Star. — London, England, 1818-12-17 00:00:00

kAsr INtIA HOW& Cittarterly court ot Proprietors WSW ty it the India horse, at which a nivi re and a Quarter for the last half year fittsitsus. - nmAit informed the Conrt t that in pur !l9th sec. 6th chapter of the Company's ! Court had been made Special to consi nolutiori of the Court of Directors, to a year to W. W. noveton, St. lieleflr 2stablishment. • • lotion was then read, and stated, that the ad thought fit to grant a pension on re -000 per annum to Mr. Doveton (the being one half of his emoluineats at St. account of his services during the space and the high testimonies always borne to by his superiors ;—subject to the appro e Proprietors, and the Board of Contront. :ion being put that this ResolatiOn be le said, he did not rise to oppOse the Into precedents were dangerous," and as this t instance of any pension Wag granted is servants—Viearhe wished to guard against this being drawn into a warrant applications in future. He therefore sug some addition should be made by one of rs, stating the special reasons of the pre , which words of caution might guard from unpleasant applications, and the from a heavy charge on their &lances. - >WES rose to second the observations. of and thought precedents were dangerous 1 , the waste of their money, as well as in • deserving rersons from having justice He did not object to the giant itself.— on's services were long, and the character been given of him was high. It did not one of those which were so highly colour ! esti avagant ; it was delicately laid on ; japanned ; he should therefore, vote for the iaj more, should wish him long life to en- Jaexacom, though he should be rather wil ;e than to check the liberality of the Com irtis Mr. Doveton, observed, that when the weight of the Pensioa List was consider he flood of applications which would burst lem, if a pension were panted to any of servants abroad, he wished to add some the motion, expressing the desire of the it its liberality might not be drawn into a Ilithnto it had not been the practice to sions to the Civil Servants of the Company it. Helena or India ; he therefore wished to :o this eXect--" But the Court must at time ea,sress its desire, that this grant be t iuto a prect dent for submitting w their tion, Grants ci Pensions to their Bervants in a, or any other Persons, not in the content the Legislature, in giving them the power P.:nsions from the Funds of the Company." xos thought this was a cobbling amend , d would not answer the end proposed. If e any way of avciding the danger of the :, he should be happy to do so. As the stood at present, he should have great • heeding to the grain. iAIRMAN said, that if the Court of Directors cn to act on the superannuation clause, they ve granted a much higher pension than that is now proposed, and without coming to ,he f Proprietors. He hoped the Resolution passed without a restriction, whiclf would he Directors from rewarding merit in future. is a striking difference, too, between the St. nd the India Servants of the Company : the la Servants had but small allowances, and liged to live expensively ; while it was the r of the India service, that the Civil Func w•ere enabled to lay by money on which lit live in comfort in this country. RANT (the Director) said, the pension origi the desire of the Directors to economize on lelena Establishment. Some duties had been to the offices of Councillors, which were too laborious for the two senior Mea,bers recoil, and another, since dec'eased) to per he option was therefore given them to retire ons. Mr. Doveton, after two years, accepted losal ; and the only dilleru(tce was, that the had been raised from t.7.5C 1 J to £BOO, on ac ' the long servic6s and high character of this on. (..JACKSON observed, that as all the special 'anus mentioned were connected with the t was still more proper to add the words he posed to the motion. a few words from the CIIAIInIAN and Mr. zs, the amendment was negatived by a large r, and the original motion agreed to. WODLESTON A ND.COLONCL WILKS. 