START UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY MICROFILMED 1992 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY PHOTOGRAPHIC SERVICE BERKELEY, CA 94720 MAY BE COVERED BY COPYRIGHT LAW TITLE 17 U.S. CODE REPRODUCTIONS AVAILABLE THROUGH UC BERKELEY GENERAL LIBRARY INTERLIBRARY LOAN OFFICE Eastwick, Edward AUTHOR : Baekhouse, 1814-1883 Speech of Captain re Eastwick, at a special covrt of proprietors, held at the East Indiq Hovse...1858 PLACE : London DATE : I858 VOLUME : CALL y M NEG : 90- NO ° P37 “4175 FILMED AND PROCESSED BY LIBRARY PHOTOGRAPHIC SERVICE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY, CA 94720 sosno. 179 Meir DATE 8 9 9 £2 [le flee NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS —1963 REDUCTION RATIO © DOCUMENT A SOURCE | | NEE — a— GENERAL LIBRARY UNNUMBERED PAGE [S] Fagination begins on p.4,pp.Cl-3] not designated. SPEECH CAPTAIN EASTWICK, SPECIAL COURT OF PROPRIETORS, HELD AT THE EAST INDIA HOUSE, ON THE 20tu or JANUARY, 1858. WITH NOTES. LONDON: SMITH, ELDER AND CO, 65, CORNHILL. ey. 1858. SPEECH, §c., §c. Tue honourable Proprietor who opened the debate with such an able and vigorous address truly said that the admirable petition which was read at the com- mencement of our proceedings this morning had fore- stalled our arguments, and clothed them in language of force and precision which few could hope to equal ; nevertheless, I trust I may be permitted to offer a few observations on the important subject now under con- sideration. I am very glad that this opportunity has been afforded us of expressing our sentiments, and I rejoice to think, from the large attendance of the Proprietors, that the gravity and magnitude of the question are fully appreciated. There is no doubt in my mind that if the Proprietors have anything to say, now is the time to make themselves heard throughout the country. I know it is the opinion of some that we ought to have waited until the details of the measure which the Ministry intend to propose to Parliament are before us; but surely we know enough to justify us in taking our a 2 4 stand. We know that the basis of the proposed mea- sure is the abolition of what is termed the double government, which is, in fact, the extinction of the balance of power, of every check upon the absolute will of the Minister, which forms the chief merit in the present system for the government of India; that system, under which an insignificant mercantile fac- tory has been converted into a magnificent empire ; that system, which has for a period of more than seventy years from time to time undergone the severest scrutiny and investigation, but still has been per- petuated by successive Parliaments. No one can deny that it is anomalous—that it has disadvantages which are likely to be exaggerated by superficial observers, and which can be increased by defective working ; but with all its anomalies, with all its disadvantages, it has commended itself to the wisdom and approval of some of our greatest statesmen, and there must be counterbalancing advantages, or it never would have passed untouched through so many searching ordeals. Four years have not elapsed since it was again renewed, and again ratified by Parliament, after due inquiry and investigation. It certainly, therefore, does seem a strong measure to propose to abolish it without any inquiry, without any investigation. Let me not be misunderstood. I do not for a moment assert that no improvement can be made in the system. We live in an age of progress. We must advance, we cannot stand still. All our insti- tutions must be adapted to our increasing intelligence and enlarged experience. Many of those who have 5 thought most deeply on the subject feel strongly that our Government in India is still an experimental one. The late terrible events have demolished many theories, and overthrown many preconceived ideas, but if they have taught any lesson, it is more especially a lesson of caution and prudence in jumping hastily to conclusions about a country and people concerning whose habits, customs, and feelings, we have clearly much to learn. There is no doubt that great and radical changes must take place in our system of aduwinistration in India, if we wish to preserve our empire. If it can be proved, after proper investigation, that the system of government at home has been the cause of the defects that have been made patent by the late troubles in India, or if it can be shown that there is not sufficient vigour, sufficient vitality, in the pre- sent system to carry out the changes which are abso- lutely required in India, then there ought to be no hesitation in remodelling the system. All petty, personal, party interests fade into insignificance in comparison with so solemn, so momentous a em But I suppose few will venture to assert that even 1 the management of affairs in India had been trans- ferred to the Crown in 1854, the insurrection would have been averted, nor will it, I imagine, be oil tained that if India were transferred to the Crown to-morrow, there would be any difference in the policy that would be pursued, either in putting down the rebellion, or in introducing reforms and improvements hereafter. The fact is, the policy of the East India 6 Company is the policy of the Government: the Mia of the country are responsible for it, and = my itself through their representatives in But the point which presses strongly upon my mind, and to which I would wish to draw the s ot) attention of this Court, is the time that is rs for making an organic change in the constitution of the Government of India. Is this the proper time I would ask, to introduce such an important chan 0? In the midst of a tremendous convulsion, i many provinces the land-marks of order are only just now reappearing above the waves of the deluge, when men’s hearts are failing them for fear, and a and alarm pervade the length and breadth of the land, is this a time to sweep away the name and form of a Government, under which the empire has orown u and which has always been associated in the minds of the natives of India with good fortune, prosperity and victory ? « Company ka-ikbal ” hag long been household word throughout Hindostan. We know with What tenacity the natives of India cling to old associations, but we do not know, : ’ in the present unhinged and excite > d state of men’s mi effect a change may have upon them, ara persons might represent only as a prelude to favher change fraught with evil to the native community 4 Among the causes of the late insurrection, : the belief by the sepoys that the Government iiertaiued designs hostile to their caste, was, without doubt prominent cne. This belief was totally without found: 7 ation, and had probably been inculcated by design- ing persons who knew better, but the belief was | genuine. I know that this has been disputed—that the greased cartridges were considered to have been a mere pretence. A leading member of the House of Commons stated, amid the cheers of that House, that « revolutions are mot made with grease;” but those who know India, and the natives of India, and how caste is mixed up with their temporal, and believed to be mixed up with their eternal welfare, will not respond so readily to this profound philosophy. We must not measure Orientals by an European standard, or we shall assuredly fall into grievous error.” We * The recent extraordinary infatuation of the Caffres, in killing all their cattle at the instance of one of their magicians, has in it points of resemblance to the madness which infected the sepoys. The sepoys, however, added treachery to their benefactors, and plunged into crimes from the contemplation of which the mind shrinks, and for which no earthly punishment can be considered adequate. Retribution stern, solemn, and unrelenting, must be exacted ; justice must be satisfied; but vengeance — indiscriminate vengeance, founded upon a blind antagonism of race —1Is un- worthy of our greatness as a nation, and wholly incompatible with our duties and responsibilities as Christians. An infinite and allwise Creator works out His designs in a mysterious way, wholly beyond the comprehension of our finite understandings. His thoughts are mot our thoughts, nor are His ways our ways. As when the earth is bound by the icy chains of winter, all nature scems cold, blank, and lifeless, man could not know, except by experience, that in a brief space, under the genial influence of the earth would again be covered with beauty. Even so spring, has brought horror and desola- this tremendous convulsion, which. tion to so many English hearts, may contain within itself the germs of future good for India, to be developed, if rightly used, in more rapid progress, and a wider extension of civilization and Christianity. 