The Sun.
London, England, 1859-03-08 00:00:00

was garotted and could not properly extend itself. He knew
also that there were districts in which from want of roads
it was itteilfliii-poiSible•for the natives-to send -their-pros.
dace cloian to the coast; and he knew, further, that there
weed filth-lets in which any amount he might choose to lay
out in conatftiefiffg works to store water in the rainy sea-
son, and to disperse it dor the soil in the dry, would in two
years be repaid twentyfold, and w'o'uld continue to be a never
failing source of wealth. Was the house willing that the
Indian Government, like some old lumbering waggon,
should be dragged along its old ruts with the same slowness
AV Welt had always; characterised its pace, and with the same
peril to all that were concerned in it? Last year, on the
third reading of the hill, ho (Mr. Bright) stated at great
length his views on the subject of government. He told the
house that, in his opinion; the government at home should
be one of absolute simplicity; while there should be pursued
in India itself a process of decentralisation. Ho argued that
it would be obviously impossible for any governor-general
to rule with success a population which was variously
reckoned at from 150 to 200 millions ; and he would now '
read an extract from a letter written from the Native Asso-
ciation at Calcutta to that at Bombay, with regard to this
very question of centralisation :—" The committee can con-
ceive of no system of adnilnistration more prejudicial to the
improvement of the various races inhabiting India, and more
pregnant with mischief to the essential interests of govern-
remit, than the deep-laid, wide-spread, and elaboratecentrali-
sation which now prevails. A central power, however skil-
ful and enlightened, cannot, of itself, embrace all the details
of the existence of so vast a nation—or rather of so many
nations—as those of India. Such vigilance ceeeeds the
powers of man. The tendency of centralisation, as you are
aware, is uniformity ; but the distinguishing feature of the
Indian communities is variety. A single nation may thrive
under centralisation, for then the principle of the unity of
action has a wide field for play. But centralisation for a
number of nations, each at a different stage of progress, and
with various degrees of intelligence, can have no principle
for its basis, for it is the practical confusion of all principles
imaginable." He (Mr. Bright) quite agreed with the
opinion expressed by these Indian gentlemen—intelligent
and respectable gentlemen they were—forit was impossible
for any governor-general at Calcutta,. whatever
Governte power
they might choose to give him, to bring the mental
eye to bear upon every portion of this vast dominion. The
proposition which he (Mr. Bright) suggested was that they
should revert to the ancient plan, and establish something
like municipal presidencies in India. (Hear, hear.) There
was another point not less essential. They must seek to draw
into those councils and incorporate into the Government the
best and most intelligent natives. (Hear, hear.) The noble
lord told them the other night that to raise the revenue so as
to balance the expenditure would be extremely difficult. The
noble lord could not do like his colleague the Chancellor of
the Exchequer, in the country—he could not lay new taxes
upon the people. He might easily commit some blunder
that would create a feeling of alarm amongst millions, and
a disbelief in the good faith of the government, even if it did
not actually stimulate revolt. But if there were in each
local council two or three, or four natives—he was not
pleading for a native majority—he believed that they might
suggest taxes that would fall upon the rich and spare the
vast body of the poor. He believed, too, that if the Indian
people were satisfied as to the justice of their rulers and the
necessity of the demand upon them, they would submit to
new imposts like any other people. (Hear, hear.) The
noble lord committed a fatal error last year, when in
obedience to his colleagues he consented to leave India in the
hands of those who had been the instruments of its ancient
misgovernment. Thenoblelord might not have had any votes
of want of confidence passed upon him by the council; but
it was possible for men sitting at the same board to throw at
every step difficulties in his way that he might find himself
utterly unable to overcome. From the correspondence which
came by every mail from India to an association with which
he had for many years been connected, he (Mr. Bright)
knew perfectly well that not even the shadow of a change
had been brought about by the act of last year. (Hear,
hear.) For instance, he had some time ago asked a ques-
tion respecting Dhar. Dhar was a principality , with a
revenue of £50,000 a-year, and was governed by a rajah 13
years of age. No charge had ever been made against the
rajah himself, but on the pretext that some one connected
with him had not been sufficiently zealous on behalf of the
British Government, his principality had been " annexed."
