The Irish standard., 1899-02-04
CLlyE AND WARREN HASTINGS
Impeachment Of the Latter by Two
Great IriShmen
AGAINST COLONIAL EXPANSION
interesting Contribution by the
Brilliant Orator.

Under the caption, "England's Policy
Is Our Warning" William ]. Bryan, the
eloquent Nebraskan, contributes a
lengthy article to the New York Jour-
nal, in which he refers to England's
government of India as follows:
The prosecution of Hastings for
wrongs inflicted upon the people of India
occupies a conspicuous place among the
political trials of history. The speeches
made against him recall the orations of
Cicero against Verres who, by the way,
was also charged with plundering a
colony.
Cicero said that Verres relied for his
hope of escape upon his ability to cor
rupt the Judges of his day, and 1t ap-
pears that the East India company was
also accused of polluting the stream of
justice only a century ago.
In his speech on the Nabob of Arcot's
debts, Burke said: LET no man here
after talk of the decaying energies of
nature. All the acts and monuments in
the records of peculation, the consoli-
dated corruption of ages, the pattern of
exemplary plunder in the heroic times
of Roman iniquity never equaled the gi-
gantic corruption of this single act
Never did Nero, in all the insolent prod
igality of despotism, deal out to his
praetorian guards donation fit to be
named with the largess showered
down by the bounty of our chancellor
on the faithful band of his Indian Sc
poys."
How little human nature changes
from age to age! How weak is the
boasted strength of the arm of the law
when the defendant possesses the influ-
ence purchased by great wealth, how
ever obtained, and the accusation comes
from far-off victim of oppression!
Those who expect justice to be exer-
cised by officials far removed from the
eeive their commissions from, and can
not be removed by, the people whom
they govarn-should read Sheridan's
great speech portraying the effect of the
Hastings policy upon the people Of
India.
No clearer case was ever made against
prisoner at the bar, and yet, after
seven years trial before the house of
lords, Hastings was acquitted, not be-
cause he was guiltless, but because Eng
land had acquired territory by his
policy.
Lord Macaulay, in describing the
crimes perpetrated at that time against
a helpless people, gave expression to
truth which has lost none of it's force
with the lapse of years. He says: "And
then was seen what we believe to be the
most frightful of all spectacles-the
strength of civilization without its
mercy. To all other despotism there is
check, imperfect indeed and liable to
gross abuse, but still sufficient to pre-
serve society from the last extreme of
misery A time comes when the evils
of submission are obviously greater than
those of resistance, when fear itself be-
gets sort of courage, when convulsive
burst of popular rage and despair warns
, tyrants not to presume too far on the
government such as then afflicted Ben
gal it is impossible to struggle. The
superior intelligence and energy of the
dominant class made their power irre-
sistible. A war of Bengalese against
Englishmen was like war of sheep
against wolves, of men against demons"
True, Macaulay argues that English
morality, tardily but finally, followed
English authority into the Orient; but,
as matter of fact, the bleeding of India
has continued Systematically during the
present century. Polite and refined
methods have been substituted for the
rude and harsh ones formerly employed,
and the money received is distributed
among larger number, but the total
sum annually drawn from India is
greater now than 1t was when England's
foremost orators and statesmen were
demanding the Impeachment of notori-
GUS malefactors.
On the 28th of December, 1S97-only a
year ago-a meeting of the London In
dian society was held at Montague man
sions and strong resolutions were adopt
ed Below will be found an extract
from the resolutions:
THAT this conference of Indians resi-
dent in the United Kingdom, is Of
opinion
That of all the evils and terrible
misery that India has been suffering for
a century and half, and OF which o,e
latest developments are the most de-