the business with the fame fteadlinefs which gave fuch fterling brilliancy of character to their outfet, they might chalienge. the world, to observe and judge of them by the refult. Impoffible was it for fuch men to become improperly influenced by a paper, bearing the fignature of Warren Haftings, and put, not many minutes before into their hands, as well as his own, on their entrance into the Houfe. This infidious. paper he felt himself at liberty to confider as a fecond defence, and a fecond anfwer to the charge he was about to bring forward; a charge replete with proof of criminality of the blackeft die, of tyranny the most vile and premeditated, of corruption the moft open and fhameless, of oppreffion the moft fevere and grinding, of cruelty the most hard and unparallelled. But he was far from meaning to reft the charge on affertion, or on any warm expreffions which the impulfe of wounded feelings might produce. He would establish every part of the charge, by the moft unanswerable proof, and the most unquestionable evidence; and the witnefs whom he would bring forth to fupport every fact which he would ftate, fhould be, for the most part, one whom no man would venture to contradict--Warren Haftings himself: yet, this character had friends, nor were they blameable. They might believe him guiltless because he afferted his integrity. Even the partial warmth of friendship, and the emotions of a good, admiring, and unfufpecting heart, might not only carry them to fuch lengths, but incite them to rife with an intrepid confidence in his vindication. Again, (Mr. Sheridan added,) would he repeat that the vote of the laft feffion, wherein the conduct of this pillar of India, this corner ftone of our strength in the Eaft, this talifman of the British territories in Afia, was cenfured, did the greatest honour to this House, as it muft be the forerunner of fpeedy juftice on that character, which was faid to be above cenfure, and whofe conduct we were given to understand was not within the reach even of fufpicion; but whofe deeds were indeed fuch as no difficulties, no neceffity could juftify; for where is the fituation, however elated, and in that elevation however embarraffed, that can authorize the wilful commiffion of oppreffion and rapacity. If, at any period a point arose, on which inquiry had been full, deliberate, and difpaffionate, it was the prefent. There were queftions on which party conviction was fuppofed to be a matter of eafy acquifition, and if this inquiry were to be confidered merely as a matter of party, he should regard it as very trifling indeed; but he profeffed to God, that he felt in his own bofom the strongest perfonal conviction, and he was fenfible that many other gentlemen did the fame. It was on that conviction, that he believed believed the conduct of Mr. Haftings, in regard to the Nabob of Oude and the Begums, comprehended every species of human offence. -He had proved himself guilty of rapacity at once, violent and infatiable-of treachery, cool and premeditated-of oppreffion, useless and unprovoked-of breach of faith, unwarrantable and base-of cruelty, unmanly and unmerciful-These were the crimes of which, in his foul and confcience, he arraigned Warren Haftings, and of which he had the confidence to fay he should convict him. As there were gentlemen ready to ftand up his advocates, he challenged them to watch him-to watch if he advanced one inch of affertion for which he had not folid ground; for he trufted nothing to declamation.-He defired credit for no fact which he did not prove, and which he did not indeed demonftrate beyond the poffibility of refutation. He should not defert the clear and invincible ground of truth, throughout any one particle of his allegations against Mr. Hastings, who uniformly aimed to govern India by his own arbitrary power, covering with mifery upon mifery a wretched people, whom providence had fubjected to the dominion of this country: while in the defence of Mr. Haftings, not one fingle circumstance grounded upon truth was ftated.-He would repeat the words, and gentlemen might take them down. The attempt at vindication was falfe throughout.—Mr. Sheridan now pursuing the examination of Mr. Hastings' defence, obferved that there could not exist a single plea for maintaining that that defence against the particular charge now before the Committee was hafty: Mr. Haftings had had fufficient time to make it up; and the Committee faw that he had thought fit to go back as far as the year 1775, for pretended ground of juftification from the charge of violence and rapacity.