The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-06-12 00:00:00

ACCOUNT OF' THE PINDARRIES.

(Prow His (toads,ly Review)
The Pindaries, or nether Pinderries, are a singi.•
lar race; eisigulsr in their formation, In their habits,
in their physical qualities, in their moral ottributelt,
and in their tweed 'latent. Chance made them a
people; plunder and rolitirry constitute the bands
of their union; cunning and courage are the pa-
trols of 'totality, and superior teleret fur intrigue
and military skill the sole title to command.
'lle barite of Piudarrie occurs as early a. the be-
gitsoicg of die lest century in the Indian annals;
pewee'sl bands of these freetnadeor are mentioned by
Ferishia as having followed the ;Urinates. in their
early wars iii Hindustan, and fought against Zoo!.
ferret and the other Gettersls of Auierig-
zs be. One of their Chiefs, Mel Sewer, com-
manded 15,000 in the battle of Peeriput, arid
under I they 'mollified a more regular erg:mats-
Hrs. They were divided iota illiorrelni, or t. rtes,
consmatided by girder.; natives of every country
were promiscuously enrolled in their commurrity,
and he was welcomed as a worthy citizen who to a
moult heart added a horse to carry I • on his foray,
and • sword to levy rontriliutions. They ate,
however, all of the Sloslem persuasion, mid the
titter costes %horn they admit to their aresociation are
by the wise of (Igirra, or strangers,
while they address each other by the appellatiou of
Surd ey' (brother).
In tire rapidity of their movemeuts, their en-
dormice of retigue, their attachment to their
horses, their want of discipline, sod their preda-
tory mode of uarfare. the Poridarries strikingly re-
tremble the least civilized of the Cossack-. Their
number is stated to ditiOUlit to between thirty *aid
forty thousand ; but ism a community liable to such
fluctuatiotis, it is out easy to forin any very accu-
rate idea of their real strength. A year of plenty
reconciles many to peaceful habits, and a aea.on of
scarcity multiplies the horde of freebooters beyond
the powers of erosionen' calculation. But whatever
may be their force, they chit tly ioltabit the country
north of the Nerhoiddali, round Niurbawar, Ken-
tapore, Geoniroo, Beresha, arid part of the Mho'
marl Bos.aul territory. The .e chiefs are called
• lilhortabie or • Thokdar,' from • naborle' or
O thok,' the mime of the party, and wirers several
of these are united the aggregate body is called
• toll ;' all deter lied parties are call, d • bazzbeks ;'
the main body • bildsar,' and the leader or prowl-
pea commander, labbreeu.'
The lubbrerss has no hereditary claim to pre-
ensioence, but owes his power entirely to popular
opinion ; military talent is the only passport to this
Thus raised, the obedience of the suloject
is not much to be relied upon. silent wild and
deperuhrist are not to be restrained within bound.
by voluntary submission ; mid as the titter can nei-
ther punish disobedience, nor c ictl a due regard
to his authority, it is frequeritly set at nought, and
is, iralt.ral, rarely more 1611 nominal, except iii
the !sour yr 'will in the field.
Whet, enterprixing leader has determined on
tilliselrrieg expedition lie sends vakeels to the
thokdars to engage them in his inter-
rot, awl to it emicile, fur the momeist, any imitate
urliwositita which may exist among them. !heart;
formed his league he apt • a dine and place of
mertiog. He then developer hie ultimate designs,
said points out the districts which lie means to in-
vade. Those who approve of the plasm, juin the
confederacy—while _ruse
who do nut acquiesce in
its experlieficy, or doubt its success, are ..1 liberty
to withdraw and consult their own iisclinstions,
either by remaining at rest, or by seizing another
opportunity to carry on their favourite

The mode of conducting their marches is in Kr-
tie-al av follows the balloted is ready to
most he mounts his hot ,e, without making any one
at quiitattl aid' his intention, mad, proceeding to
some distance, he causes his trumpet to he sound-
ed. Oil the instant every 111:111 quits 1,48 employ-
ment, whatever it may be, Ulla to foilow
with the utmost speed. The Sublime* mares
iu front, accompanied by his standard and tiuw-
pets. [le waits fur nobody, but allows diem to
join I • us well as they call, 'amid by this method lie
keeps Ills troop in a constant state of readme...—
This they are the better en ibleil to be, a. the cli-
mate sad their hardy 11.. bits render tents or b.iggage
an unnecessary encutnbrance. Each person carlies
nicely a few &o pt provision for himself, and pro-
veinier for his huitir, and tints they travel fur weeks
together, it the rate of thirty or !Mt)? miles a day,
liver toads and countries nuoistuble fur a regular
Circe. _ . . .

