Company, by which the entire sovereignty | some months after the said Rajah had been of that country was ceded to the said thus deprived of his countries, they were Rajah, on the condition of his paying in restored to him by orders of the then gocash, by monthly kists or instalments, the vernor general, sir John Shore, bart. but sum of star pagodas 460,000, or there- that, in the following year, the said Rajah abouts, until the year 1795, after which Ameer Sing, on the plea of his not being period he was to pay the sum of star the legitimate heir, was deprived of the pagodas 630,000, or thereabouts; that the Musnud of Tanjore, that his excellency memorialists further beg leave to repre- the Rajah Surfogee was appointed by the sent, that some of them are soucars or Madras government to succeed, and with native bankers, and that others of them whom the Madras government immewere dealers in silk goods, in gold and diately formed a treaty, by which he resilver, jewels and precious stones, &c.; linquished, for himself and his heirs, &c. that their ancestors had pursued the same in favour of the hon. East India Company, profession; and that the said Rajah Ameer all his rights to interfere in the collection Sing, on the said countries being restored of the revenues, on the condition of reto him, had no money in his treasury; ceiving an annual allowance in money: and that, as his revenues were collected in that the memorialists further beg leave to the produce of his countries, that produce represent, that his excellency the Rajah could seldom or never be realized into Ameer Sing, having been thus deprived cash in time to pay his money engage- of his countries (although he had been ments; and that consequently the said placed as the legitimate heir on the MusRajab applied to the memorialists to nud by the British government, about ten borrow money from them in anticipation years preceding) and consequently withof his revenues, and to purchase merchan-out the means of satisfying the debts due dise for the use of his family and the de- to the memorialists, they then entreated pendants on his palace; and that the the Madras government to take into conmemorialists, having always experienced sideration their distressed situation, and in the said Rajah a disposition to comply respectfully represented, that, as it had with all his engagements with them, did possessed itself of the countries which had accordingly advance him sums of money been pledged to the memorialists as a on loan, and sold him various kinds of security for their advances, they relied merchandise; that the memorialists beg with confidence that the justice of the leave further humbly to represent, that, by Madras government would not permit the orders from the right hon. lord Hobart, memorialists to suffer by the change which then governor of Madras, the said Rajah it had been pleased to make in the governwas made a prisoner in the month of ment of that country; that, in conseDecember 1795, and a military guard was quence, the hon. the Court of Directors was placed over his palace, and his ministers pleased to order the claims of the memoand confidential servants were separated rialists to be investigated, and that, in from him, and confined as close prisoners, pursuance of these orders, a committee, and the Madras government assumed the consisting of three of the hon. company's management of his revenues, although the civil servants, was appointed by the said Rajah had punctually discharged the Madras government to carry these orders kists stipulated in the treaty of lord Corn-into execution; that the said committee, wallis; and the memorialists are yet unacquainted with the cause of these proceedings towards the said Rajah; that the aid Rajah, after finding himself unable to satisfy the urgent demands of the memorialists, expressed his sorrow on that account to the then British Resident, Mr. Macleod, and bewailed his misfortunes chiefly because of the distress in which they would involve the memorialists; and in consequence of which the said Resident then reported to the Madras goTernment the amount then due to the Rajah's creditors; that the memorialists further beg leave to represent, that, in by public advertisements in the years 1802 and 1803, invited all creditors to prefer. their claims on the said Rajah Ameer Sing, and that the claims of the memorialists were rigorously examined and compared with the records of the Tanjore palace, and the proceedings of the said committee were transmitted, in the year 1803, by the Madras government to the hon. Court of Directors, and duly received by them: the memorialists further beg leave to represent, that, since the proceedings of the said committee were transmitted to England, they have repeatedly addressed the Madras govern ment, as well as the hon. Court of Directors, with regard to the said clains, and have, by means of their agent in London, presented, through the hon. Board of Controul, several memorials to the hon. Court of Directors, without being able to receive any reply; and that the claims of the memorialists, at the period of deposing the said Rajah Ameer Sing, or the amount stated to be due to Ameer Sing's creditors in the final report of the said committec, did not exceed one half of one year's revenue of his countries; that the hon. the East India Company have continued, since the deposition of the said Rajah, to collect the revenues of those rich and fertile districts, yielding about ten lacs of pagodas annually; that, in proof of what is stated in this memorial, they refer to the records of the Madras government, in possession of the hon. Court of Directors; and that, although many of the memorialists have been reduced from affluence to the greatest distress, in consequence of