were required, by the provisions of the temples and tombs, mausoleums and papermanent settlement, to keep the roads laces; but they had, without ostentation, and embankments within their estates in constructed works calculated to add to the repair. Next, as to works of irrigation, so convenience and enhance the prosperity of much required in India. The Western the population at large. Jumna Canal was in length 425 miles, and the Eastern 155 miles. The Ganges Canal was in length 810 miles, and the cost 1,555,548., of which 722,5561. had been expended. The Ravee Canal was in length 450 miles, and the cost 500,000l. At Madras the rivers Godavery, Canvery, and Kistna, had all been turned to the purposes of irrigation. He would not give the details, but the aggregate cost since 1841 was 291,1201. When his right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Control had adverted to these great works of irrigation, the hon. Member for Manchester would express no satisfaction, would give no credit. True," said the hon. Member, "you have expended vast sums, and constructed great works of irrigation, but why did you not do so in 1792, when a report was sent in to Government recommending works on the Kistna?" Well, he would have been glad if works of irrigation had been constructed in 1792; but the Government of that day had enough to do to preserve, their footing in India, and he did not think that the House would be disposed to concur with the hon. Member in holding the Government of 1853 responsible for the omissions of the Government of 1792. They had heard much of the blessings of the Mahomedan rule, and of the extent and grandeur of their public works. Ile had extracts showing the miseries and horrors of that rule that would make them shudder; but, after the length at which he had intruded on their time, he would abstain from reading them. With regard to their public works, they were such as gratified their vanity, or ministered to their luxury. If a road was made, or buildings were erected, it was only as a preparation for some royal progress, or as leading to some royal hunting grounds. When the progress ceased, or the hunt was abandoned, the road was neglected, and the building fell into decay. He would refer hon. Members to a recent work by Sir Henry Elliott, a most accomplished Eastern scholar, who exposes the gross exaggeration and fabulous statements that have been made respecting the public works of the Mahomedan emperors. It was true that the Indian Government had not expended the public funds in the erection of The hon. Members who had preceded him in the debate, when discussing the administration of justice, had connected with it the employment of natives; and he should pursue the same course. Upon this head, and more particularly upon the employment of the natives of India, he looked with confidence to the result of the inquiry now pending before the Committee. Before 1830 the administration of India was carried on almost exclusively by Europeans: natives were only employed in very subordinate situations, and on very small salaries. Now, the universal rule and practice was, native agency and European superintendence. The administration of justice was almost entirely in the hands of the natives; and he rejoiced to add that the results fully justified the confidence reposed in them. Of original suits, 99 per cent were determined by natives; and of all suits, including appeals, 96 per cent. Natives were also employed as deputy magistrates and deputy collectors, and the salaries in the various offices to which he had alluded ranged from 100l. to 9001. ayear, and in one case the salary was 1,560l. In the face of this statement, substantiated by official returns, how could it be alleged that the Indian Government had not fairly and efficiently carried out the provisions of the statute of 1834? If the Government of India had prematurely placed natives in offices for the duties of which they were not competent, the benevolent intentions of the Legislature would have been frustrated. The success of the enactment providing for the employment of the natives had resulted from the the judgment, care and caution with which it had been carried out. Their promotion had been gradual, and commensurate with their qualifications and fitness. But he felt satisfied that if they had been rashly advanced to situations for which they were unsuited, their interests and the public service would have equally suffered. The hon. Member for Manchester shook his head, indicating dissent: did the hon. Member mean to say that the natives of India had not a fair share in the administration of justice when they decided 99 per cent of the original suits? He believed the hon. Member dissented because no native had been admitted to the cove→ nanted service. That service consisted of young men who had been educated at Haileybury College, and from thence proceeded to India; and could it be urged as a grievance that natives were not required to leave their country and go through this preparatory course before they were