The Sun.
London, England, 1857-07-28 00:00:00

THE SUN, 1,0 \DON, _ TUESDAY EVENING, JITIY 28, 1857

against the Government of India, had the audacity to seize
the persoreafthe political officer at Darjeeling, when travel-
ling under the Rajah's safeguard within his dominions.
Military preparatione were made; the agent was released,
and all the territories which the Rajah possessed within
the plains were confiscated, and have been retained. In
Scinde, Meer Ali Morad of Khyrpore, was accused of hav-
ing forged a clause in a treaty whereby he had wrongfully
obtained possession of lands which of right belonged to the
British Government. A full and fair investigation was
made. The Ameor had every of p )rtnnity afforded to him
of defending himself; but his guilt was proved beyond a
doubt. The lands were taken from him, and his power
and influence were reduced to insignificance."
I mention these cases, which were not accompanied by
a violation of the laws of adoption, to illustrate the sys-
tem that was now pursued with such vigour in India. I
now call the attention of the house to 1854. There had
been five or six years during which the Indian Govern-
meet, commencing with Sattara, had dealt under this
system with the territories of a dozen independent princ -s
who died without natural heirs, when in 1854 one of the
most considerable of the native princes died—one who
still sat on a Royal throne—the R'ijah of B3rar—a
prince with a territory of 80,000 square miles—a popu-
lation of from 4,000,000 to s,ooo,ooo—with land the
richest in India, and most highly cultivated—whose trea-
sures were great, and who had been a faithful ally,—for
never had it been alleged that he had violated the condi-
tions of any treaty ; he died without natur,l heirs, and
in pursuance of the new policy it was determined to
ann. x that vast and wealthy country to our dominions.
(Hear, hear.) Our Resident at the Court protested
against this annexation, and the Governor-General was
opposed in Council by the ablest of its members when
he proposed it—among others, by General Lowe, whose
name is known to many members of this house. Geo.
Lowe has always been considered as our first Indian
it v.esman. He is a man who has risen by his own
energies and merits. He has passed 50 years as the repre-
sentative of the Indian Government at various Courts
of India—with Malennedan sultans, Hindoo Rajahs,
and Mahratta princes—and he is supposed to be
more familiar with the wants of India and the life of
India than any other Indian statesman of the day. He
was th. efore, with great propriety, elected a member of
the Supreme Council. (Hear.) The Governor-General of
India detailed the policy which he intended to pursue
with respect to the Rajah of Berar in a Minute of Coun-
cil ; and I am bound to say that a public document ex-
emplifying more vigour, acuteness, and energy, wag pro-
bably never penned since the bulletins and manifestoes of
the great Emperor Napoleon, when heaunexed kingdoms
to his immense empire. (Hear, hear.) I shall at present
refer partichlarly to only one passage for the future
guidance of the house, for I feel that we are only as yt t
in the ants-chamber of Ind'an discussions, (Rear.) In
that minute the Governor-Geeeial says :
" The incorporation of Nagpore would give to us a terri-
tory which comprises 80,000 square miles, producing an
annual revenue of 40 1 ice of rupees, and containing more
than 4,01),000 of people who have long desired to return
to our rule."
Mark what follows :
" It would completely surround with British territory
the dominions of his Highness the Nizam in a manner
highly beneficial for the purposes of internal adminis-
tration."
(Hear, hear.) The Nizam is the moat powerful Mussnl-
man Sultan in India, with a population of from 8,000,000
to 10,060,000 under his command, and territory of cone
measurate proportion. (Hear.) And, mind you, these
minutes bring you into the Secret Council of Calcutta,
which is the sameas the Cabinet Council in this country,
in 89 far as they indicate the policy that was in the
minds of individuate. (Hear.) Let me now ask the house,
to listen to some expressions in the minute of General
Lowe, as recorded in these papers. It is of the greatest
impeitanca to have the opinion of a man of this sort
We have a great variety of opinions upon Indian pol:cy
this house, and though it is easy to say that one
man is a tool of the Directors, and that another is a
wild Indian reformer, yet when we get the opinions of
.the most mature and experieeeed intellect a nong Indian
statesmen, delivered confidentially for our guidance, I
hold them to ,be above all price. What says General
Lowe ? After raising a great many objections in 22
paragraphs, he makes this confession :
In my c. nversations with natives, when I was in Raj-
pootana, there never was any unpleasant remark made to
me respecting the annexation of the Punjab. Some said
Duleep Sing was an unlucky youth in having such bad
counsellors ; but no one ever said that the British Govern-
ment acted with injustice in annexing that territory to its
own ; they seemed perfectly to understand that an inva-
sion of our territory entitled us, according to the ordinary
course of human affairs, both to repel the invaders and to
seize, thole country.
