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principally contended for was, that the Company had exclusive right to the Dewannee, which was a kind of present ; but that it was impossible they could maintain that they had a right to any accession made by conquest ; that such an idea was both unconstitutional and absurd, and equally contradictory and illegal.
      Sir G. G-lebr-ke.] In justification of myself, I must be permitted to fay, that I am incapable of repeating a private conversation to any man's disadvantage. I will not affirm, that there are expressions in any of the letters which might lead me to conclude that the noble Lord would accede to the proposal of an increase of dividend, but I thought some of his verbal expressions authorized me to say what I did at the general court. 
[Here the debate concluded, and the resolutions stood as at the end of Lord North's first speech, for report.

Tuesday, March 23.
      The affairs of the East-India Company were resumed, when, in consequence of the former resolutions, that the necessary regulations be adopted, to prevent the Company's experiencing the like exigencies in future, the following resolutions were proposed : 
      "Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Committee, that the East-India Company be restrained from dividing more than six per cent. on their capital, till the sum of 1,400,000l. proposed to be lent to them by Parliament, be repaid. 
      "Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Committee, That the East-India Company be restrained from dividing more than seven per cent. from the latter period till their bond-debts be reduced to 1,500,000l. and no more than eight per cent. before the participation of profits between the public and the Company should take place."
      Lord North supported the above resolutions by several forcible arguments;such as the undoubted right every creditor, who parted with his money, had to exact certain conditions, and stipulate certain agreements, previous to his acquiescence in the request solicited. With respect to the restriction of the dividend to six per cent. it was founded, he said, upon the state of the Company's situation, which was such as to render a thought about permitting them to declare a larger dividend preposterous. His Lordship took notice, that the persons concerned in keeping the Company's accounts, were such expert arithmeticians,that they were acquainted with the two-fold method of cyphering, in consequence of which, his Lordship added, it was apparent that there was such a thing as a two-fold method of stating accounts ; but that, stated in real conformity to the Company's situation, a dividend of six per cent. would be found to be the largest moiety in the power of the Company to afford, with justice to the public, and the welfare of the proprietary. With respect to the second proposition of allowing the dividend to be encreased to seven per cent. after the money borrowed of the Company should be paid off, the very prospect of this encrease of dividend, his Lordship said, would operate with the Company, and expedite their endeavors to discharge the debt incurred. The prospect of an increase of eight per cent. would, his Lordship observed, also produce a similar effect. 
        His Lordship next proceeded to state from whence the resources were to flow for the discharge of the debt due to the public, and the reduction of the Company's bond-debt, which, he seemed to hint, was much beyond what the Company was authorized to borrow;there, he said, must arise from the territorial revenues of Bengal. And his Lordship further intimated, that, when the repayment of the loan advanced by the public, and the reduction of the Company's bond-bebt to 1,500,000l. were effected, perhaps the Treasury might contribute a moiety of its share of the participation to re-stablish the affairs of the Company, in a manner most for the honour of the nation, the interest of the proprietary, the benefit of commerce, and the security of public credit : but his Lordship also intimated, that, perhaps, Parliament might think proper, hereafter, to agitate the question about the right to the territorial possessions in India, whether it was vested in the State or Company.
      His Lordship having concluded, Mr.S-ll-v-n arose, and and in behalf of the Company advanced the following assertions :
      He said, that the representation made by the Secret and Select Committees of the state of the Company's affairs, was, in several respects, erroneous : in parti ular, that the Secret Committee, in the report they had made, had given no no credit at all for the fortifications, warehouses, &c. of the Company in India ; yet that they ought to be estimated at something, and that, a fair appraisement being made of their value, it would appear, that the Company, as to its finances, was by no means in the reduced state described ; nay, said Mr. S ll-v-n, all things considered, and a proper balance of profit and loss being struck, the Company is at this time rather in a flourishing situation. He, therefore, contended, that a limitation of the Company's dividend to fix per cent. was a measure highly injurious to its real interest. Mr. S. stated the Company's affairs at different periods since the year 1762, and concluded by arguing for a dividend of eight per cent. which he said the finances of the Company might well afford.
       Governor T-bnst-ne next arose, and said, That, from what fell from the noble Lord, he perccived that there were two ways of stating arguments as well as accounts ; that, though he might join the noble Lord in the necessity of restraining the dividend, yet he differed in the sum to which that dividend was designed to be limited ; that, respecting the Treasury's hereafter renouncing its share of the participation, in order to expedite and effectuate theCompany's re-establishment, tho' he was inclined to give as much credit as any man to what the noble Lord on every other occasion said, yet, in this particular, he could not help thinking but that the assertion stood in need of some farther proof. The Governor added, that he was clear in one thing, that the Company had not exceeded the right invested in them by LAW in borrowing the sum they had ; that, it was true, such an assertion had been advanced, and terrific threats had been denounced, in consequence of the Company's supposed delinquency in this respect, but that he was sure Parliament never seriously intended to put its threats in execution by farther agitating that point ; that, if Parliament did so mean, the Company was ready and willing to meet Parliament upon that ground. The Governor concluded by expressing his wish, that a step of such importance to so immense a body of people, might not be hastily agitated, or too precipitately determined; he, therefore, moved for postponing the consideration of the noble Lord's resolutions to a future day.
       M. D mpst-r warmly recommended the same measure, as it could have, he said, no influence upon the rise or fall of India stock ; the noble Lord having so frequently declared his opinion respecting the dividend, as to render it no longer a matter of doubt to which side of the question his Lordship was inclined to lean : but, he said, that, as the Propriety had agreed to treat with Adminstiration upon a supposition that the allowance of a dividend of eight per cent. would meet with its support, to refuse a request of the kind was to lend the aid of Govenrment to deceive a set of men who had already been but too much and too frequently imposed upon. Mr. D mpst-r further said, that the intimation of the concurrence of Administration respecting an allowance of the dividend now solicited, was given the Proprietray from their own Chair. He then concluded with beseeching the noble Lord to delay the final consideration of the matter to a future day.
       Lord T-bn C-v-end-sh then arose. He said, that Administration had lately shewn a strange propensity to interfere in every species of the executive power : that such a procedure as the present was a dangerous precedent ; for, with respect to declaring what dividend the Company should or should not make, it was, to all intents and purposes, to wrest the power of declaring a dividend out of the hands of the Directors, wherein it was by charter lodged, and to vest that right, where neither the Company's charter, nor the custom observed with respect to trading companies, authorized it to be vested, in Parliament. His Lordship was, therefore, against restraining the dividend as a step that favoured much of too great an assumption of the executive power ; but his Lordship strenuously urged the necessity of a Parliamentary enquiry into the affairs of the Company, and concluded by recommending the execution of strict and impartial justice upon delinquents, how dignified soever. 
       Mr. T-nk-nf-n observed, that what had been advanced by a Member,(Mr. S-ll-n) respecting the value of those fortifications, warehouses, &c. belonging to the Company in India, was extremely fallacious ; that, it was true, the Secret Committee, in their report, had estimated them at no certain sum ; but that this, so far from being an omission, was perfectly conformable

Transcription Notes:
---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-05-10 08:04:35 Unsure of the reason for the "f" where there are often supposed to be "s" (eg. expreffions), but original text spelling was retained ---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-05-10 10:15:56 - the note above indicates that original text spelling was retained. This is not consistently demonstrated throughout. Sometimes the "fs" were changed to "S" by previous transcribers. Reviewer please pay special attention to this detail. ---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-05-10 16:04:10