poses. Sir Charles gave a long and detailed explanation of the general position of the railroad finances and of the state and prospects of those undertakings.

Mr. Bazley dwelt upon the heavy tax upon cotton occasioned by the want of facilities of transit, and urged the necessity of a revision of the land tenures of India. He hoped that the Indian Government would endeavour to develope the natural rather than artificial resources of India, insisting upon the great importance of securing an ample supply of the raw material required for the employment of our manufacturing population. Our colonial possessions comprehended an immense area of cotton-producing countries, and in India there was not only land but labour.

Lord Stanley said he was glad to hear from Sir C. Wood that the reduction of the military expenditure was going on at a rapid rate, being satisfied that our prospects of equalizing expenditure and revenue mainly depended upon the diminution of this part of the expenditure. He deferred a full consideration of the subject of this loan till a future stage of the question.

Mr. J. B. Smith strongly recommended the use of watercarriage for the conveyance of cotton and the opening of the navigation of the Godavery river. Everything depended, he said, upon cheap carriage for the transport of Indian cotton. With European superintendence India could produce cotton equal in quality to the American, and in quantity as much as we required.

Mr. Vansittart took a much less favourable view of the In

dian finances than Sir C. Wood, and was of opinion that the anticipated equilibrium of revenue and expenditure was not likely to be seen for some years to

come.

Mr. Crawford said the proposal of Sir C. Wood would not throw any additional weight upon the money-market, and his speech, he thought, would greatly relieve the public mind. He pointed out the advantages which would in a few years be derived from railroads in India, and the misapprehensions which prevailed here respecting the tenure of land in that country, the system of agriculture there, and the nature and extent of the home demand for cotton in India.

Dal

Mr. Smollett complained of the enormous expenditure on account of India, and that with an income of 38,000,000l. the Government could not make both ends meet, but were spending 47,000,000l., which he thought a great scandal, Lord housie having considerered that 34,000,000l. would suffice. He believed that a very large amount might be saved in every department, especially the military and public works. Against the latter department he brought very heavy charges, and said he should vote against the Resolution.

Mr. H. Seymour objected that, in relation to public works carried on by companies, Sir C. Wood was acting in the bad spirit of the East India Directors. He had not taken measures to promote the accumulation of capital in India or to alter the tenure of land, which, with other necessary reforms, were indispensable for the improvement of the country.

Colonel Sykes discussed the comparative advantages of railway and water-carriage, and the obstacles to the sale of land in India in fee simple.

Sir Chas. Wood reminded the House that he was not raising money to meet a deficit in India: it was to supply the wants of the Home Treasury that he asked this power.

The Resolution was then agreed to.

At a later stage of the Bill, Sir Henry Willoughby expressed an unfavourable opinion of the condition of the Indian finances. He said that the loan, now proposed, would increase the debt of India to considerably more. than 100,000,000l.; that the House was entering upon a dangerous course; that it should insist upon the accounts of the finances of the Indian Government and of the railways being kept distinct; and he objected that it was hard to throw these burdens upon the unrepresented people of India. He declared he should give his vote for this loan with great reluctance.

Sir Chas. Wood vindicated the measures and proceedings of the Government and controverted the statements of the last speaker. Ultimately the Bill was agreed

to.

On the 25th of July Sir Chas. Wood made his general sessional statement upon the finances of India. He said that the accounts of Indian revenue and expenditure for the year 1859-60, together with the regular estimate for 1860-61, had been laid on the table of the House, but there was, he was bound to admit, a very considerable discrepancy between the estimated and the ac

tual amounts coming under those heads. He found, for example, that the estimated amount of the expenditure for 1859-60 was 46,890,000l.; the actual expenditure, 50,475,000l.; the estimated revenue, 37,796,000l.; the actual revenue, 39,705,000l.; the anticipated deficit being thus in round numbers 9,000,000.; the actual, 10,770,000l.; while the actual income was larger than the estimated by about 2,000,000l., and the actual expenditure more than the estimated by about 3,500,000l. That appeared to be very strange, but no explanation of the matter had been sent from India. An explanation had, however, been written for, and he had anticipated that it would be found to consist in the fact that the reductions made by Mr. Wilson in the military expenditure had not been brought into the accounts for the year, and would appear in the accounts for the years 1860-61. After some further explanations of the apparent discrepancy, he came to the year 1860-61, the expenditure of which was, in round numbers, 46,000,000l.; the income, 39,500,000l.; deficit, 6,500,000l.; but, if from that amount were deducted the sums paid in the shape of compensation for losses incurred during the mutiny, which did not constitute an annual charge, and some other items, the actual deficit would be found to be reduced to little more than 5,500,000. That being so, the Committee would at once see that the expenditure for 1859–60 having been 50,475,000l., and that for 1860-61, 46,000,0002., a comparison of the expenditure of the two years showed a reduction in favour of the latter

to

of, in round numbers, 4,400,0001. The right hon. Baronet then noticed the charge for guaranteed interest on railways, less traffic receipts, which amounted 1,773,000l., and the other expenditure, on account of the famine, of 600,000l., both of which items, of course, were not permanent. The duty on salt had proved to be highly productive; and the only duty about which apprehensions were entertained was, as usual, that on opium. He then stated the reduction which had taken place in the military expenditure. The following short paragraph from the last financial despatch from India would show the amount of the reduction "Seventy seven native regiments will have been broken up since 1859, and the native army reduced from 284.000 to about 140,000 men. Includ

