In 1730 there was already'a total lossrof 7i737»6l%'Tand in .the yeaT .I77Q
this loKs^mounted to .84,985;425.1jj ;
> The Company!.used io’/Sepd- yearly1 to, India,‘before the commencement
of the war of I78O, twenty ships of'about nine hundred tons each, and eight
or ten of about eight hundred t;ons each, which, fo the' number of twe^tyl'
two or twenty-three, ^etyrped^with cargoes: four, fmm China, threeiropi
Ceylon, three from Bengal, one from. Coromandel, a,nd t-wrplvp ,or thirteen
from Batavia. They annually exported to India, provisions and other articles
of trade to the amount of two millions,,,six, or eight ^hopfEjnd, florins:
and in cash from four faousix .millions, and sold yearly to an afrnoimt. generally
of twenty or twenty-one fmilfionsj and it was ^estimated that^the
Indian trade maintained, directly and indirectly, all the externabcdrnmerce
of Holland,^.employing a capital.of about two hundred and siMy millions of
florins.
From the inquiries, of a commission appointed by the ..government* of
Holland, itf the year. 1790, ,to*-ascertain the real, state o f the .Compa'fty^s
finance#,' and to report how far, the. nation, ■Nvoukb,be warranted- ipigiving
its further; support.To the credit^ of an institution which had r£Or rapidly
declined, it. appeared that, in 1789, the arrears of the Company, amounted
toseventy-four millions of florins, I and that this amount had .since, increased
to eighty-four or eighty-five millions, of which sum no^less.than,67,7P7,588
florins had;been ,advanced by the nation. -
The Commissioners,.however, .being of opinion,- that, the .affairs ,-pf the
Company were, not irretrievable, recommended a further- loan of' seven
millions of florins.
A meritorious servant of the Company, Mr. C. Tetsingh, had offered. |o
the Commissioners a memorial, in which'he proposed that'the Company
should abandon the trade to private merchants under certain restrictions;
" "but
M 'T 'E 'O D-U C T IO N. XXXI
but on* t$if .proposal Commissioners Lstated- that they were not then
prep'a^edM^^M^^^©|fif&ie)5l. fittfc
ffdCPKfs C6'ntinisMTOKin56,%j,QKtinrgmp'c9l tiite, manners in whicb'the' Company’s
affairs vbadJ been rma’qagbdri'n India! ".d^illfeed that they?could -not' con-
“ 'eealwhe^&eep.'impfesSiteiwffichrtlFje-VjSame had’ madeuiipon their minds!
r “ "Sind th’at1 dheytcoul'd' notj'fix theirithou^htsfupon it, owthSufcbeing saffecJed
M wit'^iSOTthnentsdofeJbLorrori and detestation.” . .. ,WneBf%«aidr they,
we take afyife^iB^ouf chief., possession .and. estaSjisbfiierfti and whence
to the: real1 situation 'of{Safe internal? trade* of »India,’ tbeistsllgtacjceas-
“ :mg 'and iexorbitahfx'xatei expenses: thp.aincessantl'wanfc3,of. cash,
.uhthe borate ,®spfper’- money-fin cirGiilatiSrijn-'thei. unrestrained Speculations
“ and f a ith l^ f f l^ i f .many^e^xthe j GompanyVse'lylJfttsf?Ibenefinjpqueht
“ .dknfe ltife tradetofbforeign nations,. the^ph^fidy^oh^he^atifepjpfinc^
Ib^uiyanem bfl&herlmdian: goye^lmdut,'itlW#gxcvessiYe
?‘?rgxp&fMaiflltheltmi]itary.:depaitment and .for the puhlid .defencejunta
■.‘.‘i-wbrd,'’iiwh’enj5ye,n take, a yiew.^bf :almogt
“ despair o f being able: ito- fulfil ounrtask,. iflj^mitep»er,S_Oi}S; of|,gr,eat tafepts
“• and! ability.ibf»piig^h,ea:tdirectors had 1 .nofl^t^p^vferward^tft^d^visq
“ mCahi^hyi-which, i f l -notutbf -eradicate, thef fu^fchepHfpgrqss
.‘i f the Qsjftpwvfeluri,!
q^bteints iprsphsedih-ySfSi^ctiteetoxsii .exf^hded ;tp/<e.Y,eiy( branch
^t^mft?ddministration abrflacL- b They .proposed,'j/flrsV^with regard! tp^the^
Capbtof GrdpdwHope, 1 the^yhariy: arrears of which.* •fe^l^ept had latterly
Wounted to' a million and ia: half of- florins,’iHHat^fhe <same.iftould „be
feduc’e®»®o*t)ne' half ,of. that sufn.vubWith Teggfrdj#®\ifchp^ %^herf;tefi|fgi:n
‘po'sgCsstenSP'the medsurds»1 pfb.pp.sed fiQnSidpJ^tiQn; wvere, .chiefly, ,the, ToE?'-
loWtng.mrc
•4*®© confine5 the Company’s TutUFe-itfadejtolQpiumjrSgiees,! -pepper! Japan
:cop;plx^an, • andrsugar,; as'* fair .-iai'^tl^e''^European;* a nd« Jf]Jan;markets; would
^equirhflm'To‘-';abandonotbfei'tra.dei t.o n’^ e.stern’a,ndia..to;.the, Qon^apy’s., s§t-
w-ants. and ffmte merchants^ undej payment o ^ a ,certainrjrecogmtiqn.0.iTo
abandon