lament the death of Sir John Clavering in warm and affectionate terms, as a great and public loss to the East India company and to his country. So indeed it proved: for the governor general, no longer restrained by the prefence of this inflexible CENSOR, fixing his eyes on the western fide of the continent, perceived an immenfe field in which his ambitious and restless difpofition might find a boundless scope of activity and exertion *.

On

On the 28th of January, 1778, the governor intro

duced the fubject at the fupreme board in a very long minute, unfolding in a fufficiently unequivocal manner

his

"Your lordship will foon perceive how much it is the general object of this reprefentation to establish an opinion, that to make the poffeffion of Bengal beneficial and permanent, we should revert to the ancient inftitutions of the country, as far as we are acquainted with them, and present circumstances will permit. If it were not for the experience of fome years paft, it might be fuperfluous to say, that we provide for our interests when we confult the happiness and profperity of the people who labour for us.

"It appears to have been the company's original policy, or that of lord Clive, to govern these provinces through the medium of the fubahdar, and the best they could adopt, supposing them to interpose in any shape in the internal government. This system was foon violated in fact, and not long afterwards avowedly renounced. The predominant power of the council at Calcutta neceffarily reduced the Subahdar to a cipher, and left him and his subjects, as it always will do, a prey to individuals. Forms and appearances were, however, in some degree preserved till the death of Syef ul Dowla, in 1770. From that period we fee nothing in the administration of public affairs but enormous abufes on one fide, and an abfolute want of power or perfeverance to correct them on the other. The fubahdar's authority, fince the company's acceptance of the Dewannee, has been gradually reduced under three fucceffive nabobs, and is now merely titular in the perfon of Mobarck ul Dowla. The adminiftration of criminal justice is, however, still exercised in his name by the naib fubah Mahomed Reza Khan, and we fometimes avail on selves of the pretence of his authority in our differences with the foreign factories.

"The company hold the Dewannee by grant of the mogul, Sha Allum. The treaty concluded by lord Clive, August 1765, not only acknowledges him as king of Bengal, but fecures to him the full poffeffion of Korah and Illahabad, as a royal demesne for the support of his dignity and expences; and by a particular agreement between him and the company, of the fame date, they engage themselves to be fecurity for the payment of twentyfix lacks a year, out of the territorial revenue, in confideration of his majefty's having been gracioufly pleased to grant them the Dewannee of Bengal. Your lordship knows how little these treaties have been regarded. His tribute was stopped, and his country, though avowedly entrusted to our good faith, and accepted as a depofit, fold to Sujah ul Dowla.

"The British power is now unquestionably the first in India, at least for defence. To make it refpectable in itself, and beneficial to mankind, it must be guided by solid, judicious principles of policy, and they must be steadily purfued. Enough has been done to establish the reputation of our arms. If we mean to keep what we have acquired, fome care muft be taken to establish an opinion of our steadiness and juftice.

"With refpect to the amount and collection of the revenues, the principal questions are ist, Whether the lands thall be restored to the hereditary owners? 2dly, Whether the revenues payable to government shall be fixed immutably at a certain fum? and 3dly, By what rule or ftandard that fum shall be afcertained? To the two first questions I have invariably given an affirmative answer, founded on reasons which I deem incontrovertible. The third must be determined by the capacity of the country, estimated from an average of the actual collections, and combined with the indifpensable demands of government. The farming system was adopted as the act of a proprietor, with a professed view of discovering the ultimate value of

the

his vast and daring projects." If REPORT Could be be"lieved," Mr. Hastings said, "written engagements had paffed between the Mahratta court and M. St. Lubin, the object of which, whatever it be, must, if attempted, prove destructive to the British trade and influence in India. Although the Mahratta power, unallied with other states, was unable to cope with the company, yet, sustained by the French, they are qualified to refuse acquiefcence with our demands, which demands the island of Baffeen offers as the only prospect of a security: that no obligation precludes us from demanding it, nor can any blame be imputed to us, if, as the superior power, we prescribe the terms of accommodation."

To

In

the estate, or the utmost that could be obtained from it. Your lordship will judge how far the end, fuppofing it attainable, could justify the means. general Clavering, colonel Monton, and myfelf, it always appeared an arbitrary, unexampled act of power, without a shadow of right to fupport it. The principle on which it went annihilated every idea of private property, while in fact it has been ruinous to the country, for the fole benefit of the company's fervants and their banyans. But even if the farms bad, in every instance, been fairly allotted to the highest bidders, the measure could have produced no other consequence than that of forcibly alienating the whole landed property of the country in favor of indigent strangers and adventurers, equally ignorant of the value and circumstances of the farm, and careless how much they offered for immediate poffeffion. The last settlement made by the COMMITTEE OF CIRCUIT promised an immoderate increase of revenue, at a time when the famine had swept away ONE THIRD of the inhabitants, and when the country was reprefented to be in a general state of decay. What the real object of the measure was, may be collected from the fuccefs of it.

