Copies of these letters had been seen at the time of dispatch by Cojah Wazeed, who had communicated their contents to Mr. Watts; and this intelligence was corroborated by the fact that servants of the Nabob, in charge of an elephant and jewels for M. Bussy, had passed Ballasore; and by the protection given to M. Law, who, notwithstanding his professions to the contrary, was retained in the service of Suraj-u-Dowlah. That prince at first seemed not to oppose the surrender of this small party of the French to the English; he afterwards pretended to banish them from his dominions, and they marched from Moorshedabad for Patna, but in consequence of a note[117] from the Nabob, M. Law remained at Rajhmahal, the manager of which district had been directed to supply him with money, and to aid him, in every way he could, until Bussy's approach. The Nabob by these acts, by his positive refusal to allow the English to proceed up the river, by his non-performance of some of the articles of the treaty, and by his advancing a part of his army to Plassey, had placed himself in a position hostile to the Company: but he artfully desired to throw the odium of renewed hostilities upon the English. He complained of the continuance in the field of the troops under Clive, and of the fleet's lying off Chandernagore. If the British commanders would return to Calcutta, or leave the river, he would, he said, withdraw his advanced corps from Plassey, and remain on friendly terms, as he would then be convinced that the object of the English was commerce, not war! This was the purport of several communications; but every day brought proof of their insincerity, and shewed that the Nabob's sole object was to lull them into a fatal security, till, from the departure of their force and the arrival of his French allies, he could accomplish his design of extirpating them from his dominions. An intercepted letter[118] from M. Law to the chief of one of the lesser French factories, afforded, of itself, proof of this fact, had any been wanting: but the indiscretion of the Nabob was too great to allow him to conceal his designs; and a number of the chief nobles and ministers of his government, who had long been discontented with his rule, perceiving what must early happen, sought the alliance of the English, concluding that they must desire the dethronement of a prince whose continuance in power was incompatible with their existence.