The Sun.
London, England, 1858-06-22 00:00:00

THE GOVERNMENT Off INDIA BILL.

The Bill for the better Government of India,
which has just been printed, contains 66 clauses.
The following is an abstract of them :

" The preamble states that whereas it is expedient that
the territories in the possession of the East India Company
should be governed by and in the name of her. Majesty.
"By clause 1. the government of the territories now in
the possession or under the government of the East India
Company, and all powers in relation to Government vested
in or exercised by the said Company in trust for her
Majesty, shall cease to be vested in or exercised by the
said Company, and all territories in the possession or under
the government of the said Company, and all rights vested
in, or which if this Act had not been passed might have
been exercised by the said Company in relation to any
territories, shall become vested in and be exercised on be-
half of her Majesty; and for the purposes of this Act India
shall mean the territories Tested in her Majesty as afore-
said, and all territories which may become vested in her
Majesty by virtue of any such rights as aforesaid.
" 11. India shall be governed by and in the of her
Majesty, and all rights in relation to any territories which
might have been exercised by the said Company if this Act
had not been passed shall and may be exercised on behalf
of her Majesty as rights incidental to the Government of
India.

" 111. Save- as herein otherwise provided, one of her
Majesty's principal Secretaries of State shall have and per-
form all such or the like powers and duties in anywise re-
lating to the government or revenues of India, and all such
or the like powers over all officers appointed or continued
under this A ct, as might or should have baen exercised or
performed by the East India Company, or by the Court of
Directors or Court of Proprietors of the said Company.
"IV. After the commencement of this Act any four of
her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State for the time
being, and any four of the Under-Secrotal les for the tine
being to her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, may
sit and vote as Members of the House of Commons, but not
more than four such Principal Secretaries and not more
than four such Under-Secretaries shall sit as members of
the House of Commons at the same time."

Clause 5 provides that if the person wno imme-
diately before the commencement of the act is the
Prcident of the Commissioners for the Affairs of
India be appointed a Principal Secretary of State,
he need not vacate his seat in the House of Com-
mons. By clause 6 the salaries of one Secretary of
State and his Under Secretaries are to b 5 paid out
of the revenue of India. .Clause 7 states that a
Council of India is to be established, to consist of
15 members. Clauses 8,9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15,
and 16 refor to the mode by which the members of
the Council are to be elected, the way in which
vacancies are to be tilled up, the time of the tenure
of office, the salaries, and other particulars.

" XVII. It shall be lawful for her Majesty, by warrant
under her royal sign manual couutereigned by the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer, to grant to any secretary, officer,
or servant on the home establishment of the said company,
or on the establishment of the said commissioners, who in
consequence of such reduction as aforesaid by the Secre-
tary of State, or under such order in council, is not re-
tained on the establishment of the Council of India, any
compensation either by way of a gross or annual payment,
as having regard to the circumstances, may seem just."

Claus© 18 relates to retiring allowances to offi-
cers.

" XIX. The Council shall, under the direction of the Se-
cretary of State, and subject to the provisions of this act,
conduct the business transacted in the united kingdom in
relation to the governmentof India and thecorrespondence
with India ; but every order or communication sent to
India shall bo signed by one of the Principal Secretaries
of State, and—save as expressly provided by this act—
every order in the United Kingdom in relation to
the government of India under this act shall
be signed by such Secretary of State ; and all despatches
from governments and presidencies in India, and other
despatches from India, which if this Act had not
been passed should have been addressed to the Court of
Directors or to their Secret Committee, shall be addressed
to such Secretary of State.
" XX. It shall be lawful for the Secretary of State to
divide the Council into committees for the more convenient
. transaction of business, and from time to time to reaarange
such committees, and to direct what departments of the
business in relation to the government of India under this
act shall be under such committees respectively, and gene-
rally to direct the manner in which all such business shall
be transacted.

" XXI. Th• Secretary of State shall be the President of
the Council, and it shall be lawful for such Secretary of
State to appoint from time to time any member of such
Conned to be vice-president thereof, and any such vice-
president may at any time be removed by the Secretary of
State."

Clauses 02 and 23 define the mode of proceeding
to be adopted at meetings of the Council.
" XXIV. Every order or communication proposed to be
sent to India, and every order proposed to be made in the
united kingdom by the Secretary of State, under this act,
shall, unless the same has been submitted to a meeting of
the Council, be pieced in the council-room for the polecat
of all members of the Council during seven days before
the Bonding or making thereof, except in the cases herein-
after provided.

" XXV. If a majority of the Council record as aforegaid
their opinions against any act proposed to be done, the
Secretary of State shall, if he do not defer to the opinions
of the majority, record his reasons for acting in opposition
thereto.

" XXVI. Provided that where it appears to the Secre-
tary of State that the despatch of any order or communi-
cation or the making of any order is urgently required,
the communication may be sent or order given, notwith-
standing the same may not have been submitted to a
meeting of the Council or deposited for seven days as afore-
said, the urgent reasons for sending or making the same
being recorded by the Secretary of State ; and notice
thereof being given to every member of the Council ; ex-
cept in cases hereinafter mentioned.
XXVII. Provided, also, that all such orders and
communications as might, if this act hud not been passed,
have been sent by the Commissioners for the affairs of India
through the Secret Committee of the Court of Directors to
Governments or Presidencies in India, or to the officers or
servants of the said company, may, after the commence-
ment of this act, bo sent to such Governments or Presiden-
cies, or to any officer or servant in India, by the Secretary
of State, without having been submitted to a meeting or I
deposited for the perusal of the members of the Council,
and without the reasons being recorded or notice thereof
given as aforesaid.
" XXVIII. Any despatches to Great Britain which
aright, if this act had not been passed, have been addressed
t) the Secret Committee of the Court of Directors, may be
marked ' Secret' by the authorities sending the same, and
such despatches shall not be communicated to the members
of the Council, unless the Secretary of State shall so think
fit and direct."
Clauses 29, 30, 31, 32, and 33 regulate the man-
ner in which appointments to offices in India are to
be made. Appointments now made in India to
continue to be made there.
By clause 34 there is to bo a competitive examina-
tion in the Engineers and Artillery.
and 37 relate to the removal of
tiocniitlu.se c s
35,
36,
officers by her Majesty, and the disposal of the real
and personal estate of the Company.

" XXXVIII. The dividend on the capital stock of the
said Company secured by the act of the 3d and 4th years
of King William IV., chap. 85, until the redemption
thereof, and all the bond, debenture, and other debt of the