The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-21 00:00:00

i RAT
APRIL 21, 1846.

faithful Government this army would be a guilt strength
to us ; but it will require very great tact in the selection
of men who are to command, and those who will corn
pose it ; and how, indeed, one, is to be formed out of
whothe Seikh
have revelled force in int sh presentlood
and state,
intrigue
then not—men
worst
en
description for the last few years. Will the new army
be a contingent, as at Gwalior and Hyderabad ? Per-
haps so. It is more likely than a subsidiary force ; but
greatly open to the same objections as one.
Finally, if further opposition is experienced, the
Government of India wilt make such other arrangementF
for the future government of the country as the interests
of the British power may render just and expedient ;
which means, that the British Government will take the
Punjaub and govern it after its own fashion. The Seal,
army may be disordered and weakened, but it will take
much to break the fanatical zeal of the Seikhs, and
there are many of the Sirdars who will share this feel-
ing with them. It is perhaps the only national feeling
which has been encountered in India. Among the
Rajpoots of particular tribes there have appeared
traces of national feeling, but the tribes are too di-
vided and too limited in power to have rendered such e
feeling a principle of action. No man that ever I heard
of took pride in saying that he was a Mahratta, or that
he was a Nizam's subject or one of Oude or Gwalior.
Attachment to a Government, as the head of a people
has been a rare thing in India ; but here we hay.
attachment by a fanatical people to a Government, and
its head, which, in Runjeet Sjngh, was a splendid
realisation of power. We know that the Khalsa army,
containing few mercenaries, is essentially a national
one, and is identified with the Government in feel-
ing, sect, prejudice, and ambition. Therefore I think
that we may see the Seikh Government, under the power
of Ghoolab Singh and the dread of our presence, accept
any terms dictated; but that the army will not give in
until routed again and again, or taking at once to those
strong fortified places in the country, which they can
hold in desperation, and which it will cost us many
valuable lives and much treasure to reduce.- There
are, however, no means of solving this puzzle.
Nothing can be plainer, nothing more earnest, con-
sistently with proper -dignity, than Sir Henry
Hardinge's invitation to all clasces, and if the well
disposed to the state do not see at once that the only
chance of preserving a national Government is to aid
the Governor-General and the few chiefs who may
have followed Gholab Singh, they will assuredly plunge
into irretrievable ruin, and entail upon us another
year's campaign for the perf ct reduction of the whole
country. It must be a great matter of uncertainty at
present which way the tide may turn ; and the Governor-
General may await the issue of his proclamation at
Kussoor, or, as is more probable, push on with force to
Lahore, to dictate his terms to the country and the
people of the capital. There he is sure of the co-opera-
tion of Ghoolab Singh and his hill troops. This able
man will not neglect his own interests, and he will see 1

them to be identical with British supremacy. His
family have suffered too deeply from the Khalsas to
render him insincere. From the period of his arrival at
Lahore, though he brought money and supplies with
him, and to preserve appearances declared they should
be laced at the disposal of the army, he has, so far as we
know, given nothing, but has strongly advised peace, or
temporised with the requests of the Punches, till he could
be assured of the actual presence in the Punjaub of the
British army. This having immmediately followed the last
battle he made at once to the Governor-General's camp,
to arrange, in conjunction with him, the future settle-
ment of tie Government. It is not probable, I think,
that there will be resistance at Lahore. Gholab
Singh's army was the only efficient or fresh one •,
that he will control. Under the consternation which
must prevail, neither Lall Singh nor the Ranee would
be able to collect troops enough to make a stand,
and the Governor-General's proclamation will have a
mighty effect, backed as it is by a victorious army. I
therefore look with confidence to hear of the speedy oc-
enpation of Lahore, and that, and the negotiations which
will follow, will, be subjects of the highest possible in-
terest, far more so politically than the actions of the war,
however brilliant.

