stranger, and the murder of a stranger by a Bramin, were not punished in the same manner; for a Bramin might suffer punishment much worse than death, but none might put him to death; while he who killed a Bramin was held guilty of the commission of an inexpiable crime. He had heard that Bramins were known to offer violence to themselves, after having suffered insult from strangers, for the purpose of making them guilty of inexpiable crimes. He did not know whether the Gentoo religion was an insuperable obstacle to the advancement of civilization and moral character. Their women were so concealed that he knew nothing concerning them. The introduction of Christianity among them would improve their civil condition. He did not recollect that any efforts of that kind had been made by the East India company. The discreet and well-ordered efforts of missionaries would not be dangerous to the British dominions in India. Other nations had been more active than Britain in the cultivation of the gospel. The Danish government had made some efforts; the Dutch had christianized many of the people of Ceylon; and considerable numbers were also reformed by the Portuguese without any dangerous consequences. The examination was carried on some time longer, and many other persons were examined before the committee: but what has been said will suffice for the brief outline to, which we are confined. March 31.-In a committee of ways and means, Mr. Vansittart said, that in an interview with a number of bankers and others that morning, he had proposed that the authority of parliament should be obtained, for funding twelve mil lions of outstanding exchequer bills, in the five per cents. navý annuities; for every 1001. of exchequer bills, 1157. 10s. of the navy annuities would be granted; the interest both of that and of the sinking fund being 61. 18s. 7d. As it had been deemed expedient to give the holders of exchequer bills an opportunity of subscribing 50 per cent. at their own option, an intermediate kind of security had been fixed upon-that of debentures transferable by indorsement, and bearing an interest of 5 per cent. payable in April and October of each year. The holder was to have the option of having it paid off in money, or converted into stock in April 1815, or on every succeeding 5th of April during the war, or to be paid off finally within 12 months after the conclusion of peace; or he might, if he thought it more to his advantage, exchange his debentures for stock at the following rates: for every 1007. in debentures, the holder might receive 1001. 5 per cent. navy an nuities; 1201. 4 per cents, or 150%. 3 per cent. reduced annuities. By this plan a sum of money would be obtained for the public service at a charge of 13s. less than by the original mode. It was likewise proper, that the commissioners for the reduction of the national debt should be allowed one per cent. upon this new public burden, as upon the other securities, so that the ultimate liquidation might keep pace with the old debt. The whole amount of the charge upon the public would thus be 240,000%. Mr. Vansittart next proceeded to to the new taxes he had to propose, and by which he should avoid reproach in case his plan with respect to the sinking fund should not be adopted. adopted. The sum to be raised was 1,136,000. He would provide for it thus: By a duty on tobacco, in- consolidated customs, excepting tea, sugar, wine, raw silk, and cotton L 100,000 $70,000 30,000 wool, would produce French wines, additional duty of 132. per bottle, making 18d. per bottle to the consumer War taxes taken at 360,0001. would make up the remainder of the sum: thusImport duty on goods the produce of France and its dependencies, increased two-thirds.. 200,000 War duties on exports increased generally to one half of the present amount, about ... 150,000 Additional duty on the export of foreign hides 1d. per lb. Additional duty on the importation of American cotton at 14. per lb. in British ships-and in foreign ships 6d. per lb. (amount not stated) Mr. Vansittart said, that the product of the war duties he calculated at 360,0001. and as in the ordinary state of trade they would produce three times as much, he had thus made ample provision for all reverses. Any surplus would go into the war taxes, in aid of the other resources of the country. A power should be given to ministers to suspend or reduce, by an order in council, any of these war duties. The first resolution being moved, Mr. Baring said, that the supply of India cotton was inadequate to the wants of the manufacturers, and inferior in quality, being sold at half the price of the cotton from the islands. The power vested in the hands of ministers, of suspending the duty, would not be exercised until all the evils predicted had been felt; when it would be too late. We should still, therefore, have American cotton from Georgia, through Spanish Florida; and, from the improving state of Eu rope, it would be brought by neutrals, and imported from the Elbe, the Baltic, and Lisbon, and all the additional expenses of this circuitous navigation must be borne by our manufacturers, who would be unable to meet competition in foreign markets. Sir R. Peele, Messrs. Lascelles, Gordon, Findlay, Phillips, and sir J. Newport, spoke to the same effect; but Mr. Vansittart said that he should not press this tax at present. The resolutions in regard to the other taxes were agreed to with expressions of satisfaction. April 6.