2IIAIRNIAN stand, that the Curt had also ade Special to consider the following liesoln bmitted by Mr. Jackson and Mr. Hume: lied—That this Court having, duly considered a Letter Dudleston, Esquire, one of the Directors of this dated 31st May last, with the Documents acc,impa . came, are of opinion that Mr. fluclkston is eatitled i.:taoce of that coundcoce. Which the rroprktors hale hi him." JAcasom, after apologizing for having t. forward this question instead of his Honour iend near him (Mr. Hume), and after some ry remarks to shew the importance of clear every imputation, the character of a Gen se high in theirconfidence as Mr. Hudleston 11 public aspersions, began to state the case to :iprietors. In a work lately published—the volume of Colonel Wilks s History of the of India—there was a story to the following —lt was stated that when Sir G. Staunton Xr. Staunton), Mr. Hudleston, and Mr. Sad ye Commissioners for negociating a peace with ) Sultaun, which was finally concluded near lore, these Gentlemen were subject to daily and exposed to continual danger from the es of the Despot with whom they were nego ; ; that three gibbets were erected, one against it of each of the Commissioners, pretty broad )eing given that they would be employed upon ommissioners themselves ; that while in this of agitation and alarm, two of the Commis- siancrs meditated a pfecipitati escape, of whicll they Intended only to inform the third Commissioner at the moment when they executed it, and leaving their stkinte, and the, detachmert of troops which had iccotripaaied them,in the hands of the enraged Sul tan ; that the two Commissioners who had concerted this plan, were Mr. Hudleston and Mr. Staunton.— This story had been mentioned in a periodical work (the Quarterly Review), by the writer of a critique .on Mr. Wilks's book, and strongly negatived by him, en his knowledge of Sir G. Staunton, as far as that gentleman was concerned.; it was stated at the same time, that Mr. Hudleston would no doubt feel it ne cessary to clear his character from the imputation which had bee.i cast upon him, of thus basely pre ferring his personal safe,y to Lis duty, or to retire from the Direction of the Company, for a share in which, such conduct, if he had been guilty of it, must have di-qualified him. On this subject Mr. Hudle- , ston had addressed a letter to the Company ; and re- cords had beeli laiS before them which enabled them to appreciate the correctness or erroneousness of the statement of Colonel Wilks. Colonel Wilks's state- ment was founded, in the firs 4 place, on a letter of General M*Leod, who referred to a letter of Captain Scott, a Captain of a ship stationed on the coast, and under the orders of the Commissioners. In this let- ter Captain Scott stated, that on a certain day he was directed by the Commissioners to keep a look out towards the beach, and if he saw a gentleman on horseback, with a white handkerchief, he was to put. a moat as near to the shore as possible. On this Ge neral M'Leod added a remark to the following effect: " The.adventurc of the white handkerchief, was the' plan of an intended escape of the Commissioners from Tippoo, leaving behind their baggage, retinue, &c." It was to be recollected that General M'Leod, when he wrote this letter, was in a state of great ir ritation. Yet Colonel Wilks, without that discrimi nation which usually characterized him, had given weight to his assertion. Although, if he had read the few subsequent lines of Captain Scott's letter, it would have been seen that the whole story was nega tived. It was there said, that when the gentleman with the white handkerchief was.scen, Captain Scott was to conclude that the negociation was broken off, and was to proceed with his ship td Bombay, while the Morning Star (another vessel off the coast), was to sail for Tellicherry. The assertion of General M'Leod, Colonel Wilks supported on the testimony of the Officer (now Sir Thomas), then Lieutenant Dallas, who commanded the detachment which had escorted the Commissioners. The Commissioners in the course of the negcciation had been obliged, for want of any other interpreter, to employ a menial black servant of Lieutenant Dallas. This servant in- formed his matter, that haiing lain down to sleep just without one of the Commissioners tents, he overheard a plan which . Mr. Staunton and Mr. Hudleston had,contrived for escaping on board ship, with which their surgeon alone was to he made ac quainted. • Mr. Sadleir, the other Commissioner, was only to be ldt into the secret at the moment whets they were about to embark.' Lieut. Dallas hinted to the Conimissioners that he knew they had a plan for escaping, but Was assured by Mr. Staunton that there' was