-Mr. Sheridan here read a variety of extracts from the defence, which stated the various steps taken by Mr. Briftow in the years 1775 and 1776, to procure from the Begums aid to the Nabob. one of these facts, as ftated by Mr. Haftings, were true. Groundless, nugatory, and infulting were the affirmations of Mr. Haftings, that the feizure of treasures from the Begums, and the expofition of their pilfered goods to public auction (unparallelled acts of open injustice, oppreffion, and inhumanity) were in any degree to be defended by thofe encroachments on their property, which had taken place previous to his adminiftration, or by thofe fales which they themselves had folicited as a favourable mode of fupplying a part of their aid to the Nabob.-The relation of a feries of plain, indifputable facts would irrecoverably overthrow a fubterfuge fo pitiful, a diftinction fo ridiculous! It must be remembered, that, at that period, the Begums did not merely Not defire, defire, but they most exprefly ftipulated, that of the thirty lacks promifed, eleven fhould be paid in fundry articles of manufacture. Was it not obvious, therefore, that the fale of goods, in the first cafe, far from partaking of the nature of an act of plunder, became an extenfion of relief, of indulgence, and of accomodation? But however, he would not be content, like Mr. Haftings, with barely making affertions, or, when made against his statement, with barely denying them; on the contrary, whenever he objected to a single statement, he would bring his refutation, and almoft in every inftance Mr. Haftings himself should be his witnefs. By the paffages which he should beg leave to read, Mr. Haftings wished to infinuate, that a claim was fet up, in the year 1775, to the treafure of the Begums, as belonging of right to the Nabob. Mr. Sheridan, from a variety of documents, chiefly from the minutes of the fupreme Council, of which Mr. Haftings had been the Prefident, explained the true ftate of that queftion. Treasure, which was the fource of all the cruelties, was the original pretence which Mr. Haftings had made to the Company for the proceeding, and through the whole of his conduct he had alledged the principles of Mahomedanism in mitigation of the feverities he had fanctioned; as if he meant to infinuate that there was fomething in- Mahomedanism which rendered it impious in a fon not to plunder his mother. But to fhew how the cafe precifely ftood, when Mr. Haftings began the attacks, Mr. Sheridan read the minutes of General Clavering, Colonel Monfon, and Mr. Francis, who feverally spoke of a claim which had been made by the Nabob on the Bhow Begum, in the year 1775, amounting to two one-half lacks the opinion contained in thofe minutes was, that women were, on the death of their husbands, entitled by the Mahomedan law only to the property within the Zenana where they lived. This opinion was decifive-Mr. Bristow used no threats-no military execution or rigour were even menaced; the Begums complied. with the requifition then made, and the difputed property then claimed was given up: After this, the farther treasure, namely that which was within the Zenana, was confeffedly her own-No fresh right was fet up-no pretence was made of any kind to the refidue-Nay, a treaty was figned by the Nabob, and ratified by the refident, Mr. Bristow, that, on her paying thirty lacks, fhe fhould be freed from all farther application, and the Company were bound by Mr. Briftow to guaranty this treaty. Here then was the iffue. After this treaty thus ratified, could there be an argument as to the right of the treasure of the Begums? And if the Mahomedan law had ever given a right, was not that right then concluded? To prove, however, the reliance which the PrinYOL. XXI. M ceffes ceffes of Oude had entertained even in the year 1775, of receiving protection and fupport from the British government; an expectation fo fatally disappointed in latter times, Mr. Sheridan read an extract of a letter from the Begum, the mother of the Nabob, to Mr. Haftings, received at Calcutta, December 22, 1775, wherein the fays, "If it is your pleasure that the mo"ther of the late Nabob, myfelf, and his other women, and "infant children, fhould be reduced to a state of difhonour "and diftrefs, we muft fubmit; but if, on the contrary, you "call to mind the friendship of the late blessed Nabob, you "will exert yourself effectually in favour of us, who are "helpless." And again, "if you do not approve of my "remaining at Fyzabad, fend a perfon here in your name, <to remove the mother of the late Nabob, myself, and about "2000 other women and children, that we may refide with honour and reputation in fome other place."