The Sun.
London, England, 1841-09-24 00:00:00

i Learned Counsel for the respondents said, " Where are these
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us. e, ting ::.:,:, .; nitickny 1,,r the other side, toe couto rel.. i•• -
duce them ; they could not show that any conqueror had este.-
blished the immolation of women, and therefore, of course,
they took nothing by their motion; de non appurentibus et de
non existentibus eadem est ratio. The same argument was
used by Dr. Johnson with respect to the authenticity of the
poems of Ossian. Johnson said where are the originals ?
nut his opponent had none to give,e and there was
an end of the controversy. In like manner he asked
Lord Auckland to procure his authority The first Charter of
Elizabeth contained no saving clause in favour of idolatry—
subsequent Charters preserved the same silence. The Charter
of William 111. not only did not premote it, but it bound the
Company to use means to teach the native the Christian re-
ligion. The Company were, therefore, pledged to do this in-
stead of the other thing. He (the Hon Proprietor) had la-
boured long to see whether anything could be made of the ar.
gument of treaties, but he found nothing of the kind. He had
examined the original treaty of Orissa, but it contained no
stipulation whatever for the support of heathenism, nor could
he find any such stipulation in any treaty from that one to the
final partition treaty of 1804. If not supported by us, this abomi-
nable system of idolatry would drop of itself. Gentlemen
knew that, but for our support, it would be all at an end. On
this subject he was struck with a remark of Mr. Grant's, in his
invaluable work, published by the House of commons, with-
out reading which no Hon. Member should legislate for India.
He asked " Are we bound for ever to preserve all
the enormities of the Hindoo system 7—to be the
guardians of every monstrous principle and ' practice
it contains ? Are we pledged to support it for all
generations, by allying the Government and the whole army
with the miseries which ignorance has so long entailed on the
whole human race ? Is this the part a humane and enlightened
people are engaged to act towards their subjects? Shall we
become passive spectators of such wickedness?" " Yes" said
Lord Auckland, "it they pay 6.0001. a-year for it." If this
were the case, they were doing themselves the greatest possible
injustice. 'Of what use were their ecclesiastical and
other religious establishments? His Lordship had been
grossly deceived. Christianity permitted nothing but neutrality
towaras existing evils till the grace of God should institute a
better state of things. If such doctrines could be established,
from that moment they would depart from their own faith.
Such powers were not only not conferred upon our rulers, but
no one of them before had ever attempted to exercise it. The
great men whose statues were above their heads, were quite in-
capable of such things. his attention was first called to this
subject by a sermon he beard delivered by Dr. Buchanan, then
just returned from India. He narrated some of the atrocities
of the system, and he said it was a question at Ca'cutta who
was to blame. Some said the Court of Directors of the East
India Company; bur his answer was, that they were not to blame,
they were the executive Government; it was the Court of Proprie-
tors who were to blame. He said the sin lay at their door, and
they must settle it with their consciences, if they had any. He
(the Hon. Proprietor) then said to himself, " Am I a Pro.
prietor, and know nothing of this ?" And he thereupon went
to Andrew Jackson, their great orator, and said to him, " Here
is a statament of things given upon undoubted evidence."
" Weil," he said, " what then ?" He replied that he wanted
some one who had the ear of the Court, and who was not only
a great orator, but a shining character (for he had four stars)
to broach the matter. Mr. Jackson said he should lose, and
that he did not like to be beat. He would not, therefore, intro-
duce the matter, but would support it, and so he did. He
tried other Hon. Proprietors with a better success, and he de-
termined at last to undertake the matter himself. He had ac-
cordingly came firth, like David, armed only with a sling and
a stone, but he reli,d upon the blessing of Providence upon his
endeavours, which he had no hesitation in saying he believed
was the secret of all success. Perhaps he should apologise
to the Court for being so warm upon the matter. Allowances
should be made on both sides.

" Ultro veniam damus, petimusque vicissim."
He could point to many and illustrious men who always warmed
with this subject, and of this Mr. Pitt was a remarkable exam-
ple, who could never speak without violent gesture. The times
were progressive, and the month of mind could not be stopped.
.1 he present Premier was forced to take office upon this princi-
ple. But he (Mr. P.) had no comfort from Lord Ellenbo-
rough's being made President of the Board of Control, after his
declaration on the subject of India in the House of Lords. Lord
Brougham, too, he was sorry to say, had adopted the same
views as Lord Ellenborough, and even the late President of the
Board of Control evinced little anxiety as to the state of religion
in India. He had little to hope far from the Court itself, yet
he was glad to acknowledge that he was received with more de-
corum on the present occasion than he had been on many
former ones. However, nothing should prevent him from doing
what he considered his duty. If he was wrong he was open to
correction, but he acted upon the information he possessed.
Whether this impost had originated in 1793, or at an
after period, he considered it to be void, abinitio. He concluded
by moving aresolution to the following effect :—" That the Hon.
Court of Directors would take measures to abolish all remaining
processions, ablutions, and other idolatrous practices in India, in
compliance with a minute from the Court itself at the date of
1832, and also that it would investigate into the payment of
6.0001. a year, awarded to the Bengal Government, for the sup-
! port of the Temple of Juggernaut, in 1805 (as we understood),
and which had been confirmed by Lord Auckland, and the other
circumstances connected with that annual payment."
Mr. MARRIOTT seconded the motion, and said that while
Christianity continued to be the religion of England, it ought
never to countenance idolatry in any of its dependencies.
The CHAIRMAN said that he would take on himself to say
that the East India Company never derived any pecuniary ad-
vantage from the procession to the Temple.—( Hear, hear.)
And he could say with perfect confidence, that every fair step
would be taken to abolish the practice of idola ry in India.
ith regard to the payment made for the support of the Tem-
ple, they were bound by the proclamations made upon their
taking possession of the country, to support it They were
obliged, by the faith of that proclamation, to support the Tem-
ple, when they came into posse-lion of the country in 1805.
The Hon. Chairman then quoted from the proclamation in
proof of that obligation. They were bound, by every princi
pie of honour to support it, and he thought it would give rest
dioatisfaction in India if they did not do so. He should
thoirfore meet the resolution with a direct negative.
Mr. PosrsroEit observed that the support and the actual en-
dowment were distinct things.
Sir J. Lusn INGTO sr said they were bound to the endowment,
as was proved by the documents between the Company and the
Raja of Beran and the Raja of Carnac,but they did a great deal
notwithstanding, to abolish idolatrous practices in India—a
great deal more than he believed the Hon. and Learned Pro-
prietor himself expected.—( Hear, hear.) They abolished the
pilgramages and other practices. A great deal of ignorance
existed upon the subject in the public mind. The petition from
Birmingham, alluded to two things, which were quite distinct,
the granting of pensions to persons connected with religious
ceremonies, which has been done away with and the allovianee
to the temple. The latter Lord Auckland declares, in a minute
of the date of 18.38, he will fulfil to the letter, because, it
he did not, it would be a breach of faith. These allowances
and rents were made by former sovereigns of the country. But
he hoped the discussions of the Court would do away with the
ignorance and exaggerations that prevailed upon this subject.
He thought the motion was unnecessary, and he would there •
fore vote against it. A short conversation ensued in which
several Proprietors took part ; after which the motion was
put from the Chair, arid negatived by a large majority.

Mr, WEEDING made a few observations relative to the
library, of which he thought a catalogue ought to be made out
before now. Two o- three years had elapsed since the subject
was brought before the Court. What he complained of was
the delay.