8 are told that “when the Romans invaded Egypt, the inhabitants, without the least resistance, placed their lives and property at the mercy of the foreigner, but when a Roman soldier happened to kill a cat in the streets of Alexandria, the people rose upon him with ungovernable fury, and tore him limb from limb, and the Roman general was obliged to overlook the outrage from fear of the spread of the insurrection.” We all know of what essential service the Sikhs have been to us during the late troubles. Their glorious deeds at Arrah, at Delhi, and wherever danger was thickest, can never be forgotten. It is scarcely too much to say that the Sikhs and Sir John Lawrence have saved our empire. We know that they have fewer prejudices than the natives of Hindostan, and that in their habits they are much more akin to Europeans. And yet one of the best officers in the Bengal army told me that his Sikh regiment was on the verge of mutiny at the introduction of a new regimental cap, because it was feared there might be some leather in it. Suppose a Commander-in-Chief fresh from Europe had issued an order that all the Sikh soldiers should wear leather caps. It seems a trifling thing, and to the European mind almost incredible, but it might have driven them to frenzy, and with such inflammable materials as are always at hand in India, who can tell what fatal consequences might not have ensued. Yet the same profound philosophy would most probably have looked beyond such “small griefs,” and exclaimed, “ Revolutions are not made with leather caps.” Whatever our coun- 9 trymen at home may think, the day has not yet arrived when a handful of Europeans can govern 200 millions of people in the teeth of their strongest feelings, and in defiance of their most deeply-rooted prejudices. We have heard much of late in condemnation of the traditionary policy of the East India Company. What is this traditionary policy, but a necessary adapt- ation of means to ends, to time and circumstances, founded on experience and knowledge of the people with whom we have to deal—a wise toleration and respect for the feelings and prejudices of the natives, which has ensured a calm and equable progress, “od laid the foundation of greater strides in advance, that might have been jeopardized by rash and hasty measures ? This policy is not a stationary, nor a retrograde policy, but a policy of progress. It way, perhaps, have moved too slowly, but the principles are sound, and the only principles on which we ean rule India. People talk as glibly of re-conquering India, which, fortunately for us, has not revolted, as Mr. Cobden used to talk of crumpling up Russia; but Mr. Cobden has lived to find out his mistake, and Heaven forbid that this country should commit the fatal error of placing itself in direct antagonism to the people of India, under the supposition that we can carry everything by brute force and compulsion. Without undervaluing in the smallest degree the undaunted courage, the marvellous endurance, the chivalrous self-devotion of British officers and soldiers, which have never shone more brightly than during the late troubles, and of which England may justly 10 feel proud, we must never forget that it is chiefly through the assistance of the natives wo have gained India, by them we have maintained it, and for them we ought to hold it. Notwithstanding all that has taken place, our mission is still the same —to elevate them in the scale of nations, to bring them more and more within the pale of civilization, and pave the way for the spread of that blessed Gospel, which we are told by infallible wisdom, will, in God’s own good time, “cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.” We are continually taunted with having done so little for India; with having held the country for so many years, and impressed upon it so little of Euro. pean civilization and improvement. Those who bring this charge against the government of India, forget the progressive steps by which we have attained our present commanding position ; that, in the first in- stance, we were there by sufferance ; that we then had to struggle for existence, and that we had all our know- ledge to acquire to enable us to legislate with effect for a people so different to ourselves, the life of an European nation ar Fifty yeas in ¢ marked by great strides in advance, but fifty years in the life of an Asiatic nation are not so pregnant with great changes. Still, even tried by this test, the condition of India previous to this unhappy insurrection shone out in bright contrast with what it was a few years ago. It would occupy too much time to attempt a recapitula- tion of all the improvements and ameliorations that have been the consequences of British rule. A memorandum has lately been prepared in the India 11 House showing the improvements in the administration of India during the last thirty years, and its perusal will, I feel assured, afford to every candid and prejudiced mind ample evidence of youl and Shar progress. If all has not been achieved that cou have been wished, much has been done, and there has been the earnest, honest desire to do more. There have been, no doubt, great and grievous failures. But under what Government have there mot been failures? Often those failures have led to ultimate success ; many of those most condemned have si based upon the deliberate and recorded opinions o the most intelligent and distinguished servants of the Company, and have only served to show the difficulties with which we have had to contend. For these difficulties no allowances are made by the opponents of the East India Company. A Wilk o exaggeration and misrepresentation 1s put fort do excite the public mind ; until lately, scarcely a vole was raised in defence of the Company's administration, but the public are beginning to feel that this dark picture has a reverse side. No institution or Govern- ment which is always attacked and never defended can long be maintained. I must confess 1 have always considered it bad policy to hide our light wnder a bushel; and I have always thought that this Court might have been made the medium of exposing un- founded accusations, and of giving to the public sound and accurate information regarding the details of our administration in India. There is no greater security for good Government than public discussion; the 12 public in general do not err wilfully, but through ignorance and want of information; and it is the bounden duty of those in office to furnish that - information to the utmost extent, and in the freest manner compatible with the interests of the public service. Amongst the topics which have tended to create the strongest prejudice against the East India Com- pany in the public mind, there are two special ones, to which, if the Court will permit me, I will briefly allude. These topics are the torture question and the religious question, the latter comprehending the ques- tion of education. Now I think late events in India have thrown