Page:The English Reports v1 1900.pdf/680

At a consultation of the said Governor and Council, held at Fort William on the 5th of January 1767, by an order then made, after taking notice that the said William Bolts had had permission to resign the Company's service, in consequence of his letter to the board, it was ordered, that intimation should be given to him by the secretary, that, as he could not claim any title to remain any longer in India, he was positively required not to engage further in commercial concerns, and to prepare to embark for England in one of the Company's ships of that season; and on the same 5th of January, or within a day or two after, the appellant had notice of such order. Nevertheless, in breach of the letters patent or charter, and the several acts above set forth, and divers other statutes, and contrary to the above order, and several other subsequent orders of the Governor and Council of Fort William, who were duly authorised and appointed by the Company, he continued in, and traded and carried on the business of merchandise by himself, and his agents and factors, at and in Fort William, and at and in Benares, Patna, Moorshedabad, and several other places and towns in Bengal, and other places in the East Indies, within the limits described in the said letters patent and acts above mentioned, from the 24th of November 1766, until the 23d of September 1768, till which day he remained in the East Indies; during all which period of time, or the greatest part thereof, the appellant, by himself or his partners, factors, and agents, carried on very extensive dealings in trade within the limits aforesaid, and particularly in salt-petre, betel-nut, and in woollen goods bought by him or his order of the Dutch, and in other branches of trade, not only with the natives and others of the country, but also at the factories and markets of other European powers settled in the East Indies, and with their subjects and servants there, greatly to the detriment of the said East India Company and their trade, and not only without the licence of the Company, but expressly contrary to their orders, or to the orders of their Governor and Council, and contrary to his own repeated declarations, promises, and assurances by him given, that he continued in the East Indies only for the purpose of settling his outstanding concerns, and calling in his effects acquired before the time of his quitting the service of the Company; and by means of such illicit trade, the appellant got considerable profits, and acquired large quantities of goods and merchandises, to the amount in the whole of £100,000 great part of which he left behind him in the East Indies, under the care of his attornies and agents there, particularly Messrs. Keir, Reed, Cator, and Gibson, as well as several outstanding debts which were due to him, and arose from such illicit trade, and other parts thereof he brought home to England, all which goods and merchandise, effects and credits, became forfeited by virtue of the several acts above mentioned, some or one of them.

[424] The appellant, knowing he could not procure ships to bring his merchandise and effects home to England, and to conceal, as far as he was able, the illicit trade he had so carried on, either before he left the East Indies, or after his return to England, gave directions to his attornies or agents, and particularly to Messrs. Keir, Reed, Cator, and Gibson, to exchange his effects and property there for goods proper for the European markets, and to collect all his debts and effects, and lay out the money in such goods, or otherwise cause his effects and property there to be exchanged for, and the money collected in from his outstanding debts to be laid out in the purchase of such goods as were proper for the European markets; and he, and his attornies or agents in the East Indies, by his orders, hired several foreign ships on freight, and particularly two Portuguese vessels bound from Goa to Lisbon, one called "Nra. Sra. de Cannidade & St. Francisco de Paula," Nicholas Fernandes de Fonscea captain; and the other called "Nra. Sra. de Adjuda & St. Pedro d'Alcantara," whereof Thomas de Franca Gortas was captain, and also a Danish vessel, to bring over to Lisbon, or some other foreign port in Europe, such merchandises as his agents and factors could load on board those vessels, and particularly large quantities of piece goods; or the appellant or his agents sold and disposed of all or great part of the cargoes so imported to Europe, to some persons who took such ships to freight, or loaded such goods on board them, and were paid for such goods in the East Indies, in specie, or by bills of exchange, or if not paid for there, they were by virtue of some agreement made for that purpose, paid for either to the appellant, or some person for his account, on the arrivals of those ships in