"If ideas of conquest were to be the rule of our conduct, I foresee that we should, by necessity, be led from acquisition to acquisition, until we had the whole empire up in arms against us; and whilst we lay under the great disadvantage of fighting without a single ally, (for who could wish us well?) the natives, left without European allies, would find, in their own resources, means of carrying on war against us in a much more soldierly manner than they ever thought of when their reliance on European allies encouraged their natural indolence. The last battle fought against Cossim Ali Khan is a proof of this assertion, for never did the troops of India fight so well.
"Nothing, therefore, but extreme necessity, ought to induce us to extend our ideas of territorial acquisitions beyond the amount of those ceded by Cossim Ali Khan, in his treaty with Vansittart. This necessity can only arise from finding that nobody will trust us; and that the people of the country are determined to try their strength with us to the utmost.
"But by this system of moderation it is not intended that the Nabob should be left entirely independent of us. The moment he fancies himself in this situation he will look upon us as enemies who have taken too much from him, and whom it will be necessary, either to reduce to our ancient state of mere merchants, or to extirpate. This, therefore, was the error of Mr. Vansittart's conduct: he advised the Nabob to regulate his treasury, save money, to form and discipline an excellent army, and to pay them well and regularly, contrary to the practice of all the princes of India. By following this advice punctually, Cossim Ali, in two years, thought himself in a condition to bid us defiance, and was near being so.
"It ought, therefore, to be our plan to convince the Nabob that our troops are his best, his only support against foreign enemies; and that our friendship will be his best support against the plots and revolutions of his own officers. Necessitated, by the extent of his dominions, to repose large governments and great trusts in particular men, jealousies will be perpetually subsisting. On the nice and disinterested management of these will depend our importance. The principal officers must be convinced that we will protect them from any capricious violences of their sovereign; and, on the other hand, the Nabob must be convinced, that we will give them up to his just resentment the moment their ambition alone leads them to strike at him.
"To carry this balance with an even hand, the strictest integrity will be necessary in every one who shall have a vote in your councils abroad. I found myself every day assaulted by large offers of presents, from the principal men of the province, not to support the Nabob in resolutions contrary to their interests; and from the Nabob, to sacrifice them to his capricious resentments.
"But even this conduct alone will not be sufficient to keep us from giving umbrage. During Mr. Vansittart's government, all your servants thought themselves entitled to take large shares in the monopolies of salt, beetle, and tobacco, the three articles, next to grain, of greatest consumption in the empire. The odium of seeing such monopolies in the hands of foreigners need not be insisted on; but this is not the only inconvenience: it is productive of another, equally, if not more prejudicial to the Company's interests; it enables many of your servants to obtain, very suddenly, fortunes greater than those which in former times were thought a sufficient reward for a long continuance in your service. Hence these gentlemen, thus suddenly enriched, think of nothing but of returning to enjoy their fortunes in England, and leave your affairs in the hands of young men, whose sanguine expectations are inflamed by the examples of those who have just left them.
"This, therefore, will be the greatest difficulty which I shall have to encounter; to persuade, or, if necessary, to oblige your servants to be content with advantages much inferior to those which, by the prescription of some years, they may think themselves entitled to. Yet if this is not done, your affairs can never be settled on a judicious and permanent plan. My fortunes, my family, and the other advantages I may be possessed of, will naturally make me wish to accomplish my intentions for the Company's service abroad as soon as possible, that I may return to my native country, which, it cannot be imagined, that I quit without some regrets; but if I should meet in your councils abroad men whom private interest may render averse to my maxims, I shall, perhaps, instead of settling your affairs as may be expected from me, find myself harassed and over-ruled in every measure by a majority against me in council.
"It therefore rests with the Court of Directors to consider, seriously, whether they should not intrust me with a dispensing power in the civil and political affairs; so that whensoever I may think proper to take any resolution entirely upon myself that resolution is to take place. The French Company gave Mr. Godeheu sole and absolute control over all their settlements to the east of the Cape of Good Hope, at a time when their affairs were not in a worse condition than ours are at present. In India we ourselves have had examples of supervisors. I myself was intrusted with great powers by the gentlemen of Madras, when I went down to Bengal against Suraj-u-Dowlah: the use which I made of these powers will, I hope, justify my opinion, that I may, without danger, be intrusted with an authority so highly necessary at present. The occasions of exerting it will rarely happen, but will certainly happen at times, when all may be lost for want of it. Moderation, I will venture to say, was always a part of my character in political concerns; and as a means to induce the gentlemen abroad to contract their views of private advantage within the bounds essentially necessary to the interests of the Company, the first step I shall take will be, to give up to them every commercial advantage, as I did during my last residence in Bengal. I need not mention that these advantages are, to a Governor, great, and adequate to his station.
"To prevent dissensions, I am willing to receive a military commission inferior to General Lawrence's; but that gentleman has received from the Court of Directors so very extensive a power over all their forces in India, that the presidency, at which he resides, is, in fact, little less than the residence of a Governor-general over all your settlements in India. If ever the appointment of such an officer as Governor-general should become necessary, it is evident that he ought to be established in Bengal, as the greatest weight of your civil, commercial, political, and military affairs will always be in that province. It cannot, therefore, be expected that I should be subject to have any part of the military forces allotted for that province recalled or withheld from me at the will of an officer in another part of India; or that even the presence of that officer in Bengal should, in any way, interfere with my military authority in that province. It will likewise be necessary (at least until affairs in Bengal are restored to perfect tranquillity) that whatever troops, treasures, or other consignments may be destined from England to that presidency, shall not, as usual, be stopped and employed by any of the other presidencies at which they may chance to arrive in their passage towards the Ganges."
Such was the prospect, and such were the anticipations, with which Clive proceeded to India. The task was arduous, but his mind was resolved on its full performance; and the next chapter will show that his efforts were more than sufficient to surmount the obstacles that were opposed to his success, although they proved even greater than he had apprehended.