a flood of light upon the question of torture. In the first place, it will now be clearly understood in England of what the natives of India are capable when left to themselves. It will be seen how broad is the line of demarcation between the native and European mind, and to what depths of fiendish cruelty the Asiatic can descend. Not that I would include all the natives of India in this category. I believe there are hundreds and thousands nay millions, who look upon the barbarities which die been committed with equal horror with ourselves. I am proud to number amongst my friends many of the natives of India—friends of my youth, for whom I still entertain a high regard and esteem. It will, I say, be understood of what cruelties the natives are capable, and it will be also understood in ‘What impenetrable secresy they can envelope their schemes and proceedings. This is a feature in 13 the character of the Asiatic which the people of England cannot comprehend. It is with such instru- ments as these we have to work in carrying on the administration of India. I believe that there is no amount of tyranny and cruelty which is not at times inflicted on the ryots by the native servants of the Government ; but they know very well that such acts are abhorrent to their European superiors, and are breaches of the law, and that they would be severely punished if detected. Cases, however, do still un- doubtedly occur; and when it is recollected how limited the number of European servants is in India, compared with the vast extent of territory and the swarming myriads of population they have to super- vise, it is not to be wondered if such cases at times escape observation. All those who know India are aware that the prac- tice of torture has existed in India from time imme- morial ; it still exists in full vigour under native Governments (witness the late Sir William Sleeman’s “Diary of a Tour through Oude”), and under our own, in spite of endeavours to put it down, and will exist until the light of civilization and Christianity dispels the thick darkness that broods over the land, and renders such practices as abhorrent to the native as they are to the European mind. I have admitted torture exists, but it exists in spite of the East India Company. It is known to be a breach of the law, as much as murder and highway robbery. It is punished whenever detected, and the East India Company and their European servants 14 might with equal justice be accused of being acces- sorles to infanticide, suttee, or any of the other atrocities, which have already disappeared, or are gradually disappearing, under British rule. No unprejudiced man can read the report of the Madras Torture Commissioners, dated April 16 1855, without acquitting the East India Gosputy and their servants. The Commissioners state that of late years “ these practices have been steadily decreas- Ing in severity and extent;” that “the service is entitled to the fullest credit for its disclaimer of all countenance of the cruel practices which prevail in the revenue, as well as in the police department ;” that “we have seen nothing to impress us with the belief that the people at large entertain an idea that their maltreatment is countenanced or tolerated by the European officers of government; ” that * there is not a native public servant, from the highest to the lowest, who does not well know that these practices are held in abhorrence by his European superiors ; ” and that ““ the whole cry of the people which has sutne up before us is to save them from the cruelties of their fellow-natives, not from the effects of unkindness or indifference on the part of the European officers of Government.” I think this evidence is sufficient to show how unfounded are the accusations against the East India Company and their European servants of sanctioning or conmving at practices which every Englishman must abhor, and which, if true, would disgrace us as men and as Christians in the eyes of the whole 15 civilized world. Let the people of England recollect, before they accept as true without evidence, and without inquiry, these odious charges made against their countrymen in India, often by the disappointed and the factious, for political and party purposes, that the honour of their country and religion are alike at stake upon the truth or falsehood of such charges. I now come to a more important question—the question how far the Government of India has fulfilled its duty as a Christian Government ; and before I say one word I must state distinctly that I sympathize with my whole heart with the missionary movement. [t is my solemn belief that God has given us that great country to promote the spread of His Gospel, and that as we fulfil, or fall short of this end, so will our reward or punishment as a nation be; but I believe also that this end is not to be worked out by the influence of Government, still less by any arbitrary interference or compulsion, but by the power of reason and persuasion, by the progress of enlightenment, by the triumph of light over darkness, and by the grace of God descending upon the hearts of the benighted millions of Hindostan. Holding these opinions, it would be impossible that I could have retained my seat in the direction if one- fiftieth part of what is alleged against the Indian Government on this momentous subject were true. I believe that the greatest misapprehension exists throughout the country on this question.” * « Ag an instance of accusations totally erroneous, I may mention the statement that the Koran is used in all Government schools in 16 When I read that one member of Parliament de- signates the Indian Government as ‘“half-infidel, half- atheist,” when I myself heard another member of Parliament, in speaking of days long gone by, quote to a crowded meeting an apocryphal remark of one of the Directors of the East India Company, “that he would sooner see a band of devils enter India than a band of missionaries,” as evidencing the opinions pre- vailing amongst the honourable body to which I be- long, I do not wonder that misapprehension prevails. Now, I am not going to enter into controverted ques- tions on which earnest, sincere men may conscien- tiously differ; my only object is very briefly to lay before the Court a few facts showing the course pur- sued by the Indian authorities at home and abroad, and the principles laid down to be carried into prac- tice, as circumstances would permit. I am dealing with present facts, not with old stories that have been dead and buried years ago. I should like to know what would be thought of a member of Parliament if he were to bring a bill of indictment against the present Government, and include in it all the shortcomings of former governments for the last forty or fifty years; if he were to inflict upon the House long tirades against slavery, protection, and other errors of legislation which formerly found their advocates, but now are as exploded, in the minds of statesmen, as astrology or witchcraft. We have to India. To any one acquainted with the composition of an Indian population, such a statement carries its own refutation along with it."—8Speech of the Rev. J. Murray Mitchell, 17 deal with 1858, and not with 1808 or 1818. Will any one assert that there is any Government opposi- ion to missionary efforts at the present moment ? I think not.