Colonel Willoughby Cotton says Colonel Skinner is about 55.  His son is a merchant, and goes every year into Cashmere for shawls.  Skinner has still about 1,300 men, and is quartered not far from Delhi.  His people fire the matchlock over the arm at full gallop, and with correct aim.  They strike a tent-peg out of the ground with their lances.

September 5.

Received an answer from the Duke.  He thinks the question of the six regiments begins to be serious, as the Court throw upon the Government the responsibility of running the risk of a mutiny in the army—­desires to see the paper, which I have sent him, and says it must go to the Cabinet.

I feel satisfied I am right.  If the Cabinet give in to the Court, they weaken my hands so much that I shall be unable to effect any great reform.  They make the Directors the real Ministers of India, and almost emancipate the Indian Government.  So I told the Duke in my letter.

September 7.

Office.  Saw Sir A. Campbell.  He came to offer himself for a command in India.  I spoke to him of his papers respecting war with the Burmese.  He says large boats carrying 100 men could go up to Aeng, the troops need not land at Ramree.  He was never an advocate for a diversion at Rangoon, and thinks they make too much fuss about the frontier of Munnipore.

Saw a Mr. Cotton, for a long time collector of Tanjore.  He is against introducing the Ryotwaree settlement into that country, and by his account it seems very ill adapted to it, for according to him the Murassidars are there really proprietors, and with them the settlement is now made for the village.

I sent for him to tell me about the iron I had understood to be in the neighbourhood of Tanjore; but there is none, it is at Satara.  He seems a sensible man, and I must see him again.

The Turks seem to have endeavoured to back out of their accession to the Treaty of London, or rather to clog it with insuperable objections.  But Mr. Gordon has brought them back again, and on August 12 all was right, but no Plenipotentiaries sent.  The Russians were said to be moving on Adrianople.  They had not above 35,000 men.  There is a very bad account from Smyrna of the state of the population in Asia.  In fact the Duke of Wellington’s prediction is fulfilled.  The Turkish Empire is breaking to pieces.  By Lord Heytesbury’s account the Russians are very desirous of peace, and very apprehensive that a popular tumult may put an end to the Sultan.  It is impossible to see the end of the calamities which would occur, complicated as they would be, if such an event as the dissolution of the Turkish Empire took place.

The new French Ministry is changing the municipalities.  They hope to succeed at the next elections.  Lord Stuart considers M. de la Bourdonnaye as the real head.

Polignac very prudently rests on his oars as to Greece, and properly observes it is idle to make protocols here when the march of events may have altogether changed the state of things before the protocols arrive.