noxetention of doing so without informing him of it. Mr. Jackson then went over proofs, which satisfac torily exculpated Mr. Hudleston from any charge,- -In the first place, there war the sequel to Captain Scott's letter, whici; disproved the intention .of the tommissioners to escape—since on sight of the sig nal the ships, the very ships in which, it was alleged, that they had intended to escape, were to sail away. In the next place, there were the explanations of Co. lonel Wilks and Sir T. Dallas. Colonel Wilks stated, that it would undoubtedly have been more advanta geous for those Commissioners to treat in freedom on ship-board, than under the appearance of constraint on shore; and that their desire to remove was justifi able, and might account for this conduct. General Dallas • also had sent an explanation to the Editor of The Asiatic Register, in which he said—" I then thought, and I still think, that the removal of the Commissioners would have been perfectly justifiable, if they thought that the public service would have been forwarded by their embarkation, and I should have covered it by the loss of my last man, if it had been necessary. But I felt their distrust of me to be uhworthy, and the plan to be absurd, because im practicable."—Now the question seemed to be, Whe ther it was most probable that a black servant should tell an ingeniously-contrived tale,- yet false—or, that two gentlemen, selected for negotiators on account of their talents, should contrive a plan for their escape, which might be pronounced on the face of it absurd and impracticable? But Mr. Hudleston was not content with this qualified acquittal: he had been able to prove that the Commissioners had never contemplated the escape or removal with which they were charged. He had shewn from his journal that, there was no reason for those apprehensions, from which alone the idea of removal could have pro ceeded; that, instead of employing threats and in sults, the conduce of Tippoo at that time was perso nally polite; that at .the time when The escape was said to have been meditated, he (Mr. Hudleston) was employed in drawing up the Treaty of Peace, which was afterwards actually signed ; and that .he had all the time a clause in his pocket, which he knew, when produced, would put an edd to the ne gociation. Tippoo immediately consented to sign the Treaty.—As to the story of the gibbets, it was an example of what fantastical stories might obtain credence from grave authorities. If the Commissie , tiers had suffered such an insult to be put upon them. as the erection of gibbet.; before their tents, they would have deserved all the censure which had been cast upon them. The origin of the story was this shortly before the time when the Commissioners arri ved in Tippoo's camp, that Prince had quelled a dangerous mutiny in his camp, and had put to death some of his officers. The gibbets were left standing on a high ground, perhaps to strike terror into the disaffected in his army. When the Commissioners arrived, their own Quarter Master chose the place for their encampment—not near these gibbets; and dur ing their stay no gibbets were erected, either near their tents or in any other part of Tippoo's camp.— This ai.isurd story of the gibbets, it appears, was re lated, with additions, by Captain Scott, to the Bom- bay Government—by the Bombay Government . it was sent to Bengal, and the Bengal Government on-, mediately wrote an angry letter on the subject to the Madras Presidency. This letter received from Lord IClacartaey the tefutation and the rebuke which it so, well decnve!:. lair. Handle Itcksan concluded by', teadiug this dispatch of Lord Macartncy, which, with the rest of the evidence which he had adduced, could leave no doubt Of the innocence of Mr. lludle ston of the intention chlirged on him. In the course of his speech he bore testimony to the general merits of Colonel Wilks as an historian. Ile then moved the Resolution. _ Mr. HOME seconded the Resoltition, and congra tulated the Court on the manner in which justice had been done to Mr. Hudleston. This was the only man ner in whithlhat gentleman's character could have been cleared to his own satisfaction and that of the Company. lie complained of the illiberal manner in which his remarks•had been received when he had before mentioned the subject, which was no less un wise than unjust; for nothing could be more