The Press.
London, England, 1853-05-28 00:00:00

PM

MAY 28, 1853.

Lion that " some admixture of Indian practical!
knowledge might be of great use." In place of
the present Court of Proprietors Mr. Campbell
proposes to substitute a " Court of Experts," to
consist of " all who atre, or have been, in at
respectable position in India." " I would make
the qualification as wide as possible." This is
surely at somewhat rash proposal, when we
remember that this same " Court of Experts"
would have to elect a large number of
" senators." Why, the humiliating process,
as it has been called, of securing IL seat in
the present direction, so much animadverted
upon by some of our contemponnies, would be
centupled : at candidate would have to eat
as much dirt, and perhaps even spend as much
money, as though he were trying to attain the
dignity of representing lambed' or Canter-
bury. The election by the Court of Proprie-
tors may be bad enough, but the Court of
Experts will never do. The author concludes
his chapter on the home Government with
some remarks on the distribution of patron-
age, and justly condemns any sale of appoint-
ments, a plan which has been lately proposed
by some theoretical reformers. With regard
to selling civil appointments he says most truly
and foreibly, that " the appointments should
no more be sold than English judgeships."
Under the head of " The Indian Government"
Mr. Campbell insists much on the necessity of
one central Goventntent, and on the aulvantage
of conducting such Government in the name
of the Crown. The project of establishing a
centnd administrative power was proposed and
enacted in 1833, but has not been carried out
in practice. We think that the adoption of
the regal authority by name is immaterial, but
that it is to the last degree important to enforce
the design of 1833, so far as regards the
centralisation of power. It was as follows
4' First, to vest a complete central adminis-
trative power in at supreme Government,
and thus to secure at uniform and effi-
cient administration throughout India. Se-
eond, to secure to the central tiovennuent
complete a control over at management of the
imperial finatnees as should ensure theirhealthy
condition, and prevent one Government from
spending what another saved." Whilst on the
subject of the alterations in 1533, Air. Camp-
bell takes the opportunity of remarking severely
upon that leviathan of Whig jobs, the Indiana
Law Commission, prefacing 'them with the
pithy observation that " the legislative failure
"is the most complete of all." We are aware
that much hats been said in the defence of the
Commission and the Commissioners, but we
think that Mr. Priusep has fairly summed up
in the following words :
The. Law Commission and Legislative Council, pro-
vided for India in 1833, have primed themselves hitherto
quite incapable of dealing with these difficulties. The
twenty yens of their experinwntalb•gislation has left the
work of codification, for the establishment of one simple
mad uniform eourse of prveibire, WOINV than invomplete—
not even attAnupted. The advovates the AM el 1111 l 1414.
14011 Ilrelart, that they haul not fair play, because the legis-
lative Council and the Government refused implicitly to
follow their suggestions, which were shalwil orilinarilY
on
the extreme principles of :Jeremy Bentham. lint these
lawyers were not sent out to be ilecenivirs to override the
Government; the hope was, that (lacy would assist the
authorities in India in accomplishing a work avowedly
desired by all. If they became the partisans of opiniurts
opposed to those of Government, or of any extreme opinions,
that circumstance alone was sure to Is tidal to the com-
pletion of the work, and an expedient liable to such an nevi-
dent was of very doubtful wimtam.*
No doubt the Indian Law Commission was
excellent in theory ; no doubt also that the
commissioners have collected and published a
vast hotly of most valuable information, but it
is undigested and unarranged ; it is scattered
through thousands of pages of blue-hooks, and
moreover might have been obtained gratis. The
result of their labours. so far as legislation is
concerned, is ail. The cost of the Law
Commission may be reckoned by hun-
dreds of thousands of sterling money the
tangible benefits arising from its institution
might be written on at sheet of foolscap. Yet
Mr. Cameron tells us of the grand improve-
ments that are to come to pass, and what that
ill-used body, the Law Commission and the
Legislative Members of Council, mean to d 0,4. as
thought the experiment were recent and pro.

• The India Question in lead. Hy lieury T. Priusep., Esq.
be°. Loudon, 1e53, Allen. 1). 54.
+An Address to Paritiunent on the Duties of Great itritaiu to
By C. Hay Cam:o. t3vv. Loudvu, Lougiums.

THE PRESS.

milting, instead of being at titilttre of twenty
years' standing. which hats involved the expen-
diture of upwards of half a million.
We must piss on to our atuthos system of
supreme government in India. Ilire is at stilll-
mury of his Out :
The Supreme Government to vonsist of the Governor.
Generul cull the following respotthible inlvisertt:—
Minister of ibolitiet4l atlratif, .. .. I to lbe members Of a 4•01 -
Miniater of the interior . • .. i wit tee et public attiirs.
Minister of jostiet., to lie ‘ive•iiresidetit of a eolaiaitt,•4. orills,tiee.
MiiliSter of agrioisot atttitiN • • . • I to be members ..f a Volll-
M illiSter of tete . iota li ttttt ice • . I wittl.4. of reaouree,...
Milikter of military mat am al Adair% I to be w...eialw aarra of a COM.
The Couituitatter•iii-i'lliet. • .1 oTheio I wilt. ot .
The govertior, deloity • 11. ItvoteloOtt•gotcrilor• of the place where
the Supreme tote • ent may mooluble.
The *bow io form the eAloittet council of the Governor.

