from himself the dangers lying before | be more unjust than to attribute to him, them in the way of Indian finance, he could not admit that the state of affairs was at all unsatisfactory. During the past week the House had been discussing with some warmth, but in a most interesting manner, the question of the conduct of Her Majesty's Government towards Afghanistan. At the conclusion of that discussion the House, like the House of Lords, expressed, by a large majority, approval of the conduct of the Government. This being so, and the war having begun, he would only ask the House to accept the very wise advice tendered by the noble Lord opposite (the Marquess of Hartington), in the course of the debate to which he referred, and say that, the war having been begun, they were now prepared unanimously to strengthen the hands of Her Majesty's Government to bring it to a satisfactory and speedy conclusion. The hon. Member concluded by moving his Resolution.

and to those who were going to support him, any such intention to place the slightest obstacle in the path of the Government as regarded the expenditure hitherto incurred. Before Parliament met he declared to his constituents-and he repeated the declaration-that when war had once been commenced nothing was so idle as to suppose that the House of Commons could stop the expenditure which had been incurred. The duty of the Opposition when war was declared was stated with admirable force and admirable clearness by the noble Lord the Leader of the Opposition, when he stated that, however anxious he might be to limit the scope of the war, he could be no party to any effort to stop the Supplies. The reason of this was obvious. The soldiers who were in the field must be paid; the stores procured or ordered must be paid for, unless the House was prepared to sanction an act of national repudiation; if bribes or Motion made, and Question proposed, promises of money had been offered to "That, Her Majesty having directed a Mili-independent tribes, however greatly he tary expedition of Her Forces charged upon might regret the fact on moral grounds, Indian Revenues to be despatched against the there was something which would be Ameer of Afghanistan, this House consents that the Revenues of India shall be applied to defray worse still-namely, a disregard of the Therefore he dethe expenses of the Military operations which promises so made. may be carried on beyond the external frontiers sired, in the most emphatic way posof Her Majesty's Indian Possessions."-(Mr. sible, to state that it was unfair, because Edward Stanhope.) they opposed this Resolution, to fasten upon them the responsibility of attempting to stop the Supplies. Indeed, so absolutely impossible, when a war had been once begun, was it to stop Supplies, that the House of Commons could practically exercise no control; and he felt this so strongly that he had no hesitation in saying that he did everything said, although the speech of the Under in his power to get Parliament sumSecretary of State offered him many moned before war was declared; and he temptations to go astray, he would en- felt that had that been done, and if bedeavour, to the best of his ability, not to fore the war they had only had the insay a single word which should lead the formation they now possessed, this war House to loose its hold upon the issue would never have begun. The question which it now had to determine, and they had to determine was not whether which he should be able to show was as or not the money should be paid, but important to England as it was to India. whether it should be paid by England, But there were some remarks in the or, as was proposed by Her Majesty's closing sentences of the Under Secre- Government, entirely by India. The tary's speech which he could not pass Under Secretary had attempted to put a over without some notice. He knew it gloss upon the Amendment. The prowould be said that the effect of passing posal of the Government amounted to this Resolution would be to stop Sup-this-that India should pay every sixplies, and to prevent the Government pence of the ordinary and extraordinary from bringing this war to an honourable expenses of the war, and that at some and a speedy conclusion. Nothing could future time-it might be when the Greek

MR. FAWCETT, in rising to move, as an Amendment,

"That this House is of opinion that it would be unjust that the Revenues of India should be applied to defray the extraordinary expenses of the Military operations now being carried on against the Ameer of Afghanistan,"