* The Chairman, the Deputy-Chairman, my friend on my left (Mr. Willoughby) and other members of the Court have been earnest and constant supporters of missionary labours while in India. Is it likely that they would abandon the principles on which in Bove always acted on their return to their native country? Since 1833, when the Court of Diree- tors, in their despatch of the 20th of February, laid down in great detail the principles which were In future to guide the Government of India in the ques- * « At the commencement of the year 1852, there were labouring throughout India and Ceylon the agents of twenty-two om societies. These include 443 missionaries, of whom 48 are ordaine natives, together with 698 native catechists. These agents reside at i missionary stations. There have been founded 333 native churc v containing 18,410 communicants, in a community of 112,1 native Christians. The missionaries maintain 1,347 vernacular day-schools, containing 47,504 boys, together with 93 Te schools, containing 2,414 Christian boys, They also WA 126 superior English day: schools, and instruct therein 14,56 ; > and young men. Female education embraces 347 day-schoo > hs girls, containing 11,519 scholars, but hopes more fon its girls’ boarding-schools, containing 2,779 Christian girls. The entire Bible has been translated into 10 languages, the New Testament into 5 others, and separate gospels into 4 others. Besides numerous works of Christians, 30, 40, and even 70 tracts have been prepared in these different languages, suitable for Hindoos and Mutsnienrns Missionaries maintain in India 25 printing establishments. This vast missionary agency costs 190,0001. annually, of which onsen 33,5001., is contributed by European Christians resident in the country. — Extract from Statistics of Missions in India and Ceylon, by the Rev. Joseph Mullens, of Calcutta. B 18 tion of idolatrous rites and ceremonies, has not each / year seen an advance in the right direction, more especially of late years ?* No doubt still more re- mains to be done—the severance is not yet complete ; but is it fair and just to ignore all that has been ‘done? Has the Crown colony of Ceylon outstripped ‘the Indian Government in these matters?’ Have not the same difficulties been met with there as in India ? j * “Every one knows that thuggee, suttee, and infanticide have ‘been suppressed. Slavery too has vanished from our territories, though it still exists in a fearful form in Travancore, a native state. The payment of pilgrim taxes into the Government treasury, the administration of oaths in the name of false gods, the official attendance of Government functionaries at heathen festivals, the direct management by Government of temple funds, these, and similar evils, have ceased. Nor is there any more of Government opposition to missionary efforts. Our missions receive perfect toleration, and we have asked no other boon.”—Speech of the Rev. J. Murray Mitchell, Free Church of Scotland Missionary, Edinburgh, Oth November, 1857. See also the just and elaborate eulogium of the venerable and pious Bishop of Calcutta when preaching on the day of humiliation 24th July, 1857. “Things were better with them than they were formerly. All had been moving on in the right direction for more than fifty years past. Never was there a more just or beneficent Government than that of the British power in India. Peace and security for property have prevailed, commerce and all the Western improvements in medicine and the arts have been encouraged, every man stood equal before the laws, the administration of justice was pure, the taxes were of moderate weight. Zhen as to Christianity, ministers of every name and class, missionaries from all the different societies, were protected and honoured, churches had been raised and nate converts had been made in large numbers. Charitable designs to meet new forms of destitution were liberally supported. Christian education in all their missions, and national education not excluding Christianity, though not directly teaching it, was spreading throughout the country.” 19 It is not very long ago that ¢ devil dancing for her Majesty's service” was paid out of Government funds in Ceylon; but this and other evils have now been removed. * The despatch of Feb. 20, 1833, ought to be repub- lished for the information of the public. I should * The connection of the Government of Ceylon with the Buddhist religion, dates from the 2nd of March, 1815, when the Kandyan Provinces became British territory. By a convention of that date Juddhism was declared “inviolable,” and “its rites, ministers, and places of worship were to be maintained and protected.” In 1818 another proclamation laid down certain rules with regard to priests, ceremonies, and processions, which practically mixed up the Ceylon Government with the Buddhists in all their worship and cere- monies, including the preservation of the Sacred Tooth. In 1832, or thereabouts, the aid given by Government was converted into a money payment by Sir R. Wilmot Horton, including a sum for « devil dancing,” which was performed, according to the official document, “ for her Majesty's service.” It was not until 1844 that Lord Stanley, then Colonial Secretary, sent out a despatch directing that the connection with the Buddhist religion should cease, that the annual money payment should be discontinued, if it could be done without a breach of faith, and that the allowance for “devil dancing ” should be struck out of the estimates. In 1848 the insurrection broke out, which Lord Torrington ascribed chiefly to the measures of Government with regard to Buddhism. The custody of the Sacred Tooth, which was considered by the natives inseparably linked with the possession of political power, and the old system of appointments were resumed. Subsequently, various alterations took place. The Sacred Tooth was again given up under the government of Sir George Anderson in 1852, but up to this moment the connection of the Government of Ceylon with 3uddhism is not entirely severed. These facts are stated to show the difficulty of dealing with questions relating to the religious pre- judices of the people, and that the Administration of the Crown is equally open to accusations of this nature with the administration of the East India Company. B 2 20 like to read some extracts, but it would occupy too much time. No one, I think, after its perusal will maintain that the principles laid down are at variance with the precepts or spirit of Christianity.* It has * Par. 8.—Respecting the degree of toleration due to the religion and worship of our Indian subjects, the sentiments of the Governor- General are essentially our own, although we might be disposed to qualify, in some degree, the terms in which he has expressed them. Par. 9.—All religious rites and offices which are in this sense harmless, that they are not flagrantly opposed to rules of common humanity or decency, ought to be tolerated, however false the creed by which they are sanctioned. But they could not properly be said to be tolerated, if those who are engaged in them did not experience that ordinary degree of protection to which every citizen not offending against the laws is entitled at the hands of his rulers. A religious festival, attended by immense crowds, cannot be said to be tolerated, if the Government does not provide a police sufficient to enforce order, and to ensure the safety of individuals during the celebration. And, on the other hand, the providing of such a police is not an act of favour or friendship to the mode of worship, but one of simple justice to the worshippers. Par. 10.—Beyond this civil protection, however, we do not see that the maxims of toleration enjoin us to proceed. It is not neces- sary that we should take part in the celebration of an idolatrous ceremony, or that we should assist in the preparations for it, or that we should afford to it such systematic support as shall accredit it in the eyes of the people, and prevent it from expiring through the effect of neglect or accident. Par. 11.