having been thus deprived of their property, yet the memorialists have waited without any success for above 14 years, with the utmost patience, the result of their respectful solicitations to the hon. the East India Company; but, as they now despair of obtaining from the hon. Court of Directors of the East India Com. pany that justice to which they are entitled, and which they have so long in vain solicited, they have determined thus to submit their case to the British nation, through their representatives in parliament assembled; and therefore praying, that the House will adopt such measures as will tend to a speedy adjustment of their claims." Ordered to lie upon the table. SELECT COMMITTEE APPOINTED ON COMMERCIAL CREDIT.] The Chancellor of the Exchequer rose, in pursuance of his notice, to move for the appointment of a Select Committee to inquire into the state of Commercial Credit. Various representations had reached him from manufacturing and mercantile people, of the disadvantage under which trade suffered, and which they attributed to the state of credit and the coudition of the markets with which they were formerly in the habit of communicating. At first he did not believe that the evil prevailed to such an extent as had been stated, but so various were the representations that he now thought it his duty to submit the present motion to the House, that they might ascertain its ex istence, and provide a remedy as soon a possible. He deprecated all discussio upon this occasion as premature, and re commended that they should wait to hav the advantage of the report. It was hi intention, that all the surviving members c the committee which was appointed upo a similar subject, in the year 1793, shoul be upon the present, and that the numbe of the whole should be 21. He conclud ed with moving, " That a Select Commit tee be appointed to inquire into the Stat of Commercial Credit, and report the same as it shall appear to them, to the House together with their opinion and observa tions thereon." The members proposed were: th Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Manning sir J. Sinclair, Mr. Brogden, sir J. Shaw Mr. Staniforth, Mr. Irving, Mr. H. Thorn ton, Mr. Robert Shaw of Dublin, M Dundas, the Lord Advocate of Scotland Mr. Rose, sir Thomas Baring, Mr. A Baring, Mr. Sharp, Mr. Long, Mr. Alder man Combe, Mr. Marryatt, sir J. Newport Mr. Foster, and Mr. C. Ellis. Mr. Tierney said, he hoped that the committee would be permitted to go a large into the subject, in order to trace the cause of the evil. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, the committee for which he moved, was fol the purpose of inquiring into the state o Commercial Credit, not of Public Credit beyond that it was not his idea that it should go. The committee, he was sure would not think it advisable to protract their report to any great length, but it would naturally inquire into the causes for the purpose of ascertaining the remedy: and if it found that the evil from sprung public causes, would of course recommend a public remedy. Should that view, how ever, be taken of the subject, there would be more propriety, he thought, in bringing it before the committee than the House. Mr. Curwen hailed the present mea sure as a step towards the exposure of the bad system upon which the government had acted. He alluded to the new rela tions with America, and disapproved of the policy of encouraging manufactures to the injury of the agriculture of the country. Mr. Horner thought the chancellor of the exchequer had taken a more correct view of the subject than his right hon. friend. It was better, in his opinion, to confine the inquiry at present to the na tare of the measures to be adopted, than to enter upon the causes which have led to those measures. He wished to express, however, no opinion at present of the remedy necessary for the evil; or even an opinion of the possibility of affording any such remedy. He rose to move for the addition of another name to the list. Nothing, he owned, could be more respect able than the names of which that list was composed; but he could not avoid thinking that it would have been better if it had contained fewer commercial members. He thought that, at any rate, the late Secretary to the Treasury should be i on the committee, and should therefore move, that the name of Mr. Huskisson be added. Mr. Huskisson wished to decline the honour of being a member of the committee. He stated the points in which he thought the present distresses resembled, and in which they did not resemble those of 1793. At present there was no interruption to public credit; in 1793 it was otherwise; and at present there was a great spirit of over-trading in the country. He disclaimed having any particular opportunities of information on this subject. The Chancellor of the Exchequer rose to support the motion of the hon. gent. He agreed with the gent. who last spoke, that the present circumstances differed in some cases from those of 1793, and resembled them in others. He thought, however, that should the distresses of the present day be even traced to overtrading, yet if the result of that over-trading had been such as not only to occasion mischief to those who had over-traded, but to those who have not over-traded, the House could have no objection to afford an alleviation, if possible. He had no hesi tation in saying, that whatever opinion might be formed of the policy of the Orders in Council, these, on inquiry, would not be found to be the cause of the present commercial distress. Mr. Tierney said, that it was not sufficient to induce the House to vote an issue of exchequer bills, to state that numbers of merchants had over-traded themselves. Upon such a report being presented to the House he should not