The man pushed off, and the lascar watched the boat float
silently down the stream until it was lost to sight.
Dawn was hardly breaking when Major Killpatrick, awakened by his servant,
received from his hands a folded paper which by the aid of a candle he
began to pore over, laboriously comparing it with a small code similar to
that used by the lascar. One by one he penciled on a scrap of paper
certain letters, every now and then whistling between his teeth as he
spelt out the words they made. The result appeared thus:
Magazines for ammunition and stores of grain being prepared Tribeni and
Hugli. Bazaar rumor Nawab about to march with army to Calcutta. Orders
issued Hugli traffic to be strictly watched. Dutch phataks {gate or
barrier} closed. Forth unable leave Chinsura. Tanna Fort 9 guns; opposite
Tanna 6 guns; Holwell's garden 5 guns; 4 each Surman's and Ganj; 2 each
Mr. Watts' house, Seth's ghat, Maryas ghat, carpenter's yard.
"Egad!" he exclaimed, on a second reading of the message, "the boy's a
conjurer. This is important enough to send to Mr. Clive at once. But I'll
make a copy of it first in case of accident."
Having made his copy and sealed the original and his first transcription,
he summoned his servant and bade him send for the kasid. To him he
intrusted the papers, directing him to convey them without loss of time
to Clive Sahib, whom he might expect to find at Kalpi.
It was December thirteenth. Two months before, the fleet containing
Colonel Clive and the troops destined for the Bengal expedition had
sailed from Madras.
Pages:
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402