" But every person, who mentioned the subject to me,
and there were numerous parsons who did so, hold totally
different language in regard to the annexation of Sattara.
They did not make use of many words on such occasions ;
my own situation, being one of authority over them,
placed them under great restraint in that respect, but
what they did say, and their manner of saying it, showed
me very clearly that they thought it a case of might
against right, and ail expressed an earnest hope, evidently
accompanied by some dread in their minds to the con-
trary, that a kind Providence would save the Rajpoot
families from such disgrace and disaster,
" When I went to Malwa, in 1850, where I met many
old acquaintances whom I had known when I was a very
young man, and over whom I had no authority in 1850, I
found those old acquaintances speak out much more dis-
tinctly as to their opinion of the Sattara case ; so much so,
that I was on several occasions obliged to check them.
"It is remarkable that every native who, ever spoke to
me respecting the annexation of Sattara asked precisely
the same question—viz., What crime did-the late 12.,..jeb,
commit that his country should be seized by the company ?
(Clear, hear.) Thus clearly indicating _their notion', that
if any crime had been committed our act would been jus-
'fiable, and not otherwise."
The house must not for a moment suppose that General
Lowe is a man very confident in his own opinions, or of
a temper which listens with impatience to the sugges-
tions of other-. Oa the contrary, it is quite clear, from
the tone of these minutes, that he is a man who, if he
has a fault, has the fault rather of too easily yielding
up his own convictions to the predominant practice of
the moment. These minutes are full of evidence that it
was with the greatest pain, and with the utmost desire
to avoid the painful duty, that he felt it necessary to
come.forward and oppose this policy. They are full of
expressions of admiration and devotion to the Governor
General. But invariably as the proceedings ad-
vance you find that General Lowe gives up the
struggle in despair. I will just read a line from his
minutes to show that I have not misrepresented him
in this respect :
"After a very careful perusal of the Most Noble the
Governor-General's minutes on this important subject, and
of the various papers circulated along with that document,
it is with feelings of sincere regret that I find it quite out
of my power to arrive at the same conclusion as his lord-
ship has done respecting the course which the British
Government ought now to pursue towards the Nagpore
State ; and I can truly add-that I write this minute with
mach reluctance, for it vexes me that it should be my duty
to express on au important subject sentiments which are
opposed to those of a statesman whose great talents, whose
eminent public services, and whose whole character I view
with genuine admiration and respect."
And he adds :

" There is also another cause for my disinclination to
write this minute, which I may as well confess at once
viz. that I feel completely convinced that, practically
speaking, it will have no effect whatsoever on the majority
of the public functionaries iu London who will have to
consider and to decide this question."

Allow me to say before proceeding further that the
East India Directors sre not entirely open to the
character given them by General Lowe, because I have
shown you that there was a strong minority in the
court which resisted the first of these great
measures, and there are papers on the table
reepecting the proposed annexation of the Raj of Kerow-
lee, which show that that Raj was not annexed to our
dominions—the case being too flagrant—entirely through
the influence of the East India directors. But to pro-
ceed with the great case of Berar. The Raj of Berar,
with it• 10,000 square miles, its population of 4,000,000
or 5,000,000, and its treasures, was seized notwithstand-
ing the prote.t of General Lowe. The troops,of the
British Government were ordered jute the terra IT, the
furniture and jewels of the Queen were viz :el. It was
understood that the Queen had a private treasure of her
own to a large amount, and though it was proved that
it was entirety her own property, having belonged to the
Queen mother, a woman of great abilities. who had once
been regent of the kingdom, yet it was seized, and by
the British 'Government. The Raj of Nagpore was an-
nexed ; it is one of the four kingdoms which we are told
with so much pride and self-complacency in the minute
of 1856 have been added to the Crown of England. I
must pause here for a moment on the subject of annexa-
tion. I want to touch upon the second division of the
subject. I want to show you how the settlement of pro-
perty in India has been disturbed by the new system of
Government during the last ten years. (Hear, hear.)