think himself justified in giving his vote. He did not mean to say that under certain circumstances of distress, he might not be willing enough to give assistance; but those circumstances he thought should differ materially from the present. He owned he did not see how a remedy could be afforded to the present evils. The right hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer spoke of the necessity of a speedy report; but he hoped that sufficient time would be taken to make the necessary inquiries, and for this purpose a week, at least, would be necessary. Were he a member of the committee, he would wish to examine a number of merchants on the subject, and enter upon other inquiries, which would all take up a good deal of time. It would be proper for the House to know what was the state of the present distress, what had produced that state, and what was likely to be the duration of that state: and it would be foolish to give issues of Exchequer bills at present, if at the end of a twelvemonth the evil should still continue. The Chancellor of the Exchequer should certainly think the committee were going beyond their duty, were they to enter upon so large a field of investigation as the right hon. gent. would force upon them. To what extent the House might think fit to go into the ultimate and proximate causes of the subject, was another consideration but it was the Committee's duty to inquire into the nature of the present distress. The House would consider the degree and extent of the distress, and whether it was advisable to afford a remedy. Mr. Canning observed, that from the narrow description of the investigation proposed, he apprehended the qualities for which his hon. friend had been stated to be particularly distinguished, were not necessary, especially if it was intended that the report should be speedily laid on the table. The qualities alluded to would only have been of essential advantage, if the committee were about to inquire not only into the immediate but into the remote causes of the present state of commercial credit. He therefore thought it would be better to leave the names as originally moved. Mr. Horner expressed his surprise that the right hon. gent. should have spoken as if he had fallen into some impropriety in naming the hon. gent. near him as a member of this committee, and an impropriety which the Chancellor of the Exchequer had avoided. This was extraordinary, as the Chancellor of the Exchequer had immediately assented the moment the hon. gent. had been named. He had never doubted but the hon. gent. would have been willing to have given his services upon the committee; services which, in his view of the case, would be of great utility. It appeared to him that this would be an operation of finance founded on a commercial difficulty; and it was important, even with a view to the proximate causes of that difficulty, that some person, accustomed to the operations of finance, should be on the spot. Although he was sorry that the services of the hon. gent. on this committee should be lost, yet as he was averse to become one of the members, he certainly would not press his motion. Mr. Tierney moved as an amendment, That after the word credit,' the words and trade of the united kingdom' be inserted. Mr. Baring thought upon the whole, that it would be better to defer the consideration of the more extended subject, until the narrower was decided, and the report of the committee brought up. Mr. H. Thornton preferred the original words. He did not wish that the great political question should be submitted to the committee. The amendment was negatived without a division. Mr. Tierney then moved another amendment, that the word thereupon' should be left out, for the purpose of introducing the words the causes that produced the same.' the committee should report on the caus that produced the same. Mr. Perceval observed, that the right hon. gent. had surely fallen into som mistake. Was it meant that there should be an inquiry into the causes that pro duced commercial credit? Mr. Tierney-No; into the causes c the present state of commercial credit. Mr. Perceval-Even in that sense it wa too large, and would carry the duties the committee much beyond what an one appeared to have in view. Mr. Wilberforce concurred with the la speaker, that the words of the amendmer were too large-and that the inquir ought to be confined to the state of trad so far as this was connected with the mear of relief. The latter part of the amendment wa also negatived, and the motion, as or ginally worded, agreed to without a d vision. Upon the reading of the names of th members for the committee, Mr. Whitbread stated, that in his opinic there were too many commercial men pr posed, 13 out of the 21 being of that d scription, and thereby constituting a m jority of the whole. The remaining name too, were chiefly those connected with th right hon. gent. in office. The right ho gent. seemed to hold out, that he had first rather turned a deaf ear to the r presentations on this subject, and wheth he was a convert to the opinions containe in these representations, or had brough forward the subject on account of th number of applications, and the respec ability of the quarters from whence the Mr. Wilberforce said, the Committee came, he had not mentioned. But if the should not be permitted to go into the commerce of the country was in an en political question, as it would only have barrassed state, and it was clear that it wa the effect of rendering the real question this committee was improperly const referred to them, ambiguous. tuted. That there ought to be some con The amendment was negatived as be-mercial men, was certain; but that the The Chancellor of the Exchequer thought the words, as they originally