Kalends arrived the Government would | speech and by vote. Yet Lord Napier take it into their serious consideration was, if possible, still more opposed than whether the Imperial Revenues should Lords Lawrence and Northbrook to not pay some portion of the cost. It throwing the charge for the war upon was said his Amendment was not suffi- the Revenues of India. He thought this ciently specific. Then nothing would be showed that the issues they had to diseasier than to introduce some words to cuss were entirely and absolutely distinct make it more distinct. He did not, of from the issue discussed on Friday. The course, propose that India should make Under Secretary stated that nothing money out of this war, or that the pay would be more unfortunate to the finanof soldiers, whom it would otherwise cial stability of India than_that_she have to maintain, should be paid by should receive subventions from EngEngland; but all that he did propose land, and in that view he entirely conwas to give a direct and absolute opposi- curred. Now, he wished to discuss this tion to the Government. They declared question as one of absolute justice, and that this war was for Imperial far more not as one of honour and generosity to than Indian purposes; and therefore it India. He was accused of taking a was as unjust as it was ungenerous to gloomy view of Indian finances; but he come down and say-" India should pay never took so gloomy a view of them as everything, and some day we will take to suppose that if they were judiciously it into our consideration whether some and wisely administered, India could not slight contribution towards the expense pay all claims justly made upon her Reought not to be made by England." venues. He was not expressing that This question was in no sense a Party opinion for the first time. It would be one, and he said this not as an ordinary remembered that when last September common place, but because the debate twelvemonth the suggestion appeared to in "another place" had shown that gain much approval that a grant should many of those who were most strong in be made out of the Imperial Revenues their support of the Government most for the relief of the Famine in Madras strongly objected to the entire charge and Bombay, so great was his objection being thrown upon India. The Under to subventions that he felt it to be his Secretary had spoken of the unanimous painful duty to oppose the movement in decision of the other branch of the question. He should have occasion to Legislature; but, as a matter of fact, show how entirely the Under Secretary every single Peer who spoke, whether had misstated the condition of the he was a supporter of the Government finances of India, and to call attention to or not, and who referred to the proposal the heavy burdens which were placed to throw the entire charge of the war upon the people of India. The question upon the Revenues of India, unhesi- before them must, however, be detertatingly condemned it. Therefore, so mined by a consideration of the chafar as the opinion of the other branch of racter of the war. If this were an Imthe Legislature was ascertained, instead perial war, England was bound, both of being unanimous in approval, it was legally and equitably, to pay for it; and one of unanimous condemnation. Fur- he based this opinion on the 55th clause ther, a specific fact would show that, of the Government of India Act, which however much they might differ as to had been read by the Under Secretary the justice or the necessity of the war, of State for India, and which clause some of those who were strongest in sup- especially said that— porting it were foremost in declaring "Except for preventing or repelling actnal that it was a great Imperial under-invasion of Her Majesty's Indian Possessions, taking, and that it could not be fairly or under other sudden and urgent necessity, the treated as if it were a purely Indian Revenues of India shall not, without the consent war. Another remarkable fact was that defray the expenses of any Military operation of both Houses of Parliament, be applicable to there were three Peers in the House of carried on beyond the external frontiers of Lords who had all held high office in such possessions by Her Majesty's Forces India. Two of them (Lord Lawrence charged upon such Revenues." and Lord Northbrook) opposed the policy of the Government; while Lord Napier of Ettrick, a former Governor of Madras, cordially supported it both by

He did not raise the question whether it was legal to spend the Revenues of India before Parliament was summoned, which might be deferred to another occasion.

There could be no doubt of the meaning | distinct and precise than that. But and purport of the clause, for it was in- supposing hon. Gentlemen opposite were troduced into the other House by the late to discover that this war did not simply Lord Derby, who had charge of the Bill, concern a small cantonment, but that it and who said he introduced it for the pro-was distinctly intended to maintain the tection of the Revenues of India: that if influence and uphold the greatness the Indian forces were employed in a of England in India, would not they war beyond the Frontier of India it be the first to say that nothing could would be for Parliament to decide whe- be more mean, nothing more shabby ther the war was an Imperial or an than_that the greatness and influence Indian one, and that if it were an Im- of England should be maintained perial war the money must be paid by by the money of the people of India? England. This was the common-sense Lord Beaconsfield himself had said and the reasonable interpretation of the that this war was not merely one clause. What would be the position of concerning the Khyber Pass, or some the House and the country if it were small cantonment at Dakka or Jellalapossible to employ the Indian troops in bad; but that it was one which conImperial matters, and maintain them cerned the influence and character of out of the resources of India without England in Europe. How could they first obtaining the sanction of Parlia- escape from that? If the war was to ment? One of their greatest and most maintain the influence and character of precious privileges would be swept England in Europe, could there be anyaway, and an Imperial war might be thing more unfair, more unworthy of carried on without the sanction of the this country than to use the moneys of House, as the Government would be the people of India to maintain that able to carry it on entirely out of the position and character, and to enable us Revenues of India without asking for a to parade ourselves before the world as single Vote of Supply. Therefore, this a great Imperial Power? Every cloud clause he considered as vital to the had a silver lining however, and in this liberties of Parliament, and to the pro- matter there was something good. He tection of the people of England. As did not think that that Imperialism to the interests of the people of India, would long survive, which was decked nothing seemed to him more unfair than out in garments purchased with the that the Government and their sup- money of starving ryots and the porters, when they wanted to obtain miserable peasantry of India. To support approbation, represented to Parliament the view that India was prosperous and the country that this war was a enough to bear the cost of the war, it great Imperial war, and that, when on was said that when he spoke of Indian the other hand, they wanted to obtain finances, he produced confusion by demoney from the unfortunate Indian ducting extraordinary expenditure from people, they should minimize the scope the estimated surplus; but in doing so of the war, making it out to be a mere he was supported by the highest financial Frontier war." They must have one authorities in England, and it was almost thing or the other. For weeks the sup- a financial_truism to assert that extraporters of the Ministry on the platform ordinary Budgets and extraordinary and in the Press had been saying to expenditure had been in numerous their opponents-"You do not appre-instances the ready resort of embarrassed ciate the true character of a great Imperial enterprize; you are such parochial politicians you won't understand that this is only a branch of the great Eastern Question." When Lord Lytton went to India he declared that, having had personal interviews on the subject with the Secretary of State for India, he went out determined to treat Indian Frontier questions as indivisible parts of a great Imperial subject, mainly to be determined by the foreign policy of Her Majesty's Government. Nothing could be more

