The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1806-03-11 00:00:00

° 7 :` I ~ ' eledion came, they refusid to go and vote. unless their erpences were paid, and a reasonable mm al lowed them also for the loss of their time. This custom had created an enormous exposes to candidates, and was fraught with great in justice. The preamble of the As set forth, that all elections should be free and equal, and that no man, entitled to a vote, should give it in consider ation of any viauals or drink taken at the expense of the candidate. This language was plain and clear ; and surely the Legislature could never mean to confine it to places only where the voters are re sident, because that would be giving one S2C of voters an advantage which another set had not ; and this too to those who least deserved to have that advantage. The principal argument in favour of paying . non-residents their eapeuces, had been the great inconvenience that would arise from putting too stri.l a construaion on this a.l, as thereby many hnndreds of men, who lived at a great distance from the place where they were entitled to vote, could not afford to go thither at their own exposes:, and would be disfranchised, and lose their vote. if the expense were not allowed to be paid by the can ' . didate. Mr. Tierney insisted, that it would be 1 better, and more impartial , as well a s more reason able, that voters so situated should be disfranchised, l . than that candidates should be compelled to pay such enormous expences. A voter. he said, would have no one hardship to complain of, if he were .ampelled to vote at his own expender, or not at all. votes for his own pleasure, and his own advan ..., and, as such, be ought to pay the espence of doing so. if a man go from Durham to Taunton, which is almost from one extremity of the kingdom to the other, by going to Taunton be gains another vote. and then obliges the candidate to pay an enor mous e xpense of taking him to Durham to vote 4 4Ahere ; whereas, by making the voter pay the ex- L.•perices himself, there would be no hardship put on him, but what be bad incurred by his own ad and dczi, and for his own benefit. He thought there . could be no difficulty in the minds of men on that particular point. Is county eledrons, he said, . where vote's resided in the county, sod in Large counties, at a very great distance from the place . ... of elution, there was certainly a considerable difference, and it would be objefted, perhaps, . 1 4t1ser it would be depriving . forty-alines& free bidden of the power of vein their rods. By ace, Aft of Henry VI. county elections were first limited to forty-shillinp freeholders, hs order to - avoid the riots and disturbance; which Masi from •,...v all persons claiming a right to vote. By the do .. ..„, 'premium of money since that time. 40s. was m ' - that p-riod equal to 301. now; and he thought it . . an alkiwanee for that regulate coesty Steaks. ' Henry VI.; for by the number of mill forty very greatly increased. 1 incos,venienee which of forty-shillings free taken in two, or time, or -a estessive coanties. on the freeholders go to that which nearest to them. - With F travelling to the place the present high sates being now paid by the obliged to go to such a be would travel much that of another person ; or bait at half the num. owe ease, as be mould in that of • had asked 301.-to defray his to Durham ; this was a 4 When be went int he might eau z lii mid very likely By taking the peg is dime plasm; dieth of die les the hewer orders of ) of, 416111 it would be the importeat altaaties is , sdking diem. what they eareprerthms or a Immo of . essfaita. He bait is his owe yeresse t ch deeds( proof of the good sifts of sown ddigod to give dear votes at their own arras% appealed le the Hesse, whether, is tedam the voters all reddest. my r aided rims reeeaded to the Nona, does brosiablish. • al the premaleat of isiescieg the Afk. um; years ago f Wb lee Ant weed for lila .the whole of the adios was a sestiesed Now 1 drsabestwes. via. and asiodois t be had take bees sleeted Benue, and A wee sobriety sad regmberity, l and the Om er made their aresehes to sad in their ember amen, instead of a mob of &nab. ands. Is the year 1774. a Co"namioe was isp; pointed to tabs ism coneidemtioa the laws relative' to Eleaines, sad it was then resolved to be « the opinion of that Committee, that the Aet passed in else 7th of Kiss William meght tit he strialy ad hered to." What he was them contending