The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-11-15 00:00:00

INDIA

We have intelligence by overland mail from Calcutta,
Oct. 4 ; Bombay, Oct. 14; Burmah, Sept. 19; and Hong
Kong, Sept. 27. Our advices from Burmah are to the
19th ultimo. The whole of the country on the eastern
side of the Irrawaddy is in the hands of the dacoits or
patriots, who have pillaged and burned most of the towns
in the district. On the other side of the river the gar-
risons'of small towns have been attacked, and the towns
themselves given to the flames. The adroitness of these
robbers is remarkable; they invariably employ stratagem,
make a sham attack on the garrison to distract attention
and keep its defenders employed, while their main body
plunder the town; they then betake themselves to their
boats, which they propel through the water at a speed
defying capture, and so escape. As to the Ryots, they
are dependent upon us, but we afford them no assistance :
they are plundered by the dacoits, and we do not protect
them, and the robber chiefs have taken advantage of our
supineness to point out to them that the policy which we
pursued in 1825 will be next year repeated by us, that in
fact we will then evacuate the country, when those who
have now transferred their allegance to the British
Sircar will be left to the mercy of the government which
they abandoned, and then the court of Ava will inflict
summary punishment upon them. Thus is the fidelity of
our newly-acquired subjects jeopardised, while many that
would otherwise join us are deterred from doing so. Nor
does there appear any possibility of exterminating those ,1
marauders in our own possessions. • No sooner are they
worsted by us than they retreat beyond our frontier, whi-
ther we cannot follow them ; nor can we starve them or
the court at Ava into submission, as all their supplies come
from the northward ; so that, viewing the matter in an
impartial manner, and bearing in mind that these robbers
are numbered by thousands, there is but one course to be
pursued—Ava must be conquered. There seems nothing
else for it ; willing or unwilling, the advance is forced on
us, and there is no retreating. The whole of Pegu is to
constitute hereafter one division, to the command of which
Sir John Cheape has been nominated. An attack is anti-
cipated from Meah Toon's followers at Henzada, and troops
have been sent from Rangoon to that station ; a necessary
step, perhaps, but yet to be deplored, as the garrison at
Rangoon has thereby been weakened.

Captain .James, the Deputy Commissioner at Peshawur,
has offered a reward of 6000 rupees for the detection of
any of the accomplices in Colonel Mackeson's murder. It
is said that either Colonel Outram or Major Edwardes will
be appointed to the Commissionership now vacant in the
North-west. Orders have been issued for the immediate
march from Rawul Pindee te Peshawur of six companies
of her IVlesty's 22nd Foot, the 4th Regiment N. I. and
the 7th Irregular Cavalry,
It is reported that a Russian army had advanced within
ten marches of Oorgune, the commercial capital of Khiva,
and that the Khans of Khiva and Bokhara had headed
their troops to resist the enemy. It is said that the Rus-
sians avow their object to be, the subjugation of the
country, and that the neutrality of Dost Mahommed of
Cabal, has been purchased. The Shah of Persia, too, has
assembled a large army in the valley of Sooltania, which
is to operate against the Turks. The Hon. James Tho-
mason, Lieut. Governor of the North-west Provinces, died
on the 27th ult. Accounts from Bhawulpoor represent a
lamentable state of affairs in the dominions of our old ally
the deceased Bhawul Khan. Colonel Low, C. 8., has
taken his seat as third ordinary member of the Council in
the room of Sir Walter Raleigh Gilbert, deceased, and this
is the only item of intelligence from the Eastern presidency.
Lord and Lady Falkland are at the Hills ; his lordship, it
is said, will not leave Bombay until after the arrival of his
successor. Lord Frederick Fitzclarence is still in Poona,
and purPnana making an extensive tour in the ensuing
cold weather. General Stavely has proceeded to Madras
to take up the command of that army ; Sir Richard Arm-
strong, it is understood, will leave India by the Barham in
December next.

A new bank, to be called the " Mercantile Bank of
Bombay," has been started, and the shares are at a pre-
mium of 4 per cent. The state of trade is dull and depressed,
but money is abundant.