—The application of these principles to the subject before us is not very difficult. Although it is possible that the Hindoo rites, or, at least, those of Juggernath, are less liable than formerly to the charges of cruelty and open indecency, their essential character is of course not changed. They are at variance with the precepts and spirit of Christianity, and they seem opposed even to the plain injunctions of a natural religion. - This, however, is not a reason for prohibiting them by law; and if they are not to be so prohibited, if they are to exist at all, they must receive from the civil power that measure of protection which it affords to any act, 21 been followed up by other despatches; and in 1840 the doing or not doing of which it treats as a matter of indifference. To this extent we entirely concur with Lord William Bentinck. On the other hand, we cannot conceive that a Government which believes those rites to be deeply founded in error, and to be pro- ductive, even in a civil view, of serious evil, is obliged, or is at liberty, to show to them any degree of positive sanction or encouragement. ; ; Par. 62.—Finally, it may be convenient to recapitulate, in a brief series, the principal conclusions resulting from the preceding dis- cussion. They are the following :— First. That the interference of British functionaries in the interior management of native temples, in the customs, habits, and religious proceedings of their priests and attendants, in the arrange- ment of their ceremonies, rites, and festivals, and generally in the conduct of their interior economy, shall cease. Secondly. That the pilgrim-tax shall everywhere be abolished. Thirdly. That fines and offerings shall no longer be considered as sources of revenue by the British Government; and they shall, consequently, no longer be collected or received by the servants of the East India Company. Fourthly. That no servant of the East India Company shall hereafter be engaged in the collection, or management, or custody, of monies in the nature of fines or offerings, under whatsoever name they may be known, or in whatever manner obtained, or whether furnished in cash or in kind. Fifthly. That no servant of the East India Company shall here- after derive any emolument resulting from the above-mentioned or any similar sources. : : Sixthly. That in all matters relating to their temples, their worship, their festivals, their religious practices, their ceremonial observances, our native subjects be left entirely to themselves. Seventhly. That in every case in which it has been found necessary to form, and keep up a police force, specially with a view to the peace, and security of the pilgrims, or the worshippers, such police shall hereafter be maintained, and made available out of the general revenues of the country. Par. 63.—Much caution, and many gradations may be necessary in acting on the conclusions at which we have arrived. Among - 22 an Act was passed in India to the same effect. In 1843 an order was issued in Bombay directing the other concomitant measures, such explanations should be given to the natives, as shall satisfy them that so far from abandoning the principles of a just toleration, the British Government is resolved to apply them with more scrupulous accuracy than ever, and that this proceeding is, in truth, no more than a recurrence to that state of real neutrality, from which we ought never to have departed.— Extracts from Despatch of Court of Directors, No 3 of 1833. “ Miscellaneous Revenue Department, 20th February, 1833. “ We more particularly desire, that the management of all temples, and other places of religious resort, together with the revenues derived therefrom, be resigned into the hands of the natives, and that the interference of the public authorities in the religious ceremonies of the people be regulated by the instructions conveyed in the 62nd paragraph of our despatch of 20th F ebruary, 1833."— Extract No. 9 of 1838, Revenue Department, dated 8th August, 1838. “¢G. O. 26H Jury, 1836. “* Head- Quarters, Choultry Plain. “The Commander-in-Chief directs it to be strictly observed as a standing regulation of the service, that wherever the attendance of troops, either European or Native, may be necessary at any native festival, or similar occasion, the troops so employed are invari- ably to be kept in a collected body, as a military guard for the maintenance of order, and are not on any account to be permitted to join or take part in the procession or ceremony, nor to act as escorts either to persons or property.’ “ That order (G. O. 26th July, 1836) very properly prohibited troops employed in preserving order at religious festivals, from taking any part in the procession or ceremonies. We think that the attendance of musicians, for the purpose of taking part in the ceremonies of any religion whatever, should be wholly voluntary, but we do not intend that any alteration should be made, in the practice which has hitherto regulated the appointment of escorts to natives of rank on their way to places of religious worship, as in that case it must be self-evident, that the honour is due to the individual, and not to the occasion.” — Extract from Despatch of Court of Directors, 8th August, 1838. 23 cessation of public works on the Sabbath day. This order was extended to Bengal in 1847 by Lord Har- dinge, who at the same time stated, “I am convinced that much of the success of British rule in India is to be attributed under Providence to our forbearance in not interfering with the religious prejudices of the people, and that the difficulties experienced in Algeria might be traced to a very opposite system of govern- ment.” * Then, let me ask, is the Act passed in 1850, by which Christian converts are taken under the pro-} tection of the law, no evidence of progress Im’. * Mr. Elphinstone and many of our most eminent Indian states- men have recorded solemn warnings to the same effect. 2 «1 have left out of the account the dangers to which we s iy be exposed by any attempt to interfere with the religious pats fe of the natives. These are so obvious, that we may hope they w never be braved. The numbers, and physical force of W vo are evidently incalculably greater than ours. Ou sient 1 Jo $ in the want of energy and division of our enemies, There is bo one talisman that, while it animated and united them all, en ! ans us without a single adherent ; this talisman is the ‘bame © aa a power so odious that it is astonishing our enemies have a ans frequently and systematically employed it Pe ETI point out the danger now from any apprehension t 5 kin will ever attempt to convert the natives, but to WL = i i consequences that would result from any suspicion t “a i a posed to encourage such a project. While we enjoy ie co a of the natives our boldest innovations are safe ; but that ee : ‘ our most cautious measures would involve us in danger. f i. not then be necessary that we a » so Srey fy “i i > indifferent action would suffice a springs of which are as obscure as its effects i ig dous.”— Extract from the Report of Mr. Elphinstone, ls ' 1819. 24 jasserting the prerogatives of a Christian Govern- ment ?* What did Lord Dalhousie state with reference to the conversion of Maharajah Dhuleep Sing, in 1851 ? “If this resolution to abandon his present faith, and to profess Christianity, which his Highness declares to be an act long contemplated by him, should be only a sentiment or a freak, the lapse of a little time will serve to show that the desire his Highness has declared so steadily has been unreal. But if that desire should continue unabated, and the Maharajah should still seek for instruction in the truths of our faith at the hands of the Government, which is the sole guardian of his youth, and charged with the responsibility of acting in all respects as it believes to be best for his future good, I respectfully submit that this Govern- ment has before it only one path of duty. Whether his Highness’s resolution to become a Christian has been the natural result of the peculiar circumstances into which the Maharajah’s fate has thrown him, or whether the grace of God has planted it at once in the heart of the boy, I cannot in my conscience thwart it.” Is it reasonable to suppose that the dis- tinguished statesman who could record his opinion in * By this Act the principle already laid down in a Bengal regu- lation of 1832, that change of religion should not vite loss of property or civil rights, was extended to the whole of the territories subject to the British Government of India. The religious and civil laws of the Hindoos, have in this point been completely set aside, and converts to Christianity, have been shielded, as far as laws can shield them, against temporal ill consequences from their change of faith.