Chapter IX (10)

"The article in the treaty with Shuja Dowla, stipulating a trade
duty-free, through his dominions, we direct to be confined solely
to the Company's trade; and even in that sense of it, we mean only
if his dominions produce any goods fit for the European markets, or
if it can be made the means of extending our trade in the woollen
manufactory, or any other European goods.

"We come now to consider the great and important affairs of the
dewannee, on which we shall give our sentiments with every
objection that occurs to us.

"When we consider that the barrier of the country government was
entirely broken down, and every Englishman throughout the country
armed with an authority that owned no superior, and exercising his
power to the oppression of the helpless natives, who knew not whom
to obey; at such a crisis, we cannot hesitate to approve your
obtaining the dewannee for the Company.

"When we look back to the system that Lord Clive and the gentlemen
of the Select Committee found established, it presents to us a
subah disarmed, with a revenue of almost two millions sterling,
(for so much seems to have been left, exclusive of our demands on
him,) at the mercy of our servants, who had adopted an unheard-of
ruinous principle, of an interest distinct from the Company. This
principle showed itself in laying their hands upon every thing they
did not deem the Company's property.

"In the province of Burdwan, the resident and his council took an
annual stipend of near 80,000 rupees per annum from the Rajah, in
addition to the Company's salary. This stands on the Burdwan
accounts, and we fear was not the whole; for we apprehend it went
further, and that they carried this pernicious principle even to
the sharing with the Rajah of all he collected beyond the
stipulated malguzary, or land revenue, overlooking the point of
duty to the Company, to whom, properly, every thing belonged that
was not necessary for the Rajah's support. It has been the
principle, too, on which our servants have falsely endeavoured to
gloss over the crime of their proceedings, on the accession of the
present Subah; and we fear would have been soon extended to the
grasping the greatest share of that part of the Nabob's revenues
which was not allotted to the Company. In short, this principle was
directly undermining the whole fabric; for whilst the Company were
sinking under the burden of the war, our servants were enriching
themselves from those very funds that ought to have supported the
war. But to Lord Clive and our Select Committee we owe, that the
Company are at last considered as principals in the advantages as
well as dangers."

Clive had recommended, that the Governor of Bengal should have an adequate salary, and be restrained from trade. In one of his letters already quoted, he strongly urged that he should be vested with authority to take a resolution in cases of emergency entirely on himself. He subsequently not only pointed out the expediency of making Calcutta the chief seat of the government of India, but proposed, in any future arrangement, the nomination of a Governor-general, with the full powers he now enjoys. All these propositions have been adopted; but the most important were not carried into effect till thirty years of collision and confusion in the administration of the Indian Government, through the means of separate and independent presidencies, compelled the divided and jealous authorities in England to follow the wise counsel of one whose experience and foresight enabled him to predict the evils which must result from the weakness and distraction of their government abroad, and the necessity of forming one uniform system for the administration of our Indian territories, and placing them under one efficient general rule,—the individual at the head of which should be of a character that justified his being clothed with paramount power over the whole.

Such was the magnitude of the evils that now weighed down the government of Bengal. It was at this period of danger from external enemies aggravated by a system radically corrupt, and in the continuance of which the interests of almost the whole of the public servants, and of all the free traders, were involved, that Clive evinced all the energy of his extraordinary character. We trace that quality, however, more in his private than in his public letters; and some extracts from the former will exhibit, better than the most laboured detail, the nature of the obstacles he had to encounter, and the measures he took to surmount them, and to restore and fix, on a firmer foundation than ever, the interests of his country in India. He observes, in a letter to Mr. Palk, Governor of Madras, dated Calcutta, 4th May[261];—

"I have little more to say than that I arrived here yesterday,
and that all affairs, civil and military, are in a state of
confusion beyond what I had even reason to expect. I can see no end
to the troubles in these parts. Suja Dowla has been joined by the
Rohillas and Mahrattas, and he is marching down with them to make
another effort to recover his dominions, which, at present, are
entirely in our possession. Their apprehension seems to be, that
our principal object is to support the King, and establish him at
Delhi; and if this is the case, we may expect all India will go to
war with us. Such a continued scene of fighting as this seems to
open, will not, however, suit with us; and, in a very short time, I
believe I must march up to camp, in order to settle measures, if
possible, upon a pacific plan. I beg you will send us as many small
arms, as well as men, as your settlement can spare, out of the next
and succeeding ships."[262] * * * * *

In a letter to General Carnac, he describes the state of the Nabob of Moorshedabad and his ministers, and the recent events at that court, in the following terms[263]:—

"I cannot yet write you particulars; however, matters seem
drawing to a conclusion. The Nabob and Mahommed Reza Cawn are
arrived. The Seets and Roydulub will be here to-morrow, and I am
determined to give an impartial audience to all of them, who are
ready enough to disclose every transaction, and will prove to
demonstration, upon what grounds and principles the gentlemen have
been actuated, thus precipitately to conclude a treaty before our
arrival.