This portion of the subject is intima•ely connected
with that part to which have already alluded,
and the house will see in a few rnoweats why
I have stopped at the year 1854 on the
subject of annexation. The principle of the law of
adoption is not ttie prerogative of princes and pri ecipali-
ties in India ; it applies to every man in Modosetia who
has landed property, and who professes the Elindoo re-
ligion. The great feudatory, or jaghedar, who h. ide his
lands by public service to his lord ; and the emindar,
who holds his laud free of all land-tax, who corresponds,
if not precisely, in a popular sense at least, with our
freeholder,—both of these classes—classes mos-. numer-
one in India—always, on the failure of their natural
heirs, find in this principle the means of obtaining sue-
cessers to their estates. Those classes were all touched
by the annexation of Sattara, they were touched by the
annexation of the territories of the 10 inferior but inde-
pendent princes to whom I have already alluded, and
they were more than touched, they were ta-rified to the
last degree, when the annexation of the Raj of Berar
took place. What man was safe ? What feudatory,
what freeholder who had not a child of his own loins
was safe throughout India ? (Hear, hear.) These were
not idle fears ; they were extensively acted upon and
reduced to practice. The resumption of jagheers and
of inams commenced for the first time in India. There
.have been, no doubt, impolitic moments when at-
temp's have been toads to inquire into titles, but no one
had ever dreamt of abolishing the law of adoption ; there-
fore no authority, no Government had ever been in
a position to resume jagheers and inams the hol-
ders of which had left no natural heirs. Here was
a new source of revenue • but while all these things were
acting upon the minds of these classes of Hindoos, the
Government took another step to disturb the settlement
of property, to which I must now call the attention of
i,he house. The house is aware, no doubt, from reading
the evidence taken before the committee of 1153, that
there are great portions of the land of India which are
exerny, from the land tax. Being free from land-tax in
India is far more than equivalent to freedom from the
land-tax in this country, for, speaking generally and
popal eey, the land-tax in India is the whole taxation of '
the State ; and it is not a light impost, therefore, by any
rams. There are large portions of the land is Zndiq ,

which enjoy this freedom. • The origin of these grants is
difficult to penetrate, but they are undoubtedly of great
ant.quity. They 'are of different kinds. Besides the
private freeholds, which are very extensive, there are
large grants of land free from the land-t-ix, with which
mosques and temples have been endowed. Outs of the
greatest sources of our success in India in old days was
.that whenever a tyrant, a Mussulman chief, seized and
confiscated their lands-and we were appsated te, ve came
in al vindicatorsof public right, and we invariably guaran-
teed the security of property, as in the case of the Jaghiers
and Enams. However. an able, an amiable man, under
the pressure no doubt of pecuniary distress in the public
revenue, was so ill advised as to question these titles. Our
power was then supposed, so far as Bengal was con-
cerned, to be established. The Governor General of
that day was advised to institute an inquisition into
those titles. It was alleged that there were fraudulent
claims of exemption. There were fraudulent claims in
England, and, no doubt, in India, the scene of so many
revolutions and conquests, there may have been claims
fictititiously made. But the House will recognise at
once the wise policy which would prevent a Govern-
ment at any time entering into the dangerous ground of
examining the-titles of landed estates in that country.
(Hear, hear.) Even in England, the process, if carried
on, would produce revolution, and would, under a' y
cirtumstances, arrive at results •f the most e.tartlirg
character. (Hear.) Any person in possession of church
land or of a Royal manor, who could not prove that the
land was rightfully held by the persons from whom he
inherited it, might have his whole property confiset ed.
(Hear, hear.) For 30 years that system was trird in
Bengal, and after some experience the discontent was
hound so great that it was entirely dropped, Thit under
the new system which was established in India that
Plan of investigating titles was at once embraced, as a
proof of a powerful Government, vigorous Executive,
and most fruitful source of public revenue. Therefore
commissions were issued to inquire into titles to landed
estates in the Presidency of Bengal and adjoining coun-
try. They were also issued in the Presidency of Bombay,
and surveys were ordered to be made is the ❑esdy-
sett'ed provinces, in order that these commissions might
he conducted, when the surveys were completed, with
due efficiency. Now, there is no doubt that during the
last nine years the action of these commissions of in-
quiry into the freehold property of landed estates in
India has been going on at enormous rate, and immense
results have been obtained. Of course, it is excessively
difficult to arrive at very precise calculations on such
matters, clouded in myetery, but from information placed
before me, and in which I have great confidence, I am
induced to believe the amount obtained by the G )vern-
ment of India in this manner—that is, by the resump-
tion of estates from their prooriet ire is not less in the
Presidency of Be-gal than 500.0001. a-year. Conceive
a bat a capital is represented by such an annual revenue !
