The Sun.
London, England, 1824-07-29 00:00:00

INDIA.

te: ISiewsim,AAL,lgn,
II
THE DISPUTE EWEENT TUC AMIE AND THE

BR ITISII.

•
The following particulars respecting the rise
and progress of the quarrel have since come to our knowledge,
and we think we can rely on the authenticity of them :
The dispute is of some standing, the Burmese havingfor
several years made encroachments on the eastern frontier of
Chittagong. They first advanced pretensions to the jungles
frequented by our elephant hunters, which were unquestionably
situated within the British boundaries. They next laid claim
to the island of Shapuree, situated on the extreme point of the
narrow strip of the main land which forms the southern fron-
tier of the Chittagong district, and is separated from it only by
a narrow channel. The main stream of the Md, the acknow-
ledged koundary of the two States, flows between the island
and the eastern or Burmese bank of the river.
In the commencement of 1823, a boat belonging to British
subjects, passing near .Shapuree, was stopped by a party of
Burmese, armed with matchlocks, anti the steersman. was shot
dead on the spot. On this a small guard was sent to take
post on the islani, to prevent further outrage, and to afford
protection to tire peaceable inhabitants of the district.
The Rajah of Arracan demanded, in terms of haughty and
insolent menace, that this post should be withdrawn., The
British Officer, in reply, shewed as well from the position of
the island, as from the records at Calcutta, that Chittagong
had been invariably, comprehended within the limits of the
Bengal Government; and added, that any attempt on the part
of the Burmese to take forcible possession of it, would be re-
garded as an-tiostile aggression. Negotiations ensued, and were
still pend;:ig, when (on the 24th Sept. 1823) a Burmese force of
about 1,000 men, attacked and gained possession of the island,
after 'killing three Sepoys and wounding three others. On the
.11 tot of November, Col. Shaplana, at the head of' a detachment
of the Indian army, recovered possession of ihapuree, and con-
tinued to occupy the island till the 12th of December.—
An epidemic disorder having then made its appearance
amongst the troops, they were withdrawn, and immediately
the Burmese crossed the river with much parade, in four
large boats filled . with armed men, set fire to a hut, and
retired. On the 20th January, 1824, the Burmese authorities
sent an invitation to Mr. Chew, Commander of the Company's
ship Sophia, which was then lying in the river Ileaf, requesting
him to visit them at Mangdoo, a station in the neighbourhood.
Mr. Chew immediately accepted the invitation, and proceeded
to 31angdoo accompanied by Mr. Boyce, who commanded the
row-boats, and eight Lascars. Immediately on their arrival
they were treacherously seized and imprisoned by the directions
'of four Commissioners who had recently arrived from the Court
of Ave for the express purpose of enquiring into the state
of the dispute with the English. When information of this
event reached Bengal, instructions were immediately issued
to the Commander at Chittagong, to address a letter .to the
Rajah of Arracan in the strongest language of remonstrance,
calling upon him in the name of the Governordieneral
in Council to deliver up the officers and men within a
certain period, under pain of the severest vengeance of the
British Power, and stating, that, as the act of treachery and
violence complained of had been committed under the orders
of the Commissioners deputed by the Cour. of Ave, it must be
considered as emanating from the King, and unless it was in-
stantly redressed, the relations of peace between the .two Go-
vernments, already so odiously disturbed by past proceedings,
would be holden to be dissolved, anti war to have commenced.
These transactions sufficiently spewed the- fixed determina-
tion of the Burmese to engage in hostilities with the British ;
and war being inevitable, we-have only to express our hope that
it will be so vigorously prosecuted, es to be brought to a speedy
termination. .

iFor a very interesting account of the Burman Empire, we
refer the public to Mr. WALTER HAMILTON'S elaborate
work, published by Mr. MURRAY, viz. The Asiatic Gazette.)

Letters have been received from Bombay, dated the i2tl of
March, by the ship Hercules. The greatest activity revaik
at Calcutta and Madras; and the whole of the.shipping in the
country trade. were ein
Played to convey the King's and (Arm'
parry's troops on the expedition against the Burmese. Not one
ship remained at Bombay belonging to England. • 'The Ex-
change was at IS. Oti. to Is. the rupee at Aix months. Sir
Edward purnts arrived at Ceylon on the 18th of january• and
nest day was sworn in as Governor, Commander-in-Chief, and
Vice-Admiral of that Settlement. After the ceremony a saluie
of nineteen guns was fired.