"Although Nundcomar may not prove guilty of the crimes laid to his
charge, yet, believe me, my dear General, he will do no honour,
either to the Nabob or to the Company, in any great or eminent
post, which he never was formed or designed for; and I can give you
unanswerable reasons against his being the principal person about
the Nabob, when I have the pleasure of seeing you. I am as fully
averse to Reza Ali Cawn's remaining in the great post of Naib
Subah. His being a Mussulman, acute, and clever, are reasons of
themselves, if there were no others, against trusting that man with
too much power; and yet the young man must have men about him
capable of directing and governing him; for besides his youth, he
is really very simple, and always receives his impressions from
those who are last about him. It is really shocking to see what a
set of miserable and mean wretches Nundcomar has placed about him,
men that the other day were horsekeepers. I proposed that three or
four of the principal families in Bengal shall assist him in his
government; and make no doubt of obtaining his own consent for
adopting such a plan as may make him perfectly easy in his own
mind, and do the English nation honour.

"I hope fifteen or twenty days will enable me to put affairs in
such a channel, that the gentlemen may go on with the reformation
during my absence; and upon my arrival we must heartily set about a
peace: for the expense is now become so enormous, (no less than 10
lacs per mensem, civil and military,) that the Company must be
inevitably undone, if the Mahrattas, or any other powers, should
invade Bahar and Bengal; for it will then be impossible to raise
money sufficient to continue the war. This is a very serious
consideration with me, and will, I make no doubt, strike you in the
same light."

Treating the same subject in a subsequent letter, Clive observes[264]:—

"Strange discoveries have been made, which prove your conjectures
about revolutions to be true. The enclosed will give you an idea of
what is intended. The more I see of the Nabob, the more I am
convinced of his incapacity for business: whether it proceeds from
want of natural abilities, or want of education, time will
discover; certain it is, the most difficult task we have is to act
in such a manner as not to put too great a restraint upon the
Nabob's inclinations, and yet, at the same time, influence him to
do what is for his own honour, and the good of the Company. There
is no submitting to be dictated to by every plaguy fellow about
him."

And again[265]:—

"There seems to me to have been a combination between the blacks
and whites, to divide all the revenues of the Company between them,
for the Nabob knows nothing about the matter. Large sums have been
taken out of both treasuries, by Mahommed Reza Cawn at Muxadabad,
and by Nundcomar at Calcutta. Every day convinces me, that so long
as that man with his instruments continue about him we shall never
have that influence which appears to me absolutely necessary, as
well for his own reputation as to prevent the revenues being
dissipated on a set of plaguy rascals."

The evidence which Clive about this time obtained from the officers of the Nabob, of the sums paid to the different public servants on the conclusion of the treaty, are stated in a letter to General Carnac[266], with some severe remarks on the conduct of those who, on that occasion, sacrificed the interest and honour of the public for venal objects. This subject would, in its details, lead us too far. Suffice it to say, that the strong measures which the discovery he made led him to adopt, particularly that of suspending several of the older civil officers from the service, added to the number of his enemies in a degree that made them more powerful in England than in India, and was the chief cause of that parliamentary inquiry into his conduct which took place on his return to his native country. Meanwhile, however, the honest course of investigation which he pursued, though fatiguing and painful to his mind, and severe on his spirits, left him resolute and composed in his sense of duty. He had a great object in view, the salvation of an empire, through the repression of wrong, and the amendment of the public character and morals. "Let me but have health sufficient to go through with the reformation we intend," says he, in writing to his friend Carnac, "and I shall die with satisfaction and in peace." The same feeling, which seems at this period to have deeply penetrated his mind, he expresses to many of his friends.

