And, even were there
a force here capable of giving battle to the whole Mysorean army, it
could not watch all the passes, as to do so the army would have to be
broken up into a dozen commands. Tippoo will therefore again be able
to ravage the plains, for weeks, perhaps, before the English can force
him to give battle.
"But there is no army, at present, in existence of sufficient strength
to meet him. The Madras force would have to wait until reinforcements
arrived from Calcutta. It was bad before, but it will be worse, now.
Hyder, no doubt, slaughtered many, but he was not cruel by nature. He
carried off enormous quantities of people, with their flocks and
herds, but he did this to enrich Mysore with their labour, and did not
treat them with unnecessary cruelty.
"Tippoo, on the other hand, is a human tiger. He delights in torturing
his victims, and slays his prisoners from pure love of bloodshed. He
is proud of the title of 'Tiger.' His footstool is a tiger's head, and
the uniforms of his infantry are a sort of imitation of a tiger's
stripes. He has military talent, and showed great judgment in command
of his division--indeed, most of the successes gained during the last
war were his work.
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