The Pirates of Malabar, and an Englishwoman in India Two Hundred Years Ago by John Biddulph
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page 6 of 246 (02%)
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to be exposed to the ravages of native pirates, who were not finally
coerced into good behaviour till well into the nineteenth century. Of the European pirates Kidd, the most ignoble of them all, is alone remembered, while the name of Angria is only recalled in connection with the destruction of Gheriah by Watson and Clive. The long half-century of amateur warfare waged by Bombay against the Angrian power is dismissed in a few words by our Indian historians, and the expeditions sent forth by Boone against Angrian strongholds are passed over in silence. An account of some of them is given in Clement Downing's curious little book "Indian Wars," valuable as the relation of an eye-witness; but the work, published in 1737, is inaccessible to the general reader, besides shewing many omissions and inaccuracies. The early records of the East India Company have furnished the foundation on which this neglected chapter of our Indian history has been compiled. If the Company's servants appear at times in an unfavourable light, the conditions of their service must be considered, while the low standard of conduct prevailing in England two hundred years ago must not be forgotten. They were traders, not administrators, and the charter under which the Company traded was of very insecure duration. Twice the Crown broke faith with them, and granted charters to rival associations. As the stability of the Company became assured, the conduct of its servants improved. It is not intended in these pages to give an exhaustive account of all the pirates who haunted the Indian seas, but to present some idea of the perils that beset the Indian trade--perils that have so entirely passed away that their existence is forgotten. Scattered among the monotonous records of the Company's trade are many touches of human interest. Along with the details relating to sugar, |
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