Clive, it appears from several letters to other friends, had been, at this period, seriously hurt at the long, and, as he thought, the mysterious silence of General Carnac. He was at last relieved by a letter, which satisfactorily accounted for the apparent neglect of a friend for whom he cherished so sincere an esteem. The following extract from Clive's reply is singularly illustrative of his feelings, and of the principles on which he acted:—

"The receipt of your letter[267], number eight, gave me as much
pleasure as your long silence gave me real concern. Indeed, I had
resolved to write no more, being convinced that, from some cause or
other, the friendship which had so long subsisted between us was
drawing towards a conclusion, since you had declined even giving me
your sentiments upon a subject or subjects in which I conjectured
we may have differed in opinion. But surely that could be no reason
for not writing at all; neither ought a difference of opinion,
where both are actuated by principles of honour and justice, in the
least diminish that cordial affection which hitherto hath
subsisted, and I trust will subsist to the day of our deaths.

"I was not ignorant, when a general Court of Proprietors prevailed
upon me to resume this government, what an odious as well as
arduous task I had undertaken. Foreseeing, in a manner, every thing
at the time which has since happened, I was determined, if
possible, to answer the expectations of the Proprietors, who did me
the honour to think me the only person who could, by my power and
influence (and example, I hope,) put a stop to that universal
corruption (some few instances excepted) which seems to have spread
itself over all Bengal.

"Although a reformation both in the civil and military department
appears to me absolutely necessary, yet if there be any thing which
can occasion you the least uneasiness, for God's sake let the whole
weight fall upon my shoulders. I can go through every thing with
pleasure, so long as I can, with truth, and without vanity, apply
to myself these beautiful lines of Horace:—

'Justum et tenacem propositi virum,'" &c.

Clive, in the following letter to his friend Walsh, dated 30th September, 1765, gives full scope to his feelings, both as to public transactions, and those connected with them:—

"Our friendship and connection have been of so many years'
standing, and I have always observed in you so much real warmth of
heart and zeal for my interest and honour, that I think of these
marks of your affection in this distant part of the globe with the
greatest satisfaction.

"To you, and to you only, I shall communicate every transaction of
consequence which has passed since our arrival, because I know you
have judgment and discretion to make a proper use of them.

"It will be needless to expatiate on the very great things we have
done for the Company, since the several papers which accompany this
will make you a perfect master of the whole of our proceedings.

"I have referred many of my friends to you for information; but you
will communicate to them what you think proper, Mr. Grenville
excepted, to whom I have been very explicit, having inclosed him a
copy of my letter to the Court of Directors, translation of the
treaty of peace, and a map of Bengal, with some marginal
explanations.

"You will therefore lay before him, without reserve, all papers of
a public nature; such as relate to individuals, and are not made
public, you may not think proper to reveal to any one. There is
only one paper which I could not send you, viz. the letter from the
Select Committee to the Court of Directors, being bound by oath not
to make any of our proceedings public until laid before council, or
communicated to the Court of Directors; neither of which being yet
done, with respect to the committee's letter, is the reason I
cannot send you a copy; but you will, undoubtedly, obtain a sight
of it from Scrafton.

"Had I known Mr. Sumner as well as I do at present, I would never
have consented to his being appointed my successor, let the
consequences be what they would. I did, indeed, entertain hopes,
that my example and instructions might furnish that gentleman with
a plan of conduct and political knowledge, which would have enabled
him to fill the chair with honour, and me to leave it with
satisfaction to myself. But I am sorry to inform you, that I had
been but a short time on board the Kent, before I discovered him to
be a man no ways fit to be my successor. His ideas of government
differ widely indeed from mine; add to this, his judgment is weak,
timid, and unsound, and resolution he has none.

"Nor was my opinion of him changed on our arrival here; for I was
frequently mortified with instances of his conduct, which made me
look forward with regret to the day on which he was to be intrusted
with the government of Bengal.

"When affairs of the utmost consequence to the Company were
transacting by me, at the distance of seven hundred miles from the
presidency, Mr. Sumner, governor for the time being, would have
yielded up some of the most material privileges of the committee to
Mr. Leycester, Gray, and Burdett, the most factious among the
counsellors; and, if I had not written to him very severely on the
subject, and prevailed on Mr. Verelst to hasten down from Burdwan
to remonstrate to him on the weakness of his conduct, I verily
believe he would have joined with those gentlemen in endeavouring
to abolish the power of the committee.