Tint perpetual change of po-iiion confuses their
pit-otters; and the suddenness with which they ap-
pear inn place tliaturtiirally opposite to that us
which they were last *reit, mid sll a contrary di-
rection to their apparent line of march, gives all air
of magic to their motions, or inspire, a hero f that
they WC more numerous and ti separate bodies,
when in both they form but one ruff; yet their
common marches are only about five or six cosy a
day, and their longest aeld exceed fifteen or six-
teen. Fllllll the CUielslivli 11141115er in %bleb these
expeditions ale peifulated, they cover an im-
mense space of ground ; their liue is frequently
more than a ems in inexilth, and neatly as much in
depth, so tint their multitude appears incal-
culable anti always ecru 1111 l laiiiig, as they carry
off young lads burn the villages iu their route,
whom they compel to assist iu the care of their cattle.
In this way they collect a vast quantity of spoil of
every kind, though the objects of their greatest
cupidity are horses: these they seize wherever they
Furst them, and not only nionut their followers and
load their ()poly, but have souietimes two or three
led for each isidieitlisal in the camp. Many
stories are current in India of their adroitne.a
stealing these animals, and it has happened that the
best guarded piquet* of the cavalry, in pursult of
them, have iii the m g missed I horses,
whit h the Pindarries had blond means to purloin
from their stakes within a few yards of the netitintir
dining the night. To accomplish this exploit,
which obtains great eclat among their companions,
the robbers crawl upon their bellies like yeti:seas,
stopping whenever the face of the sei ll i ll el is towards
them, and pushing on when Ilia back is turned;
hosing reached the horse, they cut the cords by
which he is confined, and placing their owls black
limbs in such a position 55 1101 to be distinguish-
able from his, they back him out as near the pi-

quets as possiiele without discovery, wabit ii
upportuisity to tuouot, aud suddenly geilni, off
aiming the bushes through path* with width they
are acqusiiired, takitig the eltalice of the.raiidmit
shot which the %tolled wither ol.schtirges alter huts.
Their bivutiack at night t !fen a singular con-
trast to the stillness of a army, with its
I. soli-tnn, end regular isiterruptioris.
it is difficult to keep together on account 'of
the darktiess, they are community calling tu each
other by tole, soil, from the noise occasiented
by their clamour, the general direction of the
suerci, is etdly kept. If the Itibloreea changes his
course, he salmis his trumpet, and the word is also
passed from one to another; so that elthoug't much
cuttfusioil ensues, they never so completely dis-
perse taut Slid they Cali egoist thiite 11l a short time.
Should they be attacked at such U tuuiueut, it is
sauce qui petit; they fly at full speed towards
every point of the coiupass, and trust to chatice to
iiig them together ; yet, with great apparelit
disorder, there is still Mime degree of regularity
)))))) ig them, and some geueral priociplee by which
they shape their conduct. The bouseks, or di-
vbtottP, headed lay tome resolute and aspiriug strati,
detach thetust Ives iu bodies of tau and twenty, shah
scour the couotry to the extent of six or sieve's CUrS,
either its othatice OF int the fl., ks of the lublotr.
1% harm attached, they invariable eut!tavour to lead
their advervariee into au ambush, or draw them,
iu-
wivestrully, upon the inaiu tardy; their practice
being never to fi4lit unless under great adeainage.
Flight is meet:muted LSO d.sgrsce with thesis ; but
%sliest the rear is hard p:ereeel, the must courageous
and brat **toward volunteer to defend it. Should
the • toll,' however, be desprreed, by defeat or
otherwise, the lubirieeir's trumpet is wuudrd to
keep the fugitives together; awl, as this signal may
nut reach the ears of the more distant potties, lie
sets lire to smite stock of ,haw or stubble, as an
iisilication of the spot where lie is posted, and a rally-
ing sunnututio to Itis men. It buttlettrors happens
that individuals lose the toll fur several Juts; but,
such is their acuteness, front lung custom, that they
will readily discover the track of their pally, when
those uatarquaintittl with their habits avoid be ut-
terly at a hwy.
When the Itabbreert arrives at the place where he
intrude to tiike tip his quarters, he fixes his stand-
ard is the gimilid said thstuouitts ; those beliiisil
iminediarely begin to collect forage as the *twin'
for a general halt :—every one passes beyond the
lender, who i• thus left in the rear of the whole.
The men of rads took keep us close together as
possible, grid iu this inspect reiietoLle the
Ism' chins of Scotism', as they tire all either klub-
men, fiiriols, or drla•udeuos of the theakdar.
No other k LAI of order is übseived ill their en-
cautputent-.-110 guard* are posted, no scouts scot
out—lair the Itilthreen is expected to watch fur the
safety of all ; whirl, as he cannot du by petsutial
observation, lie resorts to the frequent toll« tor
clwugesnf positiou already noticed. So insufficient
iirevautiots exposes them to be surprised ; and
recent experience kis that, both during
their halts atid night rocainpmento, they
are exiirinely liable to be taken utiawaies and
effectually assailed. lu their retreat they proceed
more compactly, mud, if pursued, make marches
of au extraordinary length. As their object is nut
lighting, but plunder, they have seld been
known to resist the attack of even an inferior enemy;
and, if they are overtaken, they disperse, and
tothesuble at souse appointell rendezvous ; or, if fol-
lowed into their well country, through all their
windings anti doubling*, said endless tolls, they
immediately retire to their respective home«. They
tied protection either in the N'indliya mountains, in
castles belonging to tin motives, or from those Mali-
ratio powers with whom they are openly or secretly
counected ; oh these Neindioh sud 1-lolkur are the
chief—to the former the must formidable bratieli of
the l'indarrirs is attached, nod nut ulifiequently
exercises over his atfairo ao iscrothincy, like that of
the Roman soldiery, or the Shriner* and Jainism its
of modern times.