stood, expressed the meaning sufficiently, and of course that the amendment was unnecessary. fore. Mr. H. Thornton took it for granted that the object was to inquire into the state of trade only so far as this was connected with the means of giving relief. To answer this purpose, the original motion was sufficiently well expressed. The amendment proposed would lead into too large field. must have a strong bias to recommend th granting of relief, even though it might b doubtful to others whether such a measul would be proper, he thought self-eviden and therefore they ought not to constitu a majority. He was surprised that th name of Mr. Huskisson had not been or aginally proposed, and surprised that ther should be any objection on his part whe he was last mentioned. He hoped som other names would be proposed. Th commercial majority was objectionable i the first place, and almost the whole the rest would be under a vote for an The first part of the amendment, that the committee should inquire into the state of the trade of the united kingdom, was then put and negatived. The question being upon the latter part, that 50 gested. The Chancellor of the Exchequer stated, that he had taken the principal merchants from both sides of the House-persons best acquainted with the subject, and at the same time not likely to be so much affected as less eminent traders, by the present depressed state of commerce. He had no objection, however, to some more names, though it was desirable that the Committee should not be too numerous. Sir J. Newport objected to the constitution of the committee, on the same grounds Mr. Whitbread. measure of relief which the Chancellor | proceedings as had been instituted ex officio of the Exchequer might have already sug- against state libels, by the Attorney General, for the last ten years. It would pledge their lordships to no further opinion; it might be granted with due regard to parliamentary usage, without implying the suspicion of abuse, and without entailing on the House the necessity of any subsequent proceeding. In the other House (if it was regular to allude to such things) it had, from time immemorial, been the usage to institute, at the commencement of every session, a Committee of Justice, an usage which indicates that the eye of parliament should be invariably fixed on the administration of justice, Mr. 4. Baring stated, that every com- that parliamentary inquiry into the nature mercial man who had expressed a doubt or number of any prosecutions in the as to the expediency of giving relief, had courts below conveyed no censure on those been named for the committee. courts, but proved that vigilance and poSir J. Newport disclaimed any other ob-licy, with regard to them, was the con jection to a majority of commercial men than this, that they would be, from the nature of the case, acting under an undue bias. Mr. G. Johnstone proposed that Mr. D. Giddy be added to the committee, but nobody seconded the motion. The committee was therefore appointed as originally constituted, with the usual powers. HOUSE OF LORDS. stant and uniform duty of parliament, which could not be relaxed without danger, but which could be exercised without implying distrust or suspicion. The House, indeed, had recently sanctioned the prin ciple, for without imputing blame to any one, they had, at the motion of his noble friend (lord Grenville) whose absence he regretted, ordered in this very session, (or at least in last session) a return of the number of convictions and other proceedings on felonies under the revenue laws, Monday, March 4. in aid of that judicious and benevolent inINFORMATIONS EX OFFICIO FOR LIBEL.] quiry, in which, at the instance of his noble The order of the day being read, friend, a committee of their lordships was Lord Holland rose and said, he had little at present employed. In addition to this apprehension, when he first gave notice of general view of their duties, and exclusive his motion, that it would meet with any op- of those prima facie grounds on which he position. It was indeed a motion so conso-(lord Holland) rested some suspicion of want to parliamentary usage, so obviously abuse, their lordships, without agreeing enjoined by the duties of the legislature, and with him in that inference, would be jus60 natural a consequence of measures re-tified in requiring further information on cently adopted by the House, that he had a subject on which they had so recently hoped it might have met with the entire con- legislated, for the purpose of ascertaining currence of their lordships. In this, how-the uses to which the new law had been ever, he was mistaken-he had received applied, and the consequences it had an intimation (for the politeness of which duced; and this argument was yet more be acknowledged himself obliged) from a forcible, when he recollected the circumquarter where he knew that opposition in stances under which the act he had alluded that House was seldom fruitless, and it had to was passed, in a thin House, at the lagtherefore become necessary for him to end of a session, and without any one pertrouble their lordships more at length son to explain the nature of its provisions, than he could have wished, to explain the or assign the reasons on which they grounds on which this motion rested, and were founded. In such manner, however, at the same time to state as explicitly the was an act altering the antient law of the terior objects to which, if acceded to, land, giving to the silent and spontaneous be should call their attention.-The mo- act of one man, all the powers and consetion he had to submit was merely for in- quences of a solemn proceeding of a grand formation, it was merely for a list of such jury, introduced and passed through par (K) (VOL. XIX.) pro |