—Mem. E. I. House. 25 these terms, thus publicly affirming a cardinal doctrine of the Christian faith, would have consented to preside for so many years over a “ half-infidel, half-atheist Government?” There is only one other despatch to which I will allude, but it is a most important one, as showing the present principles of the Government of India—I mean the despatch of the 18th July, 1854, on the subject of education. I could quote many passages, but not to occupy time I will simply state that it/ recognises ‘“ the noble exertions of Christians of all| denominations to guide the natives of India in the way of religious truth,” and directs the introduction of the grant-in-aid system throughout India, by which the Government affords liberal aid to all missionary schools which are willing to accept it, thereby directly promoting religious instruction and Bible reading.* This has been carried out, and a more important step * Par. 84. ¢ Considerable misapprehension appears to exist as to our views with respect to religious instruction in the Government institutions. Those institutions were founded for the benefit of the whole population of India; and in order to effect their object it was and is, indispensable that the education conveyed in them should be exclusively secular. The Bible is, we understand, placed in the libraries of the colleges and schools, and the pupils are able freely to consult it. This is as it should be; and moreover we have no desire to prevent, or to discourage, any explanations which the pupils may of their own free-will ask from their masters upon the subject of the Christian religion, provided that such information be given out of school hours. Such instruction being entirely voluntary on both sides, it is necessary in order to prevent the slightest suspicion of an intention on our part to make use of the influence of Government for the purpose of proselytism, that no notice shall be taken of it by the inspectors in their periodical visits.” 26 in advance it is impossible to conceive. It will | under God's blessing, greatly help on the evangelization lof India, and it remains for the people of England to see 1ts instructions honestly carried out. I have thus brought forward a few facts, to show the principles which have been laid down by the authorities at home, and acted upon by the authorities abroad. It is a wide subject; I have merely touched upon it ; time would not permit more at the present moment. I hope I have said enough to prove that there is another side of the question than that which has been generally represented on platforms and hust- tings. I hope the people of England will pause before they condemn their countrymen in India; I hope they will hear both sides, and look into the question. They are bound to do so, for, as I said before, the policy of the East India Company is the ‘policy of England ; Parliament and the country are responsible for it. | Party spirit and faction may ring the changes on the double government and the ab- sence of responsibility ; but the Minister of the Crown, the President of the Board of Control, is as responsible for the affairs of India, as the Colonial Minister, or any other minister for his own department. It is well-known that the Court of Directors can do nothing without the sanction and concurrence of the Board of Control. Where, then, it will be asked, is the use of the Court of Directors ? The answer is, that an independent body, which has the initiative in all business, and the right of discussion and remonstrance, and which possesses local knowledge 27 and experience, must exercise a salutary inthe and prove a wholesome check on the arbitrary will’ the Minister of the Crown. Further then this, a permanent body, exempt from political bias and pty spirit®, preserves the continuity of the system o * « But there is another most important consideration in con- nection with the renewal of the Charter. By the Shea of the Company between the Government and the people o a ; the latter are prevented from being exposed to all these yo = vicissitudes of political feelings and parties to which t ey : have been subject had they been under the direct So ; the Crown of England. Had this been the case 1 Sen i“ Y feeling that the state of political excitement whic or Lb occasioned would have led to disastrous Ssennenges, : iy chiefs of all kinds would have ensued, and would have a an insurmountable barrier to the advance and improvement 9 Te people. I cannot conceive anything more a —— fase people than their being made the sport of i passions on > en feelings which take place in this country. —Speech of Mr. ; di ate, 1833. Sina be Wort: is a body independent of the Crown, _ more than independent, which shall be neither the tool © | he Ministry, nor of the Opposition. It 1s not easy In a ont like this to constitute such a body, none I have heard sugges * would be such a body. The East India Company, strange as its constitution may appear, is such a body. Whatever charges iy be brought against it, whether it does act tightly =» i 2 it does mot act from political considerations.”—=Speech of " 2 bate, 1833. : a” 0 of Loaslowie acknowledged the avy tha had resulted from the administration of the Company 2 Sapis the interests of India excluded in a greater degree 2 otherwise could have been from the several chances and c anges of party in this country, and as an intervening body in a pe 3 of patronage which would otherwise be soramnbled io ia gladiators of Parliament.”—Speech of Marquis of Lansdowne, bate, 1833. in real dangers of British India will commence from the day 28 government, which would otherwise be liable to change with every changing Ministry.* What did Mr. Fox when the party spirit of the British Parliament shall be brought to bear directly on its administration.— Lord Metcalfe. “In short the only conclusion to be drawn from all reflection and reasoning on this subject is, that the British Government in India is a phenomenon, and that it will not answer to apply to it in its present state either the rules which guide other govern- ments, or the reasoning on which these rules are founded.” — Letter of Duke of Wellington. * “We have not only had four different Presidents of the Board of Control within ten months, but we have also had as many as six different secretaries. There is nothing like a con- tinuous government in the Board of Control, and there is naturally a great indisposition on the part of any person coming casually into the office to attempt to grapple with a great question like the government of India.”—Speech of Myr. Bright, India Debate, 1853. “ My own opinion is, that nothing would be more dangerous than to give the Crown the whole control of the thousands upon thousands of the population in that part of the British dominions,” —Speech of Lord John Russell, India Debate, 1853. The Court of Directors have been frequently blamed for not oftener pushing their resistance to the Board of Control, in cases in which they disapprove of its policy, to the point of disobeying the law : for nothing less than this is involved in refusing to transmit to India the orders of the Board of Control, thus reducing the Board to the resource of applying for a mandamus. But the case must be a very extreme one which would justify even private citizens, much more a constituted authority, in directly disobeying the law of their country, and the laws by which they hold all the powers they possess. The case of the iniquitous and unjust spoliation of Scinde would have Justified such a course, but this was decided in the Secret Depart- ment by her Majesty's Ministers alone without even the knowledge of the Court. In two instances only has the Court resorted to this extreme measure. One was in defence of the Government and people of Oude against what the Court deemed an act of spoliation under the guise of settling antiquated pecuniary claims of individual British subjects. The other was for the protection of the Nizam and his subjects against a measure of a somewhat similar character. 