-Mr. Lockhart rose, in pursuance of notice, to call the attention of the house to the consideration of the bankrupt laws. He observed that he had deferred his motion from time to time, in order to give an opportunity for a more deliberate reflection on the subject, and for the production of the returns which were now on the table all which tended to confirm in his mind the necessity of some alteration both in the system itself, and in the administration of it. though in the course of his remarks he might find it expedient to advert to several acts of parliament Al on any on the subject, he hoped that it would not be necessary for him to occupy the time of the house at considerable length. Our ancestors, in the establishment of the bankrupt laws, and in the provision which they had made for the administration of those laws, conceived that they had devised the most effectual means of depriving the bankrupt of all his property, and of distributing it among his creditors. They had not foreseen that the day would come when those laws, and that administration, would turn out to be so beneficial to the bankrupt, that bankruptcies would no longer be avoided, as in their time, but be sought with avidity. They had constructed a great system of insolvent law, without those checks and guards which were indispensable against abuse. In support of his opinion on the subject, he quoted a passage from Blackstone, the substance of which was, "that the existing system of bankrupt laws encouraged prodiga lity and extravagance, for that the most prodigal and extravagant persons received the greatest benefit from those statutes, they being un accompanied by proper conditions." What were the conditions annexed to these statutes, as those by which a bankrupt's certificate was to be obtained? On his last examination before the commissioners, the bankrupt was to disclose how he had disposed of his effects. If he made what appeared to be a true statement of what he had done with that part which was gone, and gave up the remainder, the law said that, 8-4ths of his creditors in number and value consenting, and the lord chancellor allowing, the bankrupt should be discharged from all the demands, not only on his personal estute, but on his person. There certain ly were other statutes in existencefor instance, there was a statute existing, that if a bankrupt could be proved to have gambled in the funds, or at any game, to a certain extent, or to have given a portion of 100%, to a daughter, he should not be allowed a certificate. But this and similar statutes had long been obsolete. As the practice of the law now existed, a bankrupt might be a person who had begun business without any capital, who had obtained credit on false pretences, who had despoiled confiding individuals of their whole property, who had conducted himself in the most profligate and extravagant manner, and who, nevertheless, if he could obtain the consent of three-fourths of his creditors in number and value, could, notwithstanding all his enormities, avail himself at a small expense of the benefits of the statutes, without any other check whatever. This absence of a sufficient guard did un questionably operate as a great en couragement to dishonest proceedings. It did also manifest injustice to an honest bankrupt. Far was it from him (Mr. Lockhar) to condemn commercial enterprise founded on fair and probable expecta tions." But an extravagant and profligate individual, whose life had been one scene of fraud and dishonesty, ought not to receive the same reward of exemption as the fair and open, but unfortunate, trader. The existing system compelled the public to view every bankrupt with the eye of suspicion. But it was grievously unjust that the honest and the dishonest should thus endure a common and indiscriminating reproach. To such an evil it was fitting that a remedy should be pointed our. order to consider what should be In the the nature of this remedy, the house ought first to look at the examination of the bankrupt. What was the examination that the law now required? The person claiming a certificate had merely to discover and surrender his remaining property. This was insufficient. The commissioners ought to be told how the bankrupt obtained credit, with what capital he had commenced business, whether he had preyed on the property of others, how he himself had lived. If it should be discovered that his conduct had for a series of years been reprehensible in these respects, he ought not to be entitled to his certificate; nor should he be permitted to have any allowance. But, on the other hand, if the commissioners found that the bankrupt had failed in consequence of a fair and honest commercial enterprise, then not only should his certificate be granted him, but his allowance should be increased, as a testimony to his good behaviour. There was in existence an obsolete statute-the 10th of James I. section the 7th, by which it was enacted, that if any bankrupt could not make it appear to the commissioners that he had sustained some casual loss, which he had been unable to foresee or guard against, he might be indicted for his conduct at the assizes or general sessions; and, if convicted, sentenced to stand in the pillory for two hours. The severity of this law had defeated its object. But it by no means