Since then, he has laboured incessantly to improve
his army. Numbers of regiments have been raised, composed of the
captives carried off from here and from the west coast. They are
drilled, in European fashion, by the English captives he still holds
in his hands."
"But why, Uncle, instead of giving time to Tippoo to come down here,
should we not march up the passes, and compel him to keep his army up
there to defend Seringapatam?"
"Because, Dick, in the first place, there is not an army strong enough
to do so; but even were there a force of fifty thousand men at Madras,
they could not take the offensive in time. An English army cannot move
without a great train to carry ammunition, stores and provisions; and
to get such a train together would be the work of months. As I have
been telling you, during the three years the last war lasted, the
Madras authorities were never able to collect such a train, and the
consequence was that their army was unable to go more than two or
three days' march from the city.
"On the other hand, Tippoo could, any day, order that three days'
supply of rice or grain should be served out to each soldier, and
could set out on his march the following morning; as, from the moment
he reached the plains, his cavalry would have the whole of the
resources of the country at their mercy.
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