The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1858-02-06
Tho East India Company,

Asia, Occupying originally comparatively
small territory In the Northwest corner Of
Europe, and 90 remote from the centres OF
political influence rs to be- Tookoned almost
beyond lhc limits Of international intercourse,
il has by ~ lndomitahlc industry and COM
mcrcial enterprise, carried its arts and lnslI-
mlilHs a. the rcmDtcst c0rnpra ~ the earth
ard subjected more than Two hundred Mill
ions Of thc human pco 20 ils sway, Bot Of
nll tho countries Il has brought under ~
dominion, India has yielded the largest nib
utc to H. accumulation of wealth and power.
The East India Company whose operations
Tor more than two hundred years have been
q fertile source " wealth, war and territorial
acquisition TO the British Nation, wa, organ
lied In the year 1000, under the title Of the
?" London, Company" by the Earl Of Gambler
land IT, original capital was 10000, d.
yidcd among two hundred and ilfeen stock
holdcr, IT, sole object was trade, Ia lGl2
10, capital Atoca was increased to El2O0uO,
and permission was obtained from the local
authorities 10 establish factories Tor trade NJ
sur5t & hmrau1ud crntl,ry aHd G"Fa, 'lhe
fist territorial acquisition made hy the Com
pary WAS % strip ornud, about five miles Co.
length, on the Coromaudcl coast where Ma
dras now stands, Tho grant was made for
the erection Of atown aud fort, This soon
became the chief place Of trade on. the coast
and has been, since the territorial division Of
British India, the capital OF the Presidency of
Madras In lGlI permission was obtained
hy the Company to erect trading httorics at
Baasorc and lIooRly On the llccfk lii,cr
one Of the uayigable outlets of the G-ngoN
Twenty years later the island Of bombay
was cedcl hy Portugal 20 Charles II Of En-
gland, aud was subsequently made over 70
the Company, and continued for long time
to be the capital of all the British settlements
Of the East. In 1905 the FIRST grant Of land
was procured on the Gongc' and on il was
established the factory Of Fort William, since
called Calcutta. This place Is now the great
commercial emporium OF the East. From
these email acquisitions Of territory, which
were ma,h exclusively for facilitating It's
" ltNt Wv .hlil'Aflf AtAA'AkN Wv aAN w WV
British Government his continued to annex
by purchase or suWurntioh, until nearly the
whole Of India, embracing over a million
square miles, and population Of one hum
drod and geyeniy millions las become subject
TO It's control or supervision. Various modi-
iications Of the Company charter have been
made from time to time, as they enlarged
tiTrir territorial O0QuisitionA In 1867 Parlia-
mcnt enacted that in consideration Of the
annual payment OF tfuuU0O, the Company
should retain poSscssjuu OF It's acquired TeFFi-
tory for two wears At the expiration Of this
period the grant continued upon the same
terms for five years. In 1913 the affairs of
the Company having become embarrassed
sumcd the regulation Of its affairs 1t Gre
a;cd q Board Of Control composed of twenty
four Directors. The Directors were to be
elected by the proprictors, a fourth part Of
them annually, and to hold office -four years.
In order toNote for Directors proprietors must
own stock 10 the amount of El,unu,-By an
act of Parliament in 1893 all tho British ter.
ritorics in India with tho exclusive trade
Herewith, were guaranteed to the Company
for twenty years. in consideration of E5nu,-
900 to he paid annually to the Crown. At
the expiration Of this period, this charter was
renewed for another twenty years. In 1884
by et4othcr Act Of Parliament, the commercial
privileges of the Company were abolished
4 al. I. / 4
to all British subjects. Since that time the
corrpuny- has existed selels -feF-tAa- gaparna-
ment Of the vast dominiops it had previously
annexed t. The British Crown. According
to the Encyclopedia Britannica, from which
We have already quoted the East India Com
pany nav consists Of 100 proprictors who
arc privileged to meet in open court and vote.
ElOO0 stock entities proprietor to one vote,
f30o0 to two votes, f6,000 to three votes,
and Elo,O0O and upwards to four votes. The
total number Of votes is 1000. The Propric
tors meet four times n year. Their powers,
are limited to the election of board of ~
Directors who must be born or naturaliged
subjects Of Great Britain, and possessed of
$4,000 stock in the Company. They also
frame the Bylaws for the government Of thci
Tompanys affairs and regulate the salaries of
Is officers. For the administration of it's
government India is divided into the three
Presidencies of Bengal, Madras and Bombay
The Court of Directors dominates Govern
1r General and a Council Of five, who receive
heir commission from the Crown and conSti- !
ute Board of Control. They declare war,
make peace and treaties Of commerce and al |
iance,an enact laws that have force through /
,ut.all the territories of British India. The |
Governor General is Governor Of the Presi- /.
lency Of Bengal 9nd receives an annual sala.
y Of E24,O OO The Presidcncics Of Madras I
md Bombay have each subordinate Gov
,rnor and Council of three, appointed In like .
manner. The Crown retains tho power of re-
moving from Office, at pleasure, any person
luldiug office under the COMPANY. and the .