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THE LIBRARY 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 BEQUEST OF 
 
 Alice R, Hilgard 
 
 \->^'ii 
 
 m^ 
 
MEN AND EVENTS 
 
 OF 
 
 MY TIME IN INDIA. 
 
 By sir RICHARD TEMPLE, Bart., 
 
 G.C.S.I., O.I.E., D.C.L. 
 
 LATE FINANCE MINISTER OF INDIA ; LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR OP BENGAL, AND 
 GOVERNOR OF BOMBAY ; AUTHOR OP ' INDIA IN 1880.' 
 
 SECOND THOUSAND. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 JOHN MUREAY, ALBEMAELE STKEET. 
 
 1882. 
 
BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 
 
 INDIA IN 1880. Seco7id Edition. With Maps. 
 8vo. 16s. 
 
 GIFT 
 
 LOKPON : PRINTED BX WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, 
 STAMFORD STKEKT AND CHARING CROSS. 
 
DSA7S 
 
 T4 
 
 TO 
 HER MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY 
 
 THE QUEEN, 
 EMPKESS OF INDIA, 
 
 THIS IMPERFECT NARRATIVE, 
 
 RELATING TO SOME AMONG THE MOST ILLUSTRIOUS OF 
 HER MAJESTY'S SERVANTS AND SUBJECTS 
 
 IN THE EAST, 
 
 AND TO MANY OF THE GREAT RESULTS ACHIEVED, 
 DURING HER MAJESTY'S AUSPICIOUS REIGN, 
 
 IN THE INDIAN EMPIRE, 
 
 IS WITH HER MAJESTY'S PERMISSION 
 HUMBLY DEDICATED 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOR, 
 
 ivi865515 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 This work presents to the world a picture of the men and 
 events that have passed before me during the thirty years of 
 my life in India. Tlie objects and limits of the under- 
 taking are set forth in the beginning of the introductory chapter, 
 and therefore the preface may be brief. My last book, ' India 
 in 1880,' related to external things, to measures of national 
 improvement, to results produced by diverse trains of causes, 
 to the character and disposition of the Natives in masses. But 
 it rarely or never comprised any delineation of individual 
 character. This book, on the contrary, is mainly devoted to the 
 description of particular men in their public capacities, or to 
 summaries of their official conduct, and of their idiosyncrasies 
 as displayed in the manner whereby they served the country. 
 More or less of space is allotted according to the importance 
 of the parts they played, or the magnitude of the sphere in which 
 their powers found employment. The account given of them is 
 derived from personal knowledge, and not from annals or records. 
 It therefore is not absolutely complete as a chronicle either of 
 them or of the circumstances in which they moved. For I cannot 
 pretend to know everything about the many persons who are 
 noticed in tliis work, or to have been acquainted with all the men 
 and affairs of a whole generation, in so wide an empire as India. 
 Consequently some well-known events, or some affectionately 
 remembered episodes may be found to have been omitted from 
 the narrative, and may therefore be missed by those who are 
 familiar with the time to which it refers. But unless I have 
 actual cognizance of these cases, I do not trouble the reader 
 with any history of them, however interesting they may be. 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 Still, having been thrown into many arenas of labour, and been 
 brought into contact with many men who have since become 
 famous, I am necessarily conversant with much that may well 
 be stated for the general good. At a time like the present, 
 when the British people take a conscientious interest in the 
 Eastern empire, it behoves every Englishman who possesses 
 knowledge to communicate it to his countrymen in as popular 
 and readable a form as possible. Though I trust that the story, 
 so far as it extends, will be found correct by critics already 
 acquainted with India, yet it is absolutely free from technica- 
 lities or from any local expressions which might not be intelli- 
 gible to the public in England. Though the composition will, 
 I think, stand the tests which Indian readers may apply, yet 
 it has been studiously designed to suit the English reader. 
 
 While I hope that my work contains much that will be 
 pleasing to those concerned, I am confident that there is nothing 
 to cause pain to any one. Those have been chosen for mention 
 who from greatness in deed or in station, from nobility of dis- 
 position, from proved service, or from excellence of conduct, 
 deserve to be remembered. As I am writing from recollection 
 — verified wherever necessary by reference to records — ^it is to 
 such characters that my memory clings, and it is the career of 
 such persons that can be most readily recalled. On the other 
 hand, men of types different from the above doubtless have 
 at various times passed along the stage. But I cannot under- 
 take to describe them, or to recollect the faults into which they 
 may have fallen, and the errors which they may have committed. 
 Certainly some national mistakes or shortcomings have to be 
 acknowledged upon a comprehensive retrospect of affairs. In 
 such instances I have endeavoured to explain how these devia- 
 tions happened, in order that the explanation may help in estab- 
 lishing sign-posts for the future. 
 
 The most salient feature of the book perhaps is the description 
 of several among the greatest Governors-General that have ever 
 held supreme command in India. Chapters VI., VIIL, XIV., 
 and XVI. afford a succinct, though I trust a tolerably full, 
 analysis of the administration and the oflficial character of four 
 
PREFACE. vii 
 
 Governors-General, namely the Marquis of Dalhousie, Earl 
 Canning, Sir John Lawrence, and the Earl of Mayo. 
 
 My intimate connection officially with John Lawrence, first 
 as his Secretary in the Panjab, next as the Foreign Secretary 
 to his Government of India, and then as his Financial Coun- 
 cillor, may perhaps impart the character of a monograph to my 
 account of him ; and this account comprehends not only chapter 
 XIV, mentioned above, but also chapters IV. and V. Further, 
 in chapter IV. there is included a portrait of liis celebrated 
 brother Henry. 
 
 Some portions of the administration of three Governors- 
 General, namely Viscount Hardinge, the Earl of ISTorthbrook 
 and Earl Lytton, are set forth in chapters II., XVII. and XX. 
 
 The careers of two provincial Governors, namely James 
 Thomason and Sir Bartle Frere, are mentioned with some 
 fulness in chapters III., and XII., and considerable reference is 
 made to that of a third, namely Sir George Campbell, in 
 chapter XVIII. 
 
 In chapters IX. and X. the financial policy is explained of 
 two Finance Ministers who, after having acquired a reputation 
 in England, were appointed to direct the finances of India, 
 namely James Wilson and Samuel Laing, under both of whom 
 I had the advantage of serving in a confidential capacity. My 
 official intimacy with Wilson during his, too brief, service in 
 India, has enabled me to pourtray accurately the closing pass- 
 ages of his most useful life. 
 
 Allusion, in some detail, is made to other men of distinction, 
 namely Sir Eobert Montgomery in chapters IV., V. and VII., 
 Sir Arthur Phayre in chapter X., Sir Philip Wodehouse in 
 chapter XX., Sir Henry Durand in chapter XVL, Sir John 
 Strachey in chapters XV. and XVL, Bishop Cotton in chapters 
 XL and XIV., and Sir Seymour Fitzgerald in chapter XX. 
 Throughout the book there are many scattered notices of those 
 whose names will hereafter be inscribed in the roll of Anglo- 
 Indian worthies. 
 
 Some tribute is paid, in chapters XIV. and XVL, to the 
 services rendered to India by two English jurists. Sir Henry 
 Sumner Maine and Sir James Fitzjames Stephen. 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 Several of the missionaries whose talents were equal to 
 their zeal and piety, namely Alexander Duff, William Smith, 
 Stephen Hislop, John Wilson, and Bishop Sargent, are 
 duly mentioned in chapters II., III., XI., XII. and XIX. 
 Emphatic testimony is borne to the efficacy and success of the 
 Christian missions in India. 
 
 Further, in the belief that my countrymen desire to know 
 something in regard to the character of those Xative princes, who 
 have proved themselves the loyal feudatories of the empire, I 
 have given a sketch of the Maharaja of Pattiala, the Maharaja 
 of Jhind, the Xizam of the Deccan, and the Maharaja of Jyepur 
 — all deceased — in chapters VII. and XIII. Some portraiture 
 also is included, in the same chapters, of eminent Native states- 
 men, namely Sir Salar Jang, Sir Dinkar Eao, Sir Madhava Eao, 
 and Jang Behadur. Interspersed throughout the book, are 
 notices of Native worthies who are well known to the European 
 community in India, namely the Eev. Krishna Mohan Banerji, 
 the Eev. Lai Behari Dey, Keshab Chunder Sen, Karsundas Mulji 
 of Bombay, Kristo Das Pal of Calcutta and many others. 
 Thoughtful Englishmen will readily perceive that in a vast and 
 progressive community like that of India, there must be numer- 
 ous individuals among the Natives, who, though unknown to 
 fame in England, are exercising a potent influence among their 
 countrymen and upon the society in which they move. 
 
 For all names and topics, whether European or Native, 
 an index has been prepared which will, it is hoped, be found 
 sufficiently copious to help the reader in referring to particular 
 points without looking through any chapter entirely. 
 
 The chapters depicting the life, wliich is really lived in the 
 interior of India, are VII. on the war of the Mutinies, XI. on 
 the Central Provinces, XIII. on the Indian Foreign Secretary- 
 ship, and XVIII. on the administration of Bengal. Chapter 
 XIII. also pourtrays the court and camp in a Native State of 
 the first rank. 
 
 Although the book is not written at all for the purpose of 
 describing the beauties of nature or of art, which have been 
 already described in ' India in 1880,' still there are some de- 
 lineations of the scenery in the vale of Cashmir, the eastern 
 
PKEFACE. ix 
 
 Himalayas, the river kingdom of Bengal and the Western Ghat 
 mountains. 
 
 Lastly, although the work is meant to comprise narrative 
 rather than disquisition, yet there is in the introductory chapter 
 a summary of the progressive results achieved during the last 
 generation, and of the evils which still remain to be remedied ; 
 while the concluding chapter XXI. contains a specific discus- 
 sion of the questions, social and political, which most nearly 
 concern the welfare of the Natives and the position of the 
 British Government. 
 
 E. T. 
 The Nash, Kempsey near Worcester, 
 January 21th, 1882. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. — CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CIECUMSTANCES OF INDIA 
 IN THE YEARS 1847 AND 1881. 
 
 Aspect of affairs in 1847 — Respecting public establishments — Internal 
 administration — Condition of the Natives — Improved aspect of affairs 
 in 1881 — Administrative changes — Foreign trade — Advancement of 
 the Natives — Development of resources — National progress generally 
 — But many evils still existing — Encouragement for the future 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 (1847.) 
 
 CLOSE OF LORD HARDINGE's ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 East India Company's College at Hailey bury in Hertfordshire — Overland 
 voyage to India — Calcutta in 1847 — Daniel Wilson, Bishop of Cal- 
 cutta — Alexander Duff and Scottish Free Church Mission — Marsh- 
 man and Baptist Mission at Serampur — Remembrance of Lord 
 EUenborough — Lord Hardinge Governor-General — His campaign in 
 the Satlej — His general administration — Public sentiment regarding 
 him — My journey in the Gangetic valley ..... 18 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 (1848-1853.) 
 
 thomason's government in the north-western provinces. 
 
 City of Benares — Church of England missions there — First impressions 
 regarding the Natives and the country — Life in camp — Scenes at 
 Agra and Allahabad — Second Panjab War — Popular estimate of 
 Lord Gough — Thomason Lieutenant-Governor — His personal charac- 
 teristics — His method of governing — Objects of his policy — Land 
 \y settlement — Village communities — Primary education — The Ganges 
 Canal — Training of Natives as civil engineers — Thomason's death 
 — Affectionate respect for his memory . . . , .31 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 (1849-1853.) 
 
 DUUMVIRATE IN THE PANJAB OF THE LAWRENCE BROTHERS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Journey to the Pfyijab — First visit to Simla — Settlement work — Im- 
 jiressions regarding Lahore — Board of Administration for the Panjab 
 — Henry and John Lawrence, contrast between the two — Transition 
 from Native to British rule — Trans-Indus border and Panjab frontiers^ 
 force — Protected Native States — Native aristocracy under the British 
 system — Internal administration — Development of material resources 
 — Provincial finance — Popularity of system pursued by the Board 
 — Its characteristics and results ...... 51 
 
 CHAPTEE V. 
 
 (1854-1856.) 
 
 JOHN LAWRENCE ADMINISTRATOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE PANJAB. 
 
 John Lawrence appointed Chief Commissioner — Montgomery, Edmon- 
 stone and Macleod his coadjutors — The Panjab Civil Code —V 
 Completion of the land revenue settlement — Progress of material 
 improvement— Military expeditions on the Trans-Indus frontier — 
 Afghanistan and Central Asia — Summary of John Lawrence's policy 
 and conduct in the Panjab — Advance of the province morally and 
 materially .......... 83 
 
 CHAPTER VL 
 
 (1848-1856.) 
 
 DALHOUSIE THE GREAT PROCONSUL. 
 
 Popular estimate in India of Lord Dalhousie — Varying between extremes 
 of favour and disfavour — His published Minutes — His several 
 annexations of Native States — His faith in British rule — His militarv/ 
 aiTangements — His controversy with Sir Charles Naj)ier — His 
 measures for the pacification of newly annexed Provinces — His 
 policy regarding Public Works — His plans for railways and the 
 Electric Telegraph — His reform of the Indian Post-office — He gives 
 effect to educational scheme of Sir Charles Wood — -His policy respect- 
 ing legislation — His general conduct — His personal capacity . . 102 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 (1857-1859.) 
 
 THE WAR OF THE MUTINIES. 
 
 Spread of mutiny in the Native army wholly unexpected — Colin 
 Campbell (Lord Clyde) encamped at Cawnpore — Delhi after its siege 
 and recapture by the British- — Memory of General John Nicholson 
 — General Sir Neville Chamberlain — The Mogul ex-Emperor — The 
 loyal Sikh States — The ruler of Jammu and Cashmir — Able con- 
 
CONTENTS. . xiii 
 
 PAGE 
 
 duct of Sir Robert Montgomery — Sir Bartle Frere in Sind — Effect 
 produced upon the Panjab by the war of the Mutinies — Excitement 
 among the Sikhs — John Lawrence's prudence during this critical 
 time — His views regarding Peshawar — Proclamation of the assump- 
 tion by the Queen of the Government of India — Mutinous behaviour 
 of some of the East India Company's European troops — Visit to 
 Cashmir 126 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 (1856-1859.) 
 
 CANNING THE JUST. 
 
 Contrast between Canning and his predecessor Dalhousie— Canning 
 undertakes war with Persia — His conduct after the outburst of the 
 mutinies in northern India — His policy towards the Natives in dis- 
 turbed districts — His temporary unpopularity at Calcutta and else- 
 where — His management of military affairs — His relations with Sir 
 Hugh Rose (now Lord Strathnairn), Commander-in-Chief— His support 
 accorded to George Balfour and the Military Finance department — He 
 proceeds with the re-organization of the police for India — His civil and 
 political administration- — His principal advisers and Councillors — 
 His departure from India — Death of Lady Canning at Calcutta . 161 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 (1860.) 
 
 JAMES ^V^LSON THE ECONOMIST. 
 
 James Wilson arrives in India as Finance Minister — His tour in 
 northern India — His financial budget produced at Calcutta — His 
 measures of taxation — His project of a Government paper currency 
 His influence in the reduction of civil and military expenditure — In 
 the re-organization of the police — In the enquiry into the indigo 
 riots in Bengal — His untimely death at Calcutta — Summary of his 
 policy in India ......... 186 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 (1861-1862.) 
 
 SAMUEL LAING THE FINANCIER. 
 
 Interval between death of Wilson and arrival of his successor — My 
 deputation to Pegu — City of Rangun — Sir Arthur Phayre Com- 
 missioner — River Irawaddy and city of Prome — View at Moulmein 
 — Chief Commissionership of British Burma — Samuel Laing arrives 
 at Calcutta as successor to Wilson — Contrast between the two 
 statesmen — Laing produces financial budget — Introduces a modified 
 scheme of Government paper currency — Prosecutes reduction of 
 civil and military expenditure — Assists in abolition of the Indian 
 Navy — Produces second budget — My deputation tu Hyderabad in 
 the Deccan, to Nagpur and Jabalpur ...... 206 
 
xiv CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 (1862-1866.) 
 
 THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Beginning of Lord Elgin's administration — Chief Commissionership 
 of the Central Provinces — Scenery of the Satpura mountains — 
 Disbandment of the Nagpur force — The Mahrattas of Nagpur — 
 Their landed tenures — Visit of Bishop Cotton — Education of the 
 people — Scottish mission — Aboriginal races — Forests and forestry 
 — Wild beasts — Roads and railways — Project for navigating the 
 Godavery — Desolate country near the Mahanaddy river — General 
 administration of the Provinces ...... 230 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 (1862-1866.) 
 
 SIR BARTLE FRERE AND WESTERN INDIA. 
 
 Beginning of Sir Bartle Frere's Government — Principal members of the 
 European community of Bombay — Of the Native community — 
 Public works — Railways — Native chiefs — Education — Legislative 
 Council — Land revenue settlement — Effect on Bombay of the 
 American civil war — Unwise speculation — Commercial failure — 
 Native munificence — Public Buildings in Bombay — Instruction in 
 Art — Departure of Sir Bartle Frere — Summary of his public 
 character .......... 254 
 
 CHAPTER XII L 
 
 (1867-1868.) 
 
 THE INDIAN FOREIGN SECRETARYSHIP. 
 
 The political or diplomatic department of the Indian service — The 
 dominions of the Nizam — The British Resident at his court — 
 Character of the Nizam — Salar Jang his Minister — The Arab chiefs 
 and troops — The Nizam's army — The finances of his government — 
 The interior of his country — Life at his capital — The province of 
 Berar — Project of a railway — My departure from Hyderabad — Visit 
 to Madras — I take charge of the Indian Foreign Secretaryship — 
 Affairs of Afghanistan — Eminent Native princes in India — Native 
 statesmen and administrators ....... 280 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 (1864-1868.) 
 
 JOHN LAWRENCE AS VICEROY. 
 
 Arrival of John Lawrence at Calcutta as Viceroy — The North-west 
 frontier — The Bhotan war — Barracks for the European soldiery — 
 The Sanitary Department — Summer residence at Simla for the 
 Government of India — Tenant-right in Oudh — Proposals for extend- 
 
CONTENTS. XV 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ing the permanent settlement — The famine in Orissa — Canals of 
 irrigation — Development of the railway system — The Bishopric of 
 Calcutta, George Cotton and Robert Milman — Progress of legislation 
 Henry Sumner Maine — Leave and furlough rules for the civil and 
 military services — Financial management — Relations with Afghanis- 
 tan — Affairs of Central Asia —John Lawrence's departure from 
 India 310 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 (1868-1873.) 
 
 THE FINANCE MINISTERSHIP. 
 
 William Massey Finance Minister of India — My appointment to succeed 
 him — Close of John Lawrence's financial administration — Lord 
 Mayo's financial iDolicy — My first budget for 1869-70 — The income 
 tax — Budj^et for 1870-1 — Increase in rate of income-tax — Financial 
 surplus — Budget for 1871-2 — Scheme of provincial services — Con- 
 tinuance of surplus — Budget for 1872-3 maintaining income-tax 
 for one year — Budget for 1873-4 and remission of income-tax — 
 Summary of financial result — Establishment of financial surplus — 
 Buoyancy of public funds and Government securities — Progress of 
 trade 347 
 
 CHAPTER XV L 
 (1869-1872.) 
 
 LOBD mayo's INDIAN CAREER. 
 
 Lord Mayo arrives at Calcutta succeeding John Lawrence — Receives 
 visit from Shir Ali, Amir of Caubul — Boundary between Afghanistan 
 and Central Asia — Relations with Persia — Expedition against tribes 
 on eastern border of India — Sir Henry Durand in the Panjab — Army 
 expenses and accommodation for European troops — Lord Mayo's 
 internal administration — He bestows special care upon finance — 
 Causes increased control to be entrusted to provincial Governments 
 over certain departments — Promotes public works, railways and 
 canals — Endeavours to establish a Department of Agriculture — 
 Progress of legislation — Visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh — 
 Murder of Acting Chief Justice Norman — Assassination of Lord 
 Mayo in the Andaman Islands — Funeral ceremonies at Calcutta . 366 
 
 CHAPTER XVIL 
 (1872-1874.) 
 
 LORD NORTHBROOK AND THE BENGAL FAMINE. 
 
 State of public opinion after the death of Lord Mayo — Lord Napier 
 acts as Governor-General — The financial budget — Riots in the Panjab 
 — Lord Northbrook assumes charge of the Government of India — 
 Voyages down the Indus and visits Bombay — Remission of the 
 income-tax — Drought in Behar and northern Bengal — Importation 
 
xvi CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 of grain by Government — Organization of transport — Character 
 and extent of famine — Estimate prepared beforehand of cost to be 
 incurred in relief — Employment of distressed jjoor and gratuitous 
 succour to the infirm — Keserve of Government grain — Public criti- 
 cism on relief measures — Native opinion thereon . . . 300 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 (1874-1876.) 
 
 THE GOVERNMENT OF BENGAL. 
 
 Administration of Sir George Campbell as Lieutenant-Governor of 
 Bengal — Locomotion in the rainy season — Voyage on the great 
 rivers of Bengal — The country boats — Floating cities — Deltaic 
 forests — Chittagong and the eastern frontier — The sights of Orissa 
 — The aspect of Calcutta — Elective franchise in its municipality — 
 The Bengal legislature — Sketch of the principal Native gentlemen — 
 Christian missions — The Brahmo sect — Merits and demerits of the 
 high education — Improved standard of morality — Death of Bishop 
 Milman — Interior of the country — Security of life and property- 
 Agrarian affairs — The Courts of Wards — -The peasantry of Behar 
 — Popularity of the Civil Courts — Summer residence at Darjiling 
 in the Himalayas — Scenery of Sikhim — Terrific cyclone in the 
 estuary of the Megna — Departure of Lord Napier of Magdala — Visit 
 of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales — Lord Northbrook is 
 succeeded by Lord Lytton as Governor-General — My departure to 
 join the imperial assemblage at Delhi ..... 409 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 (1877.) 
 
 THE AFFAIRS OF SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 My deputation to the distressed parts of the Madras Presidency to 
 make enquiries and offer suggestions — Communications with the 
 Governor, the Duke of Buckingham — Condition of the drought- 
 stricken districts in the north — The ruined city of Bijayanagar — 
 Famished fugitives betake themselves to the city of Madras — Condi- 
 tion of the southern districts — Arcot, Trichinopoly, Madura and 
 Tinnevelly — Christianity among the Natives of the southern 
 peninsula —Bishops Sargent and Caldwell — The Roman Catholic 
 clergy and community — The Native stage of Mysore — Substance of 
 my report on the famine in southern India during its earlier stages — 
 destruction of the forests — Conduct of the people during the distress. 442 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 (1877-1880.) 
 
 THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY. 
 
 Sir Philip Wodehouse Governor of Bombay — He administers relief of 
 famine — Ruined city of Bljapur — Plague of vermin — Partial 
 
CONTENTS. xvii 
 
 PAGE 
 
 indebtedness of the peasantry — Eailways and canals for irrigation 
 — Serious gang-robberies on the Deccan — Preservation of the forests 
 — Native states of Kathiawar — The Legislative Council — Character 
 of the principal Natives — The University — National education — 
 The High Court — The city of Bombay — Despatch of troops to 
 Malta — The Bombay army — Eajputana and Central India — The 
 province of Sind — The transport for the Army in southern 
 Afghanistan — The railway from the Indus towards Candahar — My 
 return to Bombay and departure for England .... 461 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Important questions relating to the effect of British rule upon the 
 people — Their material condition now as compared with former 
 times — The new or Western education — Originality of mind in the 
 Natives — Progress of Christianity in reference to the heathen 
 religions — Ambition and aspirations of educated Natives — Array 
 of political forces on the side of, or militating against, British rule 
 — Loyalty and trustworthiness in many classes, elements of trouble 
 in others — Substantial safety of British rule — Sources of its stability 
 and causes of its permanency .....•• 4^" 
 
^ 
 
 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. — CONTRAST BETWEEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF 
 INDIA IN THE YEARS 1847 AND 1881. 
 
 Aspect of aifairs in 1847 — Eespecting public establishments — Internal 
 administration — Condition of the Natives — Improved aspect of affairs in 
 1881 — Administrative changes — Foreign trade — Advancement of the 
 Natives — Development of resources — National progress generally — But 
 many evils still existing — Encouragement for the future. 
 
 In this work some account will be given of the statesmen I 
 have met or known, and of the events with which I have been 
 acquainted, during my time in India from 1847 to 1880. 
 Without attempting any autobiography, I shall have occasion- 
 ally to mention my own proceedings in order to explain my 
 knowledge of the affairs described. The narrative will be 
 confined to what I have seen and heard, or what was gathered 
 at the place and the time of the occurrences. I do not, there- 
 fore, undertake a contemporary history wliich would be pre- 
 pared after reference to records and annals ; although I hope 
 to contribute towards such history some testimony of use and 
 interest. My contribution will, indeed, relate to many of the 
 most important men and affairs during the time under con- 
 sideration. Still, if this story shall be found to omit the notice 
 of some men and events, or to mention others but imperfectly, 
 my explanation must be that I was not so fortunate as to meet 
 those men at the time, or did not happen to witness those 
 I events. In brief, I shall state only what I can attest per- 
 
 B 
 
^ MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 sonally, and not what might have been ascertained from study 
 or investigation. Even M'ith this limitation, however, the sub- 
 jects which present themselves in relation to a chequered and 
 eventful period are numerous and diversified. 
 
 The time under review comprises one whole generation of 
 men, perhaps the most important that has ever passed over 
 India. In it are compressed more striking changes than in all 
 the preceding times of British rule, or in any of the recent ages 
 before British rule. Other generations had seen wars, conquests, 
 and revolutions, the annihilation of ancient institutions, and the 
 substitution of new systems. Tliis generation also beheld events 
 of a like nature, though perhaps on a greater scale ; for it 
 witnessed the collection of the largest British force ever assem- 
 bled on a single battle-field in India, and the fall of several 
 kingdoms of the first rank among Native States. More than 
 all this, however, it felt the shock of a mutiny and rebellion 
 which convulsed half the Indian empire and shook the British 
 power to the very foundations. It saw, too, the abolition of 
 the East India Company, the grandest private corporation that 
 ever existed, and the assumption of direct administrative 
 functions by the Queen of England as Empress of India. 
 Further, it has known changes, moral and material, of which 
 previous times afford no example. The magnitude and rapidity 
 of these changes can be appreciated only by contrasting the 
 circumstances of India in 1847 and 1881. 
 
 In 1847 the time-honoured East India Company had consoli- 
 dated what was then in effect, and has since been formally 
 styled an empire under the Crown of England. The Company 
 had completed the pacification of these widely extended terri- 
 tories after a protracted anarchy, so that order had everywhere 
 replaced disorder, and the " pax Komana " was reigning through- 
 out the country. The European soldiers were comparatively 
 few in nu.mber, and bore a much smaller proportion to the total 
 armed force of the country than they now bear. They were 
 lod<Ted in barracks which would nowadays be condemned. 
 
Chap. i. PAST CONDITION OF BRITISH INDIA. 3 
 
 Though in bravery and endurance they attained a standard 
 which will scarcely be surpassed, their habits were often 
 intemperate, and some of their surroundings were objection- 
 able. While the greater part of these troops belonged to the 
 Eoyal army, the remainder were raised separately in England 
 for the service of the East India Company. On the other 
 hand, the Native army was maintained in imposing strength, 
 vastly outnumbering the European troops, and confidence was 
 generally placed in its fidelity. 
 
 Wilde the religion, the customs, and even the prejudices of 
 the Natives were scrupulously respected for the most part, 
 still some social reforms had been introduced, some semi- 
 barbarous rites and usages suppressed, and some extraordinary 
 crimes extirpated. A series of laws termed Eegulations had 
 been elaborately framed by non-professional hands ; it was 
 only in the department of criminal law that the basis of 
 legislation was scientifically laid. At the Presidency towns 
 there sat Crown tribunals, styled Supreme Courts, sepa- 
 rate from the courts established by the Company. The supre- 
 macy of the civd law had been established, and a judicial 
 system after a fashion was set up. All that proved good 
 in the Native management of the land revenue had been 
 studiously preserved, and many evil practices eliminated. 
 Large proprietors of land, after the model of English land- 
 lords, had been long previously created in Bengal proper, and 
 some adjacent provinces. Peasant proprietors had recently 
 by a formal settlement been recognized in the North-western 
 Provinces. The principle of fixiing the revenue demand for 
 long periods was declared, so that the landowners might enjoy 
 the fruits of their improvements; and similar settlements for 
 western and southern India were being prepared. Tenant-right, 
 though much discussed, yet remained in a doubtful and pre- 
 carious condition. A multitude of transit-duties and other 
 imposts which fettered trade had been removed, but a long 
 inland customs line for salt and sugar was organized in the 
 heart of the country. The three Presidency seaports of Calcutta, 
 Madras, and Bombay had been developed ; the foreign trade 
 
 B 2 
 
4 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 was growing to dimensions which were then esteemed to be 
 large, but would now be thought small. The overland route 
 by Egypt had been established for passengers, letters and 
 valuables; but the bulk of the merchandise was still carried 
 by sailing ships round the Cape of Good Hope. Measures 
 were adopted for the introduction of the tea-plant, but tea- 
 planting was not really established, and coffee-planting had 
 hardly begun. The exportation of jute-fibre w^as unknown; 
 and the manufacture of cotton piece-goods after the European 
 model by machinery was not contemplated. Coal was believed 
 to exist, but no mines or seams were worked to any appreciable 
 extent. 
 
 The rules framed for enabling the European officers of the 
 Government, both civil and military, to restore their health 
 after sickness, were liberal indeed, but antiquated in principle, 
 and unsuited to the circumstances of the time. A sick officer 
 might repair to Australia, South Africa, or the Mauritius, but 
 not to Europe or to his native land. Members of the Cove- 
 nanted Civil Service were still nominated under the patronage 
 of the Directors of the East India Company. 
 
 The antiquities of the country had been explored by 
 researches which will ever remain famous, and which, if 
 they be equalled in the future, will hardly be surpassed. 
 The study of Oriental languages was promoted, and superior 
 education introduced among the upper and middle classes on 
 European principles, the palpable errors of the Asiatic system 
 having been abandoned. But primary education for the masses 
 had hardly been attempted, and a department of public instruc- 
 tion was not as yet set up in each province. Though one 
 important sect of Hindu religious reformers had arisen, still 
 the vast majority of educated Hindus continued to profess the 
 Brahminical religion; and the Hindu faith had not thus far 
 been shaken at the principal centres of civilization. Female 
 education had scarcely begun among the middle and lower 
 classes ; while among the upper classes the apartments of 
 the ladies were closed against educational enlightenment. 
 Christian missions had been established by missionaries whose 
 
Chap. i. EAST INDIA COMPANY'S RULE. 5 
 
 labours adorned the annals of the Protestant church. But the 
 mission-stations were few and far between, the Native converts 
 were in scattered congregations mustering a few hundreds in 
 tliis province or in that, and numbering perhaps some tens 
 of thousands in the whole country. Postal lines had ramified 
 throughout the land, but the increase of correspondence was 
 impeded by a costly postage varying according to distance. 
 The speed of communication was very poor; a letter required 
 a week to arrive at a destination which is now reached in a 
 day. The police had been established on the old Native modes, 
 and was not only corrupt, but destitute of such organization 
 as might be expected to produce efficiency. The prisons were 
 conscientiously managed according to the light of those days, 
 but their construction was faulty, their management unscientific, 
 and their supervision incomplete in reference to the notions of 
 the present time. Medical instruction was afforded to Native 
 students in limited numbers, also a body of Native surgeons 
 and physicians had been organized as subsidiary to the 
 corps of European medical officers. Dispensaries had been 
 opened at many places, and vaccination was introduced. 
 But sanitation, as now understood, had not yet been contem- 
 plated. The emoluments of native employes were indeed 
 higher than they had ever been under Native rule, but yet 
 insufficient to secure integrity. From this cause, in conjunc- 
 tion with other causes, corruption was the rule and honesty 
 the exception ; even the Native judges were for the most part 
 distrusted. Native officials were not advanced to any appoint- 
 ments of authority or importance in the service of Government, 
 nor admitted to the ranks of the Covenanted Civil Service. 
 Private and independent Native gentlemen were seldom en- 
 trusted with honorary functions for the public good. 
 
 Attention had been given to material improvement so far as 
 was possible with the limited means at the disposal of the 
 Government. The principle of borrowing capital for reproduc- 
 tive public works had not been entertained. The old works 
 of irrigation originally constructed by the Native rulers had been 
 maintained for the most part, and, in some cases, improved. One 
 
6 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 new canal, that of the Ganges, was in progress ; but the great 
 system of irrigation, which is now so famous, was then in its 
 infancy. Koad-making in a professional style had been under- 
 taken ; macadamized roadways to a limited extent existed in 
 some provinces ; but of the trunk lines, which are nowadays the 
 vems and arteries of the country, few had advanced beyond the 
 initiatory stage. Steamers were plying on the rivers of Bengal, 
 and rendered to the community much service, which is now 
 better performed by the railroads. But coasting steamers for the 
 extensive and populous coasts were unknown, and the only con- 
 venient communication for travellers between Calcutta, Madras 
 and Bombay was by the fortnightly steamships of the Penin- 
 sular and Oriental Company. Much of the postal mail-line 
 between Bombay and Calcutta ran through forests sparsely in- 
 habited, abounding in malaria, and infested by wild beasts. The 
 introduction of railways was being discussed in general terms 
 only, but no definite arrangement had been formed. Under all 
 these circumstances the difficulties of communication and tra- 
 velling at that time between the widely distant parts of those 
 vast territories were such as would hardly be conceived. In 
 an empire containing a million and a half of square miles — 
 where, owing to unavoidably frequent changes, the necessity 
 for locomotion was constant — journeys several hundred miles 
 long were of common occurrence. Such journeys used to be 
 performed during the night-time, at the rate of forty miles in 
 each twenty-four hours, the traveller resting during the day- 
 time, and halting at mtervals. The passage from Calcutta to 
 Delhi, which now takes forty-eight hours by rail, then took from 
 three to four weeks. The ordinary means of conveyance was a 
 palanquin, holding one person, and borne by eight men, relieved 
 by relays of bearers at stages of ten miles. In the North- 
 western Provinces only was there seen the transit in vans 
 drawn by ponies. 
 
 For the conservancy of forests a beginning had been made ; 
 but generally the trees, both for timber and fuel, were 
 wastefully felled, without due thought for reproduction, and no 
 department of forestry was established. . 
 
Chap. i. PKOGRESS IN RECENT YEARS. 7 
 
 Municipal life had not' yet sprung into existence ; in the 
 interior of the country municipalities were almost unknown ; 
 even in Calcutta and Bombay the municipal organization was 
 quite imperfect, and those great cities were ill-drained and 
 dimly lighted. 
 
 "With some bright exceptions, the Native States, comprising 
 more than one-fourth of the empire, were not managed at all 
 after the example of the British system, and were indifferently 
 governed even according to the Oriental standard. In some of 
 them misrule more or less prevailed, while in several the 
 troubles and evils were such as would be deemed intolerable at 
 the present time. 
 
 Lastly, respecting the iinances of British India, no budget 
 was annually produced, nor was any explanation of the public 
 accounts given periodically to the public in India. 
 
 In 1881 either a marked change or a decided improvement 
 is found to have occurred in every one of the national par- 
 ticulars above mentioned. 
 
 The East India Company has passed away, leaving a memory 
 which, though disparaged by some opponents, is beloved by the 
 great majority of those who are best informed, and respected by 
 the Natives. Its conduct and policy will probably receive a 
 favourable judgment from the historian. Under the direct 
 admmistration by the Crown, public reverence for British rule 
 has increased and personal loyalty among the Native princes 
 has been quickened. Much progress also has been effected, 
 socially and politically. But in fact the foundations for im- 
 provement were laid by the great Company ; and there would 
 have been a quick rate of advance, whether under the Crown 
 direct or under the Company subject to the control and guidance 
 of the Crown. 
 
 The Native army is now to the European forces in the propor- 
 tion of two to one, instead of being in that of six to one. The 
 Company's local European force has ceased to exist ; and the 
 European troops now belong entirely to the Royal army. The 
 
8 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 improvement in the barracks, sanitary surroundings and general 
 condition of the European soldier is a source of satisfaction 
 and thankfulness. Though confidence is still reposed in the 
 Native army, the British power is understood to be really based 
 on the strength of European troops. 
 
 Legislative Councils have been established, consisting in part 
 of European members, holding their sessions in public, in- 
 stead of legislative proceedings in the cabinet. The la^ys are 
 systematized, developed, or codified in a scientific and profes- 
 sional manner. The old Supreme Courts of the Crown have 
 been amalgamated with the High Courts which control all 
 Indian courts whatsoever. 
 
 The Native portion of the judicial establishment has been 
 improved in a mode which augurs well for the moral and mental 
 progress of the Indians. The Native judges are now generally 
 well-educated, upright and honest, instead of being too often 
 the reverse. 
 
 The principle of recognizing and confirming the status of 
 peasant proprietors, and of fixing for long terms of years the 
 land revenue payable by them, has been largely extended. 
 Tenant-right, though not universally recognized, has been to 
 a considerable extent established. 
 
 The inland customs line for levying the salt-duties has been 
 at length swept away. Care, too, has been taken lest, under 
 the guise of octroi levied for municipal purposes in towns, 
 some of the evils of the obsolete transit-duties should revive. 
 The three Presidency seaports already great, have risen and 
 prospered, till the population of Calcutta has grown to half a 
 million and Bombay has become in respect of population the 
 second city in the British empire. The foreign trade of India 
 has increased by more than 400 per cent, in this one generation, 
 a ratio hardly surpassed in the annals of any nation. An 
 important part of the merchandise is now carried by the Suez 
 Canal route which competes largely with that of the Cape. 
 Tea-planting and the cultivation of coffee have become great 
 industries. The jute-fibre is both exported abroad and manu- 
 factured at home. The manufacture of cotton goods by ma- 
 
Chap. i. NATIONAL EDUCATION. 9 
 
 chinery is so successful as to excite the apprehensions of 
 manufacturers in England. Extensive coal-mines are now 
 worked in several provinces. 
 
 The Covenanted Civil Servants are appointed under the 
 system of open competition ; the men thus appointed form 
 the great majority of the service ; a minority only consists of 
 those who were nominated by the Directors of the East India 
 Company. Sick ofl&cers, both civil and military, instead of 
 being virtually compelled to seek health in Australia or South 
 Africa, and prevented from resorting to Europe, may now, with- 
 out any difficulty, return to their native land. 
 
 Primary education for the masses has been established 
 throughout the empu-e, however much the system may 
 need development. A department of public instruction is 
 established in every province. Three Universities have been 
 incorporated by law, and an extensive class of highly educated 
 Natives has arisen. The high or superior education is found to 
 produce happy results in respect of trustworthiness of disposi- 
 tion and moral integrity. The sect of Hmdu religious reformers 
 has increased many-fold, and been powerfully stimulated by 
 the progress of education. Many educated Hindus no longer 
 believe in or even profess the Brahminical religion. The Hindu 
 faith has been shaken at the centres of Indian civilization ; but 
 retains its hold over the masses of the people, and the system 
 of caste has not suffered any serious inroad. The education of 
 women, though not far advanced as yet, has taken root among the 
 middle and humble classes, and among the upper classes the 
 female apartments are often entered by European ladies who 
 therein diffuse the light of knowledge. 
 
 The Protestant missions now count their native Christians by 
 hundreds of thousands ; their colleges supply candidates for the 
 University examinations, and an important system of Christian 
 vernacular education has been set on foot. 
 
 A cheap and uniform postage has been established, the 
 number of post-offices nearly trebled and the speed on the 
 principal lines increased six-fold, while the covers delivered 
 amount to 135 millions annually. 
 
10 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 The police instead of being roughly formed, as before, after 
 the Native fashion, are regularly organized, and constituted 
 upon the English model. 
 
 The prisons have been for the most part rebuilt; many of 
 the new structures are planned and arranged in the approved 
 English style, with the necessary adaptations for the eastern 
 climate. Humane and enlightened principles are to some 
 extent adopted in respect of the moral as well as the physical 
 discipline of the prisoners. 
 
 "While medical instruction is much developed, the principle 
 of sanitation, for all the towns and for some of the larger villages, 
 has been introduced. A sanitary department is established 
 as an integral part of the administration in every province. 
 
 The emoluments of Native employes have been augmented 
 by at least 30 per cent., and in some instances by 50 per cent. ; 
 generally with a marked result in respect of integrity and 
 efficiency. 
 
 Natives are now advanced to positions of consequence in the 
 service of Government. They have been appointed to be district 
 judges and even to sit on the bench of the High Court ; they 
 are also chosen as members of the several Legislative Councils. 
 Their admission to the ranks of the Covenanted Civil Service 
 partly by competition and partly by nomination is secured, 
 though that great Service is still, for the most part, manned by 
 Europeans. Independent non-official Native gentlemen exercise 
 many unpaid functions for the public good, serving as honorary 
 magistrates, judges of conciliation courts, jurors, members of 
 road-fund committees, municipal commissioners, governors of 
 educational institutions. 
 
 Those who survey comprehensively and accurately the 
 character of the Native officials, judicial and executive, as it 
 was in 1847, and as it is in 1881, must feel thankful in the 
 contemplation of a moral improvement, greater than perhaps 
 was ordinarily expected. 
 
 The prices of food and other necessary articles have increased 
 by 50 per cent., and even more in many cases. Though the wages 
 of labour are still lamentably low in many localities, still there 
 
Chap. i. MATERIAL IMPEOVEMENT, 11 
 
 is a corresponding increase in the remuneration of many among 
 the labouring classes. 
 
 It is in material improvement and works of public utility 
 that 1881 offers the most palpable contrast to former times. 
 
 The system of irrigation, though still insufficient for so great a 
 country, is nevertheless one of the wonders of the land. Not 
 only have European works been engrafted, as it were, upon all 
 the old native works of irrigation, but new canals have been 
 undertaken of great capacity, breadth and length, probably the 
 grandest, certainly the most scientifically constructed, in the 
 world. Nine thousand miles of railway are open for traffic, 
 connecting togetlier the principal places in the country. 
 All the main lines of road are now macadamized ; in many 
 places where men cannot travel by rail, they use conveyances 
 drawn by horses or ponies; and the much-enduring race of 
 palanquin-bearers has taken to other pursuits, like the old 
 coach-drivers and post-boys in England. Efficient lines of 
 steamers ply right round the coast, stopping at the numerous 
 sea-ports. A net-work of electric telegraph lines has been 
 spread over the whole country. Telegraphic communication 
 with Europe is now secured by two lines, one running across 
 Asia the other by the Eed Sea, and has been opened with 
 Cliina, Australia, and South Africa by means of submarine 
 cables. 
 
 The conservancy of forests has been undertaken tardily 
 indeed, and not always effectually ; still scientific forestry, 
 mainly on the French and German models, is introduced 
 on a large scale. The total area of the forests thus preserved 
 is perhaps the largest to be found under any government in the 
 world, but is yet not considerable relatively to the vastness of 
 the country. 
 
 The municipal principle has spread itself among the towns 
 and cities throughout the empire, the rural municipalities have 
 specially attended to the water-supply as the first desideratum, 
 and scarcely a town is destitute of waterworks professionally 
 constructed. The municipalities of Calcutta and Bombay are 
 powerful corporations, whose revenues are extensive and whose 
 
12 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 debentures command a good price in the money market. These 
 two great cities are lighted with gas ; their drainage has been 
 nearly completed according to the principles of sanitary engineer- 
 ing, and their waterworks may well be compared with those of 
 the largest cities of Europe, 
 
 The Native States are for the most part fairly well governed, 
 instances of misrule being comparatively rare. Many of them 
 conduct their administration after the British model, and in 
 some the improvement has been marked. 
 
 Lastly, respecting the finances of British India, either a 
 normal budget is introduced into the legislative council, or a 
 financial statement equivalent to a budget is published for 
 public information. 
 
 The general statistics of the empire afford the best proofs 
 of its growth within this generation. In 1847 the population 
 for the whole country, including both the British territories 
 and the Native States, was estimated at 190 millions; in 1881 
 it is kno^v^i by census to amount to 252 millions. In 1847 
 the British territories had an area of 800,000 square miles, 
 and their population was reckoned at 100 millions ; in 1881 
 this area has been augmented to one million of square miles, 
 and the population to 200 millions. Four kingdoms, namely, 
 those of Sattara, the Panjab, Nagpur and Oudh, besides the 
 Burmese province of Pegu, have been incorporated in the 
 British dommions. In 1847 the annual revenue of British 
 India stood at 37 millions sterling ; in 1881 the budget shews 
 the total receipts as 65 millions. In 1847 the value of the 
 foreign trade of the Indian empire amounted to 26 millions ster- 
 ling; in 1881 it stood at 120 millions, or had nearly quintupled. 
 It now stands at 140 millions. In 1847 the capital laid out by 
 the Government on the permanent improvement of the country 
 by reproductive public works, consisted of a few sums doled out 
 sparingly year after year from the current revenues. By 1881, 
 the Government had invested not less than 150 millions sterling 
 in railways and canals for irrigation. 
 
Chap. i. EVILS STILL REMAINING. 13 
 
 On the other hand, many evils exist to humble our national 
 pride and keep alive an anxious foreboding. 
 
 Uncertainty of season prevails, ofttimes affecting large and 
 populous areas. Its results may be mitigated by irrigation 
 and communication, but cannot be wholly prevented. Deso- 
 lating famine occurs periodically, and the gigantic efforts put 
 forth by the Government to meet it are attended some- 
 times with success but often with failure. Eeflection upon the 
 millions sterling spent to avert famine, and yet the millions of 
 lives lost from hunger, — fills the minds of administrators with 
 despondency. Notwithstanding the happy issue of relief opera- 
 tions in some instances, it remains to be seen whether the 
 Government will prove itself able to prevent starvation occurring 
 on a large scale in one province or another from time to time. 
 In many districts the population already too dense is becoming 
 denser, and although there is much cultivable waste within the 
 empire, the people are slow to migrate. The agriculture of the 
 country is so backward that the land produces less than two- 
 tliirds of what it is capable of producing. While most classes are 
 growing in wealth and strength some large sections of the popu- 
 lation still are, as they ever have been, insufficiently nourished. 
 The wages of some at least among the labouring poor are deplor- 
 ably inadequate. The rate of mortality is high, the epidemics are 
 destructive, and the deaths from preventible causes demonstrate 
 the want of sanitary measures. Yet there is no hope of a 
 sufficiently far-reaching sanitation being adopted for a long 
 time to come. Notwithstanding the system of public instruc- 
 tion, female education is in its infancy, the mass of the people 
 are still unlettered, and the land-owning peasantry care not 
 to learn. Despite the improved standard of rectitude among 
 educated Natives, the reform of public departments and the 
 prevention of violent offences, there is much of petty corrup- 
 tion and oppression exercised not only by private persons 
 but also by the Native officials upon their helpless fellow- 
 countrymen. Great as the works of material improvement may 
 be, the country is still in manifest need of many additional 
 works for which capital can hardly be found. Therefore the 
 
14 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. i. 
 
 unimproved condition of the empire in several respects must 
 remain an abiding source of regret. Generally the country- 
 is not rich enough to meet the administrative demands of a 
 progressive age. The silver standard, also, places the Govern- 
 ment at a disadvantage which has caused and at any moment 
 may again cause financial trouble. Though peace reigns 
 throughout the land in an unexampled degree, yet now and 
 again internal disturbances occur which, however isolated, serve 
 to warn us that our hold on the country is far from being 
 perfectly strong. Treasonous conspiracies are not unfrequently 
 formed close to the very centres of authority, illustrating the 
 eastern proverb that the darkest spot lies immediately beneath 
 the candle. Fanaticism and bigoted hate still exist and are 
 apparently irreconcileable by any policy wliich the Government 
 could adopt. Though the Native press is with outspoken 
 candour loyal in the main, yet some of its utterances have been 
 gravely disloyal, proving that the fruits of education are not 
 always sweet, but may sometimes even be bitter. The settle- 
 ment of the land with all its social benefits, essential justice 
 and economic soundness, has yet left discontent rankling in the 
 minds of several classes holding a territorial position. In some 
 provinces many thousands of tenants are still without the 
 rightful protection accorded to their more fortunate brethren 
 elsewhere. The peasantry in several districts have by indebted- 
 ness placed themselves at the mercy of money-lenders and thus 
 become the slaves of a legal tyranny more galling perhaps than 
 forcible oppression. Many opposing elements exist of which the 
 activity may remain dormant or be quickened according to 
 circumstances, and would spring into life if any crisis were to 
 arise. But it is doubtful whether the influences arrayed on our 
 side are at the best more than passive. Even the mass of 
 peasant proprietors for whom our rule has done more than for 
 any other class will — as an eminent authority once said — 
 continue cultivating stolidly without tliinking of politics till 
 the crack of doom. The ease whereby political falsehoods are 
 circulated and the credulous spirit in which mischievous 
 rumours are received, indicate that the public mind is seldom in 
 
Chap. I. ASPIRATIONS OF THE NATIVES. 15 
 
 a condition of satisfactory stability, and has been by long 
 tradition familiarized with the thought of revolutionary change. 
 Some of the very blessings which the Government is conscien- 
 tiously affording to the people may sow the seed of ultimate 
 trouble. Highly educated men often fail to obtain employment 
 worthy of their talents and acquirements. The old-established 
 professions become overstocked, yet new spheres connected 
 with scientific and practical pursuits are developed but 
 slowly. The Western teaching with all its enlightenment and 
 elevating power, may induce some classes to indulge aspirations 
 which cannot be satisfied in the immediate future. The realiza- 
 tion of such hopes, if it ever be possible, is so remote as to 
 be outside the range of practical politics. For these classes 
 much is being and yet will be done ; their accession to high 
 offices in the State is already permitted, and still further con- 
 cessions may eventually be made. Their entrance into public 
 life, with its functions and responsibilities, will be facilitated, 
 and they will be allowed a larger share than heretofore in the 
 administration of the country. With respect to local and 
 municipal affairs the upper and middle classes may be invited 
 to exercise that elective franchise which has been tried with a 
 fair measure of success in the capital cities. Many however 
 will seek for something more than all these things, and failing 
 to find it, will be dissatisfied. Such discontent the Govern- 
 ment must with calmness and self-possession be prepared to 
 face. 
 
 Thus, notwithstanding the progress and grandeur of India, 
 there are skeletons in the imperial chamber and spectres 
 haunting the visions of statesmen. When all that may be 
 favourable or unfavourable has been summed up we fail to reach 
 beyond the familiar conclusion that the country is like other 
 dominions, a strange mixture of good and evil. 
 
 The contrast, then, between 1847 and 1881 is not drawm in a 
 boastful or vain-glorious spirit. Those who are the best able 
 to remember accurately the onward movements which have Ijeen 
 made within this generation will be the most conscious of the 
 
16 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. r. 
 
 backwardness which continues to retard the national progress, 
 and of the darkness in which so many classes of the people are 
 steeped. Indeed when India, as she exists, is compared in 
 imagination with India as she ought to be, a feeling of despair 
 supervenes. But courage revives when a retrospect is taken of 
 the latest and most progressive generation which has yet been 
 seen. If the ratio of progress in the generation between 1847 
 and 1881 shall, under Providence, be maintained during the 
 coming and again in the succeeding generation, then an illimit- 
 able vista will open itself before the mind. The various questions 
 as to the directions in which improvement is likely to move, 
 may excite much interesting speculation. This chapter how- 
 ever is confined to a resume of facts as introductory to the 
 narrative of deeds performed by many illustrious men. 
 
 The great results already seen are not indeed wholly attri- 
 butable to individuals, and are in several respects beyond human 
 control. Nevertheless a series of statesmen in succession, and 
 parties of administrators acting in combmation, have helped to 
 bring about the progress and prosperity which are witnessed 
 to-day. I shall essay to chronicle such of their deeds and 
 proceedings as have fallen within my cognizance or observation. 
 Most of the larger actions have been noble in intention and 
 successful in result ; therefore the narrative will pourtray these 
 in the colours which are appropriate. Some cardinal errors also 
 must be acknowledged, but endeavour will be made to explain 
 how these arose. Again, disputed proceedings will occasionally 
 have to be recounted in which the conduct of statesmen is alleged 
 by some to be wrong, and by others vindicated as being right ; 
 in such cases the conflicting views will be summarized so that 
 justice may be done to the disputants on both sides. But after 
 abatement has been fully made on account of everything that 
 can be deemed unfavourable, there will remain a favourable 
 balance on a truly grand scale. The retrospect must convince 
 every impartial observer that despite mistakes, failures, short- 
 comings, omissions, there has been much of wisdom, courage, 
 justice and nobleness in the management of affairs ; and that 
 although there have been instances of feebleness, apathy, re- 
 
Chap. I. SERVICES OF ANGLO-INDIAN STATESMEN. 17 
 
 missness or incapacity, still those on whom the control of the 
 helm devolved have, for the most part, proved to be men 
 of benevolent aspirations, potent energy and patriotic virtue. 
 Among them are many who have been fortunate in the oppor- 
 tunity of doing work, or privileged to render service, which may 
 entitle them to the regard of their countrymen in England, and 
 to gratitude from the people of India. Some are still surviving 
 in health and strength, with high capacity for national service ; 
 and when reference is made to the living some reserve is 
 unavoidable. Others have passed away regarding w^hom praise 
 may be declared without stint or reservation,—^ 
 
 " Can honour's voice provoke the silent dust 
 Or flattery soothe the dull cold ear of death ? " 
 
 For them it may be truly said — 
 
 " Manibus date lilia plenis 
 Purpureos spargam fiores." 
 
 But I hope that it may not be necessary to add — 
 
 " Et fungar inani 
 Munere." 
 
 For, to commemorate their examples, is to light beacons for the 
 guidance of ourselves and of those who come after us. 
 
18 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ii. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 (1847.) 
 CLOSE OF LORD HARDINGE'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 East India Company's CoUege at Haileybury in Hertfordshire — Overland 
 voyage to India — Calcutta in 1847 — Daniel Wilson, Bishop of Calcutta — 
 Alexander Duff and Scottish Free Church Mission — Marshman and 
 Baptist Mission at Serampur — Kemembrance of Lord Ellenborough — 
 Lord Hardinge Governor-General — His campaign in the Satlej — His 
 general administration — Public sentiment regarding him — My journey in 
 the Gangetic valley. 
 
 When a young man had received from one of the Directors of 
 the Honourable East India Company a " writership " or nomi- 
 nation to the Covenanted Civil Service, it used to be necessary 
 that he should obtain a certificate of moral character from the 
 head of one of the schools in England. This certificate was 
 given me by Archibald Campbell Tait, the successor of Arnold 
 as head-master of Rugby, and now the Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury. The persons thus nominated to the Civil Service had to 
 spend two years in the Company's College at Haileybury in 
 Hertfordshire, and to pass many examinations in both European 
 and Oriental knowledge before proceeding to India. In 1847 
 the College was in its prime. The Principal was Henry 
 Melvill, afterwards Canon of St. Paul's, a preacher famed for 
 impressive eloquence. James Amiraux Jeremie, the Dean and 
 Professor of Classics, had a refined and delicate mind which 
 imparted an air of aesthetic culture to all his teachings ; 
 he subsequently became Regius Professor of Divinity in the 
 University of Cambridge and Dean of Lincoln. Richard Jones, 
 the Professor of History and PoUtical Economy, was the author 
 of a book on Rent, a work which at that time had much repute. 
 William Empson, the Professor of Law, was also the editor of the 
 
Chap. ii. HAILEYBURY COLLEGE FOR CIVIL SERVANTS. 19 
 
 Edinhurgh Review. The Examiner in Sanskrit was Horace Hay man 
 Wilson, one of the men who by learned and renowned labours had 
 thrown resplendent light on the antiquities of the Hindu race. 
 Monier Williams, who was then our Professor of Sanskrit, is now 
 Eegius Professor of that language in the University of Oxford. 
 Major J. W. J. Ouseley, the Professor of Persian and Arabic, 
 belonged to a family distinguished in Asiatic affairs. Edward 
 Eastwick, the Professor of Hindustani, afterwards published a 
 work on Persia, the outcome of his diplomatic experience in 
 that country, and represented Falmouth in Parliament. Ac- 
 cording to the light of those days the curriculum of the College 
 was extensive, and in many respects suitable for its purposes. 
 The variety of subjects, however, relating to the West and the 
 East, had a somewhat distracting effect upon those who studied 
 hard, and, as Jeremie once said to me, was " enough to tear a 
 student's brain to pieces." All things considered, a man, who 
 at the age of twenty or twenty-one years passed through the 
 College successfully, in order to join the Company's service, 
 had enjoyed the benefit of a comprehensive education. On one 
 of the half-yearly visitations of the Court of Directors, the 
 Chairman, Sir James Hogg (then a member of parliament), told 
 us students that the Company had striven to collect at the 
 College a body of professors hardly to be surpassed in any 
 similar institution in Europe. The friendships and associations 
 formed at College constituted one of the several bonds of com- 
 radeship among all the Civil Servants during their administrative 
 careers, and helped to maintain an elevated standard of thought 
 and feeling in the Service as a corps d' elite. Every Civil Servant 
 on first landing in India imagined himself to be a member of 
 the most highly organized body of functionaries that the world 
 had ever seen. Before sailing from England I, with some of 
 my comrades, went to the East India Ofl&ce at Leadenhall Street, 
 in the City of London, to formally take our leave, and the sitting 
 Director, Colonel William Henry Sykes, then distinguished by 
 his statistical researches, entreated us with much earnestness to 
 think kindly, even fraternally, regarding the Natives of India, 
 adding an assurance that, if inferior to us in moral robustness 
 
 c 2 
 
20 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ii. 
 
 of character, they would prove to be intellectually our equals. 
 On the whole, many circumstances conduced to send us forth 
 from our homes, on a strange and distant service, in that frame 
 of mind which England should desire for those who are to 
 represent her before the nations of the East. 
 
 We felt youthful wonder at the normal incidents of the 
 overland journey, as it used to be made in those days — the 
 equinoctial gale in the Bay of Biscay, the distant summit of 
 Atlas forming a background to the view of Gibraltar, the peaks 
 of the Spanish Sierra Nevada looming dimly over the Mediter- 
 ranean horizon, the city and villas of Algiers gleaming under the 
 glare of African sunlight, the gloomy magnificence of the Church 
 of the Knights of St. John at Malta, the matchless prospect 
 of the Nile delta from the citadel of Cairo, the gallop on Arab 
 horses to the Pyramids, the long jolting of the vans across the 
 Egyptian desert, the frowning volcanic rocks of Aden, the surf 
 dashing right up to the cocoa-nut groves of Ceylon. Fortunately 
 among our fellow-passengers were Bartle Erere and William 
 Muir, then regarded as rising men in the East India Company's 
 service. Frere would recount experience among the Mahrattas 
 in the Deccan, and Muir would tell of the language, history, and 
 tenures of north-western India. Their conversation confirmed 
 my ideas respecting the quality of the Civil Service I was about 
 to join, and helped me to form a mental standard towards which 
 I should strive to raise my future work in India. 
 
 As our vessel entered the mouth of the Hughli the first place 
 at which she stopped was Kedgeri, and there the captain re- 
 ceived news that his wife had died from cholera at Calcutta 
 after an illness of a few hours. We were told that this was the 
 point where sad messages had often been delivered to passengers 
 on their first touching the shore of Bengal. 
 
 On arrival at Calcutta my first care was to engage a Hindu 
 as valet, and a Muhammadan as butler. Both these men re- 
 mained in my service for a quarter of a century ; the Hindu died 
 the other day in the receipt of a small pension from me ; for 
 the Muhammadan a place was obtained in the Minister's house- 
 hold at the Nizam's capital in the Deccan. In those days it 
 
Chap. ii. FORMER CONDITION OF THE CALCUTTA CITY. 21 
 
 was common for an European officer to retain some of his Native 
 servants for life, their younger relatives afterwards serving his 
 son in similar capacities. Good Native servants in India still 
 remain with their European masters for terms of which the 
 length recalls the traditions of olden times in other lands. 
 
 The city and environs of Calcutta did not then seem to me so 
 beautiful as they certainly are now. The noble river crowded 
 with ocean-going vessels, and thick with a forest of masts both 
 Indian and foreign — the suburbs, riclily wooded with the casu- 
 arina, the bamboo and the plantain — the "maidan" or green 
 grassy plain called " the lungs of the place " — the strings of 
 carriages passing up and down the mall on the river-bank in the 
 cool of the evening — were all there indeed. But the palaces of 
 which we had read so much appeared scarcely palatial, though 
 as dwelling-places they were built in an architectural style 
 admirably suited to the climate. The drainage was execrable, 
 causing among other evils a constant plague of mosquitos. The 
 jackals would wake the nocturnal echoes by howling in chorus. 
 The imperfect lighting served only to render darkness visible. 
 There were but few public vehicles, and palanquins with their 
 sets of bearers, hardy fellows, not from Bengal, but from Orissa, 
 were in readiness at their stations in the streets, as cabs have 
 their stands in European cities. It will be shewn in a future 
 chapter how these things have been altered for the better. 
 
 The Governor-G-eneral, Sir Henry (afterwards Lord) Hardinge, 
 was far away, near the banks of the Satlej, completing the 
 arrangements consequent on the first Panjab war which had 
 been recently concluded. The senior member of his Council 
 was at Calcutta, conducting the government of the surrounding 
 provinces of Bengal, Behar, and Orissa, the separate government 
 for those provinces not having as yet been constructed. As 
 newly arrived Civil Servants we were for a time attached to the 
 CoUege at Fort William, an institution which, at the beginning 
 of the nineteenth century, had been designed by the great Lord 
 Wellesley to raise on the banks of the Hughli some imitation of 
 the classic models on the Cam and the Isis, but which was then 
 lapsing into the state that preceded its final abolition. 
 
22 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ii. 
 
 T made the valued acquaintance of Sir Lawrence Peel, a 
 relative of the Prime Minister (Sir Eobert Peel). He was Chief 
 Justice of the Supreme Court, a tribunal set up by the English 
 Crown, separately from the East India Company's courts, but now 
 merged in the High Court. He had long been one of the legal 
 luminaries who vindicated the character of English law, despite 
 the disadvantages which beset its administration in the east. 
 His social virtues, charitpble munificence, and scholarlike attain- 
 ments, were worthy of the illustrious name he bore. 
 
 Daniel "Wilson was then Bishop of the Calcutta diocese, 
 and Metropolitan over the other Bishops in British India, 
 a blunt, plain-spoken and earnest man, of the evangelical 
 type in the best and largest sense of the term. He used 
 to warn us, with impressive solemnity of manner, to be 
 spiritually on our guard, as we had come to a land of sickness 
 and death. Without any pretension to graceful gifts or accom- 
 plishments, he was a working prelate and a powerful minister 
 of religion. He had induced the Government to found and 
 endow a cathedral at Calcutta, without however any establish- 
 ment of dean and chapter. I was one of the congregation on 
 the day that he consecrated tliis new cathedral. The structure 
 is not imposing architecturally, but it contains, among many 
 relics and memorials now becoming historic, his own remains, 
 underneath a tablet with the inscription (in the Greek) " God be 
 merciful to me a sinner." He was often saying that a warmer 
 zeal must be kindled in his clergy — the chaplains who minis- 
 tered among the English community — and that the number 
 of clergymen maintained by the state being inadequate, ought 
 to be augmented by private effort. To this end he procured the 
 formation of the Additional Clergy Society, which is stiU, though 
 with some difficulty, kept up, and supplies pastors for the little 
 English flocks scattered among the remote parts of India. He 
 also was striving to infuse vitality into Bishop's College, founded 
 by his predecessor, Bishop Middleton, for training Native clergy- 
 men. This institution had been established in the preceding 
 generation, with far-sighted care, to meet a want which in the 
 present and coming generations will be widely felt, namely, 
 
Chap. ii. ALEXANDER DUFF, SCOTCH MISSIONARY. 23 
 
 that of men qualified for the ministry among the fast growing 
 congregations of Native Christians. It was then, however, lan- 
 guishing, with a tendency towards the decadence which has 
 since ensued ; and the want it was designed to meet is being 
 supplied by many missionary institutions. 
 
 At Calcutta I made the acquaintance of Alexander Duff, then 
 in the zenith of his usefulness as a missionary of the newly 
 formed Free Church of Scotland. While zealously interesting 
 himself in missionary work among the population of the interior, 
 he was Principal of the Scottish school and college at Calcutta 
 for the education of Native youths in the vernacular and in 
 English. Of the scholars some were converts, and many were 
 still heathen wliile receiving Christian as well as secular instruc- 
 tion. Those who saw him in his latest years labouring as Con- 
 vener of the Foreign Missions at Edinburgh, and heard the voice 
 of the old man eloquent, can imagine the vivacity with which, 
 during his prime, he lighted up the severest discussions on 
 eastern philosophy, on Native superstitions, on Oriental ideas. 
 Having just completed his book upon Indian Missions, he 
 was fond of explaining orally to us his listeners, what he 
 had so well set forth in that work, namely, the effect which the 
 vastness of the landscape in India, the grandeur of the scenery, 
 the magnificence of the atmospheric phenomena, had wrought 
 through many generations upon the Hindu mind. He thought 
 that thereby the fancy had been over-stimulated, and the 
 imagination, as it were, inflated, that some faculties had run 
 riot in excessive luxuriance, while other and more important 
 powers had become stunted or shrunken. He thence inferred 
 that sound and precise knowledge would pave the way for the 
 reception of religious and moral truth. Thus he relied much on 
 the bracing efl&cacy and the sobering influence of high education. 
 It was mainly to such instruction that he applied him- 
 seK w^th signal ability and with a success which at that time 
 was pre-eminent. Other missionaries in the several Protestant 
 demoninations may have surpassed him in Oriental acquire- 
 ments, or in evangelistic labours among masses of Natives, but 
 in the work of superior education, with the view of leading 
 
24 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ii. 
 
 youths towards higher and holier truths, he has hardly been 
 equalled by any missionary in this generation. His influence 
 was not confined to the Natives ; he was in himself, for many 
 years, a power among the European community of Calcutta ; 
 if any movement for good was to be impelled forward his 
 eloquent advocacy was invoked. In after years, when the 
 University of Calcutta was constituted, he became one of the 
 most influential members of the senate, and assisted effectually 
 in determining the standard or the curriculum for the higher 
 walks of education. The last time I heard him speak in public 
 was on the occasion of a severe famine in some districts of 
 northern India, and rarely has the cause of suffering humanity 
 been pleaded with more pathetic earnestness. 
 
 Near Calcutta was Serampore, the old mission station of the 
 Baptist community, redolent with the fragrance of memories 
 left by the elder Marshman and by Carey. At that time the 
 younger Marshman, afterwards known as a popular historian of 
 India, and as the biographer of Havelock the hero, was conduct- 
 ing the Friend of India newspaper, and was acknowledged to 
 be at the head of Anglo-Indian journalism. Many of those who 
 witnessed the sudden decline of this journal subsequently, will 
 have hardly realized the influence it once possessed, from the 
 soundness of its information, and the literary merit of its articles 
 in the time of Marshman and his successors Meredith Townsend 
 and George Smith. 
 
 Our life at Calcutta, though not favourable for acquiring 
 knowledge of the Indian people, except secondliand from the 
 educated Natives at the capital, did yet enable us to gather 
 the best thoughts of the English community, official and non- 
 official, regarding the state of the Government and the course 
 of events. 
 
 The late Governor-General Lord Ellenborough was remem- 
 bered with warmth of admiration by some, but in a cold 
 and critical spirit by others. He was understood to have 
 evinced an unaccountable dislike to the Covenanted Civil 
 Service. In proof o| such dislike the case of the Nerbudda 
 territories was cited, where he had dismissed the Ci\'il Servants 
 
Chap. ii. LORD ELLENBOROUGH AS GOVERNOR-GENERAL. 25 
 
 in a body, sending them back to tlie older provinces, and re- 
 placing them with officers selected from the army. The Civil 
 Servants, it was argued, were personally able and efficient officers ; 
 if he found them erring or mistaken in their management, he 
 could have set them right by revised instructions, but to change 
 the entire personnel in that way was to make a child's play of 
 government. "Whether a feeling adverse to Civil Servants had 
 really been entertained by him or not, the belief in its existence 
 naturally caused him to be jealously criticized by the leading 
 members of the Civil Service, who possessed influence in many 
 quarters. These critics would call his proclamations bombastic, 
 his movements meteoric, his opinions enigmatical, and his conduct 
 theatrical. By them even his share in the successful termina- 
 tion of the first Afghan war was disputed. The Generals, 
 especially Sir William ISTott of Candahar, were said to have 
 restored the dignity of British arms and policy, despite the dis- 
 couraging tenour of their instructions from the Governor-General. 
 This passing criticism, as expressed at the time, has since been, 
 and may yet further be, tested by historical investigation. There 
 was one man. Major (afterwards Sir Henry) Durand, who, having 
 as Private Secretary fully enjoyed the Governor-General's con- 
 fidence, could, beyond all others, have done justice to Lord 
 EUenborough's views, intentions and policy in India. But 
 his untimely death extinguished any hope there might have 
 been that this task would one day be performed by him. 
 Still the best-informed persons of the time would say that in 
 several respects Ellenborough possessed real genius, that many 
 of his ideas were statesmanlike, and that he ofttimes shewed 
 solid judgment. The rhetoric of his polished oratory com- 
 manded the admiration of both friends and opponents. By 
 the officers of the army he was beloved, being regarded as the 
 special protector of their interests. The non-official community 
 deeming him to be "dignus imperii," felt regard for his con- 
 spicuous and popular qualities. The indignity he unavoidably 
 suffered, when recalled from his post by the Court of Directors, 
 caused public sympathy to be drawn towards him. And the 
 valedictory entertainments, given to him on his departure from 
 
26 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, ii. 
 
 Calcutta, expressed the general regret that the bright promise of 
 his career in the East had been prematurely destroyed. 
 
 Sir Henry Hardinge, succeeding Lord Ellenborough, was a 
 man of quite a different mould. He was lacking in the brilliancy 
 of his predecessor, and was quiet, unassuming and soldierlike. 
 He had not a definite ambition politically nor a preconceived 
 policy in civil affairs ; his desire was to discharge to the utmost 
 those arduous duties which the current of events in the East 
 might cast upon him from day to day. He may perhaps have 
 heard of his predecessor being unpopular with the Civil Servants, 
 inasmuch as he apparently tried to reassure them by judiciously 
 considerate language. He was quite free from any angularities 
 which might provoke friction with any class of the community. 
 His military knowledge was soon called into play by the poli- 
 tical conjunctures which ended in the first Panjab war. When 
 the hostilities began he had, in addition to all his ordinary cares 
 of state, to take an active part in the organization of transport 
 for the army advancing across the weary plains between Delhi 
 and the Satlej. In that affair he largely availed himself of the 
 services of John Lawrence, then Magistrate of Delhi. After 
 reaching the banks of the Satlej, he actually worked in a military 
 capacity in the field, assuming the functions of second in com- 
 mand to the Commander-in-Chief, Sir Hugh Gough. In taking 
 this extraordinary step, he was justified in public estimation 
 by the successful result; nevertheless, that step was unprece- 
 dented, and not consistent with the ordinary relations between 
 the Governor-General and the Commander-in-Chief. It was 
 manifest that both these high functionaries must have displayed 
 wonderful tact, temper and forbearance. But irrespective of the 
 question as to how Sir Henry Hardinge, as head of the Govern- 
 ment, came to be in the field of battle, actually leading a wing 
 of the army in action, the praise of his conduct when there 
 was on the lips of all men. On the night after the battle of 
 Eerozshah he was wakeful all through the nocturnal hours, 
 moving about among the troops who lay bivouacking on the 
 ground. With quiet and cheerful demeanour he was telling the 
 private soldiers that they must rise at the dawn and finish 
 
Chap. II. SIB HENRY HARDINGE ON FIELD OF BATTLE. 27 
 
 beating the already half-beaten enemy, but warnmg those in his 
 confidence that if the attack should not succeed in the morning 
 there was nothing left for them but to die honourably on the 
 field. The anecdote that he had on this night taken the decora- 
 tions from off his breast so that they might not be among the 
 trophies of the enemy, was hardly credited ; but it was known 
 that he had ordered his papers to be destroyed in the event 
 of defeat. It was believed that the 21st December, 1846, 
 the date of Ferozshah, was the most perilous day that had 
 passed over India since the beginning of the century. Never 
 before had such stout and valorous resistance been offered by 
 Indian troops to the British army. The enemy possessed 
 what might have proved victorious advantages of which he 
 forbore to make use — a forbearance which was attributed to 
 treachery among his leaders. If the force under Hardinge and 
 Gough at Ferozshah had been overwhelmed by superior numbers, 
 there was nothing to stop the Sikh army from overrunning 
 the North-western Provinces down to Allahabad, and hardly 
 any intermediate strongholds which could have been success- 
 fully held against them. Their further advance towards Cal- 
 cutta must have depended on the Gurkhas of Nepal, who would 
 probably have descended from the Himalayas to ravage Behar 
 and northern Bengal, and thus the English might have been 
 driven back to their base on the sea-coast. Such in the, perhaps 
 exaggerated, apprehension of that day was the peril from the 
 very jaws of which the British had been saved by the narrow 
 chances of war. Disasters in Afghanistan and elsewhere were, 
 indeed, borne in mind, still immediately after them none 
 doubted that the British power remained erect. But most 
 people thought that if any disaster had occurred at Ferozshah, 
 this power would have been shaken seriously. 
 
 There were some brilliant passages in the campaign on which 
 all men dwelt with pride and hope ; some of the foot regiments 
 had in the assaults evinced all the traditional quahties of 
 British infantry ; the exploits of the cavalry regiments, the 3rd 
 Dragoons and the 9th Lancers, resounded in public commenda- 
 tion, and people recalled the famous memories of Assaye and 
 
28 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ii. 
 
 Laswari, when great military results were won by a few hundred 
 English sabres. 
 
 Fierce invectives had been hurled from some quarters against 
 Sir Henry Hardinge for his alleged want of preparation before 
 the Sikh army crossed the Satlej and burst like a swollen torrent 
 upon upper India. Well-reasoned rejoinders were made by 
 his friends to such animadversion ; but most prudent men 
 suspended their judgment. The truth was that he did his 
 best with the means at his disposal; it was vain to blame 
 a statesman for not being perfectly prepared .when he had not 
 the resources for adequate preparation. In that as in so many 
 other conjunctures the Government had not enough of English 
 troops in the country ; but this error, instead of being punished 
 by defeat, was luckily followed by glorious victory ; so the policy 
 of keeping the European armament at too low a scale was 
 maintained. 
 
 The treaty made with the Panjab State after this campaign on 
 the Satlej was generally approved ; and Hardinge, by establish- 
 ing a regency under British supervision and annexing an im- 
 portant part of the Panjab to the British dominions, was thought 
 to have made a good bargain for his Government, inasmuch as 
 he was obliged to conclude peace speedily. For his force, though 
 flushed with victory, was scanty in numbers, the fortresses of 
 the Panjab were still untaken, and the hot weather was fast 
 becoming too inclement for operations. 
 
 One part of his arrangements was however bitterly criticized, 
 namely, the gift of Cashmir to Golab Sing. The allegation that 
 this beautiful territory was sold to Golab Sing for a paltry sum 
 of money was absurd ; the real argument was that the grant of 
 territory had been considered desirable in order to establish the 
 new regime in the Panjab and its dependencies. This reason 
 was seldom admitted by the public at the time, and is still 
 much disputed. Such a discussion is however to be deprecated 
 as being likely to raise doubts regarding the faithfulness of 
 British intentions. Manifestly a gift, once made, cannot be 
 recalled because it is regretted. 
 
 Sir Henry Hardinge was anxious to be relieved of his high 
 
Chap. ii. HIS GENERAL ADMINISTRATION. 29 
 
 office when much of the ordinary time of incumbency remained 
 unexpired. Thus he did not allow to himself full space for run- 
 ning a political and administrative career. Despite the shortness 
 of time, however, he attended to several of the important matters 
 which came into prominence under his successor. He visited the 
 Ganges Canal in order to satisfy himself before sanctioning any 
 outlay for the works. He advocated the plan of entrusting to a 
 company in England the construction of the first railway to be 
 undertaken in India. He recommended a reform of the Post-office 
 with a view to the equalization of postal charges. He supported 
 Thomason, who was striving for manifold improvements in the 
 North-western Provinces. He first brought to the front three men 
 who rapidly rose to eminence, namely, Henry Lawrence, John 
 Lawrence, and Henry M. Elliot. He was often mentioned by the 
 Bishop as having set a Christian example before the world. He 
 was deemed to be a discreet, practical and conscientious ruler. 
 When he was elevated to the peerage, as Viscount Hardinge, 
 and eulogized in Parliament by the Prime Minister (Sir Eobert 
 Peel), his countrymen in the East raised a responsive applause. 
 The public gratitude was attested by the statue wliich was then 
 entrusted to the sculptor Foley for execution, and which is now 
 admired as among the most artistic ornaments of Calcutta. 
 Among the men whom he had befriended and trusted was 
 Henry Lawrence, by whom the best-informed record of his 
 career was subsequently written. 
 
 Having spent at Calcutta several months in the study of 
 Oriental languages, and thus acquired by quiet study some 
 knowledge which could hardly be gathered amidst the stir and 
 bustle of the life which was so soon to follow, I proceeded 
 on my way to upper India. The journey now takes two 
 days by railway ; it then took two or three weeks for the 
 traveller borne in a palanquin — aptly described as "a box 
 carried on men's shoulders " — by relays of eight Native bearers 
 at each stage of ten miles. Midway in this journey, as we 
 approached the place where the railway station of Piajmehal 
 now stands, the swamps were still spongy after autumnal rains. 
 My much-enduring palanquin-bearers struggled in the mud all 
 
30 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. n. 
 
 through that moonlit night. Next day an European medical 
 officer warned me that "jungle" fever might be the consequence 
 of the exposure to such a malarious atmosphere during the 
 nocturnal hours. He described the symptoms which would 
 herald the approach of the dreaded malady, such as a creep- 
 ing sensation in the spine and a seemingly iron band around 
 the forehead. As the scenery was interesting and the weather 
 lovely, I began to take what might prove to be my last look at 
 the beauties of nature; but fever did not come, and the 
 apprehension passed away. The chief local authority conducted 
 me to the tomb of Cleveland, in whose memory the Government 
 had set up an epitaph declaring that he had established British 
 dominion in the hearts and minds of the neighbouring hill 
 tribes. Shortly afterwards I stood before the stately monument 
 over the grave of the Marquis Cornwallis, the Governor-General 
 who died at his post, after having introduced the Permanent 
 Settlement at the end of the last century, a measure which was 
 expected to naturalize the landed institutions of England among 
 the Natives of Bengal, but which has certainly failed in some of 
 its main objects, and is regarded by many authorities with mixed 
 feelings. At length the pinnacles, cupolas and minarets of 
 Benares came into view, and then I had entered the limits of 
 the North-western Provinces. 
 
( 31 ) 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 (1848-1853.) 
 
 thomason's goveenment in the north-western provinces. 
 
 City of Benares — Church of England missions there — First impressions 
 regardincr the Natives and the country — Life in camp — Scenes at Agra 
 and Allahabad — Second Panjab War — Popular estimate of Lord Gough — 
 Thomason Lieutenant-Governor — His personal characteristics — His method 
 of governing — Objects of his policy — Land settlement — Village communities 
 — Primary education — The Ganges Canal — Training of Natives as civil 
 engineers — Thomason's death — Affectionate respect for his memory. 
 
 Staying at Benares some little time, I observed the working of 
 the Mission belonging to the Church (of England) Missionary- 
 Society, and conducted by the Eeverend Missionaries William 
 Smith and Charles Benjamin Leupolt. The conversation of these 
 self-denying and experienced men was most instructive to a 
 young officer. They impressed me with their charitable consi- 
 derateness towards the faults of the Native character, and their 
 appreciative discernment of its virtues. They shewed me what 
 were the ways of native thought, and how those ways could best 
 be approached by moral and religious influences. They explained 
 the characteristics of Hindu priests, and the results of a caste- 
 system which dominated the popular superstitions. Their 
 mission was a very important one, as it related to the most 
 sacred seat of the Hindu religion and the greatest abode of 
 Brahminical learning. The sight of their work taught me, at the 
 outset of my career, the salutary lesson that something more 
 was to be expected from British rule than military success, 
 political management, material prosperity and intellectual edu- 
 cation. Then the reflection was brought home to me that when 
 England sent forth men to the East, some to lead her armies, 
 others to collect her revenues or construct her public works, 
 
32 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. lii. 
 
 and again others to manage her trade or industrial enterprises, — 
 she could also provide many for higher and more blessed purposes 
 than these. 
 
 William Smith had a command of colloquial Hindi and 
 Hindustani which had seldom or never been surpassed by an 
 Englishman in northern India. His preaching among the 
 heathen was most interesting and suggestive to Europeans as well 
 as to Natives. Early in the morning he would drive me in a gig 
 from the Mission station to the city of Benares ; then he would 
 conduct me for a walk in the crowded streets, stopping at points 
 where the Natives most did congregate, to preach for a while ; 
 then arriving at the bank of the river Ganges, he would shew 
 me the dying carried down to the water's edge to breathe their 
 last near the holy stream, and the corpses reverently laid on 
 the flaming pyres. Sometimes, too, he would take me on board 
 a boat soon after sunrise, so that we might drop gently down the 
 sluggish current, and thus leisurely admire the unrivalled spec- 
 tacle which the city displays at that hour of the day, when the 
 slanting rays of the sun light up cone-shaped temples, glittering 
 finials, stone carvings, grotesque frescoes, lattice windows, 
 palaces and housetops rising one above the other, and succes- 
 sive flights of steps. The gayest part even of this bright scene, 
 however, was the crowd thronging the river-bank, clad in white 
 diversified with all sorts of colours from red to blue. Countless 
 bathers, too, were disporting themselves in the water, swimming, 
 plunging, diving, floating. 
 
 Sometimes, again, we visited quieter scenes; the thatched 
 cottages of the Native Christian village, amidst bamboos and 
 creepers ; the boys in the school-house ; the girls knitting or 
 sewing and singing hymns ; the little church, with its spire 
 bearing witness to God in a strange land ; the divine service in 
 the vernacular ; the altar, with the Native communicants. Or 
 again, we entered the class-rooms of a mission school, where 
 scholars were being examined in Bible history, or studying the 
 map of the world, or reading English poetry, or acquiring the 
 rudiments of science, or learning the classical language of their 
 own country. 
 
Chap. hi. CHARACTEE OF A MAGISTRATE AND COLLECTOR. 33 
 
 Little was then being done by the State for primary education 
 among the Natives, and the efforts of Government were confined 
 to the higher branches of instruction. There was at Benares a 
 college mainly for instructing Native youths in Sanscrit ; of 
 this Ballantyne was the principal, and his Oriental acquirements 
 greatly conciliated the regards of the learned classes among the 
 Hindus of the city. 
 
 Journeying onwards from Benares I met, at Cawnpore, 
 John, the elder brother of William Muir, who has been already 
 mentioned. Though much occupied with his judicial duties, he 
 was prosecuting his researches into Hindu antiquities, and 
 acquiring fast that Sanscrit learning for which he has since 
 become famous. 
 
 At that time all well-informed persons whom I met, con- 
 curred in advising me to seek employment, in a district where 
 the principal officer was a man possessing marked ability him- 
 self, and also disposed to educe and cultivate Avhatever capabili- 
 ties might be inherent in his subordinates. With this view I 
 obtained an appointment in the district of Mathra (near Agra) 
 under Edward Thornton, the Magistrate and Collector, who 
 was a man of high repute. The Magistrates and Collectors are 
 well known as forming the most important class in the Civil 
 Service, and being the representatives of British rule before 
 the people in every-day life. Of this class Edward Thornton 
 was a worthy example ; he was a capital rider, a good judge of 
 agricultural products; a prompt, careful and accurate man of 
 business ; versed in the tenures, customs, traditions of the 
 land-holding classes and possessing a sound knowledge of the 
 Natives generally; an adept in unravelling the skeins of a 
 complicated dispute, which so often occurs between one village 
 and another, and in gathering up the threads so as to arrive at a 
 conclusion ; patient in listening to grievances, and imbued with 
 a never-failing sense of essential justice, so far as it could be 
 meted out amidst the conflicting considerations which spring 
 up in Native society. He was full of zeal, not only for doing 
 well himself, but also for making others do the like ; and he 
 heartily attended to the task of instructing me and his other 
 
 D 
 
34 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 assistants. He taught us what to observe, and how to note it 
 exactly ; he enjoined us to search for our facts, to remember 
 them precisely, and to rely on ourselves rather than lean on our 
 Native subordinates, reminding us that such self-trust would be 
 useful only when we were well grounded in our knowledge. 
 He strove to make us care personally for the Natives, guard 
 their interests, and enter into their troubles and anxieties. 
 Through the vista of years I look back with gratitude to the 
 official tuition then received from him. 
 
 Thornton soon despatched me into the interior of the district 
 to supervise a registration of landed tenures which was being 
 made, and live in tents among the villages. Then I saw for 
 the first time that camp life which every one must wish to live 
 who would understand India aright and feel the exhilarating 
 effect of contact with rural affairs. My tent would be pitched 
 in one of those umbrageous groves of the mango which are 
 amongst the chief ornaments of the country, or on the ridge of 
 a steep bank overhanging a river, anon under the spreadin 
 branches of a banyan tree, amidst — 
 
 " the ample shade 
 Cloistered with columned dropping stems and roofed 
 With vaults of glistening green." 
 
 The district was classic ground to Hindus, as there the scene 
 was laid of some among the events in their sacred mythology. 
 Picturesque rocks crowned with temples here or there cropped 
 up in the midst of the cultivated plain ; and among these were 
 . embosomed sacred tanks. The margin of such a tank would be 
 crowded with pilgrims and visitors on festival days or other 
 gala occasions. Sometimes there were illuminations at nightfall, 
 causing the outline of rock and building to be reflected in the 
 water. 
 
 While the Muhammadan mosques had imposing dimensions, 
 the Hindu temples seemed small and overlaid with ornamenta- 
 tion. Grateful was my surprise when near Mathra I found a 
 half-ruined fane built in a grand style which almost called to 
 mind the nave and transepts of a church, but having a material 
 of purple stone Avhich could hardly be matched in Europe. 
 
Chap. hi. NEIGHBOURHOOD OF AGRA. 35 
 
 Adjoining the district of Mathra was that of Agra, whither 
 I now and then made short excursions to see the famed marble 
 tomb of the Mogul empress in its pure glory ; to spell out the 
 epitaph on the tomb of Akber the Great ; to wander among the 
 desolate quadrangles, pillared halls and sculptured recesses ; to 
 scan the towers which kings ascended for viewing the royal 
 battues ; to stand beneath the lofty domes, mount the minarets, 
 and pace the long stretching arcades of the deserted mosques. 
 There, too, I visited the Christian villages, inhabited by those 
 who had been left orphans during the last famine, and rescued 
 by the missionaries. 
 
 The city of Agra, built on the bank of the Jamna, used then 
 to be approached by a bridge of boats thrown across the stream 
 when the water was low. But the river is now spanned by 
 a railway viaduct, from which there is a fine view, comprising 
 the city, the great mosque, Akber's fort, and the Taj mausoleum 
 in the distance. As we wandered about the fort, admiring 
 its architecture and beautiful material of red sandstone, or 
 stood on the balcony of its palace, we little thought that within 
 a few years this place would be the refuge of our countrymen 
 during the crisis of the mutinies and an abode of grief to many 
 English families. 
 
 Sometimes I was able to visit the neighbouring Eaja of 
 Bhartpur surrounded by his half-barbaric pomp, watch his 
 gaudy cavalcades, witness the combats in the arena between 
 elephants and other animals, enjoy the beauties of his pleasure- 
 gardens irrigated by artificial watercourses, and his summer- 
 houses with their graceful arcliitecture of richly carved stone. 
 
 The manner in which a Native prince received his European 
 guests or visitors excited my curiosity. The Natives seemed to 
 be masters of scenic effect, with the diffusion of chastened light 
 over masses of rich ornamentation, colours gorgeous yet possess- 
 ing what artists term quality, and the perspective of columns 
 and arches. Then the prince and his suite out of deference to 
 us would seat themselves awkwardly on European chairs, instead 
 of sitting comfortably cross-legged on the carpet. But all the 
 same the carpet was there and had its uses, for upon it would 
 
 D 2 
 
3G MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 be laid trays of sweetmeats, tinsel ornaments and indigenous 
 fabrics, — the trays being scrupulously arranged in sets for pre- 
 sentation to the visitors, each set being graduated in its size 
 and contents according to the official rank of every visitor. 
 
 I was surprised to find the country literally strewn with 
 relics, ruins and remains, indicating the existence of dynasties 
 and of social systems, regarding which no other record was 
 discoverable. It seemed that — 
 
 " Where'er we tread 'tis haunted holy ground, 
 No earth of thine is lost in vulgar mould, 
 But one vast realm of wonders spreads around." 
 
 Then, looking at these sights, one felt tempted to exclaim — 
 
 " Chaos of ruins ! who shall trace the void. 
 And say, here was, or is, where all is doubly night." 
 