It had been the custom to sneer at the use of that word across
the Atlantic ; but it had become a perfectly English word,
so far, at least, as our conduct in India was concerned. It
was understood that the noble lord did not approve of the
annexation of Dhar, and that instructions had been sent out
to India with respect to it. But the annexation had not been
relinquished ; and it was said that no papers or explanations
on the subject had been sent home. In fact, it was clear that
the Indian government at home knew no more of the afEtir
than if no dspatch had been sent out.', the Government in
India did not care one Straw for what the Government in
England might choose to do. (Cheers.) It would not be
polite in any society, and it would certainly not be suitable
in that house, to quote the language in which some of the
officials in India endeavoured to describe how very little they
cared for what had been done. Now, unless they were made
to care, they would soon drag this country into greater cala-
mities than ever. (Cheers.) It was the duty of the noble lord
to let those men know that if they neglected the orders sent
to them from this country they would be instantly recalled.
It was his duty to impress upon our great pro-consuls in India
that there was a power which, though distant, could pull
them up and check them in their career of wrong. (Cheers.)
Look at the proclamation which the noble lord had sent out.
What could be more admirable than its tone and intention ?
Did anybody suppose that the noble lord was dishonest in
issuing that proclamation, or that the Queen did not mean
what she said when she put her name to that neweltarter of
India? Of course nobody doubted either the noble lord or
the Queen. That proclamation was a reversal of all our
past policy; but its execution was left in the hands of
those who had been '.nstruments of the old policy ; and un-
less
there was a Minister in this country who would not
allow it to be set-at nought, unless that Minister was well
backed up by his colleagues, and supported by that house,
not five years would elapse before his proclamation would
be no better than waste paper. (Cheers.) With regard to
the question of the debt, lie did not think that any person
who had lent his money to the Indian Government had a
shadow of a claim, either moral or legal, upon the taxes
of England. (Hear, hear.) He knew his security; he
had bargained • for his rate of interest ; and that rate had
been double what-he would have received if he had lent his
money to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. (Hear,
hear.) At the same time he (Mr. Bright) was bound to say,
that there-was no real justice in the people of England
fixing this burden upon the inhabitants of. India. .(Hear,
hear.) Did anybody mean to say, for instance, that it.
was right to tax the people of India for the debt incurred
in the Affghau war, which had beenundertaken in further-
ance of a policy adopted by the cabinet at home ? (Hear, I
hear.) So, with regard to the late revolt, which he (Mr. I
Bright) ventured to say would cost not less than forty I
millions sterling, and which he was surprised to hear the
right hon. baronet (Sir G. C. Lewis) say was an unjustifiable
one. (Hear, hear.) The noble lord the member for the City
(Lord J. Russell) had just published a work in which he ex- I
pressed a strong opinion as to the justifiableness of the
American War of Independence ' • and when he recollected
how the right hon. baronet had last year pointed out the
atrocities of the Indian Government, he thought it was ,
rather inconsistent in him now to say that there had been ,
neither cause nor excuse for the conduct of the people of •
India during the last two years. (Hear, hear.) He (Mr.
Bright) did not want to enter into any defence of that con-
duct ; but he wished to see the Government of India based •
upon a justice which the people of that country themselves
could feel and see, and which would secure our power without
the necessity of keeping up an army of 334,000 men.
(Cheers.) In the meantime, he thought that £40,000,000
would be a grievous burden to place upon the taxes of a •
people, seeing that the revolt had been caused by our mis-
management. (No, no.) An hon. gentlemen said " No."
`Well, he (Mr. Bright) would not dispute the point with
him ; but if the hon. gentleman was neither an Englishman
nor a native of India, but was writing a history of our
transactions during the last hundred or even twenty years,
he would come to the conclusion that it would be more just
that we should ourselves pay the expenses of the war we
had undertaken, in order to re-subjugate the country.