It will be greatly to be regretted should the Governor-
General be embarrassed by any home. politics. Of
these Ido not presume to treat. America may per-
haps take a higher tone on the Oregon question on
hearing of this war, and this appears to be the only
chance of embarrassment ; but we may fairly hope
not, and in any case I should hope that the two
questions would not be mixed up together. We have
fought here for a political supremacy, which was threa-
tened by an invasion of our territory, and the measures
which have resulted from it must be considered distinct
from any European course of political events. There is
no alternative whatever, to my perception.
As before, I again repeat that India is profoundly
tranquil. No power in it dare, with the example
of the Punjaub before it, to provoke chastisement.
Rumours have been industriously spread of our defeat,
of the capture of the Seikh guns being idle fabrications,
that they were wooden or leather ones, placed so as to
decoy our troops into the mines laid, &e. All these ab-
surd stories, however, are dispersed by the stern truth of
the several defeats, and the invasion of the Punjaub, and
will be repeated no more. A full sense of the past
power of the British Indian Government; if not fully
felt before, will now prove an irresistible conviction, and
with the close of this war we may hope for a long and
glorious peace for our eastern possessions.
Sinde, too, is tranquil ; no rise even among the hill
tribes has followed the march of the army of the Lower
Sutlej ; and though Sir C. Napier has gone on to join
the Governor. General, his name will live behind him,
and will insure quiet. Few will be so bold as to provoke
his fiery wrath or indomitable spirit. It will chafe him
that he is too late for the great battles ; but he may yet
have his share, if the Seikh forces do not render un-
conditional submission. Where the army of the Lower
Suilej is to go, or what it is to do, does not yet appear ;
it will probably occupy the lower part of Punjaub, and
:f there be truth in the report of the submission of
Moulton, will very probably proceed thither at once.
Moultan pays 3i lacs of rupees a-month to the Lahore
Government, and this would go a good way to supply
the indemnity for the war, which I very truly hope may
a complete one.

In the Deccan I have nothing particular to inform
yogi of. I am much afraid that we shall have another
season of cholera, as that dire scourge has already
shwn itself in many parts. May God, in His mercy,
avert its further spread, for it is very fearful; there is no
refuge from it, and the country people hare no remedies
agiitrht it. Distress is severely felt in the central dis-
tricts and in Khandcish, and for this there is no
alleviation. I hear nothing from Hyderabad but
the distresses of the Government ; already is the
Nizam in debt 22 lacs for the payment of the contingent,
and there appears no exertion made either to provide
regular payments or to discharge debts. The Nizam
calls for one quack contriver of remedies after
aniother, and looks keenly after mulcts, fines, nuz-
zerana, and other extra sources of revenue, which
are as uncertain as unjust, neglecting, of course, the
country and the people, from whom he can derive
any certain funds. An amusing, or rather an ember-
missing council, took place not long ago, the collectors
on Julookhdars being summone to provide for
the 22 lacs of debt, and to make further advances. As

the revenue of every district is forestalled, not only
wis every present demand impossible of satisfaction,
but it was urgently represented that as the advances
ha,d been made from private funds, they should be
pit in train of adjustment ! The Government is
now without credit, and without management ;
and how it contrives at all, is surprising. It seems
e*ceedingly probable that as soon as the I'unj9.ub affair
is. settled the management of this state may occupy the at-
tion of the Governor-General, its troops and expenses
b reduced to a footing commensurate with its resources,
tin
avid, as at Gwalior, districts in satisfaction of the pay of
the contingent and other demands made over to the care
of the Resident, and to the superintendence of British
officers. But it is, in homely phrase, in a sad mess
altogether, and if one state more than another exhibit
the political demoralization of the subsidiary system, it
is this.
In Bengal a new railway plan has been started, which
seems powerfully supported, end is likely to be com-
.
trlenced forthwith We are all anxiously expecting the
ports on the great lines, and I sincerely trust there
r 4
ay be beginnings made next cold season.—Times.