"The balances and semiffions on the fettlements of the last five years amount to the enormous fum of two hundred and thirty lacks of Sicca u pees. The plain truth is, that over-ratement and remission play into each other's hands. If the country be exorbitantly taxed, the governor and council must be trusted with a difcretionary power to make remiffions. This latitude once given, or affumed, it may be impoffible to determine in what manner it is applied, or where the remiffions centre at last, since the distribution may be fo formed as to interest all parties in concealing it.

If we had no facts or experience to guide our conjectures, it is apparent that a country exposed to arbitrary variations in the annual assesiments, at the difcretion of a council of state, especially at this immenfe distance from the feat of empire, offers temptations which will not be ALWAYS resisted. Improvements in fuch a state of things are not to be expected, for who will employ his money or his labor in the cultivation of a foil that does not belong to him? or when he has no security that the whole produce may not be extorted from him by a new affeflment?-The fame fyftem of taxation which annihilates the property, attacks the industry of the subject, and invades the fources of production.

" A NEW PRINCIPLE must be affumed for the government of the country, or it MUST FALL. The plain and simple remedy is, to oblige the company to revert to their original principles, to renounce the unnatural character in which they have lately acted, and, if it be poffible, TO BECOME MERCHANTS AGAIN."

In addition to this demand, Mr. Hastings in the plan subsequently laid by him before the board, required " that the Mahratta government give such security for the perfonal fafety of Ragonaut Row as he himself shall require; that a specific sum be demanded to reimburse the company for their late military charges; that a grant of territory be made contiguous to Basseen; and that no European fettlement be allowed on the Mahratta coafts without consent of the company." At the same time he communicated a plan formed by the prefidency of Bombay, to reinstate Ragonaut Row in the peishwaship by force of arms, being invited to this enterprise by fundry members of the Mahratta government.

After much oppofition from Mr. Francis and Mr. Wheeler, who had recently succeeded fir John Clavering as a member of the board, the governor's proposals were carried in council by his own casting vote; and it was finally determined to support Ragonaut Row, in the event of the infraction of the Poonah or Poorunder treaty, AS NOW EXPLAINED. Afferting that "the presidency of Bengal was in a condition to assist Bombay abundantly with men and money to carry on the Mahratta war," Mr. Hastings proposed to march a large detachment of the company's troops across the continent, for the purpose of reinforcing the Bombay army. This also being carried in the fame manner, the destined reinforcement under colonel Leflie commenced this unprecedented march of 1100 miles early in May 1778.

Previous to this event, a letter was received from the court of directors, positively enjoining a strict adherence to the treaty of Poorunder. But Mr. Hastings, in a haughty and peremptory tone, declared "his unalterable determination to prosecute the measures in which he had now engaged to the utmost of his power."

In order to promote and corroborate the success of his project, Mr. Hastings had for fome time past most affiduoufly

oufly courted the friendship and alliance of the rajah of Berar, Moodajee Boofla, whose dominions occupied the intermediate space between those of the company and of the Mahratta states, inciting and urging that prince, who was far advanced in years, and of a mild and pacific dispofition, openly to avow his claim to the sovereignty of the Mahrattas, to which the rajah had some obfcure and remote pretenfions. " In the whole of my conduct," says the governor general in a letter addressed to the prime minifter of the court of Naigpore (November 1778), “I have departed from the common line of policy, and have made advances when others in my fituation would have. waited for folicitations; but I trust to the approved bravery and spirit of the Maha-rajah, that he will ardently catch at the objects presented to his ambition."

Moodajee Boofla was, however, so far from being willing to embark himself and his fortunes in the wild and crude projects of the English governor, that he wrote with his own hand a letter to Mr. Hastings, inculcating, in very respectful terms, and in a manner, which did equal honor to his head and his heart, the most just and falutary maxims of conduct both moral and political :-" Your friendly letter," says the rajah, " of the 19th Ramzan informs me that you have given directions to colonel Leflie to co-operate with the forces which I shall unite with his ; that as you offer me the forces of the Circar to promote my views, you in return request the assistance of mine to effect your purposes; that having thus explained to me your fentiments and views, you wait only to know mine. -The having caused a translation to be made into English of the Hindoo books called the Shafta, &c. and keeping the pictures of the former kings of Hindostan before your eyes, from their lifeless similitudes to discover which of them were worthy of rule and poffefsed of good faithalfo the endeavor to preferve the blessing of peace till forced to relinquish it-the supporting of every one in his hereditary