The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-20 00:00:00

THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA AND THE ICING OF DELHI.

Mr. THOMPSON rose to bring under the consideration
of the Court the following motion :—" That he will
call the attention of the Proprietors to the treatdent of
his Majesty the King of Delhi by the Government of
India." He (Mr. Thompson) wished to bring this sub-
ject before the Court in the most calm and temperate
manner. He wished that justice should be done to the
King of Delhi, whose father and grandfather had held
sway. All that was now asked was that good faith
should be observed—that engagements entered into
should be strictly performed. In the line of succession
the Kings of Delhi had sat upon the throne of that part
of India 318 years. The Hon. Proprietor quoted the
history of the Kings of Delhi and the grounds of com-
plaint the King has against the Indian Government, as
set forth in a pamphlet entitled " The British Govern-
ment and the Royal House of Delhi." It was quite clear
that certain lands were to be assigned to the King of
Delhi, in order to enable him to keep up s proper dig-
nity, aid that it was the intention of the Governor-
General that he should have an ample allowance for that
purpose. The amount of thirty lets of rupees, which
was proposed by the Marquis of Wellesley, was not the
maximum of the proposed grant, but on the contrary,
it was evident from his Lordship's dispatches that he
intended to go further, if, on subsequent inquiries, the
exigencies of the case rendered it necessary. Part of
the lands then proposed to be assigned to the King of
Delhi were now yielding an excess of thirty-five lacs a
year. With reference to the grant proposed, the
Governor-General said, "It is not, however, the inten-
tion of the Governor-General to fix the amount without
further information which may enable his Excellency to
judge of the exigencies of the royal household, and of
extent of the additional resources which the British
Government has acquired in the Doab and in Hindostan,
by the cessious of the peace with Dowlut Rao Scindiah."
In the fourteenth paragraph the Governor-General ex-
pressly says, that the income arising both from the assigned
territories and the money payments from the British
Treasury is to be "exclusively at the disposal of his
Majesty." In a subsequent part of the dispatch, it was
stated that the Governor-General did not deem it
advisable to enter into any written agreement with the
King of Delhi.—(Cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN (interrupting Mr. Thompson)—How
do you reconcile that with the statement of Ikrarnama ?
Mr. TMoMPsoN said he never contended that the do-
cument was an absolute treaty entered into by the par-
ties. All he had said was, that it was signed by one
party, and submitted to the other for approbation, the
party so submitting it, of course, being willing to abide
by it, provided the other party consented, and which,
therefore, gave it, as far as the party proposing it was
concerned, all the effect of an agreement. The Hon.
Proprietor here read extracts from a variety of docu-
ments and dispatches, and said the question for the con-
sideration of the Proprietors on the present occasion was,
what was the nature of the engagement which Lord
Wellesley, on the part of the British Government, had en-
tered into with the King of Delhi? The document on that
subject, to which he had already referred, was the one
to which he again begged to call their particular atten-
tion. In conclusion, the Hon. Proprietor said, that after
looking to the many favours wkich the Kings of Delhi
had bestowed upon the East India Company, the assu-
rances that had been given by Lord Lake, the present
condition of the Royal Family of Delhi—a family that
had shown as little hostility to British power as any
Royal Family with which the East India Company had
ever had anything to do—and looking at the professions
which had been made by the Court of Directors, of their
desire at all times to promote the welfare of the native
Princes of India, as far as was consistent with the safety
of their own Government, he trusted that the Court of
Proprietors would come to the conclusion that the whole
question ought to be taken into consideration by the
Court of Directors. He concluded by moving for the
production of certain dispatches and papers with refer-
ence to the case of the King of Delhi.
The motion having been,seconded,
The CHAIRMAN opposed the motion.
After some discussion,

The CIIIIRMAN put the qustion, which was negatived
by a very considerable majority, only four hands having
been bold up in favour of it.
The Court then adjourned.

STATE OF THE TYNE.—The accumulation of
ships, from the late contrary winds and strong sea at the
bar, is now so great, that the harbour at Shields is in a
very dangerous condition; and if any of our friends and
neighbours in Newcastle or Shields are sceptical enough
to doubt, or obtuse enough not to understand, the
pressing necessity which exists for propor mooring being
laid down in the river, and for a night police to be main-
tained thereon, we respectfully invite them, before what
is termed a sea tide comes, when the ships can get out,
to take boat at the high-end of South Shields, and pull
leisurely down to the Low Lights, and they will see
every berth, safe or unsafe, fully occupied. If another
fleet of light vessels should come in before the pre-
sent loaden fleet be gone, they will be obliged to go
up to Jarrowslake, and bring up. In many cases,
twelve ships and upwards are in one tier, moored to
wooden posts on the shore. These posts are all pri-
vate property ; and when the tides are very strong, or
the flood of the oountry water comes down heavy, they
frequently break, and occasion the tiers to get adrift,
forcing the ships into collision, and driving them on the
bank, so that considerable damage is done. Should the
frost become severe this winter, and the ice break up
suddenly, most serious disasters would ensue. We ear-
nestly trust that the conservators of the river will take
this matter into their deep consideration.— Tyne Mercury.