for, was, therefore, by no means new. Bet whether his rea soning. were right or wrong, be was certain the House would allow that the question ought to be settled, and those doubts put an end tn. Would any one say, a Voter has a right to make the Candidate pay for giving his vote ? He thought it would be much better to say at once, that the Candidate shall be liable to no expence whatever ; tor, at present, iii those cities and considerable boroughs,where there are a number of non-resident Voters, Candidates are obliged to furnish themselves with from 10 to 30 or 40,0001. to pay the expences of an eleCtion, as the matter is now regulated. He wished not to make any considerable alteration in this particular; but he would willingly leave the law in such a way as not to be mistaken. By adopting . the provisions which lie hoped would be introduced into his Bill, if he had the leave of the House to bring it in, all the mischiefs which now proceed from popular Elec tions, would cease and be done away, and a new description of persons would thereby find their way into that House. There were in this country a very large body of men, of moderate, but independent • fortunes, who are new excluded front becoming Can didates, solely from the immoderate expences at tendnio, the same, who would prove a very valuable acianisitinn to tae House. while the only men who were sufferers, would be those who are not known for talent, hut who valve themselves only on their rn iney. An I the. meat's it g.s es teem of excluding those alio would be inure desirable members of such an assembly. finch an order of things would also restore peace and haeinony throe Deft the co use by making eledions what they ou g ht to 114,. ils#i l lth e good and honest eledors to use men fat their representatives. who are agreeable to them. These, he said, were the objefts he had in view, and his wish for the completion of which had inAusnced him to bring forward the present Bill. Whatever differences may arise in, or whatever difficulties *My occur to the minds of any Hon. Member, he hoped no objection would be made to his bringing it in. He dintld move afterwards to have it printed, which would give Gentlemen an opportuoity of consider lag it at his leisure, and it would be competent to I ewer; Hots. Gent. to suggest such alterations and 1 MlllMaMents' as the nature of the case might seem Whim to require. He moved 0 , that the Treating AL preforms. should be entered u read." and then, te That leave be given to bring in a Bill to explain and render more effeaual the said Ad." On the question being pet, Mr. Secretary FOX rose, and said, he perfettly agreed with the Right Hon. Gentleman, that it was much to be wished the doubts which at present ex isted, with respell to the All in question, were re moved, and the law fairly and fully settled upon the subjed, which every one must allow, was highly important. It was not, therefore, his intention to ebjeb to bringing in the Bill, nor to throw in its way the slightest obstacle. liemnst say, however. he could not think so lightly of the difficulties as the Hon. Gentleman seemed to do. In the case of the rights of 40s. freeholders, be was free to confess, he differed most widely from the Hon. Gentleman ; he thought the counterbalance of these lower orders of freeholders, against the aristocratical claims of the higher and more opulent ones. was one of the most striking branches of the popular part of our excellent Constitution, and it would require great care how it was attempted to be altered. If, accord ing to eio doftrine of the Hon. Gentleman. as to the depreciation of money, the Bill were to take away the 40s. freeholders, and substitute those of 301. in their some, he was one of those who would = ' it. And, for the same reason, he saw great ty in another point alluded to by the Hon. Osederms.4 viz. in regard to the poll in large coon. timbal% taken is different places—he should here also be very cautions, fin he was always unwilling. to take sway the right of voting from the low free holders, to transfer it to the larger ones. He looked on it as an infringement on the Constitution. which might be attended with many mischievous consequences. Then, as to depriving those of their votes, who are non-residents, and could not par • - their own expenees to any place at a great distance, this would frequently take in a my large descrip. Coon, and a most important one too, of His Majesty's sited, ; would he wish to exclude every