employed in the public service? The object was not to elevate one or two natives to the highest situations, but to employ extensively those who were competent; and the result was, that, at present, upwards of 2,300 natives were engaged in the public service. There were, besides, very grave considerations connected with the subject, into which he would not wish to enter. If natives were admitted into the civil covenanted service, he did not see how they could be excluded from the military; and then came the question, how far it would be expedient and safe to commit to them the command of our armies. It must be remembered, that the covenanted services were seniority services, where men must rise according to their standing. He put it to the good sense and good feeling of the House, if it was not better to abstain from agitating this question, and to leave it to the discretion of the Government of India to employ natives generally in the situations for which they were competent. They might rest assured that the distinguished statesmen who had filled the high office of Governor General, were as anxious as any Member of this House, to do full and ample justice to the claims of the natives of India. It had been alleged, that the Court of Directors not only had shown no disposition to carry out the provisions of the statute of 1834, but had wholly disregarded the enactment. That unfounded imputation was best refuted by the instructions sent out by the Court in the year 1834, and very shortly after the passing of the Act. He would be glad if he could read the entire despatch, but he would solicit permission to read a few extracts. "The meaning of the enactments we take to be, that there shall be no governing caste in British India; that whatever other tests of qualification may be adopted, distinctions of race or religion shall not be of the number; that no subject of the king, whether of Indian or British or mixed descent, shall be excluded, either from the posts usually conferred on our uncovenanted servants in India, or from the covenanted service itself, provided he be otherwise eligible, consistently with the rules, and agreeably to the conditions, observed and exacted in the one case and in the other. "Men of European enterprise and education will appear in the field, and it is by the prospect of attention. this event, that we are led particularly to impress the lesson already alluded to, on your Lordship's indigenous people of India, or those among them In every view it is important that the who by their habits, character, or position, may be induced to aspire to office, should, as far as possible, be qualified to meet their European competitors. Hence, there arises a powerful argument for the promotion of every design tending to the improvement of the natives, whether by conferring on them the advantages of education, or by diffusing among them the treasures of science, knowledge, and moral culture. For these desirourselves, are anxious; and we doubt not that, in able results, we are well aware that you, like order to impel you to increased exertion for the promotion of them, you will need no stimulant beyond a simple reference to the considerations we have suggested. While, however, we entertain the supposition, that it is chiefly by holding out these wishes and opinions, we must guard against means and opportunities of official distinction, that we expect our Government to benefit the millions subjected to their authority. We have repeatedly expressed to you a very different sentiaffect the bulk of the people under any government, and perhaps least under a good government. It is not by holding out incentives to official ambition, but by repressing crime, by fidence, by ensuring to industry the fruit of its securing and guarding property, by creating conlabour, by protecting men in the undisturbed enjoyment of their rights, and in the unfettered exercise of their faculties, that governments best minister to the public wealth and happiness. In when it is a part of general freedom." effect the free access to office is chiefly valuable ment. Facilities of official advancement can little Such were the instructions sent out by the Court of Directors. They are clear, distinct, and explicit, and in strict conformity with the spirit of the enactment; and he was happy to add, that they had been fully and honestly carried into execution by the local government. Hon. Members who professed such an interest in the well-being of the people of India seemed to have entirely lost sight of the great moral and social reforms which had been effected in India. Dacoity and gang robbery had been much abated, if not entirely suppressed. The horrid system of Thuggism, whereby entire communities were professionally engaged in cold blooded wholesale murder, had been wholly extinguished. Suttee had been abolished. Infanticide suppressed within our own territories, and nearly throughout the whole of India. that time permitted him to refer to the He wished Slavery entirely abolished. labours of some distinguished