 Thus the ways of the Natives, both high and humble ; the 
 toils and anxieties, the simple-minded happiness of the peasantry; 
 the course of the seasons ; the seed-time and harvest ; the colts, 
 fillies, steers, heifers, kids and lambs ; the strings of carts laden 
 with merchandise, dragged by bullocks along the deep ruts of 
 the dusty roads — became familiar to me. In the day-time there 
 was a sense of glare and aridity ; in the afternoon my tent used 
 to be crowded to suffocation with men wrangling about their 
 boundary-marks, their quotas of revenue, their ancestral shares. 
 But in that winter season nothing could exceed the cheering 
 glow of the unclouded sunrise, morning after morning, or the 
 serene loveliness of those moonlight nights. To my English 
 notions, November evenings were shrouded in damp mist ; but 
 here I found the November moon to be the most auspicious 
 in the year, when the rains were over, the autumn crops 
 garnered, and the husbandman gladdened by the sight of the 
 young wheat rising to form his future spring harvest. 
 
 Though for many days consecutively I never heard the 
 English language spoken, yet occasionally I was fortunate in 
 the companionship of a brother officer. Among my companions 
 at that time was Ensign Brownlow, who was afterwards dis- 
 tinguished both on the north-west and north-east frontier of the 
 
Chap. III. CHAEACTER OF THE NATIVES. 37 
 
 empire, and is now General Sir Charles Brownlow, one of the 
 Secretaries at the Horse Guards in London. 
 
 The daily converse of the Natives was, however, full of 
 interest and novelty ; if a man in authority talks with them 
 much, they are skilful in enlisting his sympathy in their 
 concerns, and they have an inexhaustible fund of amusing 
 personalities. So I felt regret when, compelled by the heat to 
 return to the head-quarters and to the house, there to sit in 
 darkened rooms, behind grass mats which were kept constantly 
 wet, so that the burning wind as it played upon them might 
 be made to cool the inner air. 
 
 Wliile at the head-quarters of the district, and occupied 
 all day long in hearing disputes, I saw and heard of the dark 
 part of the Native character almost to the exclusion of the 
 bright one. Forgery, tampering with documents, swearing and 
 counter-swearing, perjury on one side or the other, perhaps 
 on both sides, the striking of the balance for truth between 
 conflicting statements, the bewildering search for some clue to 
 fact amidst mazes of falsehood — these were the staple themes 
 for my consideration during the greater part of the day. When 
 out of court or office, I had executive duties to perform which 
 led me into confidential conversation with many Natives. 
 Their besetting fault seemed to be a capacity for hating one 
 another; no doubt every man had his friends, and felt kindly 
 towards his fellow-countrymen in general, but still appeared to 
 entertain a mortal spite against individuals. It was painful 
 to note this irresistible tendency, not so much to open 
 slander, but rather towards secret backbiting. There were 
 many shocking features in the crimes which came before the 
 magistracy ; on the other hand, there was no wife-beating, nor 
 any of the brutal circumstances which in other countries attend 
 intemperance. The men seemed very jealous and sensitive 
 regarding the honour of their women. Nevertheless, partly 
 from the out-of-doors life which the women of humbler classes 
 lead (in contradistinction to the women of the upper classes), 
 conjugal infidelity was not uncommon, and usually caused 
 sanguinary or deadly feuds. It was astonishing to see the 
 
38 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ni. 
 
 readiness with which men took up iron-headed staves for the 
 bloody arbitrament of agrarian disputes, indicating that the 
 fervid and violent temper produced by war or revolution, and 
 transmitted through many generations, had not yet subsided. 
 N^he thing which weighed oppressively upon the mind of a 
 young officer was the consideration that very few Native officials 
 could be trusted, and that a pleasant address and an impressive 
 manner were but too often the cloaks of deceit or corrup- 
 tion. We were warned of this by all experienced persons, 
 and palpable facts frequently forced it upon our unwillmg 
 conviction. 
 
 But if reluctantly receiving unfavourable impressions while 
 at the head-quarters, I rapidly gathered favourable notions 
 when encamped among the villages. It soon became apparent 
 that there were countless good people who would mind their 
 own business in their humble homes, and seldom enter a public 
 office, or see the face of authority. The rural folk evinced 
 much of domestic virtue, fraternal fidelity, social cheerfulness, 
 charity towards the needy. If questioned regarding a disputed 
 point, while near home, and in the presence of their neighbours, 
 they would speak the truth. Among the Native officials, too, 
 men were found who formed bright exceptions to the prevailing 
 corruption, and whom, after the lapse of years, I still remember 
 as honourable men and pleasant companions. 
 
 It is indeed important that junior civil officers should be 
 employed under canvas in the interior of the country, so that 
 their minds may not become prejudiced, nor their sympathies 
 alienated by the scenes of a police office or a magistrate's court, 
 and that they may learn from observation of the villagers at 
 home that there are many elements of good in the Native 
 character. Thus will be acquired that sympathizing faculty, 
 without which they cannot become successful rulers over masses 
 «__.of Natives. 
 
 From Mathra I proceeded to Allahabad, which, situated on 
 a tongue of fertile land near the confluence of the Ganges and 
 Jamna, was then thought one of the prettiest stations in the 
 country The historic fortress dominating the point of con- 
 
Chap. III. BEGINNING OF THE SECOND SIKH WAR. 39 
 
 fluence, the sacred bathing-places frequented on festival days 
 by myriads of Hindus, the united floods of the two rivers in 
 the rainy season, the long lanes shaded by mango groves — 
 confirmed the pleasurable impression already made upon my 
 mind by Indian scenes. But the quiet graceful place as it then 
 was, is hardly to be recognized in the Allahabad of to-day. Its 
 commanding situation geographically and politically has caused 
 it to become a large military cantonment, a central railway 
 station, and a seat of civil government. The river is crossed by 
 a grand latticed bridge, the fields, lanes and groves have been 
 taken up for rows of barracks, public departments and palatial 
 structures. 
 
 Wliile our thoughts were thus devoted to the labours of 
 peace, news came of renewed trouble in the Panjab. At 
 Multan, with the connivance of the Sikh governor Mulraj, the 
 political ofiicers Agnew and Anderson had been treacherously 
 murdered while predicting with their last breath that the deed 
 would be soon avenged by a British army. A besieging force 
 despatched against Multan was obliged to suspend the siege 
 and await reinforcements. Several Sikh chieftains, taking 
 courage at this, raised an army in revolt against the British 
 control, as set up by Lord Hardinge. The new Governor- 
 General, Lord Dalhousie, hastened from Calcutta towards 
 the then British frontier on the Satlej ; and on liis way held a 
 large levee at Agra. He looked fresh and youthful for his 
 great office, but vigilant and self-sustained. We wished him 
 god-speed on his grave enterprise, for all knew that a struggle 
 was impending, on the issue of which the tranquillity, indeed 
 the safety, of the British territories in northern India must 
 depend. The martial classes of the Sikh nation, and the 
 greater part of their feudal aristocracy, had risen with a resolve 
 to shake off, if possible, that yoke which the British Govern- 
 ment was equally determined to maintain. The warlike 
 reputation of the Sikhs, always high, had been raised by their 
 conduct in the first Panjab war. They declared bitterly 
 that they would have beaten and pursued right through upper 
 India the Native troops of the British Government, had it not 
 
40 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 been for the prowess of the European soldiery. They were 
 feared by the Native population of the British territories ; and 
 feverish speculation was arising in the Native mind regarding 
 the outcome of the second war, of which the opening events 
 had been unfavourable. Still the public mind was reassured by 
 the sight of many thousand troops hurrying past, some to re- 
 inforce the besiegers of Multan, others to form an army under 
 Lord Gough for operations beyond Lahore. The eyes of all 
 were turned chiefly towards Gough's forces opposed to the 
 Sikh leaders and all their chivalry on the bank of the Chenab. 
 After some actions, partially successful on the British side, the 
 Sikhs retired towards the river Jhelum, close to the classic spot 
 where Alexander the Great attacked Porus. Soon it was pro- 
 claimed that in this position at Cliilianwala, Gough had attacked 
 the Sikhs victoriously and captured some of their guns. The 
 rejoicing was, however, speedily dimmed by the information 
 which arrived in painful detail. The victory proved to be of a 
 Pyrrhic character. The enemy had been assailed while posted 
 in a jungle, offering every disadvantage to the assailants. The 
 British right wing suffered defeat, while the centre and the 
 left wing were successful. The 24th Kegiment, reckoned to 
 be the flower of the force, had been half destroyed ; out of its 
 twenty-five officers who went into action at noon, thirteen 
 were laid out dead in one tent by the evening. The 14th Light 
 Dragoons, a regiment of historic fame, fell into confusion 
 amidst the jungle, and was carried back in a stampede upon 
 our own artillery. The enemy had closely pursued our cavalry, 
 and riding about amongst our artillery had sabred the gunners 
 at their guns. The British centre and left had indeed victori- 
 ously seized a large part of the enemy's position, capturing 
 many guns, but were unable, by reason of the supervening 
 darkness, to make good their advantage. Shortly afterwards 
 the enemy retook most of their guns, leaving a few only in our 
 hands. The night, after the battle, was spent by the British 
 army in distress and confusion. Next morning the enemy 
 retired, the British not renewing the attack, nor making any 
 pursuit. It further appeared that the British army had come 
 
Chap. hi. NEWS REGARDING BATTLE OF CHILIANWALA. 41 
 
 up within sight of the enemy during the forenoon, and 
 Lord Gough was believed to have formed a judicious plan 
 for giving battle on the next morning. Some movements on 
 the part of the enemy induced him to alter his plans and 
 deliver the attack at once, before the intervening ground could 
 be properly reconnoitred. Once again, it was said, the old 
 mistake had been committed of beginning the action too late 
 in the day. To this mistake were attributed the unfruitful 
 result of that victory — which, despite partial failure, had at 
 one moment been really achieved — the impossibility of securing 
 all the captured guns, and the nocturnal confusion which jeo- 
 pardized the safety of the whole force. 
 
 It is dif&cult to pourtray the grief and astonishment which 
 these tidings excited in the public mind. Indignation ran 
 high against Lord Gough, who was believed to have allowed his 
 hot blood and natural impetuosity to overcome the dictates of 
 his professional judgment. His so-called " Tipperary tactics," in 
 precipitating the battle, were freely denounced. It was expected 
 that the war would drag its tedious length along, and that he 
 would be superseded by orders from England. The newspaper 
 press teemed with lampoons and satires upon the conduct of 
 the campaign ; and when the British despatches describing the 
 battle appeared in the Gazette, counter-despatches were sati- 
 rically framed and published, as if coming from the Sikh 
 commanders, and relating in humorous terms the partial dis- 
 comfiture of the British. 
 
 The winter season, favourable for operations in the field, was 
 advancing towards its end, while Multan was still untaken, 
 and the main Sikh army was unbroken. But there soon came 
 the welcome tidings that Multan had fallen, and the rebel 
 Mulraj had surrendered himself after the British sappers had 
 approached the very gateway of his fortress, and when the 
 storming party was about to advance for the final assault. 
 Then were announced, first the crowning victory won by Gough 
 at Gujerat after an action deliberately fought, next the brilliant 
 pursuit of the flying enemy by Sir Walter Gilbert, and finally 
 the utter collapse of the Sikh insurrection. There was general 
 
42 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 rejoicing because Gough had been so fortunate as to put the 
 finishing stroke to the war before any successor to his command 
 could arrive from England. For Gough, despite transient dis- 
 satisfaction at his hotheadedness (real or supposed), was beloved 
 by the whole community, whether civil or military, both by 
 those who were and those who were not acquainted with him 
 personally. He was known to be quite aflame with martial 
 ardour, and to be as generous and self-devoting as he was 
 resolute and enduring. When his blood was cool, he was 
 declared by all competent observers to be an able strategist 
 and tactician. His energetic forwardness in action despite 
 increasing years, the dignity of his character and the nobihty 
 of his career endeared him to his countrymen in the East. 
 His promotion in the peerage as Viscount Gough set the seal 
 of royal approval to the popular esteem. 
 
 Meanwhile it became known that Sir Charles Napier had 
 been appointed Commander-in-Chief. The public judgment 
 in northern India had never been pronounced regarding his 
 political conduct in Sind ; but whatever were the merits or 
 demerits of liis proceedings there, he was believed to be the 
 hero of several hard-fought battles, and considered one of the 
 best soldiers living ; so his arrival was hailed with a hearty 
 welcome. 
 
 The war being over, there ensued a brief suspense respecting 
 the disposal of the Panjab, now finally subdued. The obstacles 
 to annexation were thought in diplomatic circles to be consider- 
 able ; and it was expected that Henry Lawrence (the Eesident 
 at Lahore) would do his best to save the Sikh dynasty. Still 
 the prevailing opinion was that Lord Dalhousie would, indeed 
 must, procure sanction from England to annex the whole Panjab. 
 Thus when he declared the province to be annexed he seemed 
 to be announcing that which was a foregone conclusion in the 
 public mind. 
 
 The annexation having been proclaimed, British officers were 
 immediately nominated for the administration of the new terri- 
 tory. The principal among these officers were taken from the 
 North-western Provinces, because the Panjab was contiguous to 
 
Chap. in. CHARACTER OF JAMES THOMASON. 43 
 
 those Provinces, having a partial (though not entire) affinity 
 with them in respect of race and language. Further, John 
 Lawrence, upon whose recommendation the selection of civil 
 officers for the annexed country was made by the Government, 
 thoroughly believed in the superior advantages of the North- 
 western Provinces, as a school for administration, over any other 
 part of India. Knowing well the qualities of the men in the ranks 
 whence he himself had been drawn, he sent for the best among 
 his old comrades to man what were at that moment regarded 
 as the posts of civil honour. Consequently several of the fore- 
 most officers in the ISTorth-western Provinces, Edward Thornton 
 (already mentioned), Eobert Montgomery and Donald Macleod, 
 regarding both of whom more will be written hereafter, and 
 others, were summoned to the Panjab. These events raised the 
 spirits and enlarged the ambition of the public service in the 
 North-western Provinces, of which Mr. Thomason was then the 
 Lieutenant-Governor, and made us all think that there was no 
 chief like him, and that to be counted among his men was a 
 passport to future distinction. 
 
 James Thomason had been Foreign Secretary to the Govern- 
 ment of India, when he was chosen by Lord Ellenborough to 
 be Lieutenant-Governor. When Ellenborough's judgment in 
 state affairs was sometimes called in question it would be urged 
 in reply that at least he shewed discernment and sagacity in 
 appointing Thomason to the highest post then in the gift of 
 the Governor- General. Thomason towered, metaphorically and 
 actually, a head and shoulders above his fellows ; his figure was 
 tall and spare, liis brow massive, his countenance thoughtful, his 
 utterance gentle. Though permanently lamed by an accident, 
 he preserved his bodily as well as mental energy. Being the 
 son of a well-known missionary, he had, as might be expected, 
 a devout and reverent bearing in all matters relating to re- 
 ligion. His religious sentiments, though never manifested in any 
 obtrusive way, permeated his whole existence. His Christian 
 example, adorning a high official station, and forming an attribute 
 of one so renowned for successful achievements, had an 
 influence which was not the less potent from being indirect. 
 
44 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 Underneath a mild and somewhat reserved manner he main- 
 tained an intensity of will, and a tenacity of purpose. He 
 took a pleasure in exercising his faculty of patient and con- 
 tinuous thought ; and having thus formed his resolves, he 
 adhered to them with unyielding perseverance. Having set 
 before himseK certain objects of f)olicy, he prosecuted them 
 unfalteringly, despite delay and disappointment, to their bene- 
 ficent end. He was slow and cautious in giving his confidence, 
 but it was unreserved when once given, and those who enjoyed 
 it knew that they could depend upon him absolutely. Though 
 simple in his tastes and habits, he was generously hospitable ; 
 and in respect to all works of charity, of benevolence, of moral 
 and religious improvement, he was unostentatiously and judi- 
 ciously munificent. His habitual composure and unbending 
 demeanour in public prevented him from becoming popular Math 
 his own countrymen. While he lacked some of the external 
 qualities which are usually associated with leadership, being 
 generally possessed by the dva^ avSpcov, and though he failed 
 to arouse enthusiasm on his side, he was in effect a leader 
 of men. 
 
 His acquirements in several branches of Oriental learning were 
 considerable, and but for his devotion to state affairs, he would 
 have become a great scholar. His loving pursuit of antiquarian 
 research was interrupted by his distracting avocations. Though 
 excelled by some in knowledge of India as a whole, he has never 
 been surpassed by any Englishman in acquaintance with the 
 Natives of northern India, both agricultural and commercial. 
 He felt a charitable considerateness for the failings and faults of 
 the Natives, a sympathetic appreciation of their merits and 
 virtues, and benevolent aspirations for their moral advancement. 
 He burned with a desire to elevate the masses of the population 
 by improving their material condition and by educating the 
 younger generation. He breathed into those who came in con- 
 tact with him something of his own passion for the national 
 weal and of his own faith in the future of the people. While 
 uniformly gracious towards the poor and the weak, he showed 
 towards the Native aristocracy a stiffness of manner and a 
 
Chap. in. HIS POWER OF ORGANIZATION. 45 
 
 reserve which might sometimes have been mistaken by them 
 for indifference or unkindness, though he never intended to 
 be otherwise than kind and sympathetic. While his name 
 ,was pleasantly familiar to the millions who lived under his 
 government, he hardly attracted the personal regard of the 
 upper classes. 
 
 It is therefore doubtful whether he would have been suc- 
 cessful if throwTi into the thick of political combinations and 
 diplomatic discussions in which persuasive address and unfailing 
 adroitness were needed. Perhaps his mind was not disposed 
 to turn towards those affairs which inevitably require the cold 
 eye and the iron hand. Though duly solicitous regarding the 
 management of the police and the repression of crime, he 
 scarcely evinced as much talent and aptitude for these as for 
 other branches of the administration. 
 
 He was actively assiduous in making tours and marching 
 from village to village and town to town throughout the 
 whole country, till at length there was hardly a place or 
 a road in an area of 70,000 square miles, scarcely a clan or 
 tribe in a population of 30 millions, with which he was not 
 acquainted. 
 
 The practical quality in which he was quite unrivalled may 
 be summed up as the faculty of systematizing. He set himseK 
 laboriously to learn how each kind of complex business should 
 be performed from beginning to end, from the lowest to the 
 highest step ; having done that, he would reduce all his know- 
 ledge to lucid statement, so that what had perhaps been hard to 
 him might be made easy to others. When he had thus instructed 
 his officers of all degrees, he was extraordinarily patient and 
 watchful in seeing that they acted up to his instructions. His 
 manuals for the guidance of settlement officers and revenue 
 officers, though partially superseded by the march of events, are 
 still monuments of sound erudition, and should be read by all who 
 woiild understand aright the peasantry and yeomanry of northern 
 India. He had caused to be prepared under his own eye the 
 draft of a Eevenue Code which comprised all the rules relating 
 to the land revenue, and which would, if passed into law, have 
 
46 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 given stability to the landed institutions of the country. Many 
 of the matters embraced therein have subsequently been taken 
 up by the Legislature. 
 
 He did not indeed originate the celebrated settlement of the 
 North-western Provinces, whereby the land revenue was fixed 
 on a scientific basis, and the rights and interests in land were 
 secured. The credit of that truly belongs to Holt Mackenzie and 
 Robert Mertins Bird. But he took up this great work, carried 
 its intentions into full effect, and rendered all its benefits avail- 
 able for the good of the people. Upon it, too, he founded a 
 complete yearly registration of tenures, village by village, for the 
 whole country. In his belief, the constitution of the village 
 communities in northern India possessed peculiar advantages, 
 derived power from its connexion with the historic past, 
 was suited to the clannish disposition of the most indus- 
 trious castes among the Hindus, maintained a spirit of self- 
 help, a fraternal sentiment and a bond of peace among the 
 members of widely extended families. He thought that in 
 it there lay the germs of self-government, the village being 
 the social unit. He was persuaded that its organization with 
 the elders and hereditary office-bearers might become the means 
 of effecting local or municipal improvements, and of perform- 
 ing a mass of work which, though demanded for the progress 
 of the country, could not be done by any other agency. 
 Some of his best minutes were written in vindication of the 
 village system when it was attacked as involving the principle 
 of jomt responsibility, whereby the brotherhood or community 
 became responsible for the fiscal obligations of the thriftless or 
 insolvent members. 
 
 He was strict in defining the powers and duties of landlords, 
 the relations between superior and inferior proprietors, the rights 
 of occupancy cultivators, the position of tenants at will. Being, 
 on the whole, a decided advocate of tenant-right wherever 
 existing by local usage, he was anxious that this right should 
 involve fixity of tenure with a fair rent, and was vigilant to curb 
 the tyrannical by protecting the weak. Apprehending that in 
 the then state of rural society there would be danger of extortion 
 
Chap. III. HIS POLICY TOWARDS THE AGRICULTURISTS. 47 
 
 or oppression being occasionally practised by landlords, be acted 
 essentially as the poor man's friend. His policy was, after enquiry, 
 to determine and define what the superior might demand from 
 the inferior, so that the former might know the limit of exaction 
 and the latter might be secure against any transgression of that 
 limit. He regarded indefiniteness of demand as one of the banes 
 of the past and as the fruitful parent of tyranny. He deemed it 
 his mission to see that certainty was substituted for uncertainty 
 in this respect, a measure which would prove the palladium of 
 the feeble against the strong. Such ideas were approved by the 
 majority of the best men of his day ; but soon after his death 
 opinion veered round towards the view that this policy had 
 gone too far in a direction adverse to the upper classes, was 
 calculated to provoke some reasonable discontent, and might 
 even be fraught with political risk. Thus distrust began to 
 be expressed by some regarding what was called " the Thoma- 
 sonian school " of administrators. Had Thomason lived, he 
 would have employed all his consummate knowledge and argu- 
 mentative power to prove that his enquiries had been fairly 
 conducted respecting matters into which the Government was 
 equitably bound to enquire, and that while vindicating the 
 status of the inferior he had shewn due consideration to the 
 superior. Having established the equity of his case, he would 
 have told his assailants to be just and fear not. 
 
 All authorities aver that the agricultural classes gladly 
 acquiesce in British rule, and, as was afterwards proved by 
 many instances during the disturbances of 1857, entertain a 
 friendly feeling towards the English officers who have been 
 employed among them. But none believe fully that even by 
 the most thoughtful and benevolent management can those 
 classes be induced to render an actively patriotic support to any 
 foreign Government. Thomason however was nearer to this 
 belief than any statesman I ever met. His ambition was to 
 attach the masses heartily to our rule as one for which it was 
 worth their while to fight if required ; and had such a result 
 been attainable by any English ruler in India, he would have 
 attained it. 
 
48 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iii. 
 
 An ably written article on the purposes, progress, completion 
 and results of the settlement was ^vritten in the Calcutta 
 Bcview by the trusted and valued Secretary to his Government, 
 John Thornton. This treatise should be consulted by all who 
 are interested in the social and economic affairs of northern 
 India. 
 
 Thomason was the father of primary education by the State 
 in northern India ; no matter lay nearer to his heart than tliis. 
 In those days there were no departments of public instruction 
 nor any educational funds, but by earnest importunity he obtained 
 a permanent grant from the treasury for education, and caused 
 a moderate rate to be imposed on the land for the support of 
 village schools. He held that men would never be fit for the 
 position of peasant proprietors which had been assured to them 
 by the recent settlement, until they acquired the rudiments of 
 knowledge. 
 
 He took to heart the lessons of the famine of 1837, having 
 witnessed the consequences of that visitation, and did his 
 utmost to promote the artificial irrigation of thirsty soils by 
 excavating wells and damming up streams so as to form reser- 
 voirs or lakes. He was the influential and persistent advocate 
 of the large system of irrigation represented by the Ganges 
 Canal. Although the honour of originating the project of that 
 great canal belongs mainly to those who designed the works, yet 
 the engineers would have been the first to acknowledge their 
 obligations to him on whose co-operation the fulfilment of the 
 design so much depended. It was chiefly through his advocacy 
 that the Government of India, then under Lord EUenborough, 
 and afterwards under Lord Hardinge, was induced to sanction 
 the preliminary outlay necessary for this undertaking. He met 
 with a more ready and sympathetic response from the next 
 Governor-General, Lord Dalhousie, and then the affairs of the 
 canal advanced with the full tide of fortune. He founded a 
 college of civil engineering at Rurki near the head works of 
 the Ganges Canal, an institution which bears his name. Its 
 main purpose was to train the Natives for taking part 
 in the material improvement of their country, and for doing 
 
Chap. III. SUMMARY OF HIS PUBLIC CONDUCT. 49 
 
 useful work as engineers and surveyors on canals and roads. 
 He paid so much attention to the bridging and macadam- 
 izing of the roads, that in his jurisdiction the communications 
 were the best of their day in all India, greatly facilitating the 
 through traffic with Calcutta, until in their turn they were 
 superseded by the railway. 
 
 He can hardly be said to have formed the great school of 
 administrators in the North-western Provinces, which was 
 virtually established by some of those who preceded him, 
 especially by Mertins Bird. But he developed and confirmed it, 
 identifying himself with its ideas, and securing for it that fame 
 and consideration which are among the passports to public 
 success. He had just been appointed Governor of Madras by 
 the Court of Directors, and a new sera of administrative vigour 
 was anticipated for southern India, when he died after a few 
 days' illness in the midst of the provinces he had loved so well. 
 The Governor-General, Lord Dalhousie, commemorated the event 
 in a " Gazette extraordinary " with words of nervous yet grace- 
 ful eloquence. The crash of events consequent on the war of 
 the mutinies, and the changes which thereupon swept over the 
 land, probably prevented a full history of his masterly adminis- 
 tration being prepared at the time. A brief but very interesting 
 memoir of him appeared in the Calcutta Review from the pen 
 of William Muir, who was Secretary to his Government at 
 the time of his death, and copious selections from his public 
 despatches were published. He perhaps became regarded as one 
 belonging to a bygone sera, though truly his example is one 
 which ought to be kept before the eyes of coming generations 
 of public officers. But even the best memoir would fail to 
 express adequately the affectionate respect for him which 
 survives in the recollection of those who saw him doing his 
 daily work. In their memories his conversation, whether fired 
 with zeal for the common welfare, or gently beaming with 
 charity and benevolence, forms a sunny spot on which perpetual 
 light seems to rest. John Lawrence in the days of his great- 
 ness would often declare that as a civil administrator he drooped 
 his flag to Thomason. When receiving decorations in after 
 
 E 
 
50 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. in. 
 
 years, Montgomery said that he felt almost unworthy, because 
 Thomason had died undecorated. In considering Thomason's 
 place among the British wortliies of India, we must remember 
 that he was essentially an administrator in time of peace, that 
 lie was not tried in those grave emergencies and political 
 crises wherein eminent Civil Servants in India have often been 
 engaged, that he had not to coerce martial tribes, nor to pacify 
 turbulent territories. He wiU therefore be placed in a rank 
 different from that of such Anglo-Indian statesmen as Warren 
 Hastings, Charles (Lord) Metcalfe, Mountstuart Elphinstone, 
 and John (Lord) Lawrence, who have shone under difficulties 
 other than those of quiet times. His proceedings in many con- 
 troverted matters relatmg to landed tenures have been assailed, 
 and his authority in some questions has been disputed, but his 
 policy stands the test of time in the judgment of the best 
 informed. He set before himself certain objects— the com- 
 pletion of the land settlement, the registration of tenures, the 
 beginning of primary education, the extension of irrigation, the 
 improvement of roads and communications, the instruction of 
 the Natives in civil engineering — and he accomplished them. 
 These things he intended to do, and he did them aU before he 
 died, though Ms death was sudden and premature. Thus in 
 discharging the strictly professional duties of the Civil Service 
 in the widest field, in managing extensive provinces, in promoting 
 the cause of progress and enlightenment among the Natives, he 
 was one of the strongest men that ever served the British 
 Government in the East. 
 
( 51 ) 
 
 CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 (1849-1853.) 
 DUUMVIRATE IN THE PANJAB OF THE LAWKENCE BROTHERS, 
 
 Journey to the Panjab — First visit to Simla — Settlement work — Impressions 
 regarding Lahore — Board of Administration for the Panjab — Henry and 
 John Lawrence, contrast between the two — Transition from Native to 
 British rule — Trans-Indus border and Panjab frontier force — Protected 
 Native States — Native aristocracy under the British system — Internal 
 administration — Development of material resources — Provincial finance — 
 Popularity of system pursued by the Board — Its characteristics and 
 results. 
 
 I TARRIED for three years in the North-western Provinces, in 
 order to complete my official education under Thomason ; and 
 then joined, in 1851, John Lawrence's party in the Panjab as 
 one of the settlement officers for the newly annexed country. 
 There was a twofold attraction impelling young Civil Servants 
 towards this change of masters. To us the Panjab loomed 
 grandly as the land of promise ; it afforded scope for displaying 
 individuality, and perhaps for carving out the path of a con- 
 siderable career. The very atmosphere of the country nourished 
 a spirit of adventure ; the people were known to have in their 
 character the hard grit and high stomach which demand the 
 governing faculty that Englishmen instinctively love to exercise. 
 Then the " settlement " was esteemed as the " blue ribbon " of 
 civil employment. To be chosen for it by John Lawrence was 
 an honour which made the pulse beat high. The land revenue 
 was to be assessed for a term of thirty years, and the landed 
 tenures were to be determined after the model of the North- 
 western Provinces. These various operations were comprehended 
 under the term " settlement." Thus the importance of the work 
 
 E 2 
 
52 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 entrusted to a settlement officer was manifest in a country where 
 the agricultural interest overshadowed all other interests. 
 
 Having received a farewell letter from Thomason, which still 
 shines like the evening star in my recollection, I started for the 
 Jalander district, lying between the rivers Satlej and Beas. On 
 my way I saw the Ganges Canal, that wonderful channel which 
 attests the engineering genius of Sir Proby Cautley. The canal 
 leads the river gently from its bed near the sacred Hardwar — next 
 carries it by tunnels through opposing spurs of hills, then under- 
 neath one stream, again by an aqueduct over another, and so 
 through deep cuttings in undulating ground to the open country 
 at last. Within the plains I admired its breadth of 200 feet, 
 its belts of umbrageous trees on either bank, and the zone of 
 verdure which marked its beneficent course through thirsty 
 tracts. Travelling on, I passed the Satlej without difficulty ; its 
 bed was some miles in breadth, and intersected by several 
 parallel streams which were crossed by boat bridges. It is now 
 spanned by a long railway viaduct, the erection of which has 
 cost infinite trouble by reason of the destructive floods. The 
 journey being made in the lovely weather of an Indian winter, 
 I caught my first view of the Himalayas just after a fall 
 of snow had whitened the hillsides. Like many other travellers 
 I instinctively raised my hat to salute the peerless mountains. 
 
 Arrived at Jalander I received charge of the settlement from 
 Hercules Scott, who was about to return to England by reason 
 of ill-health. He was a man much esteemed by John Lawrence 
 and very popular with the Natives, quite one of the Panjab 
 school of administrators which was then being formed. Having 
 after several busy and laborious months brought my work to a 
 forward stage, I repaired to Simla to make the personal acquaint- 
 ance of John La\\Tence, and to be presented to Lord Dalhousie. 
 At this time I also met Sir Charles Napier, who having arrived 
 in India as Commander-in-Chief was busily inspecting the troops 
 and their stations, and zealously supervising all matters relating 
 to the welfare and discipline of the army. 
 
 At Simla the season had passed when the mountain-side is 
 reddened with the flower of the rhododendron ; but the woods. 
 
Chap. IV. THE PEOPLE OF THE PANJAB. 53 
 
 consisting of cedar, pine and oak, struck my sight so long accus- 
 tomed to scantily wooded plains, and the forest-clad summits 
 made me realize the beauty of the Homeric epithet " elvoac- 
 <^vWo<i." At some hours the horizon displayed itself in a long 
 line of snowy peaks glistening from afar in the sunlight. Then 
 the rainy season was ushered in by thunder-claps reverberating 
 through the mountains, while clouds gathered in stately 
 masses. I felt bewildered by the mighty scale of the scenery 
 and the magnificence of the atmospheric phenomena. Thus 
 I descended to the familiar plains once more with my memory 
 full of the grandest images and my nerves braced for resuming 
 work. 
 
 Returning to my station at Jalander, I proceeded with the 
 work of the settlement, visiting the villages and becoming 
 acquainted with the rural chiefs, the village communities, the 
 peasant proprietors and the cultivators. The district had now 
 been for several years under British rule. The people seemed 
 to me to be more manly and straightforward than those whom 
 I had left behind me in the North-western Provinces. Their 
 idiosyncrasies were strongly marked ; their physique was large 
 and powerful. In many villages the men were tall enough to 
 furnish recruits for grenadier regiments. As the territory lay 
 near the junction of two rivers (the Satlej and the Beas), the 
 land was fertile, the cultivation and the crops were good, and the 
 homesteads were thriving. I shortly afterwards went to see 
 my superior officer Donald Macleod, the Commissioner, who 
 was at Dharmsala in the neighbouring Himalayas. Dharmsala 
 is at the head of a lovely valley, which has quite a network of 
 watercourses for the irrigation of the rice-fields. Around it are 
 the forest-clad sides and spurs of precipitous mountains, above 
 wMch in open weather there shine the everlasting snows. It 
 is now memorable as the place whither Lord Elgin, stricken by 
 sudden illness, was carried to die. On the way the hill fortress 
 of Kangra was seen rising up, a mass frowning in the midst 
 of a gorge and overhanging a hill torrent. Wliile I was at 
 Dharmsala, Macleod earnestly impressed on me the importance 
 of assessing the land revenue in a moderate manner, and of 
 
54 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 consulting the opinions of the best-informed native agriculturists 
 after making my own calculations. 
 
 In the Jalander district the magistrate was Lieutenant (after- 
 wards Sir Herbert) Edwardes. He had been in diplomatic 
 employment on the Trans-Indus frontier, when there occurred 
 at Multan that outbreak which led to the second Panjab war. 
 He subsequently published a graphic narrative of his ex- 
 perience at that critical time. A disciple of Henry Lawrence, 
 though much attached to John Lawrence also, he was a typical 
 man of the then rising Panjab school. His companionship was 
 diverting and enlivening ; his racy and humorous conversation 
 lent a peculiar charm to his society. Though still young in 
 years he was a soldier of proved courage and capacity, and a 
 diplomatist of much experience among turbulent native tribes. 
 He was a bright-gleaming man, with a rich imagination, a 
 poetic temperament, and a rare talent for English composition 
 with choice language and lucid array of facts. Yet he was a 
 steady counsellor in grave conjunctures, and full of fire in the 
 presence of danger. Afterwards, as Commissioner of Peshawar, 
 he proved a tower of strength to the state during the crisis 
 of 1857. He was esteemed by John Lawrence to be a man 
 eqvial to very high offices, and worthy of the Lieutenant- 
 Governorship of the Panjab in due course if opportunity should 
 offer. Later he began to write a life of Henry Lawrence — to 
 him a labour of love — with complete knowledge of his most 
 interesting subject, and with much historic skill. But untimely 
 death snatched him away while he was in England, during the 
 flower of his age, cutting short his literary work and the pro- 
 mise of his political career. 
 
 The settlement being nearly completed at Jalander, I pro- 
 ceeded, in the beginning of 1862, to Lahore, the capital of the 
 Panjab, in order to conduct similar operations in the adjacent dis- 
 tricts. On the way the sacred tank of Amritsur was visited, where 
 men are baptized into the Sikh faith, and in the midst of which 
 there stands the gilded temple dazzling the sight in the noon- 
 day glare, and venerated by the Sikhs as the holiest of holies. 
 Approaching Lahore I saw the elaborate but somewhat gaudy 
 
Chap. IV. CHAEACTER OF HENRY LAWRENCE. 55 
 
 tomb of Eanjit Sing, the Lion King, as it nestled quietly in 
 tlie shadow of a towering fortress. Near at hand stood the 
 mosque erected by a Mogul emperor in a sombre and massive 
 style; it then was, as it had long been, used for a military 
 magazine, but has since been restored to the priests for worship. 
 Then crossing the river I visited the mausoleum of which the 
 minarets form landmarks for many miles round, and which 
 was erected by the Mogul empress (one of the heroines in 
 Moore's Lalla BoohJi) in memory of her imperial husband, after 
 he died on his way down from Cashmir. The river Eavi close 
 by was then crossed by a bridge of boats ; it is now spanned 
 by a railway viaduct. The contemplation of interesting objects 
 like these imbues a young ofiicer with affection for the province 
 to which he is about to devote his energies. 
 
 At Lahore I reported myseK to the Board of Administration, 
 to whom the management of the Panjab had been entrusted by 
 Lord Dalhousie. The President of the Board M^as Sir Henry 
 LawTence, the senior member was John Lawrence ; the 
 junior member was Eobert Montgomery, who had recently 
 succeeded C. G. Mansel in that capacity. The Board had 
 then been at the head of the province for two years and 
 a half, and the time had come for them to render an account 
 of their stewardsliip by causing a general report to be prepared. 
 I was employed under their immediate direction in preparing 
 the document which became afterwards known as "the first 
 Panjab Eeport." Thus I was brought into confidential com- 
 munication with Henry Lawrence, and had close relations with 
 John Lawrence and Montgomery. 
 
 Taken all in all, Henry Lawrence was one of the most 
 gifted men whom this generation has beheld in India. His 
 appearance betokened an impulsive disposition and a restless 
 energy. His manner though sometimes shadowed by melan- 
 choly, was often brightened with Hibernian vivacity. His active 
 and somewhat attenuated frame seemed a prison-house which 
 had been gradually worn away by the fluttering of the eager 
 soul within. Though far from precise in trivial matters, he 
 had a natural dignity of mien. In the field or on horseback he 
 
56 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, iv, 
 
 was indefatigable, evincing mucli endurance in all vicissitudes 
 of weather. In the cabinet he would despatch affairs by 
 spasmodic exertion, rather than by system or method. He was 
 ambitious in the pure and lofty sense of the term ; for he 
 wished to earn praise by deserving gratitude. Though gener- 
 ously hospitable, and anxious to maintain the state suitable to 
 his position, he was simple in his tastes and almost Spartan 
 in liis habits. He had an imaginative temperament, something 
 of poetic inspiration, and an aptitude for literary culture. His 
 arguments, whether oral or written, were incisive, his language 
 always racy, and his phrases sometimes sarcastic. He knew 
 mankind individually and collectively, both English and Indian. 
 He could analyze the elements of Native thought and sentiment, 
 and his discernment of the temper of Native chiefs and courts 
 was unfailing. His letters and despatches regarding the dis- 
 position and tendencies of Native States were striking and 
 instructive. His ear was sensitive to the voice of distress 
 when he moved among the humbler classes of the Natives. 
 His compassionate benevolence extended to all whose circum- 
 stances were fraught with difficulties and temptations. He 
 took a deep interest in the welfare of the European troops 
 in India, and devoted much of his hard-earned means to 
 institutions for the benefit of soldiers' orphans. With him 
 sentiment was allowed quite as much play as reason, the two 
 holding, as it were, equal sway — a " divisum imperium." It 
 would be but feeble praise to say that he confronted danger 
 with moral courage, for he was inflamed with ardour to en- 
 counter grave emergencies, though he calmed down to sober 
 judgment when actually face to face with them. Having much 
 military knowledge, some diplomatic and political experience of 
 the best sort, a general acquaintance with civil affairs, and a 
 far-reaching ken of most pubUc questions, — he thoroughly 
 understood the elements of danger or security, strength or 
 weakness, which pervade our Eastern empire. His prime 
 faculties were an insight into the characters of men, and a 
 power of endearing himself to all whom he had chosen as 
 coadjutors. No Anglo- Indian statesman within living memory 
 
Chap. IV. CHAEACTER OF JOHN LAWRENCE. 57 
 
 has had so distinguished a clientele as he ; a truly noble com- 
 pany, consisting of officers whom he had selected for their 
 qualities of head and heart, to render service in arduous fields 
 of duty or in enterprises of moment. With them the ordinary 
 motives of subordination were merged in the feeling of affection 
 for him. In fine, throughout his nature there burned the 
 unquenchable flame of genius. 
 
 In his estimation of administrators he naturally leaned 
 towards those who, like himself, had been drawn from the 
 army ; such men as Herbert Edwardes, James Abbott, Edward 
 Lake, John Nicholson, Eeynell Taylor, John Becher, Hugh 
 James, Frederick Mackeson, George Macgregor, who were 
 worthy of the confidence placed in them, who were typical men 
 of the " soldier-civilian " class— to borrow Sir Charles Napier's 
 expression — and of whom some are remembered by history. 
 There were also Covenanted Civil Servants who won his regard 
 by reason of their popularity with the Natives ; such men were 
 George Barnes, Arthur Cocks, George Christian, and, at a some- 
 what later date, Charles Eaikes. 
 
 John Lawrence, though possessing some qualities in common 
 with his brother — zeal, energy, resolution " rebus in arduis " — 
 was yet a man of a different type. His career appealed in a lesser 
 degree to the popular imagination. His genius did not manifest 
 itself quite so quickly. The fire within him did not kindle so 
 readily, and, when excited, burnt slower. He had not the same 
 glow of sentiment and aptitude for literary expression. But he 
 was a bold and vigorous writer, as Lord Dalhousie, an excellent 
 judge on such a point, used to declare. He was, in his inner 
 mind, much impressed by the solenm truths of religion, and 
 year by year his thoughts seemed to assume more and more of a 
 religious cast. Those who saw him only during the latter 
 part of his life may have found his physical form somewhat 
 shrunken. But in those days he had a broad, stout and 
 powerful build. His face, already furrowed by the lines which 
 mental and moral effort often imprint on the features, was 
 frank and open. His manner and conversation, though some- 
 what stern when he was actually at work, were cheerful, almost 
 
58 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 jovial, when he was at leisure. In civil affairs he was imbued 
 with all the knowledge characteristic of Thomason's school 
 in the North-western Provinces already described. During 
 recent years he liad acquired political and diplomatic experience 
 under circumstances of severe trial. He had been brought much 
 in contact with soldiers, and would bestow all the time and atten- 
 tion he possibly could upon military affairs. While he preached 
 the doctrine that civil employment is a profession demanding 
 lifelong devotion, and thoroughly practised his preaching, yet 
 at times he seemed almost to have mistaken his profession, so 
 much aptitude and fondness did he display for the art of war. 
 
 The prevailing sentiment in his public life was a love for 
 duty. Though his temper was strong, and on occasion warm, 
 yet in his nature judgment and reason reigned supreme. As 
 a subsidiary element, caution was present with him in the 
 highest degTee, and there never was in India a more cautious 
 statesman than he. It being an object of the first import- 
 ance with him to foresee the course of all affairs, he re- 
 membered that prescience could be acquired only by careful 
 reflection. He was never tired of affirming that fore- 
 thought was among the primary duties of public servants, and 
 that the man who was endowed largely with the power of 
 exercising such forethought, possessed one of the essential 
 requisites for success. To weigh both sides of every question 
 evenly and strike the balance, to eliminate passion favour 
 prejudice or misleading sentiment, and fix the gaze on exact 
 justice alone, were maxims uppermost in his mind. He acted 
 according to this principle in judging of the conduct and 
 character of officers whose fate he held in the hollow of his 
 hand. Individuals may be sometimes condemned and set aside 
 altogether on account of some salient faults, notwithstanding 
 their deserts in many respects ; but he would say, such and such 
 an one, though having this or that imperfection no doubt, had 
 real merit in other ways, and therefore must not be excluded. 
 Again, men may be, on account of some conspicuous qualities, 
 placed in positions where success is marred by some failings 
 which ought not to have been overlooked ; but he, while 
 
OFFICIAL EELATIONS OF THE LAWRENCE BROTHERS. 59 
 
 recognizing the high qualification, would duly note the counter- 
 balancing defect. But to those who, notwithstanding their 
 gifts and accomplishments, lacked the fundamental condition 
 of zeal for public duty, he would shew no consideration. In 
 equitable discrimination of the diverse moral and intellectual 
 qualities of the numerous subordinates under his command he 
 has not been surpassed by any man of his generation in India. 
 He did not at that time arouse so much enthusiasm as his 
 brother among large numbers of men, nor win so extensive a 
 popularity. But he was respected by all, admired by most, and 
 beloved by many. 
 
 While the third member of the Board was pushing on the 
 wheels of administration, there was in many respects a duum- 
 virate of the Lawrence brothers in the Panjab. Nevertheless 
 the " par nobile fratrum " did not look at all public affairs from 
 the same standpoint. Henry was proud of his position as 
 President, and anxious to keep it. If only he could have his 
 way in some matters deemed by him to be paramount, or in 
 respect of certain interests which he felt bound to guard, he 
 was wUling to lean on the support of his brother ia civil affairs. 
 But John was not quite satisfied with his position as senior 
 member of the Board. Wliile admiring his brother's poKcy in 
 many respects, he thought it to be fraught with some tendencies 
 likely to embarrass the administration. While fuUy holding 
 his own in civil affairs, he could seldom brook interposition 
 on the part of the President. Sometimes when he had 
 been stationary at Lahore working up some difficult question, 
 liis brother, who had perhaps been making tours beyond the 
 Indus or on the Cashmir frontier, would arrive at headquarters 
 and raise his voice in the matter. Thus John began to entertain 
 the desire of exchanging his post for one of lesser status, where 
 he could exercise a limited but comparatively absolute sway. 
 At one time it was believed that both brothers had intimated 
 to Lord Dalhousie their willingness that one of them should 
 quit the Panjab, leaving the field clear for the other. But the 
 Governor-General apparently thought that the presence of each 
 was needed for the general good of the province, and that the 
 
60 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 time had not yet come for parting them. Although the 
 friction never caused any estrangement, still both brothers 
 grieved at it, and strove to prevent its appearance before the 
 world. Henry respected John's opinion, and was anxious, if 
 possible, to have it arrayed on his own side. John admired 
 Henry's genius, and was glad, whenever he conscientiously 
 could, to bring his solid aid to its support. They believed 
 themselves, when united, to be more than a match for all 
 comers. For instance. Sir Charles Napier having formerly 
 vanquished many opponents with his speech and pen, as well 
 as with his sword, ran a tilt of words against the Panjab Board. 
 Then, indeed, the Lawrence brothers rose together for their 
 common defence, and repelled the doughty old warrior with 
 masterly and conclusive minutes. 
 
 It is well to summarize here the points whereon Henry and 
 John Lawrence were agreed and those on which they differed. 
 
 They were in the main of one mind, then, as to the necessity 
 of holding the new British border trans-Indus in fully armed 
 strength, conciliating those tribes which were tameable, and 
 punishing those untameable tribes which gave us unjustifiable 
 offence, the principle being : — 
 
 " Parcere subjectis et debellare sui^erbos." 
 
 There was entire accord between them respecting the military 
 defence and occupation of the province, and regarding the 
 measures necessary for the speedy establishment of order 
 amongst a sturdy population in some degree barbarized by wars 
 or disturbances. There was a tolerable, though not perfect, 
 agreement betwixt them regarding the political relations with 
 the larger Native States comprised within the Panjab and its 
 dependencies, the preliminary steps for the settling of the land 
 revenue, and the initiation of public works for material im- 
 provement. They were both anxious that the administration 
 should be rendered popular with the Natives. Henry preferred 
 the patriarchal style, whereby the European ofl&cer sitting in the 
 shade of a banyan tree might dispense justice while in familiar 
 converse with the rustic throng around him. John, as might 
 
Chap. IV. TREATMENT OF THE NATIVE ARISTOCRACY. 61 
 
 be expected, knew that besides riding about tlie country an 
 officer must be for hours at his desk poring over returns, 
 and patiently sit on the bench hearing Natives argue about 
 the meaning of a regulation. Still they both agreed that con- 
 tact with the people out of doors, and also assiduous attention 
 to business indoors, were necessary to make an administrator 
 efficient. They were entirely united in their hopeful desire that 
 " forwards " should be the motto of the Panjab administration, 
 and that their province, profiting by all the valuable experience 
 of the past, yet avoiding the mistakes which, despite good in- 
 tentions, had been made elsewhere, should move in the very 
 van of all the provinces in India. 
 
 But they differed primarily in respect to the treatment of the 
 Native aristocracy on the introduction of British rule. The 
 question as to how much should be conceded by the State to 
 these important classes, and how much withheld from them, 
 has ever been, perhaps still is, the crux of the British Govern- 
 ment in India. Such conflicting principles form a sort of 
 dilemma from which there is no complete escape. Some com- 
 promise between these principles has been attained during 
 recent years, chiefly through the operation of time. But in 
 those days the difference was sharply defined, and Henry took 
 up one of the opposing principles while John held to the other. 
 The root of the matter, around which so much controversy 
 raged, may be stated in this wise. Under Native rule the land 
 revenue belonged to, and was the mainstay of, the State. The 
 ruler or sovereign would assign temporarily to his chieftains the 
 land revenue of certain villages, or whole tracts of territory, 
 on the condition of feudal service, chiefly military, being ren- 
 dered. This service is not wanted under British rule, and 
 cannot be maintained ; then the question arises whether the 
 assignment of the land revenue is to be continued. Similarly, 
 allowances in cash from the State treasury are made to local 
 chiefs in consideration of duty nominal or real being performed. 
 This duty cannot be accepted under British rule, and a discus- 
 sion springs up regarding the extent to which the allowances are 
 to be upheld. When these cases exist on a large scale, involving 
 
62 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 extensive interests, it will be seen at a glance that there is much 
 room for divergence of opinion between statesmen equally able 
 humane and conscientious. Henry thought that liberal conces- 
 sions ought to be made to these feudal classes, for the sake of 
 the moral effect to be produced on the people by the example of 
 considerateness on the part of the conquerors, and for reasons of 
 policy in allaying discontent among influential sections of the 
 community. The greater part of the former grants ought to be 
 continued, although the obligation of service might be remitted. 
 This must be effected, despite the financial cost which such 
 arrangements might involve. John would rejoin that these 
 grants must at once be curtailed, and provision should be made 
 for their cessation on the demise of present incumbents. The 
 Government could not bear the double expense of continuing 
 grants for the old service just dispensed with, and of defraying 
 the charges of the new service then to be introduced. Justice to 
 the people at large required an economical management of the 
 finances, without special regard to any particular class. 
 
 Eegarding these affairs the opinions of John, rather than of 
 Henry, found favour with Lord Dalhousie, and in the end pre- 
 vailed. Henry, however, displayed to the Chiefs all the compas- 
 sion of a friend who had known them in better days. When the 
 concessions claimed for them had been in part refused, he would 
 stiU beg something more for every one of them, and would 
 contest for them their losing cause. It was said of him that he 
 looked as if he bore the scars from the countless wounds of 
 disappointment suffered on behalf of his Native friends. 
 
 Next there was some difference of opinion between Henry 
 and John, respecting the land revenue, the largest of all internal 
 matters in the province. Under Native rule, this revenue 
 had been collected sometimes in cash and sometimes in kind. 
 After the annexation, the British Government proclaimed that 
 it should be levied always in cash ; and, inasmuch as the 
 collection in kind was notoriously liable to oppressive abuses, 
 this proclamation was in the first instance well received 
 by the people. But two years later, the showers, usual in 
 winter, were extraordinarily abundant and propitious ; con- 
 
Chap. iv. PREPARATION OF THE FIRST PANJAB REPORT. 63 
 
 sequently the yield on poorly cultivated lands was luxuriant, 
 equalling that of fields on which agricultural capital had been 
 expended. There was an unprecedented glut of grain in the 
 market ; prices were unremunerative to the producers who had 
 temporary dif&cvilty in realizing cash wherewith to pay the 
 revenue. The tax-payers then having more gram on their 
 hands than they could conveniently dispose of, desired to pay 
 their fiscal dues in that commodity, and began in many places 
 to agitate for a return to the old system of payment in kind. 
 Henry having heard much of this agitation during his tours, 
 was inclined to yield to it, in some districts at least, m order to 
 satisfy the people. John set his face against any inroad being at- 
 tempted upon a fundamental part of the British system, affirm- 
 ing that payment in cash was based on the results of universal 
 experience in India, and that the policy of the Government 
 would be stultified if it were partially abandoned on the first 
 shock of difficulties which, with patience, could be overcome. 
 
 The third point of divergence related to financial management. 
 Henry ardently aspired to initiate and push forward all im- 
 provements conducive to progress and civilization. He knew 
 indeed that these would be expensive, but he anticipated that 
 difficulties on the score of expense would sooner or later right 
 themselves, and that the State would ultimately recoup itself 
 for its outlay by the benefits which must follow. John equally 
 desired the improvements, but he held that the prosecution of 
 all such projects must be regulated by the financial means 
 available in the country. He was convinced that the province 
 ought to be made to defray from its revenues the cost of the 
 civil and political administration, and also contribute something 
 towards the charges for its military defence. He feared that his 
 brother's policy, if unchecked, would interfere with the consum- 
 mation of this result. 
 
 Notwithstanding all these circumstances, I found no difficulty 
 during 1852 in drafting a general report on the Board's ad- 
 ministration in which its three members concurred, and of 
 which they themselves wrote some portions. Nothing could be 
 more cordial and laudatory than Lord Dalhousie's reply 
 
64 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 acknowledging the vast work which the Board had accom- 
 plished in a short time. The narrative of facts, when pub- 
 lished shortly afterwards, was regarded by the public as 
 redounding to the honour of the Board and of its many subor- 
 dinates. It was believed, however, in other parts of the empire 
 that the Panjab officers entertained, though they did not express, 
 a faith in the superiority of their province over its neighbours. 
 This caused inter-provincial emulation which was healthy, also 
 some jealousy which led to detraction of the Panjab. ISTever- 
 theless the land of the Lawrences was known by all men to be 
 the most advancing province of India at that time. 
 
 Early in the following year, the news came like a thunder- 
 bolt to the effect that Henry would be translated to a great 
 political and diplomatic post (in the States of Eajputana), 
 that the Board was to be abolished, and in its place a new 
 administration set up with John as the sole chief. Though 
 the secret had been well kept. Lord Dalhousie must for 
 some time have been maturing this intention. In most of 
 the discussions between Henry and John, the Governor-General 
 had probably agreed in the main with John's views. He 
 deemed that the conditions which demanded Henry's special 
 experience and ability were passmg away, and that the develop- 
 ment of the province would require the trained aptitude for civil 
 affairs which John pre-eminently possessed. 
 
 The divergence between the brothers respecting some official 
 matters in nowise affected their fraternal regard. The points 
 whereon they differed were not nearly equal to those whereon 
 they were in accord. Two men of powerful and independent 
 minds cannot always agree in affairs involving diverse prin- 
 ciples. Their discussions served to bring out into strong relief 
 the noble qualities belonging to each of them. There never was 
 a brighter example of mutual love and admiration between 
 brothers than that afforded by Henry and John Lawrence. 
 
 The third member of the Board was C. G. Mansel, whom I 
 never met ; he was succeeded by Mr. (now Sir Eobert) Mont- 
 gomery, with whom I M'as so fortunate as to become intimately 
 acquainted. 
 
Chap. IV. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRINCIPAL OFFICERS. 65 
 
 Montgomery was also an officer of the Tliomason school, 
 and had a thoroughly practical acquaintance with every part 
 of his profession. Benevolence and good-humour beamed 
 in his countenance ; while cheerfulness brightened all his 
 ways. He was an excellent man of business, ever ready and 
 dexterous, without disturbing himself or others. This un- 
 hesitating promptitude gave him a remarkable power for 
 despatching affairs in the mass. His moral courage was soon 
 evinced on many occasions of anxiety. Experience after- 
 wards shewed, in May 1857, that he would rise to the level 
 of emergencies with alacrity, yet with calmness, and con- 
 front the most critical danger with a smiling face. In respect 
 to religion he was unostentatiously devout, setting a good 
 example to the community. He enjoyed a wide popularity 
 among all classes ; and by those who had close relations 
 with him he was beloved. During his boyhood he had been 
 brought up at the same school with Henry and John LaAn^ence. 
 It was a strange chance that brought liim now in contact with 
 them during these important stages in their careers ; and he 
 was peculiarly suited to mediate in questions between them. 
 John Lawrence always spoke of hmi as his brother in old 
 association and comrade in administration. 
 
 Such was the character of the men who were at the head of 
 the administration in the Panjab during several years after the 
 annexation. That administration had great credit on the spot 
 and much fame throughout India ; it received warm commenda- 
 tions from the Governor-General and the authorities in England ; 
 also it is regarded, on an historical retrospect, as a brilliant 
 episode in British Indian annals. The particulars of it, how- 
 ever, become gradually lost to memory from lapse of time ; and 
 enquirers may now ask what where the causes which led to its 
 celebrity. 
 
 The primary cause was the rapidity and facility with which 
 British rule was established in a province wliich had made by 
 far the most formidable resistance ever offered to our arms in 
 India. Thus a territory which had been expected to be a scene 
 of chronic trouble and revolt was converted into an abode of 
 
 F 
 
66 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 prosperity and a source of strength. The next cause was the 
 reforming spirit displayed from the very outset. It was supposed 
 that the progress of civilization would be slow and precarious 
 among people of a rude and rugged nature, and that the improve- 
 ments established in the older provinces after repeated trials 
 and failures could be but gradually introduced into this 
 new province. But actually the best form of administration, 
 according to the known models of that time, was seen to have 
 been set up per saltum, as it were. The third cause was the com- 
 parative cheapness with which successful results were attained. 
 There had been fear lest the addition of a territory fraught 
 with difficulties should prove financially burdensome to the 
 empire. The province, however, was found to be paying its 
 way and contributing a share towards the imperial defences. 
 The fourth cause was the enthusiastic pride which officers of 
 the Panjab school felt in their work. This attracted to their 
 province the critical notice and the jealous though still 
 admiring regard of the public. It may be well to explain 
 briefly the operation of these several causes. 
 
 The principal secretary then with the Governor-General 
 (Lord Dalhousie) was Sir Henry Elliot, one of the most learned 
 and accomplished men in the Civil Service. Under Dal- 
 housie's directions Elliot prepared a letter of general instruc- 
 tions to the Board regarding the policy to be pursued by 
 them. It is a letter redounding to Dalhousie's honour as a 
 historic document, its perusal is still instructive, and being 
 addressed to persons of the mettle above described it must have 
 produced an electrical effect. Thus the Board started with a 
 charter enjoining them to accomplish great things. 
 
 The annexation was proclaimed in March of 1849, just as the 
 spring harvest was ripening. It was important to arrange the 
 time, so that the land revenue for the year, which largely 
 depends on these crops, might be duly collected. The hot 
 season was then advancing apace, and European officers were 
 hastily collected to conduct the administration in the interior 
 of the province. On reaching their districts they had the 
 utmost difficulty in sheltering themselves from the burning 
 
INTRODUCTION OF BRITISH RULE INTO THE PANJAB. 67 
 
 heat, there being no houses suitable for European habitation. 
 In the unavoidable hurry of the occasion, they had not time 
 even to bring tents with them. Thus severe privations had to be 
 endured by Englishmen during their first summer in the Pan jab, 
 though their minds were diverted by the exciting novelty of 
 their duties. Their hardships were cheerfully shared by the 
 faithful Native servants whom they had brought with them 
 from the North- western Provinces, and to whom the Sikh people 
 were almost as strange as to their masters. 
 
 The principal officers were chosen judiciously from among the 
 best and ablest men of the older provinces, as the members of 
 the Board had much knowledge of the personnel of the public 
 service. Lord Dalhousie was naturally anxious that persons 
 should be selected who would, humanly speaking, ensure the 
 success of an annexation for which he had to bear a grave 
 responsibility. Most of the selections answered fully the ex- 
 pectations which had been formed of them. But, among many 
 men, some failed ; and wherever an individual shewed signs of 
 inefficiency the Board were instant in procuring his removal. 
 
 The first step to be taken was the disbandment of all that 
 remained of the late Sikh army, and of all the quasi-military 
 retainers of the Native Government. These large bodies of 
 men submitted to disintegration with a resigned compo- 
 sure which under other circumstances would not have been 
 evinced. It happened then, however, as has so often proved 
 the case in India, that the minds of men were overawed and 
 their spirit stupefied by the sense of recent defeat and disaster. 
 Thus the soldiery, once so turbulent as to be uncontrollable by 
 their own chiefs, bowed submissively to what they regarded 
 as their fate. Next, the people at large, by a disarming procla- 
 mation, were required to give up their arms ; this they did 
 without hesitation or murmur, and without fail. For althousrh 
 they might, while surrendering some weapons, have secreted 
 others, experience proved that they must have produced all or 
 nearly all. Upon these sturdy and courageous people the 
 British victories seemed to have acted like a spell. 
 
 It was immediately necessary to provide for the external 
 
 F 2 
 
68 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 defence of the province, and for tlie preservation of internal 
 order. Of tlie European troops which had been engaged in 
 the recent campaigns, a considerable portion was retained 
 within the province, and stationed near the most important 
 towns. The distribution of these troops caused some discus- 
 sions between the Board and Sir Charles Napier, then Com- 
 mander-in-Chief. Napier was disposed to declare or to 
 imply that if a stronger police were organized, and the local 
 administration were altogether rendered more efficient, a 
 smaller force than that which was then cantoned within the 
 Panjab would suffice. He was generally believed to be in- 
 fluenced by jealousy of the Lawrence administration, and to 
 have aspired to be Governor of the Panjab after its annexation, 
 as he had been Governor of Sind after its conquest ; there 
 is, however, great risk of error whenever any attempt is made 
 to analyze motives of this nature. But whether tliis belief were 
 correct or not, there was beyond doubt a disposition on his 
 part to visit everything Indian with an unsparing criticism, 
 from which he by no means exempted the Panjab. In the 
 discussions which thus arose there was included the allotment 
 of European troops to this province in relation to neighbouring 
 provinces. In the end it was decided to retain in the Panjab 
 a large portion of the whole European force at the disposal 
 of the Government, even at the risk of comparatively denuding 
 the old provinces. In principle the whole empire was being 
 guarded by the protection of the north-west frontier, and 
 the maintenance of absolute order in the territories between 
 the Satlej and the Indus was one of the most potent means of 
 assuring peace and security to India at large. 
 
 Then a separate force was organized for guarding the border, 
 namely the territories intervening between the river Indus and 
 the mountains which surround the Peshawar Valley and separate 
 Afc'hanistan from India. These special troops constituted the 
 Panjab frontier Force, and were organized, both horse and 
 foot, in the same manner as the irregular troops of India. They 
 were however placed, not under the Commander-in-Chief of 
 the army, but under the Board of Administration. The frontier 
 
Chap. IV. DEFENCE OF THE TRANS- INDUS FRONTIER. 69 
 
 was iuliabitecl by wild races, and was subject to frequent in- 
 cursions from still fiercer tribes dwelling in the adjacent hills. 
 The repression of marauding and plmidering was the first duty 
 of the frontier administration, but could not be executed with- 
 out the aid of troops. Such troops must be at the call of the 
 civil officers on the instant, without any of the delay which 
 might be occasioned by a reference to the ordinary military 
 authorities. Substantially these were the reasons why the 
 Panjab frontier Force was placed, under- the civil administra- 
 tion which was thus ]jro tanto vested with a military capacity. 
 Accordingly a military department was included in the secre- 
 tariat of the Board. The frontier service became popular with 
 the ofl&cers of the army, as affording a school for soldiers, and 
 opening a field for distinction. Thus the Board were able to 
 select many of the most promising yoimg of&cers of the day for 
 regimental duty in the Force, and to procure the appointment 
 of some of the ablest commanders in the country for supervising 
 it in quarters or leading it into action. The Native soldiers 
 were recruited from among the most martial tribes in the 
 Panjab itself, and especially in the border mountains. The 
 Illative officers were chosen for personal merit and social status, 
 there being fortunately no scope in a newly raised force 
 for promotion by seniority alone. Thus with its commanders, 
 its European officers, its E'ative officers, and its soldiers, the 
 Panjab frontier Force soon became perhaps the finest body of 
 Native troops ever arrayed under British banners in India, 
 being equally excellent in its cavalry and in its infantry. 
 Its mettle and prowess were frequently tried in expeditions 
 against the fierce and warlike offenders on the border ; its 
 endurance was constantly tested by the watch and ward in 
 scattered outposts at the foot of the hills. It held the whole 
 border, five hundred miles in length, from Hazara in tlie 
 Himalayas near the upper Indus, down to Sind in the south. 
 Its annals were adorned by such names as Neville Chamberlain, 
 Harry Lumsden, John Coke, Henry Daly, Charles Browiilow 
 and others. 
 
 "Within the Panjab some military police was organized by 
 
70 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 the Board, consisting partly of foot, but chiefly of horsemen 
 organized to some extent in a military fashion and fairly well 
 mounted. The rest of the police, that is, the main body, had a 
 purely civil organization in the then Indian fashion, which was 
 only a development, with some slight improvement, of the old 
 Native police. The idea of reforming the Indian police in the 
 style of the English constabulary did not then exist in the 
 minds of Indian statesmen. Thus regarding its police arrange- 
 ments the Board were not so far in advance of their time as 
 they proved to be in many other respects. They were, however, 
 very successful in constituting their magistracy. Active and 
 energetic men, European officers, were stationed in the right 
 places, a high standard of discipline and order was upheld, 
 a wise severity in heinous cases such as gang-robbery was 
 meted out, and sentences of a deterrent character were passed. 
 Violent crime was rife in a province always containing turbu- 
 lent elements, and recently disturbed by war and revolution, 
 but the magisterial vigour of the Board, and its results in the 
 suppression of crime, were subjects of common remark and 
 congratulation at the time. 
 
 Despite its preoccupation with the general defence of the 
 province, the Board was obliged to give instant attention to 
 its political duties. The Maharaja Golab Sing had been 
 confirmed as ruler of the Jammu territories, that is, the sub- 
 Himalayan dominions of his territory, and to this kingdom 
 had been added the fair domain of Cashmir. Having long 
 been one of the first among the Panjab chiefs, he still possessed 
 much influence with the political parties in the province, and 
 represented the Eajput element, which was in some degree a 
 counterfoil to the Sikhs and Muhammadans. The proximity 
 of his dominions to the northern part of the Indus frontier 
 gave him additional consequence. It was important at the 
 outset to place the relations of the British Government with 
 him upon a satisfactory footing. At this time he was engaged 
 in internal strife with a powerful member of his own family 
 who seemed likely to dispute the succession to the throne. 
 To the south, near Multan, there was a rebellion in the State 
 
Chap. IV. NATURE OF SIKH RULE. 71 
 
 of Bahawalpur, and the rebels were appealing to the British 
 Government. In the Cis-Satlej States lying between Delhi 
 and the Satlej the minutiae and intricacies of feudal tenures 
 were causing complications which, if not unravelled and settled, 
 would lead to internal disturbance. The Himalayan regions 
 overhanging the Panjab were held by hill chiefs governing 
 their own territories, but living under the shield of the British 
 Government and having close relations with its representa- 
 tives. With the intractable tribes, which formed an inde- 
 pendent cordon between the long trans-Indus border and 
 Afghanistan, the Board and its ofiicers had almost daily 
 transactions, which were usually of a troubled character. 
 Several military expeditions had to be despatched against 
 the tribes near the Khyber Pass. But with Afghanistan no 
 communications had as yet been opened ; that country having 
 been left to itself since the conclusion of the first Afghan war. 
 
 The next object aimed at by the Board and its officers was 
 the safe and judicious transition from Native to British rule 
 throughout the interior of the Panjab. The Native system 
 existing there had been founded roughly indeed, but firmly, 
 by Eanjit Sing. He was the very embodiment of that 
 practical sagacity which achieves great things despite the dis- 
 advantages of unlettered ignorance. That system helped those 
 who could help themselves, but provided scantily for the feeble 
 and friendless. It afforded strong meat for the sturdy, but 
 as for the poor it sent them empty away. It was liked by 
 the overbearing and the masterful ; but even on the hardy 
 it imposed a burden quite as heavy as they could bear ; still 
 its yoke, though onerous, was not galling, It took little 
 account of the weak, and for them it virtually gave effect to 
 the doctrine of the survival of the fittest. Its justice was 
 rude, its injustice was tempered by the power and resolution 
 of the people to resist such oppression as transgressed endur- 
 able limits. It left an aristocracy accustomed to arbitrary 
 absolutism on occasions, but prone to have its own way for 
 the most part ; a yeomanry prepared to sacrifice much to 
 tyranny, but jealous of its essential rights ; and a peasantry 
 
72 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 inured to hardship, but clinging tenaciously to the ancestral 
 fields and homesteads. Under it the property in land survived 
 despite all changes and revolutions, and the village commu- 
 nities preserved their constitution intact. 
 
 From the outset it was necessary to guard against the 
 occurrence of fanatical outbreaks. For the Sikh faith, though 
 it had ceased to be triumphant, was still militant, being 
 supported by many bands of armed monks, while the Mu- 
 hammadan community was numerous and self-asserting. There 
 was a specially irritating cause likely to provoke collision, as for 
 instance the Muhammadans were eaters of beef while the Sikhs 
 carried to an extreme the prejudice against the killing of cows. 
 Therefore the authorities had to arrange that the slaughtering of 
 kine should be so conducted as to avoid unnecessary offence. 
 ., The treatment of the Native aristocracy has been already 
 mentioned in the statement of the views held by Henry and 
 John Lawrence respectively. In no part of India had 
 this aristocracy held a more important position territorially 
 than in the Panjab. The Sikh system had been in a large 
 measure feudal ; the greater part of the country was no doubt 
 under the direct management of the central government at 
 Lahore ; but a considerable part was under local chiefs of 
 various degrees. Many of these chiefs were petty, others 
 influential, while some were actually powerful; and their 
 estates were held under every sort of feudal tenure. Of these 
 tenures some were hereditary ; but many were temporary, 
 granted for special objects which might or might not last, and 
 were therefore resumable at will by the ruler of the day. The 
 holders were ordinarily entitled to collect as their income the 
 land revenue which was due from the lands, and which would 
 otherwise be collected by the State. Notable among the 
 nobility were the members of the late council of regency 
 which governed the country for Dhulip Sing, the infant prince, 
 under the advice of the British Eesident, up to the time when 
 war and rebellion caused the annexation of the province. 
 Some of them had joined the enemy, but many remained 
 loyal, and now had the highest claim to consideration. A 
 
Chap. iv. LANDED GRANTS AND PENSIONS TO NATIVES. 73 
 
 careful enquiry was instituted into all these tenures, from the 
 largest to the smallest. Those which had any real character of 
 perpetuity or permanency were respected accordingly ; though 
 naturally there was often much discussion as to what consti- 
 tuted this permanency. Those which had only a temporary 
 character were continued in part or in whole for the lives of 
 the incumbents, and sometimes for one generation after- 
 wards. Those which were wholly dependent on temporary 
 service, now to be dispensed with, were still continued in part, 
 though subjected to curtailment. In some cases it was thought 
 desirable to commute a limited tenure of land, to a cash allow- 
 ance from the treasury. Again many were in receipt of pensions 
 or other allowances in cash from the treasury; the pensions 
 were generally continued by the British Government ; but the 
 continuance of other cash allowances depended on the sur- 
 rounding conditions. In these several classes of cases, there 
 was almost boundless scope for difference of opinion as to what 
 under all the circumstances constituted liberality or illiberality, 
 or what was meant by strictness in a judicious or an undue 
 degree. On the whole a moderate measure of liberality was 
 allowed, and certainly there was no error in the direction of 
 over-generosity or extravagance. Thus the interest of the 
 public as opposed to that of individuals or classes was 
 properly guarded. Disappointment was felt by the Natives 
 at the decisions as a whole, and with some even a stronger 
 feeling prevailed. A government which is conscious of having 
 conceded as much as was consistent with the public weal must 
 be prepared to face such objections. This, too, was the feeling 
 of the Board, but the President, Henry Lawrence, shared 
 in some degree the sentiments of regret and dissatisfaction 
 which were feelingly, even touchingly, expressed by the Natives 
 in private interviews, though seldom declared openly. These 
 important measures, matured after deliberations lasting over 
 many months and extending to many thousands of cases, 
 passed off quietly, and the decisions were accepted with 
 overt loyalty, notwithstanding inward murmurs. Subsequent 
 experience has abundantly proved the result to be good. 
 
74 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 The religious endowments — Hindu, Sikh, Muhammadan, tens 
 of thousands in number, some extensive and many minute, to 
 be found in every village — were treated in the same considerate 
 and conscientious spirit. The expense incurred in this investi- 
 gation if computed must be found very considerable, but 
 the care and labour devoted to the task would baffle descrip- 
 tion. It were vam to hope that the decisions gave satisfaction, 
 for in these affairs concessions beget hopes which can never be 
 satisfied. Still the decisions of the Government were accepted 
 by those concerned with at least apparent acquiescence. Here, 
 again, experience has ratified the justice and expediency of the 
 principles then observed. 
 
 The Hindu priesthood was generally mild and inoffensive, 
 but the Muhammadans were numerous and often disposed 
 to be fanatical, and there was danger of quarrels arising 
 between them and the Sikhs. The priesthood of the Sikh 
 sect was militant and dominant before the introduction of 
 British rule. Having been elated by the political ascen- 
 dency which had accrued to its faith, it was proportionably 
 depressed by the recent military defeats, the ruin of the 
 indigenous dynasty, and the substitution of foreign rulers. 
 To the Sikhs the word " Klialsa " meant church and state ; 
 their state indeed had fallen, but their church still stood, 
 though with glory dimmed and influence lowered. Wliile the 
 Sikh faith was professed by the Government of the day the 
 sacred precincts were thronged with candidates for baptism 
 according to Sikh rites. Men were Hindus by birth, but 
 became Sikhs afterwards by being baptized. Therefore Hindu 
 soldiers on being enlisted to serve the " Khalsa," and com- 
 manders on receiving their appointments, were frequently 
 admitted into the dominant sect. Now, however, the number 
 of baptisms declined utterly, and only those applied for ad- 
 mission whose fathers or ancestors had been Sikhs. The priests, 
 still, had a high stomach and a haughty look while their sub- 
 ordinates assumed a sour and aggressive demeanour. 
 
 The judicial system was framed on the principle which has 
 subsequently been termed patriarchal. It was said that in the 
 
Chap. IV. THE NON-REGULATION SYSTEM. 75 
 
 older provinces the laws (tecliiiically styled " regulations ") were 
 unsuited for the dispensing of substantial justice, the rules of 
 procedure prolix or expensive, and the courts unpopular. The 
 institution of a separate body of judicial officers caused the 
 dispensation of justice to be out of harmony with the rest of 
 the administration, and prevented the judges from having full 
 sympathy with the practical needs of the people. Undue 
 scope or encouragement was afforded to Native practitioners 
 who fostered litigation and instructed the suitors in chicanery. 
 It was therefore decided to place the executive and the judicial 
 administration in the hands of the same officers ; to have a 
 short, simple and inexpensive procedure ; to follow the " regu- 
 lations" in their spirit only, without adherence to their letter; to 
 discourage Native practitioners ; to aim at dispensing substantial 
 justice and rendering the courts popular ; and to induce the 
 litigants to settle disputes out of court or to refer their causes 
 to arbitration. This was known as the " non-regulation " system 
 for which the Panjab soon became famous. Whether it pro- 
 ceeded from a correct idea, or whether it would suit a more 
 advanced stage of even Indian civilization, may be questioned. 
 But beyond doubt it suited the then existing state of the Pan- 
 jab, and rendered the courts of justice comparatively popular. 
 The number of cases settled out of court by arbitration or other- 
 wise was remarkably large at first, though it decreased as years 
 went on. The Board maintained a strict supervision over the 
 courts, both those which exercised original jurisdiction and those 
 which had appellate powers. Moreover, circular instructions 
 were issued for the guidance of the courts in all classes of cases 
 wherein the regulations w^ere not exactly to be followed. 
 
 The prisons being at first little more than temporary make- 
 shifts, were soon filled with criminals under the vigorous 
 magistracy which had been established. The Board exerted 
 itseK strenuously to effect improvement, and Henry Lawrence 
 especially took a humane interest in the proceedings. Dr. Charles 
 Hathaway was the officer chiefly employed in this work, to which 
 he devoted professional science as well as zeal. Attention had 
 recently been paid to prison reform in the neighbouring North- 
 
76 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 western Provinces, and the experience gained there was used for 
 regulating the Panjab prisons from the outset in the most en- 
 lightened manner then known. The substitution of indoor for 
 outdoor labour, the good-behaviour system, the classification of 
 prisoners, the construction of central jails for the worst offenders, 
 the introduction of elementary education, were from the beginning 
 carried into effect throughout the Panjab with greater efficiency 
 than in many of the older provinces. 
 
 Some foundation was laid for general sanitation in the towns 
 and cities. Municipalities were aroused to the need of drainage 
 and conservancy, dispensaries were opened, and medical instruc- 
 tion was afforded to a few educated youths. 
 
 The country being somewhat destitute of vegetation, much 
 care was bestowed upon arboriculture, and trees were planted in 
 great numbers, on the road-sides, near wells, around towns and 
 stations, and on other suitable sites. An impetus was given to 
 these proceedings by the publication of a minute on this 
 subject from the pen of Lord Dalhousie. A beginning was 
 made with forest conservancy, in order to secure the timber 
 supplies drawn from the Himalayan regions to the north of the 
 province. 
 
 The fundamental measure, on which the Board laid the 
 utmost stress, was the settlement of the land revenue. For the 
 first year or so, the land revenue was summarily assessed upon 
 such data as were available. In other words, the amount levied 
 by the Native Government was generally demanded by the 
 British, but with some abatement. The operations for the settle- 
 ment were immediately set on foot, whereby the revenue was to 
 be settled for long terms of twenty to thirty years, and the rights, 
 tenures and interests in the land determined. To this end a 
 professional survey of every village or parish was undertaken, 
 shewing all the details of the ground, cultivation, habitation, 
 roadways, waste, jungle, watercourses; and serving all topo- 
 graphical purposes, besides being the basis of the settlement. 
 This was followed by an unprofessional field survey, like the 
 cadastral survey of estates in Europe, exhibiting every field ; 
 and as these maps received much rectification from the profes- 
 
Chap. IV. THE VILLAGE COMMUNITIES. 77 
 
 sional survey, they were fairly correct. Thus, for every village 
 or parish, the area was ascertained with all its details, so much 
 cultivated, so much cultivable, so much rich or poor soil, so 
 much under each kind of crop, and so on. Then the land 
 revenue was scientifically assessed on absolute data, and with 
 due consideration of all surrounding circumstances. Its amount 
 was considerably less than that which has been collected by the 
 Native Government. But its main advantage consisted in the 
 equitable distribution, whereby each parish had to pay what 
 was right in reference to that which its neighbours were paying. 
 Whereas the main disadvantage of the Native assessment had 
 been this, that in the absence of any knowledge of area, one parish 
 would pay more, another less, than it ought, according to error, 
 accident, fear or favour. 
 
 Then the " record of rights " was undertaken, whereby the 
 property of the people in the land was formally recognized, and 
 the rights or interests of every man, superior or inferior, direct 
 or collateral, were determined. The prevailing tenure was the 
 one which is well known in northern India as that of the 
 village community. These wonderful communities, which have 
 been noticed by the greatest writers on the growth and forma- 
 tion of human society, displayed their largest and yet their 
 minutest development in the Panjab. Although in their main 
 constitution there was a generic resemblance between them all, 
 yet specific varieties existed in almost every one. The record 
 of all these for each member of the brotherhood, and for the 
 whole community in every parish, was undertaken, she^\ing what 
 every individual had to pay, and the exact amount of his share 
 or holding. Next the unwritten rules and customs, which from 
 time immemorial had governed the afiairs of the fraternity were 
 reduced to writing. The revenue was assessed by the settlement 
 officer on the whole village or parish, and the village community 
 then distributed the burden among themselves. This distribution 
 being sanctioned by the settlement ofiicer was duly recorded 
 Many disputes, questions and local complications arose, all which 
 were authoritatively decided. Such a registration was necessarily 
 complex and elaborate ; the people were often careless and inac- 
 
78 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 curate in affording information ; consequently after the record for 
 whole parishes had been drawn up, errors or discrepancies in 
 detail would be discovered which vitiated the whole. Thus 
 patience had to be exercised in rectifying, recasting or re-writing, 
 with much cost and trouble, the papers which had been drawn 
 up. At length, after much revision and modification, a full and 
 correct record was accomplished. 
 
 At the same time tenant-right received a due share of con- 
 sideration. Some cultivators admitted themselves to be tenants 
 at will ; but others claimed that their holdings should constitute 
 tenancies, that they were not liable to eviction while they paid 
 their rent, and that if an enhancement of rent were demanded 
 it must be judicially fixed. As some principle was needed 
 whereby these claims might be settled with uniformity, it was 
 held, after reference to local customs, that the status thus 
 claimed should, as a rule, be allowed to those who had been for 
 twelve years in uninterrupted possession. 
 
 Next after the land revenue settlement the matter to which 
 the Board attached the greatest importance was material im- 
 provement. They were fortunate in obtaining for the direction 
 of the public works the services of Eobert Napier (now Lord 
 Napier of Magdala), an officer of the corps of Bengal Engineers. 
 
 The first project was to open a main line of trunk 
 road from Delhi to Peshawar. The viaducts over the Five 
 Eivers were to be postponed, but the bridging of all lesser 
 streams in the champaign country was to be undertaken, 
 and especially a good passage made through the rugged region 
 between the Jhelum and the Indus. The road-makers, under 
 Lieutenant (now Sir Alexander) Taylor, of the corps of 
 Engineers, immediately grappled with all the engineering diffi- 
 culties over the whole length of this extensive line, connecting 
 most of the important stations of the Province with each other 
 and with the older provinces of India. From this trunk line 
 there radiated branch lines in every direction. Among these 
 the most noteworthy was the road from Lahore the capital, 
 leading southwards to Multan, and iiltimately connecting the 
 Panjab with Sind. 
 
Chap. IV. CANALS OF IRRIGATION. 79 
 
 In the land of the Five Elvers it was natural that artificial 
 irrigation should occupy a prominent place. This subject had 
 been brought to the notice of Government by Baird Smith, of 
 the corps of Engineers, a talented and accomplished officer, 
 whose elaborate report proved very suggestive. A new canal 
 was now undertaken, to be drawn from the river Eavi, near 
 the foot of the Himalayas, and to water the territory near 
 Amritsar and Lahore. This territory was the home of the 
 Sikh nation, and called by them the Manjha ; it was esteemed 
 to be the most important part of the whole province. These 
 canal-works, under Lieutenant Dyas, of the corps of Engineers, 
 were designed in the best manner known to engineering science, 
 and executed in the finest style. Simultaneously the numerous 
 Native canals, chiefly styled inundation canals, were in many 
 parts of the province repaired improved or enlarged. 
 
 The Sikh Government had levied numerous taxes on trades, 
 manufactures, professions, and especially upon articles in 
 transit. Most of these imposts were remitted, and commerce 
 was set free by the abolition of the transit-duties. The old 
 salt-tax, levied on the salts excavated from the mines between 
 the Indus and the Jhelum, was brought under a reformed 
 management. 
 
 Education is one of the few subjects to which, according to 
 the principles of the present day, it might be thought that the 
 Board should have given earlier attention. Schools were indeed 
 established at some large places ; but as regards elementary in- 
 struction the proceedings did not go beyond the stage of enquiry. 
 Primary education had at that time hardly been introduced into 
 India ; though some strenuous efforts on its behalf were being 
 made by Thomason in the North-western Provinces. But even 
 there an experiment on a limited scale only had been tried, 
 and its result was being awaited by the Panjab authorities before 
 making an attempt in the same direction. This circumstance 
 may serve as a landmark to indicate how fast the ideas of 
 men have subsequently advanced in respect to the education 
 of the people. 
 
 Side by side and pari passu with all these measures, whether 
 
80 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 of a military, political or civil character, was the management 
 of the provincial finances, on which the Board bestowed con- 
 tinuous attention. It might have been feared that, amidst all 
 the schemes for improving a new country to which much public 
 interest was attached, the administrators would be apt to 
 overlook considerations of cost. The Board, however, resisted 
 that tendency, and strove to manage the territory not only well 
 but economically, even cheaply, to make it pay its own expenses 
 and yield an annual sum towards the general defence of the 
 empire. The cost of the regular army stationed within the 
 province was not reckoned among the provincial charges, as 
 that army defended not only the country beyond the Satlej, but 
 all India which lay behind. It was acknowledged, however, that 
 the revenues of the province, after defraying all adminis- 
 trative charges, must contribute a due share towards the cost 
 of the army. Accordingly the Board frequently occupied itself 
 in balancing the accounts of its incomings and outgoings, and 
 forecasting the financial results of their measures. The income 
 was found to amount to 1^ million sterling annually, therefore 
 their policy was to keep the provincial expenditure dowoi to 
 1 million if possible, or at all events to Ij million, so that the 
 contribution towards the imperial expenses of the army might 
 be in a favourable year half a million, or at the least a quarter of 
 a million in an unfavourable year ; and this result was, with 
 vigilant supervision, attained. 
 
 The Board were anxious that the administration in all its 
 branches shoidd be popular with the Natives. Some unpopu- 
 larity with certain of the political classes must inevitably be 
 incurred, though even that was to be mitigated as far as possible. 
 But to the millions who toiled with their brains and hands 
 British rule was to be rendered suitable and acceptable. This 
 principle is, indeed, the pole-star of British officers in all pro- 
 vinces, old or new ; but it was inculcated in the Panjab with 
 an efficacy which I have never seen equalled anywhere in India. 
 The of&cers were instructed not only to receive representations, 
 but also to listen to the people and engage in familiar conversa- 
 tion with them. The European official, who could induce the 
 
Chap. IV. THE BOARD OF ADMINISTRATION. 81 
 
 country folk to open their hearts to him, acquired tliereby a 
 reputation for ability. Certainly the PanjalDis were not slow in 
 responding to this considerateness. The Natives of India are 
 everywhere adepts in the art of importunity ; the unsuccessful 
 petitioner sitting persistently at the gate of authority is an ordi- 
 nary spectacle. But in the Panjab the vociferous, though good- 
 humoured vehemence with which the people would press their 
 wishes, and the persistency with wliich, after receiving an un- 
 favourable reply, they plagued the authorities until something 
 satisfactory was extracted, quite bafiie description. Some com- 
 promise would ultimately be attained between them and the 
 authorities, the latter conceding all that was properly permis- 
 sible, and often sometliing more. Thus a mutual understanding 
 sprang up between the officers and the people ; and these good 
 relations, which exist more or less in all provinces of India, 
 were throughout the Panjab sustained in a happy degree. 
 
 Such, in brief, are the chief matters to which the Board set 
 their minds and hands ; but in commemorating their conduct 
 it would not be just to separate them from their superior. Lord 
 Dalhousie, or from their subordinate officers. The various parts 
 of this human machine worked harmoniously, each in its due 
 place. The Board insisted upon every man being kept up to at 
 least their minimum standard. Many rose to a degree higher 
 than that standard, but some few fell below. With the latter no 
 compromise was possible, and they were released from service in 
 the province with as much consideration as the circumstances 
 allowed. It was this absolute intolerance of feebleness haK- 
 heartedness or inefficiency, that perfected the style of the public 
 service throughout the territory. 
 
 The work must be regarded as a whole, in order that its effect 
 may be appreciated. Many a thing, taken singly, which the 
 Board did in the Panjab, had been done elsewhere before. Many 
 measures, which its members adopted well, have since been 
 effected in other places better still, and will hereafter be 
 managed with increasing excellence as the age improves. But 
 the cardinal merit lay in this, that the Board did aU those things 
 simultaneously in what was then regarded as an incredibly short 
 
82 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. iv. 
 
 space of time. Again, the work must be viewed in the liglit of 
 those days, not in that of the present and more enlightened day. 
 Many points towards which the Board struggled laboriously 
 were then obscure, uncertain or disputed, though now perhaps 
 clear, certain and indisputable. In two respects great advantages 
 were enjoyed ; first, the experience of all the older provinces 
 was available ; secondly, there was a tabula rasa on which to 
 operate. Many an ambitious man has sighed heretofore, and 
 will sigh in the future, for such chances as then fell into the very 
 lap of the Panjab. Thus the Board owed something to its star 
 and its fortune, though it derived still more from its own courage 
 and constancy. Then identifying itself with all the best con- 
 temporary ideas, it succeeded in effecting a progress which 
 proved to be in advance of the furthest limits reached up to 
 that time. 
 
( 83 ) 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 (1854-185G.) 
 JOHN LAWRENCE ADMINISTRATOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE PANJAB. 
 
 John Lawrence apjwinted Chief Commissioner — Montc^omery, Edmonstone 
 and Macleod his coadjutors — The Panjab Civil Cocie — Completion of the 
 land revenue settlement — Progress of material improvement — Military 
 expeditions on the Trans-Indus frontier — Afghanistan and Central Asia — 
 Summary of John Lawrence's policy and conduct in the Panjab — Advance 
 of the i:»rovince morally and materially. 
 
 In 1854 I was in charge of the Gujerat district, where, as already 
 mentioned, Gough won his crowning victory over the Sikhs. 
 The summer rains of that year had begun to fall when I received 
 a missive from John Lawrence, the Chief Commissioner, ordering 
 me to join him immediately as his Secretary at Lahore, a 
 vacancy having suddenly occurred by death of the incum- 
 bent. I had just returned from an inspection of the battle- 
 field where the action of Chilianwala, mentioned in the 
 previous chapter IL, had been fought. The scene of the 
 battle was marked by a monumental obelisk, bearing an 
 inscription, believed to have been penned by Sir Charles 
 Napier, and recounting in vigorous, though somewhat high-flown, 
 language the deeds wliich were done that day. On visiting the 
 jungles where the Sikhs were posted, and wherein some of the 
 British troops became entangled, the spectator is enabled to 
 realize the events as they occurred. The place, also, is fraught 
 with classical associations, being probably close to the point 
 where Alexander the Great crossed the Jhelum to attack Porus, 
 the Indian king. 
 
