Mr. Nicholls.

20,000l.) from Cheit Sing, even while the demands of aids were in agitation, fo that when he was claiming money for the Company, he was compounding with the Rajah for himself. Mr. Francis concluded by feconding the motion.

Mr. Nicholls obferved, that guided by the coolest impartiality, in confequence of the evidence upon the charge brought forward by the right honourable gentleman (Mr. Burke) against Mr. Haftings, he had no hefitation to pronounce him innocent, unlefs Cheit Sing could be proved to be an independent fovereign prince. He fhould not attempt to addrefs himself to the paffions of people, that he might fhew he was no advocate, but he would fpeak to the common fense and reafon of the Houfe. In the first place, he lamented the fituation of Mr. Haftings, in being obliged to ftand the butt of a Britifh tribunal, inquiring into his conduct as an Afiatic Governor; for the fentiments of an Englishman were not likely to put the most favourable con. ftruction on actions, which his fituation rendered him abfolutely incable of judging upon correctly. Mr. Nicholls went into the question of the connection between the Rajah Cheit Sing and the Company, and contended, that if he were a Zemindar or tributary to the Company, then they had a right to call upon him for aid in cafes of emergency, and to fine, or otherwife punish him in cafe of refufal. That it would be the highest degree of abfurdity to fuppose, that fuch a power as this did not exist in a fovereign, whole revenues were almoft wholly drawn from the land, which was the care of all the provinces of India, except lately that cuftom and excife duties had been introduced into Bengal, because that would be laying it down as a principle that the revenues could not, on any account, be increased to a fudden emergency, the confequence of which must prove that the empire would neceffarily fink under the firit fhock; for, having no refource for a war eftablishment, fhe could not procure the means of her own protection. If he were a tributary Prince, and fubject to the kingdom of Bengal, then any expreffion of a backwardnefs, to comply with the order of his mafter, ought to be punished in a very fevere and fammary way; for an arbitrary government like that of Bengal could not fuffer any refiftance to its authority without incurring great danger. Such a government was always weak, and could only be fupported on the reputation of its power, which would be effectually deftroyed by fuffering any refiftance to be made to it with impunity. To illuftrate this, he drew a parallel between the European, and chiefly Britain, and the Oriental conftitutions. In the former, the Government was ftrong, and could indulge its fubjects in the liberties of oppofing its measures; which

the

the latter could not with fafety do. This he inftanced from
the cafe of that Houfe, admitting to the bar counsel and
evidence against a bill depending, which if the Sovereign of
an arbitrary country fhould do, he would lofe.his authority.
As for the conduct of Mr. Haftings in Benares, if it had
been blameable as the honourable gentlemen over the way
had ftated it, why did they not prove it to be, fo by the evi-
dence of Mr. Markham, whom they might have examined
when at the bar, and who was privy to every tranfaction,
having been refident at Benares during the whole of the
time. Their having omitted to examine evidence which
would have been able to have proved their case, if it had
been true, was, in point of law, fufficient ground for an
affumption that it was falfe. Were the House prepared
fay that the Zemindars were not bound to anfwer the extra-
ordinary demands of the public defence? Was the noble
Lord in the blue ribband prepared to fay fo? Why then did
he not, when he first had an account of Mr. Haftings having
made the demand, immediately put a stop to it ?—It would
be more fair to impeach the noble Lord, than to impeach
Mr. Haftings, though he wifhed not to impeach either, being
convinced that both had done their duty, and acted very
properly.

Mr. Chancellor Pitt remarked, that he had liftened with Mr. Chanthe most fixed and even anxious attention to whatsoever cellor Pitt. had been afferted during the continuance of fo important a debate, not only because he looked upon the fubject as of the utmoft magnitude, from its involving in a great degree both the honour and dignity of the British House of Commons, and alfo the general caufe of juftice and humanity, but because he had heard from all parts of the House, as well from the right honourable gentleman who had made the motion, and the honourable gentleman who had feconded it, as from the honourable and learned gentleman who had oppofed it, many arguments and doctrines to which he could not fubfcribe, and to which he found himself indifpenfably bound to exprefs his diffent. He could not but lament, that his duty peremptorily prevented him from doing what his inclination would otherwife lead him to, which was to abfent himfelf entirely from the whole of the proceedings on the prefent occafion, for he felt the greateft difficulty and uneafinefs in being obliged to determine on judicial queftions, the merits which were fo clofely connected with Indian principles and habits, and that under the infurmountable impreffion of fentiments and feelings imbibed and matured under the British conftitution. in proportion, however, to this difficulty had been his endeavour to make hinfelf perfectly after of the whole of the cafe, and although,