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.
(From the Bombay Times, March 16.)
In reference to the grounding of the frigate Fox, in
t!)e Persian Gulf, we have received the following from a
correspondent:--" IO your paper of the 18th inst., I ob-
serve a notice of the Fox frigate having gone ashore on a
reef near Karrack in the Persian Gulf, 'said to have been
erroneously laid down in the maps.' As it is of the
atmost importance that it should be ascertained how
fir the Government Chart of this sea is to be
C.epended upon, I would beg to suggest through
t e medium of your journal, that measures 11
e adopted to effect this object with as little
clay as possible. From my own experience, I am able
tp point out two considerable errors in the said chart, viz.
the direction of the coast for eight or ten miles west-
Ward from Linger, which is laid down several points out of
its true bearings, and the form and the extent of the sand
bank lying to the youth-west of Kishme. To this I must
add, that I have heard Captain Gray, of the Endymion;
Mate that part of his voyage in the Persian Gulf was
formed over a tract laid down in the chart as part of the
southern coast of Persia." The repairs of this vessel
have been completed in such a way, under the able super-
intendence of Commodore Sir IL Blackwood, that she is
pronounced to be almost in as good a condition as when
first launched. She will shortly be hauled out of dock.
The following. report of the. Bombay Caubul Relief Fund
has been publi.hed since our last;—" The committee of
the Caubul Relief Fund at Bombay publish for general
information a statement of the receipts and disburse-
ments of the Fund, exhibiting a balance up to the Ist of
Feb. bf rs. 48, 412, and 3 annas. The Rev. Mr. Wolff,
having returned to England without proceeding to Aff-
ghanistan, the sum placed at his disposal, 10,000 rs.,
bas been returned to the committee. Lieut.-Col. Shiel,
M. M.'s Charge d'Affaires at the Court of Persia, has
been empowered by the committee to employ a native
agent, at an expense..not exceeding 4,000 rupees, for
the purpose of endeavourirg to effect tha release cf any
British subjects who may be in captivity at Caubul or in
the adjacent countries. The Honourable • the Governor
In Council has kindly permitted the Resident At Bushire

'n cash Colonel Shiel's bills to the shoe() amount.
rile committee purpose purchasing an annuity of
30/. per annum for the lady whose father wcs
Killed at Catibul, for the purpose of which 7,000 ru-
pees will probably be required, thus leaving an unappro-
miated balance of about 32,412 rupees." The following
melancholy account of the death of an officer, his lady, and
from cholera, has been published by the Madras
U. SI. Gazette :—" It is with much pain we •announce
the decease, by cholera, at Secunderabad, cn the 18th
instant, of Brevet Captain Thomas Osborne, of the 40th
N.L, and his lady, both of whom fell victims to this
fatal epidemic on the same day, having on the preced-
ing one lost their infant child. Since the above was in
type the following particulars have reached us in a let-
ter from Secunderabad :---‘ Lieutenant Osborne, of the
toth NJ., which corps is now a stage or two distant
rrom Secunderabad, having lost one of his children by
teething, came on to the cantonment with the corpse to
have it buried, leaving his family in camp. No sooner
'lad he arrived at Captain Harper's than he was himself
ittacked with the epidemic. This news having reached
{rs. Osborne, she hastened to join her husband, when
provedshm fatalorning on. the
Captain same
and
day.
ir s
Tihe.
H a
Harper hapless
per h
y u ua nv
eg
p e were
also
this
evening.esttehredasyamedisase, e
Twh.ehipceherinlabdoyt,la
e s
lady's
4yah, I understand, has also fallen a victim to the pes-
tilence
in consequence removed from their house to avoid its
treaded eMcts.' " The following extract, in reference
o " Railways in India," is taken from the report of
le Bombay Chamber,of Commerce, for the first quarter
.if 1845-46 :—"ln accordance with the resolution passed
it the annual general meeting of the 7th of October,
1845, the proceedings at which were given in the last
report, your committee, in the beginning of the follow-
ing month, addressed a letter to the secretary to the
Government of India, with the Right Honourable the
Governor-General, expressing the views of the Chamber
in reference to the introduction of railway communi-
Ation, and claiming for the Presidency of Bombay an
--equitable- participation in the advantages which the
,upport and assistance of Government towards the es-
tablishment of the new system of intercourse, were cal-
eflated to confer. This communication, a copy of which
use was
is annexed in the Appendix, was forwarded to the
3om bay Government, with a request that, in handing it
up for the consideration of the Governor-General, his
Honour in Council would see fit to accompany it with a
favourable expression of opinion in regard to the object
sthich it sought to attain, Your committee have been
apprised of the transmission of the letter to its desti-
laden, but they are not aware what view of its
contents has been taken by the local authorities, nor
have they, as yet, been favoured with any reply to it
from the Supreme Government. In the present state of
political affairs, it would be too much, perhaps, to look
for any very close attention on the part of the Head
)f Government, to subjects of this nature ; but as soon
as matters assume a more favourable posture, they have
little doubt that their memorial will receive due consi-
deration at his Excellency's hands. Railways have so
er
e buried
seized by
important 'a bearing upon the interests of trade, and
;eem likely, if introduced, to contribute so largely to its
promotion in Western India, that your committee, as a
conimercial body, naturally feel a warm concern in the
successful progress of the intended improvement, and
tre anxious to obtain an official recognition of the
opinions they have ventured to express, satisfied, as they
arc, that their views are based upeu reasonable grounds,
in believing them, likewise, to be shared by a large
section of the community." And from the same report
we quote the following regarding the exportation to
England of an experimental consignment of wheat, made
by 1)r. Burn, superintendent of Government cotton ex-
periments at Broach, in the Bombay Presidency:—
" Your committee have received from Government copy
of a communication from Dr. Burn, dated the 11th Oc-
tober last, relative to the experimental consignment of
wheat per ship Osprey, regarding which such frequent
notices have been contained in former reports. It will
be recollected that owing to the presence of small stones,
dirt, and other impurities, and the existence of a peculiar
earthy flavour, in the above wheat, it was declared by
competent judges at home to be unfit for bread pur-
___

