SIR,

Madras, July 12, 1827. I HAVE Only time to write you a hurried letter, and the principal news I have to communicate is the death of Sir Thomas Munro, Bart., K. C. B., our worthy Governor, who fell a victim to that scourge of India, the cholera morbus. He was on a tour in the interior, and on the route between Gooty and Bellary, (in the Ceded Districts,) at a place named Putteecaudah, he was seized soon after breakfast, on the 6th, and died that evening. I understand he had marched ten or twelve miles that morning, partly on horseback and partly in his palanquin.

I believe no individual ever served the Honourable Company with more zeal and fidelity than Sir Thomas Munro. He had spent about fifty years in the service, and was on the eve of returning to his native land. His fortune, the whole of which he has realized in India, amounts, it is said, to about fourteen lacs of rupees (140,000l. sterling.) His Majesty's ship Tamar, at present in these roads, was to have conveyed Sir Thomas to Europe. She now bears the melancholy tidings of his death.

Like all men in public situations, our late Governor had his admirers, and also not a few who deprecated every act of his Government. Having been bred a military man, those of the Civil Service readily imagined him partial to that branch, and certainly he did on many occasions show his partiality to the red coat. It is a fact universally allowed, that the Native army is sadly deficient of European officers; and it is as well known that most positive orders have again and again been received from the august Court in Leadenhall-street, forbidding the appointment of military officers to civil situations, but our late Governor cared very little about such orders, as I could easily show you in many instances: one or two of the most recent I will mention..

When the situation of Resident in Travancore became vacant a few months ago, many old Civil servants applied for it; but it was given to Colonel Morrison of the Artillery, who had, ever since the establishment of the Commissariat, held the appointment of Commissary-General. There are many tales told as to the motives which led to this appointment; one of them was making the situation of Commissary-General become vacant; and it is now filled by an officer who has long been under the wing of Sir Thomas, but a man of considerable talent. And on the return to Europe lately of the Hon. A. H. Cole, the Resident in Mysore, his situation was filled by Mr. J. A. Cassmajor, who had for many years been AssistantResident, and, of course, well qualified. The situation of Assistant

than became vacant; and as it had been held by a Civil servant, it was naturally expected that it would be bestowed on one again: when, lo! forth came the mandate appointing Captain Watson of the 4th regiment N. I., as Assistant-Resident in Mysore, to the great disappointment of many Civil servants. Captain Watson had, however, long been a useful inmate in the establishment of Sir Thomas Munro; managed all the interior affairs at the Government-house ; was some time Paymaster at the Presidency; and, of course, had a right to pass over the head of any Civilian.

But the most extraordinary appointment that the late Governor made was in December last, when he nominated a Captain Norfey to be Sheriff of Madras; Captain Norfey had, I learn, been some time in the Honourable Company's Naval service, had been unfortunate in losing a ship, or some such thing, and was sent out to fill a situation in the Master Attendant's Department here; he arrived in May 1826, but found the appointment here not so good as he expected, and went on to Calcutta, hoping to get something better there; in this, however, he failed, and, returning to this place, took up his situation on the bench, and, being acquainted with nautical affairs, several houses of agency employed him to survey ships on account of the insurance offices. I am sure you will not be astonished when I tell you how very much surprised we all were here, when this sea Captain was appointed Sheriff. He has, of course, much to learn, to fit him for his new station; but I understand the Captain' brought out strong recommendations to Sir George Walker, Commander-in-Chief and second in Council here, and this powerful in terest got him made a Sheriff, and his son, a youth, Deputy Sheriff, a Mr. Baillie being removed from the situation for that purpose; so much for Sir Thomas Munro's appointments.

The army is now without employment, and, like other idlers, some of the officers are now and then getting into mischief, and more than the usual number of courts-martial have recently taken place; but as the Madras Editors are forbidden to publish them, you seldom see them, as you do those of the other Presidencies, which are always published in the newspapers. In a few instances, the officers have been severely dealt with, but in most cases a reprimand or suspension has been the punishment awarded, and, in many of the late Courts, his Excellency the Commander-in-Chief has read the members severe lectures, he being, apparently, a perfect adept in military law, which he seems to think the officers of the Madras army deficient in.

The very unusual circumstance of a Native soldier murdering his officer, has been exhibited to us here in several melancholy instances. Captain Davies, an officer of the Bombay army, but commanding a regiment of Native cavalry in the Nizam's service, was shot at by some, and cut to pieces by others of his men, in the beginning of May last; and on the 19th of the same month, Major

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E. Wallace, of the 2d regiment of Madras light cavalry, was shot on the parade of that regiment, by a trooper; both of these officers died instantly. Captain Woodhouse, of the 20th regiment Madras Native infantry, at Quilon, was nearly shot by one of his sepoys a few weeks ago, who discharged his musket into the captain's sittingroom; the sepoy has since been tried, severely flogged, and turned out of the service with disgrace. The offenders in the two first mentioned instances, also met with condign punishment; the murderer of Major Wallace has been hung in chains at Hyderabad. At Trichinoply, also, in May last, Major Smythe, of the 5th regiment Madras light cavalry, was shot in the shoulder by a trooper; the wound was severe, but the major recovered. The man, immediately on firing at his commanding officer, ran off, got on the top of a high rock, and refused to give himself up, menacing those who approached him: when a young officer of the 28th regiment of Native infantry shot him dead on the spot with his fowling-piece. Such occurrences are fortunately rare, but this shows of what materials some parts of our army consist.