"Whether his behaviour arose merely from timidity of temper, or
from a consideration that his actions formerly, in the Burdwan
country, could not bear a scrutiny, if the resentment of those whom
he had been obliged to join in condemning should prompt them to
retaliate, I cannot say; but it is certain that his attention to
those gentlemen, guilty as they had been of the most notorious acts
of oppression, was mean and absurd. His conduct, upon the whole,
convinces me, that had he been in council during the late
transactions he would have stood next to Mr. Johnstone in the
donation list, which I almost wish he had, since the Company and I
should, by that means, have been freed from the apprehensions we
now labour under, on account of his succeeding me in the
government.

"Imagine not that I have exceeded the bounds of truth in this
description. A due regard to my own honour, as well as to the
advantage of the Company, obliges me to be thus plain; but it is
not my intention to impress you with ideas so far to the
disadvantage of Mr. Sumner, as that he may be set aside from the
government. I think I cannot go such lengths without hurting my own
reputation. I must make a point of his succeeding me according to
his appointment; and I hope affairs will go on very well, as long
as he has a good committee or council to watch him.

"If you can prevail upon the Court of Directors to empower me
alone, or me in conjunction with the Select Committee, to regulate
matters, I will be responsible for his good behavior: if not, I
much fear things will fall into the old channel; and to the
advantages arising from salt will be added every other that can be
grasped at.

"Remember the oath and penalty bond mentioned in my public letter.
If by increasing the Governor's salary, or ordering his proportion
of salt to be greater, there was a particular oath for the
Governor, whereby he should not be allowed the liberty of private
trade at all, but obliged to attend to the affairs of the Company
only, leaving trade to the second, &c., I think the plan of
government would be much more perfect, as it would be less liable
to abuses from the head.

"I have hinted to Dudley only my sentiments of Mr. Sumner, and he
knows from me that I have explained myself to you. Consult,
therefore, together about the matter; settle it, if possible, in
such a manner that I may not be taxed with breach of promise to Mr.
Sumner, and I may at the same time resign the government without
apprehension for the consequences.

------------------

"It would be endless for me to send you the particulars of every
act of extortion and corruption. I had prepared a great many, under
the hands and seals of the several zemindars and phousdars, in
order to make it impossible for such men to succeed in any of their
future designs; but the total overthrow of Sulivan and his party
makes such authentic proofs unnecessary, especially as we have sent
home sufficient to convince every impartial Director of the general
corruption and profligacy of their servants in Bengal.

"Among other papers, you will find a letter from the King to the
Governor and Council, in favour of General Carnac. The 2 lacs of
rupees he has given him is lodged in the public funds, until the
pleasure of the Directors is known. I shall only say that Carnac
has acted with such moderation and honour in the service of the
Company, and with such good deference and attention towards his
Majesty the Great Mogul, that the Directors must be the most
ungrateful of men, if they do not, by the return of this ship, or
the first conveyance, order him this money, with a due encomium
upon his services, disinterestedness, and modesty. I am sure your
interest will not be wanting to push this matter to the utmost, if
it be possible that such an order from the Court should meet with
the least resistance.

"I have determined to remain in this country until I receive an
answer to our proceedings. No consideration on earth shall prevail
upon me to stay beyond the month of December, 1766; and my friends
may be assured, if no accident happens to me, of hearing of me from
Europe in April or May, 1767. In the mean time I shall dedicate
every day of my life to the service of the Company; a thorough
reformation shall take place; every department, both civil and
military, shall be examined, and regulated by a disinterested
committee, upon oath; and the Directors will be surprised indeed at
the extravagancy, inattention, and frauds of their servants, both
civil and military, at the same time that they must be greatly
pleased at the reduction of their exorbitant expenses.

"Can you believe me, that the civil and military charges at the
time of my arrival, amounted to between 11 and 12 lacs per month?

"I have dropt all thoughts of what I mentioned to you from Rio
Janeiro, concerning my jaghire, and am resolved to let it rest as
it is.

"That you may assist with confidence the justice of my cause, I do
declare, by that God who made me, it is my absolute determination
to refuse every present of consequence, and that I will not return
to England with one rupee more than what arises from my jaghire. My
profits arising from salt shall be divided among those friends who
have endangered their lives and constitutions in attending me; the
congratulatory nuzzurs shall be set opposite to my extraordinary
expenses, and, if aught remains, it shall go to Poplar or some
other hospital."

