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forces the capital which would naturally be employed in this trade into a roundabout trade, at the fame time obliging this capital to employ in the roundabout trade, foreign fhips and foreign failors, while, in the direct trade, English fhips and English failors would naturally be used; or, it forces English capital out of this trade altogether, and difcourages our own industry in behalf of that of

our rivals.

But the wifdom and policy of this measure is defended, because every nation which has had any fhare in the trade of India, has uniformly adopted the fame plan, and has entrufted its management to the direction of an exclufive company! The fact is undeniable but unless the utter ruin of every monopoly which has engaged in this trade, can be confidered as an argument in favour of the fyftem, it must still remain liable to thofe objections to which it has fo long been expofed. The fame fcenes of dilapidation abroad, of large profits for a while at home, and of fubfequent ruin every where, forms the hiftory of them all; and the Dutch, the Swedish, the Danish, and the French companies, have fulfilled, in their turn, the fame melancholy destiny. Even that arch-monopoly of England has more than once experienced the fate of its lefs wealthy competitors; nay, at this very moment, the exifts but by the forbearance of the country. Since the renewal of her charter in 1794, fhe has been confeffedly unable to fulfil her agreement with Government; and the weight of her debts bids fair again to fubject her to that fate which is the neceffary end of all exclufive companies.

The bad fuccefs which attended the private adventures from France, when the trade between that country and India was thrown open, has been triumphantly quoted as an unanswerable proof of the inadequacy of individual capital to carry on the trade of Afia. It may be obferved, in the first place, that the commercial adventures of the exclufive companies of that country, have not been attended with any better fortune, while it may be fuggefted that the ill-directed and puny attempts of the French traders can never be compared with the great and extensive enterprifes of the English merchant; and the failure of their adventures must be afcribed to the fame caufe which occafioned the failure of the more early private adventures from the European nations, arifing from the want of capital and other commercial facilities; and in the third place, the inftances of the Portuguese, (who, during their career of Indian profperity, had no exclufive company, the establishments in that country belonging to the ftate), the private traders and the Anglo-Americans, are perfectly fufficient to point out the fallacy of this confident affertion.

* Fide Third Special Report, p. 86 & feqq.

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Thefe obfervations are of confequence, as they prove, in the first place, That the capital of individuals is now equal to carry on the trade of Alia. 2. That the India Company do not fupply the European markets fufficiently, et vice verfa. 3. That not withstanding the additional fupply which the private and foreign traders furnish, the demand for Indian productions is far from being fatisfied, as thefe goods ftill bear a monopoly price, the expence of the roundabout trade acting as fuch upon the fale of these commodities.

It would lead us far beyond our proper limits, if we were to attempt to enter into an invefligation of all the evils which the monopoly produces in the home market; 1. by keeping up the price of goods; 2. by preventing a free importation of raw materials, to be worked up partly for the fupply of the European, partly for the fupply of the American, and partly for the supply of the Afiatic market; 3. by preventing a free exportation of English goods to Afia. For the abfurdity is, that the Company not only have the exclufive trade of their own immenfe dominions, but of all the east coast of Africa, of Arabia, Perfia, the Burman empire, China, Japan, and all the Afiatic iflands. With thefe countries we have at prefent no trade; but if the activity of individuals were not fettered by these unjust regulations, there is not the smallest doubt that they would foon open new and extenfive markets for the fale of English manufactures. It will be faid, indeed, that this is mere fpeculation; that it is impoffible to carry it into practice; that the habits and the opinions of the inhabitants of these countries are fo hoftile to any intercourfe with Europeans, that the Company have never been able to establish any connexion with them. We are completely aware, that the Company has not established any intercourfe with these countries; but we know also, that the Company have no immediate interest in the extenfion and fale of English goods, and that the young gentlemen under the Company are not of that rank of life, and have not received that education which should fit them for fuch occupations. We know alfo, that it is the intereft of the Company that these connexions fhould be checked, and not encouraged; for the larger the fupply brought home, the lefs will be the profits and the greater the expence; while the fmaller the quantity of goods imported, the profits will be the larger.

But it is in the Afiatic part of our empire, that the effects of the monopoly are principally felt; and the profperity of millions is facrificed to a fyftem, which by many is thought ruinous, by all doubtful. The conduct of the Dutch in the Spice iflands, has been justly held up to the difapprobation of the world; yet that conduct was only the natural policy of an exclufive trade; and

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though the English Company does not now actually destroy fields of rice, or plough up the poppies when there is too abundant a crop, *the fame miferable effects are produced from the operation of the monopoly. The investment of the Company is far from being equal to the export trade of the Peninsula alone, putting the rest of Afia out of the question. To keep the price of goods in India from rifing, to prevent them falling at home, every rival that they can exclude is fhut out from the markets of India. From the want of competition, the manufacturers are obliged to fell their goods lower than they would otherwife do. Every inducement to exertion is cut off, every means of improvement is deftroyed. They can supply no more labour than the demand of the market is permitted to encourage; and the vaft population of India, is condemned to remain for ever in a ftate of wretchednefs and poverty. The poverty of the manufacturer affects the profperity of the hufbandman; the want of a market deftroys the fupply; and the whole ftate muft advance, with the most rapid ftrides, to degradation and decay.

That we do not indulge ourselves in too melancholy a view of the fituation of the Company, our readers may be convinced by confulting p. 86. & feqq. of the 3d Report of the Special Committee of the Directors, in which the difficulties of the Company are fufficiently, though not fully expofed; and the statements contained in the accounts annually laid before Parliament.

