A history of the Sikhs, from the origin of the nation to the battles of the Sutlej.

CHAP. vII NAVIGATION OF THE INDUS

193

would not divulge to his inquiring guest and ally the tenor 1831.
of propositions already on their way to the chiefs of Sind,
confessedly lest the Maharaja should at once endeavour to
counteract his peaceful and beneficial intentions.l Ranjit
Singh may or may not have felt that he was distrusted, but
as he was to be a party to the opening of the navigation of
the Indus, and as the project had been matured, it would
have better suited the character and the position of the
British Government had no concealment been attempted.
The traveller Moorcroft had been impressed with the The scheme
use which might be made of the Indus as a channel of British of opening
the Indus
commerce,2 and the scheme of navigating that river and its to
tributaries was eagerly adopted by the Indian Government, commerce.
and by the advocates of material utilitarianism. One object
of sending King William's presents for Ranjit Singh by
water was to ascertain, as if undesignedly, the trading value
of the classical stream,3 and the result of Lieut. Burnes's
observations convinced Lord William Bentinck of its
superiority over the Ganges. There seemed also, in his
Lordship's opinion, good reason to believe that the great
western valley had at one time been as populous as that of
the east, and it was thought that the judicious exercise of
the paramount influence of the British Government might
remove those political obstacles which had banished
commerce from the rivers of Alexander.4 It was therefore
resolved, in the current language of the day, to open the
Indus to the navigation of the world.
Before the Governor-General met Ranjit Singh, he had Proposal
made to the
directed Col. Pottinger 5 to proceed to Hyderabad, to nego- Sindians
tiate with the Amirs of Sind the opening of the lower and the
portion of the river to all boats on the payment of a fixed Sikhs.
1 Murray, RanjTt Singh, pp. 167, 168. The whole of the tenth
chapter of Capt. Murray's book, which includes the meeting at
Riupar, may be regarded as the composition of Mr. Prinsep, the
Secretary to Government, with the Governor-General.
2 Moorcroft, Travels, ii. 338.
3 Government to Col. Pottinger, 22nd Oct. 1831, and Murray,
Ranjft Singh, p. 153.
4 Government to Col. Pottinger, 22nd Oct. 1831.
5 [Afterwards Sir H. E. Pottinger, Bart., first Governor of Hong
Kong.-ED.]
o