poses; and that the Honourable the Court of Directors,
in referring to this somewhat discouraging opinion, sug-
gested that Dr. Burn should be called on to report as to
whether these objections could be removed, in which
case a further trial was to be authorised. The letter
under notice discusses and decides the point in question.
Dr. Burn states that he has no doubt the objections may
be obviated, by having the grain properly threshed
and winnowed prior to shipment, instead of being
trodden out by oxen upon clay floors,' as was the
case—from unavoidable causes—with the consignment
sent home per Ospray. Fine bread, he observes,
is made in Bombay from Guzerat wheat, and there can
be no doubt that the article might be put to similar use
at home; and if it were properly attended to here pre-
vious to shipment, it might, he thinks, "reach England
quite free from dirt and unpleasant flavour, or injury of
any kind whatever." Entertaining this opinion, Dr.
Burn is of course anxious that a further experiment
should be made, but instead of ginning the wheat, as on
the last occasion, he suggests that it should be pur-
chased in one of the local markets ; and he is likewise
of opinion that the recommendation of the brokers,
Messrs. Lyon and Fynney, to ship it in bulk, and by a
fast vessel, should bo adopted. The circumstance of the
wheat per Ospray having escaped damage from weevils,
is noticed as a subject of gratulation, and your com-
mittee decidedly concur with Dr. Burn that the satis-
factory solution of the problem whether Indian wheat
can be sent home without suffering from the attacks of
these destructive insects, is a matter of no light import-
ance in a commercial point of view. In transmitting
the copy of Dr. Burn's letter, it was observed by Mr.
Secretary Townsend, that if the Chamber, or any
member of it, would undertake a small consignment on
their own account, it would, in the opinion of Govern-
ment, be a far more satisfactory test than any experi-
ment made by officers of Government, who are unskilled
in mercantile transactions, and whose whole time is oc-
cupied with their official duties.' Your committee,
however, painted out that the Chamber was precluded,
by its rules, from engaging in any speculative transac-
tion of the nature proposed, although there would be
no objection to its undertaking the shipment, as before,
on behalf of Government. They hardly thought that
in the existing state of affairs any mercantile firm would
be disposed to export wheat to England as ass experi-
ment.

