The Sun.
London, England, 1841-11-05 00:00:00

INDIA.

passing events have not been.wittiOut
I have no very great events to tell you of this month.
Nevertheless, the
interest.. First in prominence, I think; lis the, uppr6ach
of the Burmese Monarch to Rangoon.:. Government .1
has made some preparations for any. hostility,:on the .
part of Tharawaddie by the despatch of the, Childers
to Moulmein, and the authorities there, have pre-
; have been despatched from
ith heavy guns.. This by
Bing,if mayhey be hos-
tile—appearances check
pared three gun-boats, and are practising ' them in
the requisite opeiations against an enemy. . Some
lairNtvilrle Madras,rys service,
ttnevnide, e ,
C sla ro stores,nultet
datk
is preparing two steamers for
w c.
which,
Burmese ifobserved,
tile—appearances are at least so. His approach to the ,f
waythe intentions o f Pre
coast with an army of 70,000 choice troops, the for-
tification of Rangoon, erection of batteries at: Marta-
para
otfiotnh,e
Marta-
hun, opposite to Moulmein, where also the jungle was
being cleared away and stockades:erected,..are suspicious
circumstances, to say the least of them, and, demand
precaution ; and the withdrawal of a regiment from
Moulmein, may have given him courage to' commence
hostilities. There is a strong report at Rangoon and
other places, that this movement has been the result of
an application from the Emperor of China ; nor is it, per-
haps, improbable. Yet one would hardly think that
Tharawaddie can have forgotten the last war, where our
knowledge was incomplete, and yet he received so severe
a lesson. He can little estimate the power of steamers
upon the great rivers, or the facilities our occupation of
Assam, &c., have given us for pouring troops directly
upon his capital ; and the war, if. there, is, to be one,
would soon be put an end to by taking, possession of it,
and cutting off his Majesty's retreat. A dittle time will
relieve us from our present anxiety. upon .this subject ;
and though a Burmese war would not be .an agreeable
service; or at all desired by, the a ovevinpmt in
'its
pre-
sent financial difficulties, yet the emergency would be
met, and the service performed, in that. resolute spirit
which is never found wanting at need. •
'Since the engagement with Akhtar Khan in the lig-
mund, there has . been another affair with the Ghilzies,
in which . they suffered severely. There were two en-
gagements, both „miry affairs ;n which the sth,Beiwal
Cavalry, and one of the local Rissallas behaved exceed-
iacrly6 well. : The enemy mustered about 2,000 horse and
foot, tad left 300 dead .ou the field, which • proves that

swords must have been pretty active, and used }with
gallantry. This will help to do away with the slur
which the conduct of the Second cast on the Bengal
cavalry in general, and there has been a good deal
of local discussion, to prove that it was good for
little, and never had done much. I hope, however,
there is no foundation for such a remark, and that the
present proof which has been given of ability to face a
hardy enemy in a hand to hand fight will be fbl-
lowed up by other good deeds, when necessary.
Since this last engagement there is a report at
Bombay of another affair with Akhtar Khan, somewhere
near Ghirish, on a larger scale than usual, for a
thousand dead are reported to have been left on the
field. The action is said to have taken place on the 16th
or 17th of August, but there is nothing certain known as
yet. A few, days will most likely bring the news, if it is
true. Certain it is, that Candahar has been very un-
settled for a •long time, and the emissaries of Persia,
through Ramran Schach, very active. If, therefore, the
Candahar men, the Ghilzies, and Akhtar Khan should
have united, as might have been effected, it is not im-
probable that such an event has happened, as is reported,
and, if true, so severe adefeat ought to have a good ex-
ample. One can only lament, without power of remedy
now, the unfortunate cause of the Ghilzie outbreak; and
Lieutenant 'Vila's feelings upon the subject can be any-
thing but bearable. He has been withdrawn from poli-
tical employ, and his conduct and its consequence will
be a lesson, it is hoped, not only to the Government to
direct their choice of agents, but in the agents also to
keep their tempers within bounds.
Sir W. Macnaghten is removed to Bombay, I see, and
all point to Barnes as his most proper successor. Cer-
tainly, from reputation and local knolledge, he is
almost the only man that could be fixed on. May we
hope that the universal hush-money system of his pre-
decessor may ,be abandoned ; and if We are, or rather
Shah Soojah, to have rebellious subjects, that British
money may not be squandered on them any longer, but
that they may be well trounced if they rebel ?
It has been stated on good authority in the northern
papers, that Shere Sing has given up Peshawa to Shah
Soojah, who has made it over to us. Any equivalent
for this ces.i,Ll is not apparent, but it may be the
recognition of Shere Singh as ruler of the Sikhs, which
has not yet been made—a circumstance which
Shere Singh would give a long price, it is be-
lieved, to bring about. Report, however, says that
Lord Auckland is not, and will not, be satisfied with
Peshawa only, but will insist on Shere -Singh receiving
a subsidiary force, and becoming, in fact, one of the
same class of independent potentates as the Nizam, -and
his brother Sovereigns of India. If this can be brought
about peaceably, it will be a very able political stroke,
and will earn his Lordship more time than the Affghan
war as it stands at present. With Peshawa and a Sikh
subsidiary force, we should have nothing to fear in the
present extension of our frontier, as a communication
would be insured with our frontier posts. We have news
from the north of Peshawa and Cashmere of an extraor-
dinary character, which may end in more than at pre-
sent appears to us. A body of Sikhs, horse and foot,
have penetrated into Thibet through one of the passes,
and by all accounts are driving all before them in the
shape or Thibetian soldiery they meet with, their num-
bers being swelled from the rear as the news of their
success is known. They were travelling eastward, in
the direction of the Mansawoara Lake, and had cer-
tainly defeated the Thibet soldiery in several engage-
ments with no loss or next to none.