tielieral.
'lwo law eololaissioner4 50t...0101M0 I.• Ow minister of Josii....,
ow 01. be itivoitik,r4.4 tile . tt.•.• of just 1,•,..
Four tvintnitnws (of public affairs jilstiee, resotirecs,
and War) to be formed. each couttiotaA of the I ioveritur-
I icileral and ii winbc Es 11.•sOititeal also e ; alid t Ile l ;to ericw.
General tatty appoint any local governor a member of any
committee within his terlitories. 'f he committee of justice
to act as :t law commission.
Ile proposes that the Governor-t i eller:it ;mil
Commander-itt42ltief should Ile apt ' ted by
the Senate, and that their appointments should
be confirmed by the l'rown. Ile makes some
just remarks on the actual plan of appointing
to the highest offices in India :
At present the minor goverliorSliiiel of Mittlras tual
Bombay are literally the only ground t-, ttttttttttt to English
and Indian SelNallita ; the I ;over...Mel iclitertil, I .4% ttttt WWII.
ernitt-Chief, and legislative councillors being e\ellisit el%
English: all the rest exelusively Indian. Now, I think
that, if we arc to hate English governors at all, it is of
tin' very highest impolianee that her Majesty's Go% cite
ment should have some men at their c, 1111 l Imo .1.,
know
1.,5.
not only their personal conntlenee, but already
something of lulls and Italian atfairs;—that a new
tiovernor-tieneral should not Deco:wilily commence the
tumptisiti 111 l of the very rust gits of Indian knowledge
et I. his appointment. It should be posNible to setet
it rising item to India in a secondary ptist in the first
instance, where, (wrfoniting a speeial thit, for whieli 111.
has speeial iptalitieations, he might acquire a general
kiloWletlge of the county and this people, Riot of the
general twining of all 41epailinelliS ; alai I also think it but
fair and rtgeolitalile th.tt the best Indian servants should
nut lw excluded by Mbe fl.Olll the Very highest appoint
taunts, and woubl open everything to their honest multi
lion, especially when, by serviee sir reSidelice at %wale,
they beeonw pet-sunnily known to her Majesty's advisers.
I would then arrange that between men rising in Eng
land who hate seen service in India, and well who
have risen in ludic employer' at home, it class of states-
men shiatld Is' irontO.ll, VOilitaloll tea thus MIA ill• r VI litittry
and her great dependeney—a coiniceting link between
them—who would intivmhire lute Eugland some know-
ledge of, and interest in, Indian affairs, and int
110 littlin
swine
English progres4 ; and flint gOVl•EllOrti 141111111 111.
Mir 'Wed frl an this class ; SO that, on tie' OW hood, the
English politicians 144.11 t to liolitt linty pi 0155.104 1.011111/4
g41.1A
ktiOWll.ll.4l. and skill, and, ton tlw other, the hihest
apointments may lw opcit to the best of Hum. Inalisti
serpvants who may migrant European progress on Indian

exps•nslice.
Why, it may be t•otItC1111Cd, should we staid tint
Lord this Or that when such men as Mitleohn,
Butterwt nth Bayley, laphinstone, or Metcalft.,
are available? If in this country the woolsotek
liettomes vanilla, we take the 014'4 Malt intuit
the rankm of the legal profession and give hint
it peentge : the office earries with it the rank—
the tank does not confer the office. is it not
tut anomaly that because a man happens to be
at peer, and perhaps even a statesman, that he
should be appointed to the almost despotic
government of a vast and distant country,
ignorant of its people, history, and restottrees?
IS it not an anomaly that, whilst Sir Edward
Sugden is must judiciously promoted to a el In
net and the Chaurellormhip, Sir Charles Met-
calfe, proposed by the Court of Directors as
Governor-Genentl, and undoubtedly the most
fitting man in the whole world at the time for
the office, 'should be rejected. and bard Auckland
appointed in his stead ? It is true that in that
instance a sort of poetical justice was dealt out
to the man : Sir Charles became Lard Metcalfe ;
but what eould palliate; the injustice to the
country which lost his services, stud received
instead those of Lord Auckland—" a highly"
peresetable but by no means brilliant 1111111,
as Mr. Campbell elsewhen. calls him.*
A very impatant alteration pn•posed bf
y o
ur
ur
author is. the removal if the seat o
Supreme Government from Calcutta: he sup-
ports his views with considerable ingenuity.
and discusses the relative merits of the pre-
sent capit id, of 13onnbay,DAB, Agnt, and Simla,
and concludes in favour of a place that pro-
bably
Mfew of our readers have
spever hearof,
ussoorie. We have not ace to cutter

• Modtru luau, V. IV3.