The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-03-24 00:00:00

a raw the result. it was our ditty to am:Midis whether ,
t- t state of India was nos in consequence of this obedience. I
had a sacred trust tepencel in them to have those facts fairly
.
uneavelled and the truth made known. if when those facts came
scs be fully known it should appear that he had unfortunately
hm! Omer, against toed Amherst unfourded by facts, he
aks he the first iron to -make imette.i to tlint.Nobieman. It was
that feeling that he repressed many things which it was in
power to stet. The Hon. Member then concluded by moring
idit the production of the papers he bad mentioned.
ler floc a trona it said, before the question was put he wished
be make one observation. It had been stated by the Ilor. diem-
bete—but by the indifferevee with which that statement was received
be feared ro credit was given to the fact—that the soppression
4 public opinion in India was in extreme connexion with this
before the Cerro. Gentlemen would remember that during the
siner. onship thorn was a mutiny in Cancan, which broke out into a
ret ew!). and which required four years to put dow.i ; and
`‘e wooled say, that in consequence of the suepresnion of the
puts the very (Reim did not know on the preceding night that any
complaints existed among the men. From the moment that the
Olarqull of Hastings moneyed the censorship them was one con.
&toed stone of tranquillity reigning the me,hout 'nein. Now, to
stow that discontent prevailed among the troops at Harrackpore,
he would state, that more than three weeks before the en otiny broke
• 'MA the men had meetings and discussions among themselves. The
scares this was not cetermunicoted to the Government, was the fear,
Po the pert of those a ho could do it, of being considered implicated
thearelvee r they were thus dimueinagetl from giving information.
.1103 if the press were free these ildiriclusla would have had no ob-
joetioo to make an anonymous communication to the editor of a
paper, and thnn the cireumetance would have been brooght to the
• Paws-IN:4T of the Government and the public. Had the rumours
v.hich were circulated reverting the discontent of the troops
been commm)it,•ted through the public press, the nmtioy wou:d
not hare taken place. All persons acquainted with Calcutta must
ltsow that there was a considerable :rade carried on between it and
litatgoon. Those merchants were better informed of the climate
sad of the winds which prevailed than the officers of the troops
would possibly be. Hal the press been free he had no doubt a her._
seed letters would have been written -to editors, impugning the
wisdom of the Governor ; best had any one ventured to do so at
present, he was himself a living instance of what would have
been the consequence. Rut the feet was, that the information was
mown in Calcutta. Two European regiments were known to be
=ing to Rangoon. wading through water almost in an amphi.
ate, and Helve upon salt provisions. These two battalions
*turned soon after, the one reduced to sixty and the other to eighty
Mao. Under these circumstances he hoped it would be considered
whether it might not he proper that even the censorship should be
attooted instead of the pres Ont pernicious system.
• 31r. TRAWT though it necessary t 3 make an observation or two
with regard to the statement of what had occurred at Canute. It
happened to him tg know shit what the Honourable Member had
looted was rot thcKe et. For he was himself ordered to go there a
few months hefote in consequence of the Government not being sa-
tisfied with the conduct of the Revenue Department. NVith regard
'to persons being discouraged from making information to Govern-
ment, he begged to say he did not conceive that to be the ease.
With respect to the mot•on before the Corn, he did not conceive
the pmdetetion of the papers tee all necessary. He thought it bet-
ter to leave the matter in the hands of the Court of Directors.
There was, however, one point. which he was sorry to be obliged to
wgree with the Hon. Member for Aberdeen ; he meant as to the
entire loss of confidence en the part of the people of I •dia towards
the Governor General. He was or.e of those who on the appoint-
inert of Lord Amherst experienced considerable astonishment.
He had never ureic/stood Lord Amherst to he a man of great
talent, and the duties of a Governor-General required one oho
rouessed the talents of the great man who had just then left that
country. He did not mean to PRY that Lord Amherst could have
Fomented the war; hut he would declare, that in his opinion that
- bleman was quite inromoetent to conduct it, and he should
never be wined until he saw some other person conduct our
affairs in Leila. An impression had been made in that country
which nothing less than such a measure could remove, and
he feared our friends might now be induced to take those liberties
which they would not otherwise have done. He therefore trusted
the Court of Directors would lose no time in relieving us from a
Nate of things which had already operated most pr.:judicially both
- In this country and in India.
• Rir C. FORTIES expressed his concurrence in the sentimeots of
Ills Hon. Priced 1,31 r. Hume), anil was; surprised that his motion
44 toe go to the recal of Lord Amherst forthwith. It appeared to
Inlet thst Lord Amherst was an amiable man ; but it was not an
autiable Ilser. but an able man, that we wanted as Governor.
itrieneral in India. Because he had refused to turn his back to the