man who h i e soldier, from giving his vote, if he should eintice to be at a distance fmm the plaee where he bad a right to tender it? but more particularly, would he wish to deprive the Militia of this tight I Is there no difficilty in this House taking up* them to say to men who are compelled to be at e distance horn their own homes. in the service of their King and country, you shall be deprived of • your franchise, and of that franchise, which an Englishman values most highly, the right of voting for a representative in Parliament, unless you do what it is well known there is no pas sibity of doing—pay your own espesoes t—He 'bed aowdosed these two cases to thew the diffi ovaltisa to he not only numerous, but highly intr. !ea*. lid Portant ; and he did so, in order thit . the Stomudik Gentleman himself might turn them in his mild, and to prepare other Hon. Mem- bus else to weigh well circumstances of such mo mime, that they willight he hear prepared to obviate sods objedienit ea Sight Irma/tar be offered on these and smog oiler points, in which it would be orsecoesery to easos with the impost caution. ....& se what had hides ham the Hon. Gen-, dem respelling the qoalibadeas of eati e ree, osio r i te SOW a year for comities, mid 3001. be differed with him also es that head. -lb sew 100 years since they were Bud, and the depradatios of away was sot so great die sells of hese sad the puss time, as reign a Heart VI. to the resist time ; yet It 1101 , sodi ss se Induce him usher to wish those quaMIW I doss of the candidates shook be lowered, than that, the freeholders should be raised, if it were thoeght seceesery to pat thew more on an equality. That the added should remain in doubt, he thought would be irresg, but it would require care and intim; in the proceeding. Let things be settled as dearly as may be, but without disfranchising, as far 0 it is possible to avoid it, and the Bill should have his coccurrence. Mr. TIERNEY said, the Bill was meant to apply generally ; and that ao Committee should hence teeth have reason to doubt. All he was desirous of was, not to entangle the present Bill, but to leave it clear and plain, and that the voter should vote at his ern exence. Mr. LEE agreed with the Right Hon. Secretary as to the difficulties being by no means light. If you make it impossible for a man to give his vote, it is the same as disfranchising him ; and men act ing in the army and militia, would be clearly is this predicament. it would be necessary to guard against that. As to the plan of the poll being taken in several parts of the county, he approvzd it ; and if the Bill was guarded against too great in fringements, it should have his support. Sir H. BUXTON said, there was one argument of the Honourable Gentleman, who made the Mo. tion, which he could not agree to. He said, the right of voting was given to a man for his own be nefit ; and that lie used it for his own benefit ; he had always understood the right to be given to him to be used for the benefit of the public as well as for his own. The Question was then put, and leave given to bring in the Bill. AFFAIRS OF INDIA. Mr. JOHNSTONE disclaimed any wish to in crease the number of Papers already before the House, on the subject of Indian affairs, but he thought he could not discharge his duty to the pub lic, it he did not call for two letters from the Mar quis Cornwallis to the Court of Diredors, ants one from Sir G. Barlow, relative to the subjedt of the late Mahratta war. Before he entered on the sub jed, he was desirous to observe, that he had no con reaion whatever with the Marquis Wellesley ; . • " • • .' Wei tsii 'lire hr kern which, and 'weer saw s . 4.ll.lllP penal:pa two pollee azikeinni, He admitted, that he • &et aFigaiided the nasesuret of that Noble Lords admtnlstration, . but said, that he bad changed his opiniee, c alm* he saw him koldiog the Princes of India in chaint, under the pretext of residents at their Courts. pd putting them into the same skim ' tioa in which Bararii and Wirtemberg were now r placid in by the Emperor of the French ; and when he saw some of these Princes, and amongst them the Nabob of the Carnatic, deposed and 1' the pre• text of a treason said to have been toltunitted al -1 most in the presence of Lord Welleslei. Be Isitheil it, however, to be understood, that he was no party to the design df making that Noble Lord a delin quent, and bringing him to a: trial; for, he con sidered him to have been ebieliy i influenced, not