China Deduct St. Helena 1,446 101 1,442,232 Total increase of affets For the value of cargoes to India inclnded in the home affets, but arrived fo as to form part of the ftock there on the 30th April 1800 280,441 1,971,464 762,821 672,356 90,465 would be accomplished; and he owed it to the public, to the government, and to his fucceffors, to ftate explicitly in what manner he thought they would be fulfilled. He defired to be indulged, in the firft inftance, whilft making a few general obfervations. In the years 1798-4, the affairs of the Eaft-India Company were in fuch a ftate of diforder and embarraffment, that many were of opinion that the Company must be abfolutely dif folved. Others were inclined to believe, that, by introducing a clearnefs into the concerns of the Company, by laying a state of its affairs regularly before the public, and by adhering to a ftrict economy, it might be rescued from its diffculties, and in time eftablished in independence and profperity. Those that were of the latter opinion procured their plan to be adopted; funfhine foon fucceeded chaos, and from that time to the prefent, the politics and commerce of the Company had flourished even beyond the hope of its most fanguine well-withers. From the wife councils and brilliant exploits of the Marquis Cornwallis, and of the prefent governor general, all our enemies in that quarter had been fubdued, and our poffeffions in India placed upon the bafis of perfect fecurity. The event, no doubt, tain refolutions, but, on a nearer moft to be rejoiced at, was the fall confideration, it had ftruck him. that he fhould not be acting in a candid or manly manner, were he not to explain the means by which he propofed, that the flattering views which he had held forth in the laft feffion of parliament, fhould be realized. He fhould first remind the house of what he had then faid. [Here the right hon. gentleman read a long extract from his fpeech of laft year.] The expectations which he then held out, he now felt no doubt, The remaining total Mr. DUNDAS, after concluding this perfpicuous and fatisfactory ftatement, faid, that he at one time intended to have founded on it cer VOL. 3. of Tippoo Sultaun. Whilft that + K ufeful afeful ally, and now paid a large body of British troops employed to defend him. The profperity of the country, in confequence of thefe changes, had advanced with the greatest rapidity, and the hope of its continuance was built on the fureft foundation. Vigilance might ftill be neceffary, but vigilance would not be fufficient. He advised his fucceffors to keep a watchful eye on our great rival in Europe, and on the events which may take place in Perfia, and towards the fource of the Indus, and, if they did this, he could affure them that they had nothing more to apprehend. The right hon. gentleman then proceeded to give the outline of his plan. Not withftanding the many difadvantages, he obferved, with which the Company had to encounter for the laft eleven years, the ftate of its af. fairs had been greatly meliorated, He did not think, therefore, that he fpoke too fanguinely, when he faid, that he was not afraid to meet an Indian debt of fourteen millions terling. He did not hefitate now to declare, that, within the term of its charter, it had the means of dif. charging the whole of this debt, to accumulate the fum which it was required by act of parliament to have as a guaranty for the fulfilment of its engagements, and to pay to the public the fun which it had engaged to pay in confideration of the renewal of its charter. It was his purpose to recommend to the Company to borrow, on the conclufion of peace, the fum of ten millions, for the purpose of liquidating its Indian debt. He knew that there were objections to this plan, but there were none, in his opinion, which could not eafily be obviated. He then stated the following heads of the plan, on which, he faid, he founded his reliance. In the first place, by arrangements to be made abroad, one million annually is to be faved from the revenues of the Company, and applied to the purpofe of inveftments. Secondly, inveftments are to be made every year to the amount of four millions in India and China, in equal proportions. In the third place, the Company is to avail itfelf, within the space of four years, of the power which it has by its charter to encreafe its capital ftock by 2,500,000l. to be advanced annually. Fourthly, the proceeds of the fales at Leadenhall ftreet are to be employed to reduce the debt in India and lastly, this plan is to go on until the debt is reduced to 4,500,000l. a fum as low as it can be reduced to with fafety. The right hon. gentleman then entered into the confideration of each of thefe particulars, fhewing the prac ticability of each of them, and the certainty of their joint operation. By the year 1809, he ftated, the whole of this plan might be accomplifhed. He dwelt with great force on the advantages which would be derived from the reduction of the Company's debts. The great, and the only enemy we had to fear in India, was the Indian debt. After this was discharged, our empire in the Eaft would be founded on an immoveable bafis, and no enemy could contend with us in that quar ter of the world.. We could there keep on foot an immenfe army for five or fix years, without being more embarraffed than we are at prefent; and even then we fhould have an unlimited credit arifing from the good faith which we had previoufly fhewn. It gave him no fmall confolation, on his retiring from office, to be able to give fuch an account of his adminiftration, and to hold out fuch pleafing pro. Spects. fpects. Having concluded this statement of his plan for meliorating the finances of India, he proceeded to obferve, that a plan, which was calculated to produce fo great a revolution within the fpace of a few years, would be likely to excite not merely furprife, but incredulity. But when the data on which it was founded were fairly laid before the public, he was convinced that they would do away every poffible objection to the accuracy of the ftatement. He had fondly looked forward to a period of peace for giving effect to his fcheme; but though, from various circumstances, he was not himself to carry it into execution, he rejoiced in the profpect which offered itself to his fucceffors in office. He would rejoice in their joy, and participate in the pleasure of their fuccefs. He knew not whether he should live to fee the plan carried to perfection, but he should never ceafe to reflect with fatisfaction on eighteen years of his life, employed in contributing to fo great a national object, and