At home all is quiet, except in the south-western part
of the Nizam's territories, where, and in the districts of
the Company bordering on them, there are.threatenings
of disturbances from Arabs, 2,000 of whom were at one
time said to be collected for the purpose of releasing
their countrymen captured at Badamee, and of plunder
also. I attracted some notice to the Arabs at Hyderabad
last month, and pray of you to remark upon their exist-
ence there. I know not why they should be tolerated
for a moment. What possible need the Nizam's Go-•
vernment or his nobles can have'for them I know not.
They are a dangerous, oppressive body, linked together
by their isolation and ties as countrymen ; and they
should not be allowed to remain by the British Govern-
ment, against which at any time they are ready and will-
ing to be hostile. If the Nizam's Government needed them
for the purposes of repelling invasion, or for repressing in-
ternal insurrection, it would have a pretence for retaining
them ; but it has not even these. From without there is
no fear ; within, the regular troops and the subsidiary
force are ample for all emergencies—nay, the first of
self. The truth is, the Arabs are useful in collecting
the revenue by force ; they are savage and unscrupulous,
and as it is currently said one Arab is more feared than
a dozen men of the country, if this dread was used in
moderation it would be well enough, but who can sup-
pose it is ? and certainly no one who has had experience
will say that it is. The Bombay Government are a good
deal to blame in allowing the Arabs to land and pass
inwards. On.several occasions, if I mistake not, the re-
sident at Hyderabad, as nearly as 1828-29 (when. there
were hardly 5,000 Arabs in the service of the State and
its dependents), and since then, requested the Bombay
Government not to grant passports to the bodies of
Arabs. The request of the British Government seems to
have been utterly disregarded, for there is rio doubt
that there are from 12,000 to 15,000 Arabs in the
Nizam's dominions. Non-interference is all very
well in internal Government, but there should be no
hesitation to interfere in a case like this, for you
may depend on it, sooner or later, the Arabs will come
to 13.lows.with the British troops, and many a brave fel-
low's life will be lost. Better far to discharge them in
bodies, march them without their arms to Bombay, give
them their arms when they are embarked, and prohibit
I their return. lam not certain that this could be done