by criminal motives, but by amMtion, and an ardour for the service of his employeri, and the extension of the power of the Compahy., He said, his views were by no means personal, but to measures distinet from the merits or demerits of that Nobleman. The chief difference of opinion preiailing in that House, appearedsto him to arise, not so mush from the real, as the vespeftive state of India. When a Noble Lord (Castlereagh) last gave a flattering representa tion of the situation of the Company affairs, be did it on the suppositios of a peace both in India and Is gorope ; but it to happened, that, at that very mown, there was a war going on in that count try, and, in a month after, the war recommenced also in Europe. The conseqaeiice of that was, that,' instead of the diminution of the debt, which was pro mised. the Government of India was five months in arrears ; and Lord Cornwallis, after being obliged. to appropriate for its service the treasure which was destined for the China investment, found himself still unable to discharge the arrears of a body of subsidiary cavalry, which, he said, he would rather have seen in the service of the enemy, than in our's. He again repeated, that his motion had no reference to d dle Marquis of Wellesley himself,but to the system that was then pursued, and which was said to have had the approbation of the secret committee of the Directors. The splendid fabric of Indian prosperity was built upon eight treaties which that Noble Lord concluded with the native Princes ; to shew the bad raft of which, he should first move fat' a copy of the letter sent from the Marquis Cornwallis to Lord Lake, upon that subjed. One of these treaties was with the Rajah of Bhurtpore. the &eft of which was, an almost immediase war, and an at. tack upon his principal fortress, in which the Eng lish army lost upwards of 5000 men. The neat treaty was that made with Sciudia, on the 30th of December, 1805 ,by which the latter made a con siderable surrender of territory ; and, it was stipu lated. on our part. that the Princes in our alliance, should be exempted from his power, but that this exemption should not be extended to those Princes, the revenues of whose territories were colleted by the agents of Scindia. A war, how ever, soon broke out; and after General Lake had defeated Seindia, he entered the territory of the Rajah of Goad, and made a treaty, by which the Company was to protect him against Scindia, al though the revenues of Goad were collated by Scindia's agents and although this transaction was only thirty slays after we had signed our treaty with the latter Prince. This it was that gave rise to the present war ; for Scindia justly contended, that his offioers collected the revenues of Goad, and he was in possession of the forts of that country. He even remonstrated with Colooel Malcolm respelling the treaty, at the time, and received assurances, that it should -not affect Was. The Marquis Cornwallik on his arrival in India, gave op this treaty with the v ib Of Onlid ; on the ground, that he was an tat Ertss base a treaty with, and that the treaty • seas eve to the interests of the Com- PI • was even ready to make the. Rajah of urtpdre, as well as the rest, pecuniary compen sation, in order to get rid of all these injurious trea ties. The treaty with Bhurtpore vas produatiee of the slaughon of our troops; mid that with Scindia was no sooner made than broken. It was, there fore, in his opinion, a national objet to adopt some decided declaration of the determination of the House to adopt the ancient policy of not extending our domieiions in India. As Sir George Barlow had been, by the present Ministers, appointed suc cessor to the Marquis Cornwallis, and as he ex pres.-ed a resolution to follow the measures adopt ed by the Noble Marquis, he hoped His Majesty's Ministers would give the public an assurance of their determination to persevere in that system ; and also give every information that may be thought ne cessary. He then moved," that there be laid before the House copies of three letters from the Marquis Cornwallis to the Court of Direftors, dated the Ist of August, 1805." Mr. FOX said, he saw little or no objeilion to the produdion of the papers, although he could not help observing, that the Hon. Gentleman had not made out any sufficient reason, either for the ne cessity or even the pecipeivey e 4 doing se.. Deere the Hon. Gentleman laid a ground for any sus picion of His Majesty's present