The Pirates of Malabar, and An Englishwoman in India Two Hundred Years Ago byJohn Biddulph chapter IX

A TROUBLED YEAR IN BOMBAY

The year succeeding Boone's departure was a stirring one in Bombay. On the27th February, the Eagle and Hunter galleys, while off Bassein,
convoying a Surat ship, were attacked by four of Angria's grabs. After afive-hours' engagement, during which the Hunter made three attempts atboarding, an unlucky shot ignited some loose powder, and the galley blewup, every soul on board perishing. A similar explosion, though less
serious, took place on board the Eagle, which forced her to take refugein a shattered condition in Saragon harbour. Here the Portuguese showedsuch unfriendliness, that the Council were obliged to send other galleysto protect and bring theEagle away.

Since the conclusion of the Portuguese treaty with Angria, an angry
correspondence had gone on between Goa and Bombay, and soon the old causesof quarrel were revived. The chief of these was the levying of duties atcertain places. The General of the North, who had tried to force on aquarrel a year before, smarting, doubtless, under the treatment he hadreceived from Matthews at the siege of Alibagh, began to levy duties onprovisions coming from Bombay to Portuguese territory. Phipps retaliatedby levying customs duties at Mahim, which the Portuguese had alwaysclaimed to be free to both nations. The quarrel grew hot. The General ofthe North forbade all communication with Bombay, and, on the 26th May, aBritish gallivat was fired on at Mahim. The Council resolved to upholdtheir rights, but were in a poor condition to do so. Meanwhile, it becameknown that Angria's assistance was being invited by the Portuguese. On the23rd June, a party from Bombay landed and destroyed the Portuguese fort atCorlem, and shelled Bandara. Captain Loader, of the Revenge, withouorders, burned the undefended village on Elephanta, for which he wassuspended from his command; but at the end of a week he was reinstated.Want of shipping for a time prevented any vigorous prosecution ofhostilities on the part of the Council. They were obliged to remain on thedefensive, while Portuguese galleys cruised off the island, makingoccasional raids, killing a militiaman or two, and burning villages. Mahim,
Riva, and Darvi were all raided, but with small benefit to the assailants.On the 28th August, at night, a Portuguese force landed and destroyed thefort at Warlee, assisted by the treachery of a renegade Portuguese. On the3rd and 4th September, two attempts to land at the Breach were repulsed,and the Council were cheered by the arrival of the SalisburyandExeter from their Red Sea cruise.

Cockburn, of the Salisbury, less churlish than Matthews, at once put tw
pinnaces and seventy-six men at the Council's disposal. A small expeditionof eleven gallivats under Stanton was also fitted out, and a batteryerected by the Portuguese at Surey to hinder provisions coming into Bombay,was captured. One man of the Exeter was killed and another wounded. Justthen came news that Angria was fitting out an expedition of five thousandmen to attack Carwar, and the Exeter sailed there to defend the factory.

At the beginning of November, the tide turned. News having been receivedthat some of Angria's grabs were cruising off Warlee, the Victoria andRevenge, manned with crews from the Salisbury, were sent out. After ahot engagement, Angria's commodore, a Dutchman, was killed, and hisship,mounting sixteen guns, taken.On the same day that the captured ship was brought into Bombay, two othercaptures entered the harbour. The Directors had sent out from Englandthree galleys, the Bombay, the Bengal, and the Fort St. George,manned with sailors from the Thames. As they were proceeding up the coastthey found themselves dogged for two days by two strange grabs showing no
colours. Resolved to put an end to it, on the third day, on the 1st
November, off Cape Ramus, they shortened sail and called on the strangersto show their colours. They proved to be Portuguese, and the English hailswere answered by threats and shouts of defiance. The Bengal then fired ashot across the bows of the leading grab, which was answered by abroadside, killing the second mate and two seamen. The Bombay closed in,while the Fort St. George turned its attention to the second grab. Inhalf an hour both of the Portuguese vessels struck their colours, and thegalleys continued their course for Bombay with their two prizes, eachcarrying twenty guns. Such was the difference made by having Britishseamen, instead of the miserable crews that had hitherto manned theCompany's ships.
It was well for the Bombay Council that Matthews had been absent while
this was going on. For two months and a half he had remained at anchor inthe Hooghly. Early in December he reached Bombay, and at once recommencedhis quarrels with the Council and his captains. Cockburn, of theSalisbury, was placed under arrest, presumably for the assistance he hadgiven to the Council. After a time he was transferred to the Exeter, anordered to proceed to England.
in coming up the coast Matthews had touched at Goa, and informed the
Viceroy of his disapproval of the Company's actions, and that his squadronwould soon be leaving the Indian seas. But the Viceroy had had enoughfighting. The capture of his grabs had brought him to reason. He laid allthe blame for recent hostilities on the General of the North, and apeaceful accommodation was come to with the Council, Matthews beingdisregarded.

In spite of Matthews' failure to destroy the Madagascar pirates, the
presence of his squadron in Indian waters impelled them to seek safety inthe West Indies, and henceforward they ceased to be dangerous to the
trade-ships of India. The Madagascar settlements lingered on till they
died a natural death. Angria, too, had been tamed by the slaying of his
commodore and the capture of his ships. For years the sea-borne trade ofBombay had not been so little subject to molestation as it was for thenext three or four years.