absurd than to suppose that suspicions which attached to a public man could be any otherwise destroyed than by full and open inquiry. He complained of the ge neral system which prevailed among the Directors, of attempting to stifle inquiry; and particularly re marked, that the offices were ,closed against him when he made inquiries on subjects respecting which it was the right of every Proprietor to be informed. He was glad that Mr. Hudleston' had not chosen to follow the example of the Court of Directors, but had chosen a more manly open course of proceeding, the result of which had been so gratifying to him. The CHAIRMAN said, that papers had been refused to Mr. Hume on account of the multiplicity of his inquiries. Within a few weeks he had demanded pa pers on three subjects—the appointment of an Apo thecary-General, the State of the Judicial Establish ments in India, and the State of the Courts with re- 1 spect to Arrears of Causes, and the Monthly Reports' of the College. These demands were thought inqui sitorial, and information had been refused him, ex cept on the first subject.. • Mr. Hume was proceeding to state the reasons of those inquiries, when he was interrupted, by a call to order. ... -.--.. Mr. TWINING and Mr. LOWNDES spoke in support of the Motion. Colonel MACAVLEY said, that he had been released from the dungeons of Tippoo in consequence of the, Treaty of Bangalore. Ha had shortly after dined at the table of Sir T.. Dallas, where the attempt of the Cominissioners was spoken of, but no imputation was cast on Mr. Hudleston. He was authorized to say, that Colonel Wiiks, in a second edition which he was preparing, would withdraw the statement which had created unpleasant feelings, and correct the narra:ive. Mr. WEYLAND wad Mr. S. DIXON spoke shortly in support of the Motion. The question was then put, and the Resolution was carried unanimously in the affirmative. The Court then adjourned, sine die. At the Court of Directors held yesterday at the East•lnciii House, Captain C. GRAHAM, of the ship William Pitt, took leave of the Court previous to de parting for St. Helena, Bencoolen, and .China. -The Duke of NOREHUMBERLAND, upon inspecting the Architect's' and Surveyor's estimate of the ex penses of the rep': s of Not thumberland I louse, which his Grace wished to have done, found to his surprise, their estimate amounted to the sum of EO,OOOl. His 'Grace, in consequence, declined having them done, and signified his intention of pulling down the whole of the house and re-buil‘lios it. • Their estimate of the repairs necessary to be done to Sion House, they cal culated at 20,0001. which his Grace consented to. The Assize Court of Caen have condemned to death the persons implicated in the attempt to rob and mur der Mr. HERVEY, an English physician, residing in the neighbourhood of at town. A circumstance of some interest to the philanthro pist, (says a letter from Paris, dated the 12th instant! occurred here yesterday : An Englishman lost his pocket-book, containing more Tian 10001. in the Rue St. Honore. It was picked up by a poor man selling chesnuts, who took it to the address marked on the cover. The Englishman gave hint only five francs— but mark the sequel—he followed the man to his• home, ascertained his poverty and good character, and made him a present of 4000 francs, on OM con dition—Mat of kceping the name qlthe donor a secret ! . The Prince VA LINiK t, one of . the Noblemen who accompanied the Emperor of Russta 011 his Impe rial master's late visit to this country, landed ar Do ver on Sunday night, from Calais, and shortly after set out for Landon. While taking some refreshment at the Fountain Hotel, Canterbury, he made inqui ries as to any objects of curiosity in the City worthy of notice, and accordingly visited the venerable Ca thedral and public walk of the Dungeon, and expres sed much admiration at the architecture of the one, and at the public spirit which had dictated the forma tion of the other. The object of his journey to Et tg-j land is for a residence of some months, in ordor more leisurely to inspect its institutions, public lmildi;.,;s, and manners, than he did on the former visit. • NEW Coulees.—The Paris Journals antIOWICC that 1!