From thefe documents it appears clearly, that during the four years ending in 1801, the Company have been adding to their debt at the rate of one million one hundred thousand per annum, to enable them to defray the expences of government, and to tranfmit the ufual investments to this country; that the private and neutral trade has increased in the fame period from 1,978,190l. to no lefs than 3,580, 1031., while the fales of the Company have diminished from 8,337,0661. to 6,648,0281., and that the debt owing by the Company has increafed from 9,600,000l. to 23,000,000l. between the years 1787 and 1803, even without reckoning the fums due to government in the form of public participation, which have never been paid fince 1794, and muft now amount to at least 4,500,000l. From the latest accounts which bring thofe ftatements down to the year 1802-3 (Parlia mentary Debates, 1803, Vol. VII. p. 337.), it appears that the whole concern is worfe for that last year than the preceding by 1,272,880l.,

* It is, however, ftrongly afferted, that a quantity of opium was very lately burnt even in the streets of our Indian metropolis. How much better is fuch conduct than that of the Dutchmen, which has been so deservedly execrated! (Henchman's Obfervations, p. 233.)

1,272,880l., although it had been faid that, during that year, the Company would be in a condition to appropriate a whole million as a finking fund for the extinction of their debt.

Defperate, however, as the condition of the Company appears to be, there is no danger of it fpeedily committing an act of bankruptcy; and though it will continue to add largely to its debts, it will ftill find money enough to borrow. It is moft important to inquire in what manner this is brought about, and to confider to what confequences it ultimately leads. By laying before Parliament, yearly, the accounts relative to the Eaft India Company, and certain refolutions of approbation and acquiefcence being conftantly paffed, the legislature, in fact, has held out the credit of the country as the fecurity to which the creditors of the Company are to look forward in cafe of its failure. The affets and debts of the Company pafs unnoticed; they never enter into the confideration of thofe who are defirous of lending money to the Directors. There is not a man indeed in England, who doubts that if the Company fhould fail, the country would adopt the debt of 23 millions as its own; and there is not a man who would hefitate to recommend that meafure. Is it not better, therefore, that the country fhould adopt the debt now, when it is comparatively fmall, than permit it to go on accumulating under the bad management of the Company, having no controul over its increafe, and in fact incurring a large debt which is borrowed for the advantage of individual merchants, not for the expence of governmentalways recollecting that the effect of the prefent fystem of monopoly is to diminish and deftroy the refources of that country from which the intereft of the debt ought to come in the fame ratio as the debt itself increases?

The intereft and importance of the fubject has led us perhaps rather too far into thefe general obfervations; and we are fomewhat afhamed to think that we have not yet introduced the name of Dr Tennant to the notice of our readers. To thofe, however, who are acquainted with any thing in the work before us beyond the title-page, we probably will not appear to have indulged in any fpeculations that are not fairly fuggefted by the tenor of its contents. The title indeed we think moft unfortunately chofen ; and acknowledge, that it led us to expect nothing better than a treatise upon the fports and amufements of Bengal, interfperfed with the lively fallies, and moral reflections of the reverend author. It turns, out, however, to be a collection of dissertations and statements upon fome of the most curious and important fubjects connected with the political and agricultural ccconomy

œconomy of the Hindûs, expreffed in a very difagreeable style, and arranged without the fmalleft regard to the connexion of the different fubjects. It appears, indeed, that this confufion was altogether voluntary on the part of the author, and that he claims confiderable merit for the faults of his arrangement. In his Preface to Vol. II. he fays that a perfect arrangement of the different parts of rural economy has not been fo much studied as variety, and that it has been thought eligible to relieve the attention by introducing other topics, lefs tedious, and more in. terefting to the generality of readers.

In the Preface to his first volume, the author informs us, that his book contains information, the greater part of which is the result of his own perfonal obfervation; but that, in order to make it more complete, he has confulted the works of Sir W. Jones, Dr Roxburgh, Dr Hunter, Dr Fontano, and Captain Hardwick. This, we must acknowledge, is not exactly the account we fhould have given of the volumes before us: we do not remember to lave often feen a work of this magnitude fo entirely deftitute of any claim to originality. So far from the greater part of the work being the refult of actual obfervation, there is not one fingle fact, of any confequence, which is not taken from fome other perfon. Wherever the author endeavours to give any information from himself, it is fure to be inaccurate and contradictory. It does not appear that he has even read over his compilation after it was put together; for he has taken no pains to reconcile the jarring opinions which exift in every page.

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The first volume is a digeft of fuch authors as have written upon those fubjects of which our author profeffes to treat, without any thing new or curious being added. In Vol. II. p. 344, we are informed that there is a printed treatife, which has not been yet publifhed, entitled, Remarks on the Agriculture and Commerce of Bengal, by a Civil Servant of the Company;' and of this treatise he admits that he has made ample use. But he has made still greater use of it than he is willing to allow, as may be seen by comparing the chapter beginning Vol. II. p. 344with this treatife (which, though not published, has in part found its way into the Afiatic Ann. Reg. 1802, pp. 47. 53. 71.) From the fame treatife, the materials, and, in many inftances, the very language of the chapters beginning Vol. II. pp. 1. 8. 75. 289. 296. 304. 321. 328. 337. 344. are taken. The account of the cultivation of the fugar cane is taken word for word from Dr Roxburgh's Memoir, which has been before the public for fome time, and may be found in the Af. An. Reg. 1802, Mil

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