,
and the general amnesty which prevailed, they returned to their ancient
offices in the castle, rose into favour, and forgot they had been
traitors. Having obtained their persons, Man secured the ancient jewels
of the crown, bestowed on these favourites during the ephemeral sway of
his son. Their condemnation was then passed, and they were hurled over
the battlements of the rock which it was their duty to guard. With such
consummate skill was the plot contrived, that the creatures of the
minister, in the most remote districts, were imprisoned simultaneously
with himself. Of the many subordinate agents thus confined, many were
liberated on the disclosure of their wealth; and by these
sequestrations, Raja Man obtained abundant supplies. The enormous sum of
a crore, or near one million sterling, was stated; but if they yielded
one-half (and this was not unlikely), they gave the means, which he was
not slow to use, for the prosecution of what he termed a just
punishment, though it [157] better deserves the name of a savage
revenge. Had he been satisfied with inflicting the last penalty of the
law on the nefarious Akhai Chand, and some of the household officers
whose fidelity ought ever to be firm, and with the sequestration of the
estates of some two or three of the vassals whose power had become
dangerous, or their treason too manifest to be overlooked, he would have
commanded the services of the rest, and the admiration of all conversant
with these events. But this first success added fuel to his revenge, and
he sought out more noble victims to glut it. His circumspection and
dissimulation were strengthened, not relaxed, by his success. Several of
the chiefs, who were marked out for death, had received, only a few days
before, the highest proof of favour in additional lands to their
rent-roll, and accident alone prevented a group of the most conspicuous
from falling into the snare which had inveigled Akhai Chand. Salim Singh
of Pokaran, and his constant associate Surthan of Nimaj, with Anar Singh
of Ahor, and the minors of their clans, whose duty daily carried them to
the court, as the chief advisers of the prince, formed a part of the
administration of the Diwan, and they naturally took alarm upon his
confinement. To obviate this, a deputation was sent by the prince to
tranquillize them by the assurance that, in the confinement of the
minister, whose rapacity and misconduct deserved punishment, the Raja
had attained all his ends. Thus, in order to encompass the destruction
of the Pokaran chief, he would not have scrupled to involve all the
rest. The prince, with his own mouth, desired the confidential servant
of Anar Singh, who was his personal friend, to attend with the others.
Their distrust saved him. The same night, the mercenary bands, to the
number of eight thousand men, with guns, attacked Surthan Singh in his
dwelling. With one hundred and eighty of his clan, he defended himself
against great guns and small arms, as long as the house was tenable, and
then sallied out sword in hand, and, with his brother and eighty of his
kin, fell nobly in the midst of his foes. The remainder retreated with
their arms to defend Nimaj and their infant chief. This gallant defence,
in which many of the townspeople were slain, prevented a repetition of
the attempt against the Pokaran chief, who remained on the defensive;
until, seeing an opportunity, he fled to his asylum in the desert, or he
would that day have renounced “the sheath of the dagger which held the
fortunes of Marwar,” and which now contained the accumulated revenge of
four generations: of Deo Singh, of Sabhala, of Sawai, and his own. His
death would have terminated this branch of Ajit’s issue, adopted into
the house of [158] Pokaran, in the history of which we have a tolerable
picture of the precariousness of existence in Marwar.[5.15.10]
What better commentary can be made on Raja Man’s character, than the few
recorded words addressed to Fateh Raj, whom he sent for to the Presence,
on the day succeeding these events? “Now you may perceive the reasons
why I did not sooner give you office.” This individual, the brother of
the late Induraj, was forthwith installed in the post of Diwan; and with
the sinews of war provided by the late sequestrations, the troops were
satisfied, while by the impression so sedulously propagated and
believed, that he had only to call on the British power for what aid he
required, the whole feudal body was appalled: and the men, who would
have hurled the tyrant from his throne, now only sought to avoid his
insidious snares, more dangerous than open force.