Clive, the same day, wrote the following letter[268] to Mr. Grenville, with whom, throughout this period, he appears to have kept up a constant correspondence:—

"Give me leave to call to your remembrance some discourse we had
together about the Company's affairs (in which the honour and
interest of our nation was so much concerned), and to inform you, I
have now the particular satisfaction of seeing the great object of
my wishes nearly accomplished.

"The enclosed copy of my letter to the Court of Directors, and a
map of Bengal, with some marginal explanations, will open to you a
full view of the present great and flourishing condition of our
East India Company, and show how near it was to destruction, from
corruption, extortion, and luxury. If you have leisure and
inclination to be further acquainted with our transactions, Mr.
Walsh has orders from me to lay before you our proceedings. May
what we are about, in times of distress and necessity, contribute
towards lessening the debt of the nation. If you imagine the King
can find amusement in perusing any of these papers, or some
particular friends whom you can trust, I shall have no objection.

"I hope by this year's conveyance to send you a particular account
of the revenues of these provinces, which, put under proper
management, cannot fall far short of 4,000,000_l._ per annum.

"I return you many thanks for Mr. Strachey: I have found him in
every respect deserving your good opinion; and I must not forget to
express how thankful I am for the assistance you have given Mr.
Nevil Maskelyne, to obtain the Regius professorship.

"My best wishes attend Mrs. Grenville and all your family."

Clive observes, in a letter to Lord Halifax, of the same date,—

"I will not attempt entering into a detail of affairs in this part
of the world, especially as I have enabled Mr. Grenville to give
your Lordship a very explicit account of the prosperous and
flourishing condition of the East India Company: too prosperous,
without they have better heads and hearts to manage such grand and
extensive concerns than heretofore."

In the following letter[269] from Lord Clive to Sir Matthew Featherstonhaugh he states,—

"We have just concluded a very honourable and advantageous peace
with Sujah-u-Dowlah. To convince him, as well as the Mogul empire,
of our moderation, we have restored to him all his dominions, upon
condition of paying to the Company 50 lacs of rupees, or
600,000_l._ (the half down, and security for the other half.) This
he very readily consented to, and has exactly complied with his
engagements; so that Bengal, by such a powerful alliance, will in
all probability enjoy tranquillity and peace for some time.

"Was I to paint to you the anarchy and confusion which reigned in
these rich provinces upon my arrival, you would be much surprised.
Indeed, the Company's affairs were at their last gasp, not from our
enemies, but from that universal licentiousness which had overrun
the whole settlement of Calcutta. Extortion and corruption were
practised openly and at noonday. The three kingdoms of Bengal,
Bahar, and Orissa, whose revenues amount to 4,000,000_l._ sterling
per annum, had been put up to sale, and the profits divided among
the civil and military; the Company's interests have been most
scandalously sacrificed; but on this subject let me refer you to
Mr. Walsh, who will give you such proofs of the venality,
corruption, and extortions of the Company's servants, as must give
you great pain, from the consideration of the national honour being
so much prostituted.

"We are making use of the power given the committee to check these
great and growing evils, and have made great progress already. Our
vigorous proceedings towards retrieving the national honour, and
obtaining for the Company those great and glorious advantages,
which they are so justly entitled to, will, I make no doubt, create
us many enemies; however, conscious rectitude will enable us to go
through our undertakings with pleasure. With regard to myself, I do
declare, upon the word of a gentleman, and upon my honour, that,
although history can scarce furnish an instance of any subject who
hath had such opportunities of acquiring an immense fortune, it is
my determined resolution to return to my native country not one
farthing richer than when I left it.

"The very great attention you have always paid to my interest, and
the favourable opinion you have always entertained of my abilities
and zeal for the Company, bind me to you by ties of the strongest
gratitude.

"The Company, in consequence of a grant from the Great Mogul, and
with the Nabob's approbation, are in possession of a clear revenue
of 2,000,000_l._ sterling; and all our expenses, both civil and
military, can never exceed the half of that sum in time of war, and
in time of peace, not more than 600,000_l._ per annum: so that, at
the worst of times, there will be a clear gain of 1,000,000_l._
sterling per annum to the Company. Neither are these revenues
chimerical or precarious: the rents are regularly paid; and we have
established such a force, that all the powers of Hindustan cannot
deprive us of our possessions for many years. Let me refer you to
Mr. Walsh for further particulars, who, I am persuaded, will
explain these matters much to your satisfaction.

