§ VISCOUNT BURYsaid, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government to distribute the prize money taken at Delhi and Lucknow to the troops present on those occasions.
LORD STANLEYsaid, he had to regret that his inadvertence had put the noble Lord to the trouble of asking this question more than once. The best answer he could give to it was to read an extract from a Despatch, dated 31st March, 1858, addressed to the Governor General of India by the late Court of Directors, In that despatch the Court of Directors, speaking of the property captured at Delhi, said,—
We fully approve of your recommendations that property taken by the troops, which is neither claimed on behalf of the State nor claimed and identified by individuals who may establish their loyalty, should be considered to be prize. We shall accordingly, as soon as we are informed by you of the necessary particulars, make application to the Crown, in the usual form, praying a Royal grant of the same as prize. … We trust that no time will be lost in sending us full particulars of the captures which we now propose to recognize as booty of war.Some statements had since been received, 388 but they were not complete, as showing the value of the booty, and the Government was now waiting for a full and complete account. With regard to Lucknow, he had as yet heard nothing from the Government of India.