in exerting every means in his power to promote the national profperity. He would lay his head down in tranquillity on the pillow of death, in the profpect of leaving this foheme in the hands of those upright and able perfons who were to be employed to the fame important public end. Some converfation on the price of freight took place across the table between Mr. Dundas and Sir F. Baring. The refolutions were then put, and agreed to. PROCEEDINGS AT THE INDIA HOUSE, From the 28th May 1801, to the end of December following. THURSDAY, May 28, 1801. This day a general court was held, when the chairman explained, that the proprietors were called together in confequence of a letter fubfcribed by forty-three proprie. tors, requiring a general court to be convened for fpecial purposes. The letter was read by the clerk, and was as follows: "We, being proprietors of Eaft-India ftock, duly qualified according to law, requeft that a general court may be fummoned on special affairs, at which we shall submit to the confideration of the court, whether it is not expedient to obtain further information refpecting the trade between India and Europe, in order to form an intelligent, juft, and final conclufion on that fubject." (Signed by Mr. HENCHMAN, Mr. IMPEY, Mr. DURANT, and forty other Proprietors) Mr. HENCHMAN rofe and faid, before he entered into the bufinefs of the day he must ask a question of the chairman, which was very important in its nature, and that was, Whether the court of directors had held any further proceed. ings on this fubject fince the papers were printed? and if fo, what thofe proceedings were? The Chairman anfwered, that a letter was prepared to be fent out to the governor-general of India to carry the refolutions of the directors into effect. Mr. HENCHMAN then asked, whether that letter had paffed as nanimously as the refolutions had done? Mr. INGLIS (late chairman) faid, the chairman was not to be cate chised in that manner, nor was it very refpectful to the executive body for one individual proprietor to put questions of that nature. Mr. HENCHMAN faid, he was not in the habit of doing any thing in that court or elfewhere, that violated the rules of decorum, or could be deemed disrespectful to any man or set of men; but that it was material to know, whether the letter was voted unanimoufly or not. But notwithstanding the obferva tion juft made by the honourable director, he must take the liberty of afking one queftion more, and that was, whether the letter was agreed to, and tranfmitted to the board fince the application was made to the general court? The Chairman faid, it had. The letter having only been fent to the board of commiffioners on Thurs day or Friday last, Mr. HENCHMAN then faid, he begged the proprietors would take notice, that after a general court had been fummoned upon the fubject, the directors had met and agreed to carry their own refolutions into effect, figned a letter to the governor-general, and tranf mitted it to the India board for their approbation. Mr. ELPHINSTONE faid, the paragraphs were not fent to the India board for their approbation, but merely for their information. The Chairman faid, all letters intended to be fent out to India by the directors were ufually tranfmitted to the India board, in order that that they might fee whether their contents referred only to matters that were purely commercial, or whether they contained any thing of a political nature. Mr. HENCHMAN went on and faid, he begged the proprietors' attention to this matter, because he wifhed the proprietors to obferve, that the directors, who were fo anxious about the prefervation of their own privileges, had, in this inftance, actually infringed the privileges of the proprietors, by doing all in their power to conclude a matter, which the proprietors had expreffed a wish to difcufs, and a general court had been pofitively determined to be held for that exprefs purpose. At prefent, Mr. Henchman faid, he would not detain the court longer on the fubject, but proceed to the bufinefs for which the general court was fummoned. Mr. HENCHMAN began with obferving, that the subject he had to bring forward was a fubject of the highest importance, not only to the immediate interefts of the EaftIndia Company, but the great political interefts of the nation. He faid, he was always forry when he found it neceffary to appear in oppofition to the court of directors, as no man entertained a greater refpect for them than he did, but on the prefent occafion he had the miffortune to differ totally from them. The fpecial committee, in the firft fection of their report, admit the great importance of the fubject, and fay," they have endeavoured to qualify themfelves for the task affigned them by diligent enquiry, &c. feeking to obtain from all the fources of information within their reach a comprehensive knowledge of facts and opinions relating to the fubject." Would any man who read thofe words imagine that the fentiments of those who had ferved in the highest ftations in India, and were likely to be best acquainted with the fubject, and moft capable of forming a judgment upon it, had not been ftudioully taken; inftead of which it did not appear from the face of the report that they had ever once been confulted. In the houfe of commons, enquiries were profecuted in a different manner; after a committee, confifting of the moft able and competent men, was formed, they fent for all perfons confidered to be acquainted with the fubject, to attend and be examined, in order that the committee might make themfelves as completely mafters of the matter under investigation as the nature of the cafe would admit. After commenting pointedly upon this, Mr. Henchman faid, it appeared to him, from as full a confideration of the fubject as he had been able to give it, and an attentive perufal of the report, every paragraph of which he had again and again referred to and deliberated upon, it appeared to him, that before the court of proprietors could be competent to decide, whether the refolutions of the court of directors, come to on the 4th of February, ought or ought not to be fent out to India, in order to be acted upon, more information ought to be ob tained upon it, than the directors feemed to have had before them. The true interests of the Company would probably be beft confulted in granting what the merchants defired, their being allowed to bring home a greater portion of the fur plus produce, which the Company either did not or could not conve niently take into their own hands, viz. the gruff goods and raw ma terials. This would at once inK3 crease |