Matthews had sent home two of his ships, remaining, himself, to do anotheryear's trading, during which he lost no opportunity of worrying andinsulting the Company's officers. Everybody at variance with the Councilfound an advocate in him. A Parsee broker, named Bomanjee, was underarrest for fraud; Matthews demanded his surrender. The Council placedBomanjee in close confinement in the fort, to prevent his being carriedoff. Matthews promised Bomanjee's sons he would take one ofthem toEngland, and undertook to make the Directors see things in a properlight.Men charged with abominable crimes received countenance from him. He toldthe Council that they were only traders, and had no power to punishanybody. The Crown alone had power to punish. He (Matthews) represent the Crown, and was answerable only to the King of England. One may pictureto one's self the satisfaction with which, at the end of the year, theCouncil learned that Matthews was really going.

In December, 1723, he set sail for England. During the two years he had
been in the Indian seas he had accomplished nothing he ought to have done,and done almost everything he ought not to have done. He had been sent outto suppress the pirates and to protect the Company's interests. He had notcaptured a single pirate ship or rooted out a single pirate haunt.Claiming, as a King's officer, to be exempt from the provisions of theCompany's charter, he had indulged in private trade, and had even haddealings with the pirates. He had flouted the Company's authority whereverit existed, and had encouraged others to resist it. Every person who had adispute with the Company received protection from him. He told the Goaauthorities that the Company's vessels were only traders, and thereforenot entitled to the salutes they had always received. He had refused togive up the Company's sailors whom he encouraged to desert to his ship. Heforbade the Bombay traders to fly British colours, but allowed his owntrading friends to do so. He had gone trading to Bengal and Mocha, where
there were no pirates; two months and a half he had spent in the Hooghly;three months and a half he had spent at Madras and St. David's for tradpurposes; and, when the quarrel between the Bombay authorities and the
Portuguese was going on, he gave out that he would send the Goa Viceroy a
petticoat, as an old woman, if he did not take every one of the Company's
ships. He had quarrelled with all his captains, and one of them, Sir
Robert Johnson, owed his death to him. At Surat he had found a discharged
servant of the Company, one Mr. Wyche, on whose departure the Governor had
laid an embargo till his accounts were cleared. Matthews took him and his
eleven chests of treasure on board his ship, in defiance of the Governor's
orders, and put him ashore at Calicut, whence he escaped to French
territory. From Surat also he carried to England the broker's son,
Rustumjee Nowrojee, to worry the Directors. He carried off Mrs. Gyfford,
and brought her to England in his ship. His last act on the coast was to
call at Anjengo, in order to obtain property she claimed there: but it is
probable that he also secured a cargo of pepper.

It is small wonder that, on his arrival in England, in July, 1724, the
wrath of the Directors was kindled against him, and an account of his
misbehaviour was forwarded to the Secretary of State. The naval
authorities called on the Directors to produce their witnesses for the
charge of trading with the pirates. The difficulty of doing so was obvious,
as the witnesses were all under Matthews' command; so the charge was
dropped, and the Directors sued him in the Court of Exchequer for
infringing their charter by private trading.

Meanwhile the naval authorities had their own account to settle with
Matthews; Captain Maine, of the _Shoreham_, having made various charges
against him. In the last week of December, 1724, he was brought to a
court-martial on board the _Sandwich_ in the Medway, and the finding of
the court was thus recorded:--

"The Court, having read the complaints of the Directors of the E.I. Co.
of several irregularities said to be committed by Captain Thomas
Matthews while Commander-in-Chief of a squadron of his Majesty's ships
sent to the East Indies, a Publication being made three several times,
if any Person or Persons were attending on behalf of the said
Directors, in order to prove the several matters therein contained,
and not any appearing, the Court proceeded on the complaints exhibited
by Captain Covil Maine, and having strictly examined into the several
particulars and matters therein contained and heard divers witnesses
upon oath, they are unanimously of opinion, that the said Captain
Matthews hath in all respects complied with his Instructions, except
that of receiving Merchandize on board before the late Act of
Parliament, Instituted an Act for the more effectual suppression of
Piracy, came to hand, but not afterwards; and it appearing to the
Court, that he had sent men irregularly to Merchant Ships, and finding
he falls under the 33rd Article of War, they have Resolved he be
Mulcted four Months' pay, and that the same be applied for the benefit
of the Chest of Chatham, and he is hereby mulcted accordingly."

Six weeks later, the Directors obtained a decree against him in the Court
of Exchequer, for L13,676 17_s_. 6_d_., which, according to Act of
Parliament, was doubled as a penalty.

In 1742, Matthews again found favour with an English Ministry. He was
appointed Minister at Turin and Commander-in-Chief in the Mediterranean.
In February, 1744, he encountered a combined French and Spanish fleet off
Toulon. His behaviour to his subordinates had excited their ill-will to
such an extent that his second in command and many of the captains refused
to follow him. The allied fleet escaped with the loss of one ship only.
Both admirals and five captains were cashiered, and that is the last we
hear of Matthews. The remembrance of his behaviour long rankled in the
minds of the Directors, and twenty years elapsed before they could again
bring themselves to apply for the despatch of a royal squadron to the
Indian seas.[1]

[1] The squadron under Barnet, which was sent out in 1744, on the
declaration of war with France.