Ministers, he might, in fairness. have waited to see whether they still ad hered to the former resolutions of the House. Fur his part, he did most steadily adhere to them. He himself either moved, or seconded these resolutions, when brought forward 28 years ago; and though he took shame to himself, for net since attending to the concerns of India, as much as other Gentlemen, yet every thing which he since heard, or knew upon that subjeft, only tended to confirm his former opinions. The extension of dominion was certainly against the letter and spirit of the resolutions alluded to ; but this was not the time for the discussion of that question. He hoped and trusted, that there was no ground to think, that the ancient system was not that of the Court of Diredors now ; and he was convinced it was the system of the present Board of Controul. This subjet had, in his mind, bees better reserved till the India Budget, which was connefted with it, should be brought forward ; and though he did not mean to objcft to the mo tion, he must confess that he did not see any ne cesssity for it at this moment, nor any ground for this over anxiety and suspicion. If there ever were a time the public may have a confident expeftation, and even a certainty of the ancient system being pursued, it was undoubtedly at present. when the Board of Controul and the Board of Diretiors united in a determination to persevere in the mea sures adopted by the Board of Dire tors, and to tt;• . ' " hbfOree the Parliamentary Resolutions. . Mr. ADDINGTON said, he should follow f'-,• example of the . Right Hon. Gent. who preces.l him, and not objett to the motion, though he vela; not discover that any Parliamentary .ground was made one for it. All the letters demanded, with the exception of the,insundions to Lord Lake, had al ready been read to the Court a Proprietors, and they may, perhaps, as well be laid before the public ; but the Hon. Gent. (Mr. Johnstone) seemed to forget that there was already a notice given by another Member (Mr. Paul) of a motion to-morrow, relat ing to the treaty with the Rajah of Bhui tPote, and the whole of that transadtion. But though he agreed to grant the Papers demanded, he must deny the in. fumes made by Mr. Johnstone ; for the failure of the treaty with the Rajah of Bhartpore was not ti he attributed to the Marquis of Wellesley, hut to the wanton and cistrageous treachery f the Rajah himself. He, as a member of the Beard of Con. trout, begged leave to wine the House, that there wen no disposition ,In them to refuse any Papers demanded µpea lair Parliamentary round. Mr. C. ()RANT observed, that, though the sys. tern purtued by the Marquis Wellesley wits pro. (Wive of /eery splendid inilhary achievement,. it did not produce any benefit to the Company. I'he very best systerf was Bon which the . lew, m tor years since, prescribed for tranqtaillisin4 Ito f.. The Diredtors long wished for it ; and it was on that put pose, that they urged the return r f 1.. rt • Canwellis to that country, which now ~o de... io mourned the loss of him. He was in favour or la': Motion, as the Papers contained the details of Late Cornwallis's system of pacification. Mr. HUDDLISTONE said, that he was der rout of having every Paper produced. the elf •Q of which would he to shew whether the Executive De partment of India were in fault or nott As the ie. tercepted correspondence take!. by ri.• enemy le ss published, he wished the more for a Parl , arneetre declaration of a change of system, were it only to lo the enemy know that we did not persevere in the old system on ,which his hopes were founded. He called upon an Han. Gen;leman (Mr. Francis). t, brO,g forward now t'ae Resolution which he proposed last year, but which the transcendant eloquence of a great man, now no more (Mr. Pitt) pros ii!i '.l upra die House at that time to rtjeCt, as he thought the best effedts would follow the revival of that docent ed principle. Mr. PAUL wished only just to state h i s con. vidlion, that the result Of an inquiry would thee the Rajah of Bburtpore not to be the sort of niece he was represerted to be. On the 9th of Moho, 1803. the Erglislt Government of Indio sigeed a defe:.sive IWeaty with him, its virtue 4114' wl.:ch, he sent twelve squadrons of cavalry as a reinio:eerael to our army. By subsequent events, he was coo. pelted to a resistance ; the consequence of which was, that in the attac Is of h:s fort, we lost 4000 men, amongst whom were 106 officers. Mr. FOX said, he forgot