-Mr. Sheridan in a regular progreffion of evidence, proceeded to state the fucceffive periods, and finally to bring down the immediate fubject in question to the day in which Mr. Haftings embraced the project of plundering the Begums; and, to juftify which, he had exhibited in his defence four charges against them, as the grounds and motives, of his own conduct. 1. That they had given disturbance at all times to the government of the Nabob, and that they had long manifested a fpirit hoftile to his and to the English government. 2. That they excited the Zemindars to revolt, at the tine of the infurrection at Benares, and of the refumption of the Jaghires. 3. That they refifted by armed force the refumption of their own Jaghires; and, 4. That they excited, and were acceffary to the infurrection at Benares. To each of these charges, Mr. Sheridan gave diftinct and separate answers. Firft, on the fubject of the imputed difturbances which they were falfely faid to have occasioned, he could produce a variety of extracts, many of them written by Mr. Haftings himself, to prove that on the contrary they had particularly distinguished themselves by their friendship for the English, and the various good offices which they had rendered the Government. Mr. Haftings (Mr. Sheridan obferved,) left Calcutta in 1781, and proceeded to Lucknow, as he faid himself, with two great objects in his mind; namely, Benares and Oude. What was the nature of these boasted resources? That he fhould plunder one, or both: the equitable alternative of a highwayman, who in going forth in the evening, hesitates which of his resources to prefer-Bagshot, or Hownflow.— er In fuch a ftate of generous irrefolution, did Mr. Haftings proceed to Benares and Oude.-At Benares he failed, in his pecuniary object. Then, and not till then-not on account of any ancient entities fhown by the Begums-not in resentment for any old difturbances, but because he had failed in one place, and that he had but two in his profpect, did he conceive the base expedient of plundering thefe aged women. He had no pretence he had no excufe-He had nothing but the arrogant and obftinate determination to govern India by his own corrupt will to plead for his conduct. Inflamed by difappointment in his first project, he haftened to the fortress of Chunar, to meditate the more atrocious defign of instigating a fon against his mother, of facrificing female dignity and diftrefs to parricide and plunder.-At Chunar was that infamous treaty concerted with the Nabob Vizier, to despoil the Princeffes of Oude of their hereditary poffeffions.-There it was that Mr. Haftings had ftipulated with one, whom he called an independent Prince," that as great diftrefs has "arifen to the Nabob's government from the milita"ry power and dominion affumed by the Jaghierdars, "he be permitted to refume fuch as he may find neceffary; with a reserve, that all fuch, for the amount of "whofe Jaghiers the Company are guarantees, fhall, in case "of the refumptions of their lands, be paid the amount of "their net collections, through the refident, in ready " money. And that no English refident be appointed to "Furruckabad." ' No fooner was this foundation of iniquity thus inftantly eftablished, in violation of the pledged faith and folemn guarantee of the British Government; no fooner had Mr. Haftings determined to invade the fubftance of juftice, than he refolved to avail himself of her judicial forms; and accordingly difpatched a meffenger for the Chief Juftice of India, to affift him in perpetrating the violations he had projected. Sir Elijah being arrived, Mr. Haftings, with much art, propofed a queftion of opinion, involving an unfubftantiated fact, in order to obtain even a furreptitious approbation of the measure he had predetermined to adopt. "The Begums "being in actual rebellion, might not the Nabob confifcate "their property?" "Moft undoubtedly," was the ready anfwer of the friendly Judge. Not a fyllable of inquiry intervened, as to the existence of the imputed rebellion-nor a moment's paufe as to the ill purposes to which the decifion of a Chief Juftice might be perverted. It was not the office of a friend to mix the grave caution and cold circumfpection of Judge, with an opinion taken in fuch circumftances: and Sir Elijah had previously declared, that he gave his advice not as a Judge, but as a friend; a character he equally pre 2 M 2 ferred |