THE PRIVATE DIARY OF A.NANDA RANGA PILLAI.
The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai. Translated from the Tamil and Edited by Sir J. Frederick Price, Assisted by K. Range- chari, B.A. Vol. L, 1736-1746. (Government Press, Madras.)—
Ranga Pillai was Dabah to Dupleix while Governor of Pondi- cherry. His diary is, as may be supposed, full of curiosities, or what seem curiosities to us. Here is an account of Dupleix's first "outing," a visit to Kilftp6ttai :—" The palanquin of the Governor went first. It was followed by a body of fifty soldiers, by other palanquins, and four or five horses, and by Muttai Pillai and me; and dancing women, tom-toms, horns, drums, pipes, clarionets, and flags were in his train. In this magnificent array the party started by moonlight." Salutes of twenty-one guns were fired on every possible occasion. As we proceed we find a fragment of European news. The King of France had sent twenty-five thousand men to establish the Austrian Emperor sn the throne. These had defeated eighty thousand of the enemy, killed "20,000 or 25,000" of them, and returned in triumph. Astrology has its turn. "Mr. Morse assumed charge of the government [of Madras] under the zodiacal sign of capri- corn." Here is a strange instance of Dupleix's autocratic ways : "This morning, M. Dupleix issued an order to the effect that from this day forward all the merchants, officers of the Company, and other men of rank, should each build for himself a house at Morandi Chavadi ; that the new city should be called Dupleix- pettai, and that any one who called it by its old name should be table to a fine."
Previous page