(Hear, hear.) He (Mr. Bright) was sorry to speak so long
in derogation of his countrymen, but •he was convinced
that the course we had pursued had only led to the
logical and inevitable consequences ; and that unless some-
body undertook to reverse the system which had hitherto
been followed, we might in ten years have another great
revolt, the results of which might be much more disas-
trous than anything that happened within the last two
years. (Hear, hear.) If the Government could only see
how much more we might profit by a just and wise policy
he might hope that the principle of pure selfishness would
lead them to reverse the helm. He knew how greatly the
trade of Manchester had lately been increased by the de-
mand which had sprung up for cotton goods for India. No
doubt much of that demand arose from the mode in which
the local government was squandering its money, but he
also knew that we could not advance one mile into the
country without finding acustomer waiting for us ; and he
knew that the extension of our market amongst a popula-
tion of 150,000,000 to 200,000,000 could practically have no
limit for at least a long time to come, if we would only give
our subjects a chance by securing to them the free enjoy-
ment of that which they produced. (Hear, hear.) He
hoped the noble lord would believe that he (Mr. Bright)
had not made a single observation with a view of finding
fault with anything lie had done since he came into office,
but he besought him to deliberate well upon the experience
he had gained during the twelve months he had been in
his present position, and if he shohld come to the con-
clusion that changes were necessary, he hoped that
he would be prepared either as Minister for India or in
an unofficial situation, to declare to the house what his ex-
perience had taught him. He hoped he would declare that
the present arrangement was a provisional and experimental
one only, and that the Indian Government must be entirely
reconstructed, not only in England, but in India itself.
Mr. AYRTON thought it would be most unfortunate if
the speech of his hon. friend went forth to the public as an
authoritative declaration that the:finances of India were at
all in a desperate condition. India had, in fact, been in a
position tenfold worse than her present one ; and the govern-
ment had in vain before now to offer not six, but n per
cent. There was no doubt much more confidence felt in
India itself as to the strength and efficiency of its new ad-
ministration than appeared to exist in this country. For his
own part, he (Mr. Ayrton) expected to see a considerable
improvement in the revenue, and especially that arising from
the land tax. He believed with a wise and judicious
administration, the increase would more than cover
the additional charges which had been thrown upon the
country by the recent disturbances. What was wanted was
that the tenure of land should be put upon a better
footing. Some of the officials in India had gone as far as to
say that the Government was the absolute owner of the
soil ; and he hoped that the noble fiord would make it clear
that the Government did not in reality claim any more than
a mere right to levy taxes upon it. The land tax under the
Hindoos had been 30 per cent. The Mahommedans in-
creased that amount; and in some cases we had raised it
still higher. (Hear, hear.) The noble lord would com-
mit a fatal error if he remitted the tax from any portion of
the land on the ground that it was waste land. It would
be a mere bonus to the neighbouring occupiers, and the re-
sult would be to arrest the growth of the hind revenue.
With the formation of roads the unoccupied lands would
e
be taken up, and would yield additional revenue. did
noble lordcalreci down to th
i spokeoltleiepprersgt time. He
oessoflndia,s,bdudtthhaist flabetasadkids
of the Bombay railway had been constructed, and that
it paid 41 per cent. But there had since been opened
130 miles of that line, and the return was 61 per
cent. Other 50 miles were now open, and the return was
equally great. When these means of communication were
complete, as they would be in about four years, he believed
that the returns of the land revenue would be equal to all
the claims upon them. In some cases the blunder had been
committed which was made with respect to the land tax at
home—the revenue had been capitalised ; but this was an
operation which ought only to be performed when interest
was very low. He considered the proposition of Sir G.
Lewis, that there must be an entire separation between the
Indian and the Imperial treasuries wrong in principle and
impracticable. He recommended the Government of this
country to borrow money in this country at 31 per cent.,
and to lend it to India at a rate of interest that would
insure the repayment of the principal in 15 or 20 years. He
suggested various reforms in the details of the Indian Go-
vernment ; and gave a qualified assent to Mr. Bright's pro-