To
OS7II PAArpNigTizAzfrEsqam:
aUen.delrcaec.
acre. tart of Stata: !bit:
The undersigned—recently returned from Coloiabis after a'
residence of upwards of six years in that section of Sou*
America--was ,the first that entered the Orinoco with supplied
direct frog Europe. He has traversed the country in' a rerifq
of directions—has lived on terms of the closest intimacy
.WM
all the leading Cliaraetera, and has,-in fact., had better oppOrtu.
nitres than any other foreigner of becoming acquainted with
the real state of thino.
In the course of the late sanguinary conflict, the peoplela
Colombia, have undergone atter nga- perhaps uneSOPPlsii th
,the history of any natinn, and indeed at various periods it
might have been iudtly said, that misery of every.descriptioi
had 'reached its tehine, but undet the cruellest privations the
idea of submitting to the Spaniards never entered the mind,Rf
any one.. The feeling towards their ancient oppressors was,
and is, felt and fixed,
Although the war has occasioned incalculable evils to Colo:P..
' hie, and extensive districts of as fine a portion of the globe *1
the sun ever shone upon, arc reduced comparatively to deserts,
it has produced a most important good by uniting all-partit,s
into one, and has thereby given to the Government a degree of
consolidation superior to that of any other South American
State. Ever since the assembling of the Congress in Angostura
by General Bolivar, in February 1819, the progress has been
uniform., and no change, or even vacillancy, has taken place ie
the Government.
Those absurd notions of Universal Suffrage and
_perfect
equality of political righti, which have given rise to so much
confusion in Europe, are unknown in Colombia; the only, the
universal wish is, independence, with that portion of rational
and practical liberty which the circumstances of the country
can admit of. The peimle exercise none of the attributes of
sovereignty, but in the primaryeleciions, and then those only
possessing a certain property, or exercising certain professions
or employments, without depending on others, either as jour-
neymen or servants, elect In such canton or district, two persons
for four years, who, united in the capital of the pro Vince, form
what is called the Electoral' College, and by it the Members of
the Senate are elected tar eight years, and those of the Cham-
ber of Representatives, or Lower House, for four. The Go-
vernment has that influence which• every well constituted 04-
vernment ought to possess, and in the whole country there
not one single individual of such weight, in any one point of
view, who could, in any wise, endanger the public tranquillity,
were he so disposed.
In Colombia knowledge is advancing with rapid strides—in
several cities, Colleges and Seminaries have lieen established,
public libraries have been opened, and a number of periodicel
papers and writings published not unworthy of the liberty of
the press, and which disseminate instruction and political in-
formation. The undersigned travelled. from Maracaibo to Bo-
gota by land, and, returned from thence to Angostura, throUgh
the interior of the country. In that interesting journey lae
found schools established, not only in every town, but, in
every village, and it was with astonishment and delight ~l
-witnessed the progress made, much certainly owing to the use
tional character, which is mild and docile in the extreme. As
an additional stimulus to improvement, the law of the land
is, that after the year 1840, be who cannot read or writs shall
have no vote in public elections. The eflects of Spanish edu-
cation and prejudices are fast wearing out. The greatest part
of what were formerly the possessions of the Church hat been
applied to the laudable object of supporting schools, and the
undersigned has himself distributed some hundreds of Spanish
New Testaments, which were sought after by all classes with
the greatest avidity. and more especially by the Clergy, many
of whom are liberal and enlightened men. As an instance, the
undersigned, previous to his departure from Bogota, dined with.
a large party at the Vice-President's, Gen. Santander, and'
amongst those present was a Doctor /knel)? a Dignitary of tibt
Church much respected, arid of considerable Influence ; on being
requested by the l'ice-President to give a toast, lie drank," To
the most sacred of all rights, Liberty of Conscience." Many
other Priests were at table, by whom and by all the sentiment:
was hailed with enthusiasm. Protestants can hold any employ
or office, and are eligible to either House of Representativell