The weather has, in general, been favourable here this season, with a more than usual fall of rain, and Madras has been extremely healthy. His Majesty's 30th regiment are at present in Fort St. George, and, it is said, they go at the end of this month to Trichinoply; his Majesty's 89th regiment, from St. Thomas's Mount, relieving them in the Fort.

I had almost forgot to say, that J. S. Græme, who was second in Council, has been proclaimed Acting-Governor, and James Taylor, Esq., appointed a Member of the CouncilBoard.

I am, Sir, your obedient servant,

A. C..

PS. The Number of The Oriental Herald' for March, has just been received at Madras, and the Letter from this place has excited much interest; its truth is universally acknowledged.

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Banks of the Ganges, June 1827. SIR,Many attempts have been made, at different times, to assimilate the Company's army in this country to that in his Majesty's service, some of which have been ultimately carried into effect, and others have been found impracticable, owing to the different nature of the two services. There is one custom, however, in the King's army, which I never heard proposed for our imitation, but which appears to me likely to produce more benefit than many that have been warmly advocated; I allude to the practice of officers exchanging from one branch of the service into another; from the Oriental Herald, Vol. 16.

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infantry into the cavalry, for instance, and vice versa. several periods of our career, at which such a power of exchanging might be attended with beneficial effects. We all know the origin of Cadets: if a gentleman in England has ten or twelve children, he looks to India as a sort of safety-valve, to take off the superfluous number; more especially, if some unfortunate son should love apples and mischief more than Latin and Greek, the old gentleman immediately shakes his head, and pronounces him unfit for anything but a cadetship, Away, therefore, he posts to Leadenhallstreet, and secures such a cadetship as his patron may have left at his disposal, or, as the stars at the end of his name may make him entitled to. Nothing is thought of the natural or acquired propensities of the youth; nor, indeed, is it known what qualifications would best fit him for the different branches of the service. I remember a young officer, who came out at the same time as myself as a cadet of cavalry, and who, though likely to be a credit to his profession in every other respect, could never attain any proficiency in horsemanship. So sensible was he of this defect, that he applied to the Adjutant-General to be removed into the infantry, where he might easily have found some one willing to change places with him. But Government, if I recollect right, replied, that they had no power to make such an alteration, nor could anything be done for him, unless he wrote home for a new commission; that is, another favour was to be asked in Leadenhall-street, and my friend was to lose the benefit of about two years' service in this country. Instead of being permitted, therefore, to distinguish himself on foot, he was compelled to remain a good-for-nothing dragoon. Nor is the argument applicable only to cadets: suppose a captain of cavalry should lose his arm, he cannot well manage his horse and use his broad-sword with one hand, but he might still lead a company to glory; or suppose an infantry subaltern to receive an injury in his leg, that might disqualify him from marching on foot, but not from sitting on horseback, why should you prevent him from entering another branch of the army, in which his services may be still available. In case of a removal into the artillery or engineers, some examination might be necessary in the scientific parts of those professions. Then let such examination be insisted on, and the candidates will take care to qualify themselves for it. We may pre-suppose that officers would generally choose the line to which they are best adapted; for it is, prima facie, natural that a man should seek such duties as he can discharge with credit to himself. It is a man's interest to do so, and that is sufficient to prove that he will do so, in nineteen cases out of twenty. My proposal, Sir, has one advantage, at least, which will recommend it to our mercantile sovereigns-it will not cost them a farthing; or, to speak more correctly, it will be equivalent to a considerable saving, by giving them a more efficient body of officers; nor can I see any difficulties in the way of its adoption, which might not by a few subordinate rules be easily disposed of, PELEGRINE DRYSTICK,

EFFORTS MAKING IN BENGAL TO RESIST THE ARBITRARY TAXATION OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY,

ALTHOUGH Our first Article in the present Number is devoted to the subject of the Stamp Tax in India, we cannot refrain from giving here the substance of a very able paper, which has reached us from Bengal, signed by one of the most honoured and venerated names that can be sounded in an Indian ear-John Palmer-well and truly designated, the prince of merchants,' and, happily, as liberal in matters of public right and duty as he is munificent in private generosity. It is a document which embraces all the leading arguments, legal as well as political, of the case, and is very properly made to precede the petition sent home by Mr. Crawfurd, as mentioned in the article already referred to, to be presented to Parliament on its opening. It appears to have been drawn up for the purpose of being sent, with the petition itself, to such individuals as might be able to promote the main object in view; and we, therefore, cannot do better than give it the publicity desired, by inserting it here. It is as follows:

Calcutta, July 5, 1827.

The Committee of the Inhabitants of Calcutta, European, AngloIndian, and Native, Petitioners to Parliament against the right assumed by the Honourable East India Company, to impose taxes without limit and without their consent or knowledge, respectfully solicit your attention to the subject-matter of their petitions. If, on a perusal of their case, you shall deem it deserving of your countenance, they entreat the boon of your public support in an affair which, though primarily affecting a small body of your fellowsubjects in a remote corner of the great British empire, involves important principles of constitutional law and taxation, that cannot, as they humbly contend, be violated in their persons, without establishing a precedent which reason shows, and experience has proved, to be ultimately unprofitable and hazardous to England.

The Committee beg to be allowed the freedom of briefly calling your attention to the leading facts of their case; for the rest, they refer to the copy of their petition which follows.

"The government of the British territories in India has been delegated by successive acts of the Legislature to the United Company of Merchants of England trading to the East Indies,' from time to time for a term of years. That Company was created in the year 1708 the last renewal of this lease took place in 1813, for a period of twenty years, to expire, therefore, in 1833; but on that occasion, the Legislature (in the 53 Geo. III.) distinctly asserted the undivided sovereignty of the Crown over all the British Indian territories and inhabitants.