followed, that because this statute, from its severity, had never been acted upon, and had become wholly obsolete, that there ought not to be any punishment for improper conduct. It would require a great deal of consideration to determine who ought to be the judges of the bankrupt's conduct. He himself entertained very serious doubts as to the creditors being the fit judges. In his opinion it would be infinitely better that the commissioners should decide whether or not the bankrupt ought to have his certificate; for in the other case many innocent individuals might be deprived of their certificates by the irritation of their creditors, and many guilty individuals obtain their certificates by the partiality of their creditors. Justice in this respect, as well as in every other, ought to be administered on a fair and immutableprinciple; and the administrators ought to be influenced by no motive but a consideration of what was due to the parties and to the public. Bankruptcy frauds had been rapidly increasing from the time of lord chancellor Apsley, who in the year 1774 issued an order to the commissioners carefully to examine the reality of the debts attempted to be proved before them, stating that many commissions were taken out with the sole view of fraudulently deceiving the creditors. evils arose from the bankrupt lawa law which disagreed from the law of the land-which disagreed with every other law of insolvencywhich disagreed from the principle of the insolvent bill on the table. If this last should pass, there would be two great insolvent laws in the country, acting in direct contradiction to each other, By the present system, bankruptcy was not compulsory, but elective. A trader wishing to become a bankrupt, had only to get together a few friends under the name of petitioning creditors, and, at an expense of only 60 or 701. he might procure a commission of bankruptcy to be sued out against him. This was an evil rapidly increasing. Connivances, and frauds of every kind, debts at These tempted tempted to be proved which had never before been heard of, &c. &c. were perpetually occurring. In il lustration of this opinion, he (Mr. Lockhart) read a passage from the opening speech of Mr. Gurney on the celebrated trial of the Folkards; the assertions in which passage he declared to be in his opinion strictly founded in truth. Under all these circumstances, it appeared to him to be extremely necessary to revise the system of bankrupt law, and-which brought him to his second head-to revise the administration of that system. He was happy to see in the house honourable gentlemen who were themselves commissioners, and who he hoped would declare whether the evils of the system, and of the administration of it, required remedy, or whether it was the best possible system, and the best possible administration that could be devised, equally incapable of any amendment. Far was from him the intention of throwing any stigma or imputation on the character of the commissioners, with many of whom he was in habits of personal intimacy, and for all of whom he entertained those sentiments of respect, which their talents, learning, and integrity inspired. But this he would state, that from the vast accumulation of bankrupt business, it was utterly impossible for 70 persons, forming 14 lists of commissioners, to get through it properly, unless new regulations were made for the purpose of compelling the execution of commissions in such a manner, as, by a strict examination into the circumstances of every individual case, should prevent the possibility of fraud being successfully practised by the bankrupt. To elucidate this part of the subject, he moved for several returns, which had been, in consequence, laid on the table, and which had been, by his motion, limited to the space of one month, as affording the fairest means of forming a judgement on the case. These returns he held in his hand, and the first thing that struck him in them was, that the commissioners executed commissions only on two days in the week that was, they did the main duty of their office on those two days alone. It was impossible, therefore, considering the vast recent increase of business, that they could accomplish it in those two days, especially when it was considered they sat only from eleven to one; or, as he was told it was to be understood, from ten till two. It appeared by the returns, that in some instances the gentlemen on one list had to execute 12 or 13 commissions in that short period of three or four hours. He appealed to the house, whether it was possible that, under such circumstances, the commissioners could strictly perform all the complicated duties of the office? It was true that some bankruptcy cases were of a trifling nature; but others were highly important, and demanded the most serious and deliberate attention. One of the principal duties of the commmissioners was to watch the proof of debts. For, owing to the increase of dishonest bankruptcies, and the great press of business, it frequently happened that debts never due had been attempted to be proved by persons who had never before been heard of. If so many cases were disposed of in one morning, how was it possible for the commis sioners to attend with sufficient vi gilance to the accuracy of every particular proof?-If any honourable member who heard him would take the trouble to go to Guildhall, he' |