Nimaj was besieged and nobly defended; but at length the son of Surthan
capitulated, on receiving the sign-manual of his prince promising pardon
and restoration, guaranteed by the commander of the mercenary bands. To
the eternal disgrace of the Raja, he broke this pledge, and the boy had
scarcely appeared in the besieging camp, when the civil officer produced
the Raja’s mandate for his captivity and transmission to the Presence.
If it is painful to record this fact, it is pleasing to add, that even
the mercenary commander spurned the infamous injunction. “No,” said he;
“on the faith of my pledge (_bachan_) he surrendered; and if the Raja
breaks his word, I will maintain mine, and at least place him in
security.” He kept his promise, and conveyed him to the Aravalli
mountains, whence he passed over to, and received protection in Mewar.
=Estrangement of the Chiefs.=—This and similar acts of treachery and
cold-blooded tyranny completely estranged all the chiefs. Isolated as
they were, they could make no resistance against the mercenary
battalions, amounting to ten thousand men, exclusive of the quotas; and
they dared not league for defence, from the dreaded threat held over
them, of calling in the British troops; and in a few months the whole
feudal association of [159] Marwar abandoned their homes and their
country, seeking shelter in the neighbouring States from the Raja’s
cruel and capricious tyranny. To his connexion with the British
Government alone he was indebted for his being able thus to put forth
the resources of his policy, which otherwise he never could have
developed either with safety or effect; nor at any former period of the
history of Marwar could the most daring of its princes have undertaken,
with any prospect of success, what Raja Man accomplished under this
alliance.
These brave men found asyla in the neighbouring States of Kotah, Mewar,
Bikaner, and Jaipur. Even the faithful Anar Singh, whose fidelity no
gratitude could ever repay, was obliged to seek refuge in exile. He had
stood Man’s chief shield against the proscription of Raja Bhim, when
cooped up in Jalor, and sold his wife’s ornaments, “even to her
nose-ring,” to procure him the means of subsistence and defence. It was
Anar Singh who saved him when, in the attempt upon Pali, he was unhorsed
and nearly made prisoner. He was among the four chiefs who remained by
his fortunes when the rest deserted to the standard of the pretender;
and he was one of the same body, who rescued the trophies of their
disgrace from the hands of their enemies when on the road to Jaipur.
Last of all, he was mainly instrumental in the Raja’s emancipation and
in his resumption of the reins of government. Well might the fury of his
revenge deserve the term of madness! In A.D. 1821, the greater
chieftains of Marwar, thus driven into exile, were endeavouring to
obtain the mediation of the British authorities; but another year had
elapsed without the slightest advance to accommodation. Their conduct
has been exemplary, but their degrading position, dependent on the
scanty resources of others, must of itself work a cure. Their manly
remonstrance addressed to the British functionary is already before the
reader.[5.15.11] He did not hesitate to tell them, that if in due time
no mediation was held out, they must depend on themselves for redress!
Such was the political condition of Marwar until the year 1823. Had a
demoniacal spirit of revenge not blinded Raja Man, he had a fine
opportunity to lay the principles of order on a permanent basis, and to
introduce those reforms necessary for his individual welfare as well as
for that of the State. He had it in his power to modify the
institutions, to curb without destroying the feudal chiefs, and [160] to
make the whole subservient to the altered condition of affairs. Instead
of having the glory of fixing the constitution of his country, he has
(reposing on external protection) broken up the entire feudal
association, and rendered the paramount power an object of hatred
instead of reverence.
