A Journey through the Kingdom of Oude | Page 8

duties, and it is
only a few choice spirits that have entered upon the duty con amore.
General Nott prided, himself upon doing nothing whatever while he
was at Lucknow; General Pollock did all he could, but it was not much;
and Colonel Richmond does nothing. There the Buduk decoits, Thugs,
and poisoners, remain without sentences, and will do so till Richmond
goes, unless you give him a fillip. If you tell him to apply for an
assistant to aid him in the conduct of the trials, and tell him to nominate
his own, he may go to work, and I earnestly pray you to do something,
or the Oude Turae will become what it had for ages been before we
cleaned it out. Davidson was prevented from doing anything by
technical difficulties, so that out of _four Residents we have not got
four days' work_.
You will soon get my Report, and it will be worth having, and the last I
shall make on crime in India.
If Hercules had not had better instruments he could not so easily have
cleared out his stable; but he had no "Honourable Court" to find fault
with his mode of doing the thing, I conclude. The fact is, however, that
our prisoners are pretty well tried before they get into quod. Mr. Bird
will be delighted at the manner in which he is introduced in my first
chapter, and many another good officer well pleased.
Yours sincerely, (Signed) W. H. SLEEMAN.

To H. M. Elliot, Esq., Secretary to the Government of India, Calcutta.
_________________________________
Jhansee, 29th March, 1848.
My Dear Maddock,
I hope you will not disapprove of the resolution to which I have come
of resigning the charge of the Saugor territories, now that tranquillity
has been restored,--the best possible feelings among the people prevail,
and the object you had in view in recommending Lord Ellenborough to
confide that charge to me has been effected,--or of the manner in which
I have tendered my resignation. Were I longer to retain the charge, I
should be subjected to humiliations which the exigencies of the public
service do not require that I should at this time of life submit to, and I
shall have enough of labour and anxiety in the charge that will still
remain to me. If an opening for Sir R. Shakespear could be found, his
salary might be saved by my residence being transferred to Gwalior. If
either Hamilton or I were to be removed to some other post, it would be
well to reduce Gwalior and Indore to political agencies, under the
supervision of an agent, as in Rajpootana, with Bundelcund added to
his charge. The latter of these two measures has, you know, been under
consideration, and was, I think, proposed by Sutherland when you were
at Gwalior with Lord Auckland. Had the Lieutenant-Governor known
more of the Saugor territories when he wrote the paper on which
Government is now acting, he would not, I think, have described the
state of things as he has done, or urged the introduction of the system
which must end in minutely subdividing all leases, and in having all
questions regarding land tenures removed into the civil Courts, as in the
provinces. It is the old thing, "nothing like leather." I shall not weary
you by anything more on this subject. I hope a good man will be
selected for the charge. The selection of Mr. M. Smith as successor to
Mr. Brown was a good one. My letter will go off to-day, and be, I trust,
well received. I am grieved that Clerk has been obliged to quit his post;
he has been throughout his career an ornament to your service, but his
friends seem all along to have apprehended that he could not long stand
the climate of Bombay. I am anxious to learn how long you are to

remain in Council.
Yours very sincerely, (Signed) W. H. SLEEMAN.
To the Hon. Sir T. H. Maddock, &c. &c. &c.
_______________________________
Jhansee, 2nd April, 1848.
My Dear Elliot,
Till I this morning got the public letter, which will go off to-day, I
never heard one word about Shakespear's intention or wish to go to the
hills, and only thirteen days remain. The orders of Government as to his
locum tenens cannot reach me by the 15th, when he is to leave, and I
shall have to put in some one to take charge, as there is a treasury under
his management.
If Government wish to take Major Stevens from the Byza Bae, and give
him some other employment, he might be sent to act for Captain Ross;
but I know nothing of his fitness for such an office.
I believe you know Captain Ross, and I need say nothing more than
what