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pany fhould take place; which participation CHAP. was thus defined: after payment of the required loan, and the reduction of their bonddebt to 1,500,000l. three-fourths of the net 5th April. furplus of the territorial revenues of the company, to be paid into the exchequer, and the remaining one-fourth fet apart as a fund, for difcharge of contingent exigences."

export tea,

rica.

tions.

LORD NORTH afterwards moved, that the 27th April. company thould be permitted to export tea Leave duty free to America; a permiffion deemed granted to highly beneficial, as feventeen millions of duty free, pounds were then in the warehoufes; and to Ame finally he propofed his great plan for regulating the company's affairs, as well in India as in Europe, the outline of which was, that the General court of directors fhould be elected for four regulayears, fix members annually, but none to hold their feats longer than four years; no perfon to vote at the election of the directors who had not poffeffed his stock twelve months; the qualification, instead of five hundred pounds, to be one thoufand. That the mayor's court at Calcutta fhould be confined to fmall mercantile caufes, to which only its jurifdiction extended before the territorial acquifition; in lieu of this court a new one was established, confifting of a chief justice and three puifne judges, appointed by the crown. And a fuperiority was given to the prefidency of Bengal, over the other prefidencies in India.'

THESE refolutions gave rife to many ani- Oppofition mated debates, in which the rights of the to thefe

The falaries of the judges were fixed at 8,000l. to the chief justice, and 6,000l. a year to each of the others. The governor-general was allowed 25,cool. a year, and the members of the council ae,ooo l, cách.

VOL. II,

C

crown,

measures.

CHAP. Crown, the chartered privileges of the comXX. pany, the conduct of minifters, and the expe1773. diency of the propofed measures, were feverely

arraigned, and ably defended. The city of 28th May. London, and the proprietors who poffeffed votes by holding ftock of greater amount than five hundred pounds, but lefs than a thousand, petitioned parliament against the bill. The Eaft India company prefented feveral petitions, and were heard by counfel; they even defired to withdraw their petition for relief, declaring they would rather fubmit to temporary difficulties than accept a loan on fuch fevere conditions; thefe applications were all unavailing; the bill framed in pursuance of the refolutions of the houfe was approved, and on the third 10th June. reading paffed by a large majority;" the blanks being filled up with the names of Warren Haftings, efq. governor-general, and lieutenantgeneral Clavering; the honourable George Monfon, Richard Barwell, and Philip Francis, efqrs. as counfellors for the prefidency of Bengal.

In the lords.

Attack on lord Clive.

In the houfe of lords the bill alfo met with ftrenuous oppofition, and occafioned, two protefts, figned by feven and by thirteen peers.

W

IN the courfe of the debates on India affairs, many reflections were made on the character and conduct of lord Clive. While the bill 30th Mar. brought in by Mr Sullivan was before the houfe, his lordship, in a long and eloquent harangue, defended himfelf against the afperfions with which the prefs then teemed. His exculpation extended only to the tranfactions

$772.

His detence.

"131 to 21.

w The report of thefe proceedings is extremely inperfect in Debrett's debates; but I have been materially affitted by confulting the history of lord North's admimftration.

of

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1772.

of his laft government: he depicted with force CHAP. and truth the felicities of his fituation, and the total want of any motive to ftimulate avarice or ambition, when in a precarious state of health he abandoned his home, his relations, and his ease, to vifit a diftant and infalubrious clime on the invidious task of reformation. He ftated the difficulties in which he was involved from the infincerity of the court of directors in wording his inftructions; how easily he might have added to his fortune, by conniving at and participating in the abufes he was commiffioned to reftrain, or have confulted his own eafe by refigning himself to the indolence of defpair. He, on the contrary, purfued an intricate path, befet with difficulties and dangers, the welfare of the company required vigorous exertion, and he took the refolution of cleanfing the Augean ftable, "It was that "conduct," he faid, "which had occafioned "the fcurrility and abufe againft me, with "which the public papers have been filled ever fince my return. That conduct occafioned thefe charges. But that conduct "enables me now, in day of judgment, to look "my judges in the face. That conduct ena"bles me now to lay my hand on my heart, "and moft folemnly declare to this houfe, to "the gallery, and to the world at large, that I "never, in a fingle inftance, loft fight of what "I thought the honour and true intereft of my country and the company; I was never guilty "of any acts of violence or oppreffion, unless "the bringing offenders to juftice can be "deemed fo; an idea of extortion never en"tered my mind; I did not fuffer thofe under me to commit any acts of violence or oppref

C 2

fion:

СНАР.

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1772.

"fion: my influence was never employed for "the advantage of any man, contrary to the ftricteft principles of honour and juftice; and, "far from acquiring perfonal benefit by the expedition, I return to England lefs opulent "by many thoufand pounds."

His lordfhip then defended himself on the feveral fpecific charges of monopolies in cotton, diamonds, and falt, beetel-nut, and tobacco; of frauds in the exchange and gold coinage, and of taking prefents from Mir Jaffier. Of all thefe accufations he fhewed the futility and want of foundation; and particularly as to the laft, he proved, that inftead of receiving money from the nabob for his own ufe, he converted a legacy, amounting to feventy thoufand pounds, together with forty thousand more, which he prevailed on the nabob to bestow, to the purpofe of eftablishing a military fund for the relief of invalid officers and foldiers, and the fupport of their widows.

BUT the moft interefting part of lord Clive's defence was that where he analyfed the ftate of India, and defcribed thofe enormities which degraded the British name, and impoverished the company, while individuals were fuddenly enriched, and the natives grievously oppreffed. The germ of the evil was truly and forcibly difplayed in the animated portrait which he gave of a young adventurer firft feeking the thores of Afia. "Let us for a moment," hẻ faid, "confider the education of a youth "deftined for India. The advantages arifing "from the company's fervice are now generally known; and, every man is defirous to get his fon appointed a writer to Bengal; which is ufually at the age of fixteen. His parents and relations reprefent to him the "certainties

7

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"

66

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certainties of making a fortune, inflaming CHAP. "his ambition by reference to peers and commoners, who have amaffed great treafures in 'fhort periods. Thus are their principles early corrupted; and, as they generally go in con"fiderable numbers, they mutually inflame their expectations to fuch a degree, in the "courfe of the voyage, that before their ar"rival the period of return is fixed. Let us "now view one of thofe writers arrived in "Bengal, and not worth a groat. As foon as "he lands, a banyan, poffeffed perhaps of one "hundred thoufand pounds, defires he may "have the honour of ferving this young gen"tleman at four fhillings and fixpence per "month. The company has provided cham"bers for him, but they are not good enough; the banyan finds better. The young man, in walking about the town, obferves that other writers, arrived only a year before him, live "in fplendid apartments, or have houfes of their "own, ride upon fine prancing Arabian horfes, "and in palanquins and chaifes; that they keep "feraglios, make entertainments, and treat with "champaigne and claret. When he reports his "obfervations, the banyan affures him he may "foon arrive at the fame good fortune; fur"nithes him with money, and acquires over “him abfolute power. The advantages of the "banyan advance with the rank of his master, "who in acquiring one fortune generally spends "three. But this is not the worft; he is in a "ftate of dependence on the banyan, who "commits acts of violence and oppreffion, un"der the pretended fanétion and authority of the company's fervant. And hence arifes "the clamour against the English gentlemen in “India.”