=Retrospect of Mārwār History.=—Having thus rapidly sketched the history
of this interesting branch of the Rajput race, from the destruction of
their ancient seat of empire, Kanauj, and their settlement in the Indian
desert more than six centuries ago, to the present day, it is impossible
to quit the subject without a reflection on the anomalous condition of
their alliance with the British Government, which can sanction the
existence of such a state of things as we have just described. It
illustrates the assertions made in an early part of this work,[5.15.12]
of the ill-defined principles which guide all our treaties with the
Rajputs, and which, if not early remedied, will rapidly progress to a
state of things full of misery to them, and of inevitable danger to
ourselves. These “men of the soil,” as they emphatically designate
themselves, cling to it, and their ancient and well-defined privileges,
with an unconquerable pertinacity; in their endeavours to preserve them,
whole generations have been swept away, yet has their strength increased
in the very ratio of oppression. Where are now the oppressors? the
dynasties of Ghazni, of Ghor, the Khiljis, the Lodis, the Pathans, the
Timurs, and the demoralizing Mahratta? The native Rajput has flourished
amidst these revolutions, and survived their fall; and but for the vices
of their internal sway, chiefly contracted from such association, would
have risen to power upon the ruin of their tyrants. But internal
dissension invited the spoiler; and herds of avaricious Mahrattas and
ferocious Pathans have reaped the harvest of their folly. Yet all these
faults were to be redeemed in their alliances with a people whose
peculiar boast was, that wisdom, justice, and clemency were the
corner-stones of their power: seeking nothing from them beyond the means
for their defence, and an adherence to the virtues of order. How far the
protecting power has redeemed its pledge, in allowing years to pass away
without some attempt to remedy the anarchy we have described, the reader
is in a condition to judge. If it be said that we have tied up our hands
by leaving them free agents in their internal administration, then let
no offer of support be given to the head, for the oppression of the
vassal and his rights, co-equal with those of the sovereign [161]; and
if our mediation cannot be exerted, let us withdraw altogether the
checks upon the operation of their own system of government, and leave
them free agents in reality. A wiser, more humane, and liberal policy
would be, to impose upon ourselves the task of understanding their
political condition, and to use our just influence for the restoration
of their internal prosperity, and with it the peace, present as well as
prospective, of an important part of our empire. The policy which such
views would suggest, is to support the opinion of the vast majority of
the Rathors, and to seize the first opportunity to lend at least our
sanction to an adoption, from the Idar branch, of Rathor blood, not only
uncontaminated, but heirs-presumptive to Jodha, and exclude the
parricidal line which will continue to bring misery on the country. If,
however, we apply only our own monarchical, nay, despotic principles to
this feudal society, and interfere but to uphold a blind tyranny, which
must drive these brave chiefs to despair, it will be well to reflect and
consider, from the acts we have related, of what they are capable. Very
different, indeed, would be the deeds of proscribed Rajputs from those
of vagabond Pindaris, or desultory Mahrattas; and what a field for
aggression and retreat! Rumour asserts that they have already done
themselves justice; and that, driven to desperation, and with no power
to mediate, the dagger has reached the heart of Raja Man! If this be
true, it is a retribution which might have been expected; it was the
only alternative left to the oppressed chiefs to do themselves justice.
It is also said, that the ‘pretended’ son of Raja Bhim is now on the
_gaddi_ of Jodha. This is deeply to be lamented. Raja Dhonkal will see
only the party who espoused his pretensions, and the Pokaran chief and
faction will hold that place in the councils of his sovereign, which of
right belongs to the head of his clan, the Champawat chief of Awa, an
exile in Mewar.[5.15.13] Jealousy, feuds, and bloodshed will be the
consequence, which would at once be averted by an adoption from Idar.
Were a grand council of Rajputs to be convened, in order to adjust the
question, nine-tenths would decide as proposed; the danger of
interference would be neutralized, and peace and tranquillity would be
the boon bestowed upon thousands, and, what is of some consequence,
future danger to ourselves would be avoided [162].
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Footnote 5.15.1:
[Mūndwa.]
Footnote 5.15.2:
[Nineteen miles S.W. of Bikaner city.]
Footnote 5.15.3:
For the character of this priest, see p. 825.
Footnote 5.15.4:
See treaty, Appendix No. II. [See end of Vol. III.]
Footnote 5.15.5:
Mr. Wilder, superintendent of the district of Ajmer.