"Although I find I cannot, as formerly, struggle with the
inclemency of this hot climate, yet I am determined to wait for an
answer to our despatches by this ship: my duty to my family will
not permit me to stay longer. I hope to kiss your hand in April or
May, 1767.

"The Duke of Devonshire's death has given me inexpressible concern:
the nation has lost a nobleman who was an honour to it, and we the
best and sincerest of friends. I could with pleasure have attached
myself to him for the remainder of my days."

The following letter[270] to his friend Scrafton exhibits a short view of the prosperous state of the finances, and closes with a postscript written on Clive's hearing of his friend's election to the office of Director:—

"You must not expect a long letter from me, because I know you will
have many particulars from other friends, and because the public
business will really not allow me time for that purpose.

"Revolution upon revolution, rapacity, extortion, and corruption,
have at last reduced us to the necessity of doing the only thing
which could be done, to save the whole fabric from being ruined.
The King hath granted to the Company the dewannee of Bengal, Bahar,
and Orissa, and expresses himself in this manner:—'In consideration
of the great services rendered me by the English Company, and on
the condition of their paying me the annual tribute of 26 lacs, and
allowing sufficient for the support of the dignity of the Nizamut,
whatever remains of the revenues of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa, I
give to the English Company as a free gift, for ever and ever.'

"The Nabob's allowances are 53 lacs, which he signed and agreed to;
so that there will remain little short of 200 lacs to the Company,
clear of all expenses in collections. What think you of the stocks?
We shall draw bills for about 16 lacs this year, and, in future, I
believe, there will be an end to bills of exchange. Our investment
this year will exceed 40 lacs, and we shall send 15 lacs to China.
We have 24 lacs of restitution money to pay, and 30 lacs of bonds
to discharge, or we should not have drawn at all, even this year.

"We have concluded a firm and lasting peace with Sujah-u-Dowlah, by
giving him up all his country, for which he pays 50 lacs to the
Company: 25 down, and security for the rest in twelve months. I
have not leisure to entertain you with an account of our
proceedings with regard to the gentlemen of council: the upshot is,
as you have expressed yourself in one of your letters, 'There are
not five men of principle in the whole settlement.' I believe this
is the first instance of such a paper appearing upon record as we
have sent home.

"There is an account in our committee and consultation proceedings,
as large as a general return, with as many columns, specifying the
sums of money received, and to be received, by whom, and to whom,
and on whose houses drawn; in short, the Directors, when they first
see these papers, will imagine it to be an account of increase of
revenues. If you can get John Walsh into a humour of entertaining
you upon these matters, he is qualified to do it better than any
man in England. My time and paper grow short.

"I am, dear Scrafton,

"Yours, &c.

"CLIVE

"May it please your Honour,

"I did not know at the time I wrote the above, that your Honour
would have been one of my masters, as I might have saved myself the
trouble of writing so much, or referring you to Walsh. Believe me,
there is an absolute necessity of getting some of the Madras
servants here, or we shall never bring about a reformation. The
gentry here will do nothing with a good will.

"I am

"Your Honour's most obedient servant,

"CLIVE."

Clive, in answering a letter[271] from Mr. Fowke, a Director, observes,—

"I have received your letter of the 13th November, 1764, from the
contents of which I can easily perceive our affairs in Leadenhall
Street are not likely to be upon a solid foundation for some time:
indeed, Rous, though a very honest man, is the most unfit of all
men living to preside and govern a Court of Directors. I am now
convinced, a man of lighter principles, with more abilities, and a
certain degree of resolution, will manage both private and public
concerns to more advantage than Mr. Rous. My only hopes are, that
the next year's election will produce one or two men well versed in
the politics of India, and then Mr. Sulivan may be entirely
excluded.

"I am not at all surprised at your disappointment; nothing less
could have been expected from such a divided and distracted
Direction; nor should I be much surprised if something of a
disagreeable nature, touching my powers, should find its way to
India. If the Directors dare take such a step, woe be to them, for
I am pursuing measures so manifestly to the nation's honour, and
the Company's advantage, that envy and malice themselves will not
dare to enter the lists against us.