men, who, regardless of personal risk, had penetrated into mountain regions hitherto unexplored, and where the deadly jungles that encompassed them seemed to prevent the possibility of access. [Here some hon. Member cheered.] Yes, he well understood the meaning of that ironical cheer. It indicated distrust in his statements, and he would, therefore, solicit permission to advert to a few of the cases that were on his mind. He would first refer to Mainivava, a district near Ajmere, which, within forty years, was inhabited by savage and ferocious marauders, who murdered their daughters and sold their mothers-who seemed to recognise no tie, and were utterly regardless of life. Into that district, Colonel (then Captain) Dickson penetrated; and, alone, he accomplished as much as was ever done by mortal man in reclaiming and humanising savages. These ferocious mountaineers were rendered docile and obedient. Their barbarous and cruel practices were abolished; useful works were executed; industry was encouraged, and Colonel Dickson was more than rewarded by the success which attended his efforts, and the confidence reposed in him as a benefactor. He hoped that what he had said would induce hon. Members to read the most interesting narrative of Colonel Dickson, which united the truth of history with all the charms of romance. He would next refer to the Bheels, inhabiting mountains in the district of Candeish. They roamed about in robber gangs. Their hand was against all, and the hand of all was against them. Every effort had been made by the native authorities to butcher and exterminate them, but in vain. When the province was ceded to us, its subjugation was effected with ease, except the Bheels, who would not yield, believing that if they submitted, they would be murdered. No wonder they thought so; like beasts of the forest they had been hunted down, and like beasts of the forest they had preyed upon mankind. Mr. Elphinstone determined that an effort should be made to reclaim them, and the selection of officers for that purpose was eminently fortunate. Colonel (then Major) Ovans was appointed Civil Commissioner, and Colonel (then Lieutenant) Outram was instructed to endeavour to raise a Bheel corps. Colonel Ovans succeeded far beyond what had been anticipated, and for that success he was indebted to his own untiring zeal and energy, and to the temper and spirit of conciliation he evinced when surrounded by difficulties that would have appalled most men. The efforts of Colonel Outram were equally successful. He combined all the requisite qualifications. He won their admiration by his daring exploits, and their confidence by fearlessly flinging himself among them. He joined their hunting expeditions, and was ever foremost in the chase as in the field. The success which attended the efforts of Colonel Ovans and Colonel Outram was complete, and the Bheels were now a civilised and industrious people. He could not omit a hasty reference to the Khoonds, tribes inhabiting hills in the district of Gangam. Till lately the existence of these tribes was unknown, and access to their mountain dwelling was forbidden by the pestilential nature of the climate. But nothing is too perilous to be encountered by a British officer, whether in the service of his country, or in the cause of humanity. Lieutenant Macpherson, when employed in surveying the plains, became acquainted with the existence of these tribes and their revolting usages. Infanticide and human sacrifices prevailed among them to a frightful extent. With them human sacrifices were regarded as a religious duty, and the observance of it requisite to avert the wrath of the Earth Goddess, and secure the success of any undertaking. When Lieutenant Macpherson first interfered to save a human victim, the expectation was universal that some dire calamity must befall him. As he escaped the looked-for punishment, it was believed that he must possess some charm which enabled him to avert the wrath of the ruthless goddess. By degrees he gained the confidence of those tribes, and by perseverance and conciliation succeeded in inducing them to abstain from their horrid rites. Colonel Campbell succeeded Lieutenant Macpherson, and pursued the same humane course with like success, and both dwelt among these savages in perfect security. When the soldier mounts the breach, or rushes into the thickest of the fight, he is sustained by the consciousness that his fame will reach his home, and that his deeds of glory will be proclaimed to the world. But here were men, labouring in noxious jungles in the cause of humanity, unseen and unheard, with no visions of glory to cheer them, and no reward but the consciousness that they are discharging their duty to their God and their country. He begged pardon for the digression into which he had been forced by the interruption he had met with. He would next advert to education, which, as had been observed, was closely connected with the good administration of affairs in India. time they would be entirely surmounted. He had no vain fear as to the