THE NATIONAL REGISTER. ot worth buying; and in England, by overstocking the market, it sunk their price so low that no profit could be made by them. The competition, however, of which they gave this doleful account, had not been of long con tinuance, as in 1702 the two Companies were in some 'llea . sure united by an indenture tripartite, to which the Queen was the third party, and in 1708 they were by act of Par liament perfectly consolidated into one Company, by their present name. This act contained a clause, allowing the separate traders to continue their trade till Michaelmas 1711; but at the same time empowering the Directors to re deem their little capital of 72001. and thereby convert the whole stock of the Company into a joint stock. The capi tal of the Company, by the same act, in consequence of a new loan to Government, was augmented from 2,000,0001 to 3,200,0001. In 1745 the Company advanced another million to Government, but this being raised, not by a call upon the Propiietors, but by selling annuities, and con tracting bond debts, did not increase the stock on which the Proprietors could claim a dividend. It however aug mented their trading stock, as, like their other three mil lions, it was liable to the losses sustained, and debts con tracted, by the Company. From 1711 the Company being de'ivered from all competit:=rs, and fully established in the monopoly, carried on a successful trade, and the Proprie tors annually made a moderate dividend. Dui ing the French war of 1711 the ambition of M. DureEix, the French governor of Pondicherry, involved the Company in the wars of the Carnatie ; the consequence of this was the loss of Madras, i then their principal settlement,) which how ever was restored to,thern by the treaty of Aix la-Chapelle. —ln the war of 1755 they were eminently successful : they defended Madras, took Pondicherry, recovered Calcutta, and acquired the revenues of a rich and extensive territory, amounting, it was then said, to upwards of 3,000.0001, per annum. They remained for several years in quiet posses sion of this revenue; but in 1767 their territorial acquisi • tions, and the revenue arising from them, were claimed by the Crown, and the Company in compensation, agreed to pay to Government 400,0001. a year. They had before raised their dividend from six to ten per cent. on their capital. and were attempting, at this time, to raise it to twelve and a half per cent, but were restrained from making any further increase of dividend by two Acts of Parliament, the object of which was to enable them to make greater progress in the payment of their debts, which, at this time, were estimated at 6or 7,000,000/. sterling. In 1775 their debts, instead of being reduced, were *found to be augmented, by an arrear to the Treasury of the payment of the 400,0001. " by another to the Custom-house, for duties unpaid ; by a large debt to the Bank, for money borrowed; and by biils drawn upon them from India, and accepted, to the amount of 1,200,0001. These eaims on them, obliged them all at once to reduce their dividends to six per cent. to throw themselves on the rilLrcy of Government, and to supplicate, first a release from the further payment of the 400,0001 per :annum ; Lnd . sccoodly, a loau of 1,400,0004 to save.them firm nk r tcy. The rcgrlations of 1773 di , / not put an end to the diflicul- tics of thtr Company, and at various pei iods of their history E;11 ce that time, they have been reduced to great 'distress. The incursions of Ryder Ali, and the hostility of Tippoo Sail), involved them in wars which endangered the whole of their territories. The splendid sucePsses which their . arms have be , them from . the danger by cvh he wars in which they have bcc n debt so deeply, lb - 4; great - ont3 l they have JAN. IQ. been compelled to seek • assistance from Parliament. The territories they now possess are said to contain a population of fifty millions. That a Company of Traders should be the .; , 'oveleigns of an Empire so vast, is certainly an anomaly in the history of the world. Whether it is one which ought to be continued or abolished, is a question which will shortly be solemnly discussed by the Representatives of the Peop=le. The advantages and disadvantages of the present system, it will be our object, as they are developed, clearly and impar tially to submit to the Public. FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE. FRENCH PAPERS. Post - .N, DF c. in —Yesterday and the thy before ye.terdaY. a eon -4dereb/e column of fresh troops passed through our city for the grand army. Lttrste, Die. 22.