 It was necessary with all speed to obey the Chief Com- 
 missioner's mandate, and to cross the river Chenab, then 
 swollen by the rains and the melted snows of the Hima- 
 
 G 2 
 
84 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, v. 
 
 layas to a width of nearly five miles. The boat-bridge 
 having been removed when the flood season set in, crossing 
 over in boats occupied all the hours between morning and 
 evening. This mighty river is now being spanned by a great 
 railway viaduct. Shortly after my arrival at Lahore, John 
 Lawrence was attacked by a violent pain in the head, whereby 
 his general health and strength were much reduced. There 
 had been premonitory threatenings at times during several 
 previous years ; but after this attack he did not fully recover, 
 and thenceforward his arduous labours had to be conducted 
 under the disadvantages of occasional distress and depression. 
 
 He was now, as Chief Commissioner, exercising the sole 
 administrative command in the Panjab and its dependencies. 
 The government of the province still pertained to the Governor- 
 General in Council, who then was Lord Dalhousie. But the 
 Chief Commissioner performed on his own authority the greater 
 part of the work of governing, and regarding the remainder he 
 submitted recommendations for Lord Dalhousie's sanction. The 
 judicial business of the province was supervised by a Judicial 
 Commissioner, then Robert Montgomery, already mentioned, 
 who had the functions of a high court of judicature. The fiscal 
 and financial affairs were managed by a Financial Commissioner, 
 who was first George Edmonstone, and afterwards Donald 
 Macleod. When Lord Dalhousie selected Edmonstone to be 
 Foreign Secretary to the Government of India, Macleod suc- 
 ceeded to the Financial Commissionership of the Panjab. In 
 general terms, the Chief Commissioner represented the Govern- 
 ment, retaining in his own hands the control of the political 
 service, of the public works and of some other departments, but 
 having in the Judicial and Financial Commissioners two depart- 
 mental heads over the main branches of the civil adminis- 
 tration. In all other respects the administrative machinery of 
 the country remained the same as that described in the last 
 preceding chapter. 
 
 Besides the leading men just mentioned there were others 
 whose names became familiar to the people. In the first place 
 Edward Thornton, already mentioned in chapter III., had cast 
 
Chap. v. JOHN LAWRENCE'S SUBORDINATES. 85 
 
 in his lot with this province. Charles Eaikes was sum- 
 moned from the North-western Provinces ; there he had 
 endeared himself to the Natives by his sympathetic acquain- 
 tance with their habits and traditions ; he had also illustrated 
 their tenures and agricultural customs by his graphic and 
 picturesque writings. Eobert Oust was one of the earliest 
 Sieves of the Panjab school ; he loved his work and his profes- 
 sion with that ardour which men ordinarily shew in regard to 
 art, sport or other favourite pursuits ; and he surpassed his 
 contemporaries in official proficiency and literary aptitude. 
 Indeed he possessed that talent for methodizing and systema- 
 tizing which, as shewn in chapter III., was conspicuous in 
 Thomason. Arthur Eoberts was essentially a popular man, of 
 high courage yet steady judgment, most useful in troublous 
 times. Philip Sandys Melvill was esteemed to be an excel- 
 lent officer in all respects ; he afterwards became Governor- 
 General's Agent at Baroda. Henry Davies was already marked 
 out for distinction in the future ; he became Secretary to 
 Government and ultimately Lieutenant-Governor of the Panjab. 
 These were all members of the Civil Service, but several eminent 
 officers had been drawn from the army for civil employ, besides 
 those already mentioned in chapter IV. as members of Henry 
 Lawrence's school. Such officers were George Hamilton, Philip 
 Goldney, John Clarke, and others. 
 
 John Lawrence's management of the Panjab is held to be 
 among the brightest parts of his now historic career, and con- 
 stitutes one of his titles to posthumous fame. As a witness, I 
 shall here offer some account of what he did and what he was 
 as a ruler. 
 
 His policy when he became Chief Commissioner was to 
 develop the management and system which had been esta- 
 blished by the late Board of Administration, as described in 
 the preceding chapter, and in which he had taken so large a 
 part. He made progressive movements in every direction, but 
 no organic change anywhere. There were no oscillations of 
 policy, and the march of affairs went onwards at a steady pace. 
 
 The first important measure completed under him was the 
 
86 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, v, 
 
 preparation of the Panjab Civil Code. The summary system of 
 civil justice established by the late Board of Administration 
 has been already mentioned. For the then existing stage 
 of society something like equity was secured in a rough and 
 ready though substantial manner. The prolix procedure of the 
 Regulations was abandoned, and some brief rules were sub- 
 stituted. The Board and its officers soon began to improve and 
 amplify these rules of procedure mainly with the object of con- 
 fronting personally the litigant parties and their respective sets 
 of witnesses before the judge, who would thus gather the truth 
 that is sure to come out in verbal discussion when question and 
 answer, rejoinder and repartee, are fired off, as it were, shot for 
 shot, before either side have time to concoct allegations. At 
 that time, too, the Legislative Council in Calcutta, at the instance 
 of Mr. (afterwards Sir Henry) Harington, were considering a 
 draft Act for the same purpose. The Board at Lahore, how- 
 ever, began to take action, and first George Barnes, an officer 
 of John Lawrence's own school and entirely after his liking, 
 drafted some rules of procedure. It was then determined that 
 a procedure should be framed to which was to be added a code 
 of such substantive law as might suffice for the courts of 
 justice in the Panjab ; and the preparation of this short code of 
 law and procedure was entrusted to me. Shortly before this the 
 Board had been abolished, and I was ordered to undertake the 
 codification under the immediate direction of Montgomery, the 
 Judicial Commissioner. The procedure was so framed as to be 
 simple, and full effect was given to it by the courts. Its opera- 
 tion proved successful for several years, until it was superseded 
 by the procedure prescribed by the legislature for all Britisli 
 India ; and in that legislation its best principles are embodied, 
 though clothed in a more scientific form. The substantive 
 law comprised mainly such extracts from the Hindu and 
 Muhammadan laws as might be needed for the determination of 
 questions relating to the social usages of the Natives, together 
 with some plain directions taken from the English law of con- 
 tracts, and various rules which experience in the province had 
 already shewn to be necessary. This substantive law, so far 
 
Chap. v. CIVIL JUSTICE— LAND REVENUE. 87 
 
 as it went, was followed by the courts for many years, until 
 the legislature passed an enactment specifying the laws to be 
 regarded as having force within the Panjab. Though several 
 digests and analyses of Hindu and Muhammadan law had 
 been in former days prepared in English by William Jones, 
 Colebrooke, Macnaghten, Strange and other eminent men, 
 the British Eegulations directed the courts to refer to the Native 
 law officers all disputed questions of Native law. This Panjab 
 Code was the first attempt to prescribe authoritatively the prin- 
 cipal maxims comprised in the Hindu and Muhammadan laws. 
 Its effect was to render the English officers better acquainted 
 than they otherwise would have been with matters pertaining to 
 the very heart and structure of Native society. Montgomery 
 afforded constant supervision to my work in preparing the Code, 
 and John Lawrence gave cordial encouragement. The promul- 
 gation of the Code required the sanction of the Government of 
 India, which was received in due course. To the according of 
 that sanction there probably would have been obstacles had 
 not Lord Dalhousie interposed to smooth the way for a measure 
 wliich had his full approval. 
 
 Another primary object of John Lawrence's policy was the 
 development of the land revenue settlement which was then in 
 progress. The principles on wliich this great operation pro- 
 ceeded have been already sketched in the previous chapter IV. 
 The work, at once comprehensive and minute, was spread over 
 the whole province within a space of four years commencing 
 from the year after the annexation. Thus the people began 
 immediately to feel the benefit of the new assessment whereby 
 the land revenue was fixed at a lower amount than before on 
 the area already cultivated. The sum total however did not 
 fall so far short of the former standard as might have been 
 anticipated, after a diminution in the general rate of assessment. 
 For the spread of irrigation brought into existence many superior 
 products which were specially chargeable mth a higher rate of 
 revenue and new lands were brought under cultivation. The 
 large number of yeomen and peasants who, on leaving their 
 employment in the court and camp under Sikh rule, betook 
 
88 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 themselves to the fields and crops, gave a wonderful stimulus 
 to agriculture, and strengthened the village communities with 
 fresh vigour. Wells were excavated by hundreds; miles and 
 miles of watercourses were conducted from the nearest canals ; 
 ploughs increased by thousands, and cattle by tens of thousands. 
 A cycle of bounteous seasons, with copious rains in summer, 
 and timely showers in winter — the like of which had not been 
 known for many years, and has not been seen since — imparted 
 fertility even to sandy soils. The grain markets became glutted, 
 and as the facilities for exportation were but slight then as 
 compared with the present time, there was embarrassment 
 from a plethora of stores. Thus prices fell to rates which, how- 
 ever beneficial to the non-agricultural class, reduced greatly all 
 agricultural profits. Thus the cash assessments under the new 
 settlement were not favoured with so auspicious a beginning as 
 might have been expected in a time of plenty, for the peasantry 
 had difficulty in selling their stocks of grain. Assets m kind 
 they had in quantities, but they found it hard to obtain money. 
 The rates of assessment were, however, repeatedly reviewed, 
 and not unfrequently lowered in reference to the diminution 
 of profits from the fall in prices. In the end the assessment 
 fixed mainly on the recognized varieties of land — one rate 
 for the black loamy soil, another on the red soil, another 
 on the sandy soil, and so on — was found to operate equit- 
 ably, as the relative productiveness of these various soils was 
 well known to the people. In India the peasantry are no 
 more satisfied with a new assessment than are the farmers with 
 the weather in other countries ; but on the whole this assess- 
 ment gave quite as much satisfaction as could reasonably have 
 been expected. 
 
 Apart from the fiscal operation of the settlement, it has been 
 already stated in chapter IV. that there was the Eecord of 
 Eights, or registration and determination of landed tenures. 
 This most important work involved infinite trouble, the result 
 of which was at first far from satisfactory. The difficulty of 
 obtaining accurate information from a people unused to such 
 enquiries caused errors to creep into the elaborate registers of 
 
Chap. V. PEASANT PROPRIETORS — TENANT RIGHT. 89 
 
 complex tenures and extensive village communities. Thus (as 
 explained in chapter IV.) much work done once with great 
 labour and expense had to be re-done. Indeed, to effect a 
 complete registration in the then state of the people seemed 
 an almost hopeless task. Little daunted however, the officers 
 proceeded with the rectification until at length a veritable 
 Domesday book of the Panjab was prepared. The peasant pro- 
 prietors seemed to fully appreciate the ownersliip of their 
 lands, now recognized as vested in them ; in their modes of 
 culture they evinced an improving spirit, and in their village 
 system shewed aptitude for self-government. Sums began to be 
 advanced to them by the money-lending classes on the new 
 security afforded by the property in land ; but the privilege 
 was not abused, nor did any extensive indebtedness set in. 
 
 John Lawrence hoped by this settlement to elevate the 
 character and status of the peasant proprietors, whom he re- 
 garded as the mainstay of the country ; and in this respect he 
 was entirely successful. 
 
 A similar settlement was made in the numerous estates 
 wherein Native chiefs were authorized to collect the land 
 revenue which would otherwise have been due to the Govern- 
 ment. These estates were generally called " aKenated " by 
 Europeans, because the Government had alienated the land 
 revenue in favour of the cliiefs ; and were termed " Jagirs " by 
 the Natives. But under the chiefs the peasant proprietors were 
 justly entitled to have an equitable assessment made of the 
 revenue payable by them, and to see their proprietary title 
 secured. That was now done for these estates in the same way 
 as in the rest of the province : the measure was not popular 
 with the chiefs, but its justice was indisputable. 
 
 Under the proprietors there were tenants to be found almost 
 everywhere ; of these tenants many possessed rights which had 
 yet survived, though often trodden down and trampled upon, and 
 of which the marks, though frequently obscured, were still trace- 
 able. For this mass of tenant-riglit a record was made and 
 included in the settlement. As mentioned in chapter IV., it 
 had been decided by the Board that, in the absence of special 
 
90 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cjiap. v. 
 
 cause to the contrary, those tenants wlio had held possession for 
 twelve years should be treated as tenants having occupancy 
 rights. An occupancy tenant was not liable to an enhance- 
 ment of the rent recorded for him at the settlement, without 
 his consent, and in the event of his disputing such enhancement 
 it could not be imposed without a decree from a court of justice. 
 But he had not the right of selling his tenancy without the 
 consent of the landlord. John Lawrence took much interest 
 in the matter of tenant-right, which he regarded as subsidiary 
 to the determination of property in the land. The treatment 
 of this important subject, as then ordered, held good for many 
 years until it became disputed. It was in or about 1867 that 
 a reaction in some parts of India seemed to set in agauist 
 tenant-right. Thereupon a law was introduced into the Legis- 
 lature to place upon a legal basis the tenant-right in the Panjab 
 as fixed at the settlement. 
 
 John Lawrence then took up with his wonted vigour the 
 work of education, one of the very few departments, perhaps 
 the only department, in which delay, as explained in chapter 
 IV., was suffered to occur. Authority had been received in 
 the Panjab, in common with all other provinces in India, 
 to set on foot a department of Public Instruction. Besides 
 the establishment of superior and normal schools for train- 
 ing Panjab schoolmasters, due attention was, as will be readOy 
 imagined, given to primary education, and village schools 
 were thorouglily organized. The first Director of this depart- 
 ment in the Panjab was Wilham Arnold, a son of the great 
 Dr. Arnold of Eugby, and known as an author ; he was a man 
 of thoughtfulness and originality, specially qualified for his new 
 duties. Had he lived he would have left the impress of his 
 mind upon the rising generation of the Panjab ; but the promise 
 of his career was cut short by untimely death. 
 
 A complete census of the population was taken ; the in- 
 habitants of the province were all counted in a single night, 
 tribe by tribe, caste by caste, profession by profession. 
 
 The prosecution of the public works relating to material 
 improvement generally, and especially to canals and roads, next 
 
Chap. V. PROGRESS OF TUBLIC WORKS. 91 
 
 demanded Jolm La^\Tence's attention. Some sketch of these 
 works has been already given, according to the scale on which 
 they were initiated under the late Board. A further expansion 
 of the pul)lic works department took Y)\ace when Lord Dalhousie 
 finally entrusted to the several provincial Governments the 
 management of these useful works in every province. Kohert 
 Napier, already mentioned as Civil Engineer for the Panjab, 
 became under the new arrangement Chief Engineer, and made, 
 with tlie strong support of John Lawrence, strenuous efforts to 
 complete the works, especially the grand trunk road from 
 Delhi to Peshawar and the canal from the Eavi to beyond Lahore, 
 called the Bari Doab Canal. Accordingly such progress was 
 made in a short time as redounded to the honour of the 
 Engineer officers, to the good of the country and to the fame of 
 the administration. But these operations proved very expen- 
 sive, especially in the basin of the Satlej, the upper valley of 
 the Eavi, and the rugged tracts between the Jhelam and the 
 Indus. For some time the Government of India supplied funds 
 without stint ; but the general treasury began to suffer deple- 
 tion, and it became necessary to raise a loan for the public 
 works which were being prosecuted in many provinces besides 
 the Panjab. Consequently restrictions were imposed on the 
 Panjab expenditure ; thus John Lawrence and Eobert Napier 
 were to their extreme regret forced to check the rapidity of 
 their operations. Much progress, however, continued to be 
 made not only for the principal works of communication and 
 irrigation, but also for lesser works and public buildings, court- 
 houses, prisons, public offices, schools, dispensaries, staging 
 stations, resting places for travellers, and the lilce. At lengtli 
 in every corner of the country there were traces visible of the 
 improving hand of the British Government. The crops and 
 the land revenue were secured from vicissitudes of the seasons, 
 commerce, both local and provincial, was stimulated, the public 
 accommodated, and a spirit of improvement diffused among the 
 people. 
 
 At this time John Lawrence paid much attention to projects 
 for navigating the Five Eivers of the Panjab with powerful 
 
y 
 
 92 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 steamers of small draught, and for constructing a railway from 
 Lahore to Multan ; which projects represented, as he would say, 
 tlie crying wants of the province. Already he rejoiced that the 
 scheme was afloat for carrying the railway from Calcutta to 
 Delhi onwards to Lahore and so connecting the Panjab with 
 the older provinces. But he seemed to lay still greater stress 
 on connecting his province by steam communication with Sind 
 and the mouth of the Indus. His eyes w^ere gladdened before 
 he quitted the Panjab by the sight of the first sod being turned 
 on the railway to Multan ; but the navigation of the Indus 
 and its affluents never attained much development. In tliis 
 instance the river cannot compete wdth the rail. 
 
 The affairs on the Trans-Indus frontier continued to demand 
 armed interposition from time to time. Complaints reached 
 Lord Dalhousie to the effect that the tribes had been treated 
 
 iwith unnecessary severity. He did not credit these complaints, 
 but directed that I should, as Secretary to John La\\Tence, 
 prepare a history of these transactions, which was accordingly 
 done. During the six years which had passed since annexation, 
 there had been fifteen of these expeditions. In every case it 
 was shown that the offences were such as could not be passed 
 over, that every reasonable alternative had been tried in vain 
 before resort was had to arms, that those who suffered from the 
 hostilities were really guilty, that the chastisement always 
 caused cessation of the offences, and that peace had ensued in all 
 those quarters where a salutary example was made of offenders. 
 It was proved that the British Government had behaved 
 towards these tribes in a neighbourly manner, recognizing their 
 independence, throwing open its markets to their traders, 
 allowing their people to settle on its land, and taking many of 
 their members into its service. Notwithstanding these occasional 
 disturbances, the general pacification of the long line of frontier, 
 the mitigation of the violent aggressiveness among most of the 
 tribes, the growth of local trade, the encroachment of cultivation 
 upon the rugged wastes, were patent to all observers. 
 
 At that time General (afterwards Sir Neville) Chamberlain 
 commanded the Panjab frontier Force, which was engaged in 
 
CnAP.v. RUSSIAN ADVANCE IN CENTRAL ASIA. 93 
 
 these expeditions. He was a soldier of great merit, having 
 much experience of border warfare, and considerable knowledge 
 of this frontier, possessing the confidence both of his superiors 
 and of the troops he led in action. 
 
 About this time the invasion of the Crimea by the allied 
 armaments of England and France startled the minds of Eng- 
 lishmen in the Panjab, even of those who were most absorbed 
 in the works of peace. The Panjab people received the news 
 with an interest less keen than might have been expected. The 
 fall of Sebastopol, however, which Lord Dalhousie took care to 
 proclaim in striking terms, produced a considerable effect on 
 their minds. The city of Lahore was illuminated in honour of 
 the victory ; and when the Native spectators assembled in vast 
 crowds, John Lawrence, after scanning their faces, remarked to 
 me that they seemed to be really glad that Eussia had for once 
 been well beaten. Even at that time the idea of Eussia maldng 
 a diversion towards Central Asia, in order to counteract any 
 measures which England might adopt towards Turkey, was 
 much discussed. John Lawrence was earnestly opposed to any 
 retaliatory movement being made from the British side through 
 Afghanistan towards Central Asia, and was most unwilling to 
 meet Eussia in any such manner. It may have thence been in- 
 ferred by some that therefore he was prepared to tolerate Eussian 
 proceedings in Central Asia which might be manifestly hostile 
 or menacing to England ; such however was not the case. He 
 thought that there were certain points beyond which indirectly 
 hostile proceedings on the part of Eussia should not be 
 endured by England, and that if Eussia then persevered she 
 should be threatened, not in Asia, but in Europe. He thouglit 
 that Eussia could be so menaced in the Baltic and the Black 
 Sea that she must needs desist from any attempt to harass 
 India from the quarter of Central Asia. 
 
 In these days, the Khan of Kokand perceiving the steady 
 advance of the Eussians from Siberia towards his territories, 
 and foreseeing the future absorption of his little kingdom in 
 the empne of the Czar, sent a deputation to the Panjab to ask 
 for assistance by arms and money being given to him, and more 
 
94 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 especially by British officers being deputed to drill his troo])S. 
 John Lawrence submitted these proposals to Lord Dalhousie, 
 but gave a very adverse opinion respecting them ; he thought 
 that if any Englishmen were so venturesome as to enter the 
 IChan's service, nothing but misery and disappointment would 
 be their lot, ending perhaps in a wi'etched death. The deputa- 
 tion was kindly entertained for some time at Peshawar, and 
 then carried Ijack to their master the negative reply of the 
 British Government. The Ivhan's anticipations of his absorption 
 into the Eussian empire were realized soon afterwards. 
 
 Then the Amir of Caubid, Dost Muhammad, intimated a 
 desire to renew with the British Government the relations 
 which had for nearly fifteen years been suspended. He sent 
 Gholam Hyder, his favourite son and heir-apparent, to Peshawar, 
 whither John Lawrence repaired with the necessary instructions 
 from Lord Dalhousie. The Amir, through his representative, 
 professed much fear of Persia being backed by Russia. The 
 reasons for this fear turned out afterwards to be more valid than 
 was then supposed by the British authorities. His immediate 
 object was to obtain the moral support of the English alliance 
 before making his meditated annexation of Candahar. He 
 ultimately agreed to a treaty binding himself to be the friend of 
 our friends and the enemy of our enemies, but imposing no 
 corresponding obligation on the British Government. Two 
 years later, John Lawrence again proceeded to Peshawar to 
 render the relations with the Amir closer, in consequence of the 
 war which England was about to undertake against Persia 
 by reason of Persian aggression upon Herat. 
 
 The character of John Lawrence, in contrast to that of his 
 brother Henry, has been sketched in the preceding chapter ; it 
 now only remains to complete the summary of his management 
 and policy in the Panjab while he conducted the administration 
 there alone. 
 
 He deemed himself happy and fortunate in his two col- 
 leagues, Robert Montgomery and Donald Macleod. Being fond 
 of interpolating Hindustani words into his familiar speech, he 
 spoke of them as his " bhais," or bretln'en ; and this feeling ^\'ils 
 
Chap.v. JOHN LAWRENCE'S OFFICIAL CONDUCT. 95 
 
 reciprocated by them. They not only concurred in his policy, 
 but had the highest esteem for his prescience and resolu- 
 tion, also the kindest affection towards him personally. They 
 saw how anxious he was that the work of the province should 
 be well done, according to the highest standard that could 
 reasonably be displayed, and were prepared to support him 
 heartily. Montgomery, he thought, combined all the qualities 
 of mind, temper and disposition necessary for the administra- 
 tion, and also an extraordinary promptitude in the despatch of 
 affairs. Macleod was, he considered, admirable as an officer, 
 accomplished in all knowledge pertaining to the civil pro- 
 fession, and intellectually one of the most gifted men 
 that ever crossed the Satlej ; he gTieved, however, over the 
 delays which Macleod occasionally allowed to occur in the 
 disposal of complicated affairs. He believed that both his col- 
 leagues possessed much popularity with the Natives, and he had 
 the fullest reliance on their knowledge and experience. 
 
 John Lawrence's of&cial life was a continuous protest against 
 the maxim " ce n'est que le premier pas qui coute." He was 
 all for making a beginning in every affair, and, in that sense, 
 duly valued the importance of the first step, but he appre- 
 ciated that step in reference to the second, third and other steps 
 which were to follow. He was instant in business, abhorring 
 dilatoriness, and declaring that procrastination was the thief of 
 efficiency as well as of time. He was not in the least satisfied 
 with a good beginning, and became immediately intent on 
 following it up. It is a maxim in war that when a breach is to 
 be stormed the first line of stormers must be immediately 
 followed by another, and again by another, just as wave suc- 
 ceeds wave ; and tliis was exactly his principle in prosecuting 
 civil measures to a successful issue. He would give orders on a 
 particular subject knowmg that the execution of them must 
 take weeks or months of watchful labour on the part of those 
 concerned. He would after a short interval enquire whether 
 progress was being made, and after another interval repeat that 
 enquiry, especially noting whether unforeseen obstacles were 
 presenting themselves, or any defects in the operations were 
 
96 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 perceptible, and so on to the end. It is well to prepare sound 
 instructions, he would say, but better still to see that they 
 are actually carried into effect. It was to his unswerving per- 
 sistency in this respect that he owed much of his success as an 
 administrator. This principle of his may at first sight seem 
 trite, but it ceases to be commonplace when it has to be applied 
 with sleepless attention to affairs 'many in number, varied in 
 character, complex in detail, large in scale. 
 
 Consequently in the despatch of public business he was 
 wonderfully efficient. The late Board, of which he was a 
 prominent member, had set on foot all manner of useful 
 measures, and had floated almost every good scheme that could 
 be thought of according to the knowledge existing in those 
 days, and he had now singly to carry them all to their 
 legitimate conclusion. The difficulty consisted not only in 
 there being so many things to be done, but also in there 
 being little time for him wherein to do them. He must 
 needs insist on having for his province whatever the older 
 provinces had. But then the administrators in those provinces 
 had inherited the results achieved during many previous years, 
 and had entered into the labours of their predecessors, whereas 
 he found nothing ready made to his hand, being obliged to 
 make everything dc novo, and inheriting little save the conse- 
 quences of Sikh misrule. 
 
 While he looked for the quantity of the work, which had 
 often to be done against time, he also regarded its quality 
 with intense eagerness. He had in the highest degree that 
 disposition commonly attributed to the English mechanic, 
 namely, pride in turning out his work in the best possible 
 style. Thus, if an enquiry has to be made it must probe to 
 the bottom ; if a statement has to be put forth it must be 
 teres atque rotundus; if a fact is even mentioned it must be 
 verified; if a proposal is offered it must be supported by all 
 available data luminously arranged ; if a course be taken every 
 obstacle must be provided against. These ordinary precautions 
 he adopted with an extraordinary regularity. The Foreign 
 Secretary of the Government of India (George Edmonstone), 
 
CuAP.v. HIS MANAGEMENT OF MEN. 97 
 
 who saw the work of all the pro\dncial Governments in tlie 
 empire, told me that no administrator equalled John Lawrence 
 respecting the manner in which affairs were despatched, or 
 the style in which work was sent forth by the administrative 
 machinery. 
 
 John Lawrence felt that success must depend not only on 
 what he did himself, but also on what he could induce others to 
 do, and that an administration is a human machine whereof all 
 the component parts are intelligent beings. His constant thought, 
 then, was to supervise all the workers, and to keep them up 
 to the mark or standard of efficiency, and also to hold them 
 in hand. With this view he closely studied the various 
 tempers and dispositions of the men, spurring the slothful, 
 reining in the impetuous, encouraging the industrious, and 
 applauding the zealous. They all knew that he was a ruler 
 and a guide who would note merit as well as scan short- 
 comings, and who would sooner or later make his presence 
 felt in every one of the many departments. Herein he fol- 
 lowed, indeed, the example of all great administrators ; his 
 grand peculiarity, however, consisted in the degree to which 
 he carried this system. 
 
 Not content with enforcing rules and principles both in 
 generalities and in particulars, he paid the utmost attention 
 to individual cases. If in any department a failure occurred, 
 or errors were detected, or misconduct on the part of an officer 
 was reported, he would bend his whole mind to the subject. 
 He believed that the tone of the entire administration was 
 affected by the manner in which such cases were treated. 
 If the disposal and decision of them should be regulated with 
 strictness after searching investigation, a sense of duty would 
 pervade the public service. But if the treatment were perfunc- 
 tory, and if the just opportunity of meting severe measure 
 were passed over, then deterioration would set in. 
 
 Though inclined to be what his admirers termed strict, 
 and his detractors called severe, still he unquestionably was, 
 above all things, anxious to hold an even and equitable 
 balance ; to avoid going too far in this direction or in that, 
 
 II 
 
98 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 to go ahead quickly but not too fast, to study details without 
 being over-minute, to pick out every particular and yet never 
 lose sight of the essential substance, to take up every case 
 earnestly and yet not make too much of it ; in short, to weigh 
 every matter well. The idea of weigliing was always in his 
 mind and frequently on liis lips. He thought that the mental 
 faculty of securing equipoise was much appreciated by the 
 Natives when found by them in their English rulers. He 
 once was told by a Native of position that certain officers 
 held the scales exactly, not delighting nor even pleasing any 
 one very much, but, on the other hand, not displeasing nor 
 causing discontent to any one. He considered that this 
 indicated the golden mean, of which the attainment is to be 
 considered fortunate by those who are arbiters between various 
 interests, conflicting, diverging, colliding. 
 
 In dealmg with the Natives, his abiding thought was to 
 render the majority of them contented; their vernacular for 
 contented is " razi," and tliis word came oftener to his lips than 
 any other expression. He would never spare evil-doers, and 
 to the ill-disposed he presented a rigid front. But among 
 the peaceful, quiet and industrious masses he was resolved, if 
 possible to secure contentment ; that was one main raison d'etre 
 for him, and unless this result were obtained he would consider 
 himself to have failed altogether. He would be thankful if, 
 over and above this, he could actually please the well-disposed, 
 but, looking to the imcertainties of human temper, he did 
 not feel sure of winning such favour. Here again his balancing 
 power was called into play ; the customs, the manners, even 
 the prejudices of the Natives must be respected, everything 
 good in their ancient institutions must be scrupulously ob- 
 served ; there were many evils in Native society which 
 might for the present be regarded as irremediable, and for which 
 a remedy must not be attempted. On the other hand, British 
 rule was worth nothing unless it constituted a distinct im- 
 provement upon Native rule. Many remediable evils existed 
 in Native society, and to these some efficacious remedies must be 
 applied. Wherever a change was for the better, might prove 
 
Chap. V. HIS ACQUAINTANCE WITH THE PEOPLE. 99 
 
 suitable in practice and would meet with a sufl&cient degree of 
 acceptance — it must be introduced. He was amused with the 
 barbaric pomp and circumstance of Native rule, and took a 
 friendly interest in popular fetes, ceremonies and amenities 
 conducted after the Oriental style. These things he thought 
 were very well in their proper place, but external glitter must 
 not be mistaken for solid merit, and the British Government 
 should turn its face towards the sterner matters of the law. 
 He hardly expected that his officers should aim at a factitious 
 popularity, which if won might not be sustained. But he 
 wished that they should make themselves acquainted with the 
 requirements of tlie people, by conversing familiarly on every 
 suitable occasion with persons of each class, from the highest 
 to the humblest, not only with the influential and intel- 
 ligent, but also with the rude and ignorant, who, if they could 
 explain nothing else, could at least tell where the pinch of 
 oppression or of remediable evil was felt. At the same time 
 he held that there were some Natives of loyalty and of 
 judgment who would, if asked, give sound information as to 
 the state of popular feeling and the actual effect of the change 
 from Native to British rule. But discrimination must, he thought, 
 be exercised in choosing such advisers, because the suggestions 
 of specious and misleading confidants form some of the most 
 dangerous among the pitfalls which beset the paths of British 
 administrators. He was fond of listening for a moment to 
 the statements made to him casually on the wayside, and of 
 receiving the numerous petitions which Natives habitually 
 present on all imaginable subjects to those in authority. 
 He well knew the granum sails with which all such alle- 
 gations must be taken ; still he wished to weigh them, 
 quantum valcant, in order that liis information mjo-ht be 
 abreast of current affairs in the country. 
 
 Thus labouring, often despite indifferent health up to the eve 
 of the war of the mutinies, John Lawrence had made the Panjab 
 the most famous province ever known in the annals of British 
 India. Extraneous circumstances beyond his control doubtless 
 contributed to elevate that reputation, which nevertheless rested 
 
 Ji -2 
 
100 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. v. 
 
 on a solid basis. Tliis once martial and turbulent province 
 had become peaceful and contented ; the staunch soldiery were 
 converted into peasant proprietors ; the military leaders who in 
 past times had formed committees (Punchayets) for dictating to 
 their masters, settled down as village elders ; here, indeed, 
 if anywhere, the sword was turned into the ploughshare. 
 The prosperity had been unprecedented, and cultivation so 
 increased that clamour arose for enlarged means of exporting 
 surplus produce. The old works of irrigation had been en- 
 larged, and new canals of the most scientific type carried 
 through the very heart of that territory which was the birth- 
 place of the Sikh nation. A sympathetic bearing was enjoined 
 on the European officers in their treatment of matters affecting 
 the prejudices and peculiarities of the people. Trade and 
 industry were fostered by the abolition of transit-duties, also 
 by the openmg out of roads. A wild frontier of great 
 length had been reduced to quiet, and brought under some 
 sort of civilization by armed expeditions against the in- 
 corrigible, by rigorous measures tempered with mercy towards 
 the wavering, and by a friendly policy towards the compara- 
 tively well-disposed. In the interior of the country the 
 violent crimes incidental to a rude state of society were 
 stamped out, the highroads rendered safe from robbers, life 
 and property secured against overt attack. A cheap, simple 
 and speedy system of civil justice had been established. The 
 land revenue, being direct taxation, was kept down by reduction 
 of assessment ; but the salt-tax and other indirect taxes had 
 grown and prospered by spontaneous increase. The expectations 
 originally formed regarding the provincial finances were ful- 
 filled ; the province had year by year paid its own expenses, 
 and contributed a surplus towards the imperial charges. That 
 surplus would have been much larger but for the beneficent 
 expenditure on material improvement. The people in the mass 
 were contented, and imbued with the utmost respect for British 
 prowess and capacity. The prevalence of these sentiments 
 was soon to be proved by their demeanour during the war 
 of the mutinies. The change from Native to British rule 
 
Chap. v. RESULTS OP HIS ADMINISTRATION. 101 
 
 was unavoidably displeasing and disadvantageous to the 
 political classes wliich largely depended on the Native 
 Government ; these classes were, however, dwindling in im- 
 portance. On the other hand, British rule was eminently 
 suitable to the yeoman, the peasant proprietor, the trader, the 
 artisan and the labourer. A spirit of progress had become 
 the genius loci of the province; an elevated tone was pre- 
 served throughout the public service, and a school formed of 
 administrators among whom many were destined to serve or 
 rule subsequently in the older provinces, and thus to carry 
 into other spheres, and spread among distant parts of the 
 empire, the principles they had learnt in the Panjab. 
 
 The first and the second Panjab Eeports were submitted to 
 the discriminating yet sympathizing eye of Lord Dalhousie, 
 the third was laid before Lord Canning, When presenting 
 the last-named document to the new Governor-General, John 
 Lawrence took occasion to do what he could not have so well 
 done before, namely, declare the obligations he owed to the 
 departed Governor-General Lord Dalhousie "for support and 
 guidance which, firm and considerate from the first, were ex- 
 tended to the end, and proved essential to the success of the 
 administration." 
 
102 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 (1848-1856.) 
 DALHOUSIE THE GREAT PKOCONSUL, 
 
 Popular estimate in India of Lord Dalhousie — Varying between extremes of 
 favour and disfavour — -His published Minutes — His several annexations 
 of Native States — His faith in British rule — His military arrangements — 
 His controversy with Sir Charles Napier — His measures for the pacifica- 
 tion of newly annexed Provinces — His policy regarding Public Works — 
 His plans for railways and the Electric Telegraph — His reform of the 
 Indian Post-office — He gives effect to educational scheme of Sir Charles 
 AVood — His policy respecting legislation — His general conduct — His per- 
 sonal capacity. 
 
 In the background of the picture presented by the foregoing 
 narrative there has been one imposing figure, namely, that of the 
 Governor-General, the Earl (afterwards Marquis) of Dalhousie. 
 In those days I was too young an officer to see much personally 
 of the head of the Government; but being Secretary to John 
 Lawrence, who was one of Lord Dalhousie's right-hand men, I 
 enjoyed many facilities for understanding the character of the 
 Governor-General. John Lawrence was in constant communi- 
 cation with Lord Dalhousie ; and in consequence of this almost 
 daily interchange of thought, the substance of the Governor- 
 General's wishes, the style of his ideas, and the tone of his 
 instructions, became familiar to me as Secretary. Occasion- 
 ally I had the honour of conversing with the Governor-General 
 himself, and was much impressed with the kind way in which 
 he made me, a young man, feel at ease. He seemed, indeed, 
 to be particularly careful in encouraging even very subordinate 
 officers from whom hard work was to be demanded. In some 
 respects he may have been reserved ; but in regard to public 
 policy and duty he was entirely frank. Conscious of a great 
 
Chap. vi. PUBLIC EULOGIES ON DALHOUSIE. 103 
 
 mission to be fuliiUeJ, he intended so far to be thoroughly 
 known and understood, and he wished tliat all men concerned 
 should keep their eyes fixed on his g'uiding hand. I shall ever 
 value a farewell letter received from him shortly before his 
 departure ; nor is it possible to forget my grateful surprise at 
 his having found time to write to me, when he must doubtless 
 have been writing to many others, at such a busy season. 
 
 Dalliousie sailed from Calcutta on his return to England 
 in March 1856, amidst the blaze of popularity and thunders 
 of applause. If there was disa]3proval in the Native States, or 
 among some of the Native aristocracy, it was hardly perceived 
 at the capital cities and central stations of British India. If 
 here and there an Anglo-Indian politician intimated doubt 
 regarding some of the measures of annexation which had been 
 taken, most men regarded them as imperial deeds of a beneficent 
 character. The public sympathy was intensified by the know- 
 ledge that the departing Governor-General was suffering from 
 an incurable and most painful malady, against which he had 
 long sustained himself, amidst all his burdensome cares, with 
 courageous constancy, and would consequently be precluded 
 from taking any part in valedictory ceremonies. But eulogistic 
 addresses, of extraordinary variety, poured in from every 
 influential quarter, and from all sorts of communities. The 
 title of " Great Proconsul " was set forth in the public press, 
 and circulated in the mouths of men. With the exception of 
 the Marquis Wellesley, there never had been a Governor- 
 General so widely eulogized on his departure; even Wellesley 
 had perhaps not been greeted with such manifold approbation. 
 Nor was this a sudden outburst of public feeling; for the 
 sentiment had been growing and gaining strength during several 
 years. Dalliousie had fully appreciated the moral effect of 
 public approval, and had uniformly striven to do well, to make 
 that well-doing patent to his fellow-men, and to justify his 
 ways before the world. Partly from natural aptitude, and partly 
 from his education at Harrow and Oxford, he possessed a mar- 
 vellous facility for recording in lucid array the facts and argu- 
 ments relating to his proceedings in large and complex affairs. 
 
104 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 These records were comprised in Minutes which he frequently 
 allowed to see the light. First appeared his Minute regarding 
 the annexation of the Panjab. Then the controversy which had 
 been forced upon him by Sir Charles Napier (the Commander- 
 in-Cliief) was published. Afterwards, from time to time his 
 writings upon the many administrative questions, then agitating 
 the country, were given to the public, by whom they were read 
 with avidity. Indeed for several years the appearance of a 
 Minute from his pen used to be anticipated with interest and 
 pleasure as one of the events of the day. The " trace of the 
 Koman hand " was a phrase frequently applied to him and 
 his proceedings. Wlien his incumbency was drawing near its 
 close he began to compose a very elaborate Minute which 
 summarized his whole administration from beginning to end. 
 No document more comprehensive than this has ever been 
 penned regarding Indian affairs. Thus he had courted "the 
 fierce light which beat" upon himself, and to the close of a 
 long career his conduct had well stood that test. 
 
 But in less than two years after his departure India was 
 convulsed by mutiny and rebellion. Then the estimate of 
 him passed rapidly from the height of favour to the depth of 
 disfavour. The multitude desired to puU down their idol from 
 its pedestal, and declared the former hero of success to be in truth 
 the author of misfortune. This transition shewed that no trust 
 can be placed in the " arbitrium popularis aurte " ; and the 
 pendulum, after that violent oscillation, has not even yet swung 
 back. Nevertheless public opinion in the British empire is 
 generally just in the end, and respecting Dalhousie's memory 
 all reasonable allowances will be made for the difficulties 
 presented by the conjunctures of his time, while the grand 
 features of his administration will assume their permanent 
 place in history. 
 
 Dalhousie seemed to feel himself wronged by this temporary 
 reversal of public opinion, and to expect a continuance of repro- 
 bation from the contemporary generation, when he forbade by 
 his last will that his papers should be opened until fifty years 
 after his death, which occurred in 1860. Many documents, 
 
Chap. vi. OBJECTIONS ALLEGED AGAINST HIS POLICY. 105 
 
 therefore, which may serve to vindicate his proceedings and 
 policy will not be publicly known before the year 1910. 
 Meanwhile, some passages in his career offer salient poiats 
 for discussion, irrespective of whatever information may here- 
 after be gathered, while others may be commemorated whenever 
 the information regarding them shall be complete. 
 
 The allegations respecting Dalhousie in his governing capa- 
 city were, first, that by annexing several Native States he 
 disturbed the minds of the Native Princes and the upper 
 classes in the British territories ; secondly, that during his time 
 there had been in the Native army of Bengal some mutinous 
 manifestations which ought to have put him on his guard, but 
 to which sufficient heed was not paid when the proportion 
 between the European and Native forces was adjusted ; thirdly, 
 that, having enlarged the British dominions by conquests in 
 war, also by annexation of Native States, he omitted to secure 
 the presence of an adequate European force, and, owing to 
 that omission, rendered it possible for the sepoys to revolt 
 successfully in 1857. 
 
 There was also another allegation to the effect that he per- 
 mitted certain laws and projects of laws to be brought forward 
 which, however M^ell meant, threatened some of the religious or 
 social usages of the Natives. This was adduced after the out- 
 break of the mutinies, as a subsidiary reason to account for 
 events which seemed almost unaccountably strange. It never 
 had any real foundation, and, after the lapse of time, is hardly 
 worth discussing. 
 
 Eeferring to the fijst allegation, namely, the annexation of 
 Native States, I was not present at any of the discussions 
 which led to these measures. But it so happened that in after 
 years I had to govern or administer several of the States thus 
 brought under British management, namely, Nagpur, Berar, 
 Sattara, Sambalpur, to assist in the executive government of 
 the Panjab, and to be for a time officially connected with British 
 Burma. Thus I necessarily became conversant with the views 
 of those who were on the spot and had been intimately concerned 
 in these affairs, both European and Native. I also heard the 
 
106 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 particulars in favour of, or in opposition to, the proceedings 
 discussed by those who had tlie means for closest observation. 
 
 When the annexations were under consideration, some grave 
 remonstrances were made by men of weight and authority, 
 notably Sir George Clerk, Governor of Bombay, in the case 
 of Sattara, and Sir John Low, member of Council, in that of 
 Nagpur. These were calmly weighed by the public at the 
 time as the opposing arguments which must always arise in 
 great causes. Soon, however, objections of quite a different 
 class began to be urged in less measured terms. The families 
 of the late rulers in the annexed States remained on the 
 spot to plead in persuasive language their alleged wrongs 
 and sufferings in the ears of European gentlemen, who 
 were from disposition likely to sympathize with these re- 
 presentations, and also able by voice or by pen to publish 
 their opinions. There was necessarily much in these circum- 
 stances to move compassion and to arouse an imaginative 
 sympathy. Thus the murmurs, which were audible even while 
 Dalhousie was present, swelled into a chorus after his departure, 
 and gained intensity when the occurrence of the mutinies gave 
 them at least a plausible appearance of truth. Then opprobrium 
 was commonly and violently cast upon the name of Dalhousie, 
 so much as to temporarily obscure the memory of his other great 
 deeds. Although the resounding noise of disapprobation grew 
 fainter as years rolled on, still the prevailing opinion seems 
 to regard Dalhousie as having erred in these matters. Such 
 phrases as " the evil days of annexation have passed for ever," 
 or " the spectre of annexation has been laid," the " terrors of 
 the right of lapse " are seen in publications of recent date. On 
 the other hand, closely reasoned vindications of Dalhousie's 
 conduct have appeared. Nevertheless the times have been, 
 perhaps still are, unfavourable for dispassionate consideration. 
 
 The debateable point respecting these annexations was the 
 question whether an adoption made by the Prince of a de- 
 pendent Native State, who had no heirs of his body, should be 
 recognized by the British Government respecting the succession 
 to the kingship and the devolution of governing power. 
 
Chap. vi. ABSORPTION OF NATIVE STATES. 107 
 
 It has been earnestly argued that there was cruelty in with- 
 holding the recognition of an adoption which was binding by 
 Hindu law and possessed religious efficacy. This point has 
 sometimes been debated with an almost moving eloquence 
 and surrounded with a sorrowful interest. As regards sacred 
 rites and private property, however, the adoption was undis- 
 puted, and needed no British recognition. Thus the religious 
 and social points in the argument are at once met con- 
 clusively. 
 
 This, then, was apart from the one question before Dalhousie, 
 namely, whether the adoption should receive British recognition 
 for succession to the power of the State. That question related 
 only to dependent Native States, which had been created by, or 
 were by clear agreements subordinate to, the British Govern- 
 ment. It did not concern the Native States in the first rank 
 of importance which have been recognized as allies of the 
 Government, or are in a certain sense independent, though 
 under general control politically. Some of these States are 
 believed to have made enquiries at the time on this point, and 
 to have received satisfactory assurances. 
 
 Now, with the dependent Native States, as above defined, 
 Dalhousie was technically within his right in proposing to 
 withhold recognition. None disputed that the recognition of 
 the British Government, as paramount power, was necessary, 
 according to well-established Indian usage. But some urged 
 that the recognition was formal only, and must be conceded ; 
 Dalhousie denied this, adducing precedents under British rule to 
 the contrary. The precedents, however, though quite relevant, 
 were not important cases; and the real controversy had never 
 been brought to a decisive issue, until the previously pending 
 question of conceding or refusing recognition of the Sattara 
 adoption came to be decided shortly after the arrival of 
 Dalhousie in India. As is well known, he recommended refusal, 
 and that recommendation was accepted by the East India Com- 
 pany and the Queen's Government on their responsibility. The 
 matter of right was clear ; the questions of wisdom and policy 
 were open to a debate, on both sides of which there was much 
 
108 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 to be said, and wherein agreement or absolute certainty was 
 unattainable. 
 
 The decision of the Sattara case governed that of Jhansi and 
 of other lesser cases where the Government refused to recognize 
 the adoptions which had been made by the ruling chiefs. 
 
 These cases occurred, as will be recollected, before the war of 
 the mutinies. Some years subsequently, and after that war, 
 the right of adoption was in general terms recognized by Her 
 Majesty's Government in favour of the chiefs and princes who 
 were governing their own territories. The then Governor- 
 General, Lord Canning, gave a " sanad " or patent to every chief 
 to whom this right was to pertain, so that there might be no 
 doubt as to who should, or should not, possess it. The right 
 was expressly limited to the cases where the adoption had been 
 made by the chiefs or princes themselves. 
 
 In favour of this change in policy there were then, in 1859, 
 several reasons which hardly existed in the beginning of Dal- 
 housie's time, say in 1848. During the convulsion which ensued 
 on the mutinies of 1857, the authorities rejoiced to find that the 
 Native States constituted a conservative element in the country 
 and a bulwark of the British Government, whereas formerly the 
 reverse might, perhaps, have been anticipated. To this consi- 
 deration was superadded the desire to reward a most important 
 class, which had (with some exceptions) behaved loyally during 
 a time of national danger despite many temptations to disloyalty. 
 It was found also that Native States could be administered 
 properly, and would fall more and more under European in- 
 fluence in this respect; whereas formerly misgovernment was 
 the rule rather than the exception in these States. 
 
 In the case of Nagpur the Eaja died without making any 
 adoption, having, for reasons never exactly known, refrained 
 from taking that step ; so in his case the right of adopting never 
 was brought to the test. The only question was whether his 
 widow should be permitted to adopt an heir to the throne ; and 
 Dalhousie recommended that this should not be allowed. Now, 
 the right to make such an adoption has not to this day been 
 conceded to the widow when the prince had in his lifetime 
 
Chap. VI. POLICY OF ANNEXATION. 109 
 
 failed to adopt. By tlie terms of the patents granted later, 
 in Lord Canning's time, the Nagpur State would be regarded 
 as having lapsed, and as being liable to annexation. As a 
 matter of grace or of policy it may be that the Government 
 would forego insisting upon annexation if a similar case were 
 to recur ; but the precise position of the existing rule ought 
 to be remembered, when Dalhousie's conduct, at that time, comes 
 now to be judged. 
 
 Although, coram publico, Dalhousie has borne almost exclu- 
 sively the odium attending these annexations, it is to be 
 remembered that he had not to decide, but only to recom- 
 mend ; the decision lay with the Court of Directors, subject to 
 the control of Her Majesty's Government. When the Court of 
 Directors had, in the execution of their duty, to perform un- 
 popular acts, it was but too often the fashion to deride their 
 authority. Therefore the assailants of Dalhousie would probably 
 not have admitted the sanction of the Court as an argument on 
 his behalf. But in these grave matters the successive Presidents 
 of the Board of Control, Lord Broughton, Mr. Herries, and Sir 
 Charles Wood, also the successive Prime Ministers of that time, 
 must have finally approved the decision. Thus they must have 
 been in the WTong equally with Dalhousie if he were really 
 blameworthy. He, indeed, would have loyally claimed a full 
 share in the responsibility, but his opponents hardly perceived, 
 perhaps, that in accusing him of tyranny and injustice they were 
 involving in the accusation several statesmen who were members 
 of English Cabinets. 
 
 The annexations of the Panjab and of Pegu in British Burma, 
 as the results of war, were never questioned. For the an- 
 nexation of Oudh Dalhousie was never charged with the sole 
 responsibility even by his opponents, as it was known that 
 there misgovernment had reached an intolerable climax, and that 
 he had recommended a somewhat milder measure regarding the 
 Native ruler than that which had actually been adopted by the 
 Government in England. 
 
 Berar, though not annexed, was brought permanently under 
 British administration by a treaty with the Nizam. Tliis measure 
 
no MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 was necessary in order to defray the charges of the Hyderabad 
 Contingent, a body of troops absolutely needed for preserving 
 order within the Nizam's dominions, and for curbing the unruly 
 bands of foreign mercenaries which had during the course of 
 many years been collected by His Highness' authority. The 
 British Government had from time to time advanced large sums 
 for the pay of the Contingent, until the debt reached a stage when 
 a settlement for the past and a material security for the future 
 became indispensable. The Nizam then signed the treaty whereby 
 lie made over the administration of Berar to the British Govern- 
 ment, retaining his titular sovereignty, and being entitled to 
 receive the surplus which might remain financially, after the 
 expenses of governing the province and of maintaining the Con- 
 tingent had been defrayed ; the said expenses, however, being 
 entirely at the discretion of the British Government. There 
 was no alternative left except that of taking over territory ; the 
 troubles in the Nizam's government having gathered and 
 thickened during many years, at length reached a stage when 
 liis relations with the British Government w^ere compromised 
 and the safety of his State imperilled. But since the comple- 
 tion of the arrangement by Dalhousie regarding Berar, these 
 difficulties have entirely ceased, and in no part of the empire 
 has a change for the better been more apparent than in His 
 Highness' dominions. 
 
 In regard to the policy of bringing under British administra- 
 tion those Native States which might be fairly regarded as 
 having, by failure of heirs, lapsed to the British Government, 
 or which had become disposable on the termination of war, the 
 conclusion of treaties and the like, Dalhousie believed in his 
 conscience that the transfer of a people from Native to British 
 rule was productive of blessings moral and material. He was 
 much impressed by the reports received of Native misrule. 
 The administration of Native States has so much improved 
 since his day, that the argument as it struck him will 
 hardly be appreciated now in its full force. But after fuU 
 aUo\vance has been made for possible amelioration of Native 
 rule on the one hand, and for practical defects still remaining 
 
Chap. vi. ITS EFFECT ON THE POPULATION CONCERNED. Ill 
 
 in British rule on the other hand, — no well-informed j)erson 
 can doubt that in securing British administration for the 
 •Panjab, Pegu, Sattara, Jhansi, ISTagpur, Berar, Oudh, and 
 several lesser States, Dalhousie was instrumental in conferrinfr 
 countless benefits upon a population comprising many tribes 
 and races. The total population of all these States amounts to 
 more than forty millions of souls, of whom a section only, 
 numerically small though politically influential, is discontented 
 ■with the change, while the great mass is happier, healthier and 
 altogether better than before. Although a great good was thus 
 attainable and has been actually attained, that would be no 
 justification for evil, if indeed any wrong were proved to have 
 been committed in the acquisition of these territories. But this 
 good may be adduced when the acquisition, being within the 
 limits of strict right, was questionable only on grounds of 
 policy regarding which different opinions were held, and may 
 stni be entertained, by conscientious men. It is true that sub- 
 sequently there has been a change of public opinion respecting 
 the policy; but tliis change was consequent on extraordinary 
 events which happened after Dalhousie's time. In order to form 
 a proper judgment on his conduct it is necessary to review the 
 circumstances as they appeared in the light of those days in 
 which he lived. 
 
 The annexations in Dalhousie's time were considered by some 
 to have helped to bring on the crisis which supervened upon 
 the outbreak of the mutinies in 1857. It must be admitted 
 that the absorption of so many Native States did agitate the 
 minds of some classes of the population, both under Native and 
 British rule. The sympathy felt by the subjects of the British 
 Crown in India for the Native States, for the Native rulers, 
 courts and camps, is more clearly perceived nowadays than in 
 Dalhousie's time. The faith of the Native princes was sorely 
 tried by sinister representations from many quarters to the effect 
 that the British Government aimed at the direct administration 
 of all India ; and the phrase regarding " the red line " on the 
 political map became familiar to them. Notwithstanding this, 
 the question remains as to whether the loyal confidence of tlie 
 
112 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 principal Native States was shaken or seriously impaired by 
 Dalhousie's policy and conduct. No candid critic can say 
 that it was thus shaken or impaired in the face of the events 
 which followed the mutinies of 1857, less than two years after 
 his departure. During that crisis the great Native rulers, the 
 Nizam, Sindhia, Holkar, the Gaekwar of Baroda, the Maharaja 
 of Jammu and Cashmir, the Begam of Bhopal, the Eajput 
 princes, the Protected Sikh chiefs, and many others of similar 
 rank, remained faithful to the British cause. Their jfidelity was 
 indeed so valuable that some observers feared lest without it the 
 British Government could not weather the storm. Whether the 
 fact possessed this high degree of importance or not, it proves 
 at all events that the confidence of the Native princes as a 
 body had not at all been alienated from the British Government 
 by the policy of Dalhousie. 
 
 These acquisitions of territory were not supposed to have 
 caused the sepoy revolt, which was seen to have arisen from 
 independent causes, but they were alleged to have aggravated 
 that crisis. The direct charge of so many additional provinces, 
 containing in all nearly 200,000 square miles and 45 millions of 
 inhabitants, did certainly augment the difficulties of the British 
 Government on that most grave occasion, without always affording, 
 in proportion, fresh strength for encountering them. An addition 
 of 4^ millions sterling aimually had, however, been made to the 
 revenues of British India by the annexations. One of the new 
 provinces, indeed, the Panjab, furnished martial resources, and 
 proved a tower of strength to the Government. If it had not 
 been annexed and had remained under Sikh rule, the British 
 cause during the war of the mutinies would have been in a 
 much worse position than it actually was ; and Dalhousie is 
 entitled to his share of national gratitude on this account. 
 Pegu and Berar remained quiet, throughout the period of dis- 
 turbance; and mischief was avoided in Nagpur and Sattara. 
 At Nagpur, however, a Muhammadan conspiracy formed with 
 Mahratta collusion, was frustrated by a timely discovery ; this 
 danger might possibly not have arisen had the Mahratta rule 
 been still existing there. At Sattara a mutiny was prevented. 
 
Chap. vi. ANNEXATION OF OUDH. 113 
 
 .owing to the memorable march of seventy miles in a single night 
 by a squadron of British cavalry despatched under the orders of 
 Lord Elphinstone, then Governor of Bombay : this danger might 
 have arisen whether Sattara had been annexed or not. At 
 Jhansi the ex-Eani headed an outbreak which had a very evil 
 effect in that part of the country ; this event would probably 
 have been averted if the State had not been annexed. 
 
 The effect of the annexation of Oudh upon the course of the 
 Sepoy revolt remains to be considered. This important annexa- 
 tion did not indeed contribute to bring about the mutinies, but 
 did aggravate the effect of the mutinies after they had broken 
 out. The insurrection began with the high-caste Hindu 
 sepoys, but advantage was taken of it by the Muhammadans 
 both inside and outside the army for organizing a conspiracy 
 against the British Government. Thus the rising flames of 
 Hindu discontent were fanned into a blaze ; and when the out- 
 break became general the province of Oudh placed itself in 
 the very van of rebellion. Some of the prime movers in the 
 Muhammadan conspiracy were men connected with the late 
 Native court and camp in Oudh. Had that province not been 
 annexed, the Muhammadan king, himself effete and helpless, 
 must have clung to the skirts of the British Government, also 
 the leading chiefs in the province would have stood by him 
 for the sake of his dynasty. Thus Oudh, instead of being one 
 of the worst quarters of danger, might have remained compara- 
 tively quiescent, like the otlier principal Native States. The 
 retrospect need not cause, however, any regret for the annexa- 
 tion, which measure the British Government was morally obliged 
 to undertake with all the attendant risks. 
 
 The second allegation, respecting the insufficient heed paid to 
 the mutinous symptoms in the Bengal army before the general 
 outbreak in 1857, arose from the circumstances discussed in the 
 once celebrated controversy between Dalhousie and Sir Charles 
 Napier, then Commander-in-Chief. Certain orders had been 
 given by Napier, respecting the pay of the sepoys in the Panjab, 
 in excess of his proper authority, and to these orders Dalhousie 
 objected. Thereupon Napier took offence and resigned his 
 
 I 
 
114 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 command, justifying his conduct on the gi'ound that there 
 had been danger of mutiny. A controversy followed, during 
 which Napier averred that 40,000 men had been in a mutinous 
 state ; Dalhousie characterized this as gross exaggeration, 
 uttered in the heat of argument. Still there had been 
 decided symptoms of mutiny in several regiments, and one 
 whole regiment (the 66th Native Infantry) mutinied, mainly 
 because the Government, having granted extra allowances for 
 foreign service during the campaigns in the Panjab, withheld 
 those allowances when that province had become British 
 territory. The difficulty soon disappeared however, and the 
 66th Eegiment was disbanded. A belief prevailed at the time 
 that the regiment had endeavoured to seize the fort of Govind- 
 garh near Amritsar, and Napier shared that belief. Further 
 enquiry, however, showed that tliis case had been somewhat 
 overstated, and Henry Lawrence, who was on the spot almost 
 immediately afterwards, deemed that the affair, though bad 
 enough, wore a less serious complexion than was at first sup- 
 posed. These events occurred at the end of 1849 and the 
 beo-inning of 1850 ; and there was no further trouble with the 
 sepoys in that quarter till 1857. The only other occurrence 
 of this nature was in 1852, when one sepoy regiment being 
 ordered to sail for Burma, objected to do so, on the ground that 
 by their terms of service they were not bound to go to sea, 
 which was technically true. The Government did not insist on 
 their sailing, and made them march by land to their desti- 
 nation ; but the symptom was unsatisfactory. All the other sepoy 
 regiments on that occasion proceeded to sea without demur. 
 Napier's successor. Sir William Gomm, served for five years in 
 Dalhousie's time, and was generally satisfied with the conduct 
 of the Native army. 
 
 The third allegation, to the effect that Dalhousie failed to 
 secure the presence of an adequate strength of European troops 
 in dominions which had been enlarged by warlike conquests 
 and peaceful annexations, cannot be definitely discussed at the 
 present time. Many expect that this is one of the points on 
 which light will be thrown by the papers, which, as already 
 
Chap. vi. PAUCITY OP EUROPEAN TROOPS. 115 
 
 seen, cannot be published for many years to come. The in- 
 sufficiency of European troops in India was frequently observed 
 by Dalhousie at different times during his incumbency. To- 
 wards the close he recommended some augmentation of the 
 European forces, simultaneously with a diminution of the Native 
 troops. If he could have had his own way unfettered, he would 
 have left the country safer from a military point of view than it 
 actually was. But nothing that he could have proposed with 
 the slightest chance of success, in the then state of opinion, 
 would have averted the general mutiny which soon ensued. 
 The event shewed that a great error on the part of the British 
 Government had existed for many years ; in that error Dalhousie 
 participated together with the rest of his countrymen. 
 
 The short and plain truth is that the great mutiny of 1857 
 arose because the British Government in India had for a long 
 time maintained a Native army much too large, and an European 
 force much too small. The Government thus unwittingly placed 
 itself in the power of the sepoys. This, and this alone, was 
 the main cause of that tremendous event ; other secondary and 
 subsidiary causes there were, and these will be mentioned in a 
 future chapter ; but to dwell on them at this present is apt 
 to obscure the main, indeed the all-important, cause. The 
 sepoys may have had grievances, or been moved by some 
 particular alarm ; but they would never have revolted unless 
 they felt themselves able to do so with some chance of success. 
 The disproportion between the European and Native forces was 
 an error for which the British Indian Government was near 
 paying with its very life, and for which the country suffered a 
 dire penalty. To trace the origin of this national fault would 
 require an historical review extending over a century ; and 
 the responsibility pertained to all the statesmen and commanders 
 who had been connected with or served in India from the 
 beginning. The responsibility is, indeed, so wide-spread that 
 the British nation at large is involved in it. The insufficiency 
 of European troops is of old standing and has produced peril in 
 many other quarters besides India, and at many other epochs 
 besides 1857. It was not reasonable to single out Dalhousie 
 
 I 2 
 
116 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 as the one man who should have foreseen and provided against 
 the sepoy revolt. Doubtless as the last of the Governors-General 
 before the outbreak, and as possessing the best means of judging 
 and foreseeing, he had as large a share in the responsibility as 
 any one, and would assuredly have been ready to acknowledge 
 his full portion. 
 
 Whatever judgment may be formed respecting the disputed 
 points in Dalhousie's career, there was very much in his military 
 and civil administration which must be regarded with national 
 gratitude and admiration, beyond the reach of controversy. 
 His management of affairs relating to war commanded the 
 confidence of men in India, who had been long habituated to the 
 spectacle of campaigns conducted with that vigour which arises 
 when the commanders in the field are supported with all the 
 resources of the general government. He gave the brightest 
 promise of vigour and efficiency very shortly after his arrival in 
 India, by the arrangements he made for despatching forces to 
 the Panjab and providing transport. The distances were in those 
 days tediously long, and their length can hardly be realized now 
 by those who are accustomed to railways and do not possess 
 actual experience of what India was before the introduction 
 of communication by rail. Subsequently, having supervised 
 personally the transport by sea of the force to Burma, he de- 
 spatched that expedition with unsurpassed promptitude and 
 efficiency. It used to be said at the time, with much truth, 
 that he was his own minister for war. Ability and energy of 
 this nature are common, though in various degrees, to all 
 Governors-General. India, too, is a land fertile in miUtary 
 administrators ; and in no country is the art of making war- 
 like preparations more studied and understood. Even there 
 Dalhousie is remembered as one of the greatest men that ever 
 directed affairs of war or organized military resources in the 
 Eastern empire. There also patriotic and enthusiastic English- 
 men pray that whenever the national safety shall be menaced 
 by formidable danger, a spirit like his may be present with the 
 counsels of the Government. 
 
Chap. vi. PACIFICATION OF PROVINCES. 117 
 
 His measures for the pacification and settlement of provinces 
 newly added to the British dominions are to be ranked amongst 
 his greatest achievements. Other Governors-General had suc- 
 cessfully introduced British rule into newly acquu*ed provinces, 
 but none of them had equalled him in this respect. The 
 system which he caused to be adopted in the conquered or 
 annexed districts became at once equal to the best that had 
 ever been seen in British India. It formed a fresh starting 
 point in Indian administration, and imparted an impulse even 
 to the management of the older provinces. Having chosen 
 leading men for this work, he gave them clear outlines of the 
 policy to be pursued ; made them feel that the results of progress 
 were expected ; taught them to look to him for guidance, strive 
 for his approval and dread his displeasure; supported them in 
 their efforts for improvement, and left them to select the sub- 
 ordinate officers as their instruments. 
 
 In the distribution of troops which followed upon the 
 acquisition of fresh territories, he desh-ed to see spacious and 
 airy barracks erected for the European soldiers in the best 
 permanent style by the earliest possible date. No spur or 
 stimulus was needed by him in this respect ; had any such been 
 needed it would have been supplied by the caustic and incisive 
 language with which Sir Charles Napier used to condemn most 
 of the then existing barracks. Due credit must be assigned on 
 this account to Sir Charles Napier, who was one of the first, if 
 not the very first, to cause an enlarged style to be adopted for 
 the barracks in supercession of the former structures. These old 
 buildings, although good and sufficient at the time when they were 
 erected, had ceased to fulfil the requirements of a progressive age. 
 Then Dalhousie took up the work with a vigour and originality all 
 his o^^Ti. He desired that no nation should be able to shew better 
 quarters for its troops than those which the Government pro- 
 vided for its European soldiers in the East. Having worked 
 upon this principle in the new territories, he extended it to the 
 older provinces. The work being one of time, was very far 
 from being completed during his incumbency ; and the eff"orts 
 which had subsequently to be made in this direction will be 
 
118 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 mentioned in a future chapter ; but a decisive beginning was 
 made by him. Besides their lodging, all matters concerning the 
 food, the drink, the recreation of the soldiers, the increase of 
 temperance among them, the accommodation for their wives 
 and families, the education of their children, and kindred 
 matters, received his sympathetic care. Much more was effected 
 in these ways during his time, than at any previous period. 
 
 Further in respect of military administration he signalized 
 himself by the reconstruction of departments ; and was popu- 
 larly called "the crusher of Boards." Several branches of 
 the public service now administered by separate departments, 
 the public works, the commissariat, the ordnance, the army 
 clothing, were all under one body, namely the Military Board. 
 It is difficult after the lapse of years to recall in expressive 
 terms the notoriety which surrounded this Board in those 
 days. It was truly a monster institution, charged with duties 
 so multifarious as to be beyond its power; it was a typical 
 instance of the defects which are popularly ascribed to Boards, 
 and which such a writer as Charles Dickens would have loved 
 to pourtray. Dalhousie, as might have been expected, procured 
 its abolition, and devised a vastly better control for the several 
 departments which had been under its management. 
 
 Among the departments under the Military Board, as has just 
 been seen, was that of the Public Works. The fact may seem 
 strange, but it was a relic of the early days of British rule, when 
 the Government was fighting for existence, and when the only 
 buildings, roads, or other works, for which means could be found, 
 were those relating to the army. There was, indeed, a corps of 
 Engineer officers, of high professional ability; but they were 
 military, though some of them had won, or were fast winning, 
 distinction in constructing works of a purely civil character. 
 On the abolition of the Military Board, Dalhousie constituted 
 formally a Public Works Department for each of the several 
 provincial Governments into which India was divided ; and the 
 department had two branches, one civil, the other military. 
 The charge of Public Works was for the first time entrusted to 
 the provincial Governments, subject to the control of the 
 
Chap. vi. PROGRESS OF PUBLIC WORKS. 119 
 
 Government of India. The recognition of the civil element in 
 the public works rendered it necessary to introduce Civil 
 Engineers from England. That was accordingly done, and thus 
 was founded the profession of civil engineering which has since 
 become so conspicuously useful in India. 
 
 Dalhousie was not content with constituting a department of 
 Public Works, but resolved that it should be fruitful in re- 
 sults and well supplied with funds. He declared that the 
 revenues of India, while sufficient for all ordinary charges, 
 were necessarily insufficient to meet the capital outlay required 
 for works of improvement. The Government would be essaying 
 an impossible task if it attempted to construct such works out 
 of the current revenue ; such a task was not undertaken in any 
 civilized country. Either improvement must be indefinitely 
 retarded, or else an annual deficiency incurred avowedly for that 
 purpose, and such deficiency must be met by loans. In other 
 words the Government should be prepared to borrow the capital 
 for works of material improvement. At that time it required 
 courage and firmness on Dalhousie's part to avow and enforce 
 such a principle as this, which in these days is readily 
 acknowledged. He derived, however, much support from public 
 opinion in India, and more particularly in England. The growth 
 of trade attracted towards public works the attention of merchants 
 and other well-informed persons. They used to transmit their 
 views to statesmen in England who would urge the matter both 
 in Parliament and in the English press. Much reproach was then, 
 with but little of justice or consideration, levelled at the Court of 
 Directors, who, pressed by war and by administrative exigencies, 
 had always done their best with limited means, but had been 
 naturally anxious to keep their finances in order, and had never 
 felt themselves authorized to borrow money for anything save 
 war. They now supported Dalhousie in what was really 
 borrowing for works of improvement; and during the two last 
 years of his mcumbency the annual expenditure on this account 
 rose to 2^ millions sterling ; an amount which in relation to the 
 then revenues is quite as great proportionably as any outlay 
 which has been allowed subsequently in these progressive times. 
 
120 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 He was not in the least indifferent to financial considerations ; 
 on tlie contrary, he adopted the idea of reducing the rate of 
 interest on a part of the public debt from five to four per cent., 
 and thereby obtained a saving of £300,000 annually, setting an 
 example which Indian financiers have subsequently followed. 
 Within two years however he was obliged to raise a "public 
 works loan " at five per cent, interest to meet the outlay on 
 material improvement, and then much dissatisfaction against 
 him arose in financial circles. The holders of the four per cent, 
 stock were chiefly those who holding the old five per cent, stock 
 had accepted instead new stock at the reduced, or four per cent., 
 rate. They found their property somewhat depreciated when 
 soon afterwards the Government brought out a new loan, offering 
 a higher rate of interest. 
 
 Among the objects, to which Dalhousie directed the outlay for 
 improvement, was irrigation. Many noble canals in different 
 parts of the country he caused to be begun, such as the Bari 
 Doab canal in the Panjab at the instance of the Lawrence 
 brothers, of Eobert ISTapier and Baird Smith. He also secured 
 the vigorous prosecution of the Ganges canal in the North- 
 western Provinces, at the urgent request of James Thomason and 
 Proby Cautley. The Ganges canal had been commenced in the 
 time of EUenborough and Hardinge ; but it was Dalliousie who 
 really sustained the movers in that splendid enterprise and 
 supplied them with nearly the whole of the financial means. 
 
 There were three great improvements made upon the English 
 model, with which the name of Dalhousie is permanently 
 associated, namely, the introduction of railways, the establish- 
 ment of the electric telegraph and the reform of the post-office. 
 These were measures demanded by the public opinion of that 
 time, and the like of them had been recently accomplished in 
 England. For a certainty, therefore they would have been 
 introduced into India at some time or other, whoever had 
 been Governor-General. Dalhousie may be therefore regarded 
 as fortunate in that the execution of such beneficent schemes 
 fell to his lot. To say that he performed the task with 
 his accustomed vigour and success would be to accord 
 
Chap. vi. MATERIAL IMPROVEMENTS — EDUCATION. 121 
 
 but feeble commendation. He did more than this ; for, 
 possessing special experience, he propelled these improve- 
 ments with personal diligence, at a rate of progress which 
 probably no other man of that age could have attained. Indeed 
 it is possible that, judged by an ordinary standard, he hastened 
 their accomplishment by several years. Among aU who are con- 
 cerned in the railways the electric telegraph and the post-office 
 in India, his memory is cherished with extraordinary respect. I 
 recollect the hearty response which was elicited when years after- 
 wards, in 1860, on the occasion of the railway being opened 
 from Calcutta to the Ganges, Lord Canning with characteristic 
 generosity reminded his audience of the obligation which the 
 nation owed to Dalhousie for the speedy introduction of railways. 
 Every measure proposed by local authorities for investigating 
 or developing the resources of the country used to receive from 
 Dalhousie an approval more cordial than would ordinarily have 
 been expected in those days. Some of the earliest steps for 
 geological enquiry regarding supplies of Indian coal and iron 
 were taken at his instance. The culture of tea in the Himalayan 
 regions was much promoted by his assistance. He was the first 
 ruler who attended earnestly to the supply of timber and fuel ; 
 he also laid the foundation of what has become the department 
 for conservancy of forests. 
 
 The establishing of national education and the constituting of 
 a department for public instruction, were measures introduced 
 into India during Dalhousie's incumbency. But the origination 
 of them must in the main be ascribed to Sir Charles Wood, now 
 Lord Halifax, then President of the Board of Control in London. 
 Dalhousie greatly favoured the cause of education ; supported in 
 the ISTorth-western Provinces the educational policy of James 
 Thomason, whom he justly called the father of primary education ; 
 sanctioned Thomason's plans for founding a coUege for Native 
 civil engineers ; maintained at his 'own expense the school for 
 Native girls at Calcutta on the death of Drinkwater Bethune, its 
 founder ; and urged the Court of Directors generally to allow 
 educational expenditure. But he did not venture to hope that 
 so large a scheme would he allowed as that prescribed in Sir 
 
122 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 Charles Wood's famous despatch. After receiving this general 
 authority he caused the new department to be organized for 
 every province of the empire within the shortest possible time. 
 
 Amidst all his avocations he found time to prosecute measures 
 for social amelioration, such as the prevention of female infanti- 
 cide among high-caste Hindus and the suppression of the 
 human sacrifices practised by semi-barbarous mountaineers. 
 
 A legislative council for India was established during the 
 latter part of his incumbency. He often presided at their 
 deliberations, but seldom took an active part in their pro- 
 ceedings. In legislation he was assisted by several English 
 jurists or lawyers in succession, Hay Cameron, Drink- 
 water Bethune, Charles Jackson, Barnes Peacock. He prided 
 himself in the thought that his was a busy time in respect to 
 the framing of useful laws, such as those relating to municipal 
 conservancy in town and country, joint-stock companies, courts 
 of small causes, Native emigration, Indian marriages, the pro- 
 tection of Christian converts in the possession of their property ; 
 and the laws concerning several of the measures already men- 
 tioned, namely, railways, the electric telegraph, the post- 
 office. 
 
 Lastly, Dalhousie is to be remembered as having procured the 
 establishment of the Lieutenant- Governorship of Bengal, which 
 is the largest provincial Government in the British Empire, 
 being placed over a population of 65 millions of souls, and 
 collecting a revenue for local and imperial purposes together of 
 nearly 20 millions sterling annually. He found this vast local 
 administration added to the general cares of the Government of 
 India, and receiving consequently a share only of attention from 
 authorities otherwise preoccupied. The affairs of Bengal, which 
 were previously backward, have subsequently made rapid strides 
 onwards. 
 
 For a due appreciation of Dalhousie's merit as a man of 
 progress and as a ruler with consummate capacity for despatch- 
 ing affairs, the circumstances of his time must be recalled to the 
 imagination. So fast has the march of affairs since become 
 that many things which are now easily practicable were in his 
 
Chap. VI. DALHOUSIE'S OFFICIAL BEARING. 123 
 
 days difficult, and would have been quite unattainable but for 
 the extraordinary zeal and energy which he brought to bear on 
 them. Many truths, which in this time of enlightenment are 
 obvious, were then obscure, and would not have been reached 
 but for his persistent enquiries. Many fair superstructures of 
 improvement upon which India now gazes with admiration were 
 really first founded or devised by him, and would not have been 
 raised so soon but for his enterprising disposition. In short, 
 living at an era when improvement and progress were ushered 
 into Europe with startling rapidity, he was in unison with the 
 advancmg tendencies of his day, and for India he was much 
 ahead of the age. Whether in some respects he drove the 
 chariot of Indian Government too fast and too far, will always 
 remain a matter of controversy. But there is no doubt that in 
 many respects he imparted to India a decided impulse and 
 moved the hands on her dial by several degrees forwards. 
 
 Some men are found who while severely exacting obedience 
 from their subordinates are unwilling to render it implicitly to 
 their superiors : Dalhousie was not one of these. He was 
 invariably courteous and respectful to the Court of Directors ; 
 while he evidently felt grateful for the support so consistently 
 afforded by them. On their part they were equally con- 
 siderate to him, and approved his proceedings almost without 
 exception ; a circumstance the more remarkable because they had 
 sometimes differed with some of the most eminent among their 
 servants, such as the Marquis WeUesley. It is creditable to 
 Dalhousie's tact and discretion that he should, though a very 
 progressive ruler, have retained to the end the confidence of so 
 cautious a body as the Court of Directors. 
 
 Again, some men of the greatest resolution and energy are 
 constitutionally indisposed to listen to opposing arguments, and 
 apt to adopt one side of a complex question without adequately 
 considering its other side ; Dalhousie was not one of these. 
 He had indeed an aspiring and ambitious disposition, together 
 with a proud and sensitive temper ; but he was schooled and 
 disciplined by self-control, and anxious to understand objections. 
 He desired to choose his line with patient care, because he 
 
124 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vi. 
 
 intended to follow it decisively, when once it had been taken. 
 He fnljfilled, probably, the ancient idea of a dictator, but his 
 dictatorship would have been guided by judicially reasoned con- 
 siderations. In cases where he had a right to be masterful, he 
 was prompt to vindicate authority ; and whenever he received a 
 provocation justly to be resented, he had quite a special faculty 
 for making liis displeasure dreaded. By those wdio had served 
 him loyally he was regarded as a trustworthy friend, but even 
 they looked up to him with a certain awe. Towards his 
 colleagues and all those in daily official relations with him he 
 was considerate and obliging. Every one who had business 
 with him felt that intercourse to be a pleasure, the harder the 
 affairs the greater the satisfaction, so completely trained was 
 his capacity for administration. 
 
 In stature he was somewhat short and slender, but erect ; his 
 glance was piercing and his profile aquiline ; his voice in public 
 speaking was clear and commanding ; his aspect denoted a disci- 
 plined temper and a trained habit, with an unbounded reserve 
 of energetic resolution and an unconquerable will. It used to 
 be said of him at the time that, though his height was not 
 imposing, he looked every inch a king. 
 
 During the greater part of his intensely busy time he was 
 suffering from a malady lying between the knee and the foot 
 which, despite all preventive or curative measures, grew upon 
 him gradually. It w^as for this reason that he sometimes went 
 to sea, cruising round Indian shores, or dwelt at Chini in the 
 heart of the Himalayas, or resorted to the Nilgiri liills in 
 southern India. He suppressed as much as possible any mani- 
 festation of his distress or suffering ; and the public was scarcely 
 aware that his strength and life were gradually but surely 
 ebbing away. His wife, proceeding homewards round the Cape 
 of Good Hope, died on board ship within sight of the English 
 shore from weakness following upon protracted sea-sickness. 
 This most distressful intelligence reached him at Calcutta, and 
 he naturally shut himself up for some time in Government 
 House ; it was understood that then his malady grew worse. 
 Towards the close of his time, he found it hard to appear much 
 
Chap VI. HIS GENERAL REPUTATION. 125 
 
 in public, and sometimes was scarcely able from pain to stand 
 up for replying to valedictory addresses. Though his illness 
 had become well known to all, yet few understood that the hand 
 of death was really on him. Many even anticipated that, as he 
 was then only forty-five years old, and comparatively young 
 for the great part he had played, his Governor-Generalship 
 in India would form only a grand episode in a long career of 
 statesmanship ; but, alas ! dis aliter vistim. 
 
 It is difficult to pronounce what was the estimate formed by 
 the Natives regarding his character. He certainly never could 
 have acquired the popularity which grew around some 
 Governors-General, such as Lord William Bentinck and Lord 
 Canning. Among certain of the classes connected with the 
 Native States he was unavoidably a subject of dread. By some 
 Natives, again, who objected to much of his policy he was 
 admired for his boldness and patriotism. For instance I recol- 
 lect hearing a Native gentleman of high ability say of him 
 " well, he was a wonderful Englishman ; he did mighty things 
 for his Government." The frequent seclusion enforced upon him 
 by his malady prevented him from moving among the people as 
 much as he would have wished, and thus winning popular 
 regards. But among the educated classes at Calcutta and else- 
 where the many bright points of his enlightened policy were 
 fully appreciated. Native addresses of farewell were presented 
 to him, and a vast multitude watched his departure. 
 
 The estimate formed of him by his fellow countrymen in the 
 East has been already described ; the high tide of favour having 
 fallen to its ebb, is now apparently in its refluence rising towards 
 the flow. Apart from moot points of his policy, respecting 
 which there is much difference of opinion, it will be admitted 
 on all hands that as an imperial administrator he has never 
 been surpassed and seldom equalled by any of the illustrious 
 men whom England has sent forth to govern India. 
 
126 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 CHAPTEE VII. 
 
 (1857-1859.) 
 THE WAR OF THE MUTINIES. 
 
 Sjirerid of mutiny in the Native army wholly unexpected — Colin Campbell 
 (Lord Clyde) encamped at Cawnpore — Delhi after its siege and recapture 
 by the British — Memory of General John Nicholson — General Sir Neville 
 Chamberlain — The Mogul ex-Emperor — The loyal Sikh States — The ruler 
 of Jammu and Cashmir — Able conduct of Sir Robert Montgomery — Sir 
 Bartle Frere in Sind — Effect produced upon the Panjab by the war of the 
 Mutinies — Excitement among the Sikhs — John Lawrence's prudence 
 during this critical time — His views regarding Peshawar — Proclamation 
 of the assumption by the Queen of the Government of India — Mutinous 
 behaviour of some of the East India Company's European troops — Visit 
 to Cashmir. 
 
 It must be acknowledged on a retrospect of the grave events of 
 1857 that the spread of mutiny among the Native army of 
 India was unexpected and unforeseen even by the more expe- 
 rienced members of the Anglo-Indian community. Sudden and 
 temporary outbreaks of a mutinous character, sometimes dan- 
 gerous in extent, were not, indeed, unknown. The importance 
 of the Native soldiers to the maintenance of British rule was 
 remembered, and perhaps estimated more highly than it is 
 nowadays. The possibility of their rising en masse to over- 
 turn the Government was recognized, though regarded generally 
 as an abstract idea. Hasty and petulant expressions were 
 casually uttered by individuals to the effect that the sepoys 
 would one day rise to rend their foreign masters and drive 
 the British Government into the sea. But the fear that any 
 one of the three Native armies would ever, as a whole, revolt 
 was not seriously felt by any class among the English in 
 India, or by any of tlie British authorities. A belief prevailed 
 
Chap. vii. FIRST NEWS OF THE GREAT MUTINY. 127 
 
 that whatever the sentiments of the sepoys might be, their 
 interests, means of livelihood and prospects were associated 
 with the British Government by ties which no temptations 
 could dissolve. 
 
 I quitted India towards the end of 1856 in a fever-stricken 
 condition, intending to remain in England for a twelvemonth. 
 There was not, at that time, any symptom whatever of internal 
 upheaval in India. In the language of meteorology no ap- 
 proaching "disturbance" in the political atmosphere was pre- 
 dicted, and regarding storm-warnings it might truly be said 
 that there were "none issued." While travelling in Italy 
 during the summer of 1857, I first heard of the thunder of 
 mutiny resounding in a sky which, though not cloudless, had 
 been but little overcast. Eeturning hastily to London, I learnt 
 that the mutineers had seized Delhi, the_Qld-imperial capital, 
 and had set up the titular Great Mogul\in room ot) the English 
 Queen ; that nevertheless the Government of~Tndla stood firm, and 
 that European troops were converging from several quarters on 
 Delhi to vindicate British authority. There was no electric tele- 
 graph between India and England in those days, consequently 
 this intelligence was six weeks old before it reached London. 
 I was considering whether by returning to India immediately I 
 should be able to pass up the country as far as the Panjab, 
 and so rejoin my post on John Lawrence's staff, where great 
 opportunities of service would doubtless present themselves, 
 when I was again affected by fever disabling me as regarded 
 active duty. It turned out, however, that every road to the 
 Panjab was utterly closed. 
 
 Wlien returning to Calcutta, towards the end of 1857, I 
 learnt that Delhi had been recaptured, and that thereby the 
 backbone of the rebellion had been broken, though the limbs 
 of the monster still retained a terrible vitality. Travelling 
 rapidly from Calcutta to the North-western Provinces, I passed 
 through the scenes of the rebellion which certain chiefs had 
 raised in Behar from special motives of seK-interest. Arriving 
 at Allahabad, I found Lord Canning encamped and unattended 
 by his Council. He was then conducting the local adminis- 
 
128 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 tration of the Nortli-westerii Provinces, in addition to his 
 imperial duties as Governor-General. 
 
 Thence I proceeded to Cawnpore and saw the sights for 
 which that place will ever be remembered with sadness ; the 
 barracks riddled with shot where the English held out so 
 long against overwhelming odds ; the river-bank whence the 
 mutineers fired on the boats laden with fugitives ; the room 
 (now demolished) where our captive countrymen and country- 
 women were massacred with the sword; the well into which 
 their bodies were flung, then freshly filled in with earth, but 
 now surmounted with a noble monument and adorned with a 
 blooming garden. Sir Hugh Wheeler, who ably commanded the 
 brave but hapless garrison, was well known to me in the Panjab 
 as a very smart and active officer devoted to his profession. 
 
 At Cawnpore I met the Commander-in-Chief of the army, 
 Sir Colin Campbell (afterwards Lord Clyde), encamped on 
 the left bank of the Ganges. He had recently crossed over 
 the river from Oudh in order to retrieve the partial defeat 
 wliich had been suffered by General Windham. He was 
 about to recross in order to advance, against Lucknow ; and he 
 gave me some explanation of his plans, in order that it 
 might be conveyed to Jolm LawTence. He evidently com- 
 manded the confidence of military men generally, and the 
 business of Ms head-quarters, both in the cabinet and in the 
 field, was known to be admirably conducted by Sir William 
 Mansfield, then Chief of the Staff and afterwards Lord Sand- 
 hurst. He was thought to be unsurpassed in the professional 
 knowledge of fighting, and his presence at critical points of 
 action rejoiced both the officers and the men. As a strategist, 
 however, he was at this time unfavourably criticized by the 
 public, who, having been accustomed to the brilliant movements 
 of John Nicholson, Hugh Eose or Eobert Napier, were disposed 
 to call him the " cunctator " and to ridicule his Fabian strategy. 
 Ultimately, as his fighting qualities and acquaintance with war 
 were unquestionable, his prudence became duly valued, and the 
 meed of popularity was accorded to him as a sagacious and 
 trustworthy commander. 
 
Chap. vii. JOHN LAWRENCE AT DELHI. 129 
 
 My desire was to go immediately to Delhi, there to resume 
 work as Secretary to John Lawrence, who was administering 
 the affairs of that city and its adjoining territory, in addition 
 to his duties as Chief Commissioner of the Panjab. The 
 road being closed for trafiic, owing to the disturbed state of 
 the country, transport was obtained for me from the Quarter- 
 master-General's department. Thus I drove as fast as postal 
 ponies could canter along the Grand Trunk Eoad, once thronged 
 with peaceful traffic, but now temporarily deserted. The sound 
 of distant cannon could be caught by the listener, as fighting was 
 in progress all around. The road lay through some of the 
 most richly cultivated parts of the country, and the season was 
 one when the young crops should be rising. It might have 
 been supposed that after the lighting, the marching, the plun- 
 dering, the harrying, of the last few months, there would be 
 many signs of desolation and much land thrown out of cultiva- 
 tion. But at that moment the cereals or other products were 
 flourishing almost as of yore, and from a cursory inspection 
 the eye could hardly discern any difference in the breadth or 
 area of land under crop. 
 
 Arriving at Delhi, I found Jolm Lawrence in camp, close to 
 that Cashmir Gate where the deatliless deeds of the storming 
 party had been recently performed, and where the marks of the 
 cannon-shot were still fresh. He seemed none the worse for 
 the trials he had undergone, and was both brighter in spirits and 
 more buoyant in manner than when I had last seen him in 
 1856 before the mutiny. Having been magistrate of Delhi 
 in his younger days, he rejoiced, after such a political hurricane, 
 in restoring to order a place which was endeared to him by 
 many associations. He regarded the recapture of Delhi as 
 the turning-point in a national crisis. He took the greatest 
 pride in the courage and endurance of our countrymen, who 
 achieved supreme success even despite the depressing con- 
 sciousness that they were but a handful against overwhelming 
 odds, notwithstanding also the physical prostration from heat, 
 damp and malaria. He was amazed, too, at the errors which the 
 mutineers had committed from their own evil point of view, and 
 
 K 
 
130 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 the chances which they had thrown away of success in their 
 bad cause. He used to say that having revolted they became 
 demented in their manner of proceeding with the rebellion. It 
 seemed as if some avenging fury was scattering their senses 
 and confounding their devices. Often if they had pursued any 
 other course than that which they did pursue, they must have 
 succeeded in defeating the British forces. He was devoutly 
 thankful to the Almighty Power which, in his belief, had 
 extricated us from difficulties humanly insuperable. 
 
 We remained in camp for a fortnight at Delhi, which in tliat 
 cold season, the winter of 1857-8, presented innumerable objects 
 of historic interest. But we had little leisure to study the 
 remains not of a single city but of several cities, one succeeding 
 the other on nearly the same site, the long rows of stately 
 mausolea, the fallen fortresses, the deserted caravanserais, the 
 canals old and new, and the sublime column of the Kutab 
 Minar. Our thoughts were full of recent memories, as we 
 were studying the rocky ridge which had been the position 
 of the British forces, and moving about the city which had 
 been plundered and for a time deserted, but to which the. 
 inhabitants were fast returning. The place though pillaged 
 had not been burnt ; the marks of shot were fresh on the walls 
 the gateways and some of the principal buildings, but the 
 private houses were all standing and the streets uninjured. 
 There was something of gloom and desolation in the celebrated 
 street " the Chandni Chouk," which had been in its day the 
 most brilliant thoroughfare in all Asia, the focus of splendour 
 and the centre of all that was gayest during the zenith of the 
 Mogul empire. In the equally famous " Jama Mosque," justly 
 esteemed the finest place of worship ever erected by Muhamma- 
 dan hands, a battalion of Sikh infantry was quartered. This 
 beautiful building was soon restored to the priests for its proper 
 uses. Public confidence was fast reviving, and day by day the 
 place was quickening with the stir hum and bustle of returning 
 animation. When riding along the ridge whence a prospect 
 was obtained of the recent battle-fields, John Lawrence's thoughts 
 often turned towards those who had fallen dvuini)- the siege. 
 