&. Pors, of Marseille:, has • discovered a Comet in 1 the Constellatior of Pe antra. We learn that the sante Astronomer made a similar discovery, two days after,' hi the Constellation of Ilytfra. According to the observations of M. Beauratst, this new Star was, on the 50th of November, 'at 17h. 37m. of mean time, reckoned from mid-day, at Marseilles, by 179.3 e. of right ascension, and 29. 17. south declination. On the Ist of December, at 17h. 57m. of mean time, the right ascension WAS 180. S 9. and the declination , W. 47. This Comet is easily visible through a night telescope. It is of a pale nebulosity, round, and from five to six minutes in diameter; the nucleus is very confused. As the motion .of declination carries the Comet towards the North, it is natural to suppose, that in a few days it will have acquired more intensity, and perhaps become visible to the naked eye. Sr/ttila:G.—The Fives Court was well attended on Tuesday, for the benefit of Carter. The best sets-to of the day were be tween Sales and Spring, and Randall and Holt. Tin science was exhibited in first-rate style, with astonishing precision, and the measurements and lengths were judged with great dexterity. Caster set•to with Gregson, and they afforded much arr.usement, But the great expectation of the day was match-making. It was stmitosed Cribb and Carter would be matched ; b-st these pugilists appeared on the most friendly terms, and not a word was said about fighting. Turner, it has been stated, went to Burns' house, in Windmill-stroet;on Friday last, and ch.:llenpd Martin before he had arrived in town. Martin me;!nt.ed the itagtt in the Court with his head tied up, and addressed the Ama teurs as follows--" Turner has challenged me in my absence, and I accept it, to fight him for 100 guineas, at his own time ; and my money is ready at Burns, the Rising Sua, street.' The match will no doubt be made, and one between Carter and Sutton, the black, u also spoken of, as Caner will bght as low as ,Sot. LAW INTELLiGENCE. COURT OF CHANCERY, DEC. 16. This day being the third Seal after Michaelmas Term, th. LORD CHANCELLOR opened it at his house, preparatory to hit lio,,out the Vtce-Cumccit.t.tor.a hearing his Lordship's motions. LAW PROMOTIONS: The LORD CHANCELLOR afterwards swore in the following Learned Counsel to their several offices: Mr. Serjeant Cortry, as King's Serjeant and MI Justice of Chaster ; Serjeant Pe.za, as King's Scrjeant; Mr. Garai Witsox, of the Chancery Bar, as King's Conn. , :l; Mr. GATI:ta and > r. Notts, of the King's Bench Bar, as King's CoanseL COURT OP KING'S BENCH, DEC. 16. ATKINS V. LANE. This was an action brought by the LORD MAYOR to recover damages for a false warranty of horses, which had been sold him by the defendant. Walker, the Lord Mayor's coachman, proved the warranty in the following manner :—Meeting the horses coming up, on the road to London, he observed that tlrey looked rough, and asked if they were all.sound and right. The defendant said-, "Yes." The same wit ness also proved, that when the plaintiff went to the defendants stables, the defendant gave the same an swer to the same question put by the plaintiff. It appeared clear that the horses were soarers; and one of the defendant's witnesses admitted that they were unsound at the time of the sale:- The defence set up was, that no warranty had been given, and that the receipt for the purchase money contair.ed none; that the plaintiff was well acquaint ed with the horses before he bought them ; and that their disorder was aggravated, if not brought on, by the treatment they had experienced while ssith him. Two witnesses (one of whom was present when Walker met the defendant on the road, and the other, when the plaintiff came to the stables) then stated, that they did not hear the defendant give any war ranty ; another, that the plaintiff had frequently seen the horses when in possession of Lady Wilson, their last owner; a fourth stated, that the horses having been out of work for some time before they wet e -old, the plaintiff was told not to work them hard till he had I .hysicked and bled them; but it had 'geared that the plaintiff drove them eighteen miles two day after he purchased them, without any such precau tions. However, he was three hours and a bait going the eighteen miles ; and the plaintiff's coachman stated, that the horses had sudicient rest and proper food all the time they were under his care. The fendant's son, a Captain's Seward on board an lndi man, said that the horses were 1.2:::0 worse at the tin they were offered to be