The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-13 00:00:00

THE INDIA. BUDGET.

On. the motion for going into committee on the Indian
Budget,
Mr. AYRTON rose to move the following resolutions:
—" That the Governor-Gene-al of India should be em-
powered, with the sanction of her Majesty's Secretary
of State for India, to conduct the business of each de-
partment of Government in concert with ono or more
members of his Council instead of the whole Council ;
that, in order to insure better attention to the affairs of
trade and agriculture, an additional member of the Go-
vernor General's Council in ludia should be appointed
to superintend those affairs ; that the Government
of Bengal should be placed upon the same footing as
the Government of Bombay ; that one nominated and one
elected member of the Council of the Secretary of State
for India should cease to hold office at the end of each
year; that the members of the Council should retire
in rotation according to their length of service, whether
as members of the Council or as East India Directors;
that the existing practice of recording by resolutions of
this house certain financial facts relating, to India should
be discontinued; and that, instead thereof, the estimates
for all ecpondituro in Europe of her Majesty's Secretary of
State for India in Council should be approved by a
vote of this house before the same is incurred.'
The hon. member took the opportunity of entering into
the mode of managing- railways in ladia, and contended
generally that matters were badly managed, so much so
that where profit ought to arise a deficit invariably oc-
curred, and all this was occasioned because persons of
high intelligence were not employed.
Mr. LAING was not blind to the defects which character-
ised the administration of the India Government, but could
not allow that the change should bo a sweeping one. On
the whole the system had been a splendid success, not-
withstanding that the recent melancholy events in Orissa
were clearly traceable to the mismanagement of the local
government, upon whose report alone the Governor-Gene-
ral was enabled to act on the occasion, Enumerating
several of the faults of the system of government, the right
hon. gentleman adverted particularly to the Board of Re-
venue in connection with the Orissa famine, and urged
that that department, which was a mere wheel within a
wheel, and a real incumbrance, should at once be sup-
pressed.
After some observations from Mr. IL SET MOUR and Col.
SYKES,
Lord CRANBORNE held that the Government of India,
so far from being an egregious failure, as was asserted by
Mr. Ayrton, had proved a brilliant success. With regard
to the question of irrigation, however, the hon. member
was correct. What India was suffering from was the
tendency to centralisation, which required to be rigidly
controlled, for pers nal responsibility was the key to the
government of India.
Mr. MILL could not consent to undervalue the use and

importance of councils, and stated that no administrative
act was ever done in India but the reasons for it were fully
stated in writing. He agreed in what Mr. Ayrton had said
respecting the government of Bengal. He himself had
seen stupid, careless, idle, and frivolous men in the go-
vernment of the Presidencies, who were so utterly unfit
for the duty that but for their councils he did not know
how the administration of these presidencies could have
been conducted.

Mr. J. B. SMITH followed with a few remarks upon
the necessity of encouraging the culture
plant in India, and opening up the river communication,
t
especially that by the channel of the Godavory; and then,
Mr. Ayrton having withdrawn his resolutions the house
having gone into ccmmittee, Sir Stafford Nortlacote made
his annual exposition as Indian Secretary of the State
of Indian finance. In doing so the right hon.
condition
baronet referred to the satisfactory of the
people of India, as tested by the enormous increase of the
revenue
from salt, which showed that there was a consi-
derable consuming power on the part of tho labouring
classes. In consequence of the deficiency in the revenue
for 1865-C6, however, the Government had looked with
some anxiety into the Indian accounts, in order to ascer-
tain whethei there were any considerations which should
lead them to take measures for bringing about a be ter
state of the finances. Tho question was, could the expen-
diture of tho country be rechiced ? And first, as to the
military expenditure, he found that the expenditure on that
account in India somewhat exceeded that for the whole
of the United Kingdom, and so far as he could see be was
not sanguine in being able to effect any large reduction.
In like manner an examination of the charges for estab-
lishments was as little encouraging, for the cost of living
and all other expenses wore augmenting-, and an increase
was to be looked for rather than a diminution in the pay of
the army. Again, it would not be possible to economise
the cost of the collection of revenue, or the administration
of police, law, or education. Then, with regard to the
interest on the debt, it had increased to a certain extent,
though net in a greater pioportion than the revenue ;
whilst he was happy to say that Indian securities main-
tained their position in comparison with Consols. In
ssary the
next place, Mr. 31-issey set down the dienands as nee
for irrigation works at £700,000; in addition to which lie
Proposed to make an advance of one million to the Go-
vernment of Bombay against the land sales, which had
been deferred in consequence of the late financial d 25,000
cul-
ties in that presidency, and a further advance Of £3
to Calcutta for water works, both of these latter sums to
be repaid. Those sums came together to about £2,000,000,
which would have to be raised by loan. Exclusive of
that, however, the expenditure
sort
her current year was
calculated at £17,310,000, whilt e evenue_ would be
£16,283,000 ; thus showing a deficiency of £1,057,000. To
meet this deficiency Mr. Mzissey proposed to levy a licence
tax, which ho calculated to produce a half million, leaving
£557,000 still to be provided for. Then, to make his ba-
lance right, Lee ould not add
©t
further to taxa-
tion, but remov a portion of the expenditure to debt.
Two millions had been called for for barracks
entirely out in the pre-
of
sent year, and instead of providing for it
the revenue, ho proposed to raise ono-half of it by way of
loan, to be paid off within a short and definite period.
Thus it would be incumbent on the Indian Government to
keep up a considerable surplus of income over expenditure
for several years after the expenditure on the barracks
should have ceased, in order to clear off the debt so con-
tracted. In conclusion, the right hon. baronet moved the
usual formal resolutions declaratory of the state of the re-
,.