Sepoys. When so engaged, four
horses were held by one man, so that a hundred and fifty men were
available for fighting on foot.

The work had been unusually severe, but as the officers did not spare
themselves, and Charlie had promised a present to each man of the
troop, when fit for service, they had worked with alacrity, and had
taken great interest in learning their new duties. At the end of two
months, they were inspected by Colonel Lawrence and Governor Pigot,
and both expressed their highest gratification and surprise at their
efficiency, and anticipated great benefits would arise from the
organization.

So urgent, indeed, was the necessity that something should be done for
the restoration of order, that Charlie had with difficulty obtained
the two months necessary to attain the degree of perfection which he
deemed necessary.

The day after the inspection, the troop marched out from Madras.
Ensign Anstey commanded the white troop, the other three were led by
native officers. Captain Peters commanded the squadron composed of the
white troop and one of the others. A Lieutenant Hallowes, whom Peters
knew to be a hard working and energetic officer, was, at Charlie's
request, appointed to the command of the other squadron. He himself
commanded the whole.

They had been ordered, in the first place, to move to Arcot, which was
held by a garrison of Muhammud Ali. The whole of the country around
was greatly disturbed. French intrigues, and the sight of the
diminished power of the English, had caused most of the minor chiefs
in that neighbourhood to throw off their allegiance. A body of
Mahratta horse were ravaging the country districts; and it was against
these that Charlie determined, in the first place, to act.

He had been permitted to have his own way in the clothing and arming
of his force. Each man carried a musket, which had been shortened some
six inches, and hung in slings from the saddle, the muzzle resting in
a piece of leather, technically termed a bucket. The ammunition pouch
was slung on the other side of the saddle, and could be fastened in an
instant, by two straps, to the belts which the troopers wore round
their waists. The men were dressed in brown, thick cotton cloth,
called karkee. Round their black forage caps was wound a long length
of blue and white cotton cloth, forming a turban, with the ends
hanging down to protect the back of the neck and spine from the sun.

Having obtained news that t