—The passage of the troop!, which are proceed ing to join the grand army, daily condones. rit:\ NKFORT, DFC• 30.—The Passage' of people . returning from the Crawl army continues. We yesterday saw pass Baron Lauriston, pro ceeding to the Council of State, from %Vilna; M. Bioletti, Auditor to the Council of State, from %Vilna; Messrs. Leman and Chaise, Aid de- Camp to Marshal the Duke of Reggio, and several other persons at tached to the Emperor's household. VIEVNA, Pre. 1V.•••••4115 Majesty the F. nperor of Austria, upon hearing that his Majesty the Emperor Napoleon had, on the 4th inst. arrived at Dresden, and after having remnioed there some time, pro eet ded for Park. determined upon sending to the latter capital Eield Marshal Licut. Count de Bubina, to reside there in a diplomatic cha racter. • . _ _ VIENNA, DEC. 22.—Several accounts received here from Servia, state, that the submission orthe Servian nation to the dominion ot the Porte, has just been accepted by the Grand Seignior, on the condi tions ;aid down by the Servians. In the case of war, Servia is oblia . d to furnish the Porte 15,000 men : 10,000 infantry, and 5,000 cavalry, who will he maintained at the expmce of the Porte.— I t was on the 7th of November, that Prince Dernctri Moroust', ci devant llch.pot'ar of Moldavia, and one of the Ottoman Plenipoten. tiruies at the Congress of Bucharest, who signed the Treaty ot Peace with 11 us , :ia, was decapitated at Schmid:a, the head-quarters of the Grand Vizier, agreeable to orders transmitted by the Grand Seignior. Vic are generally assured, that he sutkred . this catastrophe be:.ause it was known that lie was a partizan of Rubata. The PronWur of the 51st of Dccember contains the following notes en an article which appeared in an Engli, , li paper. slitting, that the French were going to eiacuate Spain, and be confined to France, and that Lord Walpole had arrived at Vi , noni. (1) Far from evacuating Spain, fresh tr,ops are marching thither. Our armies have rendered a:1 .. our efforts vain ; and your country and your treastne are exhausted in this contest, disproportionate to your pro pulation, and the wants of y WC establishments in Asia and America. Spain belongs to the French d+-nasty ; no human effort can pro vent it. (2) 4. Even ILlland, Rome, Tuscany, Piediomit, 1.1:,46u:n, the coun t) of Nice " That would be fine ! Poit why to much modera:ion? Why stop in so flue a career ? Why not take edvantage of the ow . meta, and divide France ? Relieve tun that should _ ou even col!ect,;ii & Corps de Nation, these twenty-five millions of men. who are su near yo u , you will run dan , :er. Separate them : make a Dike of linigundy, t t Duke of Aquitine„ a Puke of Normandy, a Dal.e of Britt army ; !hen 011:y yon will !Jaye scelltily ! ! Do you reniernhi r the line guava of f harks le Temeraire and those of the House Of Alontfort? That would be very flue, meild it not ? Bin whilst you dream of tl.c..e wonders, Ireland se parates herself from you ; you, c;iuntry is rev , hitioniztd ; the Continent is !A/ready without depeodance upon your Admini triit.uo ; even Itu ;s ia at present so dear, will not hive your mantitactlrt li Pieldli:ndije. (S.) Fortunately fa- ti! Continent, France and i Aas:r.t. at(.' to•crira hie ; it was the al'i4nce of 1756 which created the 'manic tbat deliveied America. Lord Walpole is no longer at Vienna : he was iii , t !i'tcni (I to. No continental power will separate itself from Frailce ; all At iif he deaf to your intrigues. Resides In tv millions of •Frenchmen fear no thing. Woe to you it' arty weak Cabinet hearkrus to your coLocils! You will still be the cause of enci - easing the force of France, fourhun dred thousand men time vetually on foot in then interior of Er:vice ; Kit h . wit reckoning- the armies in Spain, and the Grand Army, N. Franc e ; bat if ihov nete—if the dehthnes of the empire were inciwced, Isiii....v that 300,0'40 men, and 300 millions, are every year furthcoronT. It wilimi:her ccst the nation Mell 1t , ,1 fllLiflt:y to I. , pport its ctlns:,M4l;vit. wen Cl'oWlloll,.ikire Tglie7C.(l -ir , •• • 5 ` ttl IIV a • • •-• •: 'cvv 11' •,..t l 4• 1 . • (( i; .e• .4 : • q ...flit, " 1 4 - C.4.::l.atta. Plit