In all their expeditions the majority are mounted
on a small, strum;;, and extremely active rile of
horses, on which they bestow the iitino4 care,
especially in rr pro! to their giving then► the
lust of every kind of grain they can procure, law :
though in a period ut distress, these animals me
trained to undergo the same privation% as their
toasters. It is a common opinion that the Pindar-
ries give their horses large quaotiiies of opium, to
hear the fatigue to which they are constantly ex-
posed ; but this appears, froth the best information
that. at can obtain, an erroneous idea. After a
very laborious march, and alien their cattle are
niuch tired, those who have the means give theirs
a siiikll quantity (about half a Wu), made into a
Lill aith souse flour and it little ginger, or some
oilier stimulant. This is the only ociscrion when
opium is ad.uinisterttl, except in eases of
Tileir usual pact is lotaerti a a alk Mill a trot;
they very rarely gallop. Like the Arabs, by con-
stout practice, that'acquire a perfect tioniagement
of flair steerla, but snake no study of lioisemariship
as a science. In the Jay-time they take elf the
saddles, but never sisiroiddle during the eight ; on
the eotattaYs they always bleep with the broths iii
their hands, acid are in thus iespect ever prepared
fur battle or fl ghat, or rather for the latter, since,
on the slightest alarm, they spring on iheir horses.
and are out of sight in an instant. Titr speed of
his horse is the great security of a Pindarry ; while
he possesses that animal rio danger appals loin, and
it is therefore almost the sole object of his regard ;
nothing argues greater negligence, nothing carrier
with it greater disgrace, than the loss of his horse,
CM which it is figuratively itt►agu►rd he should MI.
a/13b be mounted : uu success Call afterwards a ipe
away the reproach.
arias of the Piodarry are a lance or a spear,
and a sword, which he *Ado with admirable dex-
terity, though not eSerciartl in that alt ; they air
nevertheless fully sensible of the great advantage to
be derived from the use of tire-arms, but very few
of them carry matchlocks, on account of the incon-
veiliesice resulting foam their weight. They feel
their inequality ill this respect, and, from their tear
of musketry, seldom veuture to attack a place so
defended.

•
.lure ill. in %%about re•iiiiiitz. Iluremitted exercise
10%igOlattryitir Itoub;, and enables the.,, to sustain
hardships unticr which stronger men would perish.
Nlourittd on their small horses, frettuently heavily
•Aithout any other guide idylsthe intelli-
gence of their Itibbreeii, they pass over an i:.credi-
ble tact of country, generally in bodies but exceed-
Mg two or three thoissaiid men, holding aii made-
viatiog ennead until they teach their destitiatiott.
The ar;veriturout spirit of their leaders stimulates
theta to enterprises which to weaker molds would
appear iiffpncucaLlr, but in *lnch they are well
seconded try the devotion of their adherents. Their
abstinence is often extraordinaiy. lii a retreat their
food is frequently nothing more than corn plucked
from the fields as they pass, and separated from
the chart' by rubbing between the hand*. This,
With a lode water, is the only sustenance they can
procure, till they attain some place of comparative
security. when they again begin their ravages,
sod go on plundering friends and foes indiscrims.
worry, all the way to their own country. The
worst feature of their character is displayed on these
occusi.iiis. They every where commit the roast
dreadful enormities, and it duly Polly be said that
all their gotta qualities ore obliterated by their
cruelty and baring-Ky. Their progress is almost
altva)v marked by the smoking ruins of villages, the
shrieks of women, HMI tiro groans of their 111 l tilated
husbusids. 11.1ist they cannot remove, is reinurie-
lersly destroyed ; and it has truly li-ett uliftes veil,
that were such pests permitted to continue their
merciless depredations without molest:nicht, the Pe-
ninsula of India would in time hrtoint a desert,
awhile few inhabitants that survived die general
wreck, a band of savage and licentiOnA rubbers,'
I lappily fur the c tries subject to their itir.lads,
their stay in one place is but for a few hours, said
two or three mouths Lilt usual limit of their emir-
ditionr.