Chap. vii. BRITISH ADVANCE AGAINST DELHI. 131 
 
 " Think," he would exclaim, " of all the genius and bravery buried 
 here." 
 
 While John Lawrence was encamped before Delhi, his con- 
 versation turned repeatedly on the wonderful circumstances of 
 the siege, and many points were brought into prominence. 
 
 He thought that there had been some delay in the advance 
 of the British force for the recapture of Delhi after the outbreak 
 of the mutinies in May. The Commander-in-Chief, General 
 Anson, was personally anxious to move, but had been overruled 
 by the difficulty of procuring carriage for all the articles required 
 by European troops on a march during the hottest weather. 
 Wliether the circumstances justified the General in incurring 
 the risk of moving the troops with insufficient baggage at such 
 a season, was a military question which no unprofessional 
 person could determine. John Lawrence, however, thought 
 that in this case speed was so important as to justify any risk 
 which could reasonably be braved. If only the British forces 
 could have at the outset appeared before Delhi, the place 
 would have succumbed and woes unnumbered would have 
 been avoided. He was highly satisfied, however, with the 
 conduct of George Barnes and Douglas Forsyth, the cliief civil 
 officers on the line of military communications, in procuring 
 carriage for the troops ; and he eulogized the loyalty of the 
 Sikh principalities through which the British army had to 
 pass. 
 
 He would say " On these occasions the great thing is to advance, 
 to stand still is fatal ; precautionary consideration before moving 
 is no doubt necessary, but that consideration should be quickly 
 taken, and thereupon the decision must be instant. Dangers 
 which might be dissipated by a forward movement, will thicken 
 beyond possibility of retrieval if there be any pause or hesita- 
 tion." The word " advance " was constantly on his lips as com- 
 prising a maxim for the guidance of men suddenly confronted 
 with political danger in India. 
 
 He deemed it very unfortunate that so many European troops 
 had been stationed in the Himalayan mountains out of imme- 
 diate reach when dangers arose in the plains of northern India; 
 
 K 2 
 
132 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 and from this he gathered a warning. Sanitary reasons, indeed, 
 there were of which the importance was not to be overlooked ; 
 but in the disposition of troops, military and political considera- 
 tions should be paramount. When the mutiny broke out in 
 May, there were three European battalions in the hills near 
 Simla ; had they been in the plains at that time the rebellion 
 might have been crushed at the outset. 
 
 In support of the view that in India difficulties melt away 
 before British power if it moves and presses forwards, he would 
 refer to the battle of Badli Serai, the first action fought by the 
 British troops near Delhi. He believed from his information 
 that had it been possible for the European troops after fighting 
 victoriously during the day to push on to the city that very 
 evening, they would have found the gates open and the defen- 
 ders frightened into surrender ; a result which, if attained, would 
 have been of priceless importance. This, however, was not 
 practicable, as the men, after fighting all day with valour and 
 endurance under a burning sun, were unable from thirst and 
 exhaustion to move further. 
 
 He used to make the most honourable mention of Lieutenant 
 (now Sir Alexander) Taylor, of the Engineers, for having set 
 up silently in the dead of night, and in the very teeth of the 
 enemy, the batteries which made the breaches whereby the city 
 was stormed. He declared that Taylor was remarkable for skill 
 and science, and " as brave as a lion." Taylor has been men- 
 tioned in a previous chapter as the officer who, in the early days 
 of the Panjab administration, projected and constructed the 
 trunk road from Lahore towards Peshawar. 
 
 The very highest opinion used to be expressed by John 
 Lawrence regarding the qualities of John Nicholson, as those of 
 a real hero. In Nicholson were combined ardent courage, lofty 
 aspirations, indomitable will, unswerving perseverance, unfalter- 
 ing coolness, unflagging zeal, and to these moral qualities was 
 added the advantage of enduring strength. But he had an 
 imperious temper and was hardly tolerant of even reasonable 
 and necessary control. When commanding a moveable column 
 in the Panjab, he had intercepted a large body of mutineers 
 
Chap. vii. EXPLOITS OF GENERAL JOHN NICHOLSON. 133 
 
 by conveying European soldiers over a considerable distance 
 in a space of time which would have been deemed almost 
 incredible. The city of Amritsar (near Lahore) abounded in 
 little chaises drawn by ponies ; the whole place was scoured 
 for the collection of chaises in hundreds, upon which the 
 soldiers were then placed and seated. These vehicles were 
 driven all day under the scorching sun, and soon the mutineers 
 were confronted to their dismay by British infantry supposed 
 to be far away. Few commanders save Nicholson could at 
 that moment have effected such a movement; had it not 
 been effected, the mutineers would have passed on to light a 
 flame in the heart of the Panjab. This exploit gladdened 
 the hearts of many administrators anxiously engaged in pre- 
 serving the public order. After executing other movements 
 with vigour and success, Nicholson marched with his column 
 to strengthen the British forces on the ridge before Delhi. The 
 British siege train was coming from the Panjab, and the muti- 
 neers detached a force to stop it ; to Nicholson was confided 
 the task of scattering that force. In order to do this he had 
 to march his troops across a broad swamp, which would have 
 been ordinarily deemed almost impassable. Nevertheless his 
 men waded and struggled to victory through miles of deep mud 
 and water. This achievement brought joy to the hearts of the 
 British troops before Delhi. When the time approached for 
 assaulting the city, Nicholson's counsel was added to that of the 
 enthusiastic men who were in favour of action. Indeed the 
 autumnal season had become so malarious, that unless the 
 assault were delivered without any delay, it could not be 
 managed at all, for the soldiers were falling sick by hundreds 
 daily. At the best, so scanty were the numbers, that after 
 the storming parties had victoriously entered the city there 
 was for nearly a whole day much difficulty in preservmg com- 
 munication with the camp outside. I visited the spot where 
 Nicholson fell shortly after the city gate had been stormed. 
 The street was narrow, with houses on both sides, from which 
 musketry was being poured into the advancing column ; he was 
 standing forward to guide his men, and dropped mortally 
 
134 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 wounded. John Lawrence never ceased lamenting the untimely 
 death of Nicholson, and exclaimed, " The memory of his deeds 
 will never perish so long as British rule endures." 
 
 General (now Sir Ne\'ille) Chamberlain was at that time in 
 camp with us at Delhi. In early life he had been known as one 
 of the heaux sahreurs of the Bengal army. He had subsequently 
 been Commandant of the Panjab Irregular Force already described 
 in chapter IV., had brought that fine body of troops into a condi- 
 tion of disciplined efficiency, and had led it with skill and 
 forethought in several expeditions against offending tribes on 
 the mountainous frontier between the British territories trans- 
 Indus and Afghanistan. He had been appointed to command a 
 moveable column which was formed in the Panjab to prevent the 
 mutinies from spreading to that province. After the force had 
 been formed for the recapture of Delhi from the rebels, he was 
 appointed to act as Adjutant-General of the army, and during 
 the operations of the siege had received a severe wound in the 
 arm, from which he was still suffering. He told us many 
 particulars regarding the British camp during the siege, the 
 night attacks frequently made upon it by the enemy, the 
 incessant strain upon the vigilance of the officers and the 
 patience of the men in the defence of a widely-extended position 
 with insufficient numbers, besides the depression caused by 
 sultry heat and humid ground through many weeks of the rainy 
 season. But although the enemy in front was greatly superior 
 in numbers, and sufficiently enterprising to inflict constant 
 annoyance, while the country on both flanks was more or less 
 in insurrection, still the communications in the rear were kept 
 open, and the supplies of meat, drink and ammunition never 
 failed. The Native troops, chiefly Panjabis and Gurkhas, vied 
 Avith their European comrades in steadfastness ; seldom has the 
 excellence attainable by Indian troops been better illustrated. 
 
 The conduct of the British troops, European and Native, 
 inside the city after its recapture was reported on all hands to 
 have been satisfactorily good. There was no plundering, nor 
 any maltreatment of the inhabitants of either sex, and very 
 little drunkenness. Great precautions had been taken by 
 
Chap. vii. TRIAL OF THE EX-KING OF DELHI. 135 
 
 the commanders, with happy success, to prevent any such 
 misbehaviour. 
 
 During our stay at Delhi, it became my duty to prepare the 
 evidence for the trial of the ex-king of Delhi, wliich was then 
 impending. With this view I visited him in his place of con- 
 finement, examined his papers and questioned persons who had 
 been his confidants. It was a strange sight to see the aged 
 man seated in a darkened chamber of his palace. The finely 
 chiselled features, arched eyebrow, aquiline profile, sickly pallor 
 of the olive complexion, nervous twitching of the face, delicate 
 fingers counting beads, muttering speech, incoherent language, 
 irritable self-consciousness, demeanour indicating febrile excita- 
 bility — altogether made up a curious picture, upon wliich no 
 spectator could look unmoved who was acquainted with Asiatic 
 history. Here sat the last of the Great Moguls, the descendant 
 of emperors two centuries ago ruling the second largest popula- 
 tion in the world, who had himself, though a phantom sovereign, 
 been treated with regal honours. He was now about to be 
 tried for his life by judges whose forefathers had sued for favour 
 and protection from his imperial ancestors. I looked at the 
 lattice window where at the dawn of that fatal 11th of May he 
 stood to hear the vows of allegiance from the mutineer troopers 
 as they stood in the dry fosse below ; at the cabinet whence he 
 issued edicts as if the Mogul empire had been restored ; at the 
 hall of audience where he reproached his new followers for their 
 rudeness in the imperial presence ; at the old tree in the palace 
 precincts where the European prisoners were executed with his 
 sanction ; at the shrine whither he fled for asylum when he 
 found that the British had stormed the city gates. His own sig- 
 natures, annotations, and orders after the outbreak shewed him 
 to have possessed more capacity than would have been expected 
 from a man who had been immured all his life as a titular kins 
 in his ancestral palace. Though he had not originated any 
 movement, he welcomed the event as offering some chance 
 for his political revival. Though he probably did not desire to 
 shed blood, he had authorized the execution of the British 
 captives ; perhaps he thought it impossible to save them from 
 
136 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 his bloodthirsty adherents. He was found guilty of a capital 
 charge, but the Government wisely spared his life and sent him 
 into captivity beyond the seas. 
 
 Among the ex-king's papers which fell into our hands, there 
 were letters and reports from priests or other enthusiastic 
 Muhammadans, describing the results of the great outbreak. 
 These writings were couched in the most vigorous and striking 
 phraseology, and the perusal of them confirmed what I had 
 previously believed, namely this, that fanaticism is a volcanic 
 agency which will probably burst forth in eruptions from time 
 to time. It would be difficult to reproduce the imagery with 
 which the scornful exultation over British discomfiture was 
 expressed. The infidel tyrant had been dethroned in an instant 
 like the twinkling of an eye, the flashing of a scimitar, the 
 striking of a knell. He whose glance had once struck terror 
 into the hearts of a myriad time-servers was cast out with 
 contumely, to die of hunger in the jungle or of thirst in the 
 desert. He whose very shoes the faithful had been long forced 
 to lick, was now himself grovelling in the dust ! 
 
 Before the mutinies, Delhi with its adjacent territory had 
 formed part of the North-western Provinces ; after its recapture 
 it was placed by Lord Canning under John Lawrence, and thus 
 became incorporated in the Panjab jurisdiction. Accordingly 
 John Lawrence was now, in the beginning of 1858, restoring peace 
 and order to the distracted place. His first care was to reintroduce 
 the regular police, the magistracy and the criminal law, whereby 
 all accused persons should be brought to formal trial before being 
 punished. During the terrible times wliich followed the mutiny, 
 and the confusion which existed after the recapture of the city, 
 the criminal law had been virtually suspended. Many Europeans 
 had been murdered or maltreated after the outbreak ; the 
 mob committed countless excesses ; hundreds of persons were 
 known to have perpetrated outrages and treasonable acts ; the 
 villages of the neighbourhood teemed with predatory or lawless 
 characters, and plunder had been rife. Thus it happened that 
 many persons were seized and punished after a brief enquiry, 
 whicii, though it satisfied the punishing authority, did not 
 
Chap. vii. CRIMINAL VIOLENCE OF THE MOB, 137 
 
 amount to trial ; many, again, having been caught red-handed, 
 or in fiagrante delicto, were punished straightway. Under the 
 emergency and pressure of the time, prisoners were executed 
 in a summary manner which would not have been tolerable 
 under any other circumstances. This rapid process, or rather 
 the absence of procedure, during times when the minds of men 
 are excited by tremendous events, must inevitably be dangerous 
 and cause injustice to be unwittingly done in some cases. The 
 local authorities doubtless acted in good faith, according to their 
 judgment so far as it could be exercised under agitating con- 
 ditions. But there is always fear lest a summary procedure 
 should be prolonged after the actual necessity has ceased or 
 the emergency passed by. If, however, such a procedure be 
 permissible, wliile all the bonds of society are unloosed, 
 it ought certainly to cease the moment that law and order can 
 be restored. Now, John Lawrence, deeming that such pro- 
 ceedings were being carried too far, interposed with his usual 
 vigour and firmness to stop them, and substitute the normal 
 procedure of the criminal law. As many prisoners were await- 
 ing trial he appointed special tribunals to dispose of aU pending 
 cases, so that the fear of wild retribution might be removed 
 from the Native mind. 
 
 The conduct of the Native population, at the outbreak of the 
 mutinies both around Delhi and in other parts of the North- 
 western Provinces, had been imsatisfactory and discouraging to 
 those who hoped that British rule in the course of two or three 
 generations would alter the character and disposition of the 
 masses. Though much of mildness and submissiveness is found 
 in the people as a whole, there are also elements of fierceness 
 and savagery. The mob in Indian cities, and especially in the 
 bazaars which cluster round military cantonments, is vicious and 
 ruthless. Such a rabble broke out in wild excesses at aU places 
 where the civil authority had been paralyzed by military dis- 
 turbance ; and the rioters were speedily joined by plundering 
 bands from the interior of the country. Had these bands con- 
 sisted only of the thieves and robbers who are at all times 
 wandering or lurking about the country, there would have 
 
138 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 been no reason for surprise. But the gangs in many places, and 
 especially in the districts around Dellii, were in part formed by 
 villagers who owned flocks and herds, or who tilled land as peasant 
 proprietors. Several tribes or castes had acquired predatory 
 habits in former generations when this part of the country was 
 one of the great battle-fields of Asia. The plundering instinct 
 had been transmitted as if by hereditary descent, and, though so 
 long dormant, now burst forth on the relaxation of general 
 order, just as if wars and revolutions had continued unceas- 
 ingly up to the most recent time, and as if more than two 
 generations had not intervened between the traditions of the past 
 and the conditions of the present. Then with almost electrical 
 swiftness the demon of mischief issued forth. The jails were 
 broken, and a flood of criminals was let loose to swell the 
 tide of disorder. Court-houses and public offices were attacked, 
 public records consigned to the flames, dwellings of the Europeans 
 unroofed dismantled or burnt. The treasuries were not rifled 
 by the ruffians, because the treasure had fallen into the hands 
 of the mutinous soldiery. Among the records destroyed were the 
 elaborate papers comprising the detailed surveys village by 
 village even field by field, containing also the registration of 
 proprietary tenures and tenant-right, in short everything which 
 pertained to the land revenue settlement. This destruction, 
 however, proved to be not so fatal as might have been expected, 
 for in the villages the old institution of Native accountant 
 existed in greater vigour than ever. Every accountant had 
 copies of the settlement papers relating to his village, and these 
 copies he almost invariably preserved with all the secretiveness 
 characteristic of the Natives in times of revolution. Thus after 
 a time the losses caused by the burning of records were for the 
 most part repaired. Certain critics who disliked the pohcy of 
 the settlement seemed to see in the destruction of these papers 
 some proof of the supposed unpopularity of that great measure. 
 Discontented individuals probably did take the opportunity of 
 wreakmg their spite upon the records ; but this destruction was, 
 in the main, notliing more than a part of the general and 
 indiscriminate spoliation committed by a raving multitude. 
 
Chap. VII. SUFFEEINGS OF THE EUROPEAN RESIDENTS. 139 
 
 It was my duty, among many other things, to enquire into 
 the truth or error of the shocking stories current regarding 
 the maltreatment and indignities inflicted upon the European 
 victims of the mutineers and the mob ; also to award compen- 
 sation on behaK of Government to those European ladies and 
 gentlemen whose houses and effects had been plundered or 
 destroyed. The cases of outrage were found often to be exagge- 
 rated, and sometimes quite baseless ; they loomed, indeed, sadly 
 from afar, but on the spot and in contact with positive informa- 
 tion they seemed to dwindle away. Murders of European men, 
 women and children, alas, there were ; but the murderers generally 
 did their work offhand with horrid eagerness, seldom pausing 
 to add torture or prolong agony. Yet if many of the alleged 
 sufferings proved to be fabulous, the real misery of but too 
 many Em-opeans of both sexes was not, and never will be, fully 
 known, the undescribed, perhaps indescribable, anguish of 
 anxiety felt by men, not for themselves, but for the helpless 
 ones around them, the terrified imagination of the women, the 
 protracted vigils conjuring up phantoms of horror, the exposure 
 of delicately nurtured people to the blinding blistering sun, 
 their frames fevered by thirst sleeplessness and poverty of 
 sustenance. 
 
 In those days we were anxiously awaiting news regarding 
 the final recapture of Lucknow by Sir Colin Campbell. The 
 special correspondent of the London Times with the army was 
 William Howard Eussell. The Anglo-Indian community were 
 delighted by Ms power of noting mentally all that passed before 
 him and of depicting it graphically. His word-paintings of the 
 scenes inside Lucknow after the storming hold a high place in 
 the picture-gallery of Indian history. 
 
 When John Lawrence moved his camp from Delhi in the 
 spring of 1858 and marched towards Lahore, I accompanied 
 him. Our line of march lay through the territory known as the 
 " Protected Sikh States," which half a century before had been 
 rescued by the British Government from the devouring jaws of 
 Eanjit Smg, then called the "Lion of the Panjab." The 
 Chiefs of these States had been foremost among the loyal during 
 
140 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 the outbreak and crisis of the mutiny, and formed a politi- 
 cal breakwater between the loyal Panjab and the rebellious 
 Hindostan. Between all these good men and John Lawrence 
 there was an interchange of congratulations on the happy issue 
 of events. 
 
 First among them, the Chief of Pattiala, had personally done 
 much to sustain the public confidence. His position between 
 the Panjab and Delhi enabled him to shew of what stuff he 
 was made. Thereupon he evinced that steadiness and calmness 
 upon which the English justly pride themselves. He was then 
 a fine-looking man, nearly six feet high, with a commanding 
 presence, and in the prime of life. He said that his house had 
 always been faithful to the paramount power from the day it 
 received its patent of chiefship from the Durrani sovereigns 
 of Afghanistan to the time when it did good service in the wars 
 waged by the British. He was ready either to march to Delhi 
 or to maintain order in the country intervening between that 
 city and the Satlej. It was decided that he should stay at or 
 near his capital and employ his troops in guarding the trunk 
 road leading from the Panjab to Delhi, or escorting the stores 
 and munitions in the rear of the British force besieging that 
 city. Some five thousand troops of his were thus employed for 
 many weeks, thereby enabling the British authorities to send every 
 soldier of their own to the siege. The extreme value of his 
 service will be appreciated when it is remembered that for some 
 time the besiegers held their own with difficulty and were them- 
 selves almost besieged. Afterwards when the British fugitives 
 from neighbouring districts passed through his capital, he dis- 
 played a cheerful bearing and assured them of liis faith that 
 European troops would soon arrive from England to regain all 
 that had been lost. All this time he maintained absolute order 
 in his own territories although they were ofttimes nearly catching 
 fire from the sparks or firebrands falling into them when the 
 contiguous Hindostan was ablaze with rebellion. 
 
 Next, the Chief of Jhind was the handsomest Native prince I 
 ever saw. His height was much above six feet, and he had the 
 flowing grey beard which Sikhs regard as the best of manly 
 
Chap. VII. LOYALTY OF PATTIALA AND JHIND. 141 
 
 ornaments. He instantly took up arms against the rebels, 
 declaring that he should fight for the British, under whose 
 shadow he and his had enjoyed security for fifty years ; and he 
 was the first man who appeared in the field with an armed 
 force on the British side. In order to take every available man 
 with him into the field, he left his little capital quite defenceless. 
 With his troops he remained under canvas before Delhi through- 
 out the siege, and his men took part in the final assault. Though 
 a thorough Sikh, he possessed many of what would be con- 
 sidered sterling British qualities, frankness, truthfulness, fidelity, 
 resolution. 
 
 If hereafter a national crisis shall arise, may there then be 
 Native chiefs possessing such strength of character, and bound 
 to the British Government by such ties of gratitude as the chiefs 
 of Pattiala and Jhind in 1857 ! They deserved to be, as they 
 actually were, regarded by many Englishmen with fraternal 
 sentiments. It is no mere form of words to say, peace be to 
 their ashes, for indeed their gallant memory will be preserved 
 together with that of the British worthies. 
 
 Among the lesser magnates were the descendants of the 
 Kythal chief who bore the title of " Bhai," which indicates 
 priestly rank and corresponds to "Fra" in Eoman Catholic 
 countries. At the beginning of the century he attended a 
 meeting of Chiefs who intended to make overtures to the British 
 for protection against Eanjit Sing. According to the Native 
 story he expressed himself in this wise, " Brethren, it is death 
 for us in either event ; if we are caught in the grip of Eanjit 
 Sing we shall die with the sharp pangs of Asiatic cholera; if 
 we come under the shadow of the British we shall pine away 
 of slow consumption." Strangely the prophecy was verified in 
 his own case, for his possessions did lapse from failure of heirs ; 
 but it was falsified in the cases of those whom he addressed, 
 as their descendants now have a position firmer than ever. 
 
 The political officer in charge of these Cis-Satlej chiefs was 
 George Barnes, who has been already mentioned. Of all the 
 officers in the Panjab there was none who commanded the con- 
 fidence of John Lawrence more than he. His insight into the 
 
142 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 Oriental character, his mastery of affairs however difl&cult, liis 
 sagacious judgment in momentous conjunctures, his power of 
 managing Natives of all ranks from the highest to the humblest 
 — gave him great influence both with his civil superiors and 
 with the military authorities. After the recapture of Delhi he 
 received the official thanks of the Commander (Sir Archdale 
 Wilson) for the manner in wliich the resources of the Cis-Satlej 
 States had been disposed so as best to subserve the plans of the 
 General and to supply the needs of the army. He was next 
 appointed Foreign Secretary by Lord Canning, and had his life 
 been spared would have rapidly risen to the highest posts. I 
 was with him during his fatal illness ; and afterwards John 
 Lawrence spoke to me with affectionate solicitude in respect to 
 the closing moments of his old friend, enquired regarding the 
 administration of the last offices of the church, and expressed a 
 fervent hope for his eternal welfare. 
 
 After leaving the Cis-Satlej States, John Lawrence paid a 
 visit to Jammu, at the foot of the Himalayas. Here was the 
 capital of Maharaja Golab Sing, the ruler of the Jammu-Cashmir 
 State which had been established by the British Government after 
 the first Panjab war. Golab Sing came forth to meet us with a 
 procession of elephants, crossing the stony bed of the river 
 which flows beneath the forest-clad bluffs. High above us on 
 the crest of the cliffs stood the palaces and temples of Jammu. 
 The liistoric antecedents and personal celebrity of Golab Sing 
 struck the imagination. His pomp and equipage forming a fit 
 foreground to the sub-Himalayan scenery, the mountain called 
 " the three-peaked goddess," rising up grandly in the back- 
 ground, and the snowy range in the distant horizon, made up 
 an animated scene. This preliminary meeting was a gay pre- 
 lude to the ceremonies which were to follow and the felicitations 
 which were to be exchanged. For the Jammu troops had 
 marched right through the Panjab, and appeared before Delhi 
 in the very crisis of the siege, under the command of Colonel 
 Pilchard Lawrence the youngest of the Lawrence brothers. 
 Tlie sight of these troops movmg against the mutineers in the 
 darkest hour of British fortunes produced a moral effect on the 
 
Chap. VII. VISIT TO RULER OF JAMMU. 143 
 
 Panjab people. Golab Sing had a character containing some 
 good or strong elements but profoundly subtle and hard to 
 fathom. Extraordinary stories were current regarding the 
 intrigues in which he had been engaged and the cruelty he 
 had practised. Doubtless there was exaggeration in these, 
 but he had lived in times when such things were rife, and it 
 is necessary to realize the surroundings and temptations of a 
 man when judging his conduct. Though now stricken in years 
 he was well-preserved ; his features were still handsome, and 
 he had all the air of his Eajput lineage. The phrase 
 " mellifluous speech " is quite translateable into Persian, and 
 was applicable to the courtly and euphonious diction which 
 he used whenever occasion might demand it. He retained a 
 grateful recollection of Henry Lawrence, whom he regarded as 
 his political patron, and whose recent death at Lucknow he 
 lamented as a personal loss. On this occasion, alluding to 
 Ptichard Lawrence, he said, " I see in his face the likeness of 
 Sir Henry, and my heart becomes full." 
 
 On our return to Lahore it became necessary to prepare for 
 tlie Governor-General a report on the events of the mutinies in 
 the Panjab. For this purpose I had many conversations with 
 John Lawrence, and he wrote some important memoranda for 
 incorporation in the report. He pondered over the causes of 
 the great mutiny and rebellion, so that if they should be trace- 
 able to national error, a salutary lesson might be learnt for the 
 future. 
 
 While ready to vindicate the character of liis country and the 
 grand qualities displayed by her sons on the whole in dealing 
 with the mutinies, he was far from thinking that these qualities 
 had been displayed by all his countrymen. On the contrary he 
 knew that a cardinal vice in the then existing system was the 
 placing of incapable officers in high command by reason of 
 seniority. The consequences were signally illustrated by the 
 incompetent proceedings of the authorities during the outbreak 
 at Meerut. Even at Eerozpur on the Satlej, where the local 
 commander was esteemed an able man, much disappointment 
 had been felt at the ineffectual manner in which the mutiny 
 
144 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 was dealt with, though no absolute failure or actual disaster 
 occurred. Still none of the errors committed by individuals 
 exceeded that chargeable to the Government itself in leaving 
 such a place as Delhi in the custody of a large Native garrison 
 without European troops. Sanitary reasons doubtless induced 
 the authorities to prefer keeping the European troops else- 
 where. But in truth, when such considerations were allowed to 
 override the clear dictates of political prudence, then incapacity 
 in statecraft was displayed. 
 
 — As to the origin of the great mutiny, the sum and substance of 
 John Lawrence's opinion was this, that the sepoys had become 
 too numerous and powerful in proportion to the European army. 
 The State was virtually in their hands, therefore they wished 
 to displace their foreign masters, and set up a national 
 Government of which they would be the controllers. Their 
 numerical preponderance, he thought, was aggravated by the 
 situations in which they had been placed. " Was it to be 
 expected," he would exclaim, "that the Native soldiery, who 
 had charge of our fortresses, arsenals, magazines, and treasuries, 
 without adequate European control, should fail to gather extra- 
 vagant ideas of their own importance ? " Again, he would say, 
 " it was the sense of power that induced them to rebel ; " and 
 herein, according to him, lay the warning to the Government 
 for the future. This cardinal and abiding cause having been 
 established, he regarded other causes as secondary and casual. 
 He believed that the sepoys, when they first began to rise, 
 were actually alarmed for their caste and religion, that their 
 apprehension regarding the greased cartridges was not feigned 
 at all, but was quite real, and that had no novel cartridges been 
 issued there would have been then no mutiny. But the question 
 was in his judgment one of time only ; some other provocative 
 cause would sooner or later have arisen, for with a sepoy army 
 fancying itself master of the situation, it was hardly possible for an 
 alien Government ultimately to avoid collision. Though positive 
 upon this most material point, he was less confident respecting 
 the collateral questions whether the time for the outbreak was 
 in part determined by the annexations of Native States which 
 
Chap. vii. CAUSES OP THE GREAT MUTINY. 145 
 
 had taken place, or by measures legislative and executive 
 which, however right, had been unpopular. Less weight was 
 attributed to these causes by him than hj some other authorities. 
 He thought that the Government, while maintaining the utmost 
 caution and considerateness in these matters, must be pre- 
 pared sometimes to face temjDorary unpopularity for the sake of 
 permanent good. But he would hardly deny that the annexa- 
 tion of Oudh, happening when it did, must, however just and 
 necessary, have had a disturbing effect. 
 
 He admitted that the composition and system of the Bengal 
 Native army had been faulty. When an organized system 
 has existed for many years, there gather round it many 
 influential persons, whose sentiments prejudices and interests 
 compel them to gloss over its defects and repel its critics. 
 Occasionally fault had been unreasonably found with the sepoy 
 army and some conclusive answer would then be given. But 
 even well-founded criticism would have been indignantly spurned 
 by the numerous authorities who were concerned in the main- 
 tenance of things as they were. Still, no degree of perfection 
 in these matters could have averted the ultimate catastrophe. 
 For the event depended not so much on the organization of 
 the sepoys, as on the might of their numbers. 
 
 The English are subjected to the irremediable disadvantage 
 of being aliens ; do what they may, they can hardly make 
 themselves popular, for Natives, though submissive outwardly, 
 are inwardly swayed by national sentiments, and though they 
 may respect and acquiesce in a foreign Government, will 
 hardly love it. John Lawrence did not attribute to the Natives 
 that ingratitude with which they are but too often charged. 
 " Give them much to be grateful for," he would say, " and they 
 will evince gratitude." Still he felt that no tangible benefits 
 which the English could confer would be of avail, if an 
 opportunity were really to occur of driving them into the sea 
 which girdles India; the sepoys may be faithful at least 
 to the British pay, up to a certain point, but this fidelity 
 would be flung away by them if they saw a positively favour- 
 able chance of setting up with their bayonets a ruler of 
 
 L 
 
146 MEN AND EVENTS OF IMY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, vii; 
 
 their own kith and kin. Therefore, he thought the British 
 must rule to the best of their ability ; hoping for the best 
 from moral influence, trusting, however, in the last resort, 
 to physical power. He would refrain from answering cate- 
 gorically the question, why the mutiny had not broken out 
 before 1857, when the main cause, as explained by him, had 
 existed for a long time. If a thing is destined to occur there is 
 an element of chance in the time of occurrence ; it is impossible 
 to say when a spark may ignite a combustible body, or when 
 disease may break out after morbid conditions have been 
 established. The practical issue, in his view, was to rectify the 
 old error by lessening the Native forces and increasing the 
 European, in order that the physical, as well as the moral, 
 power of the country should be in British hands. 
 
 After due reflection upon the great mutiny of 1857, he 
 declared these opinions in the beginning of 1858, little thinking 
 perhaps that they would receive confirmation before the last- 
 named year was out. Eor the Government were near com- 
 mitting a similar error in entertaining too many Panjabi troops, 
 and fears in regard to a like consequence began to arise. 
 
 In reviewing the events of 1857 in the Panjab, he assigned 
 the utmost credit to Eobert Montgomery, General Corbett and 
 Colonel James Duncan Macpherson for the prompt disarming 
 of the sepoys at Lahore ; also to Herbert Edwardes and General 
 Sydney Cotton for maintaining order at Peshawar. The dis- 
 arming of the Sepoys at Lahore on 13th of May, 1857, was one 
 of the most remarkable events in the history of the mutinies. 
 Corbett in the exercise of the soundest judgment assumed a 
 perilous responsibility, and Macpherson played his part excel- 
 lently well. But the chief credit is due to Eobert Montgomery, 
 who rendered a priceless service to his country. Had this 
 measure not been taken with the requisite promptness, the 
 sepoys certainly would have revolted. Whether such a revolt 
 would have succeeded is a question which the boldest might 
 tremble to answer ; the chances of its success were considerable. 
 Had it occurred, the course of affairs in the Panjab might have 
 been disastrously altered. 
 
Chap. vii. REINFOECEMEXTS FOR SIEGE OF DELHI. 147 
 
 In the general covirse of affairs John Lawrence considered 
 the support of the Field Force before Delhi to be the turning 
 point of his ]Dolicy. There was no matter on which he so often 
 dwelt in conversation as this. Though Delhi was outside the 
 Panjab, still he thought that the Panjab must in the end stand 
 or fall according as Delhi should be recaptured or should hold 
 out against us. He felt sure that the Panjabi people would 
 expect soon to hear of Delhi being recaptured, but would not 
 withstand the temptation to revolt if that expectation should 
 not be fulfilled and the rebellious front which had been raised 
 in the imperial city should not be beaten down. Not only- 
 might the Panjabi people rise, Ijut the Panjabi troops might 
 swerve from their fidelity ; and yet these were the troops upon 
 which the Government depended after losing the Bengal 
 sepoys. Therefore, at all hazards, Delhi must be retaken 
 speedily ; and with this view he despatched thither the flower 
 of the Panjab Frontier Force, and raised many Panjabi 
 regmients. His JNlilitary Secretary, Colonel Macpherson, already 
 mentioned, did true yeoman's work in the organization and 
 equipment of the new regiments. Then it was found that this 
 would not suffice, and that some European troops must be sent. 
 So John Lawrence despatched Nicholson's column to Delhi, 
 notwithstanding that he thereby lowered the European force 
 in the Panjab to an almost dangerous minimum, as the best 
 part of that force was stationed beyond the Indus, He 
 declared plainly that he was thereby " playing the final card," 
 that he was " gleaning the last man," that he was " draining 
 the cup to the uttermost drop." When told that there was 
 danger for the Panjab in sending the column, he would rejoin that 
 there was still more danger in not sending it. If it were sent, 
 there was some hope of Delhi being recaptured and of the Panjab 
 standing firm, but if it were not sent, then there was no hope of 
 Delhi being recaptured, and the Panjab must fall sooner or later. 
 He was fond of saying that he did not " care to be among the 
 children whom the ogre ate up last." He noted that during the 
 month preceding the recapture of Delhi several untoward symp- 
 toms had manifested themselves in the Panjab, and such raani- 
 
 L 2 
 
148 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 festations would have become more frequent during every 
 month, perhaps every week, that Delhi remained untaken. 
 
 He had a most thankful sense of the aid afforded to him 
 throughout that critical time by Bartle Frere, the Commissioner 
 in Sind, and would declare that, had Sind been a part of the 
 Panjab, the co-operation for the public safety between the two 
 provinces could hardly have been more perfect than it was. 
 Indeed Frere, more than once, sent reinforcements, especially 
 European soldiers, to support the Panjab, thereby almost 
 denuding Sind, his own province, of troops, and reducing his 
 available resources to a minimum. Notwithstanding occasional 
 differences of opinion between them jconcerning the management 
 of the Trans-Indus Frontier or other topics, John Lawrence 
 felt the highest regard and respect for Frere, and deliberately 
 considered him to be one of the most capable rulers that this 
 generation has produced in India. 
 
 It was in these days that John Lawrence gave me instructions 
 for drafting the despatch regarding the attitude of the British 
 Government towards Christianity in India. He took the strongest 
 interest in the subject, and conned over and over again every para- 
 graph as it was drafted. The production of the despatch arose 
 from some questions in respect to placing the Bible in the libraries 
 of all Government Schools for the study of those who might 
 wish to read it; and he determined that this step should be 
 taken. Eeligious feeling had been more and more gaining strength 
 in his mind for many years past, and now formed the main-spring 
 of his whole being. He apprehended that things intended to be 
 Christian were often performed in an un-Christian way, and 
 thus lost the true character of Christianity. He held that 
 Christian things done in a Christian way could never be po- 
 litically dangerous in India. Any hesitation which might have 
 formerly existed in this respect was swept away by the 
 recent cataclysm, and by the victory which had been mercifully 
 vouchsafed. The Government should be more explicit than 
 heretofore in avowing its Christian character while adhering to 
 the resolution of scrupulously abstaining from interference in 
 the relif^ions of the people. Education and private effort might 
 
Chap. vir. TEMPER OF PANJABI TROOPS. 149 
 
 produce their legitimate fruit, and yet the motives of tlie 
 Government would be appreciated. 
 
 In the spring of 1858 the political sky in the Panjah was 
 clear after the great storm. British repute stood high, conse- 
 quent on the achievements of the European troops in the wars 
 of 1846 and 1848, to whom alone the Sikhs attributed the 
 British victories, somewhat despising the Native troops. jSTow 
 these Native troojDs had mutinied in the most formidable 
 manner, and were yet overcome by their foreign masters. 
 The backbone of the rebellion had indeed been broken by 
 the recapture of Delhi; but Lucknow and the greater part of 
 Oudli still held out; now, however, Lucknow also had fallen 
 to the British. Thus the Sikhs were in their lirst thoucrhts 
 disposed to be more loyally obedient than ever. But in their 
 second thoughts, this fair view soon became clouded over ; for 
 they began to think that after all they had largely assisted 
 the British in the recapture of Delhi, and afterwards 
 in the siege of Lucknow. In Oudli indeed much use had 
 been made of the^_^anjabi troops, raised by John Lawrence 
 during the crisis of the mutiny, These measures had been 
 carried to the very verge of imprudence. One of the errors 
 which led to the mutinies had been the employment in ex- 
 cessive proportion of Native troops drawn from the North- 
 western Provinces and Oudh. Yet something like the same 
 error was near being repeated with the Panjabi troops. For 
 the Sikhs began to say ominously, " We have been the means 
 of restoring the kingdom to the British; why should we not 
 set up a kingdom for ourselves ?" This rising sentiment, too, 
 expanded, as the news came of campaigning in Central India. 
 Sir Hugh Eose had indeed with a small force fought his way 
 from the Bombay Presidency to the North-western Provinces, 
 reducing many rebels as he passed along. But around Gwalior, 
 the capital of Sindhia's State, the rebellion still surged; and 
 Sindhia, as an ally of the British, could hardly maintain his 
 position. This trouble was soon overcome by Sir Huerh Eose's 
 operations, which were followed by some brilliant movements 
 under Sir Eobert Napier. The chequered events, however, 
 
150 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 affected the minds of tlie Sikhs, causing them to think that the 
 great rebellion was not surely ended. 
 
 Some aggravation, also, came from the quarter of Nepal, 
 which State was in dangerous proximity to Oudh, the focus of 
 rebellion. The best of all the Native troops in the British 
 service had indeed been drawn from Nepal, and had recently 
 added much to their previously high repute. Some troops, 
 however, of the Nepalese State co-operated with the British 
 in the Lucknow campaign and failed to be of much use, 
 mainly, it was thought, by reason of the doubtful attitude of 
 the Nepal Government itself. Nepal, in the heart of the Hima- 
 layas, was situated differently from the loyal Native States of 
 India proper ; and during the mutinies was restrained by 
 its able minister Jang Behadur, who had visited England and 
 knew her power. The widow of old Eanjit Sing, a remarkable 
 woman and a veteran intriguer, had taken refuge in Nepal after 
 escaping from a British state-prison. She was believed to be 
 fomenting mischief among the Panjabi troops quartered in Oudh 
 and the Sikhs in the Panjab itself 
 
 Thus in 1858 there was an uneasy feeling among the Panjabi 
 troops stationed at many places throughout northern India from 
 Nepal in the east to the Trans-Indus frontier in the west. 
 These troops consisted not only of Sikhs, but also of Muham- 
 madans drawn from the Afghan frontier. The Afghans, too, were 
 believed to have been held back from participation in mischief 
 only by the Amir Dost Muhammad, who, though retaining his 
 capacity and resolution, was much advanced in years, and had 
 no heir-apparent of equal ability. It was never ascertained, 
 that this incipient disloyalty among the Panjabi troops reached 
 the stage of specific or definite design. But there was every 
 reason to believe that much conversation of a dangerous, 
 though perhaps indefinite, kind Was secretly going on; and 
 the names were known of the probable Sikh leaders in event 
 of a disturbance breaking out. 
 
 There were certain chiefs among the Sikhs in whose fidelity 
 John Lawrence placed confidence and whose opinion he valued. 
 Nihal Sing Chachi was a typical Sikh of the intelligent class, 
 
Chap. vn. , CHARACTER OP PANJABI CHIEFS. 151 
 
 not at all educated in the Western manner, but thoroughly 
 instructed in the public affairs of his day. His loyal frankness, 
 in apprising us of everything likely to cause discontent among 
 his countrymen, was most useful. I never met any Native who 
 had a more judicious understanding of the strong and weak 
 points in the British position politically. He was one of the 
 few men who would speak confidentially and unreservedly on 
 these subjects to Europeans in authority. Kanh Sing liohsa 
 was a Sikh of a different type, blunt untutored and out-spoken, 
 but wise and loyal ; his social weight, too, gave additional value 
 to his advice. Eaja Sahib-dyal was the most refined man of 
 the old school then living, and had been a member of the 
 council of regency before the annexation. He was somewhat 
 reticent, though self-possessed, hesitating to argue any point 
 with Europeans, whom he perhaps regarded as a somewhat 
 violent race. But he was by experience and natural dis- 
 crimination capable of giving sound opinions on political 
 affairs. Eaja Tej Sing was a historic character, having com- 
 manded a part of the Sikh army in the Satlej campaign of 
 1846. The political and military position he once had held 
 naturally imposed upon him some reserve, though he was 
 evidently well-disposed and sensible. His manager and 
 secretary was Eai ]\lul Sing, a very acute and well-informed 
 man, who understood better perhaps than any non-official 
 Native the condition of the Panjab as modified by British 
 rule. These were men whose minds had not been at all 
 affected by Western education, and whose thoughts ran in the 
 old channels. There was one eminent character of that genera- 
 tion, however, who had considerable knowledge of English 
 literature and ideas, namely, Pandit Manphul, a Brahmin of 
 Cashmir. He was a trustworthy man of business-like ability, 
 and subsequently served in important capacities. 
 
 As the year 1858 drew towards its end John Lawrence 
 crossed the Indus for the last time, to visit Peshawar once more, 
 and I was in attendance on him. As we crossed the Indus at 
 Attock, where a grand old fortress overlooks the swiftly rushino- 
 river, he repeated his oft-expressed admiration for that position, 
 
152 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 on account of its classic interest, picturesque beauty and 
 political importance. Eecently the great river, having been in 
 its upper course amidst the Himalayas dammed up by a 
 landslip for some weeks, at length burst its barrier and then 
 rushed downwards past Attock with a terrific flood, rising in a 
 very few hours twenty feet above high-water mark. The Caubul 
 river joins the Indus at a short distance above Attock ; this 
 flood banked up the Caubul river and the refluent water in- 
 undated the military station of Naoshera, twenty miles above 
 the junction. As we descended from some high ground towards 
 the valley of Peshawar and commanded a full view of the place, 
 John Lawrence drew attention to the difficulties of the situation. 
 " Look," he said, " at the fertile and populous plain environed 
 on all sides by rugged hills from which implacable foes can at 
 any moment emerge to ravage and to slay." We ascended a 
 neighbouring mountain where it had been proposed to establish 
 a sanitarium for fever-stricken Europeans from Peshawar ; but 
 he set his face against the project, declaring that sooner or later 
 the helpless invalids would be attacked and slain by the blood- 
 thirsty mountaineers. Arriving at Peshawar, we marvelled at 
 the crowded markets and diversified wares, the mixture of 
 Indian and Central Asian costumes, the clear-running brooks 
 and watercourses, the blooming gardens and irrigated fields. 
 We went as near to the mouth of the Khyber Pass as was 
 permissible, to gaze into its gloomy recesses, rode through the 
 Kohat Pass, with a strong escort lest the Afridi marauders 
 should rush upon us, examined the defensive posts on the 
 Eusufzye, and accompanied Harry Lumsden with a party of his 
 Guide troopers on a hawking expedition. 
 
 It was at Peshawar that John Lawrence on horseback read 
 aloud to the troops paraded for the purpose, the proclamation 
 whereby the Queen announced her gracious assumption of the 
 Indian administration. 
 
 His mind now reverted to a question which he had previously 
 agitated regarding the expediency of retaining Peshawar and 
 its valley in the British dominions. He thought that it M^ould 
 be better to abandon than to keep that military station and 
 
Chap. VII. QUESTION OF RETAINING TESHAWAR. 153 
 
 its dependent territory. This idea of his was decried by most 
 of his critics, regretted by many of his friends, and ran counter 
 to the prevailing current of public opinion. He seemed to be 
 aware that his view would be unpopular with the majority 
 of his countrymen, still he adhered to it through more of 
 evil than of good report. During the crisis of 1857 he had 
 broached the question of evacuating Peshawar in order that the 
 European troops, wliich were then there, might be employed 
 elsewhere for the protection of the Panjab. He did not actually 
 insist on the step being taken, and referred for instructions to 
 Lord Canning, who decided to hold Peshawar to the last. 
 
 Since then further experience had been gained of what might 
 be considered the preponderating disadvantages of Peshawar, and 
 John Lawrence again discussed the question of its abandonment. 
 Though acknowledging the political influence and importance 
 of the place, he did not rate these so liighly as most other 
 authorities. But he deemed that the sacrifices required for its 
 occupation were out of proportion to its value. It was an 
 advanced outpost surrounded by persistent foes, and needed 
 three European battalions for its adequate maintenance and sup- 
 port, a force which the Government could not in his opinion 
 properly spare for tliis purpose. But this was not all; the 
 place was insalubrious to a degree apparently beyond remedy, 
 for every corps arriving there became within a twelvemonth 
 prostrated by autumnal fever. The regiments, then, had to be 
 relieved at short intervals of two years, and thus the military 
 arrangements of the whole country were disturbed. John Law- 
 rence had a tender heart for the European soldiers, and would 
 visit the hospitals where they lay sick with cholera or fever. So 
 he deplored the abnormal wear and tear of British life and 
 strength at Peshawar. Our men and money were needed for 
 countless purposes of unquestionable importance ; there was 
 little, he thought, in Peshawar to justify the waste not only of 
 money, but of life and strength more precious than treasure. If 
 Peshawar were relinquished, he held that the British frontier 
 might well rest on the Indus, and he was fond of ridinc; alonjj 
 the left bank of that river and pointing out the many positions 
 
154 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 there wliicli were defensible against an invading army. If, 
 however, Peshawar should be wanted under certain conceivable 
 circumstances, it could at pleasure be occupied temporarily by 
 a British force advancing from the Indus. 
 
 The counter arguments, asserting the political importance of 
 Peshawar — as being quite worth the sacrifices involved — con- 
 tinued to prevail, and the objections grew less as the salubrity 
 of the place improved. Nowadays nothing is further from the 
 thoughts of the Government than the relinquishment of this 
 most valuable position. 
 
 At this time a noteworthy memorial was being transmitted 
 to the Government by the members of the Covenanted Civil 
 Service in reference to the consequences of the late war. By 
 the original constitution of the service, a fund for widows and 
 orphans had been formed by subscriptions levied from the Civil 
 Servants. Eecently, however, they had been exposed to the 
 very brunt of danger, and bore an honourable share in en- 
 countering the calamities of the time. Consequently so many 
 of them had been killed in the execution of their duty that the 
 number of widows and orphans claiming provision greatly 
 exceeded the resources of the fund, which had never been calcu- 
 lated to meet such contingencies as these. The Government 
 was therefore asked to take upon itself the payment of the 
 allowances to claimants in excess of the average number for 
 which the fund was estimated ordinarily to provide. 
 
 John Lawrence now deemed that the time had come when he 
 might leave the Panjab in security and repair to England. The 
 affection in his head (already mentioned) had grown gradually 
 worse from mental labour, and was injuring his health and 
 strength generally. He resolved to depart before he should be 
 incapacitated by illness, notwithstanding the dissuasion of Lord 
 Canning. The Chief Commissionership of the Panjab being 
 advanced to a Lieutenant-Governorship, he was appointed to be 
 Lieutenant-Governor shortly before he departed. He was made 
 a Privy Councillor and a Baronet by the Queen, the Court of 
 Directors had before the extinction of the Company granted him 
 a special pension on his retirement, and he was appointed a 
 
Chap. vii. MUHAMMADAN DISAFFECTION AT LAHORE. 155 
 
 member of the new Council of India which had been established 
 in London to assist the Secretary of State. Before his departure 
 he received a valedictory address from the principal European 
 gentlemen engaged in the administration of the Panjab. In his 
 reply he attributed the successes, which were commemorated, 
 mainly to the fact that he had, without fear favour or partiality, 
 persisted in choosing the best ablest and fittest men to do what- 
 ever work was prescribed. 
 
 He was succeeded by Sir Eobert Montgomery, who left the 
 Chief Commissionership of Oudh in order to take up the Lieu- 
 tenant-Governorship of the Panjab, and whose antecedents 
 marked him out as the fittest man for the succession, Mont- 
 gomery assumed office at a moment when the Panjab had in 
 the main become quieted and free from any general danger. 
 Still there remained the swell with which the political sea 
 heaves after a long-protracted storm. Some traitorous designs 
 of Sikh origin having been discovered at or near Lahore, the 
 requisite steps were promptly taken. 
 
 Though there were many Sikhs in the city of Lahore, yet the 
 Muhammadan element was very considerable there. As usual, 
 the forerunner of treasonable agitation was an announcement 
 of the speedy advent of one of the prophets who are yet to 
 appear before the world comes to an end. The idea was to 
 enlist the Native civil officials secretly in the cause, and 
 procure the murder of the principal European officers, in the 
 hope that then the people would rise en masse and the Native 
 army mutiny once more. The very absurdity of such notions 
 proved the fitful state in which the Muhammadan mind then 
 was, swayed by every silly impulse, and rocked by every gust, 
 
 " Vain as the leaf uiion the stream 
 And fickle as a changeful dream, 
 Fantastic as a woman's mood 
 And fierce as frenzy's fevered blood." 
 
 The priests in the mosques were preaching sermons which 
 contained more of politics than of religion ; indeed the sacred 
 cloisters and arcades were trysting-places where the faithful 
 gathered in knots to hear exhortations on the duty of rebellion. 
 
J 56 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 Our information on this head being specific and deemed by us 
 to be autlientic, I one morning assembled the Muliammadan 
 priests from all quarters of the city in the courtyard of tlie 
 principal mosque. After reminding tliem that these buildings 
 had been erected by the piety of former rulers for divine 
 worship and the instruction of youth in the faith of Islam, 
 and that in the exercise of these functions perfect freedom 
 was enjoyed under British rule, — I warned them that we would 
 not suffer the use of the mosques to be perverted for the 
 profane purposes of sedition. The scene was interesting as 
 these men sat in a large circle around me on the tesselated 
 pavement, with their refined features, their venerable beards, 
 their countenances indicating culture yet bearing traces of 
 suppressed passion — while over us the marble domes cast their 
 long shadows, and in front of us the minarets with enamelled 
 colouring stood out brightly in the sunlight. 
 
 Soon afterwards there occurred the festival when the Shiali 
 sect among the Muhammadans celebrate the martyrdom of their 
 saints Hasan and Husen, to the great annoyance of the Sunni 
 sect. One night I went to the upper gallery of a palace whence 
 I could see and hear the Shiahs at their devotions in the 
 spacious courtyard below. From a pulpit the reader recited, in 
 pathetic tones and with studied elocution, Persian verses setting 
 forth the fortitude charity and fidelity of the martyrs. At 
 some moments the audience would be swayed by genuine 
 emotion, and sobs of sincere sorrow or pity were audible. 
 Again some devotees, evidently appointed and commissioned, 
 would rise chanting lamentations in a dolorous but exactly 
 measured cadence, and beating themselves severely with cliains. 
 Though their grief was artificial in its inception, they worked 
 their minds by bodily exertion into a real frenzy. Next morning 
 I watched the procession, as the riderless horses were led, their 
 trappings transfixed with arrows and their flanks sprinkled with 
 carmine in imitation of blood, indicating tlie death of the 
 warrior saints in battle. Sounds of grief, either formal or heart- 
 felt, came from the multitude, and even Hindu women were at 
 times moved to tears. As the funeral car gaudy with tinsel 
 
Chap. vn. EAST INDIA COMPANY'S EUROPEAN TROOPS. 157 
 
 was being consigned to its resting-place, stones began to fly 
 thickly — doubtless flung by Sunni hands — and it was only 
 through the exertions of us European officers that a collision 
 was prevented. 
 
 The most noteworthy event of this time, however, was the 
 mutiny of a part of the European forces of the late East India 
 Company, or " the local European troops," as they were then 
 styled. It had been determined by the English Government 
 after the abolition of the East India Company, that the Indian 
 armies, both European and Native, should be amalgamated with 
 the Eoyal army. The measure passed off quite well so far as 
 the Native armies were concerned. But with the European 
 forces the amalgamation produced troubles wliich assumed 
 the gravest complexion, requiring the most careful and 
 judicious treatment in order to avert perilous results. These 
 forces consisted partly of artillery, which bore on its colours the 
 motto of "ubique," intimating that whereas other regiments 
 might bear the names of many victories, this regiment of 
 artillery had been engaged in every action that had ever been 
 fought in India. Indeed it was not until the exigencies of the 
 mutinies arose that the Eoyal artillery began to be employed 
 in India. The infantry consisted of nine regiments in all, 
 of which some had sustained the honour of English arms in 
 many battles since the latter half of the eighteenth century. 
 The men of the artillery and infantry had been enlisted in 
 English recruiting grounds indeed, but the recruits were 
 usually found in classes different from those wliich furnished 
 soldiers to the Eoyal army. The physique of the Company's 
 European soldiers, especially of the artillerymen, was fine, and, 
 on the whole, the troops, though said to be not so strictly disci- 
 plined as the Eoyal army, were fit for any service that could be 
 demanded of them. The cavalry had been newly raised durino- 
 the crisis of the mutinies in 1857, without the proper admixture 
 of seasoned or experienced soldiers, and consequently these 
 troops were in a raw and unsatisfactory condition. 
 
 On the amalgamation being settled, the authorities held that 
 no fresh oath and no new re-enlistment would be required, because 
 
158 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vii. 
 
 all the men had, on their enlistment, sworn to serve the Crown 
 as well as the Company ; and tliis view legally and technically 
 was quite correct. The men however had never realized the 
 fact that they had taken the twofold oath, hut were under the 
 impression that they had sworn to serve the Company and no 
 other authority. If, then, they were now to serve the Crown, 
 they expected to he re-enlisted, thereupon receiving some 
 bounty, and to be allowed the option of taking their discharge. 
 Most of them however were willing, indeed desirous, to con- 
 tinue their service, as they had become accustomed to India 
 and liked the country, provided that they were mvited to 
 serve with an offer of bounty. On finding that they would be 
 regarded as servants of the Crown, without any new conditions 
 being offered, they thought they were being treated without due 
 consideration, and this idea aroused resentment in their minds. 
 That they should have mistaken their legal status and laid 
 such stress upon the formality of re-enHstment, may be deemed 
 extraordinary, but the fact illustrates the oft-repeated lesson 
 of grave events arising from apparently trivial causes. The 
 mischief began with the artillery, and spread to the infantry ; 
 the movement was then taken up by the cavalry, who having 
 been so recently raised, had only the flimsiest pretext for 
 moving. Mutinous acts ensued at several of the most import- 
 ant military stations in northern India ; I shall here relate 
 only those which came under my own observation. 
 
 I was then Commissioner of the civil Division comprising dis- 
 tricts around Lahore, that is, head of the local administration 
 including (among many other things) the police and the magis- 
 tracy. Instruction came to me from the Lieutenant-Governor 
 (Sir Eobert Montgomery) that mutinous messages and despatches 
 were likely to be sent from the late Company's European troops 
 in the North-western Provinces to their comrades at Lahore, 
 and that such communications were, if possible, to be inter- 
 cepted. In the course of a few days several despatches of this 
 nature were intercepted, one of which was remarkable. It 
 purported to come, and certainly came, from the artillery at 
 Meerut to the address of their comrades at Lahore. It set 
 
THE MEN'S OBJECTIONS TO CHANGE OF SEEVICE. 159 
 
 forth that they were being arbitrarily and unjustly transferred 
 from the Company to another master, and that they were resolved 
 " to make a fine gale of it in order not to serve the Crown." 
 It enumerated all the batteries of artillery in northern India 
 which might be expected to join the movement. It also stated 
 that the artillery would break away from Meerut and march 
 upon Delhi (less than tliirty miles) in the hope that the other, 
 or Eoyal, European troops " would not fire a shot " against their 
 countrymen. I took this letter to General Windham (of 
 Crimean celebrity), who then commanded the Lahore Division, 
 and he requested me to accompany him on his visit to the 
 barracks on the evening of that day, as a witness in the event 
 of serious circumstances suddenly arising. Before we reached 
 the barracks, reports came that the artillerymen had refused to 
 turn out for ordinary duty, and that the cavalry were foUowino- 
 their example. On entering the barracks in company with the 
 regimental commandants, we found the men in somewhat wild 
 disorder ; they began to salute us with cries like those which 
 sometimes come from the gallery of a theatre. General 
 Windham evidently desired to bring them back to the sem- 
 blance of order without applying force. When he raised his 
 voice they instinctively gathered round him in silence. He 
 began by simply saying they were all English, Scotch or Irish, 
 on which cries arose of " so we be " ; whatever name they mio-ht 
 be called by, they were to fight for old England in this foreign 
 country ; while obedience would be commanded and enforced, 
 justice would be done ; it was, as they all knew, the practice of 
 general ofl&cers to enquire for complaints or grievances, therefore 
 a certain number of them were to come with him outside and 
 state what they meant by refusing to obey their officers, 
 while the rest must stay inside the barracks. The men then 
 became quiet, and a few were selected by the regimental 
 officers to attend the General outside. Upon being required 
 to explain themselves, they said in effect that the conditions of 
 their service were being broken by their transfer to the Crown. 
 Their meaning was set forth by such words as " we ought not 
 to be turned over from the Company to any one else without 
 
160 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vn. 
 
 being first asked," or " we are being handed like cattle from one 
 o^vner to another," and many other similar expressions. Their 
 tone and manner shewed excitement from a genuine sense of 
 injury. The General said that they must see that this was a 
 point which could be considered, not by him or by their officers, 
 but by the Government alone, that they would the next morn- 
 ing be required one by one to state whatever grievance was 
 felt, and that meanwhile they must obey their officers. They 
 separated quietly, and the next morning every man presented 
 himself as ordered. Thus they were for the moment led gently 
 back to the path of obedience, and remained orderly. "We also 
 went to the cavalry barracks ; the men there were reported to 
 be verging on insubordination, though they had not refused to 
 obey orders. They were inclined to be noisy and boisterous 
 when the General spoke to them, but they did not declare 
 themselves aggrieved. The next day their insubordination 
 increased, and they ended by refusing to do duty. The 
 authorities, however, managed to avoid the necessity of applying 
 force ; and no violent outbreak occurred. General Windham 
 behaved with coolness of temper and presence of mind in trying 
 moments, when even the slightest indiscretion might have 
 rendered an appeal to force inevitable. 
 
 The anxiety of the military authorities and the Government 
 was at this time strained to a high degree of tension. "What 
 would happen, they inwardly thought, if with many hundreds of 
 armed Europeans in this excited state, any acts of violence were 
 to be committed, or some of the men were to break loose and move 
 off, or, worse still, if the dire necessity were to arise of shedding 
 English blood by English hands on Indian soil ? What too, 
 they wondered, would the effect be upon the Native army and 
 people of the Panjab, a province but rece^ly freed from the 
 agitation consequent on the war of the mutinies ? As tidings 
 came of mutinous conduct on the part of the late Company's 
 European troops at Cawnpore, Allahabad, Patna, and elsewhere, 
 the anxiety at Lahore was quickened lest the men, who were 
 quiescent with a suppressed agitation, should lose the power of 
 self-restraint. By the mercy of Providence, however, nothing of 
 
Chap. VII. VISIT TO CASHMIR. 161 
 
 consequence happened in the Panjab. Tlie counsels of the Go- 
 vernment of India depended on Canning and Clyde, two men 
 in whom temper, firmness and judgment were happily com- 
 bined. Severity was exercised as little as possible, and a wise 
 clemency was displayed towards soldiers who after many years 
 of splendid service had fallen into a temporary aberration. 
 Their thoughtless misconduct was, indeed, fraught with peril to 
 the State ; but it is incredible that they ever dreamt of striking 
 at British rule in India. They doubtless meant, by raising a 
 storm, to assert their supposed rights. The Government, then, 
 desired to rid itself quietly of discontented soldiers from 
 among its European forces in India, and those men who proved 
 unwilling to remain in the public service were allowed to take 
 their discharge. 
 
 The effect of these events on the Native mind, though in a 
 certain degree mischievous, was neither great nor lasting. Many 
 Natives feared that the mutinous European soldiery would 
 plunder the neighbouring country. Some, also, began to say 
 significantly that the English were setting fire to their own 
 house ; but such sayings did not convey any serious import. 
 For the Natives were unable to realize the possibility of dis- 
 ruption really occurring among the English in India, and felt 
 convinced that the cohesion which had always imparted stability 
 to British rule would somehow be maintained. 
 
 When this conjuncture had safely passed, I took a brief 
 journey to Cashmir, marching thither over the crest known as 
 that of the Pir Panjal, the route by which the Mogul emperors 
 used to pass to and fro on the journey between their empire in 
 northern India and their summer retreat in the happy valley. 
 Consequently the imperial line of march — it could not be called 
 a road — was found to be marked at each stage by the remains 
 of some caravanserai or mosque, recalling scenes when all the 
 pomp and pageantry of the east were set off by the wildness of 
 mountain scenery. No Englishman, with all the Western cul- 
 ture of modern times, could love Cashmir more than the Mogul 
 emperors loved it. They enriched, with the products of their art 
 and architecture, a valley already pre-eminent for beauty. 
 
162 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vir. 
 
 Entering Caslnnir, traversing the plain by means of the navig- 
 able channel of the Jhelam and crossing the lakes decked 
 with water-lilies we ascended " Solomon's throne," a hill jutting 
 out into the valley. 
 
 From the summit of this hill was beheld the finest 
 panorama in the whole Himalayan region. Deep beneath 
 our feet lay the city with its highways consisting of canals, 
 the rocky citadel, the poplar avenues, the lake and its 
 floating gardens, the Mogul fountains and summer-houses on 
 its margin, the wooded isle of plane-trees. Beyond there ran 
 the river meandering in streaks of light through villages and 
 orchards, here or there spanned by quaint wooden bridges and 
 sometimes flowing under the ruins left by ancient Hindu 
 dynasties. In the distance stood the snowy range bounding the 
 entire circumference of the horizon. To whatever direction our 
 gaze was turned, whether north toward Ladakh, or south towards 
 India, or east towards the main Himalayas, or west towards the 
 Indus, we saw the unbroken boundary of glistening white. The 
 circumvallation of snow was not uniform, being diversified by 
 many peaks which the Muhammadans dignify as " Pirs," or 
 saints, in varying shapes, cones, domes, pyramids or spires. 
 These are celebrated, some as shrines of pilgrimage, some as 
 fastnesses of untameable tribes, some as stations for scientific 
 surveys. With a prospect seen from so great an altitude and 
 extending over so wide an area as this, atmospheric phenomena in 
 the utmost variety Avere visible from sunrise to sunset. One part 
 of the plains, lakes or mountains in the vast landscape would be 
 in stormy shadow, another in sunshine, another in driving 
 vapour. The eye glanced from the lake reposing in murky 
 gloom to the summits glittering against the azure, from the 
 gleams of light across the city groves meads and saffron fields 
 to the hillside with its shining glaciers and darkling cedars 
 half shrouded in mist. Fair as was the earth below the sky 
 above was fairer still. At morn the clouds gathered in roU- 
 m<y volumes of grey tipped with red. At midday they were 
 white as masses of wool scattered over the blue empyrean, here 
 and there melting into showers or arched with iridescent 
 
Chap. vii. PANORAMA OF CASHMIR VALLEY. 163 
 
 colours. At eventide they caught every hue of crimson and 
 orange, becoming more and more luminous each moment. Up 
 to this time the glory of the earth had held its own against that 
 of the heaven. But near sunset the earth seemed quite sub- 
 merged and lost to view, we had eyes only for the resplendent 
 ether, or for the summits to which the sun was bidding a bright 
 farewell for the night. Then after we had watched the change- 
 ful moods of Cashmir all through the long summer's day, there 
 rose to our minds the Persian couplet which declares that if 
 paradise exists on the face of the earth, it is here, it is here ! 
 
 M 2 
 
164 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 CHAPTEK VIII. 
 
 (1856-1859.) 
 CANNING THE JUST. 
 
 Contrast between Canning and his predecessor Dalhousie — Canning undertakes 
 war with Persia — His conduct after the outburst of tlie mutinies in northern 
 India — His policy towards the Natives in disturbed districts — His tem- 
 porary unpopularity at Calcutta and elsewhere — His management of 
 military affairs — His relations with Sir Hu2;h Kose (now Lord Strathnairn), 
 Commander-in-Chief — His support accorded to George Balfour and the 
 Military Finance department — He proceeds with tlie re-organization of 
 the police for India — His civil and political administration — His principal 
 advisers and Councillors — His departure from India — Death of Lady 
 Canning at Calcutta. 
 
 I FIRST met Lord Canning at Calcutta on my way from the 
 Panjab to England in the autumn of 1856 ; and stayed 
 with him for a few days at Barrackpur, the country seat 
 of the Grovernors-General on the banks of the Hughli river, 
 some fourteen miles from the capital. In several respects 
 his aspect presented a contrast to that which we so vividly 
 recollected in Dalhousie his predecessor. Canning seemed 
 calm, grave, reflective, disposed to enquire deeply and broadly ; 
 but he was more than ordinarily deliberate in forming a 
 definite conclusion, and cautious in taking action upon such 
 conclusion when formed. This mental attitude was, indeed, 
 natural and appropriate in a ruler newly arrived on a 
 scene so vast and strange as India. But it was surprising at 
 first to those who had grown accustomed to the positive policy, 
 incisive dicta and vigorous action which Dalhousie felt justified 
 in adopting upon the information and experience gathered during 
 a long tenure of his high office. At the outset Dalhousie had 
 evinced a disposition to enquire and ponder with comprehensive 
 
Chap. viii. BEGINNING OF CANNING'S ADMINISTRATION. 165 
 
 circumspection, and to stay conclusive action for a while. But it 
 was evident tliat lie would, after adequate enquiry, yet with due 
 promptitude, satisfy himself even respecting the most complex 
 affairs, and, having done so, would take effective action. Now, 
 Canning would be ready enough to take up every intricate subject 
 that suggested itself, and to look at it all round, but there was 
 doubt whether he would see such a way through its intricacies, 
 as might satisfy the requirements of his judgment. Consequently, 
 after several years of administrative . activity under Dalhousie, 
 India enjoyed quiescence during the first year. and a half of 
 Canning's administration. The numerous schemes which had 
 been originated and launched into operation were allowed to 
 produce their legitimate results ; and the current business of 
 an empire, daily presenting numerous points for immediate 
 decision, was duly performed. Wliether Canning, after having 
 passed through this preliminary course, and served, as it were, 
 the apprenticeship for supreme command, would proceed 
 onwards and carve out an administrative policy for himself, 
 cannot now be determined. For urgent circumstances arose 
 which, gathering strength as they passed, drove him imperatively 
 into action in numerous directions and, when their force was 
 spent, left him in the midst of changed conditions. 
 
 Like every other Governor-General elect, he had left England 
 full of protestations that the preservation of peace was the fore- 
 most object of his policy. Nevertheless, in common with several 
 of his predecessors, he was shortly after his arrival compelled to 
 prepare for war. One morning John Lawrence was surprised to 
 receive a letter from the new Governor-General explaining that 
 his Government was likely to come to blows with the Shah of 
 Persia. The aggressive conduct of the Persian authorities in 
 respect of Herat, caused the speedy despatch of a British expedi- 
 tion up the Persian Gulf This expedition not only averted 
 aggression from Herat, but also shewed how easily the British 
 Government could control at least the southern part of Persia. 
 
 The brief campaign in soiithern Persia was scarcely concluded 
 when the first symptoms of mutiny appeared in the Native army 
 of Bengal. As the mischief spread with startling rapidity and 
 
166 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 the ins^^fficiency of the European forces became manifest, the 
 public justly regarded the temporary withdrawal of some of the 
 European troops from India for the Persian expedition as one of 
 the many causes which had conduced to place the Indian Govern- 
 ment in a critical position. At the time when that expedition 
 Bailed from India for the Persian Gulf, there was not indeed the 
 faintest indication of disloyalty in the Native army. Still, on 
 an impartial retrospect, it must be admitted that a consideration 
 of the recent additions to British dominion in India — the latest 
 of which, namely, the province of Oudh, abounded in elements 
 of danger — ought to have convinced the Government that the 
 European troops needed for service in Persia must be supplied, 
 not from India, but from elsewhere. The responsibility in this 
 respect must, however, be shared by other authorities besides 
 Canning the newly arrived Governor-General. 
 /•■'When in May 1857 the Sepoys were successful in their insur- 
 rection at Meerut, despite the presence of European troops there, 
 and proceeded to seize Delhi, public opinion in northern India 
 and at Calcutta swayed hither and thither in wild excitement. 
 Most men were at first unwilling to believe that the sepoys 
 would or could rebel in a mass, many adhered to their faith in 
 the general loyalty of soldiers who had served long and faith- 
 fully, some authorities still hoped that extreme consequences 
 might be averted. Soon, however. Canning with his penetrating 
 judgment saw that a national crisis had arisen, which must be 
 encountered without hesitation. When he was thus aroused, his 
 doubting temperament disappeared, and was replaced by a prompt 
 and positive disposition. He acted with instantaneous decision 
 in despatching every available European to the scene of disaster 
 or of danger, summoning English troops from Burma and 
 Ceylon, recalling the men who could be spared after the Persian 
 expedition, suggesting to Lord Elgin the temporary diversion to 
 India of the expedition then on its way to China. His reports 
 to the Government in England explaining the conjuncture 
 and demanding reinforcements, liis public utterances and pro- 
 clamations in India, were temperate resolute and dignified. 
 Before the Native army and people he vindicated the justice of 
 
Chap. viii. OUTBEEAK OF THE GEEAT MUTINY. 167 
 
 the British Government. While evincing an immovable deter- 
 mination to suppress rebellion, he displayed a generous con- 
 sideration to those who might have been temporarily misled, 
 and a forgiving temper towards all who might return to their 
 allegiance. Matters rapidly grew worse, no hope remained of 
 stamping out the fire, and it was but too clear that the mutiny 
 would embrace nearly the whole Native army of Bengal, com- 
 municating a dangerous excitement to the Native armies of 
 Madras and Bombay. There would be extensive insurrections 
 in many parts of the country and a paralysis of British 
 authority, in the North-western Provinces at least. Then the 
 hef.rts of many began to sink, even in the Anglo-Indian com- 
 munity which is habituated to the contemplation of danger. 
 Still many strong Englishmen in every part of the threatened 
 country kept their knees firm and steady in the midst of 
 the whirling torrent. And Canning was foremost among the 
 brave and the staunch. In those trying moments it was truly 
 said of him that his eye quailed not, neither did his cheek pale. / 
 As the Anglo-Indian community nerved itself to cope with \/ \ 
 the astounding situation, a sort of vindictiveness began to get \ 
 possession of the public mind. This feeling is not, indeed, 
 to be justified.; but it was natural to men excited by 
 tremendous events. There had been no time for schoolimr the 
 thoughts so that stern severity might be evinced where neces- 
 sary, and mercy shewn when called for. The mutinies had 
 occurred with startling suddenness, and were accompanied by 
 every aggravation of unfaithfulness, by cruelty, even by barbarity. 
 British ofiicers were required most unexpectedly to deal with 
 a conjuncture demanding on their part, not only unflinching 
 decision of character, but also a judicious self-restraint under 
 ardent excitement. Any one who knows the working of tha^^ 
 human heart under such circumstances, will hardly be sur- 
 prised to find that they exhibited more of decisiveness than of 
 self-restraint. Moreover they all had an abiding sense of the 
 fact that their power rested on opinion quite as much as on force ; 
 and this consideration was now brought into striking prominence. 
 The enmity and animosity evinced by comparatively few, might 
 
168 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vm. 
 
 spread like wild-fire among the countless many ; and then the 
 scattered groups of Europeans would be helpless amidst raging 
 multitudes. Thus it was held that almost the only chance for 
 safety lay in the adoption of such masterful measures as should 
 strike the Native mind with terror ; just as a tiger is sometimes 
 cowed by the steady human eye. If this policy caused blood- 
 shed, the conscience was momentarily quieted by the reflection 
 that " it is a question of their lives against ours," or, "either they 
 or we must die, we'll kill them to save ourselves." Impelbd 
 by such sentiments, many will act at the outset with a severity 
 wliich beats down the rising mischief, and proves to be really 
 merciful in the end ; some blood of the guilty is shed at first 
 inevitably, in order that further blood-shedding may be averted. 
 But the tendency is to carry tliis severity to undue extremes ; 
 to multiply executions with less and less of discrimination 
 regarding the degree of guilt. As the crisis waxes and lasts, the 
 prolonged tension of the mind, the wearing anxiety during the 
 days, the sleep broken by the apprehension of nocturnal attacks, 
 unfit men for the exercise of considerateness in weighing 
 evidence or adjudging punishment. Even when the worst of the 
 crisis is overpast, they are too apt to continue a severity which 
 was justifiable only Avhile the dangers were at their height. 
 Thus much happened which morally is to be regretted and of 
 wliich the continuance might ultimately have provoked retalia- 
 tion from the other side, and led to an internecine conflict 
 between the European and Native races. As a point of national 
 honour, it was to be earnestly wished that the escutcheon of 
 British valour and constancy, which was splendidly displayed, 
 should not be disfigured by sanguinary deeds. 
 
 Canning then took his stand on the plain principles that 
 justice must be tempered with mercy, and that extreme severity 
 might be tolerated so long as it was absolutely necessary, but 
 not a moment longer. Thoughtful persons everywhere approved 
 this policy, as consistent with the almost paternal attitude which 
 the British Government had at all times assumed towards the 
 people of India. Many others, however, by misapprehension, 
 took it to mean that the arm of British authority was to be 
 
Chap. viii. CANNING'S CONDUCT AT CALCUTTA. 169 
 
 shortened when blows had to be struck, and that a haker of 
 undue responsibility was to be hung round the necks of those 
 who were battling with bloodthirsty foes. Thus there arose in 
 many quarters an angry feeling against the Governor-General, 
 who was hailed by the name of " Clemency Canning." Then 
 appeared the first clouds of unpopularity on his horizon. 
 
 At that time the newspaper press in India generally, and at 
 Calcutta especially, teemed with statements and comments 
 which were considered by the Government to be detrimental to 
 the public safety. Canning resolved to establish temporarily 
 a moderate censorship in respect of matters relating to the war 
 the mutinies and the rebellion. Although it was not ordinarily 
 the practice for the Governor-General to preside at meetings of 
 the Legislative Council, he exercised on that occasion his legal 
 function of President, and made a speech explaining the need 
 for this temporary restraint of the press for a special purpose. 
 He doubtless thought that this invidious duty should be dis- 
 charged with all the weight attaching to himself and his office. 
 The law was passed as he desired, but, as might be expected, 
 this aroused against him the jealousy with which Englishmen 
 everywhere regard any interference with the liberty of the press. 
 
 Wliile Canning himself preserved a dauntless demeanour, the 
 European community at Calcutta considered that he \vas not 
 sufficiently alive to the local dangers which threatened this capital 
 city. There were sepoy regiments close by which might mutiny 
 and march upon an almost defenceless town. It was thought 
 that there had been unnecessary delay in disarming them. The 
 NatiA'^e quarters were densely inhabited by a population in part 
 at least affected by fanaticism. The European garrison was 
 reduced to its lowest ebb by the despatch of troops to the many 
 seats of war. At that time no system of volunteering had 
 been organized, and the civil members of the European com- 
 munity were unarmed and untrained. The Government was 
 thought to be tardy in accepting the patriotic offers made by the 
 European inhabitants to arm and organize themselves. At times 
 alarm would seize the public mind, and people actually con- 
 templated leaving their houses and living for awhile on board the 
 
] 70 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 mercantile ships lying in the river. This alarm was probably not 
 altogether without reason, though by many it was denounced as 
 needless panic. The regulations regarding the importation and 
 possession of arms were applied in a manner at which the non- 
 official Europeans took offence. In these various affairs many 
 Europeans, official and non-official, failed to recognize in 
 Canning a ruler to their liking, and withdrew from him their 
 confidence. Nor did they regard with favour the advisers, 
 councillors, secretaries and others by whom he was surrounded. 
 In several ways the community grew dissatisfied with the 
 Government, and with Canning as its head. Some people 
 even were highly incensed, and by all accounts, in daily 
 conversation, used language of which the heat and vehemence 
 would seem amazing if considered in quieter moments. 
 These feelings ultimately caused the preparation of a memo- 
 rial from the non-official community of Calcutta to Her 
 Majesty's Government praying for the recall of Canning from 
 the office of Governor-General. When this document was 
 transmitted to him by the Government in England for any 
 remarks which might seem requisite, he reviewed every 
 argument and allegation with judicial calmness. None could 
 tell from his impassive demeanour whether he was sensitive or 
 not to the disapproval manifested by his countrymen dwelling 
 around liis headquarters. He probably regarded this as one 
 of the many trials which had to be sustained with calmness 
 and fortitude at a time of unexampled danger and excitement. 
 He must, however, have looked back on it with astonish- 
 ment when, four years later, the same community, taking a 
 juster retrospect of his conduct at this time, and generously 
 appreciating his subsequent acts, presented valedictory addresses 
 on his departure from India, and raised funds for the erection at 
 Calcutta of a statue in remembrance of him. 
 
 Much attention was attracted to a publication summarizing 
 the events of the mutinies and commonly called "the red 
 pamphlet." The author was known to be Captain (now Colonel) 
 George Bruce IMalleson, a very talented writer. In this narra- 
 tive. Canning's management of aflFairs was gravely impugned 
 
Chap. vin. HIS ADVISERS CIVIL AND MILITARY. 171 
 
 and his principal advisers, namely the Councillors and Secre- 
 taries, were particularly assailed. They failed, it was said, to 
 give him sound advice in respect to allaying the fear undoubtedly 
 felt by the sepoys for their caste or religion, and dealing with 
 the premonitory sjnnptoms of the insurrectionary storm. They 
 possessed competent experience, indeed, but it was not of the 
 right sort. There was a want of special knowledge relating to 
 northern India where the scenes of trouble and danger lay. 
 The most important post in the secretariat was held by George 
 Edmonstone, already mentioned in chapter V., who certainly 
 was highly qualified in this respect, and among the Councillors 
 John Peter Grant was a man of commanding talent. Still, on 
 the whole, there was hardly at Calcutta a display of that genius 
 in emergency which might have been expected, and which 
 actually appeared in many parts of India during those most 
 troublous months. In fact Calcutta is not a place favourably 
 situated for feeling the pulse, as it were, of the political classes 
 in the country, or for understanding the spirit of rebellion 
 whenever it may be abroad. To this disadvantage Calcutta was 
 inevitably subject, as a drawback to its many advantages in 
 other respects. Doubtless Canning's counsels must have suffered 
 from tliis cause at the beginning. 
 
 Having remained at Calcutta during the summer and autumn of 
 1857, Canning proceeded at the close of the year to Allahabad. His 
 purpose was to supervise personally the affairs of those provinces 
 which had been disturbed, afford to the Commander-in-Chief, 
 Lord Clyde, such support as might be required for terminating 
 the rebellion wMch still lasted in Oudh and Central India, and 
 deal promptly with the political questions which would arise 
 when victory had been won in the field. In aU affair's of 
 military urgency he acted with due quickness, and did all that 
 could be done by the Government for despatching troops to Lord 
 Clyde from every quarter for the several campaigns which were 
 in progress, and furnishing the commanders with all the re- 
 sources needed for conducting their operations successfully. 
 But he soon became unable to despatch with equal efficiency 
 the countless affairs, of secondary importance or urgency. 
 
172 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vm. 
 
 military, political and civil, which crowded upon him ; and 
 arrears of business were fast accumulating. He was attended 
 at this time by George Edmonstone, the Foreign Secretary, 
 a man of eminent attainments, who had a reputation for 
 businesslike capacity and commanded public confidence. But 
 even Edmonstone could not obtain the timely imprimatur of 
 the over-burdened Governor-General to the numerous orders 
 necessary for the due management of affairs. One main cause 
 of difficulty was Canning's determination to take upon himself 
 the administration of the North-western Provinces in addition 
 to his duties as Governor-General. In this administration his 
 Secretary was William Muir, who has been already mentioned, 
 from whom all possible assistance was derived. Nevertheless, 
 both the imperial work of India and the local administration 
 of the North-western Provinces suffered because Canning 
 attempted to perform the double duty. After some time, how- 
 ever, he restored to these provinces their Lieutenant-Governor- 
 ship, appointing Edmonstone to that office and leaving him 
 in sole charge. 
 
 It was at this time (1858) Canning issued his famous pro- 
 clamation to the landowners of Oudh, declaring that they had 
 as a body incurred the penalty of forfeiture by reason of rebel- 
 lion, but offering full and immediate restitution to all who should 
 by a certain date present themselves and tender submission, 
 excepting always those who had been concerned in the murder 
 of European British subjects. He intended that the substance of 
 this proclamation, while maintaining the dignity of the British 
 Government and marking the character of the rebellion, should 
 yet be moderate and reasonable, and leave wide open a door for 
 repentance. The wording, however, was by many in India 
 thought likely to be misconstrued, and cause alarm in the 
 minds of the Natives generally. 
 
 There had recently been a change of Government in England, 
 and the new Secretary of State, Lord Ellenborough, addressed to 
 the Government of India a despatch criticizing in severe terms 
 the proclamation and the policy which had led to it. This 
 despatch became public, and the publication produced a grave 
 
PROCLAMATION TO THE LANDHOLDERS OF OUDH. 173 
 
 effect in India, both among Europeans and Natives. Speculation 
 became rife as to whether Canning would resign in consequence ; 
 but sympathy was generally felt for him when this fresh 
 embarrassment was piled upon his already oppressive load of 
 care. It soon became understood, however, that he would not 
 quit his post for any reason of this sort, and having piloted the 
 ship so far would persevere till the harbour should be reached. 
 Then news came from England to the effect that there would 
 be no interference with the policy already announced by the 
 Governor-General respecting Oudh. 
 
 The proclamation answered its object, and most of the land- 
 owners of Oudh having duly submitted and presented them- 
 selves, were acknowledged by the Government as being in full 
 possession of all their rights. Afterwards, in January 1859, 
 Canning proceeded to Lucknow, the capital of Oudh, to meet 
 the principal landowners styled " Talukdars," in ceremonial dur- 
 bar, or levee. He there addressed to them an impressive speech 
 setting forth both their position and its duties, which speech is 
 regarded by them as one of the great charters of their rights. 
 
 He then set himself to reassure the Native chiefs throughout 
 India, lest they should imagine that after the great rebellion 
 the heart of the British Government would be turned against 
 them all. He knew that one of the sentiments abiding in their 
 minds was the fear lest they should not be permitted to adopt 
 heirs on failure of issue. In an able and dignified Minute 
 he argued that a declaration of their right to make such 
 adoption would be the happiest of all boons which could be 
 conceded to them. Accordingly he obtained the sanction of 
 Her Majesty's Government to issue a formal patent (sanad) in 
 these terms to all Native princes and chiefs who were govern- 
 ing their own territories. This measure produced a good effect 
 on the Native aristocracy, and caused him to be gratefully 
 remembered by them. 
 
 In order to re-establish public confidence, he made tours of 
 state throughout northern India, holding receptions not only 
 for the Native princes, but also for the lesser chiefs and the 
 upper classes among the Natives. Never in the history of 
 
174 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. vm. 
 
 British rule had there been more real significance in the 
 signs of public rejoicing — the brilliant cavalcades — the proces- 
 sions of elephants — the streets lined with multitudes, eager- 
 gazing silent almost voiceless and rapt in attention — the 
 housetops crowded with spectators — the illuminations, with 
 the spray of fountains and the flash of light, or the forms of 
 mosques minarets temples marked by luminous lines against 
 the black sky. Many traitors at heart who had vainly imagined 
 that the British power was burnt down almost to ashes, now 
 saw it rising. Phoenix -like, grander than ever and flaunting its 
 hated symbols in the breeze of victory. Some thoughtful men, 
 knowing the political failings of their fatherland, thanked the 
 various deities of their respective faiths that it had not been 
 made the sport of revolution or the prey of anarchy, and that the 
 British had prevailed as being the only power having a just wall 
 together with an invincible arm. The larger number, however, 
 simply congratulated themselves on having bided quietly for 
 some decisive issue of events, and being now enabled to declare 
 themselves on the winning side. Never had the Natives, 
 princes noblemen gentry, been more anxious to be presented 
 to the British Eepresentative than they were to make their 
 obeisance to Canning the Viceroy. In his public speeches, 
 which were carefully translated into the vernacular languages, 
 suitable allusion was made to the recent disturbances, while 
 assurances were given regarding the gracious intentions of the 
 Queen and the sympathetic benevolence of the British people 
 towards all their loyal fellow-subjects in the East. On 
 these occasions his fine head, handsome face, sonorous voice 
 and dignified mien were admired by all present; he appeared 
 also to be in good health after his labours and anxieties. 
 Loyalty and fidelity, wherever they had been evinced, were 
 acknowledged, merciful assurances were given, and the resolve 
 of the Government to persevere in maintaining order was 
 declared. Thus a special significance was imparted to these 
 formal ceremonies, and a cheerful hopefulness diflused, after 
 the storms which had been disturbing the political atmosphere. 
 He had now seen the termination of the widespread war of 
 
Chap. viii. EEYISION OF THE MILITAlfZ ESTABLISHMENTS. 175 
 
 the mutiny and rebellion, the pacification of the disturbed 
 districts, the adjudication of forfeiture or other penalties against 
 those whose misconduct had been unpardonable, the extension 
 of mercy to all who had any claim to consideration, and the 
 restoration of public confidence. He had settled in conjunction 
 with the Commander-in-Chief, Lord Clyde, the threatening affair 
 with the European troops of the late East India Company already 
 mentioned in chapter VII. He had welcomed the arrival of 
 James Wilson, who was despatched from England by Her 
 Majesty's Government as Financial Member of the Governor- 
 General's Council. He then applied himself at Calcutta to the 
 heavy task of reorganizing the public establishments which had 
 been thrown into confusion by the convulsions of the two past 
 years, and rehabilitating, in such manner as might be im- 
 mediately practicable, the finances which had been disordered 
 by these grave events. 
 
 The primary matter was the revision of the military forces, 
 with the view of returning to a peace footing, and reducing the 
 subsidiary establishments which had grown so largely during 
 the war. Sir Hugh Eose (already mentioned in chapter VII.) 
 succeeded Lord Clyde as Commander-in-Chief. The outgoing 
 Commander Lord Clyde, though not always able to satisfy the 
 impatient expectations of the public during a time of excitement, 
 was at the end of his Indian career regarded by all men as a safe, 
 wise and successful man, in a word, as a good old soldier. The 
 incoming Commander, Sir Hugh Eose (now Lord Strathnairn), 
 entered on the duties of liis high office with the repute of 
 having shewn both promptitude and persistency in the achieve- 
 ment of large results by comparatively slender forces. He 
 forthwith applied his zeal and talent to all that concerned 
 the welfare and discipline of the troops both European and 
 Native. The condition of the European soldiers received his 
 special attention, inasmuch as often their lodgings were defec- 
 tive and their surroundings insanitary. AMien additional rein- 
 forcements poured into the country, barracks had been hastily 
 and temporarily constructed at many stations. Sir Hugh Eose 
 strove with considerable success to establish camps and quarters 
 
176 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 for the soldiers in salubrious places beyond tlie reach of the 
 extreme heat and fever-breeding malaria. Various changes 
 were at that time being made in the drill and armament of the 
 troops European and Native, and to these affairs he devoted his 
 skill, having first mastered personally, often with laborious 
 study, all the details of that which he had to impress upon 
 others. I saw much of him in those days, having been, at the 
 instance of James Wilson, appointed by Lord Canning to be 
 a member of the newly constituted Commission for Military 
 Finance. 
 
 This Commission consisted of several military officers besides 
 myself ; amongst its members the most eminent was Colonel 
 (now Sir George) Balfour; one of its secretaries was Colonel 
 G. B. Malleson, already mentioned, and subsequently well known 
 as an historian. It afterwards merged into the Military Finance 
 Department, and exercised for full three years a decisive influ- 
 ence on the fortunes of Indian finance. It strove to reduce to 
 tolerable proportions a military outlay which, amounting to 
 millions annually at the culminating point, threatened to become 
 financially intolerable. It proposed many savings in the 
 charges on account of the European forces, the strength of which 
 had been somewhat lessened by the Government and brought 
 down to a little more than double that which existed before the 
 war of the mutinies. It pressed with much detailed argument 
 for a revision of the three Native armies in order to obtain a 
 judicious reduction, and for the disbandment of the Native 
 levies which had been raised in many districts. It recommended 
 as a subsidiary measure, the better organization of the Police, 
 which might then perform many civil duties wherein a con- 
 siderable part of the army was being employed. It reviewed 
 the expenditure of the Commissariat and Ordnance, and ex- 
 pedited the discharge of those enormous transport establish- 
 ments which had been collected during the several campaigns. 
 Georffe Balfour brought to this work complete professional 
 knowledge of military matters, and a remarkable aptitude for 
 finance. His eminent services in procuring reduction of 
 military expenditure were highly appreciated by James Wilson, 
 
Chap. viii. EE-OEGANIZATION OF THE POLICE. 177 
 
 and publicly acknowledged by the succeeding finance minister, 
 Samuel Laing. Through the exertions of all departments 
 together, and with the support of Lord Canning and Sir Hugh 
 Eose, the military expenditure was reduced from 21 sterling 
 millions to 12^ millions annually. 
 