European Powers. In this case he asserted-first, that there was no surplus at all; secondly, that the money about to be taken was money that had been appropriated as a Famine Fund, and was obtained by some of the most onerous taxes over imposed upon the Indian people; and, thirdly, that this was the most extraordinary proposal ever brought forward, as it was intended to show that India was so rich and England so poor that England must come like a suppliant pauper and ask India to

The

relieve her in her necessities, and this | to be stopped-works which the Governwas done by a Ministry which wanted to ment themselves had declared to be exhibit their country's influence and necessary for the prevention of famine. power. To make India pay for this They knew that not long ago no less war, instead of exhibiting England as a than 2,000,000 of Indian people died great European Power, would exhibit her from the most terrible of all deaths in as a mean, grasping, and selfish nation. Madras and Bombay; and what was the He was not objecting now to expendi- first news they heard when just able to ture on Public Works; but he contended lift their heads from the suffering which that in order to arrive at the true laid them low? That the salt duty had financial position of India, that expen- been increased to 40 per cent. They diture must be considered in estimating accepted that strain in calmness, in order the surplus. To spend on Public Works to protect their country in future years £3,000,000 or £4,000,000, borrowed at from the terrible famines which came 4 per cent, and receive a return of upon it; but did the people of this per cent was like a landowner for- country think that the people of India getting that he had spent £10,000 on would learn with calmness that it was farm buildings. The late Secretary of intended to use that money to maintain State for India had stated that millions our influence and greatness? had been spent upon irrigation works in Government could not escape from the Bengal, borrowed at 4 and 5 per cent, fact that the present Indian surplus had and that it was yielding to the Govern- been obtained from the two taxes which ment a return of only per cent per he had described, and Lord Salisbury annum. What was the good of ignor- knew that taking this money meant ing the fact? It was beyond any possi- taking it from the actually starving. In bility of dispute that this £1,200,000, a speech on the subject of the Indian which the Government was now about to Famine, Lord Salisbury said— apply to the purposes of the war, was money raised for a distinct object. It was raised by enormous taxation to provide a security against famine; but the latest news from India was that the public works in Bombay were to be stopped-that water which was to have been brought to the parched land was not to be brought; and why? Because the Government had not the courage to come to the House and ask for a special Vote. This money had been obtained by imposing a tax on incomes of 48. a week, and raising the salt duty by 40 per cent on the famine-stricken people of Bombay and Madras. In the levying of these taxes they must remember that there were no exemptions on incomes of £150 a-year as in this country, the tax reaching £10 a-year. True, there were some exemptions in the case of the military and other professional men, Civil servants, and others, who went to the country clamouring for war, knowing full well that they would not have to pay for it, that part of the duty falling on poor carpenters and day-labourers. And the result of this appropriation of Indian money to Imperial purposes, according to the latest news from India, which the Under Secretary of State had judiciously avoided alluding to, was that almost all public works in Bombay were

"The recent mortality and distress were not due so much to a want of food or to a want of means of bringing that food to the people, but that distress and mortality were far more due to the people not having the means of buying food when it was brought within their reach." After such a statement as that, he proposed to take still more from these unfortunate people in order to enable himself to perorate in "another place" about our great Imperial policy, and the magnificent position occupied by England under the auspices of the present Government. The House should remember that the expenditure of £1,000,000 of Indian money was far more serious than the spending of £20,000,000 of English money. Though he was fully aware of the distressed condition of England at the present, he considered that that was the relative position. No doubt, additional taxation in England meant a diminution in the comforts of the people, and would be a serious burden upon many; but such taxation as he had indicated in India was altogether of a worse character. The financial condition of India had been so desperate that the Government did not know how to raise an additional £1,000,000. If they did, why were they so unjust as to impose such taxation as he had alluded to last year?