without being subject to any species of test whatever.
and 7`,l,iferozni at tietravrlrye oaf.
cbviilltiiittilywesioptaio.
expeditious xsC: Colombia are
!al ainrcdeh
merable nasnioalibtlielerivers intersect the country in every direction,
ccimial ulnae; innue
gtoralikigtrti)efutlitluer
eexacnlud
scitz
imneivrente;gethoef
itthiti;
of the produce of the interior to the coast; steam-boats are as-
i'lftenbrs!°iisgsltnuePl'll;eitsthrleleiAle'udis: cannot eap
fail conveyancegiving
meanson the
ofmtadelkl Orinoco,etatlai id
communication i ve
srpuencineinsgoifnntoavitiga. navigation
is
free, anti easy to within a few leagues of Bogota; and by the
Apure, the Guanare, the Santo Domingo, the Portuegueza,
the Arauca, the Siutuuco, and fifty others, there is access to the
greatest part of the provirice of Caracas, and to every corner of
the extensive and fertile provinces of Varinus and Cassinare.
A plan is now before Congress for opening communication be-
twixt the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, and from surveys eq..
tually made, it is found to be not only practicable, but 'even
easy in no less than four different points. • •
Colombia possesses, perhaps, greater mineral riches than any
other district of the New World ; mines of precious metals
abound in almost every mountainous district, which, from sur-
veys made under the Spanish regime, anti again lately, and
which the undersigned has seen, require but little capital or
labour to bring into complete operation.
The fertility of the soil is incredible ; and such is the titre-
ordinary variety of climate and locality, that frequently,, within
1 a short distance, are seen fields of wheat or other grain, 'and
luxuriant plantations of cane, cocoa, coffee, or indigo.'
The undersigned had, for near twelve months, a seat 'at the
Board of Liquidation in Bogota, and he can positively' affiho,
that previous to the negociatian of the hate Loan, the "whole
foreign debt of the Republic did not exceed thirteen millions
of dollars, including Mr. Zees financial operationi, and e‘fr y
thing else. With the present Loan, all the anterior debfivill
be whatever Is required tbr the security of "the
countryea° will be provided, and after retaining on this Side an
adequate sum to pay the interest for a length of time, Snide,
dent capital will be left wherewithal to fortient various'srairets
of national wealth. et
'The Estanco, or Monopoly of tobacco-4 Species of Isit to
which the people are accustomed, and for the substittitfo6 of
which, in lieu of direct contributions, many petitions ' we're pre-
sented to Congress—will now, that the Government ran maize
the necessary advances to the cultivators, produce 'et least ten
millions of dollars annually. The revenue ttrisinerfrortiVities
is rapidly increasing, anti will naturally continue to tie` s& as
commerce prospers. The port of Guayaquil In the tratititproe'
duced alone last year 1,200,000 dollars. • • -
te
A short repose, and the means adopted and adoreenk" wtil
not only remove all the dreadful effect* of the wet, fairreni r
Colombia one of the most prosperous countries on twee
coloruleie she will be everylin
atilatruggie ;a, ex.
u
only succours received during the even
mereums
elusively from this country, and its
, anyhat ini4; the
beTwhiesifieticel,inogngin nfaavtiontglr i°11;
•C'Plarretatfrnoirilitlihne tiro tvglettlringl
.t.L4-Lertelltdef
sight into the nature and interest ft-. healing to fear that
friendly &gill of Britain,
with her countenance and prot#oPnl ew it wo F.
ila
etate of
Britainuanndi
unite
tiebcsni-
ttryvararrtrt:eadntrbeftinligQwtillicaltiLitht:titritllir.
can
di
called an Irigks.
being best calculatet!
dent
rvi pain.
sed
, that
ist
bitßanritstishhalvne;i4:::: to Colombia, in the actual
ni)
uthnwl!hirlsBtel IP
art
nil it
e as:o iPiltletn; lit:tag;bre:el 'oeti enielrillot 14. every
Irhlsetil:sgobrdttleicitit'taCine:nti ile'le:inrluoibeinta:stilrfl),l,YlLrtvi
othl neoe“Tren. ce:ac:l i'te,
..-„ ,A,F49g in,
C
will have_., when the recognition by Great
without a the sod basis
troStaghol;iinnse States
reciprocityt
pitihip,:inraiegei there arc closestms .of the
interests.rt
So
Itl,yYjrall etPo"Yoc
actr°,leyviitaftakcirtxriibinvlelce
rusAUo,iitavotkt htifteatieta.en market
iaftratitteeliueß4::lbitt.oliitt,
tr'n°
t the tatCloni
tu;
bpiellitis,.
m cepa firo-
but. in
l
it
dueling, in the greatest abundance,ilt sh
tallanielew?,u::l"7llaardaiefcrc :Illirsintitthilw-ht:lnPr"inerier°utd,eti:liutl737lhttjl:ll.47BliturAaCAll7rlL4:4ll)7N°
all the power of Great Britain,uj'q"" C°ll°"`b3"B 'mPwv°
surmount. nt.

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