 In connexion with these measures relating to the army, the 
 reorganization of the police was undertaken throughout the 
 empire. One cause of the ISTative army being maintained at 
 an excessive strength was the employment of the soldiers in 
 guarding jails, treasuries, court-houses and civil buildings, or 
 in furnisliing escorts for prisoners and for every sort of state 
 property while in transit from one place to another. The police 
 being unarmed and undrilled were not suited for the performance 
 of such work. But they might fulfil these duties, if properly 
 trained, thus relieving the army to a certain extent and enabling 
 the Government to dispense with some of the iSTative soldiery. 
 This consideration led to the question of improving the police 
 establishment, which had long been regarded as inefficient, and 
 below the general standard of British administration. Fore- 
 most among the means of such improvement w^ould be the 
 employment of European officers to supervise the department 
 in its work and proceedings. An example had been set in the 
 Madras Presidency when Lord Harris was Governor, and the 
 newly organized police there was being ably superintended by 
 Mr. (afterwards Sir William) Eobinson. A commission was 
 then appointed at Calcutta, consisting of representatives from 
 every division of the empire, to revise the police department 
 throughout British India. The reorganization which they 
 recommended was gradually carried into effect, and sanctioned 
 by legislation. The measure has not perhaps produced all the 
 reforms which were expected, but it has resulted in the augmen- 
 tation of the emoluments of policemen, the elevation of the 
 status of Native police-officers, and an infusion of European 
 energy into the department. 
 
 Simultaneously, a wide and searching enquiry was made into 
 the expenditure in all other branches of the administration, 
 including the Indian Navy and Marine, the courts of justice 
 
178 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 and the several departments of revenue. For this purpose a 
 Civil Finance Commission was appointed, by whom were made 
 frequent recommendations in the direction of economy. It was 
 about this time that several important measures were taken in 
 hand, such as the abolition of the Indian Navy, and the substi- 
 tution in Bengal of imported English salt for salts locally 
 manufactured. 
 
 In these days Canning bestowed much thought on the con- 
 stitution of his Council, especially attending to that part of it 
 which was mainly concerned in legislation. Already one Legis- 
 lative Council had been appointed (in 1854), consisting solely 
 of official persons selected by the Governor-General from 
 different parts of India. It sat at Calcutta under the able 
 and distinguished presidency of Sir Barnes Peacock, then 
 Chief Justice of Bengal. But it was now deemed inadequate for 
 legislating in respect of all the local interests existing in a 
 widely extended empire. After full discussion with the Govern- 
 ment in England, four Legislative Councils were constituted in 
 India, namely, one, that of the Governor-General, to sit wher- 
 ever he might appoint, and three pertaining to the provincial 
 Governments of Madras Bombay and Bengal, to sit within 
 the respective jurisdictions of those Governments. Non-official 
 gentlemen were appointed members of these Councils to serve 
 together with the official members. At first men wondered 
 whether the local Councils would maintain the decorum and 
 gravity becoming their functions; and it was jocularly said 
 that the legitimate drama would be enacted in the Governor- 
 General's Council, and comedy or farce in the other Councils. 
 In practice, however, the proceedings of the local Councils have 
 been perfectly decorous. 
 
 As the interior of the empire quieted itself after the political 
 storms, commercial and agricultural prosperity bounded for- 
 wards. Among other things, the rice and other products of 
 Bengal rose in price while one article, in the production of 
 which many European firms were concerned, namely indigo, 
 remained stationary. Consequently there arose serious disputes 
 between the Native cultivators of indigo and their European 
 
CiiAP. VIII. EECL AIMING OP WASTE LANDS. 179 
 
 employers, styled Indigo planters. The Europeans held that the 
 Natives were bound to continue the cultivation of indigo under 
 long-standing agreements. The Natives wished to escape from 
 these agreements, declaring that it was more profitable for them 
 to devote their fields to rice and other products than to cultivate 
 indigo. Inasmuch as the European planters were landlords on 
 a large scale, and the Natives were tenants, these disputes 
 regarding indigo rapidly acquired an agrarian character, leading 
 to much excitement in many districts, and in some places to 
 actual rioting. A commission was appointed to investigate the 
 subject under the presidency of Walter Scott Seton-Karr, one 
 of the most eminent Civil Servants in Bengal. He was after- 
 wards a Judge of the High Court, Foreign Secretary to the 
 Government of India and Vice-Chancellor of the Calcutta 
 University ; for some time also he was one of the most brilliant 
 contributors to the Calcutta Review. The report of this Com- 
 mission was promptly considered by the Lieutenant-Governor 
 of Bengal, Sir John Peter Grant (afterwards Governor of 
 Jamaica), one of the ablest men that the Bengal Civil Service 
 has ever produced. The indigo planters did their best under 
 misfortunes arising from no fault of theirs, but indigo planting 
 in Bengal inevitably succumbed to the fact that the plant could 
 no longer be produced with profit to the cultivator. 
 
 While some old products declined, several new products fast 
 rose to prominence ; foremost among these were tea and coffee. 
 The planting of tea among the Himalayas in the north and of 
 coffee among the Nilgiri mountains in the south, all under 
 European agency or supervision, led immediately to ques- 
 tions regarding the title £ind tenure of land in those regions. 
 The land there was technically "waste," and the absolute 
 property of the State. It could therefore be granted to indi- 
 viduals, in what the Anglo-Indians loved to call " fee simple." 
 After careful consideration. Canning's Government issued the 
 " waste land rules," which have since become famous, and of 
 which the effect was to grant to Europeans or others waste 
 lands as absolute property for ever free of land tax, on the 
 payment of fixed sums in very moderate amounts. A great 
 
 N 2 
 
180 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 impulse was thus given to the settlement of Europeans in the 
 mountainous regions of the Himalayas of eastern Bengal and 
 of the Nilgiris. Thus, too, the outlay of European capital on 
 tea-gardens and coffee-plantations was facilitated. Some im- 
 prudent expenditure and reckless management ensued ; conse- 
 quently at the outset fortunes were lost rather than made. The 
 enterprises being, however, substantially sound, righted them- 
 selves after a season, though not until much loss had been in- 
 curred by individuals. There were hopes that Europeans might 
 under these rules be able to settle as proprietors or managers 
 of estates in other parts of India besides the mountains in the 
 north and south ; no such result, however, has actually ensued. 
 
 Municipal improvement which had been interrupted by the 
 war of the mutinies was vigorously resumed throughout the 
 country ; and it necessarily conduced to sanitation, although 
 the sanitary departments had not yet been fully constituted. 
 This improvement involved local taxation in various shapes, 
 and fear soon arose lest dissatisfaction should be caused by the 
 imposition of a new burden even for the sake of good effected 
 under the eye of the tax-payer. 
 
 Some important steps were taken in respect of high educa- 
 tion. The machinery which had lasted for one generation was 
 superseded by the establishment of three universities for 
 Calcutta Madras and Bombay respectively. Much attention 
 was bestowed upon the legislation undertaken for this im- 
 portant object, the intention being to vest the governance of 
 these institutions in a senate comprising all the highest talent, 
 learning and experience to be found in the country. 
 
 It was about this time that the j^ifference between the old 
 school and the new school of Natives became clearly per- 
 ceptible. The men of the former had the more restricted vision 
 and the more punctilious manners. Those of the latter had 
 naturally wider ideas and sympathies, and a more open or frank 
 manner. Some Europeans liked the former as being pleasant 
 and polite. Others preferred the latter as being willing to 
 express their real sentiments without reserve. 
 
 Many other measures were considered, taken in hand or carried 
 
Chap. viii. CANNING'S FINANCIAL POLICY. 181 
 
 into effect by Canning's Government. Having been a member 
 of the several commissions whicli sat upon military finance, civil 
 finance, police organization, and indigo planting, and having also 
 been employed on the staff of the Financial member of the 
 Governor-General's Council, I am able to write from personal 
 knowledge. 
 
 In most affairs of that time, considerations of finance were 
 uppermost; the finances during the latter years of Canning's 
 Government were supervised by two English financiers, first 
 James Wilson, then Samuel Laing; and the financial policy 
 pursued by both these statesmen will be mentioned in future 
 chapters. But it is well here to state briefly the part which 
 Canning took respecting this main branch of the public service. 
 Besides allowing an augmentation of the stamp-duties, which 
 was judicious, he assented to the doubling of the most 
 important among the customs duties, in the hope that there 
 would be a corresponding increase of revenue, and this 
 part of his financial policy is not altogether to be com- 
 mended. He supported Wilson in the production of a budget 
 which comprised proposals for an income-tax, a tobacco-tax, 
 and a system of licences on trades and professions. He was 
 most unwilling to impose new taxes which he deemed likely 
 to provoke a dangerous discontent; still he accepted Wilson's 
 proposals in the belief of their absolute necessity. After the 
 publication of the budget there ensued at first an apparent 
 approbation, but afterwards a gradually swelling murmur, 
 which confirmed Canning's fears regarding the probability of 
 popular discontent. He resolved, however, to uphold the 
 income-tax because it fell upon classes which flourished espe- 
 cially under British rule and had previously escaped taxation. 
 But he asked Wilson to forego pressing the tobacco-tax and the 
 licence-duties, and the proposals for these imposts were ac- 
 cordingly stayed. It was then that he uttered his well-known 
 dictum that, danger for danger, he would rather see even the 
 European forces reduced than unpopular taxes imposed on the 
 people at large. 
 
 Apart from his high qualities in dealing with affairs of the 
 
182 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 gravest moment, Canning's ability as a practical administrator 
 remains to be sketched. He possessed, in a fair and 
 average degree, the constructive and organizing aptitude which 
 his predecessor Dalhousie had manifested in the highest 
 degree. He inherited his father's mastery of classical English 
 diction. But his cultured taste led him to spend much time in 
 polishing the language of official papers — precious time needed 
 for more important affairs. His excellent handwriting indicated 
 strength of will and refinement of mind. His oratory both as 
 regards matter and manner was very impressive. Intellectually 
 his critical faculty was so acute and strong that in practice it over- 
 mastered his other faculties. He saw quickly and completely all 
 the sides of complicated questions, the merits and demerits of 
 each of the several courses suggested as possible ; but he did 
 not see equally well which side should be taken and which 
 course preferred. He balanced conflicting opinions accurately 
 and, for a wliile at least, halted between them. He went on 
 weighing and re-weighing, but hesitated to strike the balance. 
 He had caution in an admirable degree, because his cautiousness 
 arose from a highly cultivated intelhgence which appreciated per- 
 fectly all the facts and considerations bearing upon the matter in 
 hand. But he carried this caution to an extreme, because doubt- 
 ing and debating what course should be pursued, he occasionally 
 ended in doing nothing when sometliing one way or other was 
 necessary or desirable to be done. He would seem in some difficult 
 case to have all but made up his mind, and then just stopping 
 short of decision, let it lie over for a while ; but sooner or later 
 it would have to be resumed, whereupon the labour of considera- 
 tion must be repeated. The proverb that many questions if left 
 unanswered for a certain time will answer themselves, found 
 application during one part of his administration. He would 
 devote conscientious and patient care to the controversial 
 correspondence referred to him whenever disagreements arose 
 between high authorities as is often the case during periods of 
 turmoil. Such cases, however, scarcely deserved the portion 
 which he allotted to them out of his heavily taxed time. If a 
 matter was politically emergent, or involved moral considera- 
 
CuAP. VIII. HIS PRINCIPAL ADVISERS. 183 
 
 tions of gravity, then he cast away his over-caution. Having con- 
 sidered the circumstances with all his judicial impartiality, he 
 promptly pronounced his decree and vigorously enforced it. But 
 matters of administrative organization, however important, are 
 seldom of this urgent character, and can be put off till the 
 moirow ; it was with these that he sometimes allowed procras- 
 tination. This tendency to delay occurred at a time when 
 measures remodelling and reconstructing were required after 
 such 3ommotions as those which had shaken the empire : and it 
 seemei likely to impair the otherwise excellent effect of his ad- 
 ministration. His bark righted itself, however, because he 
 acquired a discriminating perception as to what he could 
 supervise for himself, and what he should entrust to others who 
 were competent to deal with it under his general control. Hav- 
 ing committed a large matter to able and trustworthy men, he 
 supported them generously. Thus he gathered round him 
 many persons who suggested the necessary measures after 
 due enquiry, the scope of which he mastered for himself and 
 sanctioned, leaving the details to them. He learnt to do this> 
 without abnegating any of his proper functions or at all derogat- 
 ing from his authority. The tide of progress began to flow again, 
 under his eye, and once his Government had embarked upon 
 measures of improvement, it guided them judiciously and skilfully 
 to the end. In these ways his administration, which at first hardly 
 promised to be fruitful, became ultimately abundant in results. 
 
 Among Canning's advisers the foremost was Sir Bartle Frere, 
 who after having managed the province of Sind with remarkable 
 ability during the troubles of 1857 and 1858, was appointed 
 member of the Governor-General's Council. Frere's influence 
 was felt in the adoption of a progressive policy and of con- 
 ciliatory measures towards the Natives. His presence helped 
 to surround the Government with an atmosphere of cheerful- 
 ness and popularity. The military member of Council was first 
 Sir James Outram, esteemed to be among the boldest of soldiers 
 and the most chivalrous of men, and next Sir Eobert ISTapier, 
 who, after brave deeds during the war of the mutinies, had 
 returned with fresh laurels from the war in China ; in havingr 
 two such advisers Canning was very fortunate. 
 
184 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. viii. 
 
 The important office of Private Secretary to the Governor- 
 General was held by Lewin Bowring of the Civil Service, son 
 of Sir John Bowring, the British minister in China. He ren- 
 dered much service to Canning in all civil or political affaiis, 
 being greatly respected by the conimnnity ; after the departiire 
 of his chief from India, he became Commissioner of Mysore 
 
 Among the non-official community the most influential and 
 popular character was John O'Brien Saunders, the proprietor of 
 the Englishman newspaper at Calcutta. He was called " the 
 Nestor of Anglo-Indian journalism," and his wise genid wit 
 endeared him to tlie community. 
 
 The well-known quarterly periodical the Calcutta Ecviiw was 
 at that time in danger of extinction. With the help of Dr. 
 George Smith, the editor of the Friend of India, I toot it up 
 and for several months sustained the publication. Our reason 
 for so doing was the consideration that this periodical had been 
 for twenty years the best contemporary record of Anglo-Indian 
 thought, and reckoned among its contributors some of the 
 most renowned men of this generation, Henry Lawrence, Alex- 
 ander Duff, W. S. Seton Karr, William Mackay, John Mac- 
 donald, Baird Smith and others. 
 
 During these busy years Canning appeared to be physically 
 well and strong. His habits were, however, hardly suited to 
 the preservation of health in a hot climate, for he did not ride 
 much except on particular occasions, and took walldng exercise 
 but little. Thus the conditions of Indian life were insidiously 
 making inroads on his naturally fine constitution. 
 
 The last months of his time in India were clouded by 
 a domestic bereavement ; Lady Canning died after a few days' 
 illness in Government House at Calcutta from a malarious fever 
 caught while travelling in tlie eastern Himalayas. He composed 
 the touching and beautiful inscription which was set up over her 
 grave on the bank of the Hughli at Barrackpur near Calcutta. 
 No English lady in India ever gained a wider respect and 
 popularity. Slie had evinced the highest moral courage through- 
 out the darkest days of the mutiny; in all the miseries and 
 distresses which came witliin her reach or cognizance she dis- 
 played a solicitous and assiduous charity ; and in many cases "she 
 
Chap. viii. MEMORY OF LADY CANNING. 185 
 
 promoted actively the ministrations of relief. Her grace, talent 
 and accomplishments had won general admiration; her good 
 deeds added fresh dignity to the British name; her loss was 
 lamented as a general calamity ; and a useful charity was by 
 public subscription founded in remembrance of her. 
 
 As the time for his departure approached the public senti- 
 ments gathered affectionately around him. The non-official 
 European community at Calcutta generously forgot the differ- 
 ences which had previously induced them t6 petition for his 
 recall. They remembered only the national victory which had 
 been won, the peace which had been secured, the moral and 
 material progress which had followed. The Native community 
 were, as might have been anticipated, earnest in their grateful 
 commendations. An address was voted to him at a public 
 meeting of the inhabitants of Calcutta ; and subscriptions were 
 raised for the erection of a statue in his memory. I was stand- 
 ing near and able to note his demeanour when he was re- 
 ceiving and replying to the address as it was presented to him 
 by a deputation at Government House. His lip slightly trembled 
 with emotion when he recalled the past, acknowledging thank- 
 fully their kind words, declaring that he had done his best on 
 behalf of the interests which they represented, and had striven 
 to secure justice for all alike whether European or Native. 
 
 The wonderful and tremendous events with which his name 
 is associated will secure to him historic fame. In one sense it 
 was suitable for him to be plunged into the midst of tem- 
 pestuous waves, and exposed to cutting blasts ; for thus were 
 evoked and displayed those qualities which he possessed in 
 the grandest degree. Had he ruled during a peaceful period 
 when national progress was above all things demanded, his 
 administrative capacity, though sound and good, might scarcely 
 have equalled that of the greatest among his predecessors or his 
 successors. But under a dire pressure of circumstances the hour 
 came demanding equable calmness, unshakeable firmness, equity 
 tempered with mercy ; for that hour he was eminently the man. 
 As the Greeks associated justice with the name of Aristides, so 
 men regarded the departing Viceroy as Canning the Just. 
 
18G MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 (1860.) 
 JAMES WILSON THE ECONOMIST. 
 
 James Wilson arrives in India as Finance Minister — His tour in nortliern 
 India — His financial budget produced at Calcutta — His measures of taxa- 
 tion — His project of a Government paper currency — His influence in the 
 reduction of civil and military expenditure — In the re-organization of 
 the police — In the inquiry into the indigo riots in Bengal — His untimely 
 death at Calcutta — Summary of his policj^ in India. 
 
 It wlU readily be -understood that after the events and under 
 the circumstances which have been mentioned in the preceding 
 chapter, the finances of India caused grave anxiety both to the 
 Government and the public. The collection of revenue re- 
 mained for some time in abeyance throughout extensive tracts 
 which were scenes of disturbance. On the other hand an 
 enormous expense had been involved in the despatch, from 
 England to India round the Cape of Good Hope, of English 
 forces equal in strength to an army corps. There was a 
 vast military transport within India itself by road and river, 
 the operations of war having been spread over whole districts 
 and provinces. Loans were being raised, chiefly in England, for 
 the service of the Indian Government, augmenting the public 
 debt of India by more than one-third. The old Native army of 
 Bengal had, indeed, by mutinying effaced itself and the expenses 
 incurred on its account. But it was more than replaced by 
 Native troops specially enlisted and by local levies hastily 
 raised in the disturbed districts. Thus, notwithstanding that 
 the cost of European troops had been doubled, the charges for 
 Native forces were not diminished. Extraordinary outlay was 
 being incurred for the pacification of territories where society 
 
Chap. IX. HE ARRIVES AT CALCUTTA. 187 
 
 had been convulsed. The time, then, had come for bestowing 
 on Indian finance a consideration which shoidd include all 
 manner of administrative affairs ; otherwise the financial ship 
 must soon become, as it were, waterlogged. 
 
 In those days there was little or none of the distribution of 
 work which now exists between the Governor-General and the 
 Members of his Council, whereby the Government of India 
 works somewhat after the manner of an English cabinet ; each 
 Councillor taking a department of which he is virtually the 
 minister, the whole bemg supervised by the Governor-General. 
 On the contrary, with some exceptions in the departments of 
 war and legislation, the whole work of the Government was 
 brought before the Governor-General and all his Councillors. 
 Consequently, finance was the business, not of any one member 
 of the Government, but of all members alike. It was then 
 determined in England that a Financial Member of Council 
 should be appointed to whom, upon a division of labour or a 
 distribution of business among the several Councillors, would 
 be assigned the charge of the Einancial department. The 
 Financial Member would have individuality and particular 
 responsibility. Still the Governor-General would retain his 
 supreme control, the other members of Council remaining 
 generally responsible for finance as for all other branches of 
 the Government. 
 
 The selection fell upon the Eight Honourable James "Wilson, 
 who had been formerly Under Secretary of State to the Board of 
 Control for India, then Financial Secretary to the Treasury, and 
 was at that time Vice-President of the Board of Trade. His 
 appointment was regarded in India as a sign that the English 
 Government deemed the situation of Indian finance to be 
 serious ; for he had long enjoyed the reputation of being one of 
 the first economists of his day. It was remarked also that he 
 must have esteemed highly the importance of India when he 
 interrupted his political and parliamentary career in order to 
 superintend her finances. 
 
 James Wilson arrived in Calcutta at the end of Novem- 
 ber 1859, and shortly afterwards proceeded on a rapid tour, 
 
188 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 through the North-western Provinces to the Panjab as far as 
 Lahore, and then returned to Calcutta, establishing his head- 
 quarters there. I met him for the first time, on his arrival at 
 Lahore early in January 1860. John Lawrence had quitted 
 the Lieutenant- Governorship of the Panjab, to which Eobert 
 Montgomery succeeded. I had resigned the Secretaryship and 
 become Commissioner of the districts around Lahore. Wilson 
 required an officer of Indian experience to assist him in econo- 
 mizing expenditure, introducing a new paper currency, devising 
 fiscal improvement, and generally in his work as Finance 
 Minister. This officer was to be on his personal staff in addition 
 to the ordinary financial secretariat of the Government. He 
 chose me for that appointment, and the choice was ratified by 
 Lord Canning. I immediately joined him on his return to 
 Calcutta, and thenceforward was on intimate terms of official 
 association with him. I became much attached to him, and 
 whether as master, teacher or friend, he made on my mind an 
 impression which time cannot weaken. 
 
 He was of the middle height, with considerable breadth of 
 chest and shoulder, his physical frame indicating strength 
 and endurance. His age was fifty-foiu' years, rather late per- 
 haps for a man who proceeds to India for the first time ; still 
 he seemed to bring with him an abundant stock of freshness and 
 vigour. His complexion was light, and the broad prominent 
 brow, over-shadowing the eyes, gave an intellectual cast to the 
 face. He had a keen perception of every object that met his 
 view, a habit of casting observant looks in all directions, and an 
 extraordinarily retentive memory of what he saw heard or read. 
 His manner and conversation, though grave while he was intent 
 on work, were bright and vivacious in society. He delighted in 
 India as a country, and regarded her resources with hopeful 
 interest, her people with sympathy, her scenery with admira- 
 tion, her antiquities with curiosity. Nothing, he said, could 
 be imagined more intensely interesting than India; with the 
 ancient cities, the relics of decayed dynasties, the thronging 
 population, the bustle of trade at every corner, the expansive 
 plains bounded by alpine ranges affording a climate for new 
 
Chap. ix. HIS CHAEACTERISTICS. 189 
 
 varieties of production, the large rivers, the magnificent canals 
 irrigating the country, the careful agriculture with cultivation 
 up to the roadside, the thrifty and economical habits of the 
 people bent on active and profitable pursuits. These descriptive 
 expressions are his own, being taken straight from his sayings 
 and writings. It was instructive as well as amusing to accom- 
 pany him in his walks during the early morning hours amidst 
 the suburbs of Calcutta. He would observe every Native 
 garden that we passed, talking about the natural habitat, cul- 
 ture and uses of the trees or plants. He would often stop at 
 the wayside booths or shops, discussing the manufacture, prices 
 and style of the wares. He would note the carts, drawn by 
 bullocks and laden with produce, on their way to the capital, 
 also the men and women carrying head-loads of articles to 
 market. Then he would ever and anon exclaim that the country 
 seemed bursting, as it were, with vitality and industry. The 
 fairs which were held almost daily in various places, and more 
 especially the central market of Calcutta, offered to him an 
 extensive scope for economic reflection. He would watch 
 the piece-goods and fancy-wares from Europe, the Oriental 
 stuffs made in far-off cities, the flowers and vegetables brought 
 by railway from gardens distant hundreds of miles, the game 
 snared or shot in forests and marshes. He regarded all these 
 goods, indeed, with the eye of an economist, in reference to their 
 uses, but having a lively imagination he recognized their 
 beauty also. If a thing seemed beautiful he felt all the more 
 zealous in promoting its usefulness ; if a thing was useful he 
 appreciated it the better from its being beautiful also. Having 
 been from the first imbued with the principles of unrestricted 
 freedom in trade, he loved to speculate upon the moral 
 advantages arising from the interchange of produce, which were 
 in their way as great as the material advantages. Trade, he 
 would say, is a great agency for securing peace and charity 
 among men in all parts of the earth, enlarging the minds of 
 diverse nations, raising their thoughts beyond jjetty jealousy, 
 softening their mutual animosities, and uniting them by the 
 bonds of goodwill and of common interest. I once heard him 
 
190 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 press strongly this view regarding commerce upon the Scotch 
 missionary Alexander Duff, who had one morning paid a formal 
 visit, and was adverting to the importance of cultivating kindly 
 relations with the Natives. 
 
 Wilson's intellect was essentially methodical in its habits, 
 ever searching for first principles or fundamental axioms, and 
 then applying them to practice and to actual circumstances. 
 He was fond of trying practical dicta by the test of principle ; 
 if principle and practice failed to agree, he would deem that 
 there must be some error in one or other of them, or perhaps 
 in the application of one to the other. A principle, he 
 thought, which is sound in one country must be equally 
 sound in another ; if after having succeeded in one place it 
 is found to fail elsewhere, the failure does not prove 
 its unsoundness, but only shews that it must have been 
 erroneously applied to unsuitable circumstances. He appre- 
 hended that there was danger of administrative science, as esta- 
 blished in the most civilized countries, being disregarded in 
 India because Indian conditions are strange. While he was, 
 to this extent, theoretical, he was far from being unprac- 
 tical ; on the contrary, he was eminently practical. His princi- 
 ples lay deep in his mind, but in respect to practice he was 
 ever studying the variety of circumstances, keeping his imagina- 
 tion open for the reception of the new ideas to be derived from 
 the facts as recently learnt, and from the phenomena as freshly 
 perceived. He was most anxious to understand India not as 
 she had been supposed to be, or as she ought to have become, 
 but as she actually was. While keeping in recollection the 
 broad traits of human nature, as common to mankind in all 
 times and places, he was especiall}'' desirous to realize to himself 
 the idiosyncrasies aptitudes and tendencies, even the preju- 
 dices, of the Natives. Although the people had to be led gently 
 towards the paths of economic science, yet he wished to shew 
 the tenderest consideration towards the thoughts and sentiments 
 springing from their historic antecedents. He hoped also to evince 
 that moderation and self-restraint which befitted the peculiar 
 position of the British as foreign masters of an eastern empire. 
 
Chap. ix. WILSON PRODUCES HIS BUDGET AT CALCUTTA. 191 
 
 Such in brief was Wilson, the first scientific economist who 
 had ever visited India. He probably learnt more of the country 
 in a very short time, than any person who ever landed on its 
 shores ; and his general information extended daily, though it 
 was not, of course, comparable to the knowledge possessed by 
 those who have resided long in the East. His hopes of success 
 in his financial policy were as high as his sense of the gravity and 
 difficulty of his task. As weeks and months wore on, bringing 
 with them their load of toil trouble and anxiety, his character 
 shewed itself in a stronger light. Despite the depression from 
 great heat, to which he had not been accustomed, his spirits were 
 buoyant, and disposition elastic, while his bearing was genial and 
 animated. His temper, though not destitute of warmth and im- 
 petuosity in pursuit of great objects, was yet steady and equable 
 under disappointments. Though desirous of entering into the 
 views of his opponents, he was yet very self-reliant, never doubt- 
 ing that if his plans were defeated for a time he would surely 
 rectify them, and that they would come right in the end if 
 only his eye should be upon them and his hand remain at the 
 helm. He kept before his imagination a goal from which his 
 thoughts were never diverted ; if he could not win it at once he 
 would be content with some progress, and pause with the full 
 intention of starting again some day from the point where he 
 had then stopped. His mind was fertile in expedients, and 
 whenever obstacles threatened liim with failure he would forth- 
 with contrive remedies, in the conviction that his policy was 
 good for the public interests and must ultimately prevail. 
 
 In February 1860 he produced his financial budget before the 
 Legislative Council at Calcutta, carefully explaining that his 
 proposals had the concurrence of his colleagues and the approval 
 of Lord Canning. His speech on that occasion was the most 
 able and eloquent statement that had ever up to that time been 
 made orally in India. Eemarkable minutes and reports had 
 been frequent in India, but not speeches ; and since that day 
 the proceedings of the Indian legislature have often been 
 animated by oratory. But the novelty of Wilson's oratorical 
 effort, enlivening so grave a subject as finance, charmed as well 
 
192 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 as astonished both those who heard tlie statement and those 
 who read the verbatim report of it. The warmth confidence 
 and enthusiasm of his words, also the solidity of his arguments 
 founded on a financial experience far larger than that possessed 
 by any one in India, seemed to take, as it were, the public mind 
 by storm. All men believed that the State having passed 
 successfully through its political and military trials, was drift- 
 ing into another danger, which, if less pressing, was more 
 abiding, namely, that of certain disorder and possible disaster 
 financially. As matters grew worse a state of urgency appeared 
 to be approaching ; the time was full and, in public estimation, 
 here was Wilson, the man to cope with it. 
 
 His budget embraced proposals for three taxes, first an 
 income-tax on all incomes above a certain amount, secondly a 
 licence-duty on trades and professions, thirdly an excise on home- 
 grown tobacco. The necessity for his pro]3osals was main- 
 tained by the demonstration of a deficit of 21 millions sterling 
 for the two years of the mutiny war, 1857-8, and 1858-9, of 
 9 millions for the year then closing, 1859-60, and of 6 millions 
 expected for the coming year 1860-1. The sum of these 
 deficits, amounting to 36 millions on an annual income, as it 
 then stood, of 37 millions, exceeded anything which had hap- 
 pened in former times of misfortune, and startled even those 
 who were prepared to face a serious crisis. Men felt that some 
 remedy must be applied, and were prepared to support the man 
 who proposed a definite policy. The European members of 
 the community both official and non-official were, indeed, 
 jealous of being " taxed without representation," that is, taxed 
 under a Government which had no representative institu- 
 tions. Still they loyally accepted a necessity which had been 
 proved to their satisfaction, and patriotically acquiesced in the 
 sacrifices demanded from them. The Anglo-Indian newspaper 
 press strongly and cordially supported the budget. The Natives 
 generally were silent ; and the organs of Native opinion seemed 
 to yield to the current of approbation which had set in. 
 
 Thus it happened that Wilson was at the outset greeted with 
 a chorus of public approval. Though he relied much on the 
 
Chap. ix. THE INCOME-TAX. 1D3 
 
 spirit and patriotism of his countrymen in India, he was agree- 
 ably surprised at the more than favourable reception accorded 
 to his budget statement. And as congratulations continued to 
 pour in from many quarters, he used to declare himself to be 
 "the most fortunate of tax-gatherers." To complete his con- 
 tentment, he received friendly support from the then Secretary 
 of State, Sir Charles Wood (afterwards Lord Halifax). 
 
 Soon, however, clouds began to rise on this clear horizon, as 
 was indeed to be expected by all who knew the changeableness 
 of the " popularis aura." It transpired that one important func- 
 tionary, Sir Charles Trevelyan, Governor of Madras, disapproved 
 the budget, describing its main provisions as " three tremendous 
 taxes." He was then in the full swing of his administration, and 
 was deemed to be one of the most competent and energetic 
 Governors that had ever ruled over the Madras Presidency. His 
 unfavourable view in respect to the budget, besides exercising 
 great influence with his colleagues at Madras and his principal 
 officers, affected public opinion throughout southern India. He 
 then allowed the local newspapers to publish the protest which 
 he had deemed it his duty to record against the proposed taxa- 
 tion. This publication caused excitement at Calcutta and other 
 centres of opinion in India, and was thought to constitute an 
 official collision between the Government of Madras and the 
 Supreme Government. Lord Canning, who was then absent in 
 northern India, returned to Calcutta, in order that he might 
 better arrange measures for vindicating his authority. Sir 
 Charles Trevelyan shortly left Madras (having been recalled by 
 the Government in England) amidst the regrets of the wdiole 
 community European and Native in the Madras Presidency. 
 The necessity of his recall under the circumstances seemed to 
 be recognized, still all earnest and zealous men were sorry 
 that a career of administrative usefulness should be suddenly 
 interrupted. 
 
 Next the Native press of Bengal, consisting of many news- 
 papers published daily or weekly in the Bengali vernacular, began 
 to criticize the budget generally and the income-tax particularly. 
 Some of these newspapers reflected the views of the great land- 
 
194 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 holders (zemindars) who were much disappointed at finding that 
 they were not to be exempted from the income-tax. The zemin- 
 dars had hoped that the Permanent Settlement, which fixed for 
 ever the demand of the land-tax, would save their landed income 
 from the operation of the income-tax. But Wilson shewed that 
 income from land must, in respect of general taxation, be treated 
 in the same manner as all other kinds of income. This was 
 the first time that the question had been brought to a decisive 
 issue, and the zemindars felt that this decision would govern 
 other questions of a like nature which might arise. If their income 
 were to be thus taxed for imperial purposes, it might, they fore- 
 saw, be taxed for local or municipal objects. They feared that 
 their Permanent Settlement would be, not indeed subverted or 
 openly invaded, but undermined and gradually rendered nugatory. 
 They doubtless became reassured subsequently on this point, but 
 at that time they felt genuine alarm and communicated their dis- 
 satisfaction to the organs of Native opinion. The middle classes 
 receiving fixed incomes, were among the main supporters of the 
 vernacular press, and the income-tax would fall on them with 
 accurate incidence without leaving any chance for evasion. Thus 
 there arose from the Bengali press a chorus of bitter animadver- 
 sion. The sarcasm and invective were conveyed under various 
 forms of Oriental imagery, and often were set forth in a humorous 
 and entertaining manner. This press did not indeed represent the 
 people, but it did in a considerable degree represent the limited 
 classes whom the income-tax would affect. On that account only 
 did Wilson deem the vernacular newspapers to deserve the care- 
 ful attention which he gave to their utterances, though his judg- 
 ment was not thereby affected. It was to be inferred, however, 
 that the unexpressed opinion of the tax-paying classes in other 
 parts of the country would be the same as that which had been 
 so loudly expressed in Bengal, and that the income-tax would, in 
 the first instance at least, be unpopular with the Natives. 
 
 Then Lord Canning, having travelled down the country from 
 the Himalayas towards Calcutta, was much impressed by all he 
 heard on the way from Europeans and Natives regarding the 
 danger of spreading direct taxation over too large an area ; in other 
 
Chap. ix. LICENCE ON TRADES AND TOBACCO-TAX. 195 
 
 words, of applying it to too many classes of the people simul- 
 taneously. He had sanctioned Wilson's budget with its three 
 new taxes, namely the income-tax the licence on trades and pro- 
 fessions and the tobacco-tax, having regard to the financial needs 
 of the Government. The tobacco-tax indeed had the character 
 of novelty, though tobacco was acknowledged to be a fit subject 
 for taxation, if only under the circumstances of India a suitable 
 method of taxing it could be devised. But the principle of the 
 licence-tax, though little adopted by the British Government in 
 recent times, had an ancient origin in India, and was commonly 
 applied in the ISTative States. Shortly before Wilson's arrival, a 
 bill for imposing licence-duties had been introduced into the 
 Legislative Council by Mr. (afterwards Sir Henry) Harington 
 on behalf of the Government, with the approval of almost all 
 the best-informed authorities ; and these duties really constituted 
 a rough income-tax on several classes. The principle of a regu- 
 larly assessed income-tax as proposed by Wilson was admitted 
 on all hands to have one cardinal advantage, namely, this, that it 
 taxed the rich Native traders who flourished under British rule 
 and had heretofore escaped taxation. Thus Canning had, like 
 Wilson, hoped for the best, when the budget was promulgated ; 
 but after its promulgation, he began to hesitate, on finding that 
 objections of various forms were being raised in many quarters. 
 Having with infinite difficulty guided the country into smooth 
 and quiet ways, after turmoil and confusion, he was naturally 
 anxious that no fresh disturbing force should be called into 
 action. So he proposed to Wilson that the income-tax should 
 be first taken in hand, passed through the Legislature and levied ; 
 that action should be suspended for the present regarding the 
 licence-tax with the proviso that the measure would be sub- 
 sequently undertaken should circumstances prove favourable ; 
 and that the proposed tobacco-tax should stand over on the 
 understanding that its ultimate abandonment might be found 
 necessary. After surveying the whole position, Wilson cheer- 
 fully acquiesced in the Governor-General's proposals, especially 
 as they took the form of postponement only, and would not 
 render necessary any further declaration of financial polic}'. As 
 
 2 
 
196 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 "Wilson must naturally have been elated by the wonderfully 
 favourable reception at first accorded to his proposals, he could 
 hardly fail to be somewhat depressed by the turn which public 
 opinion was beginning to take, and the curtailment to which 
 his plans were being subjected. Yet he buckled himself man- 
 fully to the task of giving effect to the general scheme of the 
 budget, remembering that the proposed income-tax, the head and 
 front of his policy, was still intact. While this important tax 
 was maintained, he was prepared to sacrifice something of the 
 full project as originally conceived. So he proceeded with the 
 drafting of his income-tax billon the model of the English income- 
 tax acts, deriving great assistance in this respect from William 
 Eitchie, then Advocate-General to the Government, and one of 
 the best-informed English lawyers that ever practised at the 
 Calcutta bar. He also revised the draft bill with special regard 
 to the circumstances of Native society, and brought it before 
 the Legislative Council for consideration. In that consideration 
 he received cordial support from the President of the Council, 
 Sir Barnes Peacock, from Sir Mordaunt Wells, and from Mr. 
 (afterwards Sir Henry) Harington. 
 
 Meanwhile he had produced before the Legislative Council 
 his measure for a Government paper currency, to which great 
 importance was attached. His speech on that occasion was so 
 lucid as to invest with much interest a subject not ordinarily 
 attractive. Being the first statement of that kind made in 
 India, it was received with admiring attention. 
 
 The Indian currency was then, as it still is, fraught with 
 practical difficulties. The silver coins were the sole legal 
 tender to an unlimited amount, but the gold coins issued from 
 the Government mints were not legal tender at all. The Banks 
 of Bengal Madras and Bombay, called the Presidency Banks, in 
 which the Government held shares, had for many years been 
 authorized to issue notes which were not legal tender. These 
 notes had a circulation which though considerable was yet 
 small for so great a country ; it was, however, sustained 
 throughout the time of political depression in 1857 ; even at its 
 lowest point there were two millions sterling worth of notes 
 
Chap. ix. SCHEME OF A GOVERNMENT PAPER CURRENCY. 197 
 
 in circulation. Wilson thought that if the notes of the Banks 
 should be withdrawn and a paper currency established by 
 the direct agency of the Government, the circulation of notes 
 would greatly expand. This result must be specially advan- 
 tageous in a country where no metallic currency except the 
 bulky silver coinage was practicable. It would also be a source 
 of large and legitimate profit to the Government, the Treasury 
 being enabled to hold a large amount of its own securities against 
 a part of the notes which were issued. He rejoiced in anticipat- 
 ing this profit, and said that it would be as good as if a mine 
 of silver had been discovered beneath the great plain which 
 lies in front of Calcutta. He founded his scheme on what he 
 regarded as the principle whereby the notes are issued in London 
 by the Bank of England ; though there may be doubt whether 
 he followed that model exactly. The Government, according to 
 his plan, was to issue notes in return for coin ; it was to invest 
 in its own securities a portion not exceeding two-thirds of 
 the coin thus received ; the interest would be held in abeyance 
 on the securities thus bought in, and the amount by these means 
 annually saved to the Government would constitute the profit> 
 less the slight expense incurred in managing the department 
 of issue. In other words, of the total amount of notes issued, 
 two-thirds might be held against Government securities and 
 one-third against coin ; both the securities and the coin were 
 to be held by the department of issue, on behalf of the 
 Government which guaranteed the absolute and immediate 
 convertibility of the notes. For instance, if the issue of 
 notes should fortunately amount to 30 millions sterling, then 
 there would be in the possession of the department at least 
 10 millions of coin and perhaps 20 millions-worth of securities, 
 on which the interest (at 5 per cent., the then rate) would 
 be 1 million, constituting the annual profit of the Govern- 
 ment; if the issue should amount to only 15 millions, then the 
 profit would be half a million. Wilson did not undertake to 
 predict the future amount of the issue, but he hoped that it 
 might reach to something between 15 and 30 millions, say 20 
 millions, and that consequently the profit would range from half 
 a million to a million sterling. He seemed to expect an expansion 
 
198 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 of the issue by an early date to the amount of 15 millions, and 
 thereafter a gradual increase. This expectation of his would 
 indeed have hardly been fulfilled, for in practice the issue has 
 seldom exceeded 13 millions, an amount somewhat small for 
 BO great a country. Still, had he lived he might have stimu- 
 lated the circulation by improving the facilities for cashing the 
 notes. For, although the notes are absolutely convertible at 
 the place of issue or the presidency town, yet there has been 
 some delay or difficulty in cashing them under certain circum- 
 stances at a distance from the place of issue. At the least, 
 however, there has been a profit which though less than half a 
 million sterling annually, is yet considerable, and for which 
 the Government is indebted to his suggestive and enterprising 
 mind. He arrived at the proportion of two-thirds to be held in 
 securities from a review of the experience of the Bank of 
 England. The securities held by the Bank against the notes, 
 under legal sanction, amounted to 14 millions and the circula- 
 tion averaged 21 millions. Therefore according to the most 
 approved practice about two-thirds of the notes were issued 
 against securities, and one-third against coin ; and he consi_ 
 dered that a similar proportion might be safely applied to India. 
 This view of the principle whereby these proportions should 
 be fixed was not, however, approved by the Secretary of State, 
 Sir Charles Wood. He held that " the sound principle for 
 " regulating the issue of a paper circulation is that which was 
 " enforced on the Bank of England by the Act of 1844, namely, 
 " that the amount of notes issued on Government securities 
 " should be maintained at a fixed sum within the limit of the 
 " smallest amount which experience has proved to be necessary 
 "for the monetary transactions of the country, and that any 
 " further amount of notes should be issued on coin or bullion, 
 " . . . In this country (England) the smallest amount of notes 
 " required has been ascertained by long experience, but what that 
 " quantity may be in India can only be ascertained in like 
 " manner." He considered that at the outset the quantity for 
 India might be assumed on the data furnished by the note 
 issues of the Presidency banks ; those issues were generally less 
 than four millions. These instructions did not indeed prevent 
 
Chap. IX. ITS PRACTICAL EFFECT. 199 
 
 the launching of Wilson's scheme, nor hinder the preparation 
 for carrying it into effect ; but they made a perceptible inroad 
 into one of its important parts, and lowered the hopes which 
 had been raised regarding the proiits to be derived therefrom. 
 He must doubtless have felt vexation on finding that here 
 again his plans were abridged, and that the advantages which 
 he hoped to secure for the Treasury would be shorn of their 
 original dimensions. But he bore up bravely against this 
 further disappointment, with the same buoyancy which he had 
 displayed under the other trials already mentioned. How far he 
 would with his consummate mastery of economic facts have 
 managed, despite all obstacles, to carry into practice his prin- 
 ciples of paper currency, and what degree of expansion he 
 might have secured for the note circulation — it is impossible 
 to say, as his death occurred too soon for him to develop his 
 proposals under the altered conditions which had arisen. 
 
 It may be interesting, however, to consider for a moment 
 what would have been the effect of Wilson's principle as com- 
 pared with Sir Charles Wood's instructions, which have been 
 actually followed and which probably will be approved by many 
 authorities. In round numbers, the average Indian note circu- 
 lation may be stated at 12 millions sterling, of which 6 millions 
 are, under legal sanction, issued against securities and the rest 
 against coin ; thus while the circulation stands at 12 millions 
 the coin reserve will amount to 6 millions. According to 
 Wilson's principle the coin reserve would have been 4 millions, 
 and the securities 8 millions. If the circulation should rise to 
 15 millions the coin reserve will be 9 millions, as no more than 
 6 millions can be issued against securities ; whereas according 
 to Wilson's principle the coin reserve would be 5 millions, and 
 the securities 10 millions. 
 
 Wilson then remembered what he had said in his budget 
 speech to the effect that although the Government hoped to 
 restore an equilibrium between income and expenditure partly 
 by means of the new taxes, yet reliance must largely be placed 
 on reduction of expenditure in accordance with the maxim 
 " magnum vectigal est parsimonia." 
 
200 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 He first applied himself to studying the functions which 
 were being discharged by the Military Finance Commission 
 already mentioned in chapter VIII., of which Colonel (now Sir 
 George) Balfour was the able President. This Commission had 
 been appointed a short time before his arrival to investigate 
 all branches of military expenditure and suggest reductions 
 or savings ; he now procured an enlargement of its powers, 
 so that it might be entrusted with the supervision of the audit 
 for all military accounts. He thus made its ]30sition very 
 authoritative in relation to the great executive and spending 
 departments of the army, namely, the Pay office, the Commis- 
 sariat, the Ordnance, the Medical branch ; while to it the 
 Audit and account department were directly subordinate. The 
 Commission was in constant and direct communication with 
 him, also with the Governor-General and the Military member 
 of Council ; and its duties related to the three armies of 
 Bengal Madras and Bombay alike. It was regarded by him 
 as a special and extraordinary instrument outside and above all 
 the other departments of military administration, to be used by 
 the Government as the means of effecting every possible saving 
 or reduction of expense consistently with safety and efficiency. 
 If these means should be deemed unusual, he would urge in 
 justification the paramount necessity, in respect to the safety of 
 the national finance, for diminishing the armaments and their 
 subsidiary charges which together had swollen to a size greater 
 than the country could permanently bear. This matter was 
 among the most pressing questions of the moment, and he 
 resolved, for the emergency, to make full use of the Commission 
 by effecting such diminution in the military expenses as 
 should produce almost immediately a sensible eifect on the 
 finances of the empire. He hoped to see the retrenchments 
 amount to two millions sterling annually within a very short 
 time, and carried further afterwards to the extent of three or 
 even four millions. He gave to the Commission the benefit 
 not only of his support, but also of his advice in numerous 
 particulars. He encouraged it to freely communicate with tlie 
 Commander-in-Chief personally, upon whose co-operation the 
 
Chap. ix. REDUCTION OF MILITARY EXPENDITURE. 201 
 
 efficiency of its work largely depended. Sir Hugh Eose, then 
 the Commander-in-Chief, received its representations with the 
 utmost readiness and frankness, explaining his own views in 
 reply and stating how far he could support particular retrench- 
 ments. Thus it was able to frame its proposals with more 
 of confidence and precision than would otherwise have been 
 practicable. The retrenchments first fell upon the overgrown 
 transport establishments, large numbers of elephants, camels, 
 bullocks, wagons, carts, and their attendant employes being 
 discharged. The stores under the several categories of com- 
 missariat, ordnance, medical, miscellaneous, were revised, the 
 despatch of these costly articles from England was diminished, 
 and the purchase of them on the spot in India checked. Some 
 moderate reduction of the European forces was cautiously 
 ordered by the Government, but the principle was upheld that 
 these forces must for the future be maintained in sufficient 
 strength to overawe the Native army and to constitute the basis 
 of British power. 
 
 In connexion with the military expenditure Wilson saw that 
 the organization and functions of the Police must be reconsidered. 
 It has been stated in a previous chapter that one cause of the 
 Native army having been maintained at an excessive strength 
 was the burden of civil duties imposed on the sepoys ; and that the 
 guards for treasuries, court-houses, prisons, as well as the escorts 
 for prisoners, treasure, public stores in transit, were furnished 
 by the Native army. This system was detrimental to military 
 efficiency and discipline ; it was expensive also as causing 
 soldiers to do what should be more cheaply done by police. But 
 its justification was this : that the police were so imperfectly 
 organized and so slightly drilled that they could not be trusted 
 with work of this nature. The Madras Presidency had in the 
 time of Lord Harris and afterwards during the incumbency of 
 Sir Charles Trevelyan organized their police in a fitting manner, 
 Wilson, seeing this, caused the head of the INIadras police, Mr, 
 (now Sir William) Piobinson, to be summoned to Calcutta for 
 consultation as to the best way of extending that organization to 
 the police in the other parts of the empire. A Police comniis- 
 
202 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 sion was then appointed, partly at Wilson's instance, consisting 
 of representative men from every province, to devise an organiza- 
 tion which would be suitable for all India. 
 
 Next Wilson began to consider the position and duties of the 
 Indian Navy, which had indeed done much gallant service in 
 many quarters and laid the foundation of a marine survey for 
 several coasts, but was no longer effective for defensive purposes, 
 as its vessels were not suited for the new requirements of naval 
 warfare. The expenses of this Navy might be saved if its 
 duties could be taken by the Eoyal Navy. 
 
 Then he induced the Government to appoint a Civil Finance 
 Commission, of which I was appointed President, for the 
 purpose of examining all branches of civil expenditure. He 
 held that the number of offices and appointments should be 
 diminished as much as possible by the abolition of superfluous 
 employments ; but that those offices and appointments which 
 were retained should be well remunerated. He was opposed 
 to any general reduction of salaries, believing that such a 
 measure would injure efficiency, give birth to discontent, and 
 therefore fail in conducing to ultimate economy. Before his 
 arrival various proposals had been made for reducing the pay 
 of the Covenanted Civil Service ; but to these he was opposed. 
 By the simplification of work and the abridgment of labour, 
 he hoped to see many establishments pared down or even cut 
 off. The Civil Finance Commission proceeded to review the 
 expenses of each department, judicial fiscal administrative, in 
 conjunction with the principal officers concerned. There was 
 no scope for any large reduction ; but after a comprehensive 
 yet minute survey, small savings were made in many different 
 directions, so that the aggregate result became considerable. 
 Among many other things this Commission had its attention 
 drawn to the expensive establishments entertained for the 
 manufacture of salt in Bengal, all which might be abolished if 
 arrangements could be made for importing this article in suffi- 
 cient quantities from England. 
 
 He occupied himself much in plans for the improvement of 
 the existing system of audit and account, which was in several 
 
Chap. ix. BEGINNING OF HIS LAST ILLNESS. 203 
 
 respects antiquated and no longer suited to the altered require- 
 ments of tlie administration. His general ideas were indeed 
 fixed, but time and study were needed to mature details. 
 
 It was during his time that there arose in Bengal the indigo 
 riots already mentioned in the previous chapter VIII. These 
 disputes involved many economic questions regarding which 
 reference was made to Wilson. He paid much attention to 
 the subject and took a large share in the deliberations which 
 led to the appointment of a Commission of enquiry. 
 
 Shortly before his illness he began to consider public works 
 and roads with a view to increase the production of cotton flax, 
 wool and other raw materials needed for European manufac- 
 tures. Had his life been prolonged he would have guided the 
 discussions regarding the application of State capital to these 
 works, whether roads railways or canals. To few branches was 
 his premature loss more lamentable than to the department of 
 material improvement. 
 
 Besides attending to the specific measures mentioned above, 
 he discharged all the duties pertaining to the financial port- 
 folio of a large empire, and to his position as a member of the 
 Government generally. 
 
 Thus the short winter of the Calcutta climate, the spring and 
 the hot season of 1860 passed over his head ; then the rainy 
 season set in, about the middle of June. At first his health 
 seemed to be quite good, but failed slightly as the heat waxed 
 fiercer and fiercer. Still he maintained his vivacity of tempera- 
 ment and alacrity of bearing, while his mental activity suffered no 
 abatement. He was at one time disposed to adliere to the 
 English habit of reading late at night and resting in the 
 morning hours. But he soon perceived the incompatibility of 
 this habit with health in a climate like that of India, and 
 adopted the Indian practice of retiring to rest before midnight 
 and taking outdoor exercise in the morning ere the sun had 
 ascended the heavens. By degrees, however, the early rising 
 became more and more intermittent, and as the rains of June 
 descended steadily day after day, with a high temperature de- 
 pressing atmosphere and exhalations from the humid ground, his 
 physical strength waned visibly. It was then understood tliat 
 
204 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. ix. 
 
 he had for some little time been suffering from a dysenteric 
 ailment, which, perhaps but little noticed at first, grew stealthily 
 upon him, fixing its hold upon his constitution. He continued, 
 however, to discharge all his public and official duties, though 
 he went less frequently out of doors or into general society. 
 At the end of July, dysentery of a normal type declared 
 itself, and he was confined to his bed. Before that time Mrs. 
 Wilson had repaired for the benefit of her health to the Mlgiri 
 hills in southern India, leaving him in apparently fair health 
 and not at all apprehending any danger being in store for him, 
 William Halsey, his son-in-law and private Secretary, and two 
 of his daughters remained with him. At first his illness excited 
 no alarm in his family or among the public, and the general im- 
 pression regarding his vigour and vitality remained undisturbed. 
 He continued to read official papers, giving general attention to 
 public affairs without performing much actual business. But 
 he was soon obliged to accede to the request of his physician, 
 Dr. Alexander Macrae, of Calcutta, that he should call in a second 
 medical adviser, and cease reading or thinking ; then warnings 
 of danger began to be whispered abroad. As the dysentery de- 
 veloped more and more of its formidable symptoms day after 
 day, he asked for a categorical statement of his condition from 
 Dr. ]\Iacrae, in whose judgment and devotion he placed much 
 confidence. The physician's reply, without absolutely shutting 
 out hope, led him to prepare for a speedy end. He immediately 
 sent to ask the Governor-General, Lord Canning, to come for a last 
 interview. During that conversation he commended the services 
 of several who had worked with him, and mentioned some arrange- 
 ments he had intended to propose, evincing thoughtfulness for 
 others to the last. His countenance had become emaciated in the 
 extreme ; he looked as if he had been starved to death by the 
 illness, as Lord Canning thus described his aspect to me after- 
 wards. He then wrote a letter to his wife in the Nilgiri hills, 
 also dictated various messages on public and private affairs with 
 steady coolness and entire self-possession. A few hours later, 
 he sank under dysentery in its most fatal form on the evening 
 of Saturday, August 11th. The following evening he was 
 buried in the principal cemetery of Calcutta, and as his coffin 
 
Chap. ix. SUMMARY OF HIS POLICY. 205 
 
 was lowered, there stood around his grave one of tlie most 
 important and varied assemblages that had ever been seen in that 
 place — an assemblage comprising representatives of every class 
 of the European community whether official or non-official. 
 The strings of carriages, carrying sorrowful spectators, covered 
 more than two miles of the road leading to the burial-ground. 
 That sabbath was a day of mourning, and in every church of 
 the city allusion was made from the pulpit to the solemn lesson 
 conveyed to the community by the sudden demise of one among 
 the foremost citizens of the empire. 
 
 On a retrospect of that stirring and eventful time, the mind 
 at first hardly realizes that these broadly laid plans embracing, 
 with a comprehensive policy, vast affairs and varied subjects, 
 were all crowded by Wilson into the brief space of eight months. 
 A review of these proceedings will help us to imagine what 
 great things a man, who did so much in a few months, would 
 have accomplished had he been spared for a few years. Between 
 December and July, he introduced for the first time in India a 
 financial budget framed upon the English model — inspired 
 the public mind with fresh confidence — brought together the 
 threads of finance which had been broken and scattered by a 
 military and political convulsion — proposed to the legislature 
 three new taxes and carried one of them, the income-tax, 
 through several stages in the Legislative Council— devised a 
 scheme for the Government paper currency — stimulated the 
 operations of the Military Finance Commission over the entire 
 range of army expenditure for both the European and Native 
 forces — procured the appointment of a commission to review 
 the numerous branches of civil expenditure — caused arrange- 
 ments to be begun for reorganizing the whole police of the 
 empire — reviewed the existing system of audit and account — 
 besides discharging the multifarious duties devolving on a finance 
 minister and a member of the general Government. All this 
 was compassed by him immediately on landing in an utterly 
 strange country amidst an alien people, and further was carried 
 on with unabated vigour despite the depression caused by a 
 tropical climate. 
 
206 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. CiiAr. x. 
 
 CHAPTEE X. 
 
 (1861-1862.) 
 
 SAMUEL LAING THE FINANCIER. 
 
 Interval between death of Wilson and arrival of liis successor — My deputation 
 to Pe,2;u — City of Eaug^in — Sir Arthur Phayre Commissioner — River 
 Irawaddy and city of Prome — View at Moulmeiu — Chief Commissioner- 
 ship of British Burma — Samuel Laing arrives at Calcutta as successor to 
 Wilson — Contrast between the two statesmen — Laing produces financial 
 budget — Introduces a modified scheme of Government paper currency — 
 Prosecutes reduction of civil and military expenditure — Assists in aboli- 
 tion of the Indian Navy — Produces second budget — My deputation to 
 Hyderabad in the Deccan, to Nagpur and Jabalpur. 
 
 The death of James Wilson in July 1860, in the heyday of 
 his financial career and the midst of administrative operations 
 which he had either originated or promoted, struck the Govern- 
 ment of India as a heavy sea strikes a vessel in stormy weather. 
 But the political ship, heeling over momentarily after his 
 sudden loss, righted itself; thereby proving the fundamental 
 excellence of his work. No temporary appointment was made 
 by the Government of India, on the spot, to manage the financial 
 helm which had fallen from his hands ; and the arrival of a suc- 
 cessor from England was awaited. Nevertheless the Governor- 
 General, Lord Canning, and his Councillors took up the various 
 threads of work left by their lamented colleague. The legislative 
 and executive measures for introducing and collecting the income- 
 tax were adopted, and the licence-tax law was prepared in detail 
 for enactment. The enquiries with a view to reduction of mili- 
 tary and civil expenditure were prosecuted ; much also was 
 actually done in that direction. Still there was necessarily a 
 vis incrticB opposed to such measures, many interests being 
 arrayed against them. Thus it was difficult to ensure anything 
 
Chap. X. VOYAGE TO RANGUK 207 
 
 approaching to full success in the absence of a Finance Minister 
 personally answerable for the result and therefore resolute to 
 infuse energy into the proceedings. 
 
 As it became known in the autumn of 1860 that "Wilson's 
 successor would not arrive for some little time, and as there was 
 a pending question as to whether the several Burmese provinces 
 should or should not be combined under one administration — • 
 Lord Canning despatched me in company with Colonel Herbert 
 Bruce to Burma. We had instructions to examine into and 
 report on that question and return to Calcutta by January in 
 1861 in order to meet the new Finance Minister, who would by 
 that time have arrived from England. 
 
 Colonel Bruce was in every respect an excellent colleague in 
 affairs of this nature ; he had organized the police of Oudh in 
 1858 immediately after Sir Colin Campbell had restored order by 
 military operations. He had taken an active part in the work 
 of the Commission mentioned in the last two chapters as having 
 been formed for the reorganization of the police throughout India. 
 He was afterwards employed with the army in the Bhotan 
 war of 1864, and became the British Commissioner appointed 
 in conjunction with the Bhotan delegates to conclude the terms 
 of peace as approved by the Government of India. He died 
 prematurely from fever caught during those operations, and 
 in him the Government lost an able servant. 
 
 After sailing from Calcutta we neared the coast of Arracan, 
 and were enveloped in a dense mist with rain. For two days the 
 commander of the vessel could not make the necessary observa- 
 tions, and was obliged to anchor for fear of being carried by the 
 oceanic currents towards the reefs on that dangerous shore. 
 Suddenly as rain and mist cleared, we found oiu'selves opposite 
 Akyab with its tropical landscape. It seemed as if we had 
 emerged from cloud-land and passed into an earthly paradise. 
 Akyab, the seaport of the maritime province of Arracan, was then 
 rising towards the importance it has since attained as a place for 
 the exportation of rice to Europe. We landed in order to confer 
 with the authorities regarding the cost of the public establish- 
 ments and the like, and then sailed for Eangun, the capital of 
 
208 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 Pegu and the principal seaport of Burma. Rangun somewhat 
 resembles Calcutta, in that it is situated inland at some distance 
 from the seashore ; the approach to it consists of a broad river 
 navigable for ocean-going vessels. As we steamed up the river, 
 the banks on either side were low and wooded, and the great 
 Pagoda was to us a shining landmark from afar, as the afternoon 
 sunlight rested on its gilded spire. 
 
 Eangiin was then an active rising place, but had quite an un- 
 finished air ; new streets were being marked out in all directions, 
 the foundations of houses in rows were laid, quays and wharves 
 were in course of erection. The city has subsequently grown so 
 much that probably few traces of its former self could now be 
 recognized. Its chief glory was then and must ever be the 
 Shwe Dagon pagoda. Out of the plain there rises abruptly a 
 steep and lofty mound from the top of which the pagoda springs. 
 The terraces round the basement of the pagoda are fortified ; the 
 gateway at the bottom of the flight of steps leading up the 
 sides of the mound is as the entrance to a fortress. Thus, 
 although the structure was sacred, its subsidiary buildings had 
 been so arranged by the Burmese as to render it the principal 
 fort of the country. In the last war it was stormed by the 
 British troops, and upon its capture the dominion over the 
 surrounding territory, indeed over the whole province of Pegu, 
 passed to the victors. There is no architectural term in 
 English whereby this pagoda may be described ; its form is 
 somewhat that of an obelisk surmounted by a spire ; and the 
 upper part is encased in copper w^hich is gilt. It rises to 
 a height of 300 feet from its base on the summit of the 
 mound. The gilding under the glare of sunlight has a resplen- 
 dent effect against the azure of the sky. Around its basement 
 are masonry images of griffins, utterly grotesqvie and bizarre, 
 contrasted strangely with tlie Buddhistic images which sjm.- 
 bolize eternal quietude. Near one side of the mound was a 
 lake, on the other were groves clothing the surface of the 
 mound, so that the burnished obelisk seemed to rise up 
 straight from amidst the foliage. 
 
 The Burmese having the flat Indo-Chinese face, and being 
 
Chap. x. ARTHUR PHAYRE IN BURMA. 209 
 
 small in stature, did not make much impression on us whose 
 eyes had been accustomed to the varied and picturesque aspect 
 of an Indian crowd. In their manner and bearing they seemed 
 to be a light-hearted laughter-loving people. 
 
 At Eangun we met Colonel (now Sir Arthur) Phayre, the 
 Commissioner of Pegu which was the maritime province of the old 
 Burmese kingdom and comprised the delta of the Irawaddy. It 
 had been annexed on Lord Dalhousie's recommendation after the 
 conclusion of the second Burmese war. Phayre had been at the 
 head of that mission to Ava graphically described by Henry 
 Yule. He became afterwards the first Chief Commissioner of 
 British Burma, and ultimately Governor of the Mauritius. He 
 was at this time bringing the administration of Pegu to an 
 advanced stage. His knowledge of the language, history 
 and customs of the Burmese people was very considerable ; 
 he had also devoted much study to the Buddhist re- 
 ligion which the Burmese profess. Though a man of gentle 
 manners courteous address and discriminating judgment, he 
 was yet full of energy and resolution, and as a ruler was 
 popular and respected. We now started with him in a river 
 steamer on a short voyage up the Irawaddy, to see the upper 
 part of Pegu, also the border between that province and the 
 kingdom of Ava which is all that now remains to the Burmese 
 dynasty out of the old Burmese empire. 
 
 On leaving Eangun our vessel for the first two days passed 
 through the deltaic creeks and channels of the Irawaddy ; the flat 
 banks being continuously clothed with low forest. At eventide 
 the scene would consist of gorgeous clouds mirrored in an 
 expanse of water ; the splendour of the sky being parted from 
 that of the water by the dark horizontal line of the low wooded 
 bank. Then we passed under the solitary and precipitous cliff of 
 which the scarped side is carved with Buddhist images in bas- 
 relief, and from which the Burmese authorities in former days 
 used to coUect toll on the laden boats plying up and down 
 the river. After a time the group of detached hills came into 
 sight in the midst of which is situated the city of Prome. 
 One of these hdls was covered and crowned with pagodas; 
 
 P 
 
210 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 and as each pagoda had its spire the hill seemed to us a forest 
 of spires and pinnacles. The masses of elaborate wood carving 
 about these pagodas excite wonder, wdien the great quantity 
 of the work and the minuteness of its detail are considered. In 
 juxtaposition with the dark-coloured woodwork was seen the 
 verdure of the luxuriant vegetation. In the foreground as a 
 relief against this mass of sombre and rich colour there stood 
 out groups of priests in their bright saffron robes. 
 
 Arrived at the frontier near Meeaday, we ascended some hills 
 whence a view was obtained of the broad Irawaddy then flowing 
 through a region of apparently interminable forests. It is pro- 
 bable that since those days large inroads into those forests have 
 been made by advancing cultivation. 
 
 Having discussed with Phayre the military charges, the 
 strength of the police, the cost of the civil administration and 
 the finances of the Pegu province, we returned to Eangun. 
 
 I there met for the first time Dr. Dietrich Brandis, of Berlin, 
 the Conservator of Forests. The teak forests of Burma being 
 perhaps the best in the world, and their timber being required 
 for the British Admiralty, it was important to preserve them, 
 both for use and for reproduction, by means of scientific forestry. 
 On the other hand, the timber trade being very profitable, the 
 traders were anxious to do many things which the Conservator 
 would not allow ; and they were presenting remonstrances on the 
 subject to Phayre as the superior over the Conservator. I was 
 struck by the patience and argumentative skill with which 
 Brandis met these objections. 
 
 From Kangun we crossed in a steamer the bay which lies 
 between the mouth of the Irawaddy and Moulmein the capital 
 of the Tenasserim province. Having seen three views which 
 would never be effaced from the memory, namely, that of the 
 Akyab harbour, that of the Kangun pagoda, and that of the 
 temple-crowned hill of Prome — we were destined yet to see at 
 Moulmein a fourth more beautiful still. Behind the city of 
 Moulmein there rises a wooded mount on the summit of 
 which are several pagodas. These, though not remarkable as 
 separate structures, yet massed together form a good fore- 
 
Chap. x. BRITISH BURMA. 211 
 
 ground. It is the distant view which delights the spectator, 
 inasmuch as three rivers, the Gyne, the Attaran, and the 
 Salwin, are descried winding through the vast plain to unite 
 near Moulmein before flowing onwards to the sea; and one 
 of these, the Salwin, is a mighty stream. The plain covered 
 with rice crops is broken here and there abruptly by masses 
 of granite, and in the distance the horizon is bounded by the 
 mountains of Siam, Opposite the traveller there is the town 
 of Martaban, and down low at his feet lie the station, the 
 villas, and the city of Moulmein. Pictorially and geographically 
 this view is one of the finest in the eastern empire. 
 
 After carefully examining the finances of the Tenasserim pro- 
 vince with the assistance of the Commissioner, Colonel Hopkin- 
 son, we returned to Calcutta and submitted our report. 
 
 The substance of our recommendations was this : that the 
 three kindred provinces, namely Arracan under the Bengal 
 Government, Pegu and Tenasserim under separate administra- 
 tions of their own, should be formed into one jurisdiction to be 
 called the Chief Commissionership of British Burma. We pro- 
 posed that several local battalions be disbanded and a new 
 police organized, also that the Native portion of the military 
 forces be reduced. It was shewn that with the adoption of such 
 measures the revenues of these territories would more than 
 suffice to meet the expenses properly chargeable to them. 
 These recommendations were in the main approved by Lord 
 Canning, who shortly afterwards published his Eesolution con- 
 stituting the administration of British Burma as a separate Chief 
 Commissionership. British Burma has since that time been 
 blessed with a marvellous prosperity, increasing in cultivation 
 trade wealth and revenue, thus more than fulfilling any antici- 
 pations which we ventured to form. 
 
 I then awaited at Calcutta the arrival of my new master, 
 namely, the financier appointed to succeed Wilson. 
 
 The choice of the English Government fell upon Samuel 
 Laing, as Minister of Finance for India, who arrived at Calcutta 
 
 p 2 
 
212 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, x 
 
 towards the end of 1860. I fell into a position on his staff 
 similar to that which I had occupied under his predecessor. He 
 was as an official superior most kind, pleasant and satisfactory. 
 
 He was the son of Samuel Laing known in literature and 
 science as a traveller and an author. He had sat in Parliament 
 for many years, thereby acquiring practical acquaintance with 
 public business, together with a power of facile and expressive 
 speech. He possessed much financial experience, having been 
 connected with enterprises industrial and commercial. In 
 general knowledge, intellectual grasp, penetrative insight, 
 capacity for gauging the probable direction of fluctuating circum- 
 stances and estimating the net result of conflicting considera- 
 tions, he was nearly equal to Wilson, his great predecessor. In 
 other respects, however, he was quite different from Wilson, 
 with reference at least to the financial circumstances of India. 
 Without at all despising theory or abstract principle, he ap- 
 parently desired to ascertain and measure the practical needs of 
 the hour, to deal with them adequately up to their existing 
 limits and no more; to note considerately the strange pecu- 
 liarities of Oriental life and society, and to avoid raising 
 questions which though derived from the best analogies of 
 Europe might, if inopportunely pressed, do more harm than good 
 in the East. Thus he dwelt much less than Wilson upon 
 fundamental axioms as established by European statesmanship 
 or economic science ; and was more disposed to take views 
 similar to those ordinarily held by men whose experience lay 
 entirely in India. 
 
 Immediately after his arrival in Calcutta, Laing was, during 
 January 1861, much pressed by requisitions from the Indian 
 treasury for the supply of funds. For the cash balances, which 
 had been satisfactorily high twelve months before, now suffered 
 depletion, because the expenses of military and police establish- 
 ments were not yet reduced to a normal standard. He used to 
 say under these emergent conditions that he was required, in 
 nautical analogy, to cry now " starboard," and now " port," before 
 he had time to fully examine his charts or to properly take his 
 bearings. His next anxiety was to ensure judicious modera- 
 
Chap. x. LAING'S FINANCIAL POLICY. 213 
 
 tion in levying the income-tax, introducing such modifications 
 in detail as might remove or at least mitigate any causes of 
 reasonable discontent. He heard much on this subject from 
 Europeans official and non-official, and used to converse with 
 Natives of status loyalty and intelligence, concerning direct 
 taxation. From their replies he became imbued with a sense 
 of the political disadvantages attending fiscal measures of 
 this nature among the people of India. He took to heart the 
 dictum of Lord Canning, as already mentioned, that even the 
 danger from having too small a force of European troops was of 
 less moment than the danger from imposing too heavy a 
 burden of taxation upon large classes of the people. 
 
 Soon he proceeded with the inchoate legislation for the new 
 paper currency. He held that the principles, on which Wilson 
 had founded the first proposals for tliis currency, would, if carried 
 to their extreme, produce a system inadequate to sustain the 
 shock of a political or commercial crisis. He adopted unre- 
 servedly the views set forth in the instructions of the Secretary 
 of State, Sir Charles Wood, as already described in chapter IX. ; 
 and a bill, revised accordingly, was passed by the Indian legis- 
 lature at Calcutta. He thereby arranged that the department of 
 issue should be connected with the mint, the master of the mint 
 becoming the head commissioner of paper currency. Power was 
 taken to issue notes against Government securities up to the 
 amount of four millions sterling ; that being the amount below 
 which, as shewn by experience, the note circulation could not 
 possibly go ; and all notes beyond this amount were to be issued 
 against cash only. There were three circles of issue established, 
 namely those of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay. The notes of 
 a circle were payable at the note-office or offices of that circle, 
 but not of other circles. It was not thought safe to undertake 
 the cashing of notes in circles other than those in which they were 
 issued. In any circle, however, sub-circles might be established ; 
 and the notes of a sub-circle would be payable at its o^vn note- 
 office, and at the note-office of the circle ; but not in other circles. 
 The new note circulation immediately exceeded the amount of 
 four millions, and rose steadily from time to time. The old 
 
214 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 note circulation of the three Presidency banks, as already men- 
 tioned, was abolished. 
 
 Turning to administrative affairs he gave a strong support to 
 the measures then in progress for diminishing expenditure. He 
 earnestly attended to the disbanding of military police and of 
 quasi-military levies, the reorganizing of the new police in their 
 stead, the discharging of establishments connected with transport 
 and other subsidiary departments of war, the better regulating 
 of expenses connected with the European forces, and the re- 
 ducing of the strength of Native troops. He declared his belief 
 that there was hardly a man of weight and authority in India 
 who did not feel that the Government in reducing the Native 
 army as it then stood, were following the path not only of 
 financial reform, but of political prudence. He gave every 
 encouragement to the two Commissions, already mentioned in 
 chapter IX., for the revision of military and civil finance 
 respectively; and he cordially acknowledged the aid afforded 
 by the most important of the two, namely, the Military 
 Finance Commission, in the reduction of military expenditure 
 generally. 
 
 He then in March (1861) introduced his budget before the 
 Legislative Council at Calcutta by a speech replete with 
 stirring and graphic metaphors. Though he pointedly dis- 
 claimed the character of an orator, yet there was actually much 
 eloquence of a certain kind in his utterances. But his 
 oratory was quite difi'erent from Wilson's measured and 
 sonorous periods which still seemed to resound in our ears. 
 It was generally of a familiar type, borrowing similes from 
 every-day life, especially from the hunting field, applying them 
 appositely and felicitously to the financial point in hand, and 
 so illustrating the particular policy of the Government on 
 matters which, however important, would usually seem dull and 
 obscure. In liis conversation he commonly used expressive 
 figures of speech, and it was with such images that in his first 
 budget statement he communicated to the audience the same 
 vivid impressions which he had in his own mind. At the 
 moment, however, his hearers, accustomed to the gravity of 
 
Chap. x. HIS FIRST BUDGET. 215 
 
 official speakers, received the speech with a good-humoured 
 surprise, while acknowledging its vigour and cogency. 
 
 Still, in this speech he sometimes rose to higher flights, and 
 produced one passage which is worth quoting. After remind- 
 ing his audience that India is not altogether devoid of that 
 spirit of self-government which characterizes the Anglo-Saxon, 
 he spoke thus : — 
 
 " India has never, within the period of history, been a nation. 
 It has been an aggregate of various tribes, distinct communities, 
 and petty despotisms, of which now one, now the other, shot up 
 into ephemeral importance or decayed, with the accident of the 
 hour, with the success of some military adventurer, and the 
 degeneracy of his heir. ... I have a vision of an India — where 
 the science of the "West has removed impediments to communi- 
 cation; where the consequent increase of trade has diffused 
 material prosperity ; where English energy and capital stimulate 
 improvement in every district ; and where the Native popula- 
 tion, with expanding ideas and improving intelligence, are 
 taught by the education of schools and of events, of books and 
 railways, to know us and to know one another; and are 
 gradually trained in the management of their own local affairs 
 for those of a wider area ; so that India may at length have 
 what it has never yet had — a political life, and at length be, 
 what it has never yet been — a nation." 
 
 Like Wilson, he was much impressed by the indications of 
 India's vitality and resources and of her ability to overcome 
 the financial difficulties of the hour, grave as they were. He 
 anticipated much benefit from material improvement, especially 
 the construction of canals for irrigation. Eespecting the canals he 
 used these emphatic words : " Colonel Cotton has truly said that 
 water is gold in India. It is more than gold, it is life ; and 
 amongst the most lamentable consequences of our financial 
 embarrassments had been the necessity of starving works which 
 convert famine into plenty." 
 
 Like Wilson again, while anxious to check extravagance and 
 enforce a wise economy, he thought that such economy could 
 be attained only in conjunction with efficiency. He said that 
 
216 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 " a Government to be well served and generally respected must 
 never do a sharp, mean or illiberal act, for depend upon it the 
 paltry saving of to-day will come back with tenfold expense 
 and a hundred-fold discredit on the morrow." 
 
 He declared himself in favour of the principle which sub- 
 sequently under Lord Mayo was developed into the scheme of 
 provincial services. He proposed to augment the financial 
 responsibilities of the provincial Governments, to give them 
 budgets of their own for several heads of income and ex- 
 penditure, and accord them certain powers to raise taxes for 
 themselves. In his own words he wished to say to them, 
 " Take what we are able to give you ; and for the residue take 
 certain powers of local taxation and raise it for yourselves." 
 Immediate effect was not given to these ideas, and when form- 
 ing them he was somewhat in advance of the time ; but being 
 sound, they were, in their essentials, adopted during after years. 
 
 The financial situation with which he had to cope when 
 producing his first budget, was in this wise. Of the new 
 taxation devised by Wilson a part had been relinquished, 
 and the remainder was but partially imposed. The tobacco- 
 tax had been abandoned the licence-tax, though prepared fully 
 and ready for enactment, was not actually enacted. The collec- 
 tion of the income-tax was only in progress, and its manage- 
 ment, as might have been feared, had suffered considerably 
 from the death of its author. Thus the expected augmenta- 
 tion of income was far from being realized. On the other hand 
 the measures for reducing the vast expense of the national 
 defences, of the army the military poKce and the like, which 
 had been begun before "Wilson's arrival and prosecuted during 
 his time, had not taken full effect. The measures were dis- 
 cussed elaborated and in some respects executed ; all which 
 constituted a real gain to progress. Still the carrying out of 
 them had not yet been ordered in that complete manner 
 which alone can ensure a good result financially. Consequently 
 the expenditure still remained intolerably high; and the 
 current deficit of more than six millions annually which 
 Wilson intended to avert, threatened to last. As no loan had 
 
Chap. x. FINANCIAL PKOPOSITIONS. 217 
 
 been raised recently, the continuance of deficit had drained the 
 cash balance of the Government to a very low ebb. 
 
 He proposed to make the most of the income-tax as it had 
 been already imposed, but to refrain from levying the licence- 
 tax ; on the other hand he arranged to augment the salt-duties ; 
 and so a goodly amount of new income, about 2 millions 
 sterling, would be realized. Then he hoped to see effect really 
 given to the proposals which had been matured for reducing the 
 expenses of the national defence, that is, of the army the 
 armed police and the Indian navy. If the orders which had 
 been or were being issued should be put into execution, then 
 he estimated that a saving of 3^ millions sterling annually 
 would be obtained. Thus with 2 millions of fresh income 
 and an economy in expenditure of 3^ millions, he expected 
 to meet 5^ out of 6 millions of the deficit, leaving ^ million 
 to be made up. 
 
 This half million he proposed to make up by what was then 
 regarded as an unusual plan, but which is in principle recog- 
 nized abundantly nowadays. The scheme was to deduct this 
 amount from the imperial grants for material improvement in 
 the various provinces of the empire, and to inform the several 
 provincial Governments that they would be at liberty to recoup 
 themselves by levying special taxes for material improvement 
 within their respective jurisdictions. The imperial finance 
 would pro tanto experience relief, and the burden would be 
 transferred to the provincial Governments. This plan was 
 sanctioned by the Government of India at the time, but was 
 not carried into effect, because as the year wore on the necessity 
 of executing it disappeared or was thought to disappear. It 
 involved the principle of the scheme for Provincial Services 
 which was brought forward some years later in Lord Mayo's 
 time and is now in operation. 
 
 Laing saw that the new income, included in his estimate, 
 was in the main secure, and that the success or failure of his 
 estimate really depended on the reduction of expenditure. 
 The saving of so large an amount as 3^ millions sterling might 
 arouse indirect opposition, and there would always be a vis 
 
218 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 inertice militating against reforms of this nature. He therefore 
 felt that an active support must be given to those who were 
 charged with the execution of these measures of economy, that 
 is, to Colonel Balfour and his colleagues in the Military Finance 
 Department. They would have been the first to acknowledge 
 that their success was largely due to the strenuous support 
 which he afforded. Indeed his adroitness in piloting proposals 
 through the shoals of opposition and avoiding the reefs of dis- 
 appointment was remarkable. After a time he had the pleasure 
 of reviewing the results accomplished within a very few years, 
 and shewing that the cost of the army defrayed in India 
 stood at 
 
 £20,909,307 in 1859-60, 
 £15,838,980 in 1860-1, 
 £12,800,000 in 1861-2, 
 £12,200,000 in 1862-3. 
 
 When adverting to this satisfactory topic he invariably com- 
 mended the signal services of Colonel Balfour already men- 
 tioned. The Native armed force, including military police, had 
 been reduced in two years from 350,000 men to less than 
 130,000, and the European army from 90,000 to less than 
 70,000 men. 
 
 The expenditure on the Indian Navy and the Indian marine 
 fell within the sphere of the Civil Finance Commission, and 
 to them he gave the same vigorous support in carrying out 
 reduction. He held that the Indian Navy cost one million 
 sterling annually, without affording any real naval protection. 
 He then succeeded in reducing this charge to less than half 
 a million, by the abolition of the naval establishment altogether 
 and by dispensing with half the marine ; a small and inexpen- 
 sive force being obtained instead from the Eoyal Navy. He 
 further, by following up the recommendations of the Com- 
 mission, obtained savings in the civil administration to an 
 amount of £500,000 yearly. 
 
 In these affairs he evinced much dexterity, displaying this 
 quality in a degree not surpassed by any man in India within this 
 
Chap. X. HIS SECOND BUDGET. 219 
 
 generation. To it he added unfailing tact and good-humour, 
 besides a ready skill in bringing matters to the desired conclusion. 
 
 Having witnessed the favourable reception accorded to his 
 budget by all classes of the community, he became violently 
 ill with dysentery, the same disease which had carried off his 
 predecessor. He bore up bravely against this ominous attack, 
 and proceeded on a short sea voyage to the Straits of Malacca, 
 whence he returned '^in a few weeks, much improved in health 
 and able to work, though somewhat shaken. Warned thereby 
 of the necessity for reinvigorating by European air a con- 
 stitution that had once been affected by tropical disease, he 
 proceeded on short leave to England, and soon came back to 
 resume his financial portfolio. 
 
 He produced his second budget in April 1862, and by it 
 shewed that the anticipations set forth in his first budget 
 had been mainly realized, that the orders for reducing the 
 expenditure had really been carried into effect, that the taxes 
 had been fairly productive, and that the revenue was flourisliing. 
 The army charges had reached their culminating point in 
 1859-60, when they stood at 21 millions ; they had since 
 fallen first to 16 millions, then to 13 millions, and were 
 expected to fall further still to nearly 12 millions. He then 
 thought that the time had come when the duty on English 
 piece-goods imported into India, which had been raised to 
 10 per cent, during the time of the utmost financial depression, 
 might be lowered to 5 per cent. He discussed the question 
 whether such a duty operated as a protection to the manu- 
 factures then springing up in India ; a duty of 10 per cent, 
 might have this effect, but a duty of 5 per cent, under the 
 existing circumstances would not. Still if a protective effect 
 should become apparent, he would be prepared to recon- 
 sider the question, declaring that he was "anxious not to 
 bestow on Indian manufactures the fatal boon of a temporary 
 and precarious protection." 
 
 His first budget (for 1861-2) had ended with the anticipation 
 of a small surplus, which was not actually realized — there was 
 indeed a small deficit; essentially, however, during that year 
 
220 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 an equilibrium was maintained between income and expendi- 
 ture. This his second budget (for 1862-3) comprised the 
 estimate again of a small surplus ; but ultimately a large 
 surplus was realized. 
 
 In both of his budget speeches he virtually pronounced 
 against the scientific income-tax in the form which it had 
 assumed under Wilson's direction. Wliile admitting its merit 
 in bringing untaxed yet wealthy classes under taxation, he 
 deemed it unsuitable to the circumstances of India, and 
 financially unsuccessful. He did his best to lighten it by 
 lowering its rate, by waiving the claim to revise assessments, 
 and by exempting the lower incomes altogether. But he was 
 in favour of a rough income-tax in the shape of licence-duties 
 according to the plan which had been superseded by Wilson's 
 regular income-tax. It is remarkable that the Government 
 have in the most recent years reverted to this very plan since 
 the remission of the income-tax in 1873. 
 
 He carefully considered the opium revenue in all its bearings, 
 and declared himself thus : " I can see no reason why the 
 revenue derived by India from opium should be considered 
 more precarious than that derived by England from gin and 
 tobacco." 
 
 Lastly, before his departure he thus spoke of the resources of 
 India : " I came out here under the impression of the gloomy, 
 almost despairing views of Indian finance which were prevalent, 
 and it is only by degrees, and as the result of close enquiry, 
 that the conviction has forced itself on my mind that the 
 revenue of India is really buoyant and elastic in an extra- 
 ordinary degree." 
 
 While Laing was absent in England I was deputed by Lord 
 Canning to several important places in the interior of the 
 country for the purpose of investigating, in conjunction with 
 the local authorities, various matters concerning finance. 
 
 At that time the military expenditure incurred by the British 
 Government at Hyderabad, the capital of the Mzam of the 
 
Chap. X. VISIT TO MADRAS. 221 
 
 Deccan, was attracting attention. By treaty the British 
 Government was bound to maintain a body of troops there 
 styled " the Subsidiary Force " — quite apart from another 
 body of troops known as " the Hyderabad Contingent." In 
 consideration of the Subsidiary Force being stationed near 
 Hyderabad for his support and protection, the Nizam had 
 in the beginning of this century ceded to the British 
 Government certain territories which now form the Ceded 
 districts of the Madras Presidency. It was estimated at the 
 time that the revenues of these districts would be about equal 
 to the cost of the Subsidiary Force. For a long time the Force 
 was maintained at the strength specified in the treaty and no 
 more. But during the war of the mutinies the European part 
 of the force had been largely augmented. It was then alleged 
 by financiers that the British Government was maintaining, at 
 a heavy cost, a force certainly larger than that required by the 
 treaty, and possibly beyond the actual needs of the time. I 
 was accordingly instructed to proceed to Hyderabad by the 
 Madras route, to confer with the Governor of Madras regarding 
 the present value of the Ceded districts, and with the Eesident 
 of Hyderabad regarding the cost and strength of the Subsidiary 
 Force. 
 
 Arrived at Madras I had several interviews with the 
 Governor, Sir William Denison, who had recently come there 
 from his Governorship in Australia. He was fast acquiring 
 popularity at Madras, having the tastes and ways of an English 
 squire, and being essentially a man of masculine common- 
 sense. He was not likely to acquire that insight into the 
 wants of the country which his predecessor. Sir Charles Tre- 
 velyan had evinced as the result of old experience, but being 
 an officer of Engineers he had much knowledge that would 
 come into play for the benefit of an Indian administration. 
 
 I there met Colonel Sir Arthur Cotton of the Madras 
 Engineers, who had rendered splendid services to the cause 
 of irrigation and navigation by canals in southern India. 
 He was anxious to see projects for the same purposes under- 
 taken in the central territories which I was about to visit. In 
 
222 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 his characteristic manner he took a large map and marked with 
 different colours the basins of the rivers in the centre of India, 
 denoting the several water-systems which might be utilized by 
 means of engineering works. He also explained to me the 
 merits of the Godavery scheme which will be mentioned hereafter. 
 
 In those days there had been only one railway opened in the 
 Madras Presidency, namely that which ran from Madras on the 
 Coromandel coast across the peninsula to Beypur on the Mala- 
 bar coast. Tliis railway passed near the base of the Mysore 
 plateau, and I determined to visit Mysore and thence proceed 
 to Bellary in the ceded districts already mentioned. 
 
 Bangalore was the European station on the Mysore plateau 
 where the troops were cantoned. It was also the residence of 
 the Commissioner (then Mr. C. B. Saunders) who was managing 
 the territory on behalf of the Kaja. Many years previously 
 internal troubles, caused by misrule, had compelled the British 
 Government to assume charge of the administration. Adequate 
 allowances from the treasury of the State were made to main- 
 tain the household and court of the Eaja, who lived at Mysore, 
 some sixty miles from Bangalore. I went in company with 
 Mr. Saunders to pay my respects to His Highness. Arrived 
 at the palace we passed through a noble hall of audience with 
 the pillars and arches which are shewn in the background of 
 the historic picture representing the youthful Eaja as he 
 received investiture from the British delegates when being 
 placed on the throne of his ancestors after the capture of 
 Seringapatam and the death of Tippoo Saib. That scene must 
 have appealed most forcibly to the sentiments of Hindus, who 
 regarded Tippoo the Muhammadan iconoclast and his sacri- 
 legious myrmidons with that sort of fear which villagers feel 
 for the man-eating tiger. The East India Company, having, 
 vanquished Tippoo by operations redounding to its fame as a 
 military power, sought out the heir of the ancient dynasty which 
 the Muhammadans had displaced, in order to set him on the 
 ancestral throne. Seldom has a fairer prospect presented itself 
 to an Indian youth than that which opened out before the Eaja 
 on the auspicious day of his enthronement. But though fairly 
 
Chap. x. JOURNEY TO HYDERABAD IN THE DECCAN. 223 
 
 educated, courteous and free from evil intention, he was unstable 
 as water and a hopelessly incompetent ruler. His kingdom 
 became a scene of anarchy, and when the British Government 
 interposed to restore order he subsided into the position of a 
 pensioner in his own palace. There he was still residing in his 
 old age, and we were about to see him. He received us very 
 courteously in an apartment decorated with Oriental colouring 
 and brightened with mirrors. He was more ready to engage 
 in conversation than is usual with Native princes on a first 
 interview. He spoke of the past without any awkward- 
 ness or reserve, and reminded us that he was the very man 
 whom the British Government had placed upon the throne in 
 1799. 
 
