He had frittered away, without striking a single blow, the finest army
that the British had, up to that time, ever put into the field in
India; and had enabled Tippoo, unmolested, to spread destruction over
a large extent of country.
The only countervailing success that had been gained, by the British,
was a brilliant victory won by Colonel Hartley, who was in command of
a Bombay force, consisting of a European regiment and two battalions
of Sepoys. With these, he engaged Hossein Ali, who had been left by
Tippoo in Malabar, with a force of 9000 men, when the sultan first
retreated before General Meadows' advance. This force was defeated,
with a loss of 1000 men killed and wounded, 900, including Hossein
himself, taken prisoners on the field, and 1500 in the pursuit; the
total British loss being only 52 men. A few days after this victory,
General Abercrombie arrived from Madras with reinforcements, and the
whole of Tippoo's fortified places in Malabar were captured, one after
another, and the entire province conquered.
As soon as Lord Cornwallis reached the camp at Vellout, with a large
train of draught animals that had been brought by sea from Calcutta,
the Rajah and his troops received orders to join him.
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