"Was I to enter into a detail of all our transactions in these
parts, volumes would not suffice. To Mr. Walsh, therefore, I refer
you, who will be perfectly informed of the great and glorious
things we have already done for this Company; too great, indeed,
for such a Company. I shall only say, that such a scene of anarchy,
confusion, bribery, corruption, and extortion was never seen or
heard of in any country but Bengal; nor such and so many fortunes
acquired in so unjust and rapacious a manner. The three provinces
of Bengal, Bahar, and Orissa, producing a clear revenue of
3,000,000_l._ sterling, have been under the absolute management of
the Company's servants, ever since Meer Jaffier's restoration to
the subaship; and they have, both civil and military, exacted and
levied contributions from every man of power and consequence, from
the Nabob down to the lowest zemindar.

"The trade has been carried on by free merchants, acting as
gomastahs to the Company's servants, who, under the sanction of
their names, have committed actions which make the name of the
English stink in the nostrils of a Gentoo or a Mussulman; and the
Company's servants themselves have interfered with the revenues of
the Nabob, turned out and put in the officers of the government at
pleasure, and made every one pay for their preferment."

It may be questioned whether any of Clive's many and great achievements called forth more of that active energy and calm firmness for which he was distinguished, than was evinced in effecting the reform of the civil service of Bengal. It created a host of enemies in India, several of whom were men of talent, and possessed both of wealth and reputation. These, when they returned to England, gave vent to their indignation against one whom they represented as an arbitrary tyrant, who, having made his own immense fortune in a rapid manner, now desired to obtain fame by depriving others of the same advantages. They found, among the Directors and the House of Commons, many who listened eagerly to their grievances, and to accusations against a man whose fame and fortune made him an object of envy and of calumny; and who, besides the numbers he had rendered his enemies, by detecting and exposing their nefarious conduct, had deeply offended others, of whose character and principles he had a better opinion, by his impatience at their weak or undecided conduct. Born, it may be said, to command, clear in his views of what was right, and devoted to the public service, he was not only uncompromising, but impatient of check or hinderance in the pursuit of objects he deemed essential for the good name or interests of his country. This impatience led him too often to evince indignation or contempt of those who opposed him, or whose minds could not keep pace with his own, but whose conduct and character merited more justice and consideration.

But we must close this chapter, the events detailed in which occurred within a twelvemonth of Clive's arrival in Bengal. The second year afforded him a still greater opportunity of displaying his wisdom and courage.

FOOTNOTES: CHAPTER 14

Footnote 244:

11th May, 1765.

Footnote 245:

Mr. George Vansittart, the brother of Henry, the late governor.

Footnote 246:

13th May, 1765.

Footnote 247:

Vide letter to Mr. Sykes, 7th July.

Footnote 248:

Vide letter to Mr. Palk, 14th July.

Footnote 249:

Vide letter to Mr. Spencer of the 13th May.

Footnote 250:

The Court of Directors, by the Lapwing packet, which left England in
June, 1764, sent positive orders, which reached Calcutta on the 24th
January, 1765, that all persons in the Company's service should
execute covenants, restraining them from accepting, directly or
indirectly, from the Indian princes, any grant of lands, rents, or
territorial dominion, or any present whatever, exceeding the value of
four thousand rupees, without the consent of the Court of Directors.
The letter further contained orders relating to private trade, and to
batta to the troops. The council assembled next day, 25th January. It
is remarkable that the subjects, both of the batta and of the private
trade, are noticed in the consultation, but no allusion whatever is
made to the matter of the covenants. At this crisis the old Nabob
died; and Mr. Johnstone and Mr. Leycester were immediately empowered
to negotiate with his son, the young Nabob, and accordingly did
conclude a treaty, 6th February, as has been already mentioned. About
twenty lacs of rupees were, on this occasion, promised, and the
greater part of it received, as a present to the Governor and several
members of council. (Verelst's Narrative, p. 51.; Third Report of
Select Committee of House of Commons, p. 21.) As upwards of three
months had elapsed at the time of Clive's arrival, and the Company's
orders regarding the covenants had not yet been put in force, the
Select Committee, immediately on meeting, issued an order for carrying
them into instant effect. Clive, in his letters, expresses great
indignation at the circumstances attending the treaty with the young
prince; and it is impossible not to agree with him in thinking, that
the delay in the signing of the covenants, and the subsequent presents
from the young Nabob, reflect light on each other.