 On our way back to Bangalore we visited Seringapatam, 
 noting the encampment of the British besiegers, the points 
 where the breaching batteries were mounted and the storming 
 parties made good their ingress. We also stood upon the spot 
 where the beaten Sultan, Tippoo, died fighting sword in hand. 
 The city with its walls, gateways, streets, houses, were still 
 standing, and some few inhabitants were there. But the 
 houses were for the most part empty, the streets vacant, the 
 stone pavement grass-grown. This desertion of a well-built 
 city still standing, and, as it were, proclaiming its own over- 
 throw, impressed the mind more than the desolation of a town 
 marked by masses of ruins ; and made me realize the force of 
 such a title as " the city of the dead." 
 
 From Bangalore I journeyed to Bellary, and thence by 
 Karniil to Hyderabad. The aspect of the country is ordinarily 
 arid, with brown grass, black soil, grey rocks, and trees at 
 intervals far apart. At that season, however, the end of 
 June, the periodical rains had begun to fall, and the whole 
 surface of the earth was decked with verdure. Jolting tediously 
 over stony roads in a van drawn by bullocks at the rate of two 
 miles an hour, I reached Hyderabad, and was hospitably received 
 by the Eesident, Colonel Cuthbert Davidson. My colleague 
 in the financial enquiry already mentioned, Colonel Browne, 
 had also come from Madras, and we proceeded with our work. 
 
224 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 We found that the British Government was maintaining 
 the Subsidiary Force at a strength much beyond that speci- 
 fied in the treaty. The European part of the force was strong, 
 and consequently very expensive ; still it was essential for 
 the safety of the Mzam and of Hyderabad after the dangers 
 which had menaced the Deccan during the war of the mutinies. 
 Without the presence of European troops revolution would 
 have occurred, and might still occur, at Hyderabad ; such an 
 event would be injurious to the empire, and cause trouble 
 to the neighbouring British territories. The British Govern- 
 ment therefore in the discharge of its imperial duty must bear 
 the cost of maintaining, in excess of its obligations by treaty, 
 such additional force as might be required at Hyderabad for the 
 public safety in central and southern India. We were, how- 
 ever, able to recommend some reduction in the Native part of 
 the force, and suggest economy in several directions. 
 
 During this time I made the acquaintance of Salar Jang, 
 already famous as the able Minister on whose shoulders the 
 Nizam's government rested. I was destined to have close 
 relations with him officially at a subsequent time, as will be 
 explained in a future chapter. 
 
 Next after the Minister was the Muhammadan nobleman 
 who bore the title of Amir-i-Kabir ; he was then advanced in 
 years and had the most picturesque and interesting aspect that 
 I ever saw in any Native of India — the features being manly 
 though delicate, their expression calm yet vigorous. 
 
 In company with Colonel Davidson I went to pay my 
 respects to the Nizam. We were received with the self- 
 possession and reserve so characteristic of His Highness, who 
 though polite after the Oriental fashion, sat quite apart, serene 
 and almost motionless, as if he were a statue to be gazed at 
 with reverence. 
 
 Colonel Davidson invited me to a farewell party at Golconda 
 on one of those surpassingly lovely days which occur during 
 the intervals between the bursts of rain at that season in the 
 Deccan. The entertainment took place at Golconda in tents 
 pitched amidst palm-trees and granite rocks, near the base of 
 
Chap. x. EUINED BUILDINGS IN THE DECCAN. 225 
 
 a frowning citadel and almost in the shadow of the ruined 
 mausolea of the kings belonging to an extinct dynasty. 
 
 I then left Hyderabad en route for those districts in the 
 centre of India which were about to be formed into the Central 
 Provinces and placed under a new administration. For I 
 had been instructed to examine the various financial points 
 affecting this arrangement, with a view to economy. 
 
 The summer rains had fallen abundantly, the rivers were 
 swollen, in many places the floods were out, there were no 
 railways and very few roads : so the journey, however interest- 
 ing, promised to be difficult. Shortly after leaving Hyderabad 
 in a van drawn by bullocks, I diverged from the main road in 
 order to visit the ruins of Beder, formerly the seat of one of the 
 independent Muhammadan kingdoms which were absorbed 
 into the empire of the Great Mogul. The bastions of the 
 fortress had a rich colouring subdued by age, being built of the 
 red laterite of which the hills are there formed. The style of 
 the mosque was grand and severe, quite different from the 
 polished and graceful manner of the Mogul architects in later 
 times. The chief object of beauty in the place was the college 
 which had been founded for the encouragement of learning 
 in relation to the Muhammadan faith. The exterior of the 
 building - had once been covered with exquisitely coloured 
 glazing in floral devices, of which there was still much re- 
 maining to delight the spectator. This building is perhaps the 
 finest of its kind surviving in India ; and the visitor may 
 well feel wonder on reflecting that so refined a structure should 
 have been erected in times of war violence and rapine. It 
 was necessary to be prompt in examining and sketching 
 these remains, for the clouds were fast gathering in dark 
 masses and soon the rain descended, flooding the country and 
 rendering it difficult for me to regain the highroad. 
 
 Shortly afterwards the hills of Naldrug came into view 
 presenting features quite different geologically ; instead of the 
 red laterite there was the black trap-rock. A stream had been 
 dammed up with massive masonry so as to form first a fine 
 tank amidst the rocks, and then a sparkling cascade as the 
 
 Q 
 
226 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 surplus water escaped over tlie dam. This place is situated 
 near the border between the Nizam's dominions and the Bombay 
 Presidency. 
 
 Then the railway was reached at Sholapur on the frontier of 
 the Bombay Presidency, whence I proceeded smoothly and 
 rapidly to Poena. The smoothness and rapidity afforded new 
 sensations to one who had been plodding for several days and 
 nights consecutively at the rate of 1^ mile an hour through wet 
 black loam. 
 
 At Poena I met Sir George Clerk, who was then Governor of 
 Bombay for the second time. After playing a distinguished, 
 indeed a historic, part in the politics of the North-west frontier, 
 he had some time before the war of the mutinies been appointed 
 Governor of Bombay ; since the war he had recently been re- 
 appointed to the Governorship in succession to Lord Elpliin- 
 stone. He was then occupied in making the arrangements 
 consequent on the financial and administrative changes ordered 
 by Lord Canning's Government, as already mentioned in the 
 previous chapter VIII. Besides the many pacific measures 
 necessarily required after a time of general trouble, he was 
 reorganizing the police, completing the reduction of the Native 
 forces, and preparing for the abolition of the Indian Navy. 
 No man living possessed so great a knowledge as he of the 
 Native princes, chiefs and upper classes generally. He thought 
 much of their power for good or for evil, and felt doubt whether 
 this powerful influence had always been so conciliated by the 
 British that it might be ranged on the side of loyalty and 
 public order. Yet in the hope that such conciliation would be 
 found possible, he desired to see endeavours directed towards 
 this object. 
 
 From Poena I journeyed to Ahmednagar, a famed Muham- 
 madan fort, which the Mahrattas surrendered to the Duke of 
 Wellington, then General Arthur Wellesley. Thence I re- 
 entered the Nizam's dominions and proceeded to Aurangabad, 
 another city of historic fame, its neighbourhood being replete 
 with more notable associations than any other place in the 
 central part of India. It is near the old fortress of Deogarh, 
 
Chap. x. CAVE-TEMPLES OP ELLORA. 227 
 
 afterwards styled Daolatabad, where the invading Muhani- 
 madans first compelled a Hindu sovereign in the Deccan to 
 surrender, from which event there commenced a series of " woes 
 unnumbered," conquests and re-conquests, defeats retrieved 
 after desperate struggles, empires raised on the ruin of king- 
 doms and then in their turn subverted. The hill fortress 
 consists of a magnificent mass of scarped trap-rock, rising black 
 and precipitous out of a flat plain to the height of a thousand 
 feet. There are many such hill forts in central and southern 
 India, all very fine, but Daolatabad is the most impressive of 
 them all. A few miles distant is that long-stretching hill- 
 side which is literally honey-combed with the caves of the 
 Ellora group. The rock-cut temples, so numerous in western 
 India, become like many other wonderful things familiar after 
 long experience, but to me on the first sight of them they were 
 awe-inspiring. The light penetrated the cavernous recesses 
 with uncertain ray, displaying in dim outline the sculptured 
 columns, the carved figures, the chiselled features. The gloom 
 was intensified by the colour of the stone, for the trap-rock, 
 naturally grey, had become jet black from the all-pervading 
 moisture at this time in the midst of the rainy season. From 
 every crevice the water was exuding or trickling and broke the 
 profound silence of the caves as it dropped with a pattering 
 sound. Immediately opposite the entrance of one cave, the 
 water tumbling over the ledge of a rock-wall formed a vista of 
 gleaming cascades to the spectator as he stood inside the dark 
 recess. 
 
 Close to these marvellous records of the dynasties subverted 
 by his ancestors, the Mogul Emperor Aurangzeb reposes, the 
 last of the emperors who could claim the title of Great Mogul. 
 His tomb is of the simplest character, not covered by any 
 stately dome or even humble canopy, but exposed, according 
 to the most rigid Muhammadan doctrine, to the wind and rain 
 of heaven. After all his crimes and disastrous wars, the old 
 tiger almost bereft of teeth and claws retired to this neigh- 
 bourhood, saying as he alighted that he had made his last 
 march and fought his final campaign. 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. x. 
 
 From Aurangabad my road lay through Berar, wliich province 
 I traversed slowly in a palanquin in order to reach Nagpur. 
 Some days were spent there by me conferring with the Com- 
 missioner, Colonel Edward King Elliot, regarding the finances of 
 the ISTagpur province. I then crossed the Satpura mountains, 
 travelling still by palanquin to Jabalpur ; the road which has 
 since been scientifically bridged and metalled was then rugged 
 and difficult. The summer rains were over, the bright autumn 
 had set in, the foliage of the Satpura forest was gorgeous ; but 
 the landscape had a treacherous beauty, as it was the season 
 when malarious exhalations rose from the moist ground under 
 the sunny skies. Then crossing the Nerbadda, the most 
 picturesque of all Indian rivers, I reached Jabalpur, where the 
 finance of the Nerbadda territories was duly examined in 
 concert wdth the local authorities. 
 
 Thence I proceeded to the Governor-General's camp which 
 was at Lucknow, in order to explain to Lord Canning the result 
 of my enquiries. He was then about to hold a ceremonial 
 reception for the Native chiefs of Oudh. Such a reception has 
 been aptly termed by an able writer " an Oriental edition of 
 the Field of the Cloth of gold," with marquees, pavilions, 
 lustrous displays of jewelry, "bellicose aspect of motley 
 followers " and the " fanfare of martial music." Near at hand 
 was the " Bailey " guard, a battered ruin attesting British 
 heroism, and the shattered chamber where Henry Lawrence 
 received Ms death-wound. The river Gumti flowed close by, 
 with a bridge of boats across it, and from the opposite bank we 
 saw an imposing line of tall though tasteless structures. These 
 were erected by the Muhammadan sovereigns in their pride, but 
 had recently become celebrated in relation to the defence 
 whereby the small British garrison held their own against 
 a vast body of besiegers. I then submitted to the Govern- 
 ment of India my report on the financial results of combining 
 the province of Nagpur and the Nerbadda districts into one 
 jurisdiction to be called the Central Provinces, and returned to 
 my post in attendance on the Finance Minister, Mr. Laing. 
 Shortly afterwards Lord Canning issued the necessary orders 
 
Chap. x. CONSTITUTION OF THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. 229 
 
 regarding the revenues to be realized from the new administra- 
 tion of the Central Provinces and the expenses to be allowed 
 for it, Colonel Elliot, already mentioned, being appointed to be 
 the first Chief Commissioner. 
 
 Colonel Elliot organized the new administration, but was 
 soon afterwards obliged by ill-health to proceed to Europe ; and 
 Lord Canning offered me the post of Chief Commissioner of 
 the Central Provinces, which I accepted. My financial chief 
 Mr. Laing was at that time intending to return to England 
 immediately after the production of his second budget. When I 
 con^ilted him as to the expediency of giving up finance for the 
 present and returning to the administrative line he advised me 
 to do so ; with the characteristic remark that I had learnt the 
 lesson to be gathered from the rough experience of financial 
 difficulties and that the heroics of Indian finance were now 
 over. In after years I had much reason to rejoice at having 
 followed his wise advice. 
 
230 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 (1862-18G6.) 
 THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. 
 
 Beginning of Lord Elgin's administration — Chief Commissionership of the 
 Central Provinces — Scenery of the Satpura mountains — Disbandment of 
 the Nagpur force — The Mahrattas of Nagpur — Their landed tenures — 
 Visit of Bishop Cotton — Education of the people — Scottish mission — 
 Aboriginal races — Forests and forestry — Wild beasts — Roads and rail- 
 ways — Project for navigating the Godavery — Desolate country near the 
 Mahanaddy river — General administration of the Provinces. 
 
 James Bruce, Earl of Elgin and Kincardine, arrived at Calcutta, 
 as successor to Lord Canning, in January 1861. As the out- 
 going statesman met the in-coming Governor-General on the 
 steps of the Government House, the somewhat saddening, 
 though inevitable, contrast was presented. Canning looked 
 pale wan toil-worn and grief-stricken ; the brow and forehead 
 had, indeed, their inseparable dignity; but the complexion 
 had become sallow, losing those hues which had so often 
 lighted up his aspect on occasions of state ceremony. Men 
 attributed the change in his appearance to supreme efforts 
 in winding up the affairs of his imperial stewardsliip, and 
 to his recent bereavement by the decease of Lady Canning. 
 None suspected that the real cause was the approach of 
 death, which had begun already to cast its shadow over him 
 before striking the last blow. Elgin, on the other hand, 
 came up gaily, ruddy in face, massive and square in fore- 
 head, buoyant in manner, and stalwart in frame, though of short 
 stature. Eespecting him, also, we little thought that his 
 remaining years were to be so very few. He landed on the 
 shores of Bengal after having won a reputation in fields of action 
 similar to those presented by Indian politics, and possessing 
 
Chap. xi. LOED ELGIN AT CALCUTTA. 231 
 
 antecedents peculiarly fitting him for the Vice-regal office in an 
 eastern empire. He was highly esteemed by the Anglo-Indian 
 community for the self-denying readiness with which he had 
 diverted to India the European force destined to support him in 
 Ghinaj postponing important schemes in the execution of which 
 he was specially interested, and for the success of wliich he was 
 answerable, in order to succour the Indian Government in its 
 moment of need. 
 
 Five months afterwards, the Calcutta Gazette announced to 
 all India, in befitting terms, that Canning had died in London 
 after a brief illness. It soon became known that shortly after 
 his arrival in England he had fallen sick unto death. When 
 warned by the physicians of his impending end, he said, 
 " What, so soon ! " and then quietly turned his face towards the 
 wall to die. 
 
 Entering upon his duties Lord Elgin remained for nearly a 
 year at Calcutta, making his preliminary study of the strange 
 country under his care, learning all that could be learnt at the 
 capital in respect to those wide dominions, and discovering that 
 this knowledge is but a small part of the great lesson which has 
 sooner or later to be mastered. Being naturally a man of 
 social tastes and cheery disposition, he became very popular 
 at Calcutta. He wisely endeavoured to conciliate European 
 opinion there, perhaps remembering how hostile it had once 
 been towards his predecessor. He possessed a manner wliich 
 pleased and attracted the leading classes at Calcutta, to a degree 
 seldom attained by any Governor-General. When he was 
 departing thence on his journey to the north, the European 
 inhabitants gave a public entertainment in his honour at the 
 Town Hall and testified their regard for him in the most 
 emphatic manner. 
 
 I had the advantage of interviews with him several times, 
 without doing much work under his immediate orders, because, 
 as already mentioned in chapter X., I had been appointed by 
 Lord Canning, shortly before his departure from India, to act 
 as CMef Commissioner of the Central Provinces. 
 
 These Provinces were, as their name implies, situate in the 
 
232 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 very middle of the Indian continent, and their boundaries 
 touched upon all the three Presidencies of Bengal, Bombay 
 and Madras. They were made up of several pieces ; one piece 
 being taken from the North-western Provinces, another from 
 Bengal, while the third and most important consisted of the 
 Nagpur province; the several portions being thus combined 
 into an administrative whole by one of the latest acts of 
 Lord Canning's Government. Geographically they comprised 
 a part of the two parallel ranges of mountains, namely, 
 those of the Vindhya and the Satpura, together with the 
 intermediate valleys and submontane tracts adjacent to 
 the hills. Consequently their scenery is more diversified 
 than that of any Indian province south of the Hima- 
 layas. The mountain ranges stretch for hundreds of miles, 
 and have in some places a height of four thousand feet 
 above sea-level; their rocks are fine specimens of trap and 
 sandstone formations; their sides are often clothed with 
 forests ; and they give birth to many rivers. It is at Amar 
 Kantak, the culminating point of the Satpura range, that 
 the river Nerbadda rises, in a verdant plateau environed by 
 forests of Sal {Shorca robusta), and for several months of the 
 year deluged by ceaseless rainfall. There the dense fogs, 
 clouds and mists of midsummer and autumn give place to the 
 beauties of a bright and sunny, though cold, winter and a deli- 
 cious spring. The JSTerbadda, at first a tiny babbling brook, 
 falls after a short distance in a flashing line of light over a 
 black precipice of trap. Then, after meandering for many miles 
 between the steep hillsides, it forces its passage through a mass 
 of marble, before entering the plains near Jabalpur. The 
 brilliant white walls, by which the river is here hemmed in, 
 are the celebrated marble rocks, justly esteemed as forming the 
 gem of all the natural beauties in India. In another part of 
 the Satpura range, mighty sandstone rocks at Pachmari rise up 
 abruptly to a height of 4500 feet (above sea-level) in the midst 
 of the great trap formation. This place has been made a 
 sanitarium and summer resort for Europeans. The precipices, 
 magnificently scarped and coloured with all the tints of red, 
 
CuAP. XI. THE MOUNTAINS AND FORESTS. 233 
 
 afford a grand contrast to the sombre hues of the prevailing trap. 
 The cavernous fissures, descending to a seemingly unfathomable 
 depth in the bowels of the mountain, add features of wonder 
 to the glories of the landscape. As is usual with spots of 
 great beauty in Hindu lands, Pachmari has sacred shrines 
 wMther pilgrims used to resort in vast numbers. On one occa- 
 sion, when many thousands were thus huddled together in a 
 rude encampment on the mountain summit, the hapless multi- 
 tude was seized with deadly cholera. Then ensued a miserable 
 scene, as the shrine was crowded with people dead or dying, 
 and the fugitives rushed and stumbled in wild terror down the 
 precipitous paths of the mountain. 
 
 The forests of the Satpura range though displaying rich 
 verdure, yet lack the variety imparted by the coniferoe, cedars 
 firs or cypresses, to the Himalayan forests. These Satpura forests, 
 however, have the teak, the sal, and several species of the termi- 
 nalia, in great abundance. In some places they possess the finest 
 bamboos I ever saw, clustering in splendid clumps 70 to 80 feet 
 in height, and gracefully overhanging the pellucid water in which 
 their images are refiected. These hills in their uplands and 
 upper valleys comprise large areas of luscious and succulent 
 pasturage, into which herds of cattle are driven from distant 
 plains during the early spring. The animals, having worked 
 hard on scanty fare during the winter months of brisk traf&c, 
 know instinctively when the season approaches for their being 
 released to graze in the hills. Sometimes they will rush off, 
 without any guidance from their drivers, in mad excitement 
 towards those Elysian fields. 
 
 Immediately after joining the Chief Commissionership, I was 
 required to undertake the reorganization of the police on the 
 lines laid down by the Police Commission as already explained 
 in chapter VIII. This comprised the disbandment of the 
 Nagpur Irregular Force, which had been raised from among the 
 remains of the Mahratta army after the annexation of the 
 province in Lord Dalhousie's time, and was now to be amal- 
 gamated with the police. Gratuities and pensions on retire- 
 ment, or employment in the new police as an alternative, were 
 
234 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 offered to the men who had remained faithful throughout the 
 dangers of 1857. These men liked their military service and 
 resented disbandment ; the moment was a trying one, and the 
 spirit of mutiny arose among them. Despite the terrible ex- 
 ample set by the recent suppression of the great mutiny, they 
 seemed to imagine that upon their shewing signs of resistance, 
 the Government would desist from discharging them. It became 
 necessary to overawe them by a slight display of force with 
 regular troops, and the disbandment then proceeded quietly. 
 
 Several portions of the Central Provinces had been for many 
 years under British rule ; one important portion, however, the 
 Nagpur territory, had been annexed only a few years previously, 
 and shewed many traces, not yet obliterated, of the preceding 
 Native rule. 
 
 Mahratta rule in Nagpur differed in several respects from 
 the ]\Iahratta sway in the Deccan, wliich was the original home 
 and the proper country of Maliratta nationality. There the 
 State assigned some villages or tracts to chiefs who collected 
 the land revenue in place of the Government; in all other 
 tracts the State collected its land-revenue directly from the 
 yeomanry and peasantry without the intervention of any farmer 
 or middleman. There were few or no landlords, and peasant 
 proprietorship was an essential characteristic of Mahratta rule. 
 In fact the State and the people were homogeneous, all owning 
 the same nationality. 
 
 In the Nagpur territory the Mahrattas were invaders and 
 conquerors ; the population was of a different race, made up of 
 aboriginal tribes, with which Eajputs and other of the upper 
 Hindu castes had commingled during many pre^dous genera- 
 tions. There the Mahratta State instead of collecting the 
 land-revenue directly from the villagers as peasant pro- 
 prietors, farmed it out to Mahrattas or Muhammadans. These 
 farmers gradually acquired the position of landlords, and 
 during three generations had firmly fixed their hold upon the 
 villages. They collected rents from the peasantry out of which 
 was paid the land-revenue. The peasants became accustomed 
 to paying rent to the landlord instead of revenue to the State, 
 
Chap. xi. THE MAHRATTA COURT AND CAMP. 235 
 
 and most, though not all, of them lost any sense of peasant 
 proprietorship which they may have ever had. These Mahratta 
 landlords were not generally harsh or oppressive; and any 
 evil tendencies they may have had were repressed when the 
 State fell for several years under British management during 
 the minority of the Prince. The manager at that time was Sir 
 Eichard Jenkins, who gained great distinction in frustrating an 
 attempted revolution that ended with the fight at Sitabaldi; 
 and whose fame for just and considerate administration was still 
 remembered by the people. 
 
 At Nagpur the remains of the Mahratta court and camp 
 were still to be seen. The widows of the late Eaja were 
 there, also the young man who had been adopted, not by the 
 ruler but by the family after his death, and whose succession 
 to the throne was not allowed by the British Government, as 
 explained in chapter VI. The family and relations of the late 
 ruler "belonged to the Bhonslas, one of the highest of the 
 Mahratta clans. They were stout manly-looking men, and 
 good riders ; but they had externally none of those high-born 
 characteristics commonly found in the princely families of 
 India. The most useful man of tliis family was Nana Ahirao, 
 the father of the youth whom the Eaja's widow had adopted. 
 Being an active horseman he had acquired much knowledge of 
 the country and people, and he loyally placed his unpaid 
 services at the disposal of the British authorities. As a rule 
 refinement of aspect and nobility of mien are not observable in 
 the chiefs of pure Mahratta blood, who invariably belong to 
 the humble castes. The members of the Mahratta nationality, 
 whose imposing aspect is so well known, are not real Mahrattas, 
 but are Mahratta Brahmins ; the Peshwas or hereditary heads 
 of the Mahratta federation belonged to the Brahmin caste. 
 There were then but few Mahratta Brahmins at Nagpur, and 
 they followed the money-lending profession. The largest 
 money-lender there, however, was a Marwari from Marwar in 
 Eajputana. This was an instance of the manner in which the 
 enterprising Marwaris spread throughout India, and form that 
 money-lending class which, notwithstanding its many merits, 
 
236 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 has often drawn down odium upon itself. There was 
 also at Nagpur the Gond Eaja, the lineal descendant of the 
 ancient kings of the aboriginal tribe of Gonds in the Satpura 
 mountains. He was flat-faced, with the semi-Tartar look 
 characteristic of several among the aboriginal races. In religion 
 he was a zealous Muhammadan, his ancestors having been by 
 force or influence converted to the faith of Islam by the Mogul 
 emperors. His dynasty had been supplanted by the Mahrattas, 
 and he was then a state pensioner. 
 
 The city of Nagpur was ill-built and uninteresting, but in it 
 was situate the palace, having a stately hall of audience sup- 
 ported by noble pillars which consisted of the trunks of teak trees 
 finely carved and polished, the roof and galleries being also of 
 the same wood. While this palace was occupied by the Bhonsla 
 family, an accidental fire broke out, and the woodwork — being 
 saturated with the oil which had been during so many years 
 spread over and rubbed into it for ornament — burned like 
 tinder. Thus unluckily perished one of the finest chambers in 
 India, and the most characteristic structure ever raised by 
 Mahratta hands. In the environs of the city were orange 
 gardens, of which the black soil produced trees with matchless 
 fruit ; since the opening of the railway these oranges are exported 
 to distant parts of India. A square mass of black-coloured trap 
 rock formed the natural fortress of Sitabaldi overlooking the 
 city. In the neighbourhood were several tanks of great dimen- 
 sions, wherefrom water was conducted by massive pipes of 
 stone masonry with siphons ; these works constituted creditable 
 monuments of Mahratta skill. 
 
 The Mahratta nobles were pleasant companions on long rides 
 and in all field sports ; they were especially fond of the sport 
 which is to be had with the hunting cheeta ; and we used to ac- 
 company them occasionally. In the spring season, when the green 
 wheat crops were beginning to stand high, we would watch the 
 unsuspecting herd of deer feeding, as the cheeta sprang upon 
 them. Often we used to attend the Mahratta festivals when 
 in summer-time the plough bullocks were gaily caparisoned, 
 their flanks smeared with pigments and their horns decorated 
 
Chap. XI. THE TENURES OF LAND. 237 
 
 with tinsel ; or when in autumn the balconies were illuminated 
 and the tanks lit up with lamps arranged in rows on the 
 water's edge. 
 
 The settlement of the land-revenue was the first matter 
 claiming attention. Surveys of all the villages, field by field, 
 similar to those already described in chapters IV. and V., and 
 comprising topographical details, had been for some time in 
 progress. The revenue was assessed for long terms of twenty 
 to thirty years in the same manner as in northern India, but 
 relatively at somewhat lighter rates ; nowhere in India were the 
 landholders more contented with the assessment than here. 
 Questions indeed arose as to whether the assessment was not 
 being made too light, but it was maintained intact, on being 
 seen to operate favourably in regard to popular contentment. 
 The country was blessed with unfailing seasons, receiving the 
 early and latter rains in abundance. The neighbouring Satpura 
 mountains attracted and condensed the masses of vapour 
 coursing over the Deccan. Thus, the districts at their base 
 were among the very few Indian tracts which enjoyed immu- 
 nity from drought and famine. 
 
 After some discussion the tenure, already described as having 
 been established by the Mahrattas, was recognized and con- 
 firmed by this settlement. It differed from what was pro- 
 bably the original tenure of these Provinces, and certainly the 
 existing tenure in neighbouring Mahratta territories. As just 
 explained, the peasant proprietors had been here reduced from 
 their proprietary status by the Mahrattas, and landlords had 
 been placed in all the villages. But the landlords had been 
 established for some generations, and the peasantry did not for 
 the most part seek for or expect a position higher than that 
 of tenants. The tenure had thus become in essentials Zemin- 
 dari as in Bengal. Here, however, the estates, instead of being 
 as in Bengal large, were generally small, and so the tenures 
 might be described as petty Zemindari. It was usual for the 
 landlord to keep a few fields under his own management, a 
 sort of home farm near the dwelling-places, and to leave in 
 the hands of tenants the remaining fields of the village. Of 
 
238 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xt. 
 
 the landlords many resided on their estates, while some lived 
 apart, visiting their villages from time to time ; a few only 
 were absentees altogether. 
 
 Under these arrangements the question of tenant-right 
 became very important, especially as no such right had, in 
 these districts, been recognized under Mahratta rule. Not 
 indeed that the tenantry had been oppressed, because there 
 were hardly hands enough to cultivate the lands in a fertile 
 and sparsely peopled country, and thus a sort of competition 
 arose among landlords for tenants. Now, however, that pro- 
 prietary right, heritable, transferable, marketable, was being 
 conferred upon the landlords great and small, or rather recog- 
 nized formally as belonging to them, it was consonant with 
 Indian practice that tenant-right should be in the same degree 
 recognized and protected. In this matter the same principles 
 as those already described in chapters IV. and V. were 
 adopted. All tenants, who had been for some time in occupa- 
 tion of their fields, were registered as being entitled to have 
 their rents judicially fixed and to be free from liability to 
 ejectment so long as they paid that rent. Some classes of 
 tenants were after special enquiry placed in the position of 
 inferior proprietors. These provisions on behalf of tenant-right 
 were far advanced during the time when I was Chief Commis- 
 sioner. They were taken up again by my successor, Mr. (after- 
 wards Sir George) Campbell, and were rendered still more 
 favourable to the tenantry. 
 
 There was always much intercommunication between the 
 peasantry of Nagpur and their neighbours of Berar in the 
 Nizam's dominions. While Nagpur, under the management 
 of Sir Eichard Jenkins, was comparatively well administered, 
 Berar was harassed by misrule under the Nizam, so Berar culti- 
 vators migrated largely into Nagpur. Now, however, Berar had 
 come under British administration also, and was beinar settled 
 under conditions more favourable to the peasantry even than 
 those in Nagpur, for in effect the occupants were being made 
 peasant proprietors as no landlord class was found in existence. 
 Then Nagpur cultivators returned to their old fields in Berar, 
 
Chap. xi. THE CULTURE OF COTTON. 239 
 
 with that tenacious regard for ancestral lands which so often 
 characterizes an Indian peasantry. They found also much virgin 
 soil, of uncommon fertility, to be had under secure and satis- 
 factory tenures. This turn in the tide of migration back 
 towards Berar affected for a time the prosperity of Nagpur. 
 
 At tliis time the American Civil War caused an extraordi- 
 nary demand for the cotton of these Provinces. This staple was 
 produced both in the valley of the ISTerbadda and the plains 
 of Nagpur. The stimulus, thereby afforded to trade and enter- 
 prise generally, raised the prices of all agricultural produce. 
 This movement filled the pockets of all the landed classes, 
 and raised the wages of labour both skilled and unskilled, 
 while it distressed all those classes who were livimr on 
 fixed incomes. The numerous persons drawing small pen- 
 sions, the relics of Mahratta rule, were really straitened for 
 the necessaries of life, and used to complain that in the midst 
 of plenty and prosperity, food was being sold at famine prices. 
 This difficulty became mitigated when prices fell after the 
 slackening of demand in consequence of the restoration of 
 peace witliin the United States and the cessation of the com- 
 mercial disturbances caused by the war. 
 
 "WTiile food grains were dear in most districts, an extraordi- 
 nary cheapness prevailed in the eastern region called Chatis- 
 garh. There a populous and fertile plain, blessed with an un- 
 failing rainfall, was surrounded by hills and forests, whence the 
 surplus produce could not find an outlet. Formerly the local 
 markets were glutted with grain in excess of the local consump- 
 tion. Our hope was to open out communications by which this 
 grain might be conveyed to many places where it was sorely 
 needed. 
 
 In a new province like that of Nagpur the building of 
 churches was one of those matters wliich had to be undertaken 
 ab initio. Our first care was to finish the new church at 
 Nagpur itself, in time for it to be consecrated when the Bishop 
 should arrive. Dr. George Cotton, the Bishop of Calcutta, was 
 then on his tour of visitation, and his episcopal inspection was 
 awaited with much pleasurable interest. Nowhere do the ordi- 
 
240 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xr. 
 
 nances of religion exercise a more decisive effect upon the mind, 
 than in a remote land amidst alien circumstances. Besides the 
 comparatively large church at Nagpur, small chapels were in 
 course of erection at the civil stations in the interior of the 
 province where a few Europeans had been gathered together, 
 and Christian cemeteries were being enclosed in suitable places. 
 The founding of schools was in progress for the children of 
 middle-class Europeans and East Indians who were scattered 
 over the district ; one of these was called the Bishop's School 
 in memory of this visitation. Dr. Cotton's presence awakened 
 recollection of the days when I sat under him, as he was one 
 of the Masters at Kugby. He left a happy impression upon 
 the minds of the Christian community of Nagpur, and much 
 grief was felt by them when, a few months afterwards, the 
 intelligence was received of his sudden and accidental death. 
 
 One of the matters claiming early attention was education ; 
 accordingly a Director of Public Instruction was appointed for 
 the whole country. Captain (now Colonel) Dods, an accom- 
 plished officer of the Bombay service, was chosen for tliis post, 
 because we desired to introduce some new blood into the Pro- 
 vinces by employing men from western India. North of the 
 Satpura mountains, the vernacular taught in the schools was the 
 same as that of the North-western Provinces, and the upper 
 students worked towards the standard prescribed by the Cal- 
 cutta University. South of the Satpura mountains, the 
 Malu'atta language was for the most part used, and the upper 
 students aimed at fulfilling the requirements of the Bombay 
 University. 
 
 Besides the ordinary machinery of education, two large exhi- 
 bitions of art and industry were organized, one at Nagpur the 
 other at Jabalpur. To these great displays the Natives of all 
 classes high and humble flocked in tens of thousands. Before 
 their wondering gaze were shewn not only the products from 
 distant parts of their own country, but also specimens of the 
 manufactures in western lands. The ornamental work from 
 Europe would, it was fondly, perhaps vainly, supposed, inform 
 their minds with fresh ideas of the Beautiful, while the 
 
Chap. xr. STEPHEN HISLOP THE MISSIONARY. 241 
 
 machinery and implements might give them an impression of 
 powers and forces unknown before, and so fill them with 
 reflections regarding the Useful. The objects which we thus 
 set before ourselves were but imperfectly realized. The 
 exhibitions were wonders for a short time only, though it may 
 be hoped that some educational result was produced by all the 
 labour which we bestowed on their preparation. One effect at 
 least they had, namely this, that the civil officers and the mer- 
 chants gained a far more accurate knowledge than they would 
 otherwise have possessed regarding the resources and manufac- 
 tures of these remote provinces, and thus some stimulus was 
 given to trade. 
 
 At Nagpur the best schools then existing belonged to the 
 mission established many years previously by the Free Church 
 of Scotland, under the leadership of the Eeverend Stephen 
 Hislop. Indeed the mission establishment had been for many 
 years a little focus of enlightenment in an isolated and uncivi- 
 lized part of the empire. Hislop was among the most gifted 
 and accomplished missionaries whom this generation has seen in 
 India. Besides having much ability for organization and educa- 
 tion generally, for philology and antiquarian research, he had 
 a taste and aptitude for physical science — especially botany and 
 geology. His varied talents were all brought to bear on the work 
 of his sacred profession as an evangelist. He was a good teacher 
 and preacher in the Mahratta language, and haamuch knowledge 
 of Hindu philosophy. He also perceived that the aboriginal 
 tribes formed a not inconsiderable part of the population, and 
 were as yet free from any preconceived notions, having minds 
 quite open to the reception of Christianity, unless, owing to 
 tardiness in missionary work on the part of the Christian 
 Church, they should fall under the proselytizing influences of 
 Hinduism. He therefore specially studied the unwritten lan- 
 guages or dialects of these aboriginal tribes, collecting carefully 
 their ballads legends proverbs, and gathering information of 
 much value and originality. He acquired an insight into the 
 geology and botany of the province, as affecting the soil products 
 and climate. He had also a predilection for observing the pre- 
 
 R 
 
242 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 historic remains scattered about the country, and pertaining to 
 the so-called Scythian era before the coming of the Hindus to 
 India. It was this zeal for research that led to his sudden and 
 accidental death. He was staying with me in camp near Nag- 
 pur at the beginning of autumn, a season which is cool after 
 the rains and still showery. We had been during the "day exca- 
 vating some of these Scythian remains. In the evening I rode 
 back to my encampment, leaving him to follow on horseback 
 after arranging the curiosities which had been exhumed and 
 examining a village school. About nightfall I was shocked at 
 seeing his horse gallop into camp riderless, with a wet saddle 
 which had evidently passed through water. This directed our 
 instant search by torchlight to a neighbouring streamlet which had 
 just been flushed by a shower of rain ; and there his body was 
 found, life being extinct. He had evidently been drowned in 
 trying to cross the flood. This most lamentable accident 
 deprived Nagpur of a man who could ill be spared, who while 
 still in his prime had become a shining light, a power for good, 
 and who, had he lived, .would have become, under Providence, 
 an instrument of incalculable benefit to the people. It is sad to 
 think what holy aspirations, what lofty hopes, what bright pro- 
 mises, were buried in his grave. 
 
 The Gonds, as a tribe, deserve and will repay attentive care. 
 Originally leadi^ an arboreal life, they had their home in 
 the forests of the Satpura mountains. They felled trees for 
 their scanty clearances, and raised crops with the minimum of 
 cultivation upon bits of soil here and there among the valleys 
 and uplands. Battling with wild beasts, they became first 
 skilled marksmen or sturdy warriors with the spear and the 
 bow, and organized themselves under chiefs. Emboldened by 
 the success of their organization, they issued forth to the 
 lowlands which they could overlook from their mountains, 
 to the valley of the Nerbadda and the plains of Nagpur. 
 Their worship was primitive, while these lowlands were 
 occupied by a population of the Hindu faith. They thus esta- 
 blished a considerable dominion, divided into at least three, 
 perhaps four, principalities. They confined themselves mainly 
 
Chap. xi. THE GOND ABORIGINES. 243 
 
 to fighting or collecting revenue, and settled but little as 
 dwellers in the plains over -which they held sway. They 
 borrowed their civilization from their conquered subjects, and 
 on a lesser scale the liistory was repeated of " Grecia capta 
 ferum victorem cepit." It is probable that their dominion was 
 of some size, extending over three milKons of souls, though from 
 the magnitude of their ruined forts and palaces the enquirer 
 would infer that their jurisdiction must have been of still larger 
 extent. Their forts were built either in commanding situations 
 near the plains, or else right in the heart of the hills. Their 
 architecture had some characteristics of its own, but was mainly 
 an imitation of the Hindu Eajput style, the Mahrattas not having 
 then risen to fame. In building their palaces they equalled 
 the most advanced Hindus, and surpassed any Hindu structures 
 to be found within hundreds of miles. One of their ruined 
 palaces near Mandla in the upper valley of the Nerbadda may 
 indeed be placed in the first rank among the remains of that 
 class in India. As their rule became established in the 
 champaign country of Nagpur, they turned their minds to more 
 useful things, and began to construct works of irrigation, 
 selecting open valleys whence the drainage escaped by narrow 
 gorges — the valley being like a bottle of which the neck was 
 formed by the gorge. They stopped up the gorges by dams of 
 massive masonry, the valleys then filling with water and 
 becoming reservoirs, some five some ten some even twenty 
 miles in circumference, worthy to be called artificial lakes. 
 They must have employed Hindu builders, but still they com- 
 manded or controlled the operations, and may claim credit for 
 the results. Subsequently they became vassals of the Muham- 
 madan empire as it spread over central India, and some of their 
 chiefs adopted the Muhammadan faith. But their tribesmen in 
 the mass adhered to the primitive worship, though evincing a 
 tendency to adopt Hindu ideas and manners, and engraft some 
 Hindu tenets upon their rude religion. They succumbed to the 
 rising tide of Mahratta aggression about the middle of the 
 eighteenth century, and thus lost all hold upon the plains. As 
 they ceased to draw revenue from the champaign territory their 
 
 R 2 
 
244 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 forts and palaces fell into decay and ruin, though their works of 
 irrigation remained for the benefit of succeeding generations. 
 They then remained among their Native hills and forests, and 
 are still to be seen in considerable numbers, though widely 
 scattered. 
 
 Their national vice is intemperance, to which the humid and 
 chilly climate of their hills offers special temptations. It was 
 found that the then existing system of British excise on 
 spirituous liquors, though designed to tax the liquor and so to 
 check intemperance, was really confirming them in this evil 
 habit. The system was therefore revised so that the tax might 
 operate as an obstacle to their drinking in excess, by rendering 
 liquor dear and scarce for them. Some improvement was 
 wrought in their habits ; but drunkenness on social occasions, 
 marriages, festivals, and the like, continued to be the bane of 
 their life. Here as elsewhere, most of the crimes and offences 
 among brave, sturdy and truth-telling tribes were directly trace- 
 able to drink. 
 
 The forests, already mentioned, were very extensive and well 
 stocked with timber trees; being comparatively remote from 
 the centres of Mahratta rule, and from British public works, 
 they had for the most part escaped destruction. At this time 
 the Government had begun to act with some degree of vigour 
 and resolution, on the principle that forests ought to be pre- 
 served as forming a part of the national resources. A depart- 
 ment of forest conservancy was constituted for the Central 
 Provinces in common with all other provinces of the empire. 
 The first Conservator was Captain (now Colonel) Pearson, who 
 has recently been employed in the supervision of the English 
 students at the French school of forestry at Nancy. He was suc- 
 ceeded by Captain Porsyth, the author of a charming and graphic 
 volume entitled ' The Highlands of Central India.' These ofl&cers 
 and their European associates in the work, loved the forest 
 for the sake of its diversified vegetation and spreading trees, 
 with an affection transcending even official zeal. For them the 
 wildness the perennial novelty and the unfailing freshness of 
 camp life amidst the woods and dells, had a peculiar attraction. 
 
Chap. xi. THE WILD ANIMALS. 245 
 
 This charm sustained moral resolution and helped to support 
 even physical strength under the depression arising from that 
 malarious fever which lurks in the loveliest verdure, and from 
 wliich no European forester escapes. We then had the advan- 
 tage of a visit from Dr. Dietrich Brandis, already mentioned 
 in the last chapter as ha\dng been Conservator in British 
 Burma. He had become Inspector-General of Forests to the 
 Government of India, and it devolved upon him to travel about 
 and see whether the Government or Administration in each 
 province was duly giving effect to the system of forestry as 
 prescribed for the empire at large. 
 
 The chief enemies of the forester were the fires, partly acci- 
 dental but chiefly intentional. The system whereby the hill 
 people and aboriginal tribes burn the forest for the sake of its 
 fertilizing ashes, in order to save themselves the trouble of 
 tillage, is but too well known in many parts of India. No- 
 where was this pernicious practice more rife than in these 
 Provinces, for nowhere were the aborigines more numerous. 
 We could not interdict it altogether, for the inhabitants partly 
 lived by its means ; but we gradually checked it, and as an 
 alternative, some arable lands and even loans of money were 
 granted to the people in order that they might support them- 
 selves by rational methods of cultivation. 
 
 In the extensive forests there dwelt numbers of wild 
 animals, of which some were timid and harmless such as the 
 deer, while others were fierce and carnivorous such as the tiger. 
 The deer lived on the vegetation of the forest and the tiger 
 lived upon the deer. The tiger and his kindred panther and 
 leopard, however, found the deer difficult to catch, and were 
 doubtless glad to have another source of food supply, namely, 
 the cattle and other animals domesticated by man. The 
 peculiarity of the country was this, that tracts well populated, 
 highly cultivated, and abounding in cattle, were interspersed 
 among forests which furnished a home to the wila beasts. 
 Therefore at some seasons of the year the tiger had t(t subsist 
 on deer scantily and precariously ; at other seasons he fed more 
 easily and luxuriously on the cattle in the fields and near the 
 
246 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. . 
 
 homesteads. He thus not only laid a heavy tax on the property 
 of the village folk, but also inspired them with fear and anxiety 
 for their lives. Thus when such and such a village was infested 
 by a plague of tigers, its dwellings would gradually become 
 deserted and its fields left fallow unless the plague could be 
 stayed. The policy of the Government provided wisely that the 
 people should be without arms altogether or very slightly armed. 
 Thus the villagers had but little means of resisting their feline 
 enemy, and • very properly looked to the British sportsman, or 
 still more to the Government, to rid them of the pest. With 
 so many inducements offered in this way, the sporting tastes 
 of the resident English were much cultivated; and almost 
 every military officer, magistrate, revenue collector, or other 
 official, took part in field sports tending to the destruction of 
 wild animals. Among them were several men whose names 
 will be commemorated by the chroniclers of sport in the East. 
 The destruction thus effected, however, would not alone have 
 suificed, and the Government offered rewards graduated on 
 a scale proportionable to the mischief of which each kind of 
 animal was considered to be capable, so much for the destruc- 
 tion of a tiger, so much for that of a leopard, so much for that 
 of a wolf, and so on. Some of these animals occasionally 
 preyed upon man, and a " man-eater " soon acquired an infamy 
 which rendered his destruction necessary at the earliest possible 
 moment — so a greatly enhanced reward was set upon his head 
 by the Government schedule of rewards. " Man-eaters " were 
 as a rule intensely cunning and stealthy, but sometimes they 
 shewed audacity. For instance, one of them dashed into a 
 marriage procession and carried off his victim. A servant of 
 mine was seized on the line of march ; and again, a man was 
 killed thus in my encampment. 
 
 Native huntsmen called " Shikaris " had always existed 
 in these Provinces ; and this useful class set themselves 
 more systematically than ever to their business, deriving 
 good wages from it in the shape of rewards for animals 
 killed. So large was the number shewn in the returns of 
 the animals thus destroyed, that once the Government of 
 
Chap. xr. THE ROADS IN RUGGED TRACTS. 247 
 
 India expressed a hope that due precautions were taken for 
 attestation. The answer was that in every instance the 
 carcase or the head had been produced before a responsible 
 authority. Besides the professional huntsmen many individual 
 \illagers having obtained shooting licences from the magistrate, 
 and sometimes even the firearms, took to tiger-killing, not so 
 nuch from the love of sport, as from the hope of reward. The 
 expense incurred by Government for rewards was considerable, 
 lut was actually well laid out ; indeed without it, the pros- 
 perity of some parts of the country could hardly have been 
 maintained. 
 
 Among our hills a herd of wild elephants was roaming ; these 
 were the descendants of some elephants which had escaped 
 from the custody of the Commissariat. Deeming these animals 
 to be too valuable for ordinary sport, we employed a trained 
 establishment for their capture. They used to be surrounded 
 by fences gradually narrowing to a point towards which they 
 were driven by the beaters ; when thus hemmed in they would 
 be secured after a stout struggle. 
 
 In provinces wherein the most highly cultivated tracts 
 were separated from each other by intervening mountains, and 
 whereof the whole area was isolated by long distances from the 
 seaports and other centres of trade, roads and communications 
 became of the utmost importance. Eich districts were divided 
 from each other by intervening ranges of hills, and these ranges 
 had to be penetrated in every direction. The trunk line 
 between Nagpur and Jabalpur, which crossed the dorsal ridge 
 of the continent, is one of the many monuments of British 
 engineering. In many places lesser works were made to 
 suffice ; the object being to smooth the roughest parts of the 
 route so as to make them passable for wheeled traffic. The 
 local carts were curiously adapted for a rugged track, as their 
 wheels consisted of stone disks, wdiich could not be broken by 
 even the most violent jolting. These carts would bear severe 
 inequalities in the track, and were only stopped by such irregu- 
 larity in the ground as might be called precipitous. Thus 
 by a little engineering in a desperately steep place here and 
 
248 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 there, we were often able to throw open whole lines of com- 
 munication to the carts. As the roads improved from year to 
 year, so carts of civilized build, with wheels having spokes 
 tires and the like, came into use, and the stone disks went 
 out of fashion. 
 
 Meanwhile much of the traffic was carried by pack-bullocks 
 in thousands belonging to a gipsy tribe, commonly callei 
 Brinjaras. These people were once common throughout ths 
 empire, but their occupation has passed away with the intro- 
 duction of British roads or railways, and they have " marched into 
 darkness," disappearing as those people always do disappear 
 whose functions in the world have ceased. Their habits were 
 always nomadic, sometimes respectable and at other times 
 predatory. Though destitute of habitations, they carried their 
 " lares and penates " with them in rude but substantial com- 
 fort. It was most amusing to watch their encampments in 
 the heart of the mountains, with rocks and forests rising 
 around. A compact though extensive square was formed, the 
 inner compartment or centre being filled with women, children, 
 and the most valuable goods ; next the outer line consisted of 
 the cattle and bulky baggage, then outside of all a number of 
 men stayed keeping watch against wild beasts and robbers. 
 The watch-fires would after sun-down lighten the scene with 
 ruddy glare, breaking through the tliick misty air of the forest. 
 Sometimes these people looking upon us as the emissaries of 
 a new civilization would enquire what was to become of them 
 and their business when the roads and railways took up all 
 the traffic. We could only warn them against what they 
 probably thought the most obvious alternative, namely, plunder- 
 ing, and suggest that they must perforce seek the employment 
 which was so abundantly offering itself in the public works 
 and elsewhere; they did not, however, seem to relish the 
 inevitable. 
 
 As the Provinces lay further inland than any other portion of 
 the empire, their distance from the coast was the greatest draw- 
 back to their progress. Therefore the completion of the railways 
 then in progress was the primary desideratum. At this time 
 
CiiAP. XI. THE OPENING OF RAILWAYS. 249 
 
 there were no railways open, but shortly afterwards the line 
 from Allahabad to Bombay was completed which ran right 
 through the upper portion of the Provinces, and the line was 
 opened from Bombay to Nagpur which afforded communication 
 by rail to the lower portion. In some districts the railway 
 passed near the base of the Satpura range, and after heavy 
 rain the floods would descend with terrific force and often 
 destroy the viaducts. It was said that during a wild night 
 masonry piers would be snapped asunder as if they had been 
 sticks of sealing-wax. The engineers had to gain experience 
 and modify the designs, making greater allowance for the 
 velocity and volume of the waters. The repairing of damage, 
 restoration of broken bridges, modification of designs, and other 
 difficulties incidental to work of a novel character in a strange 
 country, caused considerable delay. Still the railway authorities 
 and the engineers evinced a perseverance worthy of the great 
 cause in hand. Thus at length the lines were completed, not in 
 a temporary style, but after a durable manner fitted to perma- 
 nently withstand the floods. 
 
 As the line was opened to each important place such as 
 Nagpur and Jabalpur, the occasion used to be celebrated with 
 festivities in which real joy mingled with the convivialities. For 
 the local residents rejoiced at being able to fly away for recreation 
 or in quest of health when sick, the engineers were light- 
 hearted at the remembrance of anxieties dissipated and toils 
 ended, the administrators were exhilarated by the thought of 
 material resources augmented and opportunities enlarged. 
 
 There was an additional railway project which we en- 
 deavoured to promote, namely, that for the line which should 
 run from Nagpur due east towards Calcutta, and should " tap," 
 as the phrase ran, the surplus produce of the Chatisgarh region 
 already described, which was overstocked with grain. After a 
 protracted discussion, this project was included in the system 
 of State railways, and was thus in due course undertaken. 
 
 In those days we were anxious to utilize for purposes of 
 communication the two great rivers, the Godavery and the 
 Mahanaddy, which run from these Provinces to the eastern coast, 
 
250 MEN" AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 that is, to the Bay of Bengal. As already mentioned in 
 chapter X., I had, while at Madras, heard much on this subject 
 from Sir Arthur Cotton. 
 
 The Godavery was generally navigable except at three points 
 where it crossed formations of rock. Obstruction to navigation 
 was caused by the rocks, which were therefore called barriers. 
 Tlie intention was by engineering operations to remove these 
 barriers, and so enable boats to pass up and down for hundreds 
 of miles. Operations were actually begun on the first of the 
 three barriers, and much progress was made towards the removal 
 of the rocky obstacles. But subsequently, in Lord Mayo's 
 time, the work was stopped, because the outlay was thought 
 too great in proportion to any result in boat traf&c which might 
 be reasonably anticipated. The opening of the railways to the 
 west coast diverted the interest which had been felt in com- 
 munications Mdth the east coast, and so an end was put to 
 this remarkable project, originated by Sir Arthur Cotton, 
 and carried on by one among the best men of his school, 
 Colonel Haig of the Madras Engineers. I protested, though 
 in vain, against the stoppage of this project, as the outlay 
 already incurred was rendered nearly valueless, because but 
 little use could be made of the incomplete works. If the 
 entire scheme for all the barriers was found too expensive, still 
 the first and second barriers might at least be opened at a 
 moderate cost in addition to the sums already spent, and this 
 with great advantage to the surrounding country. 
 
 Had the Godavery project succeeded, we intended to recom- 
 mend a similar scheme for the Mahanaddy, of which the cir- 
 cumstances are similar, that is to say, a fine river navigable for 
 the most part, but obstructed at certain points by rocky barriers. 
 
 Such schemes, if successfully executed, would develop and 
 civilize extensive regions which have a fine soil with an 
 abundance of natural resources, and which, though scantily 
 inhabited now, would become capable of sustaining a large 
 population hereafter. These regions are kept in a wild and semi- 
 barbarous state by their segregation and seclusion. Being to a 
 large extent abandoned to savagery, they are overgrown with 
 
Chap. xi. SCENERY OF THE RIVERS. 251 
 
 tangled brushwood as well as valuable forest. Malaria and fever 
 are rife, and the population is thus prevented from increasing. 
 This insalubrity would gradually disappear if, while the useful 
 forests were preserved, the jungle were to be cleared for culti- 
 vation. The condition of the country would be entirely altered 
 were the projects relating to the Godavery and Mahanaddy 
 duly executed. But these beneficent schemes must be considered 
 in reference to capital outlay and prospective returns. Since 
 those days, as the empire has advanced in prosperity, the 
 power of the Government has naturally been directed towards 
 regions which, though improvable, are already populous and 
 will rapidly repay improvement. This is so far well ; still it 
 is to be remembered that here exists a territory which is now 
 partially destitute of human habitation, but which has inherent 
 and spontaneous resources. This natural wealth may be in- 
 definitely developed by such public works as can be constructed 
 by Government, but by Government only. 
 
 In order to investigate these projects, I voyaged up and 
 down these rivers, taking due precautions against malaria, 
 though with all our care it was impossible to avoid fever. 
 The scenery of the great zone of jungle is in itself fine, 
 but becomes monotonous and depressing from its unvarying 
 extent. The spirits of the traveller gradually sink when he 
 moves along day by day and sees nothing from sunrise to sun- 
 set but forest, scrub, bushes, or tliick underwood, covering liill 
 and dale. The ascent of a hill scarcely affords a prospect, for 
 the view is obstructed by foliage or branches. The rocks pro- 
 duce some variety, but they, too, assume a melancholy aspect. 
 The clusters of huts and the rice plots seem like forlorn oases in 
 the wilderness. Sometimes indeed a wide clearance appears where 
 the hill people have been preparing the ground for seed-time 
 after their barbarous fashion by setting fire to the vegetation. 
 This variety, however, affords something the very reverse of 
 relief ; for to the eye of an administrator the blackened trunks, 
 charred branches, shrivelled leaves, and ground strewed waste- 
 fully with the ashes of valuable wood — make up a horrid 
 spectacle. He is, however, rudely awakened from reflec- 
 
252 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xi. 
 
 tions of this nature by the fact that the forest is still on fire. 
 Riding on he finds the smoke becoming thicker and thicker, and 
 the crackling louder than before, until, right and left, he per- 
 ceives the woods to be ablaze. Once during very hot weather 
 we were marching at night, and our way was for many miles 
 lighted fitfully by the burning forest, the flames spreading 
 as they listed among the dry grass and curling idly among the 
 vegetation. 
 
 A real variety to the scene was afforded whenever the great 
 river came in sight, for then the still waters caught the golden 
 colours of the eastern sky, the rapids made a merry noise 
 as they hurried along, the effect of the rocks was doubled 
 by the reflections, and teak trees, laden with their yellow 
 blossoms, hung over the margin of the stream. We were one 
 day on horseback, another day in boats ; and it was from the 
 midstream that the best views presented themselves. When 
 the river was winding through mountain gorges, the hillsides 
 widely parted would allow the water to broaden itself into a 
 small lake ; the voyager issuing from it by the river passage, 
 would turn a corner and find himself in a fresh lake, whence 
 he might enter another and yet another— each lake differing 
 from its neighbour. Certainly, both the Godavery and the 
 Mahanaddy for many miles of their respective courses have 
 what, according to the highest standard of judgment, would 
 be considered fine river-scenery. 
 
 As year after year glided by, while we were all engaged 
 in welding the administration of these diverse territories into a 
 homogeneous whole, the European officers, drawn as they were 
 from distant parts of the empire, were by degrees formed into a 
 school of their own for the Central Provinces. They thus took 
 a pride in their work, believing in the future of the country 
 and people under their charge. The judicial administration had 
 in the first instance the great advantage of being supervised by 
 Mr. (now Sir John) Strachey, who had already afforded proofs 
 of the high capacity which he has subsequently evinced. Much 
 valuable support was received from John Scarlett Campbell 
 (brother of Sir George Campbell), Mr., now Sir Eobert, 
 
Chap. xi. THE PRINCIPAL OFFICERS. 253 
 
 Egerton, who afterwards became Lieutenant-Governor of the 
 Panjab, and Mr. (now Sir Alfred) LyalL The Secretaries 
 rendered most valuable aid ; they were first Colonel Hector 
 Mackenzie, who possessed administrative experience gained in 
 the Panjab, and then Mr. Charles Bernard (a nephew of John 
 Lawrence), who has subsequently acted as Chief Commissioner 
 in British Burma and Assam. 
 
 Having served for four years in the Central Provinces, and 
 endeavoured to bring them up to the high-water mark, so 
 to speak, of Indian administration by adapting, as much as 
 possible, the experience of the more advanced and civilized 
 parts of the empire, I was appointed Eesident at Hyderabad. 
 The administration of these Provinces afterwards fell into the 
 very competent hands of Mr. John Henry Morris, who had for 
 some time supervised the operations of the land revenue 
 settlement. In our younger days he and I served together 
 in the settlement department of the Panjab and were brought 
 up in the same official school. He has for several years 
 retained his important charge, and perfected the adminis- 
 tration gradually and steadily, so that at the present time there 
 is probably no part of the empire better managed than the 
 Provinces under his care. 
 
254 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 CHAPTEE XII. 
 
 (1862-1866.) 
 SIR BARTLE FRERE AND WESTERN INDIA. 
 
 Beginning of Sir Bartle Frere's Government — Principal members of the 
 European community of Bombay — Of the Native community — Public 
 works— Railways — Native chiefs — Education — Legislative Council — Land 
 revenue settlement— Effect on Bombay of the American civil war — 
 Unwise speculation — Commercial failure — Native munificence — Public 
 buildings in Bombay — Instruction in Art — Dej^arture of Sir Bartle Frere 
 — Summary of his public character. 
 
 The Central Provinces, though forming an intermediate space 
 between the three Presidencies of Bengal Madras and Bombay, 
 are more closely connected with the Bombay Presidency than 
 with any other. Much of their external trade is with Bombay 
 and its dependencies ; many of their exports are despatched to 
 Bombay for shipment to foreign countries ; and through Bombay 
 they receive the imports of European goods which are sent 
 in return. In some of their districts, too, the Mahratta lan- 
 guage of Western India is current. During 1864 and 1865 the 
 railway from Bombay to Nagpur, the capital of the Central 
 Provinces, was being constructed ; Mahratta officials were being 
 selected in Bombay for service in the territory around Nagpur ; 
 comparisons were being instituted between the landed settle- 
 ments in progress in the Bombay Presidency and in the Nagpur 
 districts. These and other affairs caused me to visit Bombay 
 several times, and renew my familiar intercourse with Sir 
 Bartle Frere, who had been recently appointed Governor of 
 Bombay. 
 
 Sir Bartle Frere assumed the Governorship of Bombay with 
 extraordinary advantages, such as hardly any other Governor 
 
Chap. xii. SCENERY BETWEEN BOMBAY AND POONA. 255 
 
 has possessed during this century. As a young man he had 
 entered the Bombay Civil Service, and thoroughly served 
 an apprenticeship in the Mahratta districts, which constitute 
 the most important divisions of the Bombay Presidency. When 
 British Eesident at the Court of Sattara, he had become 
 versed in the ways of the Native States which form one of the 
 most interesting parts of western India. He had been for 
 several years Private Secretary to Sir George Arthur when 
 Governor of Bombay. He was appointed by Lord Falkland, 
 the then Governor, to be Commissioner in the province 
 of Sind. As Commissioner he set his mark upon that pro- 
 vince, applied its resources with remarkable zeal and energy to 
 help in suppressing disturbance in northern India during 1857, 
 and bequeathed to his successors a heritage of moral material 
 and administrative progress, when he was transferred to Cal- 
 cutta as a member of the Governor-General's Council in 1858. 
 The community erected in his memory a spacious hall and 
 library at Karachi, the capital of Sind. His past career there- 
 fore afforded a promise that he would prove one of the best 
 Governors that Bombay ever had, which promise he actually 
 fulfilled in many essential respects. 
 
 On the occasion of my first visit to him the journey from 
 Nagpur caused me to ascend the Bhore Ghat railway incline, 
 whereby the line rises from the coast region of Bombay to 
 the Deccan uplands, two thousand feet above sea-level. The 
 rainy season was at its height, and the greatest rainfall occurs 
 on the crest of the Western Ghat range. When we neared the 
 foot of the mountains the weather was hot and bright, the sun- 
 shine bursting through masses of white 'cloud. As we began 
 our ascent the clouds grew thicker, until they enveloped us in 
 mists wliich could be felt. Then as the altitude increased the 
 temperature fell ; and as the vapour condensed, rain came down, 
 not in drops, but sheets of w^ater. The forest-clad hillsides 
 trickled with countless rills ; every ravine became a roarino- 
 torrent bed ; the surface of the rocks exuded and their crevices 
 distilled moisture. Few objects, distant more than a few yards, 
 could be seen ; there was neither wind nor sound from the air. 
 
256 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 nothing was heard save the sounds of the fast-moving train, 
 and of water falling, pattering, dripping, rushing in every 
 direction. As we arrived near the crest of the range the clouds 
 gradually parted, like curtains being drawn back, and then was 
 disclosed a landscape which travellers at that season see 
 repeatedly, yet never tire of seeing. The trap-rock rose in 
 domes and towers piercing the sky ; the geological formations 
 ranged themselves in precipices like mighty walls. Over these 
 steep sides there tumbled numerous cascades, hundreds of feet 
 from top to bottom, so that the dark escarpment was marked 
 with lines of glittering white. All around us the forest and the 
 lesser vegetation had that luxuriance which is produced when 
 rainfall, measured not in inches but in feet, is followed by 
 sunlight shining strongly through a hot atmosphere. 
 
 By reason of several visits on official business connected 
 with the Central Provinces, I was able to observe the manner 
 in which Sir Bartle Frere was administering the Government 
 of Bombay. I also became acquainted with the principal 
 persons, European and Native, who were prominent in society 
 or influential in public affairs. 
 
 Sir William Mansfield (afterwards Lord Sandhurst) was then 
 Commander-in-Chief of the Bombay Army and ex-officio a 
 Member of the Governor's Council. He had served with much 
 efficiency as Chief of the Staff to Sir Colin Campbell, afterwards 
 Lord Clyde, during the war of the mutinies, and thus carried 
 great weight in all military affairs. His experience had not, 
 however, been confined to the army, for he had formerly obtained 
 diplomatic employment in Europe. Also he had from his 
 early years applied himself to all manner of questions con- 
 cerning currency, banking and general finance, for which he 
 possessed naturally an extraordinary aptitude. Indeed it was 
 understood that he had at one time deliberated on the expe- 
 diency of resigning the command of his regiment in order 
 to direct the management of a bank. Though much occupied 
 by his proper duties as Commander-in-Chief, he retained his 
 liking for economic studies. He also took a keen interest in 
 the commercial affairs of Bombay, which interest grew keener 
 
Chap. xii. JOHN WILSON, SCOTCH MISSIONARY. 257 
 
 as these affairs were forced by the urgency of events into 
 sharper and yet sharper prominence. 
 
 Amoncr the other members of the Governor's Council, 
 Mr. Ellis (now Sir Barrow Ellis) was eminent. He had served 
 with much success under Sir Bartle Frere in Sind, and was 
 a great support to his old chief He thoroughly understood 
 the affairs of the Presidency in each and all of its parts ; 
 and his opinion carried weight both in official and non- 
 official circles. His ability in the public service was all 
 the more useful in that he was a very popular member of 
 society. 
 
 Outside the Government circle, the most influential person 
 was the Eeverend John Wilson, D.D., missionary of the Free 
 Church of Scotland. He was to Bombay what Alexander 
 Duff had been to Calcutta, and worked on the same lines, 
 namely, those of giving Christian instruction to the more 
 intelligent Natives of the capital, and affording high educa- 
 tion as a means of paving the way for the reception of religious 
 truth. The Free Church Institution at Bombay under his 
 guidance became one of the best colleges in the country, and 
 sent up yearly many successful students to the University. 
 He was afterwards appointed by Government to be Vice- 
 Chancellor of the Bombay University; and this is the only 
 instance of a missionary being nominated to that dignity. He 
 was an effective speaker, but had not such a gift of eloquence 
 as that which distinguished Alexander Duff. In scholarly ac- 
 quirements he was superior to Duff; his work upon Hindu castes 
 is a monument of learning judiciously applied to a subject of 
 practical importance. He studied especially the religion of 
 the Parsis, a class becoming very important in Bombay. He 
 analyzed the doctrines of Zoroaster in order to shew that they 
 were defective, and that there must be truths above or beyond 
 them. He was one of the principal supporters of the Bombay 
 branch of the Eoyal Asiatic Society ; and was always among 
 the foremost in respect of every good work which could be 
 promoted by persuasive speaking or writing. For many years 
 he exercised a moral power at Bombay equally great whether in 
 
 S 
 
258 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 European or Native society ; and his death left a blank wliich 
 has not yet been filled up by time. 
 
 Dr. Murray Mitchell, also belonging to the Free Church 
 mission, was a missionary of much fervour ability and influence. 
 He subsequently held a position of importance in the Institution 
 at Calcutta, and having thus been in contact with the intellectual 
 Natives in both the west and east of India, possesses probably a 
 wider experience than any of liis fellow-labourers. 
 
 Iii the European section of the mercantile community the 
 two foremost men were Michael Scott and John Fleming. 
 They became involved in misfortune afterwards, but at that 
 time their influence was considerable. During the period of 
 speculation which soon followed, Michael Scott's action, though 
 undertaken at the moment with the best intentions, did indirectly 
 stimulate the excitement then springing up in the public mind. 
 The errors committed by a man of such enterprising talent 
 and of so high a character, should serve as a warning to 
 those whose lot it may be to guide commercial opinion during 
 future crises. Fleming's conduct at that time was steady and 
 cautious, and he was regarded as a breakwater by which the 
 floods of speculation might be stemmed. So highly was he 
 esteemed that he had the honour of being appointed a Com- 
 panion of the Order of the Star of India. His subsequent mis- 
 fortunes should not cause his services rendered at this time to 
 be forgotten. 
 
 Among the Natives engaged in trade, two men were par- 
 ticularly distinguished, one a Parsi, the other a Hindu. The 
 Parsi was Eustamji, son of the Jamsetji Jijibhoy who received 
 a Baronetcy, being the first Native of India upon whom that 
 dignity had been bestowed. The Parsis of Bombay are famed 
 for skill, energy and enterprise in commercial affairs and for 
 munificent benevolence in the disposal of their wealth. Among 
 them Eustamji was placed in the first rank ; and his social 
 position afforded liim additional opportunity of employing 
 adequately his means of doing good. But he became involved 
 in the commercial speculations of this time, though his honour 
 was not compromised he lost the status previously enjoyed by 
 
Chap. xii. CHARACTER OF THE PRINCIPAL NATIVES. 259 
 
 him, and of the many failures which occurred none caused more 
 regret than his. The Hindu was Premchand Roychand, an ex- 
 perienced manager of the money market, with a genius and a 
 passion for that particular business. His bark rode on the crest 
 of the wave, and he was the acknowledged leader among the 
 knot of speculators from whom many financial associations had 
 their origin. He and his friends had capital, resources, ex- 
 perience, and there was some method in their proceedings ; they 
 understood the business, and their intentions may have been 
 quite legitimate. But his example had an exciting effect upon 
 hundreds who had but little means and were predisposed to 
 imprudent speculation. Doubtless he did not intend to produce 
 any injurious effect upon his countrymen ; . but it often becomes 
 impossible for a man to moderate influences once set in motion 
 by him.j He acquired vast nominal wealth, though none could 
 say whether it was realizable : and he fell for a time, though 
 he partially recovered himself. During his prosperity he strove 
 to make the best use of his money, and gave several of the 
 noblest benefactions for the service of education and of charity 
 that have ever been given by a Native of India. For these his 
 name will be remembered in future generations when the 
 troubles of 1864^5 are forgotten. 
 
 There were many other Native gentlemen conspicuous for good 
 works or for talents and accomplishments. Among these was 
 Jaganath Shankarset, a man of general culture and social 
 influence, all which he devoted to the cause of education. 
 Mangaldas Nathubai made a fortune in trade, and being a well- 
 educated man, acquired a large knowledge of the country, the 
 results of wliich he would communicate with more frankness 
 than is usual, often uttering homely criticism on British policy. 
 Vishwanath Narain Mandlik, a Brahmin of the Concan, was an 
 eminent member of the Native bar, probably surpassing his 
 contemporaries in sagacity of discernment and solidity of judg- 
 ment. He held enlightened views regarding education and had 
 a large knowledge of public affairs. Cowasji Jehangir, again, 
 was a rich Parsi and kept his fortune unimpaired in essentials ; 
 he perhaps did more for charity and for the public good in 
 
 s 2 
 
260 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xn. 
 
 various ways than any of his contemporaries, though in culture 
 he may have been hardly equal to some of those already 
 mentioned. There was much public satisfaction when he 
 received the honour of knighthood. Bhao Daji was a man 
 belonging to a different class of society, and his fame had 
 reference to learning. He had that passion for antiquarian 
 research which though not unknown among the Natives is yet 
 comparatively rare with them, and is more generally found 
 among studious Europeans. He not only studied the classical 
 languages of his country, but also visited the antique remains 
 and strove to read the lessons which they present to succeeding 
 generations. Further his knowledge extended to some branches 
 of science, and on the whole he was the most eminent Native 
 intellectually of that time in western India. 
 
 It is remarkable that while the Mahratta Brahmins were 
 chiefly observable in politics and administration, the men most 
 prominent in works of public usefulness were either Parsis or else 
 Gujeratis belonging to the Jain religion and to the commercial 
 profession. 
 
 Prominent among those possessing original character was 
 David Sassoon, a Jew. His native place was Bagdad, but his 
 family had left Turkish Arabia many years previously and were 
 naturalized in Bombay. He amassed a large fortune in trade, 
 and his firm became one of the wealthiest in British India. At 
 this time he was bestowing a munificent gift on the foundation 
 of a hospital and dispensary at Poona for Europeans and Natives. 
 When laying the foundation stone Sir Bartle Frere addressed him 
 in suitable terms, to which he replied by reading a short address 
 in Arabic. He was then advanced in years, and his grave coun- 
 tenance, commanding figure, rich turban and flowing robes, made 
 up a picture worth beholding. His family have subsequently 
 won much esteem in Bombay for works of public usefulness, 
 and set a good example by building synagogues and schools for 
 their own people. His eldest son became Sir Albert Sassoon, 
 and is now residing in England. 
 
 The man whom Frere himself would probably have chosen as 
 the most truly noteworthy character of that aera, was Karsundas 
 
Chap. xii. VIRTUES OF A REAL HINDU REFORMER. 261 
 
 Mulji, a member of the Bhattia tribe of traders. Among these 
 was a sect whose tenets, under cover of devotion to its priests, 
 styled Maharajas, caused the foulest and meanest immorality to 
 be practised. Karsundas exposed this fell plague-spot before 
 the public, with a persistency and moral courage which can be 
 fully appreciated only by those who know what moral coercion 
 and social torments can in a Hindu community be brought to 
 bear upon a recalcitrant individual. The wrath of the priests 
 and their followers culminated in an action for libel against 
 Karsundas in the High Court of Bombay in 1862, when 
 neither expense nor trouble was spared, as regards legal advice 
 and array of evidence, in order to crush him. He met his 
 formidable accusers quite undaunted, and pleaded as his justi- 
 fication the truth of his allegations. His counsel was the well- 
 known Chisholm Anstey, and after a protracted trial, the deci- 
 sion was pronounced entirely in his favour by the Judge, Sir 
 Joseph Arnould. Indeed he was declared, by one of the most 
 remarkable judgments ever delivered from the bench of the 
 High Court, to be not only blameless in his proceedings but 
 also a public benefactor. His writings in vindication of 
 domestic morality, against furtive invasion by detestable doc- 
 trines, redound not only to his honour but also to that of his 
 race, as proving that conscience asserts her sway even among 
 those who have been nurtured under corrupt influences, and 
 that the eternal principles of right shed their rays even amidst 
 degrading associations. Despite the triumphs and successes, 
 which to a man of his mental constitution must have been the 
 dearest imaginable — he remained unselfish and unassuming to 
 the end of his life, which was probably shortened by the agi- 
 tation of controversy. He was one of the most virtuous men 
 that the Hindu nation ever produced, and few Native characters 
 would better repay exact study than his. However hateful may 
 be the details of the immorality which he bravely combated, 
 his career forms an episode deserving the best attention of 
 moralists and reformers. 
 
 Another marked figure in Native society was a Persian, Aga 
 Khan, the chief of the veritable and lineal descendants of tlie 
 
262 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xn. 
 
 band of assassins who owned allegiance to the famous Old Man 
 of the Mountain in the middle ages. He derived a large 
 income from the offerings of liis sect, the Khojas, who were 
 among the most enterprising and wealthy traders in western 
 India. His early life was spent in the Persian province of 
 Kerman, where he once raised a rebellion ; afterwards he raised 
 and commanded a body of irregular horse on the British side at 
 Candahar during the first Afghan war ; next he rendered service 
 to the British in the conquest of Sind. Subsequently certain 
 disputes regarding the income derived by him from the Khojas 
 formed the subject of serious litigation in the High Court of 
 Bombay, and the Judge, Sir Joseph Arnould, decided in his 
 favour. Thenceforward he dwelt in western India as a private 
 gentleman, after having run a romantic and adventurous career. 
 But while externally devoting himself to sport, especially horse- 
 racing, and keeping some of the best blood of Arabia in his 
 stables, he kept his eye upon every move on the political chess- 
 board of Central Asia, and loyally exerted on the British side 
 his influence over wddely extended communities. 
 
 In short the Bombay Presidency was teeming with active and 
 spirited men of all sorts, both European and Native, so that 
 Sir Bartle Frere may well have felt himself to be at the head 
 of a community which he was proud to lead. 
 
 Underneath a gentle and composed demeanour Frere had an 
 ever- welling spring of enthusiasm. Just then also western 
 India, that is, the Bombay Presidency, was bursting into new 
 life ; for in that year (1862) the civil war in America was 
 beginning. The blockade of the ports in the Southern States 
 was cutting short the cotton supply of England, and that was 
 affecting the exportation of cotton from Bombay. Then whatever 
 concerned Bombay would act powerfully on western India. 
 If the Government were to march with the good time, it must 
 improve the communications ; so Frere immediately turned his 
 thoughts towards the roads. Ptoad-making in western India 
 was more than ordinarily difficult, for behind the Bombay city 
 at a distance of forty miles there rises the range of the Western 
 Ghat mountains stretching from north to south for hundreds 
 
Chap. xii. RAILWAYS IN HILLY REGIONS. 263 
 
 of miles, and throwing out long spurs, or subsidiary lines of 
 'nill in every direction. How Frere contrived to obtain from 
 the Government of India the grants of money necessary for 
 all the engineering operations then undertaken on the roads, 
 may indeed excite wonder ; but his Government commanded the 
 confidence of the then Governor-General, Lord Elgin, and the 
 means were found. The operations were not confined to large 
 vorks, for material improvements of all sorts, great and small, 
 vere forwarded in every district throughout the country. 
 
 The principal engineers were Europeans, but soon the want 
 of Native assistants and subordinates began to be felt. So the 
 College of civil engineering at Poona was developed; young 
 ISTatives of some education were attracted to its class-rooms, 
 a building of handsome and suitable dimensions was erected 
 for :t, and workshops were attached to the institution. 
 
 -As might be expected, Erere took the most lively interest in 
 the progress of railways within his jurisdiction. The line from 
 Bombay to Madras was nearly completed, but the line from 
 Bombay ascending the Western Ghat mountains on the way 
 towards Calcutta, and that from Bombay passing up the coast 
 of Guzerat towards Kajputana, were in full progress. These 
 lines were being constructed by Guaranteed Companies under 
 the general control of the provincial Government. Thus 
 Erere's influence in promoting progress was strongly felt ; his 
 hope being that portions at least of the lines might be opened 
 soon enough to carry the traffic which was likely to arise in 
 consequence of the rising tide of trade. 
 
 The railways from Bombay to Madras and Calcutta ascend 
 the Western Ghat mountains to a height of 2000 feet above 
 sea-level at two places known as the Bhore Ghat and the 
 Thall Ghat. The Bhore Ghat Incline, with which the name 
 of the engineer James Berkley is most honourably associated, 
 had just been completed, Erere having with due official ceremony 
 declared it open for traffic. But the works of the Thall Ghat 
 Incline were in full progress, and involved great engineering 
 difficulties. The railway had to pass through an insalubrious 
 and malarious forest, which spread itself along the base of the 
 
264 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xn. 
 
 mountains. Here the European engineers engaged in the sur- 
 veys and designs were often struck down by fever, but despite 
 this they were full of zeal for the progress of the line. The 
 admiring interest which men take in a project of this nature 
 seems always to sustain them in their labours and distresses, 
 the imagination adding moral force to physical energy. 
 Many engineers suffered permanently in health, and some few 
 lost their lives in the discharge of their duty. The railway from 
 Bombay running northwards to Guzerat was being constructed; 
 it passed through a flat country, but had to encounter difficulties 
 worse even than those presented by mountains. For it must 
 cross near the mouths of several rivers, all liable to inundations 
 rising rapidly, and rushing with an accelerated speed conse- 
 quent on the proximity of mountains. When the torrents of 
 rain on the hill-tops are remembered, the accumulatior of 
 drainage in the valleys beneath can be understood. The 
 scouring of the water, too, tears up the alluvial soil of the river- 
 bed, rendering it difficult to establish foundations for the piers 
 of the viaducts. The piers were being founded with piles 
 driven deep into the ground and fixed there by screws. The 
 structures, though looking very strong, as they really vere, 
 yet had a light and airy appearance which made them highly 
 picturesque. The viaduct then being raised across the Ner- 
 badda opposite Broach had an imposing appearance. The 
 Nerbadda, however, scorned the earlier attempts to span her 
 broad current, and uprooted the screw-piles. The enginsers, 
 nothing daunted, drove stronger piles still deeper into the 
 ground, but the river again extirpated the structure. It was 
 only after a third trial that this river was safely bridged, if 
 even now the viaduct can be deemed permanently secure. On 
 this railway the names of French and Mathew were always 
 mentioned with praise on account of efforts directed with 
 enthusiasm and yet with skill and judgment. 
 
 Besides communications, many other public works claimed 
 attention. There, as elsewhere in India, the housing and 
 lodging of the additional European troops retained after the 
 war of the mutinies had to be reconsidered. The result 
 
Chap. xii. NATIVE ARISTOCRACY OF THE DECCAN. 265 
 
 was that most of the old barracks were condemned, and the 
 construction of many new barracks was begun. There were 
 also numerous structures undertaken for civil purposes, and 
 of these buildings some will be mentioned presently. 
 
 From his antecedents and by the political situations which 
 he had held, Frere was well fitted to deal successfully with the 
 Native States and Chiefs of the Deccan. Indeed he was more 
 highly qualified in that respect than any Governor since the 
 days of Mountstuart Elphinstone. This great territorial class, 
 comprising many members of different ranks, from the head of 
 a considerable principality to the petty chieftain with a few 
 acres, has not yet been, and perhaps never will be, in a satisfac- 
 tory condition. The lesser nobility still look back wistfully 
 towards the departed splendour of Mahratta rule. As a man of 
 this class rides over the Deccan and thinks of all that his 
 ancestors enjoyed there, contrasting it with the narrow oppor- 
 tunities of the present, he begins to 
 
 " Feel like one who treads alone 
 Some banquet hall deserted, 
 Whose lights are fled, whose glories dead." 
 
 Such moody reflections, over decay wliich cannot be arrested 
 must lead to discontent. But even in the Native States of the 
 South ]\iahratta country wliich are well preserved, the embers of 
 trouble are always smouldering. Still some good can be done 
 among them all by a popular Governor, and that was thorouglily 
 effected by Frere. They fully recognized the kindKness of liis 
 dealings and the benevolence of his aims. On his departure 
 they presented to Mm an address, which without any flattery, 
 or any attempt to ascribe to the British Government merits 
 which could hardly be evinced under the circumstances, exactly 
 stated the measures which he had taken or striven to take for 
 their benefit. They specially adverted to his efforts to provide 
 suitable instruction for their sons, and as a memorial of liim 
 they endowed twenty scholarships in an institution established 
 for the education of young Native noblemen. 
 
 Education was a subject in which Frere took a liberal and 
 
266 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 enlightened interest. Some administrators have thought that, 
 for the Government at least, primary education is the most 
 important object, and that high education may be left to private 
 effort. This may, indeed, prove to be true ultimately, and at 
 all events such is the goal to which our policy ought to be 
 directed. But in the first instance it was important that the 
 Government should take the initiative with high education. 
 Without such initiative the Natives had neither the means 
 nor the inclination to begin the movement. The establishment 
 of high education was essential in order to set up a moral 
 and intellectual standard among the people, and supply 
 means for conducting the secondary and primary education. 
 Those who deprecate the maintenance of colleges and high 
 schools by Government, seem hardly to remember that, without 
 such institutions, there would not be the means of training 
 masters for the village schools. Moreover, one legitimate 
 object of State education is to prepare Natives for the public 
 service in its various grades and branches. Now Frere under- 
 stood that, in the earlier stages at least, the Government must 
 support all kinds of education alike, whether superior or middle- 
 class or primary. He was ex-officio Chancellor of the Uni- 
 versity of Bombay, and delivered at its convocations several 
 addresses framed with much care. He strove to develop the 
 colleges affiliated to it ; and next after them the middle-class 
 schools. But being well acquainted with the peasantry, he ap- 
 preciated the importance of primary education, and in his time 
 much was done to establish the village schools, so that they 
 might diffuse knowledge among the agricultural classes which 
 form the backbone of the population. He doubtless hoped 
 that as the settlements had secured a proprietary title to the 
 peasants with the land-tax moderately fixed for long terms of 
 years, the sense of status prosperity and security would excite 
 a desire for elementary knowledge. There, as elsewhere in 
 India, this hope has either been disappointed or its realization 
 is seen to be but very gradual. 
 
 A decided impulse was given at this time to female educa- 
 tion, both among the higher and humbler classes of the Native 
 
Chap. xii. THE BOMBAY LEGISLATURE. 267 
 
 community. The Parsis had always taken a more liberal 
 and enlightened view of this important subject, and shaken 
 themselves free of any prejudice which may have ever existed 
 among them. Mr. Manockji Cursetji, a Parsi gentleman who 
 had travelled in Europe and seen much of society there, was a 
 leader in this good cause; and the ladies of his family by 
 culture and learning set an excellent example. Some Hindus 
 followed this example cautiously and tentatively, and so the 
 movement spread. Lady Prere herself afforded hearty en- 
 couragement, and by much graceful ministration won her way 
 to the hearts of many Native families as a power for good. 
 Miss Prere evinced sympathy mth her Asiatic sisters by collect- 
 ing the popular legends current in southern India and presenting 
 them to the public in an English garb under the title of ' Old 
 Deccan Days.' 
 
 Shortly before Prere's arrival, the several local legislatures 
 had been constituted, and Bombay thus had a Legislative 
 Council of its own, the members being limited in number, and 
 consisting of Europeans and Natives, official and non-official. 
 He presided regularly at the sittings, took part largely in the 
 deliberations, and strove to inspire it with high ideas of its uses 
 and functions. He also caused a handsome building to be 
 erected for its accommodation. He was careful in selectin!:^ as 
 its members Native gentlemen of social and territorial rank, of 
 liberal views, or of signal acquirements, who should be good 
 representatives of the best elements in the community. The 
 personal history of the men, whose unpaid services he thus 
 secured, would illustrate the moral forces which were then per- 
 vading Native society. 
 
 The term of years, for which the land revenue had been 
 assessed, was expiring, and a revised assessment was being 
 made. To this matter Prere devoted much attention, and 
 deeming that the rules and regulations upon so important a 
 matter should rest on something more than executive authority, 
 he caused them all to be embodied in one comprehensive law, 
 which was passed by his Legislative Council and is now the 
 charter of the land settlement. The work of the assessment 
 
268 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 proceeded very happily and successfully in the hands of many 
 able men under the supervision of Colonel Francis and Colonel 
 W. C. Anderson, both very experienced officers, whose names 
 will long be remembered in that part of the country. The 
 seasons were propitious for some years in a region which 
 ordinarily is somewhat liable to visitations of drought. The 
 prices of agricultural produce were remunerative to the 
 peasantry as producers. The labour market was brisk in conse- 
 quence of the employment afforded by the public works then in 
 progress, the roads, the buildings, and especially the railways. 
 The population had within the last generation grown considera- 
 bly ; the cultivation had been increasing for many years, and 
 was then approaching its utmost limit. All lands which would 
 repay culture were being cultivated, and even some lands, 
 hardly worth cultivating, were brought under the plough. 
 Under these circumstances, although the rates of assessment 
 were judiciously kept low, the revenue increased spontaneously 
 by reason of the expanding cultivation and the improvement of 
 the crops. Frere was naturally pleased by all this success, and 
 the fame of the Bombay settlements grew apace. 
 
 The prevailing tenure was that known as " Eyot-wari," which 
 there meant the status of peasant proprietors. With these 
 " Eyot " proprietors the land revenue was assessed for thirty 
 years, and within that term they were to have the benefit of 
 their own improvements, and of the " unearned increment " 
 from any rise in the value of their produce. 
 
 They very soon found the value of their produce rising to a 
 height beyond any expectations they could have formed. For 
 the American Civil War, as it lasted from month to month, 
 wrought its full effect upon India by causing an unexampled 
 exportation of cotton. The produce of all the great cotton-fields 
 of India, Nagpur, Berar, Guzerat, the South Mahratta country, 
 found its way to Bombay in order to be exported to England, 
 with all possible despatch while the high prices ruled and 
 the blockade of the South American ports lasted. So sudden 
 was the demand, so high the range of price, so vast the 
 profits, that an economic disturbance set in. Money seemed 
 
Chap. xii. EXTRAORDINARY EXPORTATION OF COTTON. 269 
 
 to lose its purchasing power, the prices of almost all articles 
 rose simultaneously, and the wages of labour were enhanced in 
 proportion. In some places, despite good harvests, the food 
 grains were sold at rates so dear as almost to be tantamount to 
 famine prices, and yet the people seemed to thrive, doubtless 
 because of their prosperity in other ways. The peasant pro- 
 prietors were foremost in the race of temporary prosperity ; and 
 made use of their collateral advantages. They engaged largely 
 in the carrying business, employing their carts and draught 
 cattle for that purpose. They gained good wages on the public 
 works at every season when they were not busy in their fields. 
 Then it was that the popular saying told how the tires of their 
 cart-wheels were made of silver instead of iron, and that their 
 bullocks also were being shod with the precious metal. 
 
 Tliis sunsliine was, as might have been anticipated, too bright 
 to last; after blazing for a time it was succeeded by some 
 chilling reverses ; and during its continuance the peasantry 
 acquired some habits of extravagance which they rued in after 
 years. 
 
 The effect upon the city of Bombay, and all the vast interests 
 connected with it, was still more electrical. An enormous quan- 
 tity of cotton having been exported within two years at unpre- 
 cedentedly high prices, great fortunes were rapidly made by 
 many firms and individuals. Thus money was saved and 
 accumulated much faster than safe or reasonable investments 
 for it could be found. Then all sorts of unsafe and unreason- 
 able investments began to be invented. The economic history 
 of most commercial countries has shewn that when money in 
 vast quantities seeks for, and fails to find, sound investments 
 it will be wasted. The wastage takes the form of unwise or 
 insane speculation. It was to such speculation that Bombay 
 fell a victim at this time. Instances of a like kind are to be 
 found in the annals of almost every commercial centre in the 
 world, and a strong example was furnished by all that now 
 occurred at Bombay. Financial associations formed for various 
 purposes sprung up like mushrooms ; companies expanded 
 with an inflation as that of bubbles ; projects blossomed 
 
270 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xn. 
 
 only to decay. Not only were baseless schemes put forth, 
 but also schemes, which originally had a sound foundation, 
 were pushed forward so imprudently that they ended in 
 becoming unsound and involving in loss or ruin those who were 
 concerned in them. The case of the Back Bay Reclamation 
 Company afforded a striking case. This was a scheme for 
 reclaiming a large quantity of land from the sea ; it proved 
 ultimately to be in excess of the local needs, still in its incep- 
 tion it was so well framed that the Government had shares in 
 it. This was before any economic disturbance had been antici- 
 pated. But under the circumstances of the time, the Bombay 
 Government judiciously decided to dispose of its shares in 
 order to become free from the project. The shares, on being 
 sold by auction, brought extraordinarily high prices, and the 
 sale-proceeds were straightway invested by the Company in a 
 new bank which had lately been founded and which lasted 
 for two years till the general crash came. The shares of the 
 Company rose extraordinarily in value ; and for some time the 
 owner of a single " Back Bay " share was deemed fortunate. 
 But the sums, paid in open market for these shares, were so 
 high that no conceivable returns from the works could afford to 
 the holders interest on the money they were thus paying. This 
 being so, the ultimate holders must be losers. Even summary 
 calculation shewed this, nevertheless the public buying and 
 selling of the shares went on. The collapse was only a question 
 of time, and when it occurred the loss and distress were wide- 
 spread. A portion of the project had been carried out and 
 much land reclaimed ; the remaining works were stopped. Over 
 the land thus reclaimed there runs now a railway and a road 
 generally crowded with vehicles. Those who pass by little 
 reflect, perhaps, that they are really riding or driving over the 
 wreck of many fortunes. 
 