returned. The defendant h. said he would take them back, upon being paid the use of them ; but this ;vas refused ; and the hors after having been bought in as Tattersall's, where only 19 and 21 guineas were bid fur them, were sent to a livery stable, with notice to the defendant take them. Chief.F.stice AEPOTT left the question of warrat to the Jury, upon the credit of the plzintiff's ccac man, observing that, in order to censtinite a wartant . the words I warrant" were not necessary ; but that any answer to a question conr.T:-ning the qtrty the article sold, implying that it was good in its ki amounted to a warranty ; and that the warrant's appearing upon the receipt given fur the purch; money, did not preclude the production of other c Bence to establish it. The defendant, he raid, - had no demand at law, for the use of the horses between the time of their sale and return. The Jury found a verdict for the plaintiff, al Hundred and Fifteen Pound Ten Shillings, being price paid by him for the horses. SMITH V. HENSHAW. This was an action brought to recover damages I false imprisonment,under the following circurnstanc, The plaintiff having drank acid smoked in the fendani's puLlic•house — , tendered a £1 note for pa' meat, which the defendant suspected was not a gt, one ; he accordingly went out to get change, or make some inquiries about the note at the beadle's. Abuu► the same time, his waiter went to lookfor the bead' at the watch-house, and, not finding him, mend°, to two officers who were present, that there was a picious note in his master's house. The two officers immediately fOlowed him, one of them now awed), upon their own mere tion, and without orders from any body; eventualt they took the plaintiff into custody, and locked up in the watch-house all nil;ht. The note turned out to be good, and the plaintiff now brought his - tion against El onshaw, on the round that he had p. cured the officees to take the plaintiff into onto& However, it ectild not be proved, either that the e' fendant had given any orders to the officers, or he was even present in the roam when the plain was taken. The latter was, therefore, nonsuited. COCRT OF COMMON PLEAS DEC. 16. PROVTCX r. HAM..IO:7D. In this case the plaintiff gave a bill of sale of a' belonging to him to the defendant, to secure the Iwent of a certain sum of money, which the latter ('nt to the former. Defendant owed the plaintiff tween S and I:400, and gave him also a bond IEIOOO, on account of the value of the brig., ' time alter this transaction the defendant old the for £l4OO contrary to the express wish of the pl tiff. On the sale being effects'!, however, plai called upon defendant for tlf balance, but the ' declined to comply with this demand, open grounds; first, that he had nct yet made up hi counts; and secondly, that apprehending the plait was about to become bankrupt, he would not pa' balance, lest he should again become liable to assignees of the bankruptcy. The defendant was rested for the amount of the plaintiff's-demand. Scrjeant COPLEY and Mr. POLLOCK took an obi tion in point of law to the plaintiff's riht of ac as he 111‘1 by the bill of sale abandoned all claim to the brig in question. Upon this, however, the Cuter J.:sr= obserl ei, that as the objection was mere:y technical 1w would leave tire case to urv. At the same time he must say, that the deli dart had been hardly dealt with, for he should been allowed an opportunity for malting up his counts before a writ was issued for his arrest. verdict was taken for the defendant, subject to 4 ference for the investigation and settlement of accounts between the parties. A young ;Tian, a Clerk in the Aberdeen Post fice, has been brought to E iinburgb, charged abstracting money troni letters. • S e ,R in ey it- he , . nd key • I ja ten vey • nt- t hat by TI. hen ier, red, .ar- een • t heir he ired lays raci- aing man ✓er de- time h. .d i b.r K. t ses, here sent lit to anti ,ach- inty, that y of • kind, t s not :h.l4e • ev had weett O.te g die es for LIIC : • le de- pay- make lbuut eadle ioned 3 SUS- t 3, (as e rno- wally him urned iis ac- d pro- stody. he de- it that 1 aintiff d. el I 1 1 • a brig , le pay- er had tiff be and for SOme ie brig plain- 1 laintiff latter n two his ac- laintiff 1 •0 )ay the to the vas ar- I. Kr. °him- action, legal wevcr, jection to the deferse have , his ;ie. st- A o re • of the 'mit Of- w th • ;-,