from

from his other avocations, he was, perhaps, lefs at liberty to dedicate a confiderable portion of his time to the ftudy of it, than most other gentleman in that Houfe, yet, he could venture to fay, that he had, by a moft laborious investigation, been able to form fuch a final and fettled opinion concerning it, as had completely fatisfied him of the vote which, in confcience, he was bound to give.-He should state to the Committee, in as plain and concife a manner as he poffibly could, the whole of the premifes which operated on his mind in forming his conclufion, and this he fhould do without any reftraint from the apprehenfion that his arguments might be ufed or perverted to a different result than what he intended; for, he thought that if there was any one fubject on which a member of that Houfe was bound to ufe lefs difguife, and to fpeak out more plainly than on another, it was on fuch a fubject as that then under difcuffion-where there ought to be no object in view but the honour of Parliament, and the ends of fubftantial juftice, as neceffarily and infeperably connected In the queftion. He fhould, therefore, take care to avoid entering into the business with that fort of temper and fpirit by which fome gentlemen feemed to be influenced, and fhould particularly guard against any impreffion fimilar to that which the right honourable gentlemen had been so defirous of making on the House, in a manner which he though, of all others, the most unfair and moft inconfiftent with every principle of law and juftice-by torturing the words and arguments of a man standing on his defence, and drawing from them inferences of motives and of principles calculared to fix upon him, in many inftances, a degree of guilt which even the charges themfelves did not impute. He fhould not fuffer fuch means to bias him in voting a cenfure, where he did not think cenfure was merited-nor fhould he fuffer his indignation at fuch unjuftifiable conduct, fo far to get the better of him, as to make him refuse such a vote where he thought he was in confcience bound to give it. He fhould firft begin by flating to the House his general opinion as to the fituation of the Zemindars of India, and the degree of fubjection under which they lay with refpect to their fuperior Lords. He had made every research in his power into this part of the subject, and as far as it was poffible to ascertain, in England, a queftion of Indian politics, liable even there to great uncertainty and variety of interpretation, he hoped that he had been fuccefsful. Mr. Pitt, now, went into the general doctrine of fubordinate principalities, pointing out the nature and extent of their fubjection to the fuperior ftate, and the neceffary dependance to which they must in all cafes be liable. It had, been a fubject of nany different opinions what was the true

tenure

tenure under which the Zemindars of the empire of Hindoftan held their poffeffions. Some had fuppofed them the real proprietors of the foil, while others looked upon them as mere truftees for the fuperior Lord, and intitled to no part of the produce or value of the lands, except fuch as were allotted j to them for their fubfiftence. Some had conceived them to be poffeffed of only a life eftate, and to be the mere channels or vehicles of the revenue; whilft others contended that their intereft was hereditary. It was, however, of very little confequence to the conclufion which he meant to draw, what was the exprefs nature of their tenure. It was enough for him that it muft, in the nature of things, and from a number of special circumstances, become liable to demands for certain extraordinary aids in cafe of extraordinary emergencies. It was impoffible to fuppofe the existence of any ftate which had no provifion made for extraordinary resources in cafes of extraordinary dangers-the most common, because the most obvious, mode of procuring this extraordinary refource, had, in the earliests periods of the feudal inftitutions, been by calling on the several vaffals of the ftate for their perfonal service in arms. This right was a fundamental maxim in every government, and one to which no individual could poffibly object, because it was by the joint power of the whole aggregate body alone that the perfon and property of the individual could be protected; and it would be a treafon against itself, in any ftate, to exclude a principle fo obvioufly neceffary to its very existence. Thofe perfonal fervices of the tenants of lands became, in time, almost univerfally commutable for money, which was found better to anfwer the exigencies of Government, and the convenience of individuals; and from hence the principle which had formerly applied to the perfons, extended to the property of the people, and each was confidered as bound to contribute in proportion to the benefits which he derived from his political capacity, as a member of a regular community, that is, in the proportions to the poffeffions which he held under it. He inftanced this from the policy of the original feudal inftitutions of Europe, and particularly of England, in the cafe of fudden danger, when, over and above the itated rents and services referved to the Crown, there was a right to call upon the tenants for particular and extraordinary service, either of a perfonal or pecuniary nature-and from fuch demands even the counties palatine were not exempted, although the proprietors had the exercise of every species of internal jurifdiction within them, in as ample a manner as any of the Indian Zemindars.-He then applied his argument more particularly to the empire of Hindoftan, where, he faid, the fame policy had been adopted and practifed;

and

and to prove that it was fo, he gave several examples from the recent history of that country, and particularly that of Coffim Ally Khan, who, as was fated in one of the charges, had received in prefents from his several vaffals above one million and a half of money for the purpofe of fupporting the expence of his military operations; and these presents, he faid, were, as nearly as poffible, fimilar to the benevolences formerly known in the politics of this country, which benevolences were literally the commutations of the military vaffals for their perfonal fervices, Even this very Cheit Sing had been made to contribute to his former Lord, Sujah Dowlah, a confiderable affiftance both in men and money towards the Rohilla expedition. If he were to recur to the written laws of the Indian legiflators, he fhould find himfelf at a lofs from want of fufficient acquaintance on the subject, but as far as he was informed he could quote the laws of one of the most celebrated of the monarchs of Hindoftan, the Emperor Ackbar, who in his grants to his zemindars, although he gave them great indulgences, and exprefly exempted them from the payment of any fubfidies beyond their ftated rents, yet his arrangement was evidently calculated with a view to fecuring a military force by the perfonal fervice of thofe very zemindars, and their fubjects, in cafe of any national and public neceffity. Mr. Pitt avowed it to be his firm conviction, that the zemindars of India are bound on all occafions of great emergency to contribute in a proportion fuitable to their own ability and the exigency of the public. The next question then to be confidered was, whether any particular ftipulations had been made in favour of Cheit Sing which ought to exempt him from the general duty incumbent on all the other tributaries to the Indian fovereigns. The method which he fhould take in purfuing this inquiry would be by recurring to the original acquifition of the zemindary by Bullwant Sing, the father of Chiet Sing, which was by the appointment of Sujah Dowlah, Nabob of Oude, and Vizier of the empire. Under this appointment there had been an annual rent referved to the Nabob, but, befides this annual rent, extraordinary aids had been furnished to him as lord paramount on extraordinary occafions. On the death of Bulwant Sing, his fon Cheit Sing was, by the mediation of the Company, admitted to the fucceffion, with an addition, however, of two lacks of rupees to his annual tribute, and a fine of feveral lacks paid at the time. Afterwards the fovereignty of Benares was furrendered to the Company, who, by fuch furrender, became poffeffed of every right which the Nabob hitherto enjoyed in the country, and every degree of authority which he poffeffed over the zemindars. Among those rights and authorities was that of recalling in cafes of emergency