consequences of educating and enlightening the people of India; he did not participate in the apprehensions which had been expressed elsewhere. He believed that their great mission was to educate and improve the people, and that it was their duty to do so, irrespective of the results. If ever they were destined to leave India, the most glorious monument to their memory would be to have advanced the people in education and knowledge, and rendered them fit for their own self-g -government. He was happy to say that he had now arrived at the last subject to which it was his duty to advert-the ecclesiastical establishment in India, and he would briefly state the increase which had taken place since 1833. Much had been done for the promotion | spoke the same language, and worshipped of education among the natives of India; the same God. These difficulties had been but he freely admitted that much remained partially overcome, and he hoped that in to be done. Where was the presumptuous man who would not admit that he had omitted much that he ought to have done? and where was the body of men, associated for any purpose, who would not humbly make the like confession? Much difficulty had to be surmounted, and many prejudices had to be encountered, and he ventured to assert, that, since 1830, as much had been done as, under the circumstances, could be reasonably expected. In Bengal there had been established of English and mixed schools 37, and of vernacular 104. In the North-western provinces, of English mixed schools seven, and of vernacular eight. In Madras, one English and mixed school, and of the vernacular he had no return. In Bombay, of English and mixed schools 14, and of vernacular 233. The total expense yearly was 66,9931. The number of teachers, 855, and of pupils, 25,372, while nearly 8,000l. annually was granted in scholarships, besides those established by private endowment. Besides these schools, there was a medical college at Calcutta, and a college for the education of civil engineers at Roorkee, in the North-western provinces. He admitted that the amount expended for the promotion of education was smalltoo small; but he begged the House to consider how slow had been the progress of all moral and social improvements at home, where there were no obstacles to impede their advancement. How slow had been their progress with regard to legal reforms, police, gaols, the provision of dwellings for the poor, and the various subjects that had of late engrossed public attention? Parliament itself, until lately, had been sparing, if not parsimonious, in public grants for education. In 1813, when the Charter of the East India Company was renewed, the sum named for education in India was only 10,000l. Even at home the sum granted for education for England and Wales, from 1833 to 1837, was only 20,000l.: while in 1851 | it was 150,000l.; in 1852, 160,000l.; and in 1853, 260,0001. He asked them to consider the difficulties they had to contend with in India-difficulties immeasurably greater and far more formidable than any which presented themselves in this country. In India there were different races, different creeds, and different languages; while here all were born in the same land, In 1833, the number of chaplains in India was 64. In 1852 they were 115. In 1834 the expense of the Church Establishment was 81,9541., and in 1852 it was 107,765. In 1834, the allowances to the ministers of the Scotch Kirk was 6,2431., and in 1852 it was 6,579. In 1834, the payments to Roman Catholic priests who administered spiritual instruction to soldiers of that faith, was 1,6097., and in 1852 it amounted to 5,4967. In 1830 there were 106 Missionary stations, and in 1852 there were 403. With regard to the observation made, as to the small number of Roman Catholic priests, and the inadequate allowance made to them, he would observe, that the rule was to pay a Roman Catholic priest at every station where there was an European regiment. The payment made to them varied from 50 to 100 rupees monthly, and at a few of the large stations the allowance was 150 rupees. The allowance to the Roman Catholic bishop at each Presidency was, as had been stated, only 200 rupees monthly; but that allowance was not granted to him as bishop, but for the performance of certain duties connected with the registry of births and marriages. With reference to the vast extent of India, the Church Establishment might seem small; but it must be borne in mind that the Government of India only professed to provide spiritual instruction for those engaged in the public service, and not for all residents in India. He had that day met with a very interesting book, the Missionary Intelligencer, and as it afforded strong and independent testimony 1277 Drummond's (Duke de JUNE 7, 1853) Melfort's) Restitution Bill. 1278 as regarded the religion, morality, integ- I did not complain of arraigning the acts of rity, and capacity, of the public servants, he would beg the attention of the House to an extract: "Looking at the state of the country politically, we think