The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1803-03-24 00:00:00

NIP Er T I • 5, Eli !9! ~~ 111 ~a - ••••., -mr•- ~_ - 7.IST 7A - D7.1 Mtn?. - AirARTERLY GENERAL COURT. WLDSZ;DAT, MARC!' C 3. Tie Annual Accounts of the Company, consist ing of Sock per Computation, Participation, &c. and Account Credit, were rend wLan Mr. Hts.ciimau begged, that the latter paper' might-be -read at length. This haring been com flied with, Mr. Hz.....c,Ast As said, he presumed, the paper was rrwant to be open-to the inspedion of any Pro prietor who might wish to examine it. The I'HAIItIKAN (Mt. Roberts) nodded assent. Mr. lltscaistau then said, he did not feel it ne cessary to go into any thing like a minute examina• eon of the statements -in that paper. Indeed it was not possible fur any man. basting only heard it -slightly read, to make such an attempt. He would therefore content himself with a few ob serrationA. Ihe chief of those weut to the statement of the debt due from Government. —l'he Debt doe from Government was stated at 3,373,0001. As that sum was the same as stated last year, it clearly appeared that th e Expedition to 4 Egypt under General Baird, and its charges. were not carried to the Debtor account. That Expedi tion. he conceived to have produced very beneficial influence, and he supposed that the erpence of it, in tie aggregate, would amount to more than a malice; perhaps it would swell the sum due from Covens: ma to the Company to See millions, as there did not appear to be any thing charged to Government in this account 14 any other expences for the present year. Mr. Henchman begged to ask of the Chairman, if that account had been ad justed? The CRAIRMAN said, it was in the course of ad jtutment, and that Government bad agreed to pay them A millloa very shortly. Mr. lianclusau then went to the Participation account, and mated if it was the same as had been annually made out from the commencement of the present charter 1 he Chairman nodded assent. Mr. IlsNcst4tan asked further, whether his Ma, jesty's Ministers were not annually furnished with , this account, and whether it was considered as being Made up in conformity to the at of 1793 ? Mr. Henchman then said, it was his wish to ascertain really what rights the Proprietors had, and he there fore, on the present occasion, could not help no. ticing what had passed in another place. An !lon. Baronet. whom he then saw (sir T. Metcalfe) was 'reported to have said, that the Stock of the Pro prietors was guaranteed to them by Government al 2001. per cent. for every 1001. stock. Mr. Hench- =an said. he could not believe that the paper in which be saw this statement was coned, as he was persuaded the Hoe. Baronet knew better, He would gate, with permission, what the at of 1793 did guarantee, and if he did not state it accurately, be trusted that the Hon. Bart. would correct him. It was the 115th seeticin of the Ad that stated the only guarantee that the Proprietors had, and it was this. That after paying the distributions which the Ad directs, as far as the 500,0001, to Government, *here was any surplus, a part of that surplus was idireded to be paid into the Bank, and being so paid, it became what was called a guarantee fund; and that if It ever Amounted to 100,0001. to a million, 'to six millions or to twelve, was the only becurity which the Proprietors had under the idea of a gua rantee fund for their stock at 2001. per Cent. Go. Nernment never wasg nor Dever could be imagined to be guaranteed to the Company for their Stock, llor to this day is enere a shil lin g of this guarantee Ind existing. This statement was not contradkrted by any gen man on the other side the bar. 111 r. Hxtvcit II AV having dismissed the manuscript paper, said, he must add 4 few remarks on the estimates of the revenues and charges of the Com pany in India, with the interest payable on the bond and other debts of the Prince of Wales's Island and St. Helena, and the commercial ctarges and supplies to Bencoolen, Prince of 'Wales's island, icc. In regard to the first estimate, the charges upon the revenue are stated at 94145,0001. and up -wards. Whereas 'the charges, ordinary and extra ordinary, given in the estimates of 1801.2, are 18,395,9001. So that the exptnces appear to be re duced 9,148,0001. and upwards. From which there was to be dedußed, on account of the extra receipts, 4,600,0001. and