29 say in days of old ? “If the dispenser of the play of governing India has not a greater stability in his situation than a British Ministry, what hope is there of the affairs being administered with vant to the interests of India or to this country 1” Did not a President of the Board of Control in more recent times declare, on the occasion of the recall of Lord Heytesbury, ‘that he thought it better that the In one, or probably in both of these cases, if a Ty had i granted, a majority of the Court of Directors had made gag fet minds to refuse obedience, and submit to imprisonment. ; 4 resistance compelled a deliberate consideration of the Sy : y » entire Cabinet, and the objectionable mandates were wit 1 Hs a will be noticed that in both these instances the cause in w i : Court successfully struggled was the defence of the aw i e 3 India against acts of injustice promoted by the Board o fini In the debate on the claims of the bankers on Oude, the DN Ellenborough spoke to the following effect in the House 8 eers approval of the course pursued by the Court of a 99 hoe ¢ There is another body of persons on whose behalf i 4 ’ y a few words. The noble and learned lord on the woolsack v es throw any reflection on the Court of Directors, but £% 20 a we ; learned lord opposite (Lord Plunket) did do so. My ords, Tou say that the conduct of the Court of Directors, in this wi ie : reflects great honour on them. Tt does not matter to them w e the recommendation of Mr. Grant he adopted or not, they on i's : respect interested except as the guandians of the honour an i faith of the administration of India; as such, acting Hien ane responsibility, acting in the discharge of their duty to ; a elected them, and the people of India, they are i : 0 i the order of Mr. Grant. Iu so doing they deserve well of the por . of India, and of those who intrusted them with the ey i they hold. I think it a subject of great Am z : country that the affairs of the Company are mins bo "i gentlemen of independence.”—Lord Ellenborough's Speech in House of Lords, 5th May, 1854. 30 interests of India should suffer, than that the Minister of the day should be defeated ?” It is this balance of power, this system of check, analogous as it is to the three estates of our own constitution, which has induced our wisest statesmen to preserve the present system. If the period has arrived for remodelling it, for introducing a simpler form, let it be done with deliberation, after due inquiry and investigation, not in the present state of excited feeling at home and abroad, not under pre- tence that after so many years of success it has proved a failure. To listen to the opponents of the Company, one would imagine that not a word had ever been spoken in favour of the system of double Government, in support of the administration of the East India Com- pany. I should like to quote opinions on the opposite side — opinions recorded by men like Mill* and * “To communicate the whole of the impression made upon a mind which has taken a survey of the Government of India by the East India Company more completely through the whole field of its action than was ever taken before, and which has not spared to bring forward into the same light the unfavourable and the favour- able points, it may be necessary to state, and this I conceive to be the most convenient occasion for stating that, in regard to intention, I know no Government, either in past or present times, that can be placed equally high with that of the East India Company. That I can hardly point out an occasion in which the schemes they have adopted, and even the particular measures they pursued, were not by themselves considered as conducive to t he welfare of the people whom they governed. That I know no Government which has on all occasions shown so much of a disposition to make sacrifices of its own interests to the interests of the people whom it governed, and which has, in fact, made so many and such important sacrifices; 31 Macaulay, * of world-wide fame, and by eminent statesmen who long wielded the destinies of the empire. that if the East India Company have been so little er ameliorating the practical operation of their Ci : on : - . . a i i isadvantage of their situation, distan been chiefly owing to the disa i from the scene of action, an voyage of several months : to knowledge which was common to them with Gk wn their countrymen. But that they have never erred wis when, distrusting their own knowledge, they have vl fi Sirus of men whom they unhappily thought fe t a th - } astly, 1m the 1 1 and lawyers ; and that, lastly, selves, viz., practical statesmen Bp i i i f the servants or subordinate ag highly important point o ee is ing in the world to be compare Government there is nothing in ; East India Company, whose servants, as a body, Sa i i rast with tha ibi 1 lent, which forms a contras exhibited a portion of talent, the ill-chosen instruments of other Governments, but have, Wii. i that of the loan transactions with in some remarkable instances, as ; : ie Nabob of Arcot, maintained a virtue which, under fhe fen tions of their situation is worthy of the highest applause."—Mul's ti. } i 17. British India, vol. vi. page if i % «The TN of the Company, though an anomaly, is in our time i ’— lay's Essays. : a beneficial anomaly.”— Macau : “ «1 had the advantage of hearing a speech delivered by my To honourable friend himself (Mr. Macaulay) twenty years 2 a there is a passage in it equal in force and beauty to anyt os fy : . . delivered in this house. Speaking of trying the Pim ie a 5 i 1 is ds, of course): ¢ Under this sys he said (not in these precise words, Saha inistering the government of mi have had men administering over! a 0 ; you have had them leading victorious armies; Jor we : i ; you have ha in ti d in days of conquest; yo had them in times of peace, an ) Do ie inisteri s of mighty provinces ; yo them administering the revenue ] S208 Semanal idi ts of tributary kings; and ye them residing at the cour yin SH i 1 try with little more tha e returned to their native coun : ; Wi etency, and sometimes even in circumstances scarcely Jord o . . § ia want ; That was the boast of Malcolm; that is still the 8 : : 31phi 1 trying tha i tone. And again, I say, try independent boast of Elphins : 4 ro by its fruits, prune that tree, if you please; dig a tr 32 I will not weary the Court, but I hope to be per- mitted to read the opinion of one of our greatest men, who spoke from personal experience of India and its Government. I mean the Duke of Wellington. This opinion was given in 1833; but if so much could be said in praise of the Indian Government at that time by such a man, how much more could be said now ? Though rather long, it seems to me peculiarly appo- site at the present moment. The Duke says, “Iwill not follow the noble marquis who opened the debate into the consideration of whether a chartered company be the best or not calcu- lated to carry on the Government or the trade of an empire like India: that is not the question to which I wish to apply myself. But whenever T hear of such discussions as this, I recall to my memory what I have seen in that country. I recall to my memory the history of that country for the last fifty or sixty years. I remember its days of misfortune, and its days of glory, and the situation in which it now stands. round about it if you will; but I implore you to pause and to hesi- tate before you cut it down. I believe it to be sound at heart. I believe it to be a system on the whole of good government. It is not incapable of improvement. We have endeavoured to improve it."