 One reclamation company held its ground throughout the 
 crisis, namely, "the Elphinstone," formed for reclaiming land 
 along the foreshore of the harbour. Its property was afterwards 
 transferred to Government, and has since been developed into a 
 Port Trust. 
 
Chap. xn. RAPID ACCUMULATION OF WEALTH AT BOMBAY. 271 
 
 Of the enterprises then undertaken, some were well founded 
 and honourably carried out. But many of the new schemes 
 suddenly launched and floated, proved to be nothing more than 
 the fabrics of a vision. The minds of men were confused, their 
 judgment blinded, their senses dazzled. The impetuosity of the 
 hour would hardly be imagined by any save those who have 
 witnessed such scenes there or elsewhere. The Europeans, 
 accustomed to lead in all good ways, took but too often the 
 leadership of this folly also. The Natives proved to be very 
 apt followers, and once having given their thoughts to specu- 
 lation, they became greater adepts in it than the Europeans. 
 Numbers of them regarded speculating in the shares of these 
 companies as a means of liveliliood. Wlien the day of retribu- 
 tion came they were often frank in their professions of repent- 
 ance. One of them said to me : " What madness it was that 
 we should want to win land at an enormous cost from the sea 
 in front of us, when we had plenty of land in the continent 
 behind us." 
 
 Nevertheless a mass of real wealth, to be reckoned by many 
 millions sterling, had been poured into the lap of Bombay, 
 already a wealthy place. This was quite enough to justify 
 a large expansion of legitimate enterprise. Had the prosperity 
 come by degrees, all might have gone well ; but the suddenness 
 of its accession upset the balance of judgment in the minds of 
 men. Still, despite all the errors which were committed, the 
 fabric of general prosperity would have been maintained if 
 the exportation of cotton in vast quantities at a high price 
 had continued. There was no doubt that it would endure 
 while the American civil war lasted; but it was thought 
 likely to continue even after the termination of the war, 
 whether victory should be with the North or with the South. 
 In either case the institution of slavery was doomed, without 
 which it was believed the cultivation of cotton in the Southern 
 States could not be kept up. This belief has, indeed, proved to 
 be quite erroneous, but there was much apparent reason for it 
 at the time. On the other hand, it was thought that Bombay 
 had obtained a firm hold on the cotton trade with England. 
 
272 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 A belief gained ground to the effect that this hold could not be 
 shaken, and that Indian cottons would never be displaced from 
 their recent vantage ground in the English markets. It was 
 not indeed forgotten that England wanted the long staple 
 cotton, which America could produce and India could not. 
 Efforts had indeed been made with some success, under the 
 auspices of Sir Bartle Erere's Government, to produce long 
 staple cotton in parts of western India, still the mass of the 
 recent exports of cotton had been of the short staple, which 
 was accepted in England for want of anything better. Mani- 
 festly, then, if the long staple cotton should again be produced 
 it must displace the Indian short staple. But it was antici- 
 pated that on the abolition of slavery the production of long 
 staple cotton in the Southern States would cease, and that the 
 Indian cottons would retain their position. The short staple 
 cotton would not suit the English machinery; but that 
 machinery would, it was supposed, have to be modified and 
 adapted to the new staple. These ideas have been dissipated 
 by subsequent experience, still many people besides the Bombay 
 men believed that England, no longer depending on the 
 Southern States for cotton, would have to seek her supplies in 
 other countries. In Manchester itself the " Cotton Supply 
 Association " was formed, and soon had its correspondents in 
 Bombay. 
 
 Thus during the height of the speculation, those who reflected 
 at all on the commercial prospect, found reasonable ground for 
 anticipating a continuance of prosperity. But it is to be feared 
 that many, in the excitement of the hour, failed to exercise any 
 careful thought. 
 
 While Bombay for a while lay in sack-cloth, the public was 
 but too ready to point its finger. Calcutta, it was said, proved 
 wiser, avoiding these quick-sands or discountenancing specula- 
 tion. The Bank of Bengal, too, being well managed, was a rock 
 immovable, instead of falling like the Bombay bank together 
 with the general ruin. The fact is that Calcutta, not being a 
 great port for cotton, never was subjected to the same tempta- 
 tion as Bombay. It is true, however, that even if speculation 
 
Chap. xii. A SEVERE DEPRESSION FOLLOWS. 273 
 
 had set in, the Bank of Bengal would in truth have proved a 
 safeguard. Nevertheless at Calcutta an affair had arisen, com- 
 parable in respect of sanguine enterprise with some of the 
 affairs which occurred at Bombay. The project was to found 
 on the Matla river a second capital, at first to be the handmaid 
 but ultimately the rival of Calcutta ; the Hughli was spurned 
 as a river which had seen its day, and would be replaced by 
 the Matla. A company was formed, under the undoubtedly 
 able auspices of Mr. Ferdinand Scliiller, a German gentleman 
 and member of a mercantile firm at Calcutta. The Government 
 encouraged the plan, a short line of railway was made to the 
 place, which was named Port Canning after the Governor- 
 General. But the scheme, though conceived with much talent, 
 was much in advance of any want really felt by the country, 
 therefore after a very few years the proceedings collapsed, 
 the establishments were discharged and the disused railway 
 broken up. 
 
 When in the spring of 1865 the long-protracted resistance of 
 the Southern States collapsed with startling rapidity, the 
 blockade ended and a mass of American cotton entered the 
 English markets. Then the price of the Bombay cotton fell 
 fast, property in produce estimated at many millions sterling 
 declined in a few weeks to less than half that value. The 
 enterprises, which had been founded on the expectation that 
 this value would be sustained, began crumbling to pieces. I 
 passed through Bombay on my way to England in the spring of 
 1865, and saw the depression beginning to be felt. Returning 
 to India in the following autumn, I again passed through 
 Bombay, and found the city in the very throes of trouble, her 
 leading merchants ruined, many of her old-established firms in 
 peril, her banking corporations in liquidation, her enterprises 
 suspended. Never had I witnessed in any place a ruin so 
 widely distributed, nor such distress following so quickly on the 
 heels of such prosperity. 
 
 The Native merchants were as important as, and much more 
 numerous than, the Europeans, and upon both alike had 
 swift retribution descended. As is usual in disastrous times, 
 
 T 
 
274 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 recrimination and mutual reproach were rife, and accusations of 
 mercantile misconduct were bandied about. Happily the 
 instances of misbehaviour on the part of Europeans, or on the 
 part of Natives of rank or status, were rare. But many- 
 Natives of lesser education and position were drawn into the 
 vortex of the speculation which verges upon gambling and leads 
 to paths heaped with temptations to questionable actions. 
 Soon the courts of justice became overloaded with cases in 
 which misguided Natives were figuring as defendants. At 
 this time, a temporary vacancy occurring in the bench of 
 the High Court, Sir Bartle Frere appointed the well-known 
 Mr. Chisholm Anstey, then a prominent member of the Bombay 
 Bar, to fill the post. Anstey passed severe orders in the 
 numerous cases of mercantile misconduct wherein Natives 
 were concerned ; and frequently made stringent comments 
 on the manner in which morality had in his opinion been 
 sacrificed. The Native community took umbrage at these pro- 
 ceedings, and memorialized Sir Bartle Frere, praying that Anstey, 
 after the expiration of the time for which he had temporarily 
 been appointed, might not be reappointed to the bench. Frere, 
 however, believing that Anstey was striving to do his judicial 
 duty in circumstances which required a severe example, vin- 
 dicated the proceedings which had been taken, and gave the 
 moral weight of his authority in support of the judge. 
 
 Amidst the crash of companies, firms and individuals, all 
 ruined, the failure of the Bank of Bombay was announced. The 
 Government held shares in this bank and had directors 
 sitting at the board of management; there also the public 
 funds needed for current expenses were deposited. The rule 
 in this bank, as in the other banks in India with which the 
 Government was connected, had been that advances should not 
 be made on any securities except those of the Government. 
 But unfortunately by some recent legislation on a renewal of 
 the Bank's charter, some provisions had been inserted whereby 
 the Bank was empowered to make advances on certain kinds of 
 securities other than those of the Government. In virtue of this 
 power the Bank had made advances to companies during the 
 
Chap. xii. FRERE'S INFLUENCE WITH THE NATIVES. 275 
 
 time of prosperity, on the security of their shares, to such an 
 extent that when the companies became insolvent amidst the 
 general ruin, the Bank also failed. This failure was noticed 
 with sharp animadversion by the public, and especially by those 
 who had become shareholders in the Bank on the faith of its 
 being supervised by the Government. Indignation rose high 
 against the Government Director (since deceased) who, as 
 financial adviser of the Government in this matter, was 
 specially bound to see that the Bank steered clear of the 
 threatening shoals. It was felt also that the Government itself 
 could not be exempted from responsibility for not having more 
 effectually watched and corrected the conduct of the Directors. 
 Subsequently this grave affair became the subject of discussion 
 in Parliament, and was investigated by a Commission which sat 
 in England. 
 
 During the season of prosperity, many native gentlemen, 
 having made much money, desired to give out of their abun- 
 dance large contributions towards objects of public usefulness 
 and charity. Sir Bartle Frere was ready and earnest to en- 
 courage them in such munificence ; indeed there never was a 
 Governor endowed with greater aptitude than he for inspiring 
 Natives with feelings of generosity and ambition for doing 
 good in their generation. More hospitals, schools and other 
 public institutions were founded by private benevolence at 
 that time than at any other before or since. Ceremonial 
 meetings were often held to commemorate the founding or 
 the opening of these institutions. Frere was most willing to 
 accept invitations to attend on these occasions, and to deliver 
 speeches of the kind which the Natives ever love to hear from 
 the mouths of their rulers. His utterances, proceeding from 
 long and intimate knowledge of the Natives, were judiciously 
 calculated to develop the best parts of their character, 
 stimulate all their noblest sentiments, and raise their ideas 
 to the highest attainable standard. He appealed skilfully to 
 the noblest promptings of their nature, and while touching with 
 a gentle finger all the faults in their conduct kept their up- 
 lifted gaze turned towards the highest standard attainable. 
 
 T 2 
 
270 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 The addresses delivered by him on many occasions have 
 since been collected and republished by a Native, Bal- 
 krishna Pitale, and form a volume interesting to the Indian 
 student. Prosperity, Frere would tell the Natives, carries with 
 it infinite responsibilities, and should be signalized by charitable 
 efforts. I remember hearing him warn them that many ob- 
 servers apprehended a speedy decline of prosperity in Bombay, 
 but be the prosperity short-lived or permanent, he urged them 
 to make good use of it during its continuance, and reminded 
 them that the best of all possible uses was the provision of 
 resources for good works. He desired that the accession of 
 wealth should be made memorable by deeds done for the bene- 
 fit of posterity ; and certainly that time is well remembered for 
 the sake of the many charities then instituted. 
 
 The old European fort of Bombay was standing in those days, 
 and within its walls was the populous British settlement 
 founded two centuries previously; a broad plain separated 
 this town within fortifications from the great Native city. 
 As lands for building purposes were very much needed 
 and would command a high price, a project was formed 
 for throwing down the walls of the fort, taking up a portion 
 of the plain, and making allotments of ground available for 
 building. Sir Bartle Frere took up this project with his 
 accustomed zeal, and obtained large sums in purchase-money 
 from those who bid for the allotments. The means thus acquired, 
 together with grants from the Government, were collected and 
 formed into a Special Fund for the construction of public offices 
 and buildings for Bombay. The formation and management of 
 this Fund caused much correspondence with the Government 
 of India ; but the scheme held good, and was duly carried into 
 effect. Previously these buildings had been found unsuitable 
 for the growing needs of a capital city, being cramped in space, 
 badly situated and imperfectly ventilated ; they were erected at 
 a time when civilization was but little advanced in the settle- 
 ments of the East India Company, and when architectural taste 
 was almost unknown in British India. The opportunity was to 
 be taken of giving Bombay a series of structures worthy of her 
 wealth her populousness and her geographical situation. The 
 
Chap. xii. PUBLIC STRUCTURES AT BOMBAY. 277 
 
 designs were to be of the highest character architecturally, there- 
 fore architects were obtained from England to frame them elabo- 
 rately, and due thought was given to artistic effect. The 
 operations were planned deliberately, and well begun while 
 Frere was still in Bombay. Their completion has been arranged 
 by his successors very much on the lines which he had laid down. 
 They comprise the Government Secretariat, the University 
 Library, the Convocation Hall, the High Court, the Electric 
 Telegraph Department, the Post Office, all in one grand 
 line facing the sea. Other Buildings in a similar style were 
 built in other parts of the city, such as the Elphinstone 
 College, the Victoria Museum, the Elphinstone High School, 
 the School of Art, the Goculdass Hospital, the Sailors' Home, 
 and others. Eew cities in the world can shew a finer series of 
 structures ; and those who admire the buildings after a lapse of 
 fifteen years from the beginning of the work, may well be 
 reminded that it is to Sir Bartle Frere that Bombay owes the 
 origination and inception of this comprehensive project. It 
 would be a mistake to attribute too much to individual 
 Governors, for when work is demanded by the spirit of the age 
 it will be done in some shape or other, whoever may be in power. 
 But in justice it must be said that Frere deserves the lion's 
 share in the credit of this undertaking, and that without him 
 the work would never have reached that magnitude which is 
 now beheld by all English spectators with a feeling of national 
 pride. 
 
 No less remarkable was the advance of municipal improve- 
 ment in the city of Bombay under Sir Bartle Frere's adminis- 
 tration. The artificial lake, wherefrom water is conducted for 
 the use of the urban population, was constructed under his 
 predecessors. But it was under him that many new streets 
 were opened out or metalled, and the magnificent markets 
 constructed. These are called "the Crawford markets," after 
 Arthur Crawford of the Civil Service, the Municipal Commis- 
 sioner, who had a genius for works of this nature, who effected 
 so many external improvements that it would be difficult to 
 enumerate them all, and who kft his beneficent mark on the 
 face of this great city. 
 
278 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xii. 
 
 In many departments of progress, Sir Bartle Frere found a 
 worthy coadjutor in Dr. (now Sir George) Birdwood of the 
 Medical Service, an officer of scientific literary and artistic 
 culture. As registrar of the University, as Director of the 
 Victoria Museum and Gardens, as a prominent member of the 
 Bombay branch of the Eoyal Asiatic Society, and in several 
 other capacities, Birdwood displayed an enthusiasm which 
 aroused a responsive sentiment among the Natives. Having 
 made them feel that he sincerely cared for their welfare as a 
 friend, he then, as an instructor, guided their intellects in the 
 ways of European science, and towards those principles which 
 belong to true art, whether in Europe or in Asia. They 
 lamented his departure from Bombay as the loss of one among 
 their heartiest well-wishers. 
 
 Besides Bombay almost all other towns and stations, in 
 the interior of the Presidency, witnessed the erection of public 
 structures in good architectural style,. It may almost be said, 
 indeed, that architecture for civil buildings, in western India, 
 dates from Frere's time. At Poona especially the many fine 
 buildings, the Government House, the Deccan College, the 
 Civil Engineering College, the Sassoon Hospital, the Legis- 
 lative Council House, were designed and built in his time, 
 though some of them may have been completed under his 
 successors. 
 
 About the same time a School of Art was founded at Bombay 
 for Native students, which bears the name of Sir Jamsetji 
 Jijibhoy, its munificent benefactor. It was not meant that 
 European instruction should suppress the ideas of indigenous 
 art in the minds of the Native students. On the contrary, 
 the many sound principles, which pervade the ancient art 
 of India, were to be affectionately and reverently preserved. 
 But it was thought that European instruction could shew 
 the Native youth many things not found in their own art, 
 respecting both form and colour, could teach them at least, 
 how to draw from nature correctly and artistically, and 
 could at all events make sure that the beauties of the works, 
 produced in olden times, should be duly observed by the 
 present generation. Competent instructors were employed ; 
 
Chap. xii. SUMMARY OF FRERE'S PUBLIC CHARACTER. 279 
 
 and the class-rooms became filled. The students were made to 
 sketch not only objects modelled in the European style, but 
 also the finest portions of the antique- ruins. 
 
 I was not present to witness Sir Bartle Frere's departure from 
 Bombay, but the occasion was often mentioned in after years 
 by Europeans and Natives, who recounted how troops of 
 friends from all nationalities crowded the place of embarka- 
 tion, how kind messages and utterances innumerable greeted 
 the departing ruler. 
 
 In respect to principles of policy, much resemblance will be 
 observed between Bartle Frere and James Thomason, whose 
 character has been described in chapter III. Both adminis- 
 trators set before themselves certain cardinal objects to be 
 pursued with perseverance, namely, the perfecting of the land 
 revenue settlements, the promotion of public works, the instruc- 
 tion of the Natives in civil engineering, and the advancement of 
 education generally. Both felt enthusiasm for the cause of 
 general improvement, and were hopeful regarding the character 
 of the people and its future development. Both were men of 
 much culture in all general knowledge relating to the East. 
 There were also points of dissimilarity between them, or rather 
 several matters in which the one excelled more particularly 
 than the other. Thomason was superior to Erere in the 
 systematizing of public business and the management of fiscal 
 details ; he did the most for primary education, for irrigation by 
 canals, and for tenant-right. Erere on the other hand was 
 superior to Thomason in' dealing with the chiefs and upper 
 classes among the Natives, and in promoting high education ; it 
 was only in Sind that he had an opportunity of supporting 
 tenant-right, or promoting irrigation on a large scale. 
 Thomason was not tried in times of public peril or in emer- 
 gencies of war and politics^ and it is impossible to tell how far 
 he would have succeeded in such spheres of duty. But experi- 
 ence proved that Erere was eminently fitted to cope with 
 critical danger — the greater the emergency the higher did 
 his spirit soar — and he would rise to the height of each occasion 
 with a moral courage tempered like the finest steel. 
 
280 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cuap. xiii. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 (1867-1868.) 
 THE INDIAN FOREIGN SECRETARYSHIP. 
 
 The political or diplomatic department of the Indian service — The dominions 
 of the Nizam — The British Eesident at his court — Character of the Nizam 
 — Salar Jang his Minister — The Arab chiefs and troops — The Nizam's 
 army — The finances of his government — The interior of his country — Life 
 at his capital — The province of Berar — Project of a railway — My departure 
 from Hyderabad — Visit to Madras — I take charge of the Indian Foreign 
 Secretaryship — Affairs of Afghanistan — Eminent Native princes in India- 
 Native statesmen and administrators. 
 
 The political or diplomatic department has always been a 
 separate branch of the Indian administration ; and the term 
 " Political " is its technical or official designation. It is 
 engaged in conducting the relations of the Indian Government 
 with the Native States, of which most are within the borders of 
 British India, while some lie on those borders or even beyond. 
 It is also concerned in the international affairs between India 
 and the other Asiatic countries. For these duties a separate 
 body of European officers is organized and trained, of whom 
 most are drawn from the Staff Corps of the army, and some 
 from the Civil Service. The work, however, being very exten- 
 sive and varied, is not entirely performed by them. Portions 
 of it are often entrusted to high civil functionaries in addition 
 to their other duties. Indeed there is scarcely any civil ad- 
 ministrator on a large scale who has not some diplomatic or 
 political functions attached to his office. Each of the several 
 provincial Governments has some political work of its own to 
 perform, and under the Bombay Government this work is very 
 considerable. For all the larger Native States, and for Asiatic 
 countries beyond Indian limits, the political business is under 
 
Chap. xiii. DIPLOMATIC POST AT THE NIZAM'S COURT. 281 
 
 the direct management of the Government of India, that is, the 
 Governor-General in Council. For the transaction of this busi- 
 ness there is, and always has been, in the secretariat of the 
 Government of India, a separate secretary, whose official desig- 
 nation is that of " Foreign Secretary." One section of his work 
 is external, and truly foreign, concerning countries outside India. 
 Another part is, in a strict sense, internal, relating to Native 
 States inside India, which are under the control, though 
 not the direct administration, of the Indian Government. 
 Much of prestige interest and popularity amongst the public 
 service, has always attached to the Political Department, and 
 the Foreign Secretaryship is regarded as the choicest post in the 
 Indian secretariat. 
 
 When an offer of the Foreign Secretaryship came to me from 
 the Governor-General, I was Kesident at Hyderabad, or in 
 official language British Resident at the Court of His Highness 
 the Mzam of the Deccan. This post of Resident at Hyderabad is 
 the highest of the political or diplomatic appointments under the 
 Government of India. When it was offered to me, I was Cliief 
 Commissioner of the Central Provinces, as already explained in 
 chapter XI., and felt some reluctance in moving to Hyderabad. 
 But the then Resident, Sir George Yule, was being promoted to 
 a seat in the Governor-General's Council, and at that moment 
 one of the periodical crises between the Nizam and his 
 Minister was going on, therefore in the event of any trouble 
 arising the new Resident would have important duties to dis- 
 charge. So I quitted the Central Provinces, with hearty regret 
 for the people among whom I had worked so hard, but with 
 happy anticipations of a career in pastures new. Having served 
 some time at Hyderabad, and learnt to regard the Residentship 
 as the pleasantest appointment that could be found, I was 
 to undergo another change, this time to a still higher post in 
 the same line. So I departed from Hyderabad, sorry to part 
 from those left behind, but hopeful regarding all that might be 
 before me. 
 
 As the Residentship of Hyderabad may be considered to 
 constitute a preparation for the Foreign Secretaryship, and as 
 
282 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 it furnishes the best example of the diplomatic and political 
 duties which fall to the lot of British officers in India, I will 
 here attempt some description of its surroundings as they then 
 were. 
 
 The dominions of the Nizam, including Berar, comprise an 
 area of 80,000 square miles with a population of nine millions, 
 and are diversified in an extraordinary degree, as regards 
 geology, products, race and language. They are surrounded by 
 British territories, the Madras Presidency lying on the south 
 and east of them, the Bombay Presidency on the west, and the 
 Central Provinces on the north. In one part of them there are 
 trap-rock formations, rich black soil and cotton cultivation; 
 in another granite rocks, light soil and rice fields. In 
 some tracts the laterite formations affect the soil and the 
 cultivation. Many tracts are destitute of artificial irrigation ; 
 in the eastern quarter, however, full use is made of natural 
 advantages, after the manner already described in chapter XI., 
 to form artificial lakes as reservoirs for small canals. The 
 facilities presented by nature in this region for the construc- 
 tion of such reservoirs are greater than in any other part of 
 India. These tanks, or, as they should often be designated, 
 lakes, are common in several provinces or districts of the 
 empire, but nowhere are they so numerous as here ; and one 
 of them is the largest of its kind in the empire. They are 
 memorials of the early Hindu kings of the Telugu race whom 
 the Muhammadans displaced. A lake of this description is 
 always picturesque, because hills hollows ravines and torrent 
 beds are essential to its successful construction. Above and 
 around it there will be rocks woods and lairs of wild beasts, 
 and below it the irrigated fields with their rich crops. 
 
 The Nizam's subjects are in the mass Hindus, speaking in 
 the north and west the Mahratta language, in the east and 
 south the Telugu, and in the south-west the Canarese. The 
 Nizam and his nobles are Muhammadan, so also is a large part 
 of his army ; but the Muhammadans dwell in the Deccan as 
 rulers priests landlords soldiers, and have not any hold upon 
 the land as agriculturists. 
 
Chap. xiii. POSITION AND FUNCTIONS OF THE RESIDENT. 283 
 
 The position of the British Resident was in those days very- 
 influential, but necessarily undefined ; it has during recent 
 years been rendered more directly potential by reason of the 
 Nizam being a minor. At that time, however, there was a real 
 Nizam of the old school on the throne, very tenacious, indeed not 
 unreasonably jealous, of his position in relation to that of the 
 Resident. During the early days and the political struggles of 
 the East India Company, the Nizam was in treaties regarded 
 as an ally or an equal, and though he soon became its 
 dependant, still the form or style of equality was preserved. 
 
 His obligation to govern his territories according to the 
 advice of the Resident was quite vague or slight, nevertheless 
 in practice it had come into real existence. Formally he was 
 not bound to seek the counsel of the Resident, but practically 
 he was, because his predecessors had allowed the State to drift 
 into violent disorders from which extrication was impossible 
 without British assistance. Nothing but British power, repre- 
 sented by armed force, prevented Ms State from being torn to 
 pieces by factions, and saved him from becoming a prisoner in 
 his palace to his own guards. Thus although the Resident had 
 not, either in the wording of treaties or the terms of his 
 credentials, any declared right of interfering, yet he was the 
 Atlas on whose shoulders rested the government of the State. 
 He must interpose when actual disturbance threatened ; then 
 indeed his aid would probably be invoked. Otherwise he would 
 as much as possible avoid the semblance of interfering ; and 
 leave the Native Government to manage for itself without being 
 weakened by over-much supervision, on the understanding always 
 that it must keep the general course of affairs tolerably straight. 
 
 One portion of the Nizam's dominions, namely Berar, was, 
 as has already been mentioned in chapter VI., under British 
 administration according to treaty. For this territory the 
 Resident represented the local government, subject to the 
 general control of the Governor-General in Council. Though 
 regulating under British authority the income and expenses of 
 this territory, he presented periodically to the Nizam a state- 
 ment of its finances, giving up to His Highness any surplus 
 
284 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 revenue which might be left, and in my time a considerable 
 sum was thus paid. He also managed, quite independently 
 of the NLzam, all affairs relating to the Hyderabad Contingent, 
 a force which the British Government was bound by treaty 
 to maintain for the preservation of order in His Highness's 
 dominions. If the services of these troops should in any case 
 be required, he was to be the judge as to whether they might 
 be employed or not. Formerly they were frequently engaged 
 thus, but in my time the policy of the Nizam's government 
 was to maintain order with its own troops and avoid the 
 necessity of applying to the Eesident for the services of the 
 Contingent. The Nizam's Minister naturally took pride in the 
 improvement of affairs, whereby he was enabled to answer for 
 order without in every instance seeking British aid. 
 
 The Eesidency is the house in which the Eesident resides 
 ofiicially ; it was built half a century ago by the Nizam, for 
 the accommodation of the British representative, on a liberal 
 and handsome scale, and in a fine architectural style accord- 
 ing to European notions. Though not appearing to be adapted 
 for defence, it is to some extent defensible, and its enclosure 
 is surrounded by a strong wall, with small bastions on that 
 side wliich faces towards the city. This moderate amount 
 of fortification is necessary, as may be proved by the fact that 
 during the time of public danger in 1857, consequent on the war 
 of the mutinies, an infuriated mob rushed towards the Eesidency 
 to destroy every person and thing there. Salar Jang, the 
 Minister, though unable to restrain them, contrived to send 
 timely intelligence to the Eesident, Colonel Davidson, of their 
 approach. So they were received with cannon-shot and musketry 
 from the bastions of the Eesidency enclosure. They pressed on 
 however with much resolution, and were repulsed, but only 
 after some loss of life. The Eesident had indeed been prepared 
 long beforehand, and the attack had no chance of success ; had 
 it succeeded, however, the moral effect on the surrounding 
 country would have been disastrous. 
 
 On my arrival at Hyderabad in April 1867, Sir George 
 Yule informed me fully regarding the differences which had 
 
Chap. xin. VISIT TO THE NIZAM'S PALACE. 285 
 
 arisen between the Nizam and his Minister, Sir Salar Jang. 
 It had been feared that they would lead to the Minister's 
 resignation, and on such an event grave troubles in the 
 Nizam's dominions were likely to ensue. But the Nizam 
 had conferred with the chief among his nobles, who advised 
 him to retain the services of his indispensable Minister. 
 My first official business was to transmit to His Highness a 
 letter from the Governor-General giving firm but friendly 
 monition on the same subject. His Highness being hedged 
 round with ceremonies, the essence of which was delay, some 
 days elapsed before I was allowed to wait upon him. 
 
 The visit of the Eesident to the Nizam used to be made an 
 occasion of pomp and circumstance. Our procession inside 
 the city was formed with elephants, and it proceeded through 
 streets lined with His Highness's troops. We then saw in the 
 cavalcade the insignia and ornaments of which poets have read, 
 — " The feathers of the egret in the turbans, the costly armour 
 " of the cavaliers, the gilt pine-apples on the tops of the palan- 
 " quins, the embroidered trappings of the elephants bearing on 
 " their backs small turrets in the shape of antique temples." 
 Approaching the heart of the city we passed underneath the 
 great gateway with the four towers, a structure unique of 
 its kind in India. Then we had on our right hand the 
 Nizam's mosque, built on the model of the great mosque at 
 Mecca, and presenting an architectural style quite different 
 from that of the Indian Muhammadans. On our way we 
 glanced at the marble tombs of successive Nizams within its 
 consecrated enclosure. So far we saw sights worthy of the 
 renown of Hyderabad, but on entering the Nizam's palace we 
 were surprised by the plainness of its style, than which 
 indeed nothing could be more common-place. It consisted of 
 a cluster of modern houses, built mainly in the European 
 fashion, without the least attempt at architectural design. The 
 cause is this that originally, in the days of the Mogul empire, the 
 Nizam was technically considered to be encamped in the 
 Deccan and not established in any permanent palace. His suc- 
 cessors cling still to that tradition and never erect any palatial 
 
286 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 structures. All the way from the Eesidency to the Nizam's 
 summer-house, for it could not be called palace, the eager-gazing 
 multitude were kept back by the troops, as a matter of real 
 precaution. On one of these occasions in my predecessor's 
 time, shots had been heard almost within the precincts of the 
 Nizam's dwelling ; and were fired in the street on another occa- 
 sion shortly after my departure from Hyderabad. The crowd, 
 however, could be seen quite Avell by us from our raised seats 
 on the elephants, and certainly it excelled in pictorial effect 
 even the proverbially picturesque crowds of India. For in 
 addition to the ordinary Oriental dress and paraphernalia the 
 men wore arms and accoutrements obtained from distant parts 
 of Asia. Among them some looked cheerful and contented, 
 some being retainers of the Minister seemed positively friendly, 
 some were scowling fanatics, some were smooth-faced villains 
 who at that moment appeared smiling and joyous, but had only 
 the other day committed outrages under the very walls of the 
 city when they heard that the Minister's fall from power would 
 relax the bonds of order. 
 
 The Nizam received us with a demeanour not haughty perhaps, 
 but calm, almost impassible, as if to imply that he dwelt on 
 serene altitudes and we were creatures struggling with mun- 
 dane affairs ; so that we hesitated to break the ice of ceremony. 
 The Minister Salar Jang accompanied us, and was made to 
 feel thoroughly subdued in the presence of His Highness ; the 
 term " presence " was to his ear an awe-inspiring sound, and 
 for him his master had a quiet look of ineffable hauteur. After 
 a chilling pause, the conversation began in the Hindustani lan- 
 guage, and touched upon inevitable topics such as the health of 
 the Governor-General, the season and the like. Then in order 
 to say something especially civil and polite I congratulated His 
 Highness on the order and good government patent everywhere 
 in his dominions. He replied, in a tone of slight displeasure, 
 that as there had during past times been good government 
 in his dominions so there was still. Herein he was manifestly in 
 error, for formerly there had been much misrule. He had how- 
 ever interpreted my compliment to be an indirect recommenda- 
 
Chap. xiii. CHARACTER OF THE NIZAM. 287 
 
 tion of his Minister and his susceptibility was aroused. This 
 incident prepared me for finding him sensitively jealous in 
 everything that concerned Salar Jang. 
 
 The Nizam afforded an example of the effect which the 
 enervating conditions of India produced in the course of a few 
 generations upon the conquering tribes that came from Central 
 Asia. A Muhammadan of the best Mogul blood, and born of a 
 stock which had sent forth men of courage, capacity and perse- 
 verance, he had never learnt even the rudiments of govern- 
 ment, had received but slight education, and was not actually 
 competent for conducting any important business. He had a 
 tall and massive figure, a handsome countenance, and the dark- 
 blue eye characteristic of his race. In his youth he had been 
 trained to some manly sports and pursuits ; but he had long led 
 a secluded life in his palace and gardens, associating chiefly with 
 humble dependants. His health had been enfeebled and his con- 
 stitution impaired by his own imprudence. He was addicted to 
 superstition, and soothsayers or astrologers had power over his 
 impressionable mind. If there was any idea in politics on which 
 his thoughts fixed themselves it was this, that whatever thing 
 had novelty must be evil, and that any so-called reform which 
 the British Eesident might suggest should be regarded with 
 circumspection. He desired if possible to keep his people 
 aloof from all European notions, social as well as political. 
 Such notions might act upon their minds, he would say, as a 
 whirligig and cause their thoughts to spin round and round. 
 For all that, he was loyal to the British Government which 
 he felt to be his sole support. Only he wished that it would 
 leave him to his own devices, and never interfere save to throw 
 its segis over him if he were threatened with insurrection, or to 
 rescue him from his financial difficulties, should they prove other- 
 wise insurmountable. He had some power of humorous sarcasm ; 
 though ordinarily apathetic, he had an " unbounded stomach," 
 and was quickly susceptible of anger. Such was the man 
 whom the Muhammadans of the Deccan venerated as the 
 embodiment of authority. He must have been endued with 
 
288 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xni. 
 
 generosity and other cognate qualities in order to attract and 
 retain the chivalrous affection of his people. 
 
 The business of the Government was performed by the Minister 
 Salar Jang, then in the prime of life. He had been from his 
 earliest years educated under European supervision and trained 
 especially for this high office, into which he had been inducted 
 when a very young man. He was therefore qualified in an un- 
 precedented degree for his public and ofi&cial duties. He dis- 
 charged them with unwearying assiduity, entire integrity and 
 an efficiency unprecedented in the Deccan. He was a gentle- 
 man in the highest sense of the term ; the quality of his mind 
 was indicated in his discreet manner and refined aspect. He 
 came from the family which had usually during several gene- 
 rations furnished ministers to the State ; some of his relations 
 had been great in that capacity, but none so good as he. 
 In those days I regarded him the most among all the Natives 
 of India I had ever met. Humanly speaking, his life was likely 
 to last long ; but if he should unfortunately be removed there 
 was no man of his rank in the country who could take up the 
 work which then devolved on him. 
 
 Yet he was kept by the Nizam in a state of thraldom ; 
 he was almost a prisoner in his own house, and could not 
 move beyond the outer gates of his courtyard without his 
 master's permission. If he wished to give a social entertain- 
 ment in his summer-house outside the city, or attend a parade 
 of British troops or have an interview with the Eesident, he 
 must ask leave, not as a mere formality, but as a request which 
 might be refused, or if allowed would be granted grudgingly. 
 I had much business mth him, and its transaction was difficult ; 
 to see him often would renew the Nizam's jealousy, to send 
 him papers in despatch-boxes would be open to the same objec- 
 tion, for that also became known to His Highness. Salar Jang 
 did not seem to regard this in the light of a personal grievance ; 
 he shared the reverence which his countrymen felt for their 
 master. He seldom was admitted to the Nizam's presence; 
 when he was, however, he would be almost pale from agitation. 
 
Chap. xiii. SALAR JANG THE MINISTER. . 289 
 
 He must have been quite hopeless of conciliating his master's 
 regard, yet he was perfectly loyal, and would have undergone 
 any labour for the welfare of his liege. 
 
 The reason of the Nizam's strange conduct was this, that 
 Salar Jang, being an enlightened man, was anxious to introduce 
 good government into a distracted and well-nigh ruined state. 
 In that policy he was consistently supported by the British 
 Government. The Nizam therefore felt himself to be really 
 under the control of his Minister in all state affairs; then 
 chafing and fretting at this he revenged himself by punctiliously 
 enforcing a supervision in social matters. 
 
 Salar Jang had never up to that time seen any place except- 
 ing Hyderabad, and his being thus confined to one spot was 
 disadvantageous to him as an administrator. Indeed, consider- 
 ing how restricted was his actual vision, I was surprised to find 
 that he had so much liberality and comprehensiveness of view. 
 Still, no administration in India can prosper unless it be in- 
 spected by its chief from time to time. Hence the public 
 interest demanded that he should make tours througli the 
 country, see his offtcers at their work, observe the needs for 
 works of public improvement and hear the grievances of the 
 people. The Nizam would never allow this unless moral pres- 
 sure were applied to him by the British Government ; even then 
 he would yield only after a lengthened, perhaps an embittered, 
 argument. I was willing, however, to make the attempt, con- 
 sidering the administrative benefit that would result therefrom, 
 and the manifest absurdity of the objections. The Governor- 
 General, however, feared that our relations with the Nizam 
 would be compromised thereby, and so the project dropped. 
 
 As Minister, Salar Jang had charge of the civil and military 
 administration of all the territories directly administered by 
 the Nizam's Government, and these formed the greater part of 
 the country. But there were some nobles to whom territory 
 was assigned in consideration of their maintaining troops or 
 otherwise performing service for the state. Among these the 
 first was the Amir-i-Kabir, hereditary commandant of the 
 Pagah or bodyguard of the Nizam, a considerable number of 
 
290 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 troops. The Amir-i-Kabir maintained his troops and governed 
 the districts assigned to him under the general control of the 
 Nizam to be exercised through the Minister ; this control how- 
 ever was quite nominal. 
 
 The Amir-i-Kabir was a high-born Muhammadan of the old 
 school, refined dignified and judicious, though somewhat en- 
 feebled by age. He was the son of the handsome father 
 mentioned in chapter X. His face aspect and figure would 
 have made a fine subject for the portrait-painter. His inner 
 thoughts probably clung to the old ways, and he never lent 
 liimself to promote reforms. Still he realized the progress 
 which was going on in the outer world, and desired that 
 the Mzam's government should march with the age, and 
 maintain good relations with the British. He was so placed 
 that he wanted nothing for himself or his friends, and felt no 
 jealousy of the Minister or any one else ; thus he acquired 
 the position of consulting physician to the state. Though 
 possessing firmness and courage, he loved tranquillity, and 
 seemed to regard violence or lawlessness as essentially vulgar. 
 His opinions had much weight with the Nizam, indeed he was 
 the only man at that time who had any influence over His 
 Highness for good. It was mainly through his friendly offices 
 that the recent dispute between the Nizam, and the Minister 
 had been composed. 
 
 Similarly, some districts were retained by the Nizam under 
 his own direct management, and from their revenue were 
 defrayed the expenses of his palace and household. These were 
 governed by men whom the Nizam appointed without the 
 intervention of the Minister. 
 
 There were also tracts and territories of various sizes, large 
 and small, occupied by Muhammadan noblemen, often relatives 
 of the Nizam. Some of these were men of capacity and 
 activity, but many lived in a state of vacuity and listlessness, 
 almost of lethargy. 
 
 Notwithstanding these abatements from his power, the 
 Minister had a great position, controlling the regular army, the 
 revenues, and the civil administration generally. He was also 
 
Chap. xiii. THE ARAB CHIEFS AND THEIR TROOPS. 291 
 
 the channel of official communication between the Britisli 
 Resident and the Nizam's government. 
 
 In the army the most important men were the Arab chiefs 
 and their Arab troops ; these men had in spirit cohesion and 
 physical strength so great a superiority over the population of 
 the Deccan that they were likened to wolves among sheep. 
 Like other Indian princes, Hindu and Muhammadan, during 
 the eighteenth century, the Mzams had employed Arab 
 soldiery ; and when the State became more and more a prey 
 to disorder, the employment of Arabs increased. As drastic 
 remedies often aggravate the disease they are meant to cure, so 
 the Arabs made confusion worse confounded, till at length the 
 British Government under Lord Dalhousie were obliged to 
 interfere. The Arabs then became quiescent but remained 
 powerful, and when I visited Hyderabad in 1861, several Arab 
 commanders were pointed out to me as men who would in 1857 
 have caused a revolution and set up an Arab State in the 
 Deccan, had the British power been subverted. These chiefs 
 were then aged men, and had by this time (1867) passed away, 
 but their sons being born of Deccani mothers had only half 
 the native Arabian fire or spirit. Their troops however were 
 constantly recruited from Hadramaut, near the southern coast 
 of Arabia ; and the phalanx remained unbroken. At that 
 time (1867) there was nothing save the English troops near 
 Hyderabad to prevent the Arabs from beating down the Nizam's 
 Indian troops, immuring His Highness in his own palace and 
 seizing the government of the Deccan. Successive Nizams, 
 too, had allowed the organization of the Arab troops to grow in 
 a manner which endowed the leaders with great wealth and 
 established them in a territorial position. An Arab chief con- 
 tracted for supplying a certain number of men and for pay- 
 ing them ; he would also invest some capital in this business. 
 After a time the Nizam's treasury fell into arrears of pay due 
 to the men. Then came the chief's opportunity — instead of cash 
 he would take a mortgage of the land revenue of a district • 
 whereupon that district was made over to him and he garrisoned 
 it with his men. The power hence acquired was dangerous, but 
 
 u 2 
 
292 MEN AND EVP]NTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiit. 
 
 still worse was the misrule which unscrupulous adventurers 
 thus inflicted upon many tracts of the Deccan. Some Arab 
 chiefs, however, were regularly paid in cash, and the fortunes 
 made by them out of their military contracts, which ex- 
 tended to the payment armament equipment and lodgment 
 of some thousand soldiers, can be readily imagined. At that 
 time several of these chiefs had invested their savings largely in 
 general business, and not only controlled the armed forces of the 
 country, but actually possessed much influence over its money 
 markets. ISTevertheless the Arabs as a class, though ready for 
 any violence which their chiefs might command, were not 
 addicted to plundering without orders, or to lawless crime of 
 any sort ; when off duty they were like lordly tigers not con- 
 descending to common prey. 
 
 It was the Eohilla tribe that furnished the incorrigible 
 robbers and miscreants, the common enemies of the Deccan 
 people. The name " Eohilla," which belongs to a noble clan 
 of Muhammadans in the north, had been appropriated by these 
 southern plunderers, and included every sort of free-lance. 
 These men used to prowl about the country in bands like 
 hungry wolves ; the government deemed it prudent to keep 
 them out of mischief by employment, and the Deccani nobles 
 adopted the same course. Indeed Eohilla guards afforded the 
 best protection against Eohilla outrage. Then their cliiefs 
 contracted for the payment and equipment of the men, and 
 sometimes obtained mortgages of lands in the same manner as 
 the Arabs, though to a much less extent. 
 
 The Nizam's government had in those days begun to act on 
 the policy of organizing a new body of men which received the 
 name of "the reformed troops." It wished thereby to prepare 
 itself for coping with elements of trouble without applying to the 
 Kesident for assistance. In so far as any addition was thereby 
 made to the numbers of the Nizam's army, the movement was 
 to be deprecated ; because that army, being already in excess of 
 real acquirements, was a severe burden to the finances, and 
 might even prove an embarrassment to the British government. 
 The commandant of " the reformed troops " was an English- 
 
Chap. xin. PARADE OF THE NIZAM'S FORCES. 293 
 
 man ; and in virtue of his office lie wore the sword of Eaymond, 
 a Frenchman who was in the Nizam's service towards the end of 
 the eighteenth century, and whose memory was so much revered 
 by Native soldiers that lights were, as they probably still are, 
 kept burning at his tomb. 
 
 Shortly after my arrival on the occasion of a great Muham- 
 madan festival, there was held before the Minister, acting on 
 behalf of the Nizam, a general parade of his master's troops. 
 I sat for several hours on a broiling day in May with the 
 Minister in a balcony of liis house in the city watching the 
 troops as they defiled before us along the narrow street. The 
 " reformed troops " came first, having among their officers many 
 Europeans ; next the other Deccani troops, for the most part 
 dressed in uniform after the European model; then followed 
 the Arabs in the plainest white costume, with nothing martial 
 save their matchlocks, pouches and daggers, the Eohillas much 
 more showy with their Indian dress and accoutrements, and 
 some Abyssinians lending variety to the long line ; lastly the 
 contingent of the Amir-i-Kabir, whose troops chiefly wore 
 the European uniform, closed tlie procession. The strength to 
 which these forces had grown during several generations 
 suggested thoughts of political danger. But any diminution in 
 the army of a Native State must be gradual, and can only be 
 effected by ceasing to recruit. As the men do not enlist for a 
 time, but regard the military service of the State as a life- 
 long profession, an attempt on the part of a ruler to discharge 
 them is more likely to produce revolutionary movement than 
 any other cause that could be imagined. 
 
 A long chain of circumstances had gradually strengthened 
 the Minister's position, and rendered it proof against the in- 
 trigues of his opponents. The innate virtue of his disposition 
 and the excellence of his character have been already mentioned. 
 He was not answerable for the utter mismanagement which 
 had caused to the Nizam the loss of power in Berar, when 
 that province was brought under British management. He 
 had since that time striven manfully to reform every part of 
 the administration, the land revenue, the dispensing of justice. 
 
294 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xm. 
 
 the police, and, above all, tlie finances. Without evincing 
 forceful energy of the highest kind, he was yet full of activity 
 and promptitude. Though his temperament was nervous and 
 susceptible of agitation, still he was resolute, capable of main- 
 taining self-command in danger, and animated by the spirit 
 which might be expected in a man of high birth. His sensi- 
 tive disposition, harassed by many trials and troubles, would 
 probably have worn out his body had it been feeble ; but his 
 frame though not robust was wiry. As an administrator he 
 certainly was not superior, by many he would be thought hardly 
 equal, to the two best Hindu Ministers of his day, Dinkar Eao 
 of Gwalior and Madhava Kao of Baroda. But as a man of 
 business, especially in finance, he has not been surpassed by 
 any Native in this century. His official assiduity and mastery 
 of details left nothing to be desired. It was difficult to discern 
 whether he possessed original ability of the Oriental type 
 because his mind was modelled very much by European 
 influences. At all events he was an excellent imitator; 
 whatever improvement the British Government introduced 
 he would sooner or later adopt, longo intcrvallo perhaps, but 
 still with some effect. Thus, roads caravanserais medical 
 schools drains and conservancy, besides many miscellaneous im- 
 provements, all had a share of his attention. He exercised Ms 
 vast patronage well, appointing competent and respectable men 
 to civil offices, and endeavouring to infuse an honest fidelity 
 into the whole service of the State. That he fully succeeded in 
 these efforts is more than can be affirmed, especially when it 
 is remembered that the British Government itself cannot com- 
 mand entire success. At all events, British rulers have no overt 
 opposition to contend with, whereas he had many enemies open 
 or concealed, much hostile opinion and a jealous master, all 
 arrayed against him. Upon a retrospect of the circumstances 
 under which he had to act, it seems wonderful that so much was 
 accomplished by him. 
 
 The Nizam's government was oppressed by its debts, which 
 had been incurred in many quarters at many rates of interest, 
 all more or less ruinous. Salar Jang attempted something 
 
Chap. xiii. MERIT OF SALAR JANG'S ADMINISTRATION. 295 
 
 like an unification of the debts, the object being to establish 
 such confidence that with its improved credit his government 
 might raise fresh loans at moderate rates, thereby paying off 
 some of the old loans which bore the usurious rates ; and this 
 he effected to a considerable extent. Among the old creditors 
 to be thus repaid, the foremost were the Arab chiefs who had 
 mortgages on the revenues of districts, as already described. The 
 redemption of a district from mortgage meant rescuing a con- 
 siderable population from Arab misrule and bringing it under 
 civilized administration. The operation was a critical one, as 
 the Arab chief did not care to have his principal repaid and 
 give up the district, nor did his armed men wish to leave their 
 quarters. However it was known to all men that this was a 
 case in which the Kesident might, if required, employ force to 
 put down resistance to the righteous action of the Nizam's 
 Minister. Thus several tracts of country had been redeemed 
 without overt opposition, and some were in course of redemp- 
 tion at this time. One Arab chief of consequence in those 
 days accepted repayment with apparent alacrity, and sur- 
 rendered the mortgaged territory. His mother being Deccani, 
 he had a character milder than that of his father, who was of 
 Arabian blood by both sides, and would never have given up a 
 mortgage without a fight. One morning, in order to pay him a 
 compliment, I breakfasted with him in his summer-house, and 
 praised his loyal and wise conduct in complying with the 
 Minister's wishes. If not actually ashamed, however, he did 
 not seem to be proud of his conduct, nor did he appreciate my 
 thanks. 
 
 In order to master the history which had a practical bearing 
 on the present, I studied the official correspondence of Sir 
 Charles MetcaKe, afterwards Lord Metcalfe, which related to 
 his incumbency as Eesident it Hyderabad, and which was to be 
 seen among the records of the Eesidency. The struggle in 
 which he was then engaged had reference to the Nizam's debt ; 
 his policy was to prevent the necessity of the Nizam's govern- 
 ment borrowing money at usurious rates from an European 
 firm, Messrs. Palmer and liumbold, and mortgaging to them 
 
296 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cuap. xiii. 
 
 the revenues of certain districts by way of security. He was 
 threatened with formidable opposition, but he persisted, and, 
 for a time at least, checked a practice which must otherwise 
 have destroyed the Nizam's State. The transactions are well 
 set forth in Kaye's Life of Metcalfe, and a perusal of the official 
 papers together with enquiry on the spot fully bore out the 
 biographer's conclusions. Indeed Metcalfe's conduct under 
 trying circumstances was an example to all of us who followed 
 him in the Eesidency, and the public servants who study those 
 affairs may thereby gain strength and courage for the perform- 
 ance of duty. The firm of Messrs. Palmer, after flourishing for 
 a time, broke up ; the Mr. Palmer who gave Metcalfe so much 
 trouble was an East Indian of good birth on his father's and 
 his mother's side. He was then still living, though feeble from 
 old age, a pensioner on the Nizam's government ; he died shortly 
 afterwards, and I was present at his funeral. 
 
 Despite occasional anxiety, my work at the Eesidency pro- 
 ceeded smoothly and pleasantly. The First Assistant, Mr. J. G. 
 Cordery, was busily occupying such leisure as his official duties 
 might allow him in completing his translation in verse of the 
 Iliad ; the Second Assistant, Major Tweedie, was translating 
 Hatiz. Thus I used daily to hear literary discussions regarding 
 Greek and Persian poetry. 
 
 I heard of an European ofhcer who had mingled in disguise 
 with a Muhammadan congregation when a political sermon 
 was being preached in one of the mosques. The point of the 
 discourse consisted of an allegory, aimed at the British, which 
 was somewhat in this wise. A she-wolf in feeble health once 
 came before the Nizam and begged for a shed to shelter her till 
 she recovered, which was granted. After a time His Highness 
 sent a servant to say that if she had recovered it was time for 
 her to quit. But meanwhile several cubs had been born, and 
 she begged yet a little time and grace for herself and her young, 
 in order to gain strength for moving ; this also was granted. 
 In due course another messenger was sent to say that the term 
 already allowed was expiring. But now the she-wolf was her- 
 self again, the cubs had grown strong, and they all, both mother 
 
Chap. xiii. OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN THE DECCAN, 2U7 
 
 and offspring, began to shew their teeth, refusing to move ; 
 accordingly they never have moved from that day forward ! 
 
 As the Minister could not inspect the interior of the country^ 
 it was desirable that I should do so according as opportunity 
 served. It was also necessary for me to visit Berar, which pro- 
 vince, as already mentioned, was under British administration. 
 
 In the Nizam's dominions th^re are many antique remains, 
 of which the picturesque beauty vies mth historic interest in 
 exciting the imagination. Some of these have been already men- 
 tioned in the previous chapter X. ; and they were all worthy of 
 a more leisurely examination than I, busied with official cares, 
 was ever able to bestow. ISTotliing could be more exhilarating 
 to mind and body than rapid rides such as I had to take from 
 one end of the Deccan to the other. Yew parts of the country 
 are uninteresting, and the varied scenes when recalled to 
 memory seem like a picture gallery in the chambers of the 
 
 mind, in 
 
 " The dome of thought, the palace of the soul." 
 
 Such scenes are the groups of mausolea, each cupola 
 in solitary dignity, denoting a king — the deserted mosques, 
 their stately aisles, once thronged with warriors returning 
 thanks after victory, now the homes of bats and jackals — the 
 ruined colleges, mth cattle stabled where doctors once taught 
 the precepts of Islam — the spiral staircase crumbling away, 
 by which the Muezzin used to ascend the minaret whence he 
 called aloud to the faithful — the hall of audience blocked up 
 with rubbish, the dry fountain, the broken cistern — the frown- 
 ing fortress of black rock, its unscaleable flanks escarped by 
 nature — the great gun once deemed "the monarch of the 
 battle-field," now rusting in the midst of long grass — the gloomy 
 cave-temples with their gigantic figures, some representing the 
 faith of Brahma and some of Buddh — the frescos on rock, 
 though half defaced, still presenting the very life of eld with 
 its forms and colours — the lakes brilliant under an eastern sun, 
 with their massive stone dykes — the forest where the ti^-er 
 has his lair, the cavern wdiere the bear makes his den, the sugar- 
 cane plantation where the boar regales himself at the expense 
 
298 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 of man — the granite masses rising abruptly from the cultivated 
 plain with clusters of palm-trees at their base. 
 
 In Berar, however, there was little of beauty to be seen 
 except the fortress of Gawilgarh standing aloft on the finely 
 stratified rock of the southern Satpura slope. This strong- 
 hold had been for several centuries deemed impregnable by 
 successive dynasties, and so it was under the conditions of 
 uncivilized warfare. But General Arthur Wellesley by a 
 scientific attack took it within a single hour. Few provinces 
 in India would furnish less material for the poet or the 
 painter, and here the interest centred in economic and 
 political concerns. The territory happened to be brought 
 under British management shortly before the time when the 
 demand for cotton and the construction of the railway began to 
 produce their effects. These two causes, combined with an 
 equitable settlement of the land revenue, gave a marvellous 
 impulse to the country and caused it to burst into new life. 
 Instead of being land-locked in the centre of the continent 
 and remote from sea-ports, it had a railway just opened to 
 the western coast, and was frequented by traders European 
 and Native from Bombay. The spread of cultivation, often in 
 virgin soil, the abundant harvests, the unfailing rainfall, and 
 the spontaneous growth of the land revenue, were all subjects 
 of congratulation. 
 
 The principal officer there was Mr. (now Sir Alfred) Lyall ; 
 he had served with me in the Central Provinces, and I was 
 thankful to entrust to him the revenue and finance of Berar. 
 Besides official and administrative ability he was endowed with 
 many mental gifts. He has written poetical pieces describing 
 with pathetic power the sentiments of Indians who, having 
 grown grey in wars and revolutions, find themselves fixed in 
 the Procrustean grooves of British civilization. 
 
 Eeturning to Hyderabad about Christmas-time, I heard many 
 reports of changes for the worse in the Nizam's health. During 
 an interview which I had with him, his manner was less frigid 
 than before, though he seemed to be labouring under physical 
 distress. His ailments, though serious, were understood to be 
 
Chap. xiii. RAILWAY TO HYDERABAD. 299 
 
 curable by European remedies surgical and medical ; he was 
 attended, however, by unscientific practitioners and but too often 
 listened to the advice of quacks. Our object was to induce him 
 to accept the professional aid of Muhammadan surgeons and 
 physicians, educated in the medical school at Hyderabad under 
 European supervision, some of whom were highly qualified men ; 
 but he was almost superstitiously averse. It was known that 
 unless he allowed himself this chance for recovery, his days 
 were numbered ; and such soon afterwards proved to be the case. 
 
 About this time the races at Hyderabad used to be held; 
 these sports, though conducted in the European fashion, excited 
 much interest among the Natives, especially the Muhammadans, 
 who are essentially equestrian in their tastes. To the ordinary 
 circumstances and accessories of a racecourse were added all 
 the pomp and glitter of the Muhammadan nobles with their 
 prancing steeds and their gay equipages. Sometimes "the 
 chivalry of the Deccan," as they were called, would issue forth, 
 and clouds of horsemen in every variety of costume would 
 be careering over the plain. These sports constituted quite a 
 local institution, promoting friendliness and good fellowship 
 between the European officers and the Native gentry. 
 
 After Christmas I began to prepare for my departure, but 
 in the brief time remaining to me there was one diplomatic 
 transaction to be completed. It was desired that there should 
 be a branch railway made to Hyderabad, starting from the 
 nearest point on the trunk line which runs from Bombay to 
 Madras. This branch would pass entirely through the Nizam's 
 dominions, and without the consent of His Highness the project 
 could not be entertained. Such consent was however difficult 
 to obtain, for the Nizam regarded the project with an undefined 
 horror, as being likely to upset all orthodox notions. He said 
 that it would make the popular mind gyrate or swing back- 
 wards and forwards, with a movement like that of children 
 at a fair. He doubtless thought also that the measure would 
 augment British influence within his dominions, and would 
 bring him more than ever within the attraction of the British 
 system. There was also a question as to whether the scheme 
 
300 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xth. 
 
 would be remunerative or whether it might not on the other hand 
 involve financial loss. But to the financial part of the case His 
 Highness gave not one moment's thought, so insignificant did 
 he regard it in comparison with the two cardinal evils of 
 upsetting the minds of his subjects and adding to British 
 influence in his dominions. He allowed but little scope for 
 persuasion, as he would close discussion by an abrupt negative. 
 It seemed probable that I should have to depart re infcda ; 
 for even at my farewell interview with him he did not say he 
 would consent. Afterwards, at the 'last moment, just before I 
 left the Eesidency his permission was received. Though loyal 
 at heart, he dreaded the British Government and disliked its 
 civilization, yet he felt that it was the only strong tower 
 where he could in extremity take refuge. So he reluctantly 
 accepted its railway as a crowning evil. 
 
 At the farewell interview, the Nizam seemed more distant 
 and haughty than ever towards the Minister, whose nervous- 
 ness was accordingly increased. I addressed to His Highness 
 as many kind and respectful words as could be compressed 
 into a few sentences of Hindustani, and he relaxed so far 
 as to give quite a gracious answer. As we left His High- 
 ness's presence, the Minister expressed his satisfaction at my 
 having spoken so respectfully to the Mzam. It was clear 
 from the conversation that, despite the treatment he had so long 
 been receiving from his master, Salar Jang felt to the full that 
 affectionate veneration which all Muhammadans of the Deccan 
 feel for the hereditary chief of their State. 
 
 The Nizam and his Minister did all in their power to impart 
 brightness to the farewell entertainments which, according to 
 custom, were given to me as a departing Eesident. On these 
 occasions the pyrotechnic displays preserved their Oriental 
 character, but were improved by European art under the direc- 
 tion of French artists who had been for generations in the 
 Nizam's service. The devices were varied and ingenious, 
 chiefly in imitation of natural objects. Fountains of fire 
 were produced, from which the sparkling light bubbled up 
 and, overflowing, glided along like real water. From the 
 
MY DEPARTURE FROM THE HYDERABAD RESIDENCY. 301 
 
 descending rain of the rockets there issued serpents, wreathing 
 themselves in bright coils against the dark sky. Large masses 
 would explode, shooting forth luminous balls or globes as of 
 silver ruby amethyst emerald. Solid bodies, like squares of 
 infantry, maintained a rattling fusillade for several minutes. 
 Miniature forts burst forth in a sham cannonade and at last 
 blew up with an explosion that shook the ground. As the 
 display took place on the margin of a small lake, all these 
 effects were doubled by the reflections on the still water. 
 
 I felt sorry on leaving Hyderabad, although the sphere 
 opening before me was the very one which of all others 
 an ambitious officer would have desired. At Calcutta, there 
 would be the Secretariat precincts, the Council chamber, the 
 State departments, the bustle of European life and daily contact 
 with affairs affecting the whole empire. These things, however 
 interesting in themselves, would not be so pleasant as the rides 
 in the Deccan, the parties at the Minister's palace, the recep- 
 tions at the Eesidency, and the visits to the Native nobles. 
 
 Moreover, the Deccani Muhammadans had much ingratiated 
 themselves with me, and I felt a real regard for them. They 
 differ from the Muhammadans of the trans-Indus frontier 
 and from those of southern India. According to the European 
 standard they are Native gentlemen in manner and address, 
 having refinement without the least effeminacy, and manliness 
 without a trace of roughness or impetuosity. 
 
 Shortly after leaving Hyderabad I heard that the Nizam's 
 ailment took the fatal turn that had been apprehended ; he died 
 leaving a very young boy as his heir. Therefore a regency was 
 established in which Salar Jang had a prominent part. Then 
 the political conditions described in tliis chapter immediately 
 changed. Salar Jang, being no longer in thraldom, began to 
 travel about, the Resident had more direct influence and the 
 general aspect of affairs became brighter. 
 
 Afterwards Salar Jang engaged in a correspondence with 
 the Governor-General regarding Berar, perhaps to his own 
 detriment. But I need not allude to that matter, being with- 
 out official knowledge of its latest phases. 
 
302 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 Earl}-- in 1808 Salar Jang had the narrowest escape from 
 death ; he was in a procession similar to that described in this 
 chapter when two shots were fired, one of which grazed his 
 turban and the other killed a man at his side. The motives of 
 the assassin never were discovered, but it is possible that 
 the attempt was prompted by revenge on the part of some 
 among the many men who had lost their places when districts, 
 as already explained, were redeemed from mortgage. 
 
 Leaving Hyderabad I proceeded to JMadras on my way to 
 Calcutta ; the Madras route would nowadays be thought quite 
 circuitous, but at that time it was the best, as the railway 
 system was incomplete. 
 
 At Madras I met for the first time the Governor, Lord ISTapier 
 (now Lord Napier and Ettrick). He had recently been occupied 
 in supervising with much success the operations for the relief 
 of famine on the east coast, and was generally considered to 
 have shewn energy and promptitude on that occasion. The 
 principles of Native art and architecture were justly the 
 subjects of his admiration, and he was causing them to be 
 applied to the designs for all large structures then in course of 
 erection at Madras under Mr. Chisholm the Government archi- 
 tect. The Governor's example was leading public opinion in 
 the direction of true culture. 
 
 From Madras the journey to Calcutta was performed by 
 steamer ; and among our passengers was Dr. Norman M'Leod 
 who had come from England to pay a short visit to India. 
 He won his way very rapidly among the community of Calcutta, 
 by the genial heartiness of his address. Breadth of sympathy, 
 masculine power of thought, an insight into the sentiments 
 which move masses of men, a desire to shew that the paths of 
 religion are truly pleasant — these seemed his most salient 
 characteristics. He preached often, and his eloquence in the 
 pulpit acted as a spell upon large congregations. On secular 
 occasions he was an effective and popular speaker ; and it was 
 thought that on his return to England his voice would always 
 be raised on behalf of India. One day at Calcutta I went with 
 him to hear an address delivered by Keshab Chander Sen the 
 
Chap. xiii. THE FOREIGN OFFICE AT CALCUTTA. 303 
 
 Brahmo preacher, whose oratory was then becoming famous. 
 He seemed to be much impressed with the merits of the 
 Brahmo address, in respect of its English style, command of 
 language, persuasive argument, and, above all, its religious spirit. 
 He was delighted with his visit to India, and seemed to have 
 much capacity for enjoyment. But manifestly his constitution was 
 not one calculated to withstand the disadvantages of the Bengal 
 climate. When afterwards the report of his death in Scotland 
 reached India, we all felt that a friend had been lost to us. 
 
 At Calcutta I waited immediately on the Governor-General, 
 Sir John Lawrence ; friendly and cordial words passed between 
 us on finding ourselves once more, after the lapse of ten event- 
 ful years, in our old relative positions of principal and secretary. 
 
 I then received charge of the Foreign Secretaryship from my 
 old friend Sir William Muir, who having served as Foreign 
 Secretary for some time was now to take his seat for a short 
 time in the Governor-General's Council, before being appointed 
 Lieutenant-Governor of the North-western Provinces. He had 
 been of great service to John Lawrence in the serious contro- 
 versies which had arisen regarding tenant-right in Oudh, and 
 to these he brought unequalled acumen and experience. 
 
 The Under-Secretary in the Foreign department had been 
 John Wyllie, a brilliant member of the Covenanted Civil 
 Service and an excellent writer. His literary talent had been 
 evinced by several able articles in the Edinhurgh Review, and in 
 some of the London magazines, regarding the foreign policy of 
 India. He had lately proceeded to England and had been 
 succeeded by Henry Le Poer Wynne, an officer of much promise, 
 evidently destined to rise to a high position — should he live — 
 but, alas ! his life was not long spared. 
 
 The Foreign Office had to deal with many diverse affairs 
 pertaining to the independent States bordering on India, the 
 Native States within India, and several large provinces under 
 the direct administration of the Governor-General in Council. 
 
 At that time however, as indeed at most other times, the 
 foremost subject was Afghanistan. The Amir Shir Ali was then 
 establishing his power at all the three points of Caubul Candahar 
 
304 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 and Herat. It was considered good for British interests that 
 there should be one ruler in that country who really could be 
 held responsible for its foreign relations. The distractions, 
 lasting there for several years, were supposed to present 
 chinks and openings in the political armour through which 
 Eussian influences might enter. At that moment the reports 
 always more or less current, regarding Eussian intrigue, were 
 very rife, without however having more foundation than 
 that which may always be thought to exist. The prevalence of 
 such rumours was accounted for by the movements w^hich 
 Eussia was understood to be making from Bokhara towards the 
 Oxus, some of her outposts having appeared on the north bank 
 of that river. It became my business to note and collate all 
 available information regarding these movements, which were 
 not however really serious. 
 
 The affairs of the principal among the Native princes of 
 India came under the cognizance of the Foreign Office, and 
 this may be a suitable place for stating some points of interest 
 which I knew regarding them, though the knowledge may 
 in some instances have been acquired somewhat earlier or 
 somewhat later than the year 1868. 
 
 The best of the Native princes of that day was the Maharaja 
 of Jyepur, and by his death recently the country has suffered a 
 loss. Though a Eajput of the highest birth, descended from the 
 sun and moon, he possessed none of those physical characteristics 
 for which his race is famed ; instead of having a tall and erect 
 figure he was short of stature and had a stooping gait ; instead 
 of the proud fiery look of his ancestors, he cast shy timid glances 
 around him, being half blinded by cataract from which he 
 had been partially relieved through European skill. Still he was 
 not deficient in nerve and decision, and while good-tempered 
 in the main, had pride and generosity. He was loyal and well- 
 disposed, probably there was not among all the Indian princes 
 a truer friend to the British Government, and his ambition was 
 turned into good channels. He wished to be thought a wise 
 ruler and to be esteemed as the head of a prosperous State. He 
 co-operated with the British Government in modifying the 
 
Chap. xiii. PRINCIPAL NATIVE CHIEFS. 305 
 
 system for the collection of the salt-duties, though at some 
 sacrifice of his own susceptibilities. He rendered much assist- 
 ance in establishing the college for educating the young chiefs 
 of Eajputana. Once I visited him at his capital of Jyepur when 
 a festival was being held ; he was issuing forth from his palace 
 to pass through the streets upon an elephant by torchlight to 
 receive the greetings of his people. He drove us to Ambair 
 the ancient capital before the modern Jyepur was built, and 
 shewed us the castle, the town, the lake, all nestling amidst the 
 hills. 
 
 The Maharaja Sindhia was prominent at that time; his 
 fidelity had been proved in trials and dangers. His disposi- 
 tion was understood to be wayward and fitful, sometimes even 
 prone to melancholy ; he had a hesitation in speech with a good- 
 natured bluffness of manner. He was anxious that the British 
 garrison should be removed from his fortress of Gwalior ; 
 against such removal, however, there were obvious objections 
 as the position was one of political importance and renown. 
 He had been unable to hold it efficiently or securely during 
 the war of the mutinies, and if it were ever to fall into hostile 
 hands, the moral effect would be bad. On visiting Gwalior, I 
 could not but be struck by the grandeur of the vast oblong rock 
 rising abruptly out of the cultivated plain. Sindhia had much 
 chequered experience of war during the troubles which followed 
 the mutinies ; his military taste was thus cultivated, and he 
 always gave his chief attention to the management of his 
 army. For the civil administration he had wisely trusted to 
 his Minister Dinkar Rao : and when that able minister resigned 
 a competent successor was fortunately found. Unlike the 
 Nizam, he greatly favoured the cause of railway extension, and 
 under the auspices of the British Government, invested a large 
 sum of money in the construction of a railroad to Gwalior. 
 
 Sindhia like most other Mahrattas was of a humble caste, 
 therefore it was customary and proper that he should have 
 a Mahratta Brahmin to be his minister. Dinkar Eao was a 
 Mahratta Brahmin and an excellent specimen of his caste. He 
 was slight in figure, his features were delicate, his brow lofty ; 
 
 X 
 
306 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 he had polished manners, his speech was soft, gentle and per- 
 suasive ; his mien indicated that quiet pride which, trans- 
 mitted through many generations, is characteristic of the Brah- 
 mins. Beneath this smooth exterior there lay a masterful temper 
 and an immovable will. He did not learn English, and never 
 assimilated European ideas into his mental constitution. Indeed 
 in some matters pertaining to social improvement, such as 
 female education, he would probably be found, in heart at least, 
 retrogressive. But in plain matters of administration he was a 
 man of original thought and commanding ability. As Minister he 
 served for a comparatively short time, but during that time he 
 acquired a reputation as high as that of any other Hindu during 
 this generation. His integrity was unquestioned, and he retired 
 into private life with a very moderate competency. 
 
 Next after Dinkar Eao, the most notable Hindu administra- 
 tor of the time is Madhava Kao, the Minister of the Baroda 
 State, also a Brahmin, but a man of a totally different type. 
 His conduct in private and public life is exemplary, wdiile his 
 ability is of a high order. By reason of his excellent attain- 
 ments in English, his comprehensive experience and his large 
 acquaintance with public affairs, he is, on the whole, the best- 
 informed Native in India. He is enlightened in respect to all 
 matters of improvement ; but perhaps in his heart he hardly 
 approves of some among the social reforms wliich are now 
 advocated. He first won fame as the Minister of Travancore; 
 then for a time he was in Holkar's service, and lastly became 
 Minister of Baroda. He found that State seriously disordered 
 by the late Gaekwar Mulhar Eao, an infamous ruler, but 
 he brought it within a few years into a condition of much 
 prosperity. 
 
 Next after Sindliia the most important Mahratta prince is 
 the Maharaja Holkar, whose manner of ruling affords but little 
 scope for an able Minister. Holkar is probably the best man of 
 business among Native princes whom this generation has seen. 
 He received, when young, a sound practical education under 
 European supervision, and acquired early a fondness for public 
 affairs. His attention is given not so much to statesman-like 
 
Chap. xiit. THE NATIVE KINGDOMS. 307 
 
 reforms as to the despatch of business. His diligence in 
 auditing the accounts of his government and regulating his 
 finances is remarkable for a Native prince ; therefore he justly 
 prides himself on this assiduity. 
 
 The Begum of Bhopal affords an example which may cheer 
 the advocate of female education in India, as shewing the 
 standard which a woman may reach. For here is a Princess 
 known to be effectively loyal, and to govern well by her own 
 high capacity without leaning on any Minister. It devolved on 
 me as a knight of the Order to accompany Her Highness when 
 she was invested with the insignia of the Star of India. She 
 seemed slight in figure, and from external appearance it was 
 difficult to judge of her ability. 
 
 The kingdom of Jammu and Cashmir has been already 
 mentioned in chapter VII. in reference to the first visit I paid 
 to it in 1859, when it had recently recovered from a pestilence 
 of cholera. I was able to visit it again ten years later, and 
 found it much improved ; the famines which have subsequently 
 desolated that fair region had not then appeared. Until he 
 failed to cope with these visitations of famine, the Maharaja 
 Eambhir Sing was thought to be a fairly good ruler, and cer- 
 tainly a very competent man in public business. His kindness, 
 consideration and hospitality to travellers have made him 
 deservedly popular mth the European community. But he is 
 not thought by the public to have adequately developed the 
 resources of the valley, or to have made the most of the advan- 
 tages mth which nature has so bounteously endowed it. He 
 set up a judicial establishment and introduced various admi- 
 nistrative improvements. Still the land revenue system, which 
 was of more consequence than anything else, remained without 
 essential alteration. The fact of the northern provinces of this 
 State being conterminous with territories in which the Russians 
 have been operating politically, causes constant anxiety to the 
 British Government. Sinister reports thence arise which may 
 seldom be believed, but are yet not put out of mind. Thus, too, 
 temptation presents itself to the evil-disposed within this State. 
 
 The personal influence of the present Maharaja and of his 
 
 X 2 
 
308 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiii. 
 
 father, Golab Sing, has always been so potential in the State as 
 to leave but little scope for their subordinates. Still there was 
 one very competent Minister, Kirpa Earn, belonging to the 
 Khatri or writer caste of the Panjab, a man of the best educa- 
 tion according to the Oriental style only, and one of the ablest 
 natives in India next after those who had received a Western 
 education. He had a high-born aspect and a refined manner, 
 with some resemblance to Salar Jang in general appearance. 
 
 In the Cis-Satlej territories the chiefs of Pattiala and Jhind, 
 who personally were so well remembered for their conduct 
 during the war of the mutinies, and whose characters have 
 been described in chapter VII., had passed away. The chief of 
 Jhind had a worthy successor in his son ; in Pattiala the 
 demise of the good and able chief was followed by a regency 
 composed of faithful men, and the heritage was transmitted in 
 good condition to the young chief, who despite all the advantages 
 of education died prematurely from his own imprudence. 
 
 In those days the Native princes or nobles in the North- 
 western Provinces and Oudh who bore the best repute for loyalty 
 and high-mindedness were the Maharaja of Benares, the Maha- 
 raja of Balrampur, the Nawab of Eampur and Deo Narain 
 Sing of Benares. The conversation of Deo Narain Sing was 
 instructive and interesting to those Europeans who were 
 most concerned in understanding the sentiments and wishes 
 of the people. 
 
 The kingdom of Nepal suffered what seemed to be an irre- 
 parable loss by the death of its Minister Jang Behadur ; but 
 the dissensions expected to arise after his death have fortu- 
 nately not arisen. In his case, as in that of some other great 
 workers, the results of his work have survived liim. At this 
 time he was in the zenith of liis fame and power, and 
 after having passed through evil and good report was now 
 esteemed universally. I saw sometliing of him at a later time, 
 and his conversation confirmed the opinion previously formed 
 by me in common with most people regarding his ability and 
 other high qualities. In his youth he must have been fiercely 
 barbarous, and even in his old age he retained perhaps a semi- 
 
Chap. xiii. SENTIMENTS TOWARDS BRITISH RULE. 309 
 
 barbaric character. Wlien remembrance is borne of the as- 
 sociations in which his youth must have been passed, the awful 
 scenes he witnessed, the massacres in which he participated, 
 the blood he shed — then there is wonder at the moderation and 
 self-control afterwards displayed by him, the discipline enforced 
 by his system, and the public order secured by his stern yet 
 just rule. What his feelings may have originally been towards 
 the British no man can now say ; but he visited England and 
 returned to Nepal with a conviction from which he never 
 swerved, that it would be well to adhere to the English side, as 
 that was sure to be ultimately victorious. The conduct of the 
 Nepal State during the war of the mutinies was unsatisfactory 
 on the whole ; whether the Nepalese were ripe for revolt against 
 the British is doubtful ; but there were reasons for fearing that 
 they might have joined the rebellion had it not been for the 
 dissuading voice and restraining hand of Jang Behadur, 
 
 It was one of these Native statesmen who warned us that, 
 however excellent the conduct of the British Government 
 may be, many influential classes will yet labour under an 
 uneasy feeling and an indefinable restlessness. There might, he 
 said, be no rational cause for discontent, still a desire for political 
 change would supervene; and he illustrated the feeling thus. 
 On a sultry night in an Indian summer a sleeper, lying on 
 one side of his couch, is distressed by the stifling heat; he 
 then seeks relief in turning to the other side. So it often 
 is with the sentiments of some among the Natives ; under 
 British rule the very stillness of the political atmosphere be- 
 comes oppressive to them, and they inwardly sigh for the 
 breeze even though it should ultimately freshen into a gale. 
 
310 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 (1864-68.) 
 JOHN LAWKENCE AS VICEROY. 
 
 Arrival of John Lawrence at Calcutta as Viceroy — The North-west frontier — 
 The Bhotan war — Barracks for the European soldiery — The Sanitary 
 Department — Summer residence at Simla for the Government of India — 
 Tenant-right in Oudh — Proposals for extending the permanent settlement 
 — The famine in Orissa — Canals of irrigation — Development of the railway 
 system — The Bishopric of Calcutta, George Cotton and Eobert Milman — 
 Progress of legislation — Henry Sumner Maine — Leave and furlough rules 
 for the civil and military services — Financial management — Eelations 
 with Afghanistan — Affairs of Central Asia — John Lawrence's departure 
 from India. 
 
 In the autumn of 1863 Lord Elgin was understood to be entering 
 upon the course of his administration, in nautical phrase, at full 
 speed. He had been nearly two years in India, and had become 
 acquainted wdth all the central departments of the State during 
 a residence of several months at Calcutta. He travelled 
 thence to the north, holding levees and receptions on the 
 way, thus making the acquaintance of the principal European 
 officers and of the Native princes, also seeing something of 
 the Indian population. He spent a summer at Simla in the 
 Himalayas arranging his thoughts and considering his plans. 
 By staying one season at Calcutta and another in the hills, 
 he measured the advantages or disadvantages of the climate, 
 together with his own capabilities of labour. He intended to 
 spend Christmas and perhaps the greater part of the winter in 
 the Panjab ; he was to hold large receptions for the Native chiefs 
 at Lahore, the capital of that province ; and he summoned 
 thither his executive and legislative councils to meet for a 
 session which might last several weeks. He had a special 
 
Chap. xiv. LORD ELGIN'S LAST ILLNESS. 311 
 
 reason, also, for proceeding towards the North-west quarter of 
 the empire. For after consultation with the Lieutenant- 
 Governor of the Panjab, he determined to apply armed 
 force against certain tribes dwelling in the liills which over- 
 jiang the Indus a little to the north of Attock. The operations 
 proceeded not so favourably for the British arms as might have 
 been anticipated, and the area of disturbance seemed likely to 
 extend itself. Still after his experience of grave conjunctures 
 in other countries he had a just confidence in his own capacity 
 for dealing with this affair, however serious it might become. 
 
 On his way to Lahore he desired to traverse some of the hill 
 districts which lie between Simla and the Panjab, so he began 
 his journey by daily marches. One morning he was crossing a 
 stream by a suspension-bridge made of canes and bamboos, by 
 which only one person could pass at a time, as it swung and 
 oscillated considerably. During this passage he was seized with 
 giddiness and faintness, and it shortly after became apparent 
 that his heart was fatally affected. He arrived in the course of 
 a very few days, though with some difficulty, at Dharmsala in 
 the Kangra district, telegraphed to England his resignation of 
 the Governor-Generalship, and prepared himself to die. He 
 summoned to his bedside Dr. Macrae from Calcutta, the same 
 physician who had attended James Wilson in his last illness. 
 Dharmsala is the capital of a Himalayan valley lying above the 
 well-known fort of Kangra. From it the spectator looks up 
 towards forest-clad hillsides, and thence to snowy heights 
 which seem to tower right over his head, while below 
 him there is a fair prospect over the rice-fields threaded with 
 the rivulets and watercourses which supply the artificial 
 irrigation ; and the November season is the finest in the year. 
 Altogether the place had an exceeding loveliness which cheered 
 Lord Elgin during the distressful depression of his last days. 
 He rallied slightly at times, and would turn his thoughts towards 
 the prospects of war on the frontier and the programme of 
 the assemblage at Lahore. He was, however, hopelessly linger- 
 ing, and sank after protracted suffering borne with Christian 
 resignation. He was buried in the picturesque churchyard of 
 
312 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cuap. xiv. 
 
 Dliarmsala ; but the monument with the entablature commemo- 
 rating his great deeds in various countries is in the cathedral 
 of Calcutta. There was much public sorrow over a great career 
 suddenly and prematurely closed. The arrangements for the 
 meeting of the Council at Lahore, and the other proceedings 
 intended to be held there, were countermanded. 
 
 Lord Elgin died in November 1863, and no person 
 appointed to be his successor being present in India, Sir 
 William Denison, the Governor of Madras, became by law 
 acting Governor-General, as he was the senior of the two Presi- 
 dency Governors. Sir William proceeded to Calcutta to meet 
 the members of the Council there, and conducted efficiently the 
 current affairs of the general government. He intended, how- 
 ever, to move northwards very soon, because he was vigorously 
 dealing with the military and political affairs on the Indus 
 frontier, and it was thought that warlike events might, perhaps, 
 develop themselves. But he suspended this intention on re- 
 ceiving the announcement that Sir John Lawrence had been 
 appointed Governor-General and was starting immediately for 
 India. 
 
 Nowadays the neArs of a Governor-General being nominated 
 in England, to fill a vacancy suddenly created, would be flashed 
 by electric telegraph throughout the East quite a month before 
 he could land upon Indian shores. The telegraphic communi- 
 cation not having been, as yet, established between England and 
 India in 1863, the new Governor-General arrived almost as soon 
 as the notification of his appointment. When the steamship 
 carrying him touched at Ceylon, the men on the first boat from 
 the shore asked, "Who is to be the Governor-General of India?" 
 the answer came, " John Lawrence, and he is on board." 
 
 A feeling of confidence and satisfaction arose in the public 
 mind, when John Lawrence entered Government House at Cal- 
 cutta, on January 12th, 1864, just sixteen years after the 
 arrival of his great master, Dalhousie. All classes believed that 
 he had been the means not only of saving the Panjab during 
 the war of the mutinies in 1857, but also of directing its re- 
 sources towards the recapture of Delhi and pacification of the 
 
Chap. xiv. ARRIVAL OF JOHN LAWRENCE. 313 
 
 North-western Provinces. The mercantile and professional com- 
 munity regarded him as a ruler thoroughly understanding, from 
 arduous experience, the many needs of the country. The official 
 classes rejoiced that, as one was to be chosen from among their 
 ranks for the supreme command, the choice had fallen upon a 
 really able and competent man, who would do justice to the 
 selection, and acquit himself well, whatever might betide, in his 
 lofty though difficult sphere. The heart throbbed and the pulse 
 beat high with those ambitious men, happily numerous in 
 India, who expected to carve out their career by the force of 
 will and intellect, and knew that their new ruler would impar- 
 tially discern merit and demerit. Other Governors-General had 
 possessed personal capacity and an insight into human charac- 
 ter, but could gain only by degrees that Indian experience of 
 which they were necessarily destitute. Here was one who 
 to at least an equal ability joined a long acquaintance with 
 both the work and the men who were to perform it. Soon, 
 however, the envious few began to say that he would hardly 
 receive full support from the Government in England during 
 the conjunctures and controversies incidental to Indian admini- 
 stration, not having been conspicuous in any of the English 
 political parties. It was sometimes added, in disparaging tones, 
 that he had been appointed only because war was at that 
 moment deemed likely to spread along the Indus frontier, and 
 he was the fittest man to cope with such emergencies. In so far 
 as this reason, among others, may have weighed with the 
 English authorities, it constituted, not any disparagement, but, 
 on the contrary, the best tribute to his fame. 
 
 I had just made over the charge of the Central Provinces 
 to Colonel Elliot, when John Lawrence arrived at Calcutta ; and 
 he summoned me to meet him there. I stayed with him at 
 Government House for a short time before returning to the 
 Central Provinces, on Colonel Elliot being appointed Governor- 
 General's Agent in Eajputana. Thus, I became acquainted 
 with the views, policy and intentions in regard to the coming 
 administration, of one who was the new Governor-General and 
 my old master. 
 
ol4 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 John Lawrence's first appearance in public at Calcutta was 
 for the purpose of opening the agricultural exhibition wliich 
 had been prepared on a large scale by Sir Cecil Beadon, then 
 Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal. In his speech on that 
 occasion the Governor-General reminded his audience that' 
 Indian agriculture, despite its many merits, was still back- 
 ward, and that all persons interested in it should educate them- 
 selves by studying the results achieved in more advanced 
 countries. Even he, cautious as he was in forming expecta- 
 tions, seemed to hope that the public would learn much practi- 
 cally from this great exhibition. The show, indeed, with all its 
 paraphernalia was elaborately prepared ; most of the machines 
 and implements, to be seen at an agricultural exhibition in 
 England, were paraded before a vast concourse of Bengali 
 Natives, several experiments with steam-ploughs were displayed, 
 and indigenous products in great variety from the remotest 
 parts of vast provinces were spread before the crowd. There 
 was a general awakening, for the country was recovering fast 
 after the war of the mutinies ; the civil contest in America, then 
 at its height, was stimulating the Indian trade ; resources no 
 longer required for indigo culture, were being transferred to 
 Himalayan tea-gardens ; and the waste land rules mentioned 
 in chapter VIII. were causing an additional influx of British 
 capital. Men were disposed to be sanguine, and seeing this 
 exhibition began to exclaim that two blades of cereals would 
 be made to grow where one had grown before. Sir Cecil 
 Beadon, having taken the most laudable trouble in arrang- 
 ing the show, seemed to catch the enthusiasm of the moment. 
 Doubtless the exhibition had some educational effect upon 
 the Natives, but its influence in improving their agricul- 
 ture was inappreciable. The moral to be gathered is this, that 
 an impulse to the industry of a nation cannot be artificially 
 imparted by even the most powerful rulers. 
 
 John Lawrence next appeared publicly in the uniform of the 
 Calcutta Volunteers, which he donned in order to inspect that 
 corps. His experience during the war of the mutinies led him 
 to attach much political importance to the Volunteer movement 
 
Chap. xiv. MILITAEY OPEEATIONS. 315 
 
 in India. The European inhabitants might at any moment be 
 required to stand to their arms. If organized and drilled they 
 would all the better evince the national qualities which during 
 the late disturbances had been so conspicuous. He dwelt much 
 on the public services which such a corps as that then before 
 him might have rendered had it existed in Calcutta during the 
 critical months of 1857. 
 
 One of his first official acts was the publication of a Govern- 
 ment Gazette to thank the officers and men for their gallantry 
 and endurance during the recent operations on the Indus fron- 
 tier, which have been already mentioned. The expedition 
 against certain hill tribes of the mountains overhanging the 
 Indus had begun as a little war, but soon grew into a 
 serious affair. The tribes had shewn much prowess in several 
 actions, the issue of which was not quite satisfactory to the 
 British troops and commanders. Much apprehension was felt 
 lest these particular tribes should combine with those of the 
 neighbouring hills and a general movement arise all along 
 the trans-Indus border, although previous experience shewed 
 that one of the fortunate peculiarities of these tribes was their 
 incapacity for combination. The authorities, however, deemed 
 it advisable to make extensive preparations for any ulterior 
 operations which might become necessary. The hostile junction, 
 as anticipated by some, failed to occur,, and the resistance of the 
 tribes after a short time ceased or collapsed. The result though 
 victorious was hardly proportionate to the means employed, 
 and less successful than that of the previous expeditions on the 
 trans-Indus frontier already mentioned in chapter V. 
 
 This was not the only occurrence causing John La^vrence's 
 thoughts to revert to that frontier with which in former 
 years he had been familiar. A despatch had recently been 
 received from the Bombay Government, of which Sir Bartle 
 Frere was the head, comparing the management of that portion 
 of the trans-Indus frontier which was under the Bombay 
 Government with the administration of that section which was 
 under the Panjab, and naturally drawing conclusions very 
 favourable to the Bombay authorities. The Bombay section 
 
316 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 of the frontier was represented by the province of Sind, of 
 which Sir Bartle had been so long the distinguished head. 
 The gravamen of the allegation amounted to this, that 
 the Sind method of dealing with the hill tribes had been 
 mild and yet successful, whereas the Panjab method was 
 severe and yet had a lesser degree of success. John Lawrence, 
 however, soon shewed that the Panjab hill tribes were much 
 more fierce and unruly than the Sind hill tribes, and con- 
 sequently required sharper and more frequent chastisement. 
 If outrages are committed, warning and every other alter- 
 native short of armed force may be judiciously tried. If they 
 are persistently continued, then as a last resort armed force 
 must be applied. This was the short and plain justification 
 of the Panjab proceedings on the frontier ; and on a similar 
 provocation, or tissue of provocations, the Sind autliorities must 
 perforce have adopted equally stringent remedies. Charles 
 Napier and John Jacob had commanded on the Sind frontier ; 
 they were not the men to allow repeated incursions to pass 
 with impunity, but employed their troops as occasion might 
 demand for the vindication of British authority. It was the 
 good fortune of the Sind authorities that, having less turbulent 
 characters to deal with, they had not to draw the sword so often 
 as their comrades in the Panjab. 
 
 After a short time John Lawrence had to undertake hostili- 
 ties against Bhotan in order to punish that semi-barbarous 
 state for the insults offered by it to the mission which had 
 been despatched in Lord Elgin's time. He entered upon the 
 war with a heavy heart, believing that the British troops would 
 encounter formidable obstacles in forests favouring ambuscades, 
 stockades protected by impervious thickets, malarious valleys 
 and a deluging rainfall. 
 