Conceive the thousands and tens of thousands of estates
that must have been resumed by the Government fretn
the proprietors to obtain such a result. (Hear ) This
is in Bengal alone, but the commission has las) been
issued in the Presidency of Bombay, and has been hard
at work there. I have been informed—and I would not
mention the resul's unless I bad profound conviction
that they are strictly true—that the amount of freehold
,and resumed by the Government of Bombay is not less
than 370,0001. a year. The Preside cy of Madras re-
rria,n-, of which I know nothing. The Nordi-Westere
Provinces, mapped out and surveyed, would pro.
bably, but for the recent affairs, have been eubjectsd to
the same process. I ask the house for a moment t )
pause and consider wha.:, a revolution in property has
been going on under the new system in India, when a
sum exceeding two-thirds of a million of pounds sterling
per annum has been obtained by the Government as ren-
tal of land absolutely taken from the proprietors of the
country. The house will see, as far as I can place before
it the salient points of the question, how the sy-tem has
worked, lion. members see that the law of adoption has
been abolished, a law not affecting kingdoms and princi-
palities merely, but the tenure of land in the whole or
greater part of Hiedostan. The law of adoption is
limited to the Hindoos, but the house will understand
that, so far as the resumption of eetates is concerned,
the sense of injury thereby created affects all classes of
the population and all races. But there is another source
of revenue, which during the last few years recourse has
been had to, and with respect to which the results, as
regards the opinions and sentiments of the population,
are not less important. The house will understand that
when we gradual y obtained absolute possession over
the great kingdoms of India—we often left a nominal
authority— (pomp and pageant of power, to the netive
princes to whom and to tieir heirs and chief deper:d,nts,
the Government accorded pensions. They were perpetual
pensions. For instance, the Nabob of Arcot, when be
ceded the Carnatic, was allowed 4,0001. a-year, and this
revenue was enjoyed for several generations. I mention
this as an illustrative case. Not only the descendants of
the chief, but the Ministers and great personages all had
pensions, which were placed on the Government list of
India, Naw, under the new system these pensions have
been discontinued, and are to be considered as annuities
only. The house will see that this is confiscation by a
new means, but on a most extensive, startling and shock-
ing scale, because the descendants of those ancient Royal
families and nobles find themselves by this new rule re-
duced to a state sf the utmost humiliation. Take the
case of the descendant of that very great chief theNabib
of Arcot, who was alo wed a pension of 4,0001. a-year.
(A.n hon. member.-40,000/.) Well, then, that makes the
case much worse, but I have ratherconfidence in my own
statement. Possibly both statements may be Tight, be-
cause what I speak of may be a portoin gone to one of
the descendants. The son, of course, expected to
hare that revenue, but be was alarmed when he heard
thet the revenue, if he got it, was to be considered an
annuity. Tois, however, it was at once announced that
he should not have ; and I am assured by one who I
think cannot be mistaken that he has received under
the name of an annuity from the Indian Government a

sum in rupees which amount i in pounds sterling to 1501.
Conceive 1501. being' offered to a nun who expected to
receive as much as, according to what we has;e just
heard, 40,0001. a year. Let me read upon this subject
a pa,slge from those minutes which are the keystone of
the new Indian system. The 43d paragraph of the mi-
nutes is in these words :

" During the last autumn the Nawab of the Carnatic
very suddenly died. As the treaty by which the Musuud
of the Carnatic was conferred on his Highness's nedeces-
sor was exclusively a personal one ; as the Nawab had left
no male heir, and as both he and his family had disrepu-
tably abased the dignity of their position aid the large
share of public revenue which bad been allotted to them,
the Court of Directors has been a Ivised to place the title
Of Nawab in abeyance, granting fitting pensions to the
several members of the Carnatic family. Very shortly after
the death of the Nawab of the Carnatic the Rajah of Tan-
jore deceqsed. He left no son and no male heir, diract or
indirect, who bore his name. The Hon. C.,urt was there-
fore advised to resume the large stipend which the Rajah
is id enjoyed as a lapse to the Government, pensions being
granted to the members of the family, as in all similar
cases."