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS.

FROM TEE EVENING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.

GLOBE.—Petty Sessions justice has passed into a
proverb of reproach for its dissimilarity to that substan-
tial justice which under the forms and by the sanction of
law, ought to be administered in a free country. The vast
disproportion between the fines imposed by magistrates on
summary convictions for trifling offences, and the fees
demanded on those convictions by their clerks, has been
the subject of frequent remark. The latter, being often
from ten to twenty times the amount of the former, and,
being beyond the means of payment by the defendant;
have caused the petty delinquent to be imprisoned
for several days or weeks, at the discretion of the ma-
gistrates, entailing all the consequences, personal and
relative, which such a proceeding is calculated to pro-
duee. The evil has been somewhat modified ; and, to a
slight extent, mitigated. The source of the mischiefs
has, however, remained untouched. The system of pay-
ing magistrates' clerks, and the other functionaries—
whose " expenses" press in such cases with ruinous
severity on the class of persons who constitute the great
mass of those who are summarily convicted—by fees,
instead of by salary, required to be abolished.
That system, however, was retained ; and, while it
continues, will operate as an engine of oppres-
sion, and source of misery and demoralization
on the lower classes ; while it will increase the burdens
upon the county and parish rates—upon the former, for
the expense of maintaining the poor defendant in the
gaol; and to the latter, to support his wife and family in
the union, or by an allowance in money to prevent them
from going thither. This, however, is not the only form
in which the system works to the discredit of justice, as
administered in petty sessions. The defendant is not the
only party who is made to suffer by its operation. If the
convicted party be unable to pay the fine and the fees,
he or she is committed to gaol ; and thus pays in person
through inability to pay by purse. The Queen loses the
amount of the penalty, whether it be a penny or a pound.
But not so the magistrates' clerk, and the other fee-paid
officers of the petty sessions court. The complainant
must pay them. lie may be a poor cottager ; his garden-
hedge or gate may have been broken by the act of a
malicious neighbour, and the growing crop of vege-
tables, on which he has bestowed great labour and
care, may have been extensively injured by the act ; he
may have been also assaulted by the person who has
perpetrated the offence against his property. For the of-
fence he causes the party to be brought before a magis-
trate, who convicts him summarily, and inflicts a fine
and costs—and, on the non-payment of which, to
be imprisoned for a specified period. The de-
fendant does not pay, and is committed. And
there the matter ends, so far as the complainant
is concerned, would be the conclusion to which every
one who, in ignorance of the law and practice in such
cases made and provided, had merely watched the pro-
ceeding up to this point. The poor man had been
seriously injured. He had obtained no compensation for
the wrong ; but he had caused the wrong-doer to be
punished by the law ; and had thus taught him, and
taught others actuated by mischief or malice, that
they c‘innot indulge their propensities or passions
with impunity. A person who would so reason
would obviously reckon without his host. The law,
in the person of the magistrate's clerk, has yet a hold
upon the person, or purse, of the poor complainant.
And, if he be unable to meet his claim for the fees
incurred in obtaining satisfaction and protection
against the party who injured him—why then, as,
an illustration of petty sessions justice, he will by sum-
mary process be sent to keep company with the party he
has prosecuted ! We are not drawing an imaginary
sketch. Our observations are founded on facts, for
which we are indebted to a correspondent, to whose for-
nier communications respecting petty sessions practice in
his neighbourhood, we have been indebted for some
striking illustrations of " Justice's Justice."