there is a remarkable opening for the ministers of the Gospel, as perfect peace and good order reign in the whole extent of the Punjaub, as in any part of England. We see nothing to deter any prudent faithful man from travelling about in all parts, or settling in any one place, and preaching the Gospel of salvation fully, and in doing so, holding up to just condemnation all the false systems by which the people are held bound of Satan. Much more, we think there is not only a wholesome fear, but a just respect, for the Englishman. The Government of the country have done much to establish this state of things. The Governing Board are well known for their high principles, and their spirit and example pervade all the officers of Government, who seem to have been selected for energy, talent, habits of business, and upright character. The rapidity of the improvements in the country is really wonderful. A few years have done the work of an age in the Punjaub, and the people, feeling perfect security for life and property, and a strong reliance upon the administration of justice, are freed from all petty oppression, and in the full exercise of industrious pursuits, are not only contented but happy; and, moreover, the general state of European society is good. "It does one good" (we refer to a private letter), "to see so many men of talent and rank all intent on their work, and all alive and progress ing onward, and sparing no labour of either body or mind to perform their end. Everything here is on the alert. Men are on their Arab horses, and off at a moment's notice anywhere, and at a rate that would terrify some in England. Others go out and spend six months at a time in tents, and think nothing of either the hot sun by day, or the cold frosts by night as they travel along administering justice from town to town; they have sometimes to leave a station at a week's notice, and selling off, all go to a distant part of the country. And if men gladly do all these things as soldiers or rulers, surely we ought not to be behind in a better cause. They seem here to have their eyes open to everything that is going on in the whole country, making roads and canals, erecting bridges, settling the revenue, building cantonments, planting trees, and looking into the minutiae of everything. But we want more men, for the members of the Government are doing all they possibly can to encourage us, and probably there are few countries where such an opening presents itself." He felt how inadequately he had discharged the important duty which had devolved upon him, and how unduly he had trespassed upon the indulgence and attention which had been so kindly afforded him. The subject was of vast importance, and the body with which he had the honour to be associated had been assailed, not only with charges of mismanagement and errors of judgment, but even their motives the East India Company. The acts of all public men were open to public canvass, and, if they deserved it, to public condemnation; but he did complain of some expressions which had fallen from some hon. Members, impugning the purity of the intentions of the Court of Directors. One hon. Member, a Friend of his own, the Member for Poole, had exclaimed, "What sympathy have the Court of Directors with the people of India?" What sympathy? Had they not a sacred duty to discharge, and why should the hon. Member suppose that they were not disposed to perform it? Let him say, if he so pleased, that the Directors were incapable and incompetent; but let it not be repeated that they were indisposed to discharge their duty to the people of India. For himself he would say, that he had proceeded to India at an early period of life, in the service neither of the Crown or the Company, dependent solely on his own exertions, for his success and advancement. had pleased God to prosper his exertions, and he was indebted to that country for the independence that enabled him to have a seat in the great council of his country. He was indebted to India by every tie of gratitude and affection; and he would tell the hon Gentleman, that feelings like those were as likely to produce beneficial results to the people of India, as the promptings of abstract philanthropy and benevolence. He could say for himself and his colleagues, that personally they cared little what might be the determination of Parliament; but their earnest wish and anxious prayer was, that the Supreme Disposer of events might so direct their councils, that they might select that form of government, and those instruments to execute it, that were best calculated to advance the interests and happiness of the people of India, and the honour and glory of this great country. It On the Motion of Mr. BLACKETT, the debate was further adjourned till Thursday. The House adjourned at One o'clock. HOUSE OF LORDS, Tuesday, June 7, 1853. MINUTES.] PUBLIC BILL.-1a Consolidated Fund DRUMMOND'S (DUKE DE MELFORT'S) RESTITUTION BILL. The LORD CHANCELLOR, in mov and intentions had been impugned. He ing the Second Reading of this Bill, said, |