Footnote 251:

Vide letter to Mr. Sumner of the 26th June.

Footnote 252:

Vide letter, Secret Committee, 21st June, 1765.

Footnote 253:

This letter is dated the 30th September, 1765. It is published in the
Third Report of the Select Committee of the House of Commons, A. D.
1772.

Footnote 254:

17th May, 1766.

Footnote 255:

30th September, 1765.

Footnote 256:

It may be mentioned, as a curious fact, that when the durbar for
conferring the dewannee on the Company was held, the Emperor having
none of the appurtenances of high condition or state along with him,
an English dining table, covered over, made the throne on which he sat
during the ceremony.

Footnote 257:

Vide letter from Mr. Verelst, 27th July, 1765.

Footnote 258:

An addition of 386,131 was subsequently granted.

Footnote 259:

Mr. Johnstone, who had resigned council, but who remained some time
settling the commercial concerns with Mr. Bolts, complains of his salt
being stopped; Lord Clive, in reply, says he should have applied for a
dustuck.

Footnote 260:

Letter to Mr. Dudley, 29th September, 1765.

Footnote 261:

1765.

Footnote 262:

At the time of Lord Clive's writing the letter quoted in the text, to
Mr. Palk, the Governor of Madras, which was the day after his
Lordship's arrival at Bengal, Suja Dowla was, as is mentioned in that
letter, threatening to invade our provinces with a large army, joined
by the Mahrattas and Rohillas. But he altered his tone very shortly
after; since it appears, by a letter written by him to General Carnac,
that he offered to make peace on any terms.

This letter, it appears from the public records mentioned in the
Report of the Select Committee of 1772, was received by General Carnac
on the 19th of May, 1765, and was probably written by Suja Dowla two
days before; which allows for his having received intelligence of Lord
Clive's arrival on the 3d of that month, and that it had the effect of
his proposing to make peace with the English.

The letter is worth transcribing in this place. (3d Rep. of Select
Comm. App. No. 84.)

_Suja Dowla to General Carnac._

"It is known all over the world, that the illustrious chiefs of the
English nation are constant and unchangeable in their friendship,
which my heart is fully persuaded of. The late disturbances were
contrary to my inclination; but it was so ordered by Providence. I now
see things in a proper light, and have a strong desire to come to you;
and am persuaded you will treat me in a manner befitting your own
honour. You have shown great favours to others; when you become
acquainted with me you will see with your own eyes, and be thoroughly
sensible of my attachment, from which I will never depart while I have
life. I am this day arrived at Belgram: please God, in a very short
time I shall have the happiness of a meeting with you. As for other
particulars, I refer you to Monyr-o-Dowla and Rajah Shitabroy."

(And with his own hand.)

"My Friend,—I regard not wealth nor the government of countries: your
favour and friendship is all I desire. Please God, I will be with you
very soon, when you will do for me what you think best."

The fame of Lord Clive having been so long established in India, it
will not be thought extraordinary by those acquainted with that
country, that the news of his return to it should have operated, as it
did, so instantaneously with Suja Dowla, in the manner expressed in
the above letter.

Lord Clive soon after concluded a treaty of peace with him, of which
an account is given in the letter of the Select Committee at Calcutta,
30th September, 1765, in the same Report, App., No. 86.

Footnote 263:

Calcutta, 20th May, 1765.

Footnote 264:

General Carnac, 27th May, 1765.

Footnote 265:

Ibid., 30th May, 1765.

Footnote 266:

8th June, 1765.

Footnote 267:

Mootagyl, 8th July, 1765.

Footnote 268:

Dated Calcutta, 30th September, 1765.

Footnote 269:

Dated Calcutta, 30th September, 1765.

Footnote 270:

Dated Calcutta, 25th September, 1765.

Footnote 271:

Dated 25th September, 1765.

END OF THE SECOND VOLUME.

LONDON:
Printed by A. SPOTTISWOODE,
New-Street-Square.

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● Transcriber's Notes
○ In the plain text versions of this book a carat is used before a
character to indicate that that character was superscripted in the
original.
○ A few cases of inconsistent spelling and hyphenation
were regularized. (Mahomed/Mahommed, hindu/hindo,
hindostan/hindoostan/hindustan)
○ The spelling of Shakespeare was not modernized.
○ Footnotes were gathered and placed at the end of each chapter.