was at first nominated Naib or acting governor of the country, but had never been put in actual possession of this high office, and Durbege Sing was appointed to it.  Although Ussaun Sing was thus removed, he continued his pretensions, and constantly solicited the office.  Thus the poor man appointed by Mr. Hastings, and actually in possession, was not only called upon to perform tasks beyond his strength, but was overawed by Mr. Markham, and terrified by Ussaun Sing, (the mortal enemy of the family,) who, like an accusing fiend, was continually at his post, and unceasingly reiterating his accusations.  This Ussaun Sing was, as Mr. Markham tells you, one of the causes of the Rajah’s continued dejection and despondency.  But it does not appear that any of these circumstances were ever laid before the Council; the whole passed between Mr. Hastings and Mr. Markham.

Mr. Hastings having by his arbitrary will thus disposed of the revenue and of the landed property of Benares, we will now trace his further proceedings and their effects.  He found the country most flourishing in agriculture and in trade; but not satisfied with the experiment he had made upon the government, upon the revenues, upon the reigning family, and upon all the landed property, he resolved to make as bold and as novel an experiment upon the commercial interests of the country.  Accordingly he entirely changed that part of the revenue system which affects trade and commerce, the life and soul of a state.  Without any advice that we know of, except Mr. Markham’s, he sat down to change in every point the whole commercial system of that country; and he effected the change upon the same arbitrary principles which he had before acted upon, namely, his own arbitrary will.  We are told, indeed, that he consulted bankers and merchants; but when your Lordships shall have learned what has happened from this experiment, you will easily see whether he did resort to proper sources of information or not.  You will see that the mischief which has happened has proceeded from the exercise of arbitrary power.  Arbitrary power, my Lords, is always a miserable creature.  When a man once adopts it as the principle of his actions, no one dares to tell him a truth, no one dares to give him any information that is disagreeable to him; for all know that their life and fortune depend upon his caprice.  Thus the man who lives in the exercise of arbitrary power condemns himself to eternal ignorance.  Of this the prisoner at your bar affords us a striking example.  This man, without advice, without assistance, and without resource, except in his own arbitrary power, stupidly ignorant in himself, and puffed up with the constant companion of ignorance, a blind presumption, alters the system of commercial imposts, and thereby ruined the whole trade of the country, leaving no one part of it undestroyed.