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Sleeman, William, 1788-1856

"II"

His successor, Mahommed Allee Shah, died on the
16th of May, 1842, leaving in the reserved treasury thirty-five lacs
of rupees, one hundred and twenty-four thousand gold mohurs, and
twenty-four lacs in our Government securities--total, seventy-eight
lacs and eighty-four thousand rupees. His son and successor, Amjud
Allee Shah, died on the 13th of February, 1847, leaving in the
reserved treasury ninety-two lacs of rupees, one hundred and twenty-
four thousand gold-mohurs, and twenty-four lacs in our Government
securities--total, one crore and thirty-six lacs. His son and
successor, his present Majesty, Wajid Allee Shah, is spending out of
this reserved treasury, over and above the whole income of the
country, above twenty lacs of rupees a-year; and the treasury must
soon become exhausted. His public establishments, and the stipendiary
members of the royal family, are, at the same time, kept greatly in
arrears.*
[* _November_ 30, 1851.--The gold-mohurs have been all melted down,
and the promissory notes of our Government all, save four lacs, given
away; and of the rupees, I believe, only three lacs remain; so that
the reserved treasury must be entirely exhausted before the end of
1851; while the establishments and stipendiary members of the royal
family are in arrears for from one to three years. Fifty lacs of
rupees would hardly suffice to pay off these arrears. The troops on
detached duty, in the provinces with local officers, are not so much
in arrears as those in and about the capital.


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