without some bloodshed, but better little than much ;
and this measure has been so long neglected by 'the Go-
vernment here, though they are aware of its import-
ance, that it is absolutely necessary the Government at
home should interfere. The dismissal of the Arabs
would make the Nizam's Government much more just
towards its people ; it could obtain plenty of good sol-:
diers for all just purposes in its own territories, and if
needful the regular troops might be augmented. Any-
thing is better than the present system, which cannot be
excused or defended.
There are two excellent papers in a Calcutta journal
upon the outlay of Government in roads, bridges, and
canals. It was the unceasing cry of Mr. Thompson in
his lectures, that the• Government had done nothing in'
these respects ; that the roads and canals of the former
Governments were neglected and in ruins, and that not
a rupee 'was allOwea 'tor 'their repair or reconstruction.
The publication of the report of the board of wwks
gives the. truth ;:.,and though it is shabby enough, yet
it is something. . In, 20 years of the expenditure of this
department in Bengal alone, we find one million and a
half sterling (150 laci), which is 7i let a-year, or one
per cent. of the land revenue. Many of the outlays re-
turn so large a profit to Government that it is surprising
that more is not undertaken. I allude to the sub-
ject of canals, in which for the last year 237,813
rupees have been expended. The returns from these
works are 469,197 rupees, thus giving a clear profit of
211,384 rupees, or in round numbers 21,0001., within
the year. The grand opposer of all improvements in
roads, canals, and other great public works, is, it' aP.-
pears, the Home Government, many works of absolute
importance having been negatived by them, and others
extorted with difficulty. Such splendid profits as the
canals' for irrigation afford ought, however, to make
them 'less chary of outlay, even if the higher considera-
tion of the well-being of the country has no effect, and
it lies with you to administer such reproof to the autho-
rities with you as the case so urgently demands.
80,000!. per annum is a miserable allowance from the
Government; one per cent. of the land revenues, ex-
pended in roads, bridges, canals, embankments, andedu-
cation, should make them ashamed of that philanthropy
for which they demand the admiration of the world.
Of the Bombay and Madras Presidencies in this re•
speet no information is afforded ; indeed, they are fur
behind Calcutta in the openness of their administration ;
fur when in Bengal there are reports printed of the ope-
rations of the Board of Works, the police, education,
and other departments, no information can be obtained
on any point in either of the others. This should be
amended : so long as things are hidden it is certain
there is much—very much—to be ashamed of. A healthy
and honest Government never need or would be ashamed
to make its acts and its condition known.
I have said that it will bo advisable to move troops
from New South Wales to China, and I say so because
no more troops can be spared from here. I told you that
'Work was preparing for us in 13tirmah, and that I was
right now appears from the various movements which
:,have taken place. The Proserpine and Ganges, armed
steamers, have been moved down} from here to Moul-
mein, which is threatened by the Burmese movements.
The gun-boats there have been put into complete re-
pair:" Her Majesty's ship Childers is also there. About
100 artillerymen more have been sent from Madras, and
her Majesty's 57th regiment, now stationed there, have
Been directed to hold themselves in readiness, in case
their services should be suddenly required in that direc-
t*. There is little, if any, doubt that the Burmese
,court has been influenced by representations from that
of China.
Captain Bogle, our Commissioner at Arracan, has just
'arrived, and has been in close communication with the
Government, and I have reason to know that it is upon
matters relative to the Burmah movements in his vicinity,
althoUgh I cannot learn their nature.
In the course of a day or two the Commander-in-
Chief and his staff leave for Ferozepore, where a force
of about 7,000 men is assembled, . and whither all
officers, absent on leave from the regiments of which it
is composed, are ordered to join by the 15th of Novem-
ber. This gathering on the frontier of the Punjaub
looks hostile, especially when the present unsettled state
of that country is' considered; but there can ice nothing
but surmises afloat upon the subject at present.
Of commercial news I have but little to communicate.
The indigo season is concluded, and the out-turn is va-
riously estimated at from 125,000 to 140,000 maunds,
but both of these are planters' calculations, whose interest
it is to keep butow the mark. It will certainly amount
to the largest quantity above named, and will probably
approach to 145,000 maunds; 120,000 from Bengal and
Behar, and 25,000 from Benares and the Dooab. Sugar
is rather looking up, in consequence of the near approach
of the shipping season, and the same observation applies
to raw silk.
The following ships have arrivedfmnroia.....r
mEn,gslawnaduaonwd,
Scotland during the last month :_ze
Kilblain, Maria, Eleanor Lancaster, Margaret COrmej,
Otterspool, Iris, Druid, Larkins, Justiva, Robert ma::
thews Gleniera, Wild Irish Girl, . Thomas Parkins,
Manilla, Winchester, John Mitchell, John Graham, En-
chantress, and the Cambria.
The following have sailed for England,
liam Gales, Blackness, Brothers,, Royal;Albert, Santor,
Arcturus, Superb,. Amelia, llindoostan, Patriot King,
Leonard Dobbin, Ada ms, Harvest Home, Samson, Hot-
spur, Ricardo, John Bull, Margaret, Mermaid, John
Knox, the Marchioness Breadalbane, and the Alderman
Thompson.
The. express portion of the mail, which left England
on the. 4th of August; arrived here on the 18th inst,