I should say he had united
in himself the character of First Lord of the Treasury, the character of
Chief-Justice, the character of Lord High-Chancellor, and the character
of Archbishop of Canterbury: a man of great gravity, dignity, and
authority, and advanced in years; had once 100,000_l._ a year for the
support of his dignity, and had at that time 50,000_l._ This man,
sitting in his garden, reposing himself after the toils of his
situation, (for he was one of the most laborious men in the world,) was
suddenly arrested, and, without a moment's respite, dragged down to
Calcutta, and there by Mr. Hastings (exceeding the orders of the
Company) confined near two years under a guard of soldiers. Mr. Hastings
kept this great man for several months without even attempting the trial
upon him. How he tried him afterwards your Lordships may probably in the
course of this business inquire; and you will then judge, from the
circumstances of that trial, that, as he was not tried for his crime, so
neither was he acquitted for his innocence;--but at present I leave him
in that situation. Mr. Hastings, unknown to the Council, having executed
the orders of the Company in the last degree of rigor to this unhappy
man, keeps him in that situation, without a trial, under a guard,
separated from his country, disgraced and dishonored, and by Mr.
Hastings's express order not suffered either to make a visit or receive
a visitor.

There was another commission for Mr. Hastings contained in these orders.
The Company, because they were of opinion that justice could not be
easily obtained while the first situations of the country were filled
with this man's adherents, desired Mr. Hastings to displace them:
leaving him a very large power, and confiding in his justice, prudence,
and impartiality not to abuse a trust of such delicacy. But we shall
prove to your Lordships that Mr. Hastings thought it necessary to turn
out, from the highest to the lowest, several hundreds of people, for no
other reason than that they had been put in their employments by that
very man whom the English government had formerly placed there. If _we_
were to insist that we could not possibly try Mr. Hastings, or come at
his wickedness, until we had eradicated his influence in Bengal, and
left not one man in it who was during his government in any place or
office whatever, yet, though we should readily admit that we could not
do the whole without it, at the same time, rathe