The house will see, therefore, with reference to the
second point, how far, the Governmeet have disturbed
the settlement of property by their tem luct with regard
to the resumption of lends, by abolishing the principle of
adoption, an I by changing into annuities those pensions
on condition of paying which we became lords of the so-
vereignties. That, then, is the second great cause which
has produced general discontent throughout India, and
has estranged numerous and powerful classes from that
authority which I think on the whole they were disposed
to regard with deference. I have now to approach the
third point—that of tampering with the religion of the
people of India. This, lam aware, is one of those sub-
j mts which are called difficelt and delicate, but
no subject is difficult or delicate when the existence
of an empire is at stake, and I shall, therefore, address
myself to this point without any undue reserve. I know
that a great prejudice has been raised in this country
against missionary enterprise in India, and if I could
ascribe to missionary enterprise in that country any share
in the production of those vast calamities which we are
now considering nothing should induce me to shrink from
expressing my opinion upon the subject. When, how-
ever, we hear of missionary enterprise in India being the
source and origin of these disasters and troubles I cannot
but remember that missionary enterprise is no new feature
ittindia. (Hear, hear.) At a period antecedent to the
existence of our empire there were active Christian
missious in India. Roman Catholic missions existed, I
believe, long before the successes achieved by Clive, and
although our own missions are of much more naoderii
date, their greatest efforts—their most energetic ex Lions
—have been co-existent with general satisfaction and
peace ameng all classes in India, and with a vigorous and
successful policy on the part of the Government. With
these facts before me, then, I must hesitate before I attri-
bute to missionary interference any of those calamities and
dangers which we are now considering. The house will
pardon me for making those observations. When the
country is in danger we are very apt to seize the first
plausible reason which may account for that danger, but
the great object of the debate I wish to induce the house to
enter upon is to arrive at sound and safe conclusions as to
the causes of the calamitous events which have moored.
(Hear, hear.) I think very great error exists as to the
assumed prejudices of Hindoos with regard to what is
called neissionary enterprise. The fast is that the Hindoos,
and the Indian population generally, with the exception of
the Musulmano, are educated in a manner which peculiarly
disposes them to theological inquiry. There are no people
who take such interest in religiose; discussions as the Hi ndoos.
They are a most ancient race; they have a mass of tradi-
tion on these subjects; a complete Indian education is in
a great degree religious; their laws, their tenure of land,
depend upon religion; and there is no race in the world
better armed at all points for theological discussion than
they are. Add to this that they can always fall back
upon an educated priesthood, prepared to supply them
with arguments and illustrations when they require such
assistance. So far from the Hindoo looking with suspicion
upon the missionaries, I am convinced from what I have
read and heard, that the Hindoo is at an times ready to
discuss theological. questions with the missionarY•
remember reading years ago a history of -the Roman
Catholic mission in India, written by an abbe who was a
man of admirable piety, of great knowledge, and of im-
maculate character, who, I believe had spent the whole
of his life in India ; and no man who has read that
impartial and able work can suppose for a moment that
missionary enterprise, whether conducted by Roman
Catholics, Protestants, or any denomina'ion of Christians,
would ever cause any serious dissension between the
!Endo° population and the country. But what the
Hiudoo does dread—what ha regards with the utmost
jealousy what he looks upon with undying appre-
hension, is the union of missionary enterprise with the
power of the Government. (Hear, hear.) With the
idea of Government he associates power ; he associates
with power only one idea violence ; he remembers
the missionary enterprise of the Mussulmans, who
bore the Koran in one hand and cimiter in
the other; and, although he is perfectly ready
to live upon the best terms wtth the missionary pure
and simple, and to enter into interminable theological
arguments with him, the moment he suspects the mission.
ary is sanctioned by the Government—that authority anti-
cipates conversion—the most sensitive feeli !Ts of the Hindoo
are outraged. (Hear, hear.) No taxation, however
grievous, no injustice, however glaring, acts so dangerously
upon the Hindoo character as the persuasion that the au-
thority of the Crown is exercised to induce hire to aban-
don the religion he professes. Now, have the Government