The Press.
London, England, 1858-08-28 00:00:00

THE PRESS, AUGUST 28, 1858.

of the Company, which deserved censure. This bad
a great effect iu England, and was made the subject
of much comment in the newspapers. The directors
did not seem sensible of this act of insubordination
in their servant. Not only in India, but all over the
world, the proceedings of missionaries should be
watched, or wherever they were, where there was a
different re'igion to their own, there would be war.
He also charged Sir John Lawrence with atrocious
cruelty in suppressing the mutiny in the Puojaub.
He had in his hand a book written by Mr. Frederick
Cooper, magistrate at Umritser, which was written as
a eulogium on Sir John Lawrence and his adminis-
tration, and it contained authentic letters of Sir John
Lawrence and Mr. Montgomery. The first act he
charged him with was that of disarming 35,000
native troops at Lahore, when there was no evidence
that these regiments were about to mutiny—an act
of great oppression, and which was calculated to
cause the strongest feelings of pain and dissatisfac
tion to the men so treated. About the 20th of
May there were disturbances at Peshawur,
and a regiment took to flight. They were pur-
sued ; twelve of the men were hanged and
forty blown from guns—a very severe proceeding,
and not justified by th• circumstances, and which
tended to increase the mutiny. The third event
might be termed the Reign of Terror of Sir John
Lawrence. He then read a letter of his to Mr.
Cooper, congratulating him on his successful efforts
against the 20th Native Infantry, whose fate would
be a warning to other sepoys. He also read a letter
from Mr. Montgomery to Mr. Cooper congratulating
him on his success, and adding that there were regi-
ments at his station which were shaky, and wishing
they would go, as, if they did, not a man of them
would escape. Could any one cheer such a senti-
ment as that? He urged that he had established
charges of disobedience of orders against Sir John
Lawrence, and of cruelty in suppressing the mutiny
in the Puojaub; and he thought that ought to cause
the proprietors to pause and inquire by what means
he had attained the successes for which it was
sought to reward him. He implored the court not
to consent to the proposition made to them. It. was
evident that the Government was colder towards Sir
John Lawrence than the Court of Directors, who
wished to make him Governor• General of India, a
place he hoped he would not obtain. He should
prefer Lord Elphinstone for that post, whose conduct
with regard to' the missionaries he approved. After
stating his approval of the doctrine on this point
laid down by Lord Stanley, he concluded a very
lengthy and impassioned speech, by moving "That
in the absence of official information as to the Punjaub
circular, referred to by Sir George Clerk in his
recently published memorandum, and which, on the
face of it, was an act of disobedience to the orders of
this Company in a matter of most vital importance,
and also in the absence of official information with
respect to the wholesale military executions in the
Punjaub, it is the duty of this court not to seal with
its approbation the conduct of Sir John Lawrence
by assenting to the resolution of the Court of Di-
rictors."

After a protracted discussion, in which Mr. Jones
supported Mr. Crawsbay's motion, and Messrs. Lewin,
Deut. Cooke, Crawford, and Helps defended Sir J.
Lawrence, the original resolution was carried, the
only dissentients being Mr. Crawshay and Mr. Jones.

HER MAJESTY Will hold a Privy Council on T hurs•
day next the 2nd proximo at 04borne. The sum•
monses were issued on Wednesday.
VISCOUNT AND VISCOUNTESS PALMERSTON have
left town for Paris, in which capital the noble
Viscount and Viscountess purpose to make a few
weeks' stay.
.12 RE TURKISH AMBASSADOR bad an interview with
the Earl of Derby on Wednesday at his official resi-
dence in Downing-street.