— Speech of Sir James Graham, India Debate, 1853. “Is this system legally to be set aside? Is this form of govern- ment to be hastily rejected? We have the advantage of the opinions of Sir Robert Peel and the Duke of Wellington in favour of that system of government. They never hesitated or doubted amid all our difficulties, that those difficulties would be FOOD and if they were now alive, I am satisfied that they would ORR and entreat you, as I now do, not hastily or rashly to tamper with such a system.”—Speech of Sir James Graham, India Debate, 1853. 33 I remember that the Government have conducted the affairs of, I will not pretend to say how many millions ¢“ Dr. Ballantyne assumed charge of the College in the beginning of 1846, and avowed as his object the formation of a class of Pundits, who, skilled in all that is taught in native schools, should also have their minds so tinctured with European habits of feeling, as to be pre-eminent amongst their countrymen. In order to accom- plish’ this object, he first himself mastered the Hindu Philosophy; and he ascertained how much of truth there was in it, and where error commenced. He, at the same time, made available, to his Pundit pupils, the works of European Philosophers, and showed, by treatises of his own composition, how, advancing from the premises of Hindu Philosophy, the correct conclusions of European Philosophy might be attained. In following this course, he acted in consonance with the whole character of our administration in this country. We have not swept over the country like a torrent, destroying all that it found, and leaving nothing but what itself deposited. Our course has rather been that of a gently swelling inundation, which leaves the former surface undisturbed, and spreads over it a richer mould, from which the vegetation may derive a new verdure, and the landscape possess a beauty which was unknown before. Such has been our course in the Civil Administration. In our Systems of Police, of Civil and Criminal Justice, and of Revenue management, we first examined the existing systems,— retained whatever of them we found to be right and just, and then engrafted on this basis new maxims derived from our own insti- tutions. And thus we have succeeded in forming a system, which is generally admitted to have been easy in its operation, and happy in its effect. ' “ We are here met together this day, men of different races and of different creeds. If any one section of this assembly had met to dedicate such a building as this to the education of their youth in their own peculiar tenets, they would have given a religious sanction to the act, and would have consecrated the deed by the ceremonial of their faith. But this we cannot do. Unhappily, human opinions, on the subject of religion, are so irreconcilable that we cannot concur in any one act of worship. The more necessary it is then, that each man, in his own breast, should offer up his prayer to the God whom he worships, that here morality may be rightly taught, C 34 of people—they have been calculated at 70,000,000, 80,000,000, 90,000,000, 100,000,000, but certainly and that here truth, in all its majesty, may prevail. This aspiration may have a different meaning, according to the wishes or belief of the person who forms it; but with many it will point to a new state of things, when a higher philosophy and a purer faith will pervade this land, not enforced by the arbitrary decrees of a perse- cuting government, not hypocritically professed, to meet the wishes of a proselytizing government, but whilst the government is just and impartial, cordially adopted by a willing people, yielding to the irresistible arguments placed before them. Nor is it unreasonable to expect that such a change may take place. We cannot forget that to such a change we owe the present happy state of things in our own country; and even in this country, changes of the same nature have taken place. It is but a few days ago, that our friend, Major Kittoe, who is as distinguished for antiquarian research as he is for the architectural skill he has shown in this edifice, led a party to view the neighbouring ruins around Sérndth. He there showed us the undoubted remains of another and a different system, which once prevailed in this land. He showed us its temples, its colleges, its hospitals, and its tombs, now perished and long buried under the earth. A few centuries have so utterly destroyed it, that it is now only known in this part of the country from the obscure allusions of Chinese travellers, the scarcely legible inscriptions on broken sculptures, and the imperfect traditions of a despised sect. And now there flourishes, here on the banks of the Ganges, another system, still vigorous, but already on its wane. And that system may pass away, and give place to another and a better one. From this place may this system spread throughout; nor is it vain to hope that the building in which we are assembled may be one instrument in the mighty change. When it is so, the highest aspirations of those who first designed and mainly promoted its erection, will be fully realized. “Such is the assured hope and expectation of many here assem- bled, and there is a large section of the remainder, who share in the expectation, but cannot bring themselves at present to adopt it as their hope. But no undue means will be here employed to effect the end. No religious system will here be exclusively taught. 35 of an immense population—a population returning an annual revenue of 20,000,000. sterling, and that notwithstanding all the wars in which the empire has been engaged, its debt at this moment amounts only to 40,000,000/., being no more than the amount of two years revenue. I do not say that such a debt is desirable; but at the same time I contend that it is a delusion on the people of this country to tell them that that 1s a body unfit for Government, and unfit for trade, which has administered the affairs of India with so much success for so many years, and which is at length to be put down, for I can use no other term, upon the ground that it is an institution calculated for the purposes neither of Government nor trade.” Such was the deliberate opinion of the Duke of Wellington. I think the East India Company may well be proud of such testimony, and whatever the result of the ministerial measure, I believe this opinion will be ratified by the thoughtful and unpre- judiced of this country, and of all other countries, and that when some future Macaulay shall narrate the history of those great colonies and dependencies which have contributed so largely to the wealth and This is a common arena, on which all can assemble, and ar common element of truth can be impartially acquired. Let a > whom the cause of truth is sacred, co-operate In prosenay e objects of this building. To withdraw from the field wil = : > that they are conscious of the weakness of their cause. wr x Li from the speech of the Hon. James Thomason, Lieutenant- So ’ N. W. P., at the opening of the Benares New College, on the January, 1853. 36 prosperity of the mother-country, the pages which tell of the rise and progress of our magnificent Eastern Empire, under the auspices of the East India Com- pany, and of the brilliant deeds of their servants, will not be found unworthy of England's greatness and England’s glory. THE END. London : Printed by SmitH, ELDER & Co., Little Green Arbour Court. = END END OF REEL PLEASE REWIND.