Footnote 5.15.6:
In February 1819, the Author had the political duties of Marwar added
to those of the States of Udaipur, Kotah, Bundi, and Sirohi.
Footnote 5.15.7:
One of these was an unpleasant altercation, which took place between
the townspeople of the Commercial Mart of Pali and an English
gentleman, sent unofficially to feel his way as to the extension of
commercial enterprise, carrying specimens of the staple commodities of
our trade. This interference with the very fountain-head of their
trade alarmed the monopolists of Pali, who, dreading such competition,
created or took advantage of an incident to rid themselves of the
intruder. The commercial men of these regions almost all profess the
Jain religion, whose first rule of faith is the preservation of life,
in beast as in man. By them, therefore, the piece-goods, the
broad-cloths and metals of the Christian trader, were only less
abhorred than his flesh-pots, and the blood of the goats sworn to have
been shed by his servants within the bounds of Pali, rose in judgment
against their master, of whom a formal complaint was laid before Raja
Man. It lost none of its acrimony in coming through the channel of his
internuncio at Udaipur, the Brahman, Bishan Ram. Mr. Rutherford
rebutted the charge, and an investigation took place at the capital on
oath, upon which, as the merchants and the governor of Pali (a nephew
of the minister) could not substantiate their charge, the latter was
severely reprimanded for his incivility. But whether the story was
true or false, it was quite enough for their purpose. The interdict
between Mr. Rutherford and the inhabitants of Pali was more effectual
than the sanitary cordon of any prince in Christendom. The feeling of
resentment against him reached the Agent of government, who was
obliged to support what appeared the cause of truth, even according to
the deposition made before their own judgment-seat, and he was
consequently deemed inimical to the prince and the faction which then
guided his councils. Mr. Rutherford proceeded afterwards to Kotah, to
exhibit the same wares; but he was there equally an object of
jealousy, though from letters of recommendation from the Agent, it was
less strongly manifested. It furnished evidence that such interference
would never succeed. It is well his mission did not appear to be
sanctioned by the government. What evil might not be effected by
permitting unrestricted and incautious intercourse with such people,
who can, and do obtain all they require of our produce without the
presence of the producers, who, whether within or without the pale of
the Company’s service, will not, I trust, be prematurely forced on
Rajputana, or it will assuredly hasten the day of inevitable
separation!
Footnote 5.15.8:
[Fifty-five miles S.W. of Jodhpur city.]
Footnote 5.15.9:
[Commander of the fort.]
Footnote 5.15.10:
In a letter addressed to the Government on these events, dated July 7,
1820, I observed, “The danger is, that success may tempt him to go
beyond the line of necessity, either for the ends of justice or
security. If he stops with the Pokaran chief, and one or two inferior,
concerned in the coalition of 1806 and the usurpation of his son, with
the condign punishment of a few of the civil officers, it will afford
a high opinion of his character; but if he involves Awa, and the other
principal chiefs, in these proscriptions, he may provoke a strife
which will yet overwhelm him. He has done enough for justice, and even
for revenge, which has been carried too far as regards Surthan Singh,
whose death (which I sincerely regret) was a prodigal sacrifice.”
Footnote 5.15.11:
Vol. I. p. 228.
Footnote 5.15.12:
Vol. I. p. 146.
Footnote 5.15.13:
He was so when the author left India in 1823. [In 1827 Dhonkal Singh
raised forces in Jaipur for the invasion of Mārwār. Mān Singh demanded
aid from the British Government, which was refused. “At the same time,
the Jaipur State was considered to have acted in breach of its
engagements with Government by having allowed an armed confederacy to
form against Jodhpur within its territory, and strong remonstrances
were addressed to the Darbār; lastly, Dhonkal Singh was required to
withdraw from the confederacy, and the nobles settled their
differences among themselves” (Erskine iii. A. 72). In 1839 the
misgovernment of Mān Singh led to British military intervention. He
died on 5th September 1843.]
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