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made in this kingdom, the first statute, I believe, that ever was made by the legislature of any nation upon the subject, and it was made solely upon the resolutions to which we had come against the violent, intemperate, unjust and perfidious acts of this man at your Lordships' bar, and which aets are now produced before your Lordships as merits,

To shew further to your Lordships, how necessary this Act was, here is a part of his own correspondence, the last thing I shall beg to read to your Lordships, and upon which I shall make no other comment than that you will learn from it how well British faith was kept by this man; and that it was the violation of British faith, which prevented our having the most advantageous peace, and brought on all the calamities of war.

It is part of a letter from the minister of the Rajah of Berar, a man called Beneram Pundit, with whom Mr. Hastings was at the time treating for a peace, and he tells him why he might have had peace at that time, and why he had it not; and that the cause of it was his own ridiculous and even buffoonish perfidiousness, which exposed him to the ridiqule of all the princes of India, and with him the whole British nation.

But afterwards reflecting that it was not "advisable for me to be in such haste before I

"had

"had understood all the contents of the papers; "I opened them in the presence of the Maha

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Rajah, when all the Kharetas letter, copies "and treaties, wese perused with the greatest "attention and care: first, they convinced us "of your great truth and sincerity, and that

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you never, from the beginning to this time, "were inclined to the present disputes and "hostilities; and next, that you have not in"cluded in the articles of the treaty, any of your wishes or inclinations, and in short the garden of the treaty appeared to us in all its parts, green and flourishing. But though the "fruit of it was excellent, yet they appeared "different from those of Colonel Upton's treaty.

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(the particulars of which I have frequently "written to you,) and upon tasting them, proved "to be bitter and very different, when compared "to the former articles. How can any of the old "and established obligations be omitted, and new matters agreed to, which it is plain that they will produce and damage? Some points " which you have mentioned, under the plea of "the faith and observance of treaties, are of "such a nature, that the Poonah ministers can

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never assent to them; in all engagements "and important transactions, in which the words

but, and although, and besides, and whereas, "and why, and other such words of doubt are "introduced, it gives an opening to disputes

" and

"and misunderstandings. A treaty. is meant "for the entire removal of all differences, not "for the increase of them. My departure for "Poonah has therefore been delayed." My Lords, consider to what ironies and insults this nation was exposed, and how necessary it was for us to originate that Bill, which your Lordships passed into an Act of Parliament, with His Majesty's assent; the words but, although, besides, whereas and why, and such like are introduced to give an opening, and so on. Then he desires him to send another treaty, fit for him to sign.

"I have therefore kept the treaty with the greatest care and caution in my possession, " and have taken a copy of it; I have added to "each article another, which appeared to me

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66

proper and advisable; and without any loss or disadvantage to the English, or any thing "more in favour of the Pundit Purdhaun than 66 was contained in the former treaties. "have sent to you, and hope that

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This I

will pre

pare and send a treaty conformable to that, "without any besides, or if, or why, or but, and "whereas, that as soon as it arrives, I may de"part for Poonah, and having united with me "Row Mahadajee Scindia, and having brought 66 over the Nabob Nizam ul Dowlah to this "business, I may settle and adjust all matters. " which

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"which are in this bad situation. As soon as I "have received my dismission from thence,

I would set off for Calcutta, and represent to

you every thing, which for a long while I have "had in my mind, and by this transaction erect "to the view of all the world, the standard of "the greatness and goodness of the English, and "of my masters, and extinguish the flames of "war with the waters of friendship. The com

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passing all those advantages and happy pros"pects depends entirely upon your will and consent; and the power of bringing them to an issue, is in your hands alone."

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My Lords, you may here see the necessity there was for passing the Act of Parliament, which I have just read to you, in order to prevent in future the recurrence of that want of faith, of which Mr. Hastings had been so notoriously guilty, and by which he had not only united all India against us, and had hindered us from making, for a long time, any peace at all, but had exposed the British character to the irony, scorn, derision and insult of the whole people of that vast continent.

My Lords, in the progress of this Impeachment, you have heard our charges; you have heard the Prisoner's plea of merits; you have heard our observations on them. In the progress of this Impeachment, you have seen the condition

in

in which Mr. Hastings received Benares; you have seen the condition in which Mr. Hastings received the country of the Rohillas; you have seen the condition in which he received the country of Oude; you have seen the condition in which he received the provinces of Bengal; you have seen the condition of the country when the native government was succeeded by that of Mr. Hastings; you have seen the happiness and prosperity of all its inhabitants, from those of the highest to those of the lowest rank. My Lords, you have seen the very reverse of all this under the government of Mr. Hastings; the country itself, all its beauty and glory ending in a jungle for wild beasts. You have seen flourishing families reduced to implore that pity, which the poorest man and the meanest situation might very well call for. You have seen whole nations in the mass reduced to a condition of the same distress. These things in his government at home: abroad, scorn, contempt, and derision cast upon and covering the British name, war stirred up, and dishonourable treaties of peace made, by the total prostitution of British faith. Now take, my Lords, together, all the multiplied delinquencies which we have proved, from the highest degree of tyranny, to the lowest degree of sharping and cheating, and then judge, my Lords, whether the House of Commons could rest for one moment, without bringing these matters,

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