1 The Last Years of Ranjit Singh. 131
2 of the undertaking, and to secure his co-operation.
3 The meeting (already referred to in the preceding
4 chapter) took place at Adinanagar, a few miles from
5 the capital, where the Maharaja was endeavouring to
6 recruit his shattered health. The . mission was re-
7 ceived with every mark of respect and cordiality,
8 but more than six weeks passed away before
9 Macnaghten brought his negotiations to a satisfactory
10 conclusion. The truth was that Ranjit Singh disap-
11 proved of the whole enterprise. He was by no
12 means anxious for the restoration of Shah Shuja,
13 whom he distrusted quite as much as the Governor-
14 General distrusted Dost Muhammad ; and, strong as
15 was his friendship for the English, he had no desire
16 to see himself hemmed in on every side by British
17 authority. He had a rooted aversion to undertaking
18 a campaign in Afghanistan, and he did not consider
19 that confirmation in the possession of his Afghan
20 conquests, which he felt that he was in no danger of
21 losing, was a sufficient reward for his services. But
22 notwithstanding these objections, he realized that if
23 Shah Shuja was to be reinstated, it would be to his
24 advantage to have a hand in the transaction. When,
25 therefore, towards the end of the conference, Mr.
26 Macnaghten informed him that the programme would
27 be carried through whether he came in or not, he
28 took the only course open to him and promised his
29 support. Like a true statesman, having once decided
30 to give way, he did so with a good grace, and set
31 himself to further, to the best of his ability, the plans
32 of the alliance.
33 On June 26, Ranjit Singh placed his signa-