"The fear of drawing on his back all the European
nations at once had made him politic. At first he pretended
to be satisfied with the reply sent by the Governor
of Chandernagore, and assured him that he would always
treat us with the greatest kindness. He said the same to
the Dutch, but when Calcutta was taken the mask fell. He
had nothing more to fear. Scarcely had he arrived at Hugli
when he sent detachments to Chandernagore and Chinsurah
to summon the commandants to pay contributions, or to
resolve to see their flags taken away and their forts
demolished. In short, we were forced to yield what the
Nawab demanded; whilst he, as he said, was content with
having punished a nation which had offended him, and with
having put the others to ransom to pay for the expenses of
the expedition. We saw the tyrant reappear in triumph at
Murshidabad, little thinking of the punishment which Providence
was preparing for his crimes, and to make which still
more striking, he was yet to have some further successes."
It may be here pointed out that, not only did the Nawab not insist on the destruction of the French and Dutch fortifications, but he did not destroy the fortifications of Calcutta. This proves that if the English had shown the humility and readiness to contribute which he desired, he would have left them in peace at the first, or, after the capture of Calcutta, have permitted them to resettle there without farther disturbance. In short, the real necessity of making the European nations respect his authority, instead of guiding him in a settled course, merely provided a pretext for satisfying his greed. This is the opinion, not only of the French and English who were at Murshidabad when the troubles began, but of the English officials who went there later on and made careful inquiries amongst all classes of people in order to ascertain the real reason of Siraj-ud-daula's attack upon the English.
His avarice was to prove the Nawab's ruin.
"Siraj-ud-daula was one of the richest Nawabs that had
ever reigned. Without mentioning his revenues, of which
he gave no account at the Court of Delhi, he possessed
immense wealth, both in gold and silver coin, and in jewels
and precious stones, which had been left by the preceding
three Nawabs. In spite of this he thought only of increasing
his wealth. If any extraordinary expense had to be met
he ordered contributions, and levied them with extreme
rigour. Having never known himself what it was to want
money, he supposed that, in due proportion, money was as
common with other people as with himself, and that the
Europeans especially were inexhaustible. His violence
towards them was partly due to this. In fact, from his
behaviour, one would have said his object was to ruin everybody.
He spared no one, not even his relatives, from whom
he took all the pensions and all the offices which they
had held in the time of Aliverdi Khan. Was it possible for
such a man to keep his throne? Those who did not know
him intimately, when they saw him victorious over his
enemies and confirmed as Nawab by a firman[[78]]from the
Great Mogul, were forced to suppose that there was in his
character some great virtue which balanced his vices and
counteracted their effects. However, this young giddy-pate
had no talent for government except that of making himself
feared, and, at the same time, passed for the most cowardly
of men. At first he had shown some regard for the officers of
the army, because, until he was recognized as Nawab, he felt
his need of them. He had even shown generosity, but this
quality, which was quite opposed to his real character,
soon disappeared,to make place for violence and greed, which decided
against him all those who had favoured his accession in the
hope that he would behave discreetly when he became Nawab."
Owing to the general disgust felt at Murshidabad for the Nawab, his cousin, Saukat Jang, Nawab of Purneah, thought the opportunity favourable for reviving his claims, and, early in October, Siraj-ud-daula, hearing of his contemplated rebellion, invaded his country.
"Every one longed for a change, and many flattered
themselves it would take place. In fact, it was the most
favourable opportunity to procure it. The result would have
been happiness and tranquillity for Bengal. Whilst contributing
to the general good—which even the Dutch might
have interested themselves in—we could have prevented
the misfortunes which have since happened to us. Three or
four hundred Europeans and a few sepoys would have done
the business. If we could have joined this force to the
enemies of Siraj-ud-daula we should have placed on the
throne another Nawab—not, indeed, one wholly to our taste,
but, not to worry about trifles, one to the liking of the house
of Jagat Seth,[[79]] and the chief Moors and Rajas. I am sure
such a Nawab would have kept his throne. The English
would have been re-established peaceably, they would certainly
have received some compensation, and would have had
to be satisfied whether they liked it or not. The neutrality of
the Ganges assured, at least to the same extent as in the time
of Aliverdi Khan, the English would have been prevented
from invading Bengal, and from sending thither the reinforcements
which had contributed so much to their success
on the Madras Coast. All this depended on us, but how
could we foresee the succession of events which has been as
contrary to us as it has been favourable to the English? As
it was, we remained quiet, and the rash valour of the young
Nawab of Purneah, whilst it delivered Siraj-ud-daula from
the only enemy he had to fear in the country, made it clear
to the whole of Bengal that the change so much desired
could be effected only by the English."
Mir Jafar and other leaders of the Nawab's army were about to declare in favour of Saukat Jang when Ramnarain,[[80]] Naib of Patna, arrived to support Siraj-ud-daula. Whilst the malcontents were hesitating what to do, Saukat Jang made a rash attack on the Nawab's army, and was shot dead in the fight.
"Behold him then, freed by this event from all his
inquietudes; detested, it is true, but feared even by those
who only knew him by name. In a country where predestination
has so much power over the mind, the star of
Siraj-ud-daula was, people said, predominant. Nothing could
resist him. He was himself persuaded of this. Sure of the
good fortune which protected him, he abandoned himself
more than ever to those passions which urged him to the
commission of every imaginable form of violence.
"It can be guessed what we had to suffer, we and the
Dutch, at Cossimbazar. Demand followed demand, and insult
followed insult, on the part of the native officers and soldiers;
for they, forming their behaviour on that of their master,
thought they could not sufficiently show their contempt for
everything European. We could not go outside of our Factories
without being exposed to annoyance of one kind or another."
Every one in the land turned wistful eyes towards the English, but they lay inactive at Fulta, and it seemed as if help from Madras would never come. The English, therefore, tried to bring about a revolution favourable to themselves at Murshidabad, and began to look for persons who might be induced to undertake it; but this was not easy, as the Moor nobles had little acquaintance with the Europeans. Of the Hindus in Bengal—
"the best informed were the bankers and merchants, who
by their commercial correspondence had been in a position
to learn many things. The house of Jagat Seth, for instance,
was likely to help the English all the more because to its
knowledge of them it joined several causes of complaint
against Siraj-ud-daula. Up to the death of Aliverdi Khan
it had always enjoyed the greatest respect. It was this
family which had conducted almost all his financial business,
and it may be said that it had long been the chief cause of
all the revolutions in Bengal. But now things were much
changed. Siraj-ud-daula, the most inconsiderate of men,
never supposing that he would need the assistance of mere
bankers, or that he could ever have any reason to fear them,
never showed them the slightest politeness. He wanted
their wealth, and some day or other it was certain he would
seize it. These bankers, then, were the persons to serve the
English. They could by themselves have formed a party,
and, even without the assistance of any Europeans, have
put another Nawab upon the throne and re-established the
English, but this would have required much time. Business
moves very slowly amongst Indians, and this would not have
suited the English. The bankers also were Hindus, and of
a race which does not like to risk danger. To stimulate
them to action it was necessary for the English to commence
operations and achieve some initial successes, and as yet
there seemed no likelihood of their doing so. To negotiate
with Siraj-ud-daula for a peaceful re-establishment was quite
as difficult, unless they were inclined to accept the very
hardest conditions, for the Nawab had now the most extravagant
contempt for all Europeans; a pair of slippers, he
said, is all that is needed to govern them."