It has been *opposed, from the apparent direct-
trees of their operatimis, that their urfurmation re-
gardirig the countries through which they piss, and
at which their ravages are aimed, is ustustially cm-
reel ; but there are many instances io which chance
re.l.er tit settled design has been their guide.
They have no funds win rewith to pay the services
of spies, buil in their route they seize whomsoever
the feature of war throws in their way, and from
the prisouers gather thine particulars wish which
tin y wish to be acquainted. The probability of
a large booty is toe first object or their inquiry
and the next the windier of troops and quantity of
tire-arms by which they ire likely to be opposed.
That the replies to these iiive.tiLt•ttioiitii, rather them
previous iutelligeiice, influence their motions, we
would,' nut state to oppositiou to the generally received
opinion, were we unable to biros; fen ward some proof
in support of our theory. The following incitleilt,
mum's( several others of the same kind, has been
related to us. When Rultsoo, iu lil6, crossed the
Nerbroildali, hie only intentron was to leave plunder-
ed the N 124111% country, between the Kistinali at;d
Cod rvere) ; hut ou mussing the latter river lie was
met by a faqueer, who informed I • of the richness
of tin: conotry to iiii I Gitistror, and of the facility
with which it might be plundered, from there be-
ing no troops in the neighbourhood. The offer of
cooductiog him thither WUa immediately accepted,
all the former plans were changed or relinquished,
Guntoor because the object of cupidity, and the
faqueer rude on horseback at the head of the
toll,' by the side of Itukseo, through a circuitous
route of above 700 miles. They laid waste the
Northern Circars nearly up to Calcutta, and after
the completion of the business a voluntary etiiitri-
billion of 1,200 or 1,500 rupees WN4 rhibeill amoiig.
thew, and given, as the reward of his set viet-i. to
Ilse Colorer, who, Ills the retreat of the toll, went oil
a pilgrimage to Nruckwaripoor.
Oir this occasion they collected en immensity i f
plunder, and perpetrated the most horrible cruel.
ties. And it should be recollected, that they h .41
been mukiug rirnllur incurshols into the etrimo,..,e
of our allies ever since the vtur 1811. lo
they entered the provirice of Rabat, awl up ID the
pi riod of which we hove been treating tee ire invaded
the Madras territories. lo the last inroad their
ung•neoteil iiiiiiiher. and woolori atrocities doers
the whittle stortlicrri !not of ti.:: Peoinsult tutu *
stare oh ntoriii. Pasviiig without opposition or dif-
ticulty through the States of the l'eisliaali arid the
N;l4til, they spread themselves over the face of the
couotry, stint carried tire and sword al.onat from one
end to the other of the district of ('stiojain. On their
return home, laden with the spoil and stained
with the blood of our *objects, we have the
satisfaction to say that several parties of them
were overtaken and defeated by the Company's
tflllopll/21011411Pt which they were not able to con-
tend. The success' of our detachments strider
11Iajors Lirshington, Smith, and Mactlimall, as
Well 511 p•lrt of the Sepeiya under Lieitteenoit Borth-
wick, in the southern pert of lathe, and the equally
exploits of several officers of the Bengal
arm), had a very salutaiy influence io checking the
leoldiuss id the esirrity, inspiring our own Inter. with
8101 the native powers that
we still preserved oar aucieut superiority in arms
and they art of war.

Heretofore their practice has been to plunder all
places they can master ; when resistance is made,
they dismount from their horses, and either keep
up a fire from rouse shelter upon the defenders,
or. in the event of their having no fire-arms,
shower down large stones upon them till they oblige
them to relinquish their post, when the Pindar-
ries charge forward and storm it. If any of the
assailants be killed or wounded they give up the at-
tack. The wounded are carried away on horse-
back as well lir their means permit, lint when un-
able to accompany toe toll they are left to the
merry of the villagers. As soon as they get poiw.
session of a town every turn stizri such of the un-
fortunate inlialotants as fall in his way. and com-
pel► them by threat..llll(l torture to make* discovery
of the place where their wealth is concealed. The
usual mode in which Ivry extort. couitbaion is by
tying a cloth, tided until ashes or tine dust, over
the nose and mouth of the unhappy sufferer, and.
by striking him ilbly on the back or breast.
obliging Iniu to inhale it. 'rile suffocating pangs
which result Iron] this treatment ben% limisit the
most crrhun sod expedition' method of overcoming
human foititude, they are the most usually in-
flicted. No trot.' is paid to age or sex ; all are
douintd to the saute rkeiticiatisig torments.