ing military police, the reduction of native armed force since 1859 will not have been less than 200,000 men." A certain proportion of the soldiers had been absorbed in the police, and a considerable number had found employment in various ways. He thought that, considering the state of the country, the Government of India had gone quite as far and as rapidly as prudence would warrant. In 1858-9 the military expenditure was 24,750,000l.; in 1861-2 it was estimated at 15,500,000l.-showing a reduction since 1858-9 of no less than 9,250,000l. He had no more to say on matters of finance; but there were certain matters connected with the administration of India upon which he wished to make a few remarks. First of all, there was the famine. Perhaps the best proof of

the severity of the pressure was to be found in the price of grain. It It was very remarkable that though the famine of 1837-8 was infinitely more severe, and infinitely more destructive to human life and cattle, than that which recently raged in certain districts in India, the price of grain was never so high as it was during the last year. Taking the mean of the six districts where the famine was most severe, the average highest price of grain in common years was forty and a half seers per rupee; during the famine the same sum purchased only nine seers. Then there was the bad state of feeling between the indigo planters and the ryots. The cultivation of indigo during the present year had ceased to a great extent. There had been attempts to enforce by criminal proceedings the performance by the ryots of the contracts into which they had entered. A measure had been passed with that view; but, of course, that was only a temporary Bill. No doubt, the indigo planters would lose very largely, and it was natural that they should be exceedingly irritated at the present lamentable state of things. The Government, however, had done their duty in all cases, by holding the scales as impartially as possible between the ryots and the planters, and he hoped the question would be settled ere long on a satisfactory basis. The next point to which he would call attention was one which at all times was of the greatest importance, but at the present moment was of vital importance to this country and India-he meant the cultivation of cotton. He need not say tha

his attention had been directed to this subject in former years; his attention had been constantly directed to it since he held the office he had the honour to fill. Various opinions were entertained as to the capability of India to produce cotton in the quantity required by this country. His firm conviction was that, if proper means were taken in India by the Government, and by those in this country who were interested in the production of - cotton, all co-operating together -and it could not be done without-India might be made a source of supply which to a very large extent would render this country independent of other supplies. He trusted before long that would be the case. So far as he could make out, the probable supply of cotton from India this year would be very large-considerably in excess of any previous supply. Upwards of 620,000 bales had already left India for this country; from 300,000 to 400,000 bales more were expected; so that in all there would be 1,000,000 bales, or 320,000 more than ever before were received from India. After entering into the question of transport for cotton, and alluding to other measures introduced this session, the right hon. Baronet concluded by moving a formal Resolution, empowering the Government to raise a loan for India of 5,000,000l., being the difference between the sums of 8,000,000l. which would be required in 1861 for the railways in course of construction in India, and 3,000,000l. which was the lowest sum the railway companies would be able to raise for themselves. The power he asked

for was discretionary; the money would be applied to no other purpose but that of assisting the railways, and only so much of it would be called for as would be necessary to fill up the deficiency in the 8,000,000l.

The Resolution, after some debate, in which Sir H. Willoughby, Mr. Crawford, Mr. Ewart, Mr. Vansittart, and other members took part, was agreed to.

The

Three measures of great importance affecting the administration of government in India, were introduced by Sir Charles Wood, on the 6th of June, in the House of Commons. first of these Bills dealt with the Legislative Council, and the whole machinery of legislation. It was proposed to take power to send out an additional Member of Council. It was intended that he should be a lawyer of high character and attainments, competent to assist the GovernorGeneral and his Council in framing laws. Extensive alterations were to be made in the mode of enacting laws and regulations, chiefly based upon the recommendations of Lord Can

that the Council should hold its meetings in different parts of India, for the purpose of obtaining the assistance of those native chiefs and noblemen whose attendance at Calcutta would be impossible, or irksome to themselves. I do not propose that the judges ex-officio shall have seats in the Legislature; but I do not preclude the GovernorGeneral from summoning one of their number if he chooses. They were useful members of a body meeting as a committee for the purpose of discussing and framing laws; but I think it is inexpedient and incompatible with their functions that they should belong to a body partaking in any degree of a popular character. I propose that the persons nominated should attend all meetings held within a year; but if you compel their attendance for a longer period you render it very unlikely that any natives, except those resident upon the spot, will attend the meetings of the Council. This also is recommended by Lord Canning. Hon. gentlemen will have noticed the great success which has attended the association with us of the Talookdars of Oude in the duties of administering the revenue, and Lord Canning has borne testimony to the admirable manner in which they have performed their duties. I believe greater advantages will result from admitting the native chiefs to cooperate with us for legislative purposes; they will no longer feel, as they have hitherto done, that they are excluded from the management of affairs in their own country, and nothing, I am persuaded, will tend more to con

ciliate the minds of natives of high rank. I have no intention of doing anything to make this council a debating society. I wish, to quote an expression of the late Sir R. Peel, to render them a law-making society.' The Council of the Governor General, with these additional members, will have power to pass laws and regulations affecting the whole of India, and will have a supreme and concurrent power with the minor legislative bodies which I propose to establish in the Presidencies and in other parts of India. Lord Canning strongly feels that although great benefits will result from the introduction of members into his Council who will possess a knowledge of localities-the interests of which dif fer widely in different parts of the country-the change will yet not be sufficient, in the first place, to overcome the feeling which the other Presidencies entertain against being overridden, as they call it, by the Bengal Council; or, on the other hand, to overcome the disadvantages of having a body legislating for these Presidencies without acquaintance with local wants and necessities, which is obviously possessed to a much greater extent by those residing on and nearer the spot. And, therefore, I propose, I may say, to restore to the Presidencies of Madras and Bombay the power of passing laws and enactments on local subjects within their own territories, and that the Governor of the Presidency, in the same. manner as the Governor-General, when his Council meets to make laws, shall summon a certain number of additional members, to be as before, either European