GENERAL HISTORY. 



[Ill 



CHAPTER XII. 



Petitions respecting the renewal of the East India Company'' s Charter — 

 Bill for the Preservation of the Public Peace. 



AMONG the effects of the 

 commercial embarrassments 

 prevailing through so large a part 

 of the kingdom, was that of ex- 

 citing an extraordinary interest in 

 the approachii)g expiration (in 

 May 1814) of the India Company's 

 last charter. All the out ports, 

 debarred from a participation in the 

 East India trade, and many of the 

 manufacturing districts which con- 

 ceived that new sources of demand 

 for their commodities would be 

 opened by a free exportation to the 

 vast countries included in the 

 company's monopoly, concurred in 

 the resolution of urging, on the 

 present occasion, what they re- 

 garded as the just claims of all 

 citizens to share in the pnblic ad- 

 vantages; whilst the company it- 

 self, and those bodies which were 

 connected with it by a common 

 interest, prepared to take measures 

 against the menaced attack. 



This matter was brought into 

 notice in the House of Commons 

 as early ae February 6, when 

 upon Mr. Wallace's motion for a 

 select committee to inquire into 

 the present state of the affairs of 

 the East India company, Mr. 

 Creevey objected to it on the 

 grounds of the incompetence of 

 such a committee to furnish the 

 requisite information, and pro- 

 posed in its stead a committee of 

 the whole house on the subject. In 



the debate which ensued. General 

 Gascoyne affirmed that the mer- 

 chants of Liver|)ool expected that 

 a great alteration would be made 

 in the arrangement of the carrying 

 trade to and from India, that all 

 out-ports were violently agitated 

 on this point, and would probably 

 make applications either to govern- 

 ment or to parliament, and he 

 hoped they would not be precluded 

 by agreements between ministers 

 and the East India company. On 

 the same day a petition was de- 

 livered to the house from the mer- 

 chants and traders of Greenock, 

 praying for the removal of the re- 

 straints on navigation withm the 

 exclusive privileges of the East 

 India and South-sea companies. 



In the House of Lords, the 

 approaching expiration of the East 

 India company's charter being 

 mentioned, March 23, by Lord 

 Grey, who expressed his surprise 

 that no document on the subject 

 had as yet been laid upon their 

 table. Lord Melville stated, that 

 a discussion was going on between 

 the court of directors and govern- 

 ment, which he believtd would 

 be produced soon after the recess. 



The port of Liverpool, the 

 second in the kingdom with repect 

 to commercial importance, was not 

 backward in taking its part in this 

 great question. On March -23y 

 General Tarleton presented to the- 



House- 