 Having disposed of the immediate questions relating to 
 military operations, he turned his attention to matters con- 
 cerning the physical and moral welfare of the European troops 
 in India. During his earlier years he had been shocked by 
 the drunkenness seen to prevail among them. His feeling in 
 respect to the value of these soldiers had been intensified by the 
 
Chap. xiv. BARRACKS FOR THE EUROPEAN TROOPS. 317 
 
 experience of 1857 and of the war which ensued. He was 
 impressed by the waste of life, the wear and tear of precious 
 strength, the loss of public resources, which arose from defective 
 accommodation and faulty sanitation in an Eastern climate. He 
 had shared his brother Henry's enthusiasm in the cause of im- 
 proving the condition and the surroundings of the British soldier 
 in India. Imbued with these ideas, he had, before starting from 
 England conferred earnestly with Florence Nightingale on this 
 subject, and consulted the Army Sanitary Commission. On his 
 arrival at Calcutta, he forthwith set about establishing a sani- 
 tary department for each of the three armies of India, and 
 selected of&cers of high ability as sanitary commissioners, 
 some drawn from the medical and others from the civil or 
 military service. He had in the Military member of Council, 
 Sir Eobert Napier (now Lord Napier of Magdala), and in 
 the Commander-in-Chief, Sir Hugh Eose (now Lord Strath- 
 nairn), two colleagues believing equally with himself in the 
 need of sanitary improvement, and eminently qualified by 
 experience and special knowledge to afford co-operation. He 
 found public opinion quickened in this respect by the occurrence 
 during recent years of epidemic cholera at some of the largest 
 military stations. Those frightful outbreaks were understood to 
 have been at least partly due to preventible causes. 
 
 But sanitation, however scientific and well-conducted, would 
 be of little avail if the barracks were faulty and insalubrious. 
 Some of the Indian barracks begun by Sir Charles Napier 
 or undertaken by Lord Dalhousie comprised all, or nearly all, 
 that could be reasonably desired. Others, however, were old, 
 and their style obsolete ; many, too, were of a temporary cha- 
 racter, having been hastily erected in consequence of the rapid 
 influx of European reinforcements from England during the 
 war of the mutinies. Of these temporary barracks, again, 
 some had been built at stations which were needed for the 
 special purposes of the pending campaigns, but which were 
 being abandoned after the final pacification of the country. 
 The policy was to determine the distribution of the European 
 forces for the future among the various stations, to con- 
 
318 MEN AND P:VENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 sider what stations had, and what had not, barracks of a 
 good style, and then to construct suitable buildings at those 
 stations which were destitute of proper accommodation. Next, 
 the dimensions of the structures were reconsidered ; and the 
 intention was to improve even upon the style introduced under 
 Lord Dalhousie. Double-storied barracks were to be built, it 
 being intended that the men should dine downstairs, and sleep 
 upstairs beyond the reach of the malarious exhalations from the 
 ground in a hot climate. The expense would be considerable, 
 far beyond the ordinary means of the Government. But John 
 Lawrence and his advisers deemed the importance of the 
 matter to be paramount ; and decided that, while devoting as 
 much as possible from the current revenues to this purpose, 
 they would borrow such sums as might be required from time 
 to time for completing the work. The total sum to be fur- 
 nished from current revenues and loan funds together, amounted 
 to the large sum of ten millions sterling. 
 
 In connexion with army sanitation, John La^^Tcnce developed 
 the sanitary department as it now exists throughout India. A 
 Sanitary Commissioner was appointed to serve as the profes- 
 sional adviser of each of the several provincial Governments ; 
 under him were many sanitary assistants, all medical men ; and 
 under them again were sub-assistants, of lesser grades. There 
 was a Sanitary Commissioner of the highest grade attached to 
 the Government of India who acted as professional adviser 
 to the supreme authority. Annual sanitary reports were 
 ordered to be prepared by the various provincial Governments ; 
 these were reviewed by the Government of India and ulti- 
 mately sent to be examined by a Commission of experts in 
 England. The results of these measures were not indeed 
 immediate, but the benefit has after the lapse of some time, 
 proved considerable, and will be greater in the future if only 
 the people themselves can be induced to afford a more intel- 
 ligent co-operation. At all events John Lawrence laid the 
 foundation and may almost be called the father of Indian 
 sanitation. 
 
 When Sir Hugh Eose (Lord Strathnairn) returned to England, 
 
Chap. xiv. HEADQUARTEES OF GOVERNMENT. 819 
 
 his successor was Sir William Mansfield (Lord Sandhurst), who 
 has been mentioned in the previous chapters VIII. and XII. 
 as an eminent commander and military administrator. The 
 Military Secretary to the Government was Colonel (now Sir 
 Henry) Norman, a very able and distinguished officer who 
 had served as Adjutant-General during the siege of Delhi 
 and the Oudh campaign. He enjoyed the entire confidence 
 of Colin Campbell, Lord Clyde, and now had great weight 
 with John Lawrence in all military affairs ; indeed there was 
 none whose advice was valued more than his. 
 
 John Lawrence then considered the questions relating to the 
 localities where the head-quarters of the Government of India 
 might be best established. He knew that an idea was set afloat 
 in those days to the effect that Calcutta \yas out of date as a 
 capital, and the head-quarters of the Government of India 
 might well be fixed elsewhere. Indeed he told me that during 
 liis farewell interview with the Prime Minister (Lord Palmer- 
 ston) before departing from England, allusion was made to this 
 topic. But manifestly to move the local habitation of a vast 
 establishment like that of the Government of India would in- 
 volve an enormous expense ; and he failed to see that the change 
 would produce any corresponding benefit. On the contrary he 
 thought that any change of tliis sort would be for the worse. 
 Calcutta had in his judgment unequalled advantages as the 
 head-quarters of the Supreme Government of India. Though 
 it may be called a sea-port, yet it has a position defended by 
 nature against hostile attacks from the sea. Its situation nearly 
 a hundred miles inland can be approached only by navigating 
 the intricate and dangerous channels of the Hughli river, for 
 which skilled pilots are necessary ; the passage of an enemy 
 can be thus barred with but slight expense. The trade is 
 already very great, and seems likely to grow as much as that 
 of any other place in India. The wealth and populousness 
 of the surrounding territory are unrivalled; and the disposi- 
 tion of the inhabitants is wonderfully peaceful and quiet. 
 While half of India was disturbed during 1857, demanding 
 immense sacrifices yet yielding no revenue, Bengal was for the 
 
320 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME TN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 most part undisturbed and paid its millions into the Govern- 
 ment treasury. While the limbs of the body politic were racked 
 with pain, the vital organs in the centre remained intact, and 
 the pulsation- near the heart was generally, if not always, steady. 
 Although the welfare of the Natives is the primary considera- 
 tion in the mind of the Government, yet it is practically 
 impossible to manage the country without listening to the 
 sentiments and noting the views of the resident European 
 community. Therefore it is essential that during a part of the 
 year the Government of India should reside in some centre of 
 English opinion ; and Calcutta is the largest of existing centres. 
 Eegarding the climate opinions may differ, but those who are 
 acquainted with the whole of India, know that Calcutta having 
 the sea-breezes and some winter cold to be set against the 
 heat of other seasons, presents as many climatic advantages as 
 would be presented by any other place of equal magnitude 
 in the plains of India. Thus John Lawrence gave his voice 
 without hesitation for holding fast to Calcutta ; resolving that 
 his Government should be settled there for at least a part of 
 every year, or during the winter season, when trade and 
 industry are at the highest point of activity, and when the cold 
 weather is favourable to European health. 
 
 But he thought that the Government of India, having duly 
 arranged its sojourn at Calcutta, might with propriety and 
 advantage reside for another part of the year in the cool and 
 refresliing climate of the Himalayas during the summer 
 season when the heat is severe in the plains. He was un- 
 willing to proceed thither alone, and decided that his Council 
 should accompany him. He noted that in former times the 
 frequent and lengthened separation of the Governor-General 
 from liis Council had caused dissatisfaction and complaint, also 
 that the growing bulk variety and intricacy of the public busi- 
 ness must render the despatch of affairs difficult unless the head 
 of the Government and his principal advisers were together. 
 Thus he virtually for the first time established the practice 
 whereby the Government of India, including the Governor- 
 General the Councillors the principal Secretaries, and some of 
 
Chap. xiv. SUMMER RESIDENCE OF GOVERNMENT. 321 
 
 the departmental chiefs, reside through the summer months 
 at Simla in the Himalayas. The current business of all the 
 executive branches is there despatched, and also some part of 
 the legislative business. The law empowers the Governor- 
 General to summon his legislative Council to any place in 
 British India ; legally therefore the Legislature may sit at Simla. 
 In practice, however, at its sittings there the Council takes up 
 only such bills or projects of law as affect the interior of the 
 country, or some special interests of the Natives. But it reserves 
 for its sittings at Calcutta those bills which concern the whole 
 empire, and in respect to which the contact with independent 
 English opinion is desirable. Simla was chosen for the summer 
 residence because it was by far the largest of the many English 
 settlements in the Indian mountains, whether the Himalayas, 
 the ISTilgiris or others. It was the only liill station which could 
 furnish house accommodation for so large an influx of residents 
 and visitors. It was easily accessible by rail and road, even in 
 the height of the rainy season. It also had the most command- 
 ing situation, politically, in the whole Himalayan region, over- 
 looking the ISTorth -western Provinces, close to the Panjab 
 proper, comparatively within reach of the Indus frontier, yet 
 not in too great proximity to points which might be threatened 
 with danger. The Government of India, while sojourning in the 
 mountains, should be near enough to positions of political import- 
 ance, in order to feel the pulse of the empire, without being 
 exposed to actual risk, as the spectacle of the supreme authority 
 being surrounded with danger has a bad effect on the public 
 mind. Simla alone fulfilled all these essential conditions, while 
 some hill stations would have been too small, some too near to 
 troublous localities, others, again, too remote. Succeeding 
 Governors-General have tried to find, but have never succeeded 
 in finding, better situations than Simla, either at Eanikhet 
 near Almora in the Himalayas, at Utacamand in the Nilgiris, 
 or elsewhere ; and experience has fully ratified the choice made 
 by John Lawrence respecting his summer residence. 
 
 The establishment of the Government at Simla as a summer 
 resort seemed at first to be unpopular, or at least to be 
 
 Y 
 
322 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 disliked by the European community at Calcutta. Apprehen- 
 sion was felt by the Anglo-Indian press lest the absence of the 
 State departments from the capital should lessen the oppor- 
 tunities of obtaining accurate knowledge on political and 
 economic subjects, and so shut off the access to official infor- 
 mation. But the dissatisfaction proved to be temporary and 
 transient, and it was soon recognized that the country would 
 pe the gainer if the Government should for a part of the 
 year escape from the disadvantages of a tropical climate, 
 especially as its members would be at the capital during 
 the brisk season, when there is most to be seen heard and 
 learnt. The provincial Government of the Panjab, too, could 
 be summoned to Simla, and thus the Governor-General and 
 his Council would be " en rapport " with one of the most 
 important among the provinces. Simla itself has not, indeed, 
 such important accessories as those possessed by some of the 
 Indian sanitaria. It has no great industries close at hand like 
 the tea cultivation near Darjiling in the eastern Himalayas, 
 or the coffee plantations in the Nilgiris. It is not sur- 
 rounded with very important political associations like Maha- 
 bleshwar in the Deccan. But it is in the midst of the pro- 
 tected Hill States inhabited sparsely by a population not 
 to be surpassed in the whole empire for loyalty and con- 
 tentment. Its scenery is not only attractive to the artist, 
 but also interesting to every man of thought and culture. 
 Its situation is upon a ridge which divides the drainage of the 
 Jamna and the Satlej, and actually constitutes the water-parting 
 for two great seas, namely, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian 
 Ocean. From its summits is to be seen the great view of 
 the Satlej separating the Panjab from the rest of India and 
 passing through a territory marked by decisive events from 
 the days of the early Hindus, the Greek invaders and the 
 Muhammadan conquerors. The imposing aspect of the place 
 and of its neighbourhood elevates the imagination, braces the 
 faculties, and assists the mind in forming large conceptions. 
 The natural beauty is not of an enervating character ; on the 
 contrary, the weather is often severe and the atmospheric 
 phenomena are impressive. Few places so beautiful as Simla 
 
CiiAP. XIV. TENANT-RIGHT IN OUDH. 323 
 
 have seen such great schemes evolved, such grave conjunctures 
 considered, such problems of statesmanship solved. 
 
 Having settled his Government at Simla for the summer and 
 autumn, John Lawrence proceeded with measures for the general 
 good. Foremost among these in his estimation was a revision 
 of the proceedings relating to tenant-right in Oudh. It has 
 been stated in the previous chapter VIII. that Canning had 
 re-established the landed aristocracy of this province, locally- 
 styled the Talukdars, in their rights and status. It was intended 
 that the rights of the occupants and cultivators subordinate to 
 the Talukdars should also be preserved; the belief prevailed 
 in 1859 that in this respect adequate security had been pro- 
 vided ; and Mr. (now Sir Charles) Wingfield was left, as Chief 
 Commissioner, in charge of the administration. Five years 
 having since elapsed, and considerable experience being thus 
 gained, John Lawrence considered that the status of important 
 classes among the cultivators was not being sufficiently pro- 
 tected, and that subsidiary measures for such protection were 
 therefore necessary. Mr. Wingfield, who was still Chief Com- 
 missioner, objected to this view; nevertheless John Lawrence 
 insisted on his measures being carried into effect, and accordingly 
 the rights of these cultivators were secured by arrangements 
 which have subsequently been embodied in a legislative enact- 
 ment. These measures, however, aroused keen opposition in the 
 Governor-General's own Council, and among many influential 
 quarters the question was regarded as one of tenant versus land- 
 lord. At that time the landlord's interest, which was dominant 
 in Bengal, made common cause with the Oudh Talukdars ; in this 
 interest also the mercantile community of Calcutta had much 
 concern. Perhaps as an outcome of the war of the mutinies, an 
 opinion had temporarily settled itself in the public mind to the 
 effect that the Government by unduly supporting subordinate 
 classes had alienated the Native aristocracy. From these and 
 other causes the Anglo-Indian papers warmly espoused the side 
 of the landlords and assailed the Governor-General as the 
 destroyer of property and the breaker of compacts. Then for the 
 first time after landing in India as Governor-General, almost for 
 
 Y 2 
 
824 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 the first time during his long and prosperous career, John Law- 
 rence felt the cold blast of unpopularity alternating with the 
 heat of violent invective. There were also signs to shew that the 
 controversy, if settled in India, would be revived in England, 
 and that there the position taken up by the Governor-General 
 might be menaced. I met John Lawrence about that time, and 
 he seemed to think that the outlook of the affair was doubtful. 
 He trusted that the Secretary of State (then Sir Charles Wood) 
 would support him, and he was thankful for the confidence 
 reposed in his policy. But if he should not be sustained in his 
 measures regarding Oudh, he was prepared to resign his high 
 office rather than yield the points under discussion. He held 
 that the question was one of justice or injustice towards some of 
 the industrious and deserving, though humble, classes of British 
 subjects ; that if he were prevented from giving effect to what 
 he knew to be right, he would prefer to retire. In the sequel he 
 was, despite the controversial excitement of the hour, generously 
 sustained by the Secretary of State. "Without resuscitating the 
 arguments of the time on either side, it must be held that experi- 
 ence has justified the steps then taken regarding tenant-right on 
 behalf of certain classes. The only question nowadays remain- 
 ing is not whether those steps went too far, but whether they 
 went far enough. If a revision were now to take place, addi- 
 tional classes would be included in the privileges then conceded ; 
 and the benefits would be extended in a manner which might 
 have gladdened the heart of John Lawrence if he could, under 
 the circumstances of his day, have adopted it. 
 
 Subsequently he found that the rights secured to several 
 classes of cultivators in the Panjab during the settlement of that 
 province, as explained in chapters IV. and V., were being 
 seriously threatened. Again he came forward as a protector, 
 and after a long discussion procured the passing of a law through 
 the Legislative Council for the preservation of tenant-right in 
 the Panjab under legal definitions. Having, as a member of 
 the Legislature, been placed in charge of the bill for this pur- 
 pose during its passage through the Council, I am able to attest 
 the earnestness of his convictions on this point. 
 
Chap. xtv. THE PERMANENT SETTLEMENT. 325 
 
 He desired, however, to be the friend not only of the tenants, 
 but also of land-owners of all grades, from the peasant pro- 
 prietor to the large landlord. During his residence in England, 
 when serving in the Council of the Secretary of State, he had 
 become impressed with a conviction of the advantages secured to 
 the country by that part of the Bengal Permanent Settlement 
 which limited for ever the Government demand on account of 
 the land-tax. This view was doubtless in consonance with the 
 English ideas which he may have gathered, but that he should 
 have entertained it may appear strange to many on a considera- 
 tion of his antecedents. He did not adopt the policy without 
 grave reasons. He would adduce as arguments, the augmenta- 
 tion in the value of landed property consequent on the limita- 
 tion of the land-tax for ever, — the confidence thereby infused 
 into the minds of the great land-holding class in India, and the 
 stability accruing in consequence to British rule, — the strong 
 conservative element thus created and rendered by the strongest 
 interest inimical to any revolution or change in the ruling 
 power. Under a Permanent Settlement there was nothing, in 
 his opinion, to prevent the conservation of all the subordinate 
 rights of which some had been sacrificed when the Bengal 
 settlement was first made. The fiscal errors of that settle- 
 ment were not forgotten by him, for indeed he knew that 
 many large tracts assessed for ever with a small sum, because 
 they were then but little cultivated, have since become entirely 
 cultivated. Thus on such tracts the land revenue is so rela- 
 tively light as to be almost nominal, whereby injustice arises 
 both to the national interests and to the fully assessed tax- 
 payers in other places. Such errors, he hoped, could in future 
 be avoided by extending the perpetual assessment only to those 
 tracts in which the agricultural resources are fully developed, 
 and by granting the boon of a permanent settlement solely on 
 the condition of the agriculture having attained to that 
 degree of excellence which could fairly be expected. "With this 
 condition he was ready to propose the extension of the Perma- 
 nent Settlement to the best cultivated districts in the empire. 
 This very condition, however, proved to be the rock upon which 
 
326 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 the proposal split. For the question arose, what are the tracts 
 or what the villages where the agriculture can be said to have 
 reached that degree of excellence which may fairly be expected. 
 The average yield of produce in India is small as compared 
 with that of European countries, and will, as all men hope, be 
 augmented hereafter, though the prospect of such augmentation 
 is not at this moment visible. Besides all ordinary means of im- 
 provement resulting from the outlay of capital on the land, there 
 are the special means arising from irrigation. Now this irriga- 
 tion is fast expanding in India and may yet indefinitely expand. 
 Thus its effects upon the condition of whole provinces may prove 
 greater than anything which is now foreseen. Then a difficult 
 discussion arose as to what districts or tracts could reasonably be 
 pronounced ripe for a Permanent Settlement ; and the proposal 
 was held in abeyance. Meanwhile adverse opinions sprang up 
 in many quarters, so the idea failed to take any practical shape. 
 But the episode is remarkable as shewing how broad were John 
 Lawrence's sympathies and how receptive was his mind for 
 suggestions of future improvement. 
 
 About this time, 1865, the treaty made with the Bhotan 
 State after the termination of the hostilities already mentioned, 
 became the theme of acrimonious discussion. It was thought 
 by many influential sections of the Anglo-Indian community 
 to involve a sacrifice of the just interests which the British 
 Government had acquired after troublesome operations ren- 
 dered necessary by barbaric misbehaviour. The newspaper 
 press clamoured against John Lawrence, as having failed 
 to sustain the national cause entrusted to him for vindication. 
 He was not insensible to the sting inflicted by these reproaches, 
 and strove to give all the explanation which public opinion 
 could reasonably require, but without much avail so far as the 
 popularity of the Government was concerned. I was present 
 when the dissatisfaction was at its height, without having full 
 means of judging for myself. Subsequently, however, when 
 conducting the Government of Bengal, I had the best possible 
 opportunity of seeing the merits of the case on the spot, and I 
 can affn^m that the terms exacted by John Lawrence from 
 
Chap. xiv. THE FAMINE IN ORISSA. 327 
 
 Bhotan, so far from being inadequate, were ample for the 
 maintenance of British interests in that quarter. As a punish- 
 ment for misdeeds the Bhotan State had to cede the sub- 
 Himalayan tracts, the finest in all its territory — tracts which 
 are now being fast dotted with European tea-gardens — and to 
 receive in return a cash subsidy from the British treasury. 
 Under the altered conditions of Bhotan, these payments con- 
 stitute an important item in its income, so that this State is to 
 some extent depending on a pensionary maintenance. 
 
 John Lawrence's next trouble was the famine in Orissa, 
 which probably caused him more grief than any other event 
 during his rule. I was not present mth him at the time, but 
 meeting him afterwards I heard fully his views regarding that 
 grave misfortune. The drought occurred one year and the people 
 bore it ; but it continued during the second and also the third 
 year ; then towards the end of the third year heavy rains in the 
 neighbouring hills caused inundation to submerge the remnant of 
 the crops ; thus in his own expressive words, " that which the 
 drought spared the floods drowned." At an early period of the 
 drought he had been uneasy lest famine should supervene ; but 
 he was assured by the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Cecil Beadon, 
 who had gone to the spot in order to make personal enquiries, 
 that the danger would pass away, and he accepted though with 
 hesitation the assurance from so responsible a functionary. He 
 thus deferred for a while the remedial measures which he would 
 otherwise have adopted ; indeed he afterwards took blame to 
 liimself on this account. Soon famine appeared unmistakeably 
 in its worst form, and then the Government put forth strenuous 
 efforts, which proved however too late to save life. The famish- 
 ing people were either dead, or past recovery, before the succour 
 reached them. The elements also warred against the relieving 
 forces of the State and grain-laden ships were kept tossing about 
 within sight of shore unable to land their cargoes. 
 
 This misfortune gave an impulse to the policy which John 
 Lawrence had desired from the outset to pursue, namely, that 
 of hastening the construction of railways and canals. If the 
 Government was to assume the responsibility, never fully 
 
328 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 assumed during former times in India, for saving the lives of a 
 large population threatened with death from famine, there must 
 be railways to carry the surplus grain from productive tracts, 
 for replenishing the gaps which drought might cause in the 
 supplies of other tracts. There must also be canals to utilize 
 the available waters for the irrigation of the land in a climate 
 where the rainfall is in some years abundant, but in other 
 years scanty or unseasonable. It would have been easy, how- 
 ever, to pronounce that the progress of railways and canals 
 ought to be promoted ; the real difficulty was to provide the 
 financial means for carrying on such works. There had been 
 no let or hindrance in this respect with the railways for which 
 the capital had been found by certain Companies under a State 
 guarantee of interest, as explained in the previous chapter VI. on 
 Dalhousie's administration. But for all other works of public 
 utility the principle had been followed of funds being furnished 
 from ordinary revenue. Tliis principle was justly appKed 
 to buildings civil and military, and to roads upon which no 
 tolls were levied. But it was never properly applicable to 
 canals which would yield returns in water-rent, and for which 
 the ordinary revenues could never supply the funds, however 
 necessary the works might be. Nevertheless, the cost of even 
 the grandest canals had been defrayed from current revenue, 
 and whenever, on depletion of the Treasury, money had been 
 unavoidably borrowed in order to prosecute the works, the 
 amount had been reckoned as financial deficit. If, again, the 
 State desired, as it reasonably might desire, to construct some 
 of the future railways, through its own agency direct instead of 
 through the medium of guaranteed railway companies, the 
 funds could not be provided from the ordinary revenues. 
 
 John La^Tence then held that the example of all the most 
 civilized countries justified India in raising loans for the per- 
 manent improvement of the country by canals of irrigation and 
 by railways to be constructed under State agency. The ordinary 
 revenues were to defray the interest on the loans thus raised, 
 and to be credited with the net receipts of the works after 
 the working expenses had been defrayed. But the capital 
 
Chap. xiv. REVISION OF OFFICIAL SALARIES. 329 
 
 expenditure from the loan funds was to be treated as extra- 
 ordinary and separate from the yearly budget of ordinary 
 expenditure. A careful forecast was made of the amount 
 required to be laid out on canals and State railways during a 
 cycle of coming years. It was for this amount that loans were 
 to be raised. Thus John Lawrence introduced this principle into 
 Indian finances and established it with firmness. It was further 
 developed by his successors, and though often assailed by some 
 financial critics, it has held and will doubtless continue to hold 
 its ground. When properly applied, it proves as safe in India 
 as in all other civilized countries, and is essential to the im- 
 provement of the national estate committed to the charge of the 
 British Government. 
 
 In all matters relating to the finance of public works and 
 the progress of material improvement he derived professional 
 assistance of the utmost value from Colonel Eichard Strachey 
 of the Corps of Engineers, an officer of great capacity for the 
 comprehensive grasp of such affairs. 
 
 As affecting the economic condition of the country, the 
 results of the American civil war gave a violent stimulus to the 
 production of cotton, especially in the centre and west of the 
 empire, already shewn by the previous chapter XII. on western 
 India. This event, combined with the construction of railways, 
 the influx of European capital and the general movement of 
 affairs since the war of the mutinies, caused a remarkable rise 
 in the prices of agricultural produce and other staples, the like 
 of which had never been seen before in India. Money seemed 
 to lose its purchasing power, and in many districts the neces- 
 saries of life were obtainable only at famine prices, despite 
 abundance of harvests. The poor were in some respects 
 pinched thereby, but for the most part recouped themselves by 
 augmented wages ; and for all industrial and trading classes, 
 high or lowly, there was brisk business and plenty of employ- 
 ment. But all classes, that had fixed incomes, suffered un- 
 avoidably ; and foremost among these were the servants of 
 Government in various grades, except those who received ample 
 salaries. An augmentation of the pay and allowances of all grades 
 
330 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xiv, 
 
 save the highest throughout the country became necessary ; the 
 task was difficult, as the number and variety of classes and 
 departments must always be extraordinarily great in such an- 
 empire as tliis. It was performed by John Lawrence's 
 Government with patient assiduity, with much consideration 
 towards those concerned, and yet with faithful regard to public 
 economy. 
 
 The rapid increase in the value of cotton, and the extraordi- 
 nary exportation of that staple in consequence, gave birth to 
 a hydra-headed speculation, which has been explained in the 
 previous chapter XII. on western India. The ruin wliich 
 usually follows in such cases, came in this case swiftly, on 
 the cessation of war in America. For a climax to the mis- 
 fortune, the Bank of Bombay became involved in danger ; and 
 as this institution was connected with the State, its condition 
 caused the liveliest concern not only to the Government of 
 Bombay, but to the Government of India. John Lawrence 
 ■ and his advisers did what they could to arrest the downward 
 course and avert the catastrophe. After all, the Bank fell, 
 causing loss more or less severe to many constituents who, 
 relying on the Government connection, justly thought them- 
 selves safe when resorting to the Bank. Consequently much 
 excitement arose in India, wliich extended to England, and 
 formed the subject of a discussion in the House of Commons. 
 Then a commission of enquiry was formed, which, after making 
 full enquiries and distributing blame amongst many authorities, 
 remarked upon the steadiness and carefulness displayed by 
 the Government of India under John La^^'rence during that 
 troublous time. 
 
 In respect to moral progress, John La^^Tence pursued the 
 same policy regarding education as that already described in 
 chapter V. relating to the Panjab. For high education he 
 allowed the universities wdiich had been established by law 
 to work out their views tending towards instruction in classics 
 and literature rather than in physical science. He interested 
 himself much regarding primary education for the humbler 
 classes, and the extension of village schools. This sort of 
 
CuAP, XIV. DR. GEOEGE COTTON, BISHOP OF CALCUTTA. 331 
 
 education made considerable progress during his time in all 
 parts of the empire save Bengal. 
 
 He rejoiced to mark the progress of Christian missions belong- 
 ing to all Protestant denominations. This progress he deemed 
 to be very considerable, and to be fraught with results that 
 ought to stimulate the zeal of the Church in Great Britain. He 
 placed a liigh value on the labours of the missionaries as bringing 
 about the conversion of large numbers among tribes that had 
 not yet fallen under any one of the dominant religions in 
 the East, and diffusing by means of education the leaven of 
 Christian morality among the masses of the rising generation. 
 He held also that the existence of the missions, and the example 
 set by the lives of the missionaries, produced a good effect poli- 
 tically, by raising the national repute of Englishmen in the 
 esteem of the Natives. His private munificence was ever flow- 
 ing in tliis direction; and though he was most guarded and 
 discreet in his public utterances and his official conduct, yet 
 the knowledge that the cause of missions had the heartiest of 
 friends in the head of the Government did inflame the zeal of 
 the benevolent, and cheer the missionaries in their work. 
 
 By his life and conversation he gave a never-failing support 
 to the Bishops and clergy in the discharge of their sacred func- 
 tions ; and his example was a rallying-point around which all 
 influences for good would gather. The Bishop of Calcutta and 
 Metropolitan in India at that time was George Edward Lynch 
 Cotton, who had been one of the masters at Eugby under 
 Arnold, and afterwards head-master of Marlborough school. 
 Since his arrival in India the Bishop had made a lasting im- 
 pression upon the minds of the Anglo-Indian community, and 
 fully sustained the moral influence which is accorded to the 
 episcopal office in British India as much as anywhere in Chris- 
 tendom. His work had extended to many spheres of action ; 
 but there was one object for which he thought much reinained 
 to be done, and with wliich he accordingly identified liimself. 
 This was the provision of educational means in the Himalayas for 
 European and East Indian children. Since the introduction of 
 railways, and the general progress of affairs after the war of the 
 
332 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 mutinies, the number of these children had increased greatly. 
 The old existing institutions in the plains were inadequate, and 
 Bishop Cotton wished to found fresh or additional ones in the 
 hills. The climate of the Himalayas seemed to him very suit- 
 able for tliis purpose, and he procured the establishment of 
 several schools at the Himalayan stations, which institutions 
 were called after him "the Bishop's schools." He was snatched 
 away in the midst of his usefulness in October 1866 by a lament- 
 able accident, while making a tour in northern Bengal. Having 
 consecrated a cemetery, and given to the few persons gathered 
 together an address with allusions to death and the future life, 
 he was about to cross the Ganges in a steamer. Accordingly 
 he went to the river-side where the steamer was moored, and 
 while walking along a plank, which had been thrown across 
 from the bank to the deck, he stumbled and fell into the water. 
 The stream with its under-currents sucked him in so that he 
 never was seen again. He was mourned as a gifted prelate 
 whose vacant place it would be difficult to refill. His successor 
 was Eobert Milman, who brought to his high position much 
 experience gained as a parish priest in England. 
 
 The work of scientific legislation made more progress during 
 John Lawrence's time than at any previous epoch. The Legis- 
 lative Councils, as already seen in chapter VIII., had been con- 
 stituted several years previously, and were in full working 
 order. When they had been constituted it was decided to have 
 a member of the Government of India, who should be charged 
 specially with the business of legislation. Accordingly in 1861, 
 William Eitchie was appointed Legislative Member. He died 
 soon afterwards, and his funeral was one of the first occasions 
 on which Lord Elgin appeared in public at Calcutta. 
 
 To him succeeded Henry Sumner Maine (now Sir Henry) 
 who served throughout the incumbency of Lord Elgin, and 
 also of John Lawrence. The reputation which Maine had 
 won as the author of several works which had made their 
 mark on the literature of the age, secured for him public 
 respect and favour from the day he landed. He will always 
 be remembered as one of the most intellectually accom- 
 
Chap. xiv. HENRY MAINE AND LEGISLATION. 333 
 
 plished men that ever assisted in the counsels of India. His 
 experience as a jurist, and the wide scope of his studies re- 
 garding the origin of laws and the structure of society, quali- 
 fied him in the highest degree for the work of an Indian 
 legislator at this time. Some notable laws, such as the Penal 
 Code, had indeed been already enacted ; but a mass of impor- 
 tant subjects remained to be brought under scientific legislation. 
 For some little time (that is since 1861) a Commission had been 
 sitting in England to prepare drafts of law for the assistance 
 of the legislature in India. It was accordingly engaged in 
 preparing drafts of important Acts, such as the Civil Procedure, 
 the Criminal Procedure, the Contract Act, the Evidence Act, 
 the Negotiable Securities Bill, and the Transfer of Property Bill. 
 These drafts used to be transmitted to India from time to time, 
 and Maine then had to consider them in principle and detail, 
 consulting the members of the Legislative Council and other 
 well-informed persons on all points where the peculiar customs 
 or circumstances of India might be concerned. He gave useful 
 advice to the Governor-General regarding the composition of 
 the Legislative Council, by the appointment of really represen- 
 tative men to be members of it. Eor its staff he obtained the 
 services of "V\Tutley Stokes, who soon proved himself to possess a 
 talent for drafting laws, and to whose skill and technical know- 
 ledge the Indian legislature is greatly indebted. John LaAvrence 
 gave consistent help to this work, and presided regularly at the 
 sittings of the Legislative Council of the Governor-General. 
 
 Besides his special work of legislation Maine took part in the 
 general business of the administration as a member of the Govern- 
 ment of India. He was not expected to give more than a cursory 
 attention to such departments as war, finance, or public works ; 
 but every question that involved considerations of law, of rights 
 or privileges, of general principle affecting either British terri- 
 tories or Native States, was referred to him for opinion. Further, 
 he rendered assistance in respect of high education ; for several 
 years he served as Vice-Chancellor of the Calcutta University, 
 and at the annual convocations delivered orations which were long 
 remembered for their graceful eloquence and literary culture. 
 
334 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiV 
 
 A revision of the rules regarding leave in India and furlough 
 to Europe, for the three great classes of the Government, namely, 
 the Indian Army, the Covenanted Civil Service, and the Un- 
 covenanted Service, had been pending for some time before John 
 Lawrence's arrival. Knowing well the bearings of this many- 
 sided question, he resolved to settle it in a manner befitting the 
 merits of the public servants whose labours and efforts he 
 had witnessed in so many fields of action. He accordingly 
 appointed the most competent persons in India to frame 
 suitable sets of rules which he induced the Government in 
 England to sanction with but slight modification. The simple 
 record of this great fact affords no idea of the attention he per- 
 sonally gave to the multiform and often complex details which 
 involved many conflicting considerations. The rules were de- 
 manded by the requirements of the age and would sooner or 
 later have been passed, at least in their essentials, whoever had 
 been Governor-General. But it is to the sympathy, the trained 
 intelligence, the knowledge and experience of John Lawrence, 
 that these great branches of the public service owe the speedy 
 concession, in so acceptable a manner, of the boons which these 
 rules bestow. 
 
 .The finances caused anxiety to John Lawrence from the first, 
 even to the last day of his incumbency. Such anxiety has been 
 common to every Governor-General, and to its pressure is 
 partly owing that substantial success which, despite many 
 vicissitudes and occasional failures, has crowned' the efforts of 
 Indian financiers. Sir Charles Trevelyan was then Finance 
 Minister in succession to Samuel Laing. He had, while 
 Governor of Madras, as already mentioned, strenuously opposed 
 Wilson's income-tax, and had quitted India in consequence. 
 Eeturning to the country in a financial capacity he found 
 the tax in full operation for a five years' term, of which a por- 
 tion had yet to run. With due prudence and considerateness, 
 he refrained from urging any radical change respecting the tax ; 
 but he could hardly be expected to recommend its prolongation 
 or re-imposition on the expiry of its term in 1865. John Law- 
 rence meanwhile had determined to raise loans if necessary for 
 
Chap. xiv. SIR CDARLES TREYELYAX AXD FINANCE. 335 
 
 the completion of the barracks. He foresaw that money must 
 be borrowed for carrying into effect the general schemes of 
 canals and state railways, whereby the annual charges for 
 interest defrayable from ordinary revenues would be much 
 augmented. He therefore anticipated with regret the cessation 
 of the income-tax, and would gladly have on its expiry renewed 
 it for another term. His colleagues were, however, opposed to 
 the renewal, and under the circumstances he found himself 
 unable to insist upon it. He then assented to a proposal of 
 Sir Charles Trevelyan in 1865 for imposing duties on certain 
 articles exported from India. Though doubtless aware of the 
 objections that would be raised against such duties, he yielded 
 to the argument that the articles to be thus taxed, jute, 
 wool, tea, coffee, were well able to bear the impost. "When the 
 duties were imposed by him, the measure aroused opposition and 
 was disallowed by the Secretary of State. Thus his Govern- 
 ment was deprived of a fiscal resource at a time when the 
 finances were temporarily in deficit. He felt the force of the 
 reasons wliich induced the Secretary of State to prohibit the 
 levy of these duties. Still he said that in one matter, that of the 
 income-tax, he had been opposed by his colleagues in India, 
 and in another matter, that of the export duties, he had failed 
 to obtain the support of his superior in England. 
 
 Sir Charles Trevelyan was succeeded in 1866 by the Eight 
 Honourable William Massey, who had been well known in 
 Parliament as the Chairman of Committees, and in literature 
 as the historian of the reign of George the Tliird. For that 
 year no fresh measure for raising additional taxation was 
 attempted. But during the next year, 1867, Massey introduced 
 a measure for imposing a license-tax on trades and professions, 
 mainly on the ground that the returns of the late income-tax 
 shewed what large classes of persons tbere were who, though 
 engaged in lucrative occupations, contributed little or nothing 
 to the revenue. The principle of the measure comprised nothing 
 new; as shewn in previous chapters it had been embodied 
 in an Act before Wilson's time, was brought forward by 
 Wilson himself, and reproduced by Laing. The European 
 
336 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 community that had paid the income-tax so cheerfully would, it 
 was hoped, acquiesce in a license-duty wliich is an income-tax 
 though in a rough shape and with very light incidence. At 
 Calcutta, however, violent opposition arose; a public meeting 
 was held in the Town Hall, and the cheers which greeted the 
 orators were, it was said, loud enough to be heard in Govern- 
 ment House close by. John Lawrence, however, held firm, 
 and tliis time was supported by the Secretary of State ; so the 
 license-tax was collected during that year, 1867-8, and the 
 following year, 1868-9, that is up to the close of his adminis- 
 tration. 
 
 As regards the general result financially, during the five years 
 of John Lawrence's incumbency there were 5^ millions sterling 
 of deficit and 2f millions of surplus, leaving a net deficit of 
 2J millions. This net deficit arose from his outlay already 
 mentioned, upon European barracks, and by the increased 
 expenditure upon irrigation or other works of material im- 
 provement. He caused nearly 5 millions to be spent on the 
 barracks out of the total sum of 10 millions estimated for the 
 completion of the scheme. Out of the expenditure which he 
 sanctioned for irrigation works a portion would, according to 
 present rules, be charged in the " extraordinary " account, and 
 not appear in the net deficit at all. But this net deficit 
 as stated above, is taken from the public accounts which have 
 become historical. He himself always insisted that there really 
 was financial deficit in his time, assigning this as a reason why 
 he ought to be better supported in imposing the necessary taxa- 
 tion. He was zealously determined to house and lodge the 
 European troops properly, as well as to promote works of irriga- 
 tion and State railways. For these purposes he was prepared to 
 impose taxation if the ordinary revenue should prove insufficient, 
 otherwise there was no alternative but to provide the funds 
 by loan, or, what is the same thing, to incur deficit on this 
 account, which deficit has to be made up by borrowing. 
 During his time accordingly the public debt was augmented by 
 6^ millions sterling, which is fully explained by the barracks 
 and canals. He was a hard man of business in respect to 
 
Chap. xiv. JOHN LAWRENCE AND THE INCOME-TAX. 337 
 
 finance, for which indeed he had a more than ordinary aptitude, 
 and if he could have pursued his own way untrammelled, he 
 would have allowed no deficit, notwithstanding the large outlay 
 on material improvement. But although frugal thrifty and 
 economical in respect to public expenditure, he was neither 
 niggardly nor short-sighted. No man ever understood better 
 than he did the manifold needs of India and the financial 
 means whereby alone they can be supplied. In order to afford 
 these means he thought that the income-tax ought to have been 
 maintained for a time, and the fact of his thus thinking affords 
 additional proof of the wisdom of Wilson in proposing the 
 income-tax in 1860. The great economist from England and 
 the great Anglo-Indian statesman thought the same in this 
 matter, and the presumption was strong that a financial maxim 
 upon which John Lawrence and James Wilson were agreed, 
 must be right for their time at least. 
 
 During the last few months of John Lawrence's incumbency 
 I became Financial Member of Council. He was himself about 
 to depart, and he enjoined me to cause the income-tax to be 
 reimposed if that should be found possible. Otherwise he 
 anticipated trouble for Indian financiers; the deficit would 
 continue ; the country absolutely needed improvement, and yet 
 it was difiicult to induce the wealthier classes to undergo 
 the necessary sacrifices. These views sometimes gave a gloomy 
 tinge to his conversation regarding finance. I promised him, 
 however, that no effort should be spared in the pursuit of his 
 principles, declaring that if possible deficit should be overcome 
 and surplus secured. The next chapter will show how this 
 promise was fulfilled during the succeeding years. 
 
 The close of his administration was brightened by the suc- 
 cessful issue of the expedition against Magdala, the capital and 
 stronghold of King Theodorus in Abyssinia. He rejoiced at 
 his old friend Sir Eobert Napier (now Lord Napier of Mag- 
 dala), the Commander-in-Chief of the Bombay Army, being 
 appointed by Her Majesty to command the expeditionary force, 
 and he willingly placed at Napier's disposal the troops, the 
 materiel and other resources lielonging to India. 
 
 z 
 
338 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 During these years he saw as much of the Natives as his 
 preoccupation with state affairs would allow, being ever desirous 
 to refresh his knowledge by conversing with them. He was 
 the only Grovernor-General permanently appointed since the 
 beginning of the century who could speak with the ISTatives in 
 the Hindustani and Persian languages. His ceremonial recep- 
 tions and levees (durbars) had for the Natives a peculiar signifi- 
 cance because the Governor-General's address was delivered, 
 not as usual in English, with a translation by the Foreign 
 Secretary, but in the vernacular. 
 
 In his relations with the Natives and indeed with all classes 
 of the community, European and other, he received judicious 
 aid from his able and popular Private Secretary, Mr. (now Sir 
 James) Gordon, who became afterwards Chief Commissioner 
 of Mysore. 
 
 He greatly encouraged Mr. (now Sir Charles) Aitchison in 
 the compilation of that extensive work which comprises all 
 treaties between the British Government and the Native States, 
 together with an historical resume for each state. 
 
 Throughout his incumbency the foreign affairs of India in- 
 volved much diplomatic correspondence without requiring any 
 decisive action except in the rupture with Bhotan. 
 
 The affairs of the Persian Gulf were in those days very ably 
 managed by the Government of Bombay, of which Sir Bartle 
 Frere was the head ; and Colonel (now Sir Lewis) Pelly was 
 Eesident at Bushire, the principal sea-port of Persia. On the 
 shore of the Gulf lay the territory of the Sultan of Muscat, who 
 was an ally, and in some respects a dependant, of the British 
 Government, and was troubled by the encroaching. Wahabi 
 power that had established itself in Arabia. The Sultan was 
 virtually protected by some naval operations, and also by 
 energetic diplomacy, for the sake of which Pelly himself made 
 an enterprising journey into the heart of Arabia. John Law- 
 rence's action tended somewhat to moderate these proceedings ; 
 in the end, however, the position of Muscat was vindicated, and 
 the Wahabi Arabs were restrained. In succession to Frere the 
 Eight Honourable (now Sir Seymour) Fitzgerald became 
 
Chap. xiv. THE AFGHAN RULER AND HIS PEOPLE. 339 
 
 Governor of Bombay, and devoted much attention to British 
 interests in the Persian Gulf. Under liim the police of the sea 
 was maintained by naval force, piracy was stamped out wherever 
 it appeared, the pearl-fisheries were protected, the Arab chiefs 
 were kept in check, and Turkish encroachment was prevented. 
 Thus was consolidated a power which, extending from Basra 
 in Mesopotamia to the mouth of the Eed Sea, gives England 
 the command of one of the most valuable situations in Asia. 
 
 In Afghanistan after the death of Dost Muhammad the suc- 
 cession was only for a brief time undisputed and became after- 
 wards desperately disputed with fratricidal contests. There were 
 then two rulers in Afghanistan, each holding a part of the 
 country. John Lawrence refrained from any attempt to interfere 
 or even mediate between them, maintaining friendly communica- 
 tions with both, but without indicating any preference for either. 
 He obtained the fullest information regarding the battles, plots, 
 triumphs, ilights, many of which were fraught with moving 
 incidents. As none could foresee to which party the victory 
 would ultimately incline, he judiciously waited until one or 
 other should remain uppermost in the struggle and become the 
 de facto ruler. He was willing to accord British support, 
 moral or material, to the ruler who might have so far proved 
 successful. 
 
 Never was the proverbial fitfulness of the Afghan people 
 more manifest than at that time. Their Amir might well 
 address them in the words of the poet : 
 
 " Who would wish to rule 
 This changeling crowd * * * 
 Fantastic, fickle, fierce and vain, 
 Thou many-headed monster thing ; 
 Oh ! who would wish to be thy king !" 
 
 The proceedings of Kussia in Central Asia were watched by 
 John Lawrence with unceasing vigilance, especially as the Khan 
 of Bokhara was striving to shake off the Eussian yoke. As 
 these vain strivings only caused the Eussian power to be 
 fastened more firmly than ever on Bokhara, he scrupulously 
 abstained from allowing the Khan to hope for British assist- 
 
 z 2 
 
340 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 ance, and preserved a loyally amicable attitude towards Eussia. 
 But he felt anxiety in respect to the possible bearing of 
 these affairs upon Afghanistan. His reply to the Khan of 
 Bokhara, who had sent an envoy to Calcutta to beg for alliance, 
 is a model of the frank language which should be used by the 
 representatives of one great empire in reference to a neigh- 
 bouring empire of equal rank. 
 
 In relation to Southern Afghanistan, the Governor of Bombay, 
 Sir Bartle Frere, submitted proposals for the occupation of 
 Quettainthe Khelat territory by a British garrison. The object 
 was to secure the line of communication by the Bolan pass 
 against any possible invader, this pass being the second while 
 the Khyber near Peshawar was the first, of the two main lines 
 by which India could be approached from Central Asia. These 
 proposals had been originated by the late General John Jacob, 
 whose name had become historic on the Sind frontier, and were 
 now taken up by his successor Sir Henry Green. They were 
 however decisively rejected by John Lawrence and his col- 
 leagues. 
 
 A revolution occurred in Chinese Tartary, including Yarkand, 
 Kashgar and Khoten ; the Muhammadans rose and overpowered 
 the Chinese ; then the Muhammadan chief sent an embassy to 
 Calcutta to ask for an offensive and defensive alliance against 
 Eussia and China. John Lawrence sent the envoy back across 
 the Himalayas with a polite but absolute refusal. 
 
 All this time the rapid development of Eussian power in 
 Kokand and Bokhara inspired the public mind throughout India 
 with alarm. Sensible and reflective men did not grudge Eussia 
 any advantages she might acquire in that quarter, provided that 
 she stopped there. They feared however that her conquest 
 there would prove but the prelude to movements towards 
 Afghanistan with the view of indirectly menacing India. 
 Indeed they could not conceive why Eussia, having dominions 
 already more vast than she could manage or even adequately 
 occupy, should persist in making these fresh acquisitions at a 
 greater financial cost than her embarrassed treasury could 
 afford — unless there were some ulterior object. This object 
 
Chap. xiv. APPREHENSIONS REGARDING AFGHANISTAN. 341 
 
 must they supposed relate to India, and therefore they became 
 uneasy. Invasion was not dreaded by them, but much of 
 Russia's conduct seemed unfriendly and they felt themselves 
 obliged to regard her as a possible enemy that was gradually 
 sapping and mining towards the Indian citadel, though the assault 
 would not be delivered yet awhile, or might perhaps be put off 
 indefinitely. They did not suggest that the Government of India 
 should make any counter movements in Afghanistan ; for they 
 believed that it had better stay within its own borders, and that 
 to enter into Afghan entanglements would make matters worse. 
 But they hoped that the Government in England would see to 
 this, and would arrive at some understanding with Eussia, to be 
 sustained, not by vague or insufficient promises, but by definite 
 assurances which could hardly be broken or evaded. 
 
 Others there were who thought they discerned in certain 
 emissaries and a few soldiers who had shewn themselves at 
 certain points on or near the Oxus, the videttes of an approach- 
 ing Eussian army on its march for Caubul. Information to this 
 effect used to be disseminated in India, nobody knew how ; it 
 perhaps came from one or other of the contending factions in 
 Afghanistan in order that the British might be stirred to inter- 
 fere in the contentions. These extreme opinions were ridiculed 
 by most people and the apprehensions founded thereon were 
 easily shown to be futile. 
 
 Some authorities made light even of the moderate fears which 
 were entertained regarding ulterior contingencies rather than 
 immediate danger. They would say that in the first place 
 Eussia would probably never push her border forwards till it 
 met the British Indian limits ; and that even if she did so, such 
 an event would not really be injurious to India. This view, 
 however, did not commend itself even to the most sober-minded 
 classes. The truth seemed to be that those who held such a 
 view were really at fault (as well they might be) respecting 
 what ought to be done to counteract the danger. They appa- 
 rently sought to decry the said danger, trying to shew first that 
 it would never happen, and that even if it happened its conse- 
 quences would not prove serious. If this really were the idea. 
 
342 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 then it was a manifestly unsatisfactory recommendation for the 
 treatment of a national difficulty. 
 
 Suggestions in various ways were constantly made to John 
 Lawrence urging him to be up and doing, also warning him 
 against lethargy lest some day he should wake up to find that 
 the safety of India had been compromised. These suggestions 
 generally took the form of proposing the despatch of officers 
 to Afghanistan to obtain information and help the Afghan 
 ruler to organize his forces. No impression whatever was 
 made hereby on John Lawrence's judgment ; yet he feared 
 lest this constant stream of suggestions from India should affect 
 public opinion, and lest he should some day be required by 
 directions from England to take steps for which he did not see 
 his way. There was on his part no blindness to the contin- 
 gencies which might eventually arise from the position of 
 Eussia in Asia ; indeed no man had a deeper insight into 
 these things than he. Still he desired if possible to keep his 
 countrymen quiet, because there was nothing that could be 
 properly done from India. Here was a case wherein the 
 maxim, when in doubt do nothing, had a peculiar significance. 
 
 I had not become the Foreign Secretary as yet, being still 
 in the Central Provinces or in the Deccan. The officer who 
 practically had the charge of the official papers relating to 
 Afghanistan was Mr. John Wyllie, a very talented and accom- 
 plished man. He wrote an interesting article, subsequently 
 avowed as his, in the Udinhurgh Review of January, 1867, on 
 the foreign policy of John Lawrence. In that article he stated 
 that respecting Eussia this policy tended towards " a masterly 
 inactivity." Seldom has a phrase been so caught up for praise 
 or blame as this was at the time, though the blame prepon- 
 derated. It may have comprised something of truth and of 
 political expediency ; still it had an admixture of error, and 
 was sure to be misconstrued by the majority of the public. As 
 is usual with unfortunate phrases, it clung to those concerned in 
 its production. Wyllie afterwards by an article in the FortnigMly 
 Beview defended his use of the expression ; still the words were 
 to be regretted, as they were likely to detract from John 
 
Chap. xiv. RUSSIAN ADVANCE IN CENTRAL ASIA. 343 
 
 Lawrence's influence with many of his countrymen, an influ- 
 ence which at that time it was specially desirable to maintain. 
 
 I shortly afterwards joined the Government of India as Foreign 
 Secretary. Afghanistan was once more forcing itself upon the 
 Governor-General's attention, because the internecine strife of 
 several years had ended in finally confirming Shir Ali as Amir of 
 the whole dominion handed down by Dost Muhammad to his heirs. 
 
 John Lawrence was then reviewing the whole case as it 
 had, after some eventful years, become developed into its 
 existing shape. He called to mind how Eussia had after the 
 Crimean War subdued the Caucasian region with a great effort, 
 and next advanced from another direction upon Kokand or 
 Ferghana, thence pressing on to Samarkand and Bokhara, while 
 England and India were occupied in the war of the mutinies. 
 He had watched her every movement, while she reduced the 
 Kian of Bokhara to a position of vassalage. His vigilance 
 was further sharpened when she was understood to be ad- 
 vancing her outposts even up to the Oxus. As explained in 
 the previous chapter XIIL, I was his Political and Foreign 
 Secretary at that moment, and had to arrange for obtaining the 
 information he desired regarding the proceedings of the Eus- 
 sians on the right bank of the Oxus. He found that though a 
 Eussian advance had really been made in that quarter, it 
 was magnified by the prevailing rumours. His idea was that 
 a friendly and independent Afghan State should be interposed 
 between India and Central Asia ; if Eussia could not be pre- 
 vented from overrunning Central Asia, she could, at all events, 
 be kept out of Afghanistan. He thought that the Eussian posi- 
 tion in Central Asia was insecure and likely to be threatened 
 at any moment by an outbreak on the part of the inhabitants. 
 In reality the Eussians have, by comparatively good adminis- 
 tration, consolidated their rule there much more effectually 
 than he then anticipated. At all events, he hoped that being 
 embarrassed in their finances, and pre-occupied with local 
 affairs, they would abstain from troubling Afghanistan. But as 
 a precautionary measure, he wished that the British Govern- 
 ment should establish a permanent influence with the Afghan 
 
344 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xiv. 
 
 ruler, taking due advantage of the contiguity of India and 
 Afghanistan. He did not repose overmuch confidence in any- 
 Afghan ruler, because the Afghans were, in his opinion, untrust- 
 worthy, and faithful to nothing save the traditions of plunder. 
 If an invading army, he would say, ever were to march through 
 Afghanistan towards India, it would be joined by hordes of 
 Afghans, indeed, by every Afghan who could afford to leave 
 his home, notwithstanding any subsidies which the British 
 Government might in past years have been giving. Still he 
 thought that good would result from a friendly understand- 
 ing founded in some degree on such subsidies, while his main 
 reliance rested on the power of England, through measures to 
 be adopted not in Asia but in Europe, for virtually compelling 
 Eussia to leave Afghanistan untouched. If, however, such an 
 understanding were to be established, a ruler must be found 
 who could hold his own and govern an united country. 
 
 Dost Muhammad had barely attained that position before his 
 death at an advanced age. After his demise there broke out 
 between his sons the long-predicted contest for the succession. 
 The successor designate. Shir Ali, did actually enter upon the 
 succession for a time, and with him friendly relations were 
 established. He soon afterwards lost Caubul and retained only 
 Candahar and Herat ; the British relations with him, however 
 were maintained. Subsequently he was deprived of Gandahar 
 also, and retired to Herat; his fortunes then seemed to be so 
 eclipsed that it might become necessary to transfer the British 
 recognition, from him to his successful rival, as the de facto ruler. 
 Shir Ali, however, by some strokes of valour and fortune, 
 recovered his position, and after many stirring vicissitudes 
 consolidated a dominion over the whole of Afghanistan. 
 
 John Lawrence then judged that the time had come when he 
 might revert to the plan of supporting a friendly and indepen- 
 dent Afghanistan with British recognition, also with subsidies in 
 arms and money. Having obtained for his plan the approval of 
 the English Government, he invited the Amir Shir Ali to come 
 to some place in British territory for a personal meeting in order 
 to discuss the best manner in which a limited support might be 
 
Chap. xiv. JOHN LAWRENCE'S DEPARTURE FROM INDIA. 345 
 
 accorded. He remained at or near Simla for some short time in 
 readiness to meet the Amir, who at first accepted the invitation. 
 He was unable to wait longer, however, as there was some delay- 
 in Shir Ali's coming. This happened in December, 1868 ; his 
 stay in India was then drawing to a close, and his successor 
 Lord Mayo was expected to relieve him in the following month, 
 January, 1869. So he reluctantly turned his face from the 
 frontier towards Calcutta, leaving for his successor's considera- 
 tion a full record of what had been contemplated in the event 
 of Shir Ali's coming in the course of a few weeks. 
 
 Before quitting India he sent to England an elaborate 
 despatch recording the reasons why, in his judgment, British 
 troops should not be despatched into Afghanistan, nor British 
 officers sent there in any diplomatic or other capacity, also why 
 the Government of India should still remain within its existing 
 trans-Indus frontier. 
 
 He felt regret during the last weeks of his stay at Simla at 
 leaving a spot of wondrous beauty, where he had for several 
 years established his Government. In that autumnal season 
 the place was seen at its very best, and every Sunday after- 
 noon I used to go out for a walk with him, and talk over 
 old times and events. Though not specially educated in art, 
 he had naturally a keen eye for the beauties of nature, having 
 in this respect much sensibility, which always affected him, 
 though he seldom gave expression to it. On one of these 
 afternoons we ascended a hill named " Prospect Point," from 
 which the best view was to be had of the town and surround- 
 ings of Simla. There stood the alpine city on its airy height 
 with cedars or oaks around and profound valleys beneath, a sea 
 of hills terminated by the white wall of everlasting snow, 
 and an unclouded sky catching the glow of the setting 
 sun. " Think," he said, " what a blessing it is that, although we 
 are not very far from a mountainous frontier held by fierce and 
 murderous tribes, yet in these hills the people are mild and 
 harmless, so that here the sick, the holiday-makers, after their 
 hard work, the women and children, and the helpless of all 
 sorts, are safe from bloodthirsty marauders. Were it other- 
 
346 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. CnAr. xiv. 
 
 wise, what mishaps might occur, what ceaseless anxiety there 
 would be." 
 
 On his return to England he was, by the Eoyal favour, 
 raised to the peerage. The community in India erected a 
 statue of him at Calcutta. But neither " storied urn " nor 
 " animated bust " can ever satisfy the affectionate feeling respect- 
 ina him, wliich Kves in the breasts of those who worked in 
 his company during the labours and trials of a career in the 
 East. 
 
( 347 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 (1868-1873.) 
 THE FINANCE MINISTERSHIP. 
 
 William Massey Finance Minister of India — My appointment to succeed him 
 — Close of John Lawrence's financial administration — Lord Mayo's finan- 
 cial policy — My first budget for 1869-70 — The income-tax — Budget for 
 1870-1 — Increase in rate of income-tax- — Financial surplus — Budget for 
 1871-2— Scheme of provincial services — Continuance of surplus — Budget 
 for 1872-3 maintaining income-tax for one year- — Budget for 1873-4 and 
 remission of income-tax — Summary of financial result — Establishment of 
 financial surplus — Buoyancy of public funds and Government securities — 
 Progress of trade. 
 
 The Right Honourable William Massey was Finance Minister 
 of India at the beginning of 1868, but had officially inti- 
 mated the intention of soon resigning his portfolio ; and it was 
 known that he would in the coming spring produce his last 
 budget. 
 
 One afternoon during this spring I was, as Foreign Secretary, 
 in my department intent upon papers relating to Central Asia, 
 — and especially some extract translations from the Russian 
 newspapers regarding movements between Bokhara and the bank 
 of the Oxus, — when I received in the ordinary way, a message 
 requesting me to wait upon the Governor-General, Sir John 
 Lawrence. As such messages were of common occurrence, I 
 walked unconcernedly to Government House, which was close by. 
 When I reached the study of the Governor-General he put into 
 my hand a telegram from the Secretary of State in England, 
 Sir Stafford Northcote, conveying to me the offer of the finance 
 ministership, which I accepted. Having formerly been secretary 
 to two finance ministers in succession, I was familiar with the 
 work of the Financial Department ; still it seemed strange to 
 be called so soon to sit in the chair of my masters. 
 
348 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 In April Mr. Massey transferred to me the charge of the 
 finances, having passed successfully through the Legislative 
 Council at Calcutta the budget for 1869, of which the principal 
 feature was the continuation of the license-tax on trades and 
 professions, mentioned in the last chapter. The outcry, already 
 described, against this tax had subsided, and the opposition to 
 it, though not expired, was no longer strong. From April to 
 the end of December 1868, John Lawrence was still Governor- 
 General ; and during this time the following measures in my 
 department were particularly considered by him : — 
 
 . . . introducing into the currency of India a gold standard after 
 the English model, and declaring the gold pieces, already coined 
 and issued by Government, to be legal tender, to an unlimited 
 amount, the silver coins becoming legal tender to a limited 
 amount only, and being so far demonetized ; 
 
 . . . extending and developing the Government savings banks 
 already established for the benefit of the Natives ; 
 
 . . . revising the salt duties with a view towards at least 
 approaching equalization, the high rates of duty in northern 
 India being somewhat lowered, and the low rates in western 
 and southern India being somewhat raised ; 
 
 . . . conceding to the several Provincial Governments a larger 
 control than previously over the financial administration in 
 several branches, such as roads, buildings, schools, police and 
 prisons ; 
 
 . . . providing funds by loan for remunerative works, such as 
 State railways and canals, and keeping the accounts of this 
 extraordinary expenditure separate from the ordinary finance of 
 Government ; 
 
 . . . enlarging the license -tax on trades and professions, making 
 it include official incomes, and the richer rentals in the per- 
 manently settled provinces, thus converting it gradually from a 
 roughly assessed impost into a scientifically framed income-tax 
 with a light rate of assessment. 
 
 Eespecting the gold standard, much assistance was received 
 from the Commander-in-Chief, Sir William Mansfield (after- 
 wards Lord Sandhurst) ; some improvements in the status of 
 
Chap. xv. LORD MAYO'S FINANCIAL POLICY. 349 
 
 the gold coins were effected ; but no real success was found 
 possible. The discussion regarding savings banks, however, 
 bore fruit in the extension of those beneficent institutions 
 among the Natives. The consideration of the salt duties pro- 
 duced no immediate result, but laid the foundation for fiscal re- 
 forms which have since been introduced. The principle of con- 
 ceding to the provincial Governments an increase of their 
 financial control in certain branches was admitted, but its appli- 
 cation was allowed in a cautious and tentative manner only, and 
 was ultimately postponed till the arrival of the next Governor- 
 General. The plan of accounting for the extraordinary expendi- 
 ture, on State railways and canals, was afterwards carried into 
 effect. The proposal for converting the license-tax into a light 
 income-tax was strenuously opposed by Sir William Mansfield 
 (afterwards Lord Sandhurst) and Sir Henry Durand, as members 
 of the Governor-General's council ; but it paved the way for 
 imposing the income-tax during the next year. 
 
 On relinquishing the Government, John Lawrence took a 
 somewhat unfavourable view of the financial prospect, as 
 already mentioned in the last preceding chapter. On that 
 account he enjoined me to procure some augmentation of the 
 revenue by means of an income-tax ; and this I regarded as his 
 parting instruction. 
 
 When Lord Mayo arrived at Calcutta as Governor-General in 
 the beginning of January 1869, I rejoiced to find that he was 
 disposed to maintain the policy of his predecessor, John 
 Lawrence, in regard to converting the existing certificate-tax 
 into a regular income-tax with a light rate. This certificate-tax 
 had been imposed at the recommendation of my predecessor, 
 Mr. Massey, on trades and professions. He described it 
 as a rough income-tax, at the light rate of one per cent, on 
 certain classes, namely traders and professional men, whose 
 incomes exceeded £50 per annum. It was proposed to apply 
 the tax to all the remaining classes of the community, which 
 consisted mainly of the landowners and the fundholders. This 
 proposal was supported in Council by John Strachey and accepted 
 reluctantly by Sir William Mansfield and Sir Henry Durand, 
 
350 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 I then produced the budget with a one per cent, income- 
 tax, assigning as a reason for this taxation, that there had 
 been deficits on the finance of each of the three preceding 
 years, and that even with the tax only a bare equilibrium was 
 obtained between income and expenditure, the surplus shewn 
 in the estimate being but £50,000. The non-official European 
 community had for the most part been already assessed to the 
 certificate-tax ; so their taxation was not appreciably affected 
 by the new income-tax, and they seemed glad to find that the 
 landowners, mainly the landlords or Zemindars of Bengal, were 
 to be included in the assessment. No objection was raised 
 against the budget by any class, European or l^Tative ; and 
 there was reason to hope that a light income-tax would be 
 accepted by the country. The tax was then estimated to yield 
 £900,000 annually, which sum might be increased by good 
 management to a million. 
 
 There had been doubts up to that time, whether the expen- 
 diture on the barracks for European troops which has been 
 mentioned in the last preceding chapter should be charged 
 to capital together with State railways and canals, or defrayed 
 from the ordinary revenue. It was definitely stated in the 
 budget, that this expenditure must be charged against ordinary 
 income, and that notliing save reproductive works, such as 
 railways and canals, would be included in extraordinary ex- 
 penditure and charged against capital. 
 
 Eor these reproductive works 3^ millions sterling were to be 
 borrowed during the year ; and it was afterwards decided that 
 2 millions out of this sum should be raised in India. All 
 recent loans having been raised in England, some time had 
 elapsed since any demand had been made by Government upon 
 the Calcutta money market. On this occasion the market re- 
 sponded cheerfully to the call, subscriptions to the new loan 
 were largely offered, and an amount was tendered greatly in 
 excess of the 2 millions required. 
 
 Having thus disposed of the affairs relating to the budget, I 
 repaired to England for the summer months by medical advice 
 to recruit my health, which had temporarily suffered from ex- 
 
Chap. xv. THE INCOME-TAX AUGMENTED. 351 
 
 posure to the malarious climate of the Central Provinces. In 
 the autumn before leaving England on my return to India, I 
 received letters from Lord Mayo informing me that the receipts 
 from opium and customs were falling much below the sum 
 estimated in the budget, that owing to this and other cir- 
 cumstances a deficit upon the finance of the current year was 
 threatened, and that the equilibrium of revenue and expendi- 
 ture must be maintained by immediately augmenting the 
 income-tax besides reducing the expenditure on ordinary public 
 works. On returning to Calcutta, in November, I introduced 
 a bill into the Legislative Council for raising the income-tax 
 rate from one to two per cent, for the latter half of the year 
 1869-70. The particulars of the threatened deficit were ex- 
 plained, it was also shewn that the expenditure on ordinary 
 public works (that is upon civil and military buildings) had been 
 lessened, and that the salt duties in southern and western India 
 had been raised. The objections to altering the rate within the 
 year were manifest to us all, but Lord Mayo was urgent upon 
 the subject, having been much impressed by the fact that there 
 had been deficits during the three preceding years, and the 
 estimated deficit of the last of these years was proving larger 
 than the anticipation. He did not at all despair of the finances, 
 indeed he felt hopeful regarding the revenues, and confident as 
 to the ability of the Government to reduce its expenditure. 
 But he thought that as deficit had lasted so long any further 
 continuance of it would affect the financial credit of the 
 Government ; and he was resolved that if possible his term of 
 of&ce should begin at least with equilibrium if not with sur- 
 plus. The soundness of his principle in general terms was 
 manifest ; indeed I would gladly at the time of the budget 
 have provided a large surplus by levying the income-tax at a 
 higher rate, but in the face of public opinion adverse to any 
 such plan, the facts were not strong enough to enable me to 
 propose it with any chance of success. The facts had mean- 
 while grown much stronger, and measures would be accepted 
 by public opinion and the Legislative Council, which could 
 not previously have found acceptance. Lord Mayo's zeal and 
 
352 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 determination commanded our sympathetic admiration, and we 
 all felt that the financial interest must at all sacrifice be main- 
 tained. Thus there was no difficulty in obtaining the assent of 
 the Legislature to raising the rate of the income-tax for the 
 remainder of the current year. Ultimately the result of the 
 measures adopted by Lord Mayo's Government proved favour- 
 able to the finances of that year, 1869-70, for the threatened 
 deficit was averted and a small surplus secured. 
 
 But while striving to avoid deficit for the current year, 
 we had to consider how to avert this evil for the coming year, 
 1870-1. The prospects of the opium revenue continued very 
 unfavourable ; commercial depression was affecting our receipts 
 from customs, the interest charges on the public debt rose 
 as loans were being raised for canals and State railways ; 
 various improvements had been in progress for some time which 
 could not be arrested without detriment. Thus there were the 
 proverbial three courses open to us, first to allow deficit to recur, 
 secondly to modify our system respecting material improvement, 
 thirdly to augment the rate of the income-tax. As the first 
 course was out of the question and the second much to be 
 lamented, I recommended the third, and proposed that the 
 income-tax should be levied at four per cent, for the next year at 
 least, that being the rate of Wilson's income-tax. Lord Mayo, 
 however, and our colleagues in Council, thought four per cent, 
 too high, and at last we all agreed upon three per cent., John 
 Strachey according his wonted support and co-operation. I then 
 introduced the bill for the three per cent, income-tax, which was, 
 after considerable opposition, passed by the Legislative Council. 
 
 With the help of this tax, of which the proceeds were esti- 
 mated at more than two millions sterling for the year, the 
 budget showed a small surplus, the result being tantamount to 
 an equilibrium between income and expenditure. Eecently 
 the Secretary of State in England had instructed us to provide 
 a surplus of at least half a million ; but it was, however, im- 
 possible to act fully up to that instruction without a four per 
 cent, rate of income-tax, to which the necessary assent could 
 not be obtained. 
 
Chap. xv. PUBLIC OPINION REGARDING THE BUDGET. 353 
 
 During the year, however, trade and revenue improved, the 
 expenditure was kept well within the estimates, and the small 
 surplus was turned into a large one, amounting to 1^ million 
 sterling. After the disappointments of the preceding year, this 
 favourable result was a matter for general congratulation. 
 
 No sooner had the budget been announced than a storm of 
 abuse arose against the Government of India generally, and 
 against me as its Financial Member particularly. Even Lord 
 Mayo's popularity was dimmed for a time ; still the public 
 seemed to think that so popular a man could not at heart be in 
 favour of this obnoxious income-tax, that he must have as- 
 sented to it reluctantly, and would remit it as soon as possible. 
 On the other hand it was apparently believed that the Financial 
 Member, being directly answerable for deficit, must naturally 
 be the authority who insisted on the taxation, and upon him 
 accordingly much of the animadversion fell. His position 
 was not in fact separable from that of the Government, and his 
 colleagues were jointly responsible with him. Still his moral 
 responsibility, whatever its exact measure might be, was very 
 considerable. So far from disclaiming or lessening it, I was 
 glad to accept its full weight. 
 
 The Natives no doubt disliked the tax, and among them none 
 dreaded it more than the Zemindars or landlord class of Bengal, 
 who objected to any sort of direct taxation on their income from 
 the land, as being an infringement of the Permanent Settlement. 
 They were well able to make themselves heard, and thus they 
 lent a voice to any Native discontent which existed, fanned the 
 flame of agitation, and formed a solid centre of opposition. The 
 real lead in the opposition was however taken by the European 
 part of the community, and English utterances were the 
 loudest. The Europeans would have willingly borne the tax 
 had it been imposed for war expenses, as in Wilson's time, or 
 for any emergency. But although there was a necessity of 
 another kind in this case, they failed to recognize it. The fact 
 was that for some years past the demands of a progressive age 
 had caused the expenses of the country to rise to a scale which 
 might be reduced but could not be materially altered without 
 
 2 A 
 
354 ]MEN AND EVENTS OF ^TY TBIE IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 national detriment ; on the other hand, several temporary 
 causes had depressed the revenues helow expectation. Euro- 
 pean opinion had been more disposed than any other section of 
 public opinion to demand improvement. Despite efforts for 
 economy, deficit had gone on for three years, and the income-tax 
 was necessary in order to substitute equilibrium or surplus. 
 The Europeans, however, did not perceive this ; they thought 
 that the Government, had it been so minded, might have avoided 
 this alleged necessity. They failed indeed to show what 
 alternative could have been wisely adopted ; though remedies 
 of all sorts were propounded. It was said that we might have 
 made a higher estimate of the opium revenue, or made a lower 
 estimate of some items in the expenditure or charged more of 
 the public works to capital, or virtually transferred, under the 
 guise of financial technicalities, some of the burdens from the 
 present to the future ; in short, we might have done anything 
 except impose an income-tax. 
 
 From that time, however, one change for the better in public 
 opinion began to be perceptible. Formerly Europeans had been 
 foremost in urging the Government to improve the country and 
 the administration. Beneficent improvement is always com- 
 mended with plausible effect by those who have not to bear the 
 expense. Now, however, public opinion came to the aid of 
 Government in suggesting economy and in counting the cost 
 of every suggested reform. 
 
 The treasury was full, the cash balances were high, and 
 such facts seemed to be regarded by many as proving that 
 the additional taxation was not necessary. It was apparently 
 forgotten that these facts were apart from the finance of 
 the year, and that if deficit were allowed therein, the depletion 
 of the cash balances would soon happen. In fact, however, 
 after the deficits which had occurred, and at a time when funds 
 were being raised for capital outlay on reproductive works, it 
 was desirable to show signs of capacity for duly arranging the 
 current finances, and one among such signs was the possession 
 of a well-filled treasury. 
 
 By degrees another reason for keeping high cash balances 
 
Chap. xv. PAPER CURRENCY. 355 
 
 became apparent. Measures were being taken to reduce the 
 rates of interest on a portion of the public debt, whereby 
 about one-third of a million annually of the interest charges 
 would be saved. As the terms expired for which certain of the 
 loans had to run, the holders of the five per cent, stock were to 
 be informed that they would be repaid in full unless they chose 
 to accept four per cent, stock instead. Their acceptance of this 
 offer might partly depend on their estimate of the power of 
 Government to repay tliat loan, from its available resources, 
 without raising money otherwise. Some of them also might 
 prefer repayment of the principal to accepting lower interest. 
 Hence there was abundant reason for maintaining a large 
 amount of cash in hand. The holders of the five per cont. 
 stock naturally regretted the loss of income, thinking of this 
 more than of the benefit to the State from the saving of interest. 
 Thus they felt dissatisfied, and helped to swell the chorus of com- 
 plaint against the financial policy of the Government. Never- 
 theless they accepted the new stock at the lower rate of interest. 
 
 It happened that a portion of the cash reserve of the Paper 
 Currency department had, under a law recently enacted by the 
 legislature, to be invested in Government securities ; in other 
 words, stock to the value of 2f millions sterling was to be 
 bought in by the Paper Currency department. Then 2f 
 millions of the five per cent, loan were paid off and a 
 corresponding amount of the new four per cent, securities was 
 issued to the Paper Currency department in exchange for the 
 cash. All this was done in strict accordance with the terms 
 of the law, and made as advantageous as possible to the 
 public interest. Still those whose income was diminished by 
 so much of the five per cent, loan being paid off, were dis- 
 pleased wdth the proceedings of the Government. 
 
 In various ways popular dissatisfaction became more and 
 more aggravated ; and the clamour against the financial conduct 
 of the Government was sustained for many months. Our con- 
 solation was found in the fact that the symptoms of the time 
 indicated health in the finances and growth of public confidence. 
 The moneyed classes were more willing than before to lend 
 
 2 A 2 
 
356 JMEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 money to the Government on favourable terms, and the prices 
 of the Government secnrities were steadily rising. Evidently 
 those whose experience best qualified them to judge and whose 
 interest prompted them to examine impartially, trusted the 
 Government and believed in the efficacy of its measures. We 
 well knew the importance of winning and retaining public 
 confidence as the basis of financial credit. Such confidence, 
 however, would be declared, not by irresponsible clamour, but 
 by the action of the money market. 
 
 As Financial Member of the Government I had before the 
 public to bear the brunt of all this captious criticism ; still, I 
 was abundantly supported, as Lord Mayo stood by me gener- 
 ously. Among the members of Council Sir John Strachey had 
 always recommended the income-tax on principle ; and Sir 
 Barrow Ellis, recently arrived from Bombay, was a tower of 
 strength in the same cause. Lord Napier of Magdala had then 
 become Commander-in-Chief of the army and a member of the 
 Government ; he too recognized the expediency of the tax. 
 
 My next budget for 1871-2, was produced in 1871, by which 
 time financial prosperity was beginning to return. The year 
 1870-1 was showing a considerable surplus, as already men- 
 tioned, therefore it was thought that the rate of the income-tax 
 might be fairly reduced from 3 to 1 per cent, and that the 
 lowest class of the incomes subjected to the tax might be 
 exempted altogether. Thus IJ million sterling of direct taxa- 
 tion was remitted, and the total number of persons assessed, 
 480,000, was reduced by one half or in other words 240,000 tax- 
 payers were released altogether. These measures gave partial 
 though not complete satisfaction to the tax-paying classes, 
 and received only a guarded approval from the public. There 
 still remained the one per cent, income-tax on certain classes, 
 limited in number, well-to-do, influential, and capable of making 
 their voices heard — who never ceased to agitate against the 
 impost. 
 
 In this budget, after the remission of so much direct taxation, 
 a small surplus only was anticipated. The surplus, however, 
 became larger and larger as the months rolled on, till it reached 
 
Chap. xv. SCHEME OF TROVINCIAL SERVICES. 357 
 
 tlie amount of 3 millions, the largest surplus yet known in 
 Indian finance. 
 
 In the budget statement was included an explanation of the 
 scheme of Provincial Services which the Government of India 
 had recently established. On behalf of the Government I 
 explained the principle in this wise : 
 
 " The local (or provincial) Governments are to have a fixed 
 annual allotment for particular services — ^jails, registration, 
 police, education, medical services, printing, roads other than 
 military, and civil buildings — and are to appropriate as local in- 
 come all receipts connected therewith. They are to regulate, 
 subject to certain general rules, all the expenditure on those 
 services. If the existing income, namely, imperial allotment 
 plus departmental receipts, shall suflice for the requirements of 
 tliat expenditure, then all is well. If it shall not suffice, then 
 the local Governments are not to apply to the Government of 
 India for increased grants. They must raise what they need 
 by local taxation, or by such like means, subject to our central 
 control, if they fairly can. But if they find that they cannot 
 fairly manage this, then they must necessarily do without the 
 
 increased expenditure." 
 
 ****** 
 
 " The more we consider the constant increase of late years 
 in these headings, the difficulty which we have in resisting 
 demands which have so much inherent excellence to recom- 
 mend them, and yet the impossibility of meeting them unless 
 local income can be legitimately augmented — the more do we 
 
 perceive the importance of the financial principle." 
 
 ««***« 
 
 "We have inaugurated the measure by reducing the aggre- 
 gate expenditure under these heads by one third of a million. 
 This is, per se, something appreciable. But greater far finan- 
 cially is the advantage of setting some definite bounds to the 
 constant growth and expansion of imperial outlay on these 
 branches." . . . . " Thus an increased degree of financial 
 control has been accorded to the several local (or provincial) 
 Governments in India. We hope that this concession will give 
 
358 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 them an additional interest in the study and enforcement of 
 economy in expenditure ; will afford them a just inducement 
 to supplement their local receipts from time to time by methods 
 either most acceptable to the people or least fraught with 
 popular objection ; will cause a more complete understanding 
 to arise between the executive authorities and the tax-paying 
 classes respecting the development of fiscal resources ; will teach 
 the people to take a practical share in provincial finance and lead 
 them up gradually towards a degree of local self-government." 
 Towards the close of December 1871, we were considering the 
 arrangements for the coming budget of 1872-3. The discussion 
 turned mainly on the retention or remission of the one per 
 cent, income-tax. I advocated the retention of it for some 
 little time to come at least, urging that it was the anchor of our 
 finance. The proceeds of direct taxation, including income-tax 
 and license-tax from first to last, that is, since Wilson's time, 
 would amount to 14 millions sterling. This taxation afforded 
 the only means by which several wealthy classes, otherwise 
 untaxed, could be brought under taxation. It had, indeed, 
 proved vexatious to the humbler classes of taxpayers, but 
 that objection had been already removed by the exemption 
 of those classes. If still any pressure or annoyance was 
 reasonably felt, it could be remedied without the essential parts 
 of the tax being touched. As the limited classes subjected to 
 it became accustomed to its operation, the discontent at first felt 
 would gradually disappear. The rate of incidence was then 
 very light, only one per cent ; but the machinery of assessment 
 was kept up and the returns were being perfected year by year, 
 so as to truly show the taxable income of the country. Then 
 in any future need or emergency the raising of the rate would 
 give a proportionable increase of revenue. Three-quarters of a 
 million sterling of annual revenue from an income-tax of one 
 per cent, well assessed upon trustworthy returns, might become 
 1^ million, or 2^ millions by almost a stroke of the pen in event 
 of future necessity, by raising the rate to 2 or to 3 per cent. 
 From such results a slight abatement only need be anticipated 
 in virtue of the experience that the raising of a rate never does 
 
Chap. xv. LORD NAPIER GOVERNOR-GENERAL. 359 
 
 yield quite the proportionable sum. Here, then, was an engine 
 of finance, created during times of ease and quiet, which could 
 be effectually used to meet national difficulties. But the case 
 would be different if the tax were once remitted ; for if it were 
 to be re-imposed, the machinery must then be formed afresh, 
 and the measure might at first fall short of success because the 
 people had grown unaccustomed to it. The force of habit being 
 greater in India than in any other country, the people concerned 
 would gradually adapt themselves to the tax, so that any 
 inconvenience, which might have been felt at first, would 
 gradually disappear. 
 
 Lord Mayo seriously considered all these arguments, and quite 
 appreciated the advantages derived from the income-tax. But 
 he seemed unwilling to sanction the continuance of the tax, if 
 that could be avoided. The question, however, was not brought 
 to an issue by him because his lamented death took place 
 early in 1872. 
 
 After Lord Mayo's death, the Governor of Madras, Lord 
 Napier (now Lord Napier and Ettrick) acted as Governor- 
 General during the time when the budget had to be prepared 
 and produced. He sanctioned the continuance of the tax, for 
 the coming year, though apparently with some reluctance, 
 believing this measure to be required in order to produce a small 
 surplus in the estimate. Accordingly I produced the budget 
 with a surplus of a quarter of a million sterling. Once more, 
 however, the surplus grew as the year advanced and at length 
 amounted to If million. 
 
 Thus ended the fourth year of surplus ; and this cycle of four 
 consecutive years was the most prosperous time yet known in 
 Indian finance. The condition of surplus was owing partly to 
 causes beyond the control of the Government, partly also to the 
 principles followed in framing the estimates and in regulating 
 the expenditure. Moderation had been carefully observed in 
 estimating the receipts under all heads of revenue, especially 
 that of opium. The precarious and uncertain character of the 
 opium revenue was borne in mind ; our recent experience of 1869 
 had indeed forcibly reminded us of this. We had on that 
 
360 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 occasion estimated the price of opium in the budget on an 
 average of the realized prices of the past three years, which was 
 less than that which was being received about the time of the 
 budget. Thus the estimate was to all appearances a prudent 
 one. Still the actual receipts proved to be less than they were 
 estimated by one-third of a million sterling, owing to causes 
 which arose in the interior of China, and of which we never 
 could exactly understand the operation. We therefore became 
 more cautious than ever in framing the estimates of the opium 
 revenue, and they were during these years fortunately exceeded 
 by the result. 
 
 Shortly after the production of the budget for 1872-3 as last 
 mentioned, Lord Northbrook arrived as Governor-General in 
 succession to Lord Mayo. In due course the question again 
 arose as to whether the income-tax should be retained or re- 
 mitted, and I still advocated its retention. Lord Northbrook, 
 however, was much impressed with the objections which had 
 been urged against the tax from so many quarters, and did not 
 think its continuance necessary. 
 
 Thus I had to produce in March 1873 the budget for 1873-4 
 without an income-tax. The estimates, however, still showed 
 a surplus for the year of a quarter of a million. The sur- 
 plus would in this year, as in preceding years, have become 
 a large one, had not a calamity beyond human control super- 
 vened. But as the autumn approached it became evident 
 that famine was impending over Bengal and Behar. The 
 Government was obliged to make preparations on a most ex- 
 tensive scale for the relief of the anticipated distress and for 
 preserving the lives of the people from danger. Before the end 
 of the year operations for the prevention of famine were begun 
 throughout a large area. The charges on account of famine relief 
 during the year amounted to £3,864,707, which caused a deficit 
 in the finances of £1,807,668. Had there not been this famine, 
 no deficit would have occurred, but on the contrary there would 
 have been a surplus of more than 2^ millions, or £2,648,401. 
 
 This proved to be my last budget ; tliough it was intended 
 that I should produce one more in March 1874, for the year 
 
Chap. xv. CONDITION OF INDIAN FINANCE. 361 
 
 1874-5, before returning to England. My ordinary term of 
 office, five years, was expiring, but I had been requested by the 
 Secretary of State in England, the Duke of Argyll, to retain 
 my post for an additional year. When this year was approaching 
 its close. Lord Northbrook nominated me to be Lieutenant- 
 Governor of Bengal. Shortly afterwards famine became immi- 
 nent in northern Bengal and Behar, and I was directed to pro- 
 ceed immediately to the scene of distress, and superintend the 
 operations for relief. Thus the unfinished budget was left in my 
 financial portfolio, and the threads of it were taken up by the 
 Governor-General himself. 
 
 During these five years I received the utmost assistance from 
 the Financial Secretary, Eobert Barclay Chapman, in framing 
 the civil estimates, and whatever success attended them was in 
 a considerable degree owing to his experience, carefulness and 
 acumen. I was also much indebted to Mr. E. HoUingberry 
 of the Uncovenanted Service. The military estimates were 
 framed by Mr. (now Sir George) Kellner with skill and know- 
 ledge. He had an intimate acquaintance with military accounts, 
 and is one of the ablest men whom the Uncovenanted Service 
 of India has produced. 
 
 The financial results of the five budgets which have been 
 mentioned may be summarized thus : the surplus or deficit relates 
 to income and ordinary expenditure, exclusive of the outlay on 
 reproductive works, which has been charged to the capital 
 account, and the figures are taken from papers presented to 
 Parliament. 
 
 £ 
 Deficit. 
 
 
 £ 
 
 Year. 
 
 Surplus. 
 
 1869-70 .. 
 
 118,669 
 
 1870-1 
 
 .. 1,482,990 
 
 1871-2 
 
 .. 3,124,177 
 
 1872-3 .. 
 
 .. 1,765,672 
 
 1873-4 .. 
 
 
 .. 1,807,668 (Bengal famine). 
 
 £ 
 
 Total surplus 6,491,508 
 
 Deduct deficit 1,807,668 
 
 Net surplus on the five years .. .. 4,683,840 
 
362 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 Thus the period may be regarded as fortunate financially, 
 especially when it is remembered that but for the Bengal 
 famine, the last of the five years would have shewn a large 
 surplus, instead of a deficit. 
 
 This net surplus may be regarded as more than counter- 
 balancing the net deficit of the previous five years, as will be 
 seen thus : — 
 
 Year. 
 1ftR4 'i 
 
 Surplus. 
 £ 
 
 Deficit. 
 
 £ 
 193,521 
 
 1865 6 
 
 2,766,068 
 
 1866-7 .. .. 
 1867-8 .. .. 
 1868-9 .. .. 
 
 Total deficit 
 Deduct surplus . 
 
 .. 2,517,491 
 .. 1,007,695 
 .. 2,774,030 
 
 £ 
 .. 6,492,737 
 .. 2,766,068 
 
 
 
 Net deficit . . 
 
 .. 3,726,669 
 
 
 
 
 This result bears out the conclusion, which has now been 
 attained after an examination extending over the twenty years 
 during which India has possessed a formal budget system, 
 namely this, that she fully pays all her ordinary expenses one 
 year taken with another, and shews a small surplus on any 
 extended series of years which may be taken. 
 
 But it demonstrates that if national solvency was to be 
 secured by the counterbalancing of deficit by surplus, the income- 
 tax was absolutely essential, notwithstanding all that may have 
 been said at the time against its necessity. During the five 
 years, the following sums were obtained by means of this tax — 
 
 net, after deducting cost of collection : — 
 
 £ 
 
 1869-70 1,068,523 
 
 1870-1 2,028,034 
 
 1871-2 .. 795,675 
 
 1872-3 561,000 
 
 Total 4,453,232 
 
 or in round numbers 4^ millions. 
 
 It is clear, then, that without the income-tax, the financial 
 
Chap. xv. 
 
 PUBLIC DEBT OF INDIA. 
 
 3G3 
 
 result so essential to the solvency of India would not, indeed 
 could not, have been obtained. This result, too, at all times 
 necessary, was doubly so at that time, because India, havinrr 
 emerged from a great war, with extensive additions to her 
 national debt, was embarking on a course of peaceful enter- 
 prise, whereby she had to borrow in time of peace in order to 
 provide capital for outlay in reproductive works. 
 
 Outside the ordinary budget, there was a large outlay on State 
 railways and canals of irrigation, which was charged to the capital 
 account, and for which funds were raised by loan. The sub- 
 joined figures relating to these affairs are taken from the papers 
 presented to Parliament : — 
 
 Year. 
 
 1869-70 
 1870-1 
 1871-2 
 1172-3 
 
 1873-4 
 
 Outlay on public 
 works extraorJiiiary. 
 
 2,599,61-i 
 1,167,810 
 1,6'28,474 
 2,184,569 
 3,553,307 
 
 Amou'^t raised 
 by loan. 
 
 Net less discharged. 
 £ 
 
 . 5,681,431 . 
 
 . 3,626,235 . 
 
 . 2,544,285 . 
 
 . 2,063,922 . 
 
 Net discliarKeil. 
 
 1,510,573 
 
 Total 11,133,774 
 
 Total 13,915,873 
 
 13,915,873 
 Less discharged 1,510,573 
 
 Total 12,405,300 
 
 Of the total borrowed, in round numbers 12^ millions, there 
 were 3 millions raised in India, and the rest in England. 
 
 While this borrowing was in progress year by year the public 
 credit stood high, higher indeed than at any time before. The 
 normal rate of interest in India had been five per cent. ; but 