on account of the interest of the debt and sundry other charges, 1,6741,0 01. lesving about the sum of r.,97:40001. and upwards to be accounted for. Mr. henchman said, this was one way In which lie had looked at the account. in order to under stand it, but he could not 'make it correspond, and he should be very glad to receive any explanation on the subjed. With respeel to the estimate, No. • w h e ther it was a commercial estimate or a gene ral estimate of theirTmfits, he :really was at a lo.s • to ascertains; but if it•was meant to thew commercial profits, it snits -impossible kir an drian to under stand it. Mr. Henchman said, he did not mean to -east any refetition on their o:hcers ; he knew them to be jest mad honotwabk men, but -they made up • .their aes:oents on a certain principle, and ,it tvas -that principle whit% he •disputed- The prime .eo4, and the charges of India and Chnia.sisere so .hlended•to::ether, that hnless the particulars were • _given. no man could form a judgment upon the account. 'Mr. Henchman said, the interest of Mo ire!, the -rate of F.:change, the shave •of height said demurrage, .should all he particularised.— Till that was done. it w.ss impossible to sayiehether where was a mercantile •profit or not. Mr. Hench. Juan said, he must.stllltx of opinion, till these parti lrulars wine given, that as to any profit on the India ,trade existing, tt vAas very doubtful. As to the ex port trade; he .was astonidied so see f 9,5001. arm allv taken credit for, when the Diredors themselves 'had repeatedly declared, that there was no profit on .t he trade. and that they carried it on solely for the •benefit of the country, in the deport. of its manufac tures. If Geatlernen meant thatthis estimate should be taken in confidence,it was one thing—lf it waeto the understood, it was another. Mr. henchman then came to the third estimate •relative to the bonds and debts of the Company in plc said, it eII is not his-wish •to d'pret iate the Company's afairs; he had spewed the contrary. — l' hat it was the Direaors themselves, who had stated in their third leptut, dated is March •i Ist. that their . affairs were in so Ilapruperuus .t cituation. They then, •in answer to a Noble I .orcl who later) , presided- at the 'lndia Be.rri, l said, " that he did nut understand the affairs of - p -- • o, • I ite Company." /lie words awl. Male use off, lielse lieved, were in page PS, " the ilight lion. Gentle man, on retiring from office, has represenifitl Sadie and the affairs o f the Compaq in the most grape rous situation." In page 84 &ey say, " Mr. Dun das was mistaken a; to the real situation of the Com pany's affairs >ia India; kir the whole of Isis Esti mates are completely destror.d, in consequence of the advices since received from thence." Whereas the case now appeated to be, that Lord Melville was not so much mistaken ; and if any persons were in error, according to their own statements, it ap peared to be the Dire'tors themselves. Yoe, said Mr. Henchman. what is at present the state of the debt The Direetors say, !6,664,0001. Whereas in that third report, they stated the debt to be 48.732,0001. They give an account, it is true, of 950,0001. to be added between the :kith of April 1801 wad the 30th of April 1 iso2, 4nd they omit something on account of the remktance loan, which, for the sake of correctness, might a< well have been admitted. But, Mr. Henchman said, he thought there was more that ought to be admitted ; for on referring to that third report, it appears that thirty lacks of pagodas, or 4:N0,0001. was borrowed in September 1801, g.) that makes a difference of provided that 950,0001. represents so much of the sum. Mr. Hench man said, thig was not all. That he had seen letters from Madras, which stated a loan of twerey lacs of pagodas, in the month of May last. The Maims, he presumed, did not know of this occurrence, and it makes an additional difference of 8000814. which would swell the Company's debt to 18.664,0001. Mr. Henchman next adverted to the balances which appeared to be unprovided for in the estimates of receipts and disbursements of the seve ral settlements in the years 1801, 180` v ). jt appeared that there remained to be provided At &rip! .