to take notice of what was said, that the appointment of Sir G. Barlow was a proof of the Ministers' determination to pur sue the plans of Lord Cornwallis. He wished Le House to understand, that His Majesty's present Ministers did not appoint that Gentleman witi s particular view to any system, but lest there 'host& be any interreg,nagm in the office of Goiternor. • 1 re al, after the death of the Marquis Cot nwallis.' Lord TSMPLE declared, that he would i.ot hi said a word about the transaaton of Bliettpo were it not for an extra& having been seed from commendatory letter, written by Lord ‘Vei.es at the time that he entertained a tavousable opie: of the Rajah ; but, in a very short time after, &netted a correspondence of his %soh Holka., the purpose of foinattig a projea to drive the Fo fish out of 1 t,dia. kit pledged himself to pro , when the discussion came on. dire& treachery on , • part of that Prince ; and that the ruin of Hoi' was only prevented by his lending hint the cam of the fort of Rhtutpore. at the time that he himself its alliance with the t °moans'. He beg, of the House to suspend, till the docussion cam! their opinion of the con.iu& of the Noble Meg which was approved of by the Secret Committee the Court of Direeors, whose coders he was be to obey. . Mr. GRANT' said a few words in eevlanaties , Mr. FRANCIS observed, that th• D refloo o. now very uuwilling to admit of any a porohafias the condudt of Lord Wellesley, and he a, Mitt ..: , the Court of Direetors was a distindt ho s ) how Secret Committee, for whose poweedings it we answerable. ile assured the House, that this ' the last time he should tr ounle them on the gen, subje& of the puluics of India. lie was now co upon to renew his Motion of last year, which must decline ; for, though he thought it neon` then. he did not think the same now, as t-iic: , je.ty's Ministers were, he hoped, able, as soil willing, to preserve.the peace o f India. he made the Motion last year, he slid not by it any Parliamentary censure or eau of Lord Weilesley. He defied aoy sit or nutty to discover any motive he cruld for any animosity against that Noblenan , . a man. without either wit or ingenuity. perceive many reasons he might have, to ciliate, and even to prote& him. Mr. Dundee his successor, Lord Castlereagh, always, ho. they might have acted, professed publicdyr! Indian affairs ; and lie confessed , that he caw no necessity far an East India secret, or 111 s; '' that could arise from the disclosure of tia i . stances that took place eight months bettor remote a quarter of the world. The only et to this would be, the mischief of disclosing ill of the army, it it were weak ; but if it wetect. the publication of it would rather have a go o4l as it would shew the enemy the little chance be disturbing us in that quarter. With resp lo Barlow, be said he knew little about him. 3 51 ' 4 even heardof him till of late years; but, 35 he . ed the measures of the Mat qui% Well, sley, same zeal that iie seemed now to prof:ssfr t : the Marquis Cornwallis, he MIA own that • man in whom he was not disposed to place .‘‘l degree of confidence ; as to hi s own conneßt India,be would shortly remind the 1100 e,t1 . 4: 1 , 1 sent there by the Legislature ; a nd, in • •c'l,,e'l of his condo& in the Council, suffered • , ;, 4 both in that country and in this. He tht:..; home, after a todious passage of ten 'oli for twenty years suce, supported, thcolP would be well to nuke an depreciation. and to muli as they did by the aft of Het depreciatioo of money, the m shillings voters had been err I'o remedy, however, the might emus to nunit.ters holden, the poll might be tak more plates, in Large and en shoe day, and those freehol • was most convenient or nes Ilifa:to the exp-mtes of the poll is to be held, Win Isairely ',shag to these Caldiatta. If a MOO Wee 1 siseit in his own besisse, "sipir. duo if Is great 'a e be eel* ate want to oil a Us of is his owa mos a Con. A sea bad exposers iltess Tomos to son ebeesad from Iblasse to Ulnae's, be side fel is dee seebil,i k Ist lab sieve don Sas eineselee. ia WO if lb of die meson e w eal be tabs deems aft swain as 1 coon delleise i sad see a seer see. okbar - s dose as doe wrs Alt sad essiad aims a asibise sr lieseriss! India ; }or rip aria 1 Lis thous for t to a votivi i niNel w as fc a lail they font to ss now ness with utile sari Si tray " r vitt was that eve retu him of i be 4 •oo Gni of and fin wh 1 on H, of ea CO Sc 711 P a P • 1 I a I 1 7 . r