STANDARD.—We do not think that by any means
too much importance is attached in this country
to public dinners, though it has been a fashion
with many abroad, and to some among ourselves,
to sneer at such demonstrations. The principle
of centralisation, now contended for with so much zeal
by particular schools of politicians, is neither congenial
to the feelings and habits, nor consistent with the con-
stitution of this free country. Englishmen like to form
their own opinions, and to express those opinions in their
own way—like to express their personal indignation,
when they think they have reason to be indignant, in
their own words, and when the debt of gratitue is to
be paid to a great public benefactor, they will not
forego the high gratification of paying their share
of the debt in their own persons. The Constitution
allows them this indulgence, and the effect is in the
highest degree beneficial ; for the punishment of mis-
conduct or the reward of merit is thus multiplied in-
finitely beyond the force of a single censure from
any authority how high soever, or the greatest fa-
vour in the power of the Crown or the Legislature
to confer. Public dinners, however, present one of
the most convenient channels for the expression
of the public sentiment, and there is no danger that
they will ever have the effect of perverting that
sentiment, for they will be always estimated at
their proper value. A dinner to Mr. O'Connell at
Covent garden, presided over by Mr. Thomas
buncombe, and enrictied by the speeches of
Mr. Coppock (we forget the 'other speakers), is a dif-
ferent matter from a public dinner given to Sir 11. Pot-
finger, under the presidency of the chief magistrate of such
a town as Liverpool, attended by a principal Minister of
the Crown, Lord Stanley, and by such men as Lord San-
don, Mr. W. Patten, Mr. Entwisle, and the leading mer-
chants of the second commercial emporium of the world.
Such a dinner as the latter is not inferior in interest and
importance to the most serious and most dignified
discussion of the Legislature ; and it presents the
advantage of a gratifyini harmony, never found in
Parliamentary debates. These reflections are sug-
gested by the proceedings at the late Liverpool
dinner, a report of which will be found in our
first page. Will the reader forgive one other pre-
liminary reflection, before alluding particularly to
the incidents of this splendid national celebration ?
We are, unfortunately, old enough to remember the
address of the House of Commons to the Duke
of Wellington, upon his return from the Penin-
sula., delivered with such feeling and eloquence by
the then Speaker, the late Lord Colchester. It was
remarked upon the occasion, for the scene made
a great impression through the whole country
—" That such rewards must make heroes."
" No," replied a veteran fellow soldier of the Duke's,
" heroes are never made—least of all are they made by
the prospect of rewards, even as precious as this. Heroes
are inspired by the consciousness of genius and the con-
suming sense of duty, which extinguishes all selfish feel-
ing—when the country gives to them the meed of her
approbation, she gratifies herself and honours her-
self. I, though not accustomed to shed tears, wept like
a child at the scene in the House of COMMOAS—
wept for joy, not that I was the hero's fellow soldier, but
that I was an Englishman, and that as an Englishman,
I too had my share in paying the debt of gratitude." A
feeling of the same kind, though perhaps different in
degree, will, we are persuaded, affect every reader of the
honours rendered at Liverpool to our great pacific con-
queror. Apart from these considerations, however,
the proceedings upon the occasion are full of interest. Sir
H. Pottinger's speech is precisely what might be expected
from so great a man. An inferior or less ingenuous per-
son would have magnified his service by expatiating
upon its difficulties, as enormous difficulties the Right
Hon. Bart. niust have had to encounter. Sir Henry
alludes to nothing of the kind : he speaks
warmly and generously of the encouragement and
support of the Queen's Government, and of the bound-
less confidence reposed in him ; delights to honour
the hearty and effectual co-operation of his naval and
military colleagues, and takes a noble pleasure in
doing justice to the wisdom and good faith of the
diplomatists with whom he had to deal, whom he
will scarcely allow to have been opposed to him: his own
share in the negotiation is treated as nothing. In a word,
according to Sir Henry Pottinger's account, Sir Henry
Pottinger was a mere cipher. You may hear of his
talents and labours, the difficulties he overcame,

the immense service he rendered to his country
everywhere except in his own speech. This is the true
English spirit, the spirit that claims no merit for self in
the faithful discharge of duty, however gloriously or
successfully the duty has been discharged, but anxiously
and gratefully devolves the praise upon all who have
contributed to its success.

MONEY MARKET and CITY NEWS

CITY, WEDNESDAY EVENING.

TIMES.—The premium on gold at Paris is 12 per mills,
which, at the English Mint price of 3/. 17s. 10d. per
ounce far standard gold gives an exchange of 25
45 ; and the exchange at Paris on London at short
being 25 574, it follows that gold is 0.49 per cent.
dearer in London than in Paris.

The course of exchange at New York on London is
110 k per cent., and the par of exchange between Eng-
land and America being 109 23-40 per cent., it follows
that the exchange is 0.68 per cent. in favour of England.
But the quoted exchange at New York being for bills
at 60 days' sight, the interest must be added to the
above difference.

We are requested to state, that a paragraph which
appeared in our last paper, copied from the Perthshire
Courier, having reference to the sale of the estates of
the late Lord Lyndoch in Perthshire, is incorrect in
several places. The sales of Lynedoch and Balgowan,
to Messrs. Simpson and Thomson, are made by Mr.
Graham of Balgowan, not by the trustees of Lord Lyne-
doch, and are conditional sales, dependent upon Mr.
Graham's power to sell, which is disputed by the heirs
of entail, and will form a question in the courts of law
—Edinburgh Advertiser.
STEAM-BOAT COLLISION OFF OSTEND.—lnforma-
tion has been received that the Princess Mary and the
Princess Alice came into collision on Tuesday, as thi
former, in a dense fog, was leaving Ostend with the
mail, and the latter entering. No lives have been lost
but much damage has been done to the vessels, the
Princess Mary suffering the most ; a week or two will,
however, put her right. The mail was landed, and willcome over to-day. A vessel will be immediately put
upon the station, to fill the Princess Mary's place until
she is able to resume her post.

ANOTHER CARRIAGE ROMlERT.—Wednesday infor-
mation was :given to the Metropolitan Police, that on
Saturday while the cariage of D. Banks, Esq.,
of 2,
Devonshire-place, last,re-plice, was in the road between Dart-
ford and:London, some thieves contrived to detach a large
box from the hind part of the carriage, with which they
got clear off. The box contained a quantity of wearing
apparel, consisting of dresses, silk and velvet shawls and
mantles, and several pairs of silk stockings, lace hand-
kerchiefs, articles of jewellery, and also some under
elgthing•

LAW INTELLIGENCE.
COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, Der. 19.
(Sittings in London, before the LORD CurEF JrrsicE
and a Special Jury.)