Hopes are entertained of the H. C. sloop of war
Coote, wrecked some months since on the coast near
Calicut, being extricated from her present situation. It
is said that the efforts being made to heave her up have
been partially successful. The emonnt subscribed in Cal-
cutta towards the land for the relief of the distressed poor
in Ireland has reached the sum of nearly
.7,000/.71,000/.

of which was collected in the army of the Satlej under
the Commander-in-Chief.--The Bmares Bank has ;:de-
dared a dividend at the rate of ten per cent., and the
bank of Agra one of fourteen and a half per cent., on
the _capital stock.—A coffee store at Colombo, valued at

I,oooi, belonging to a Mr. Davison, has been completely
destroyed by fire—believed to have been accidental.
The Madras Spect,tor has published the following in
reference to the proceedings of the Government of that
presidency towards its bank :
" We understand that at the annual general meeting
of proprietors of the bank of Madras, held yesterday
(March 2), a full explanation was given to the assembled
proprietary, of recent proceedings in connexion with the
existing crisis in the money market, and the means taken
to protect the public from a suspension of accommodation
by the bank. The course pursued by the directors in a cor-
respondence with the Government, having for its object to
obtain an alteration of the present onerous and most
extraordinary practice of sending all the bank-notes
that find their way inte the general treasury fur imme-
diate exchange into specie, met with unanimous ap-
proval, as did also the steps taken by the Directors to
endea! our to meet the scarcity of money." Lord El-
phinstone, formerly Governor of Madras, arrived in
Delhi on. the 2d March, and has put up with the agent
to the Lieutenant-Governor. The 14th Dragoons reached
Agra or the 27th February, and left for Meerut on the
4th March. The important measures have just been
sanctioned at the India House. It has been determined
that a statistical department, to collect, arrange, metho-
dise, and abridge the enormous mass of invaluable statis-
tical documents reposing in its archives, shall be esta-
blished. It has also been agreed that a Gazetteer of
India, in six volumes, shall be published. Mr. Thornton,
already well known for his historical writings in refe-
rence to India, has been appointed editor ; and that no
labour or expense may be spared, the Court is to ad-
wince the sum of one thousand pounds on each volume.
The resolution in favour of each of these measures was
curried by very large majorities.

GENERAL ORDERS,

BY BIS EXCELLENCY THE COMMANDER-IN CHIEF.

He ad-quarters,l3OnibTlT,llll,lii6.
The following order is confirmed :
An order by Major R. Cooke, dated Surat, the 26th of
February, 1846, detaching a recruiting party, consisting
of two naiques and seven
_privates of the 19th Regiment
of Native Infantry, to the Concan and Southern Mabratta
country.
The Honourable the Governor in Council has been
plea:ied to sanction the admission of Eliz ibeth, widow of
the late pensioner Gunner Burnes, to the benefits of Lord
4live's Fund upon a stipend of 3 rupees 14 annas per
mensem from the date of her husband's decease, agreeably
to the regulations.

The don. the Governor in Council has been pleased
to sanction the employment of the under-mentioned extra
carriages for the use of the sick arrived from Aden by
the steamer Sesostris, on the 2fith of January last :
One boat for landing ; one palanquin and two hackeries
for ct nveyanco
_from Bunder to Jatusajee Jeejeebhoy
A Committee, composed as follows, will assemble at
Parch! on Saturday next, the 14th instant, at ball-past
tise o'clock, Pair., to examine and report on five horses
of the escort of the Hon. the Governor proposed to b cast:
---President Major W. M. Coghan, Brigade-Nfajor of
Artilb-Ty, with the sanction of the Iron. the Governor
and Commander-in-Chief of the Garrison: Members—
Captain R. Travers, 23d Regiment .Native Light In-
fantry ; Lieut. J. McK. Taylor, 2d Light Cavalry.
Upon the completion of the above duty, the, proceed-
ings in duplicate to .he sentitothe Adjutact-',l-cnc:ral of
the 'Army and the Committee dissolved.
•

Head Quarfrrs, Bombay, March 12, 1846.
Sergeot.J. Fitz.Gerald,of the Town Major's non- Me