- - - L 730 , 400 At Madras 1, 3 4 1 ,0 0 0 - At BoraWy . - , 300,000 Which nukes together • 4,350,000 Mr. Henchman then sa;(1, that the accounts from India, first the estimates of the expense, and after wards the real expense, were in general wonderfully correct ; and, 'therefore, he did - not suppose there would be much difference on &his occasion. He begged of the Dire tors to explain to him, how this was to be accounted for ? Whetter they had docu ments to shoe, that tfne whole of this was dune away by retrenchments, or the increase of revenue, for there was nothing to guide him to the right un ileerstanding of an account, where such wide differ ences appeared; 2ihd be really believed the truth of the case to be, that the Direr ors in 1802 bad been induced to state the affairs of the Compan7 much lower than they really were, and in the resent month by their estimates much higher. I Its own opinion was, that the truth lay between the two. The CHAIRMAN now stated, that the objeeits to which the attention of the Quarterly Court was spe cially called, was the confirmation oaf the resolution of the Court of Dire fors, to acquit the Comman ders and Owners of the ships linolo;top and Princes Amelia 'from all imputation of n.eglea or miscondudt in the loss of.the said ships." The question was put, That the ballot on these r solutions be taken on tilt Yth of April next.—Or dercd. To explain end amend an Act of the 39th Ceo W. fewest, wog ship p ing, and to enable Directors to take op Slops of large Tonnage for nne or two Voyages beyond ahe six year s to which the Directors were now restsasuisd by Awls of Par liament - - --- The CHAIRMAN said,the next matterisehadto sub mit to the Court, was a Bill to explain and amend the Alt of 39 George 111. and to enable the Direllors to take up such large ships for.one or two years be yond the sex voyages, to which they were now limit ed. The Chairman explained, that through the medium .of a negotiation with Government, the lat. ter had expressed a wish that the Company would forbear to multiply the number of their shipping of large tonnage, on account of the consumption it would necessarily occasion of ship-timber wantedior the Royal Navy. The best and most ready %re source, therefore, which the Court was driven to, seas to employ such of the ships in the service, of large tonnage, as, upon survey after their imah voyage, were ,reported capable of going to India, one or two ranee voyages. Another oe& of the Bill was, to remove a difficulty which the Diretclors felt in regard to the loss of ships, Which, like the Talbot, weot.to the bottom ; when alt hands having .perished, nsi officers or persons remained to give an account of the nature and circumstancoi of the loss. At .present the DireCtors had a doubt .whether they were authorised in such case to empower the owners to build on the bottom of the ship4ofoundered. Me. Eason M AN said the appeared to him iro be a Bill of very great importance, and that the main clause of it went to do away a restri‘ftion laid on the DireCtors for obviously wise and politic porposes. He begged that the clause empower ing them to take up ships for one or two yoyages, arier they bad gone six, might be read again...o—The clause nos read. Mr. HENCHMAN SAW, he found, upon having • heard it a second time, ithat the Bill was of a worse tendency than ho / liad .imagined. .went to *bro. gate a restrieticw en the Dire tors consider-Alois,. / portance, and to give them a power to take up ships r, for two s ears .aJetit imp their tith voyam, accorshog t to their own partiality and favour, lie thought.; Bill of so very important a nature. ought. not to he ; hurried, bat moped he might ,restiest that it he printed, .and.tlr! Prepri•tors snared to feed it at.- t-mtivelx, .and make themselves masters,of it, be fore they were called owl w.give their eonseat eo it in General Court. The J.h.eur v C t iIAIRIAAN (Mr. Bosanqui* said, . if the Hon. Gentleman had given the Bill due exa ruination, he would Law :found, that he was ut terly mistaken in his view•of it. It was not a Bill' to empower the J.Nreffors.to take up ships partially . and .by their.own.fievour, but obliged them to ad-' vertise for four weeks, and accept lowest tender for the additional voyage .or voyages, just as they did in,the first instance for the sic •voyuges. Mr. • Bosanquet said, the ship-owners were not .fond of: rebuilding the 800-ton ships, and the Direanrs mutt • either take the resource now proposed by the Bill, or have resort to sending to Europe the .114 me in vestment in ,Intlia-buik Mr. HIAICHI4 A s said, all he "quested .wai, the being afforded au o poramite of .that,easttnination .whistotbe DeputyiC • . admitted:to be AcCeS• nary. As the elastse struck hush •the:Ship-owners! might, after a 'sixth voyage, not merely slightly, , nrwli In the mecn time, to prevent the necessity of students corn ingtnen,thp other "residencies, before the College be finally , *stab ished, his Excellency has, by au Ait of council, 4e elated ttn• abolition ofAhe,College.un the 31st Pec. 1801 1 . Tall that pool the existing )ostitusion 01441 terrain as it i now .Is, solijons.to ttieogulations and'atat mei concerning it. And it bit Lordship's determination, that it shall be sup- ports:ll by every degree of energy his Government eau afford Abit 'merit, as bishesto ' shall be • onspie nous ly rewarded;; and that discipline shall bestrictly presstved, agreeably to the statute of theAsetitytion. • The llovithay mid Madrp„spiadents„ of 1799 and 18W, leave College, agreeably tp the regulation, at the cfnl of 180 . 2; and , those of , 1801 at tile end of i lt1(0. Yours„C. BL'CHANAN. To this orb ,frow a Pireienrs he understood, Mr. Hotthtnatt said, Lord Wellesley had sent a . Moist able aatl satisfaCtory replf, shewing, that the College could not exist with any sort of advantage, under the redutlion suggeste4l, .apd that the alarm about the extray,agant .e.spence .was wholly un founded. Mr. Henchman said,7thatnothing but the : dread of the i espence ftad.ch,ecked the . progress of the institution, .was the prevailiogidea. ,He hoped, sherefore,.that now, upon the Company's being in ,possession .of affluerre, as the estimatef.of the year • stated, they vicitild send,out orders to have the Col- i reivaltlished to the full extent of its original: psejeCted .iostittation. Mr. Henchman concluded, ith lery earnestly prtzsiitg to .have the ,reply Lord Wellesley laid before the Proprietors. And , he wished to know ;whether the ..I.)treetors.had re ceived such a representation ? The CH Atesmo said, they • .rtail Captain Semis , / isaid, .he h ti he..rd.great objec tions to the institution ef.the C 2Uege , on,account of thereat ,expence.it led the.stat i i.... it to. He had heard many complaints from t-t . is of some GA 'the young geittkmen,: in one e, a father.or' a guardisoltad been ilm)vrt on, '.lf son or ward, j for no less a sum than 3U:1 1. 'l, - 1 7:715 - . , :5 - " , . 7171 g g b o ut tw at: Court, had not meant IA mice ivy propo.si, o lours .h AIR nose s ogOilk, to rezrja3 th e (ion or motion, but merely to Ask fur informatiou, rebuild their ships from the lipttom. 1 1 2 additional titale voyages, adlagti an o cl f rePli the p h ernt e i ' s ir sio s n to s' Captain Sea xv said, he was not much asto. At the same rime he was anxious to know the pri nished at any thing that came from that corner of ciple on whic h / he Soverei g nt y of Ceylon way y: 24 t ee j the Court. The - Hon. Gentleman had a much in the Crown, when that island was OW joint eun loager head than he had, and saw no doubt a great -1 quest of the King'seroops and the Company's forea.:„ deal further. But, if he understood the Hon. De- ' and within the limits of the Company's Charter. l?oe puty correctly, the Bill only extended the power of dicherry was taken in a former war from an Elm, the Directors to take up their large ships for two pean Power, and yet that did not vest in the Crown, additiossal voyages, as the Government did net wish nor did any thing in the charter,ACt of 1750 sup that the Company should Wild any more of their port that principle. What said that Act ? Not that large ships, on account of else great consumption of a ceequest from an European Power ie 4444 1)T ship-timber, which was wanted for the royal pavy. the joint forces of his M4jesty and the Company, arid Mr. Salley said, Ise should net wonder, by and by, v./thin the limits of the Charter, was vested in the if it became a question in the General Court, the- Crown, but that the Company could not cede it aher a khe DireCtots might load their ships after taking without a licence from the Crown. The principle, them lip. No ship-oweer Roshd think of building a Mr. Adair said, was too large a one to be sudderdi , s lip from the keel, unless 4)4.ff:wad it to be ‘o their decided, but it ought to be clearly ascertained and advantage. defined, and therefore he hoped he should hear some - ISLAND OF CEYLON. thing more satisfactory from the Deputy Chair- Mr Joees Alava rose, to ask some infearrnntion man, though he was obliged to him for the iiierma, upon 3 very important questions which certainly tion which he had already given. involved a very important principle. Wilat he al- The DEIIIITY cHAlltle•N said, 160 Proprietor was luded to was, upon what right the Government entitled to cal) upgs the Chairman or himself, or held the sovereignty of the island of Ceylon, that any Pireidor, for an answer on the sudden to 2111 island being within the limits described in the Com- question of importanee, much Imp take those he pany's charter ? hied the Dar by sprptaze, and expeet them, without The Darer v Coat a M Ail said, the .ion. and previous notice, to enter into a defieition of thediS, Learned Gentleman might have recollected, that a tinelion between the rights of the Crown and the long discussion took place in that Court many years rights of the Company. He had endeavoured, ago on the question he had started. That at that u p on tine recelletilion of the moment, to give the time a case was submitted upon it to two great . Learned Gentleman such information as occurred to Lawyers. (Mr. Yorke, afterwards Lord Chancellor, trim; but it did not follow, that what he had said aid another reepeaable charader, he 14 eyed 'he late under such cir.cumstattees was stridly corneal, pr tia Lord Camden) and their opinions were so strong, be depended that the Company found they had no chance of con. Mr. H EN climA Nst l pressed for the 74411.40 i, tending the question. lb believed that it was re- Wellesley's reply to the Directors, in resped to be ceived as a general rule, that the Sovereignty' cif College At Caleptta, saying, that considering the Ceylon, or any other territory conquered from sn elitrerenc.e of the times, there could be no objeetioe European Power, was vested in the Crown, and the now to Me empeace • aed al) he bogged was, that 'exclusive commerce of the island reserved to the the dispatch might be open to the perusal of die Company, in contra & Ainelion to the aaptisitiOO Pf . proprietors, lace, from what he understood of territory the natir e Princes, it must be cony ineing tv every pan of l i b,g anel Mr. Jose: ADA4R said, he was much gratified by propriety of the institution. the answer the Deputy Chairreao had ,given him amiss professed himself to he of the seine but he wished to see the Charter, which referred to opinion wiM his Hon. Friend, and thought that the questioe stated to have heenoleitated 44 4 fernier theee .could be no reasonable objeCtion alledge4 period, against producing the M ar q u i s Wellesley's dispatch; Mr. Heecnmeas desired to know, if he was to but the Chairtnne said, it was objected to behin4 understand, that it was held to be a fixed onslenia- thy ear. Me rule, that the sovereignty of all conquests made The Court tben adjonrned, by the King's troops in tedia, jointly with the Com forces, from an European power, vested ,of right in the crow. COLL.FOE AT CALCUTTA. • Mr. firecestati reminded the Directors, that he had laid in his claim to be heard a few words on another important point, before the Court rose. That point had been much talked of without doors, and was well entitled to be agitated in that cport for t half an hour. What he alluded to, was the College at Calcutta, an lnstitution which re fleeted infinite credit on Marquis Wellesley, who had not, in his judgment, meeived as much honour in this country as was fairly his due.— Mr. Henchman enlarged upon Me excellent plan ce the icatitution .of rise projected College, as one of the most essentially beneficial in its na ture, .and the most grateful and satisfactory to the minds and feelings of Me parents and friends of the young men sent out to India, that,coeld possibly be 'devised by human ingenuity and wisdom. Mr. Henchman lamented, that such an institution had not been established, when he and those who started with him in India, began their career. He was per suaded, that they would•have profited greatly from having spent the three first years of their time in such a College. . flg read the following general Letter sent to the Students in the College : The following Letter was received on the 14th of June, 1892, by the senior student from the Vice Pxoyost, viz. MY PULAR its, As some unforeseen rumour prevails ire Collece respeelig a j..etter from the Court of Directors ta Lord Wellesley, on` the subject of the! College, 1 will thank you to mentioo that the Leiter of the Court of Directors contiins the most unqualified approbation of the Plau, and of the purpose; of the institu tion. Their only objection has respect to the expence. They ob serve, " that they have peat pleasure in expressing their high anrobation of the public spirit and conspicuous talents of Marquis Wellesley in the conception and arrangement of a plan, which, under other circumstances of the Company's finance, they should have tholight deserving the most serious consideration." They therefore propose chat this Allege should be modelled on 3 reduced pl.tn, con fi ning it to two or three Languages, and cutting off the additional allowances of the students. His Excelkncy being sensible that such reduction would nut =AV.; the purposes of the present Institution, and that the objection, as to expense, arises from supposing that .the College if on a male of magnitude which doe's not exist, ljas resolved to represent these circuinstances to the Court of Di restore., in the confidence that chey will sanction ,the existing Instionien. - - - THEATRE-ROTAL, DRU'ic NE. Tills EVENING will be went/KW a New iiis Cpl Val/ in by Aeu, HERO oy TIE KIM, To which will be adekl, THE VIRGIN UNMASKEp, On Saturday, The %VA ) , to gee? Him, w4h A 11pyre tp be Sul& THEATRE-ROT-4L, CUVENT-CARDE?f, Tills EVENING will be. r , ...rforrnoci a New Comedy calle# 3 P 3Y BULL; Or, AN ENGLISHMAN's H.IIE-UDE. To wbich will be added, THE INTR I GUIN G cHAMBERMAID. ••• The guise of Sir JACO, AftLILY T. Col. HArtwooo, for defainatiou, tyas tried on Toe"lay at Thetford. Being * cause of great expectation, we have incurred a consideratile expence to procure an early and faithful report of it. A wAI, we hope, be considered a proof pf itur seal pvt 4 tiStAlitlP PP discharge of our duty to the public. THE 113.1UTISH PRESS. LONDON, THu&sp4y, Maicn 24. A Haroburgh Mail arrived yesterday morning, with letters and pipers of the 18th. The gence they contain has been an ticipated by t.hr French and Dutch ppers. The alarm produced by his Majesty's ISfessage has nearly subsided, a.-. 1 the public are become tired 9f spectalatipg upon the result. Nobody now expo ts that any thing willpanipire pending the discussions, and it is generistly believed that a decisive answer will be received in the course of this clay or to • A debate of conFillerabie importance took plac, yesterday at the East India House. We insert 4t full, faithful, and con-ea report of it. . - 4 detachment of the Royal Horse Artillery have ,received orders to proceed immediately from Wool it.acii to Portsmouth to embark for keland. Qur preparations t.ave produced the effed of stopping the sailing,of the Louisiana expedition, anii of the liutch squadron wider Vice Achpiral HAAT SINCK. On Friday ,fast, a Courier arrived at the French A si.stapoit's at the kiague, with orders, ,that the squadron for Louisiana should remain it, port, and that .the troops should be cantoned lielvoct till further qrslers. It is reported ;hat the yeomanry of Dublin, op being re-embodied, will be placed on a different foot ing from that an which they stood before, and in stead, of corps, distinguished by professional names, the whole will be ,amalganiated, and formed into distrid regiments. It is also said that thef t will be no cavalry corps for that city. The American Congress on the Vd resolved, 64 against 70, to refer it to a Committee to con sider the claims of American subjels against' the French Government for unlawful captures at sea, and thelneans of Obtaining indem n i t y t h er efore. General THostAs Ta l oos e m b ar k s f or Gib raltar .on the 3d of next month. The Diamond frigate, Captain EL PHINSTONE v iS appointed to carry out him and his suite. No Staff Officers in the Militip Service can in future, by the last All of Parliament, hold another Commission in any Militia Regiment Iva pay. This regulation in %O tte cases will be a great hardship, particularly to those Quarter-Misters and Assist ant Surgeons, wh o ,may now join their regiments again. The .Secretary at War has issued orders, that in futhre the ,Adjutant's pay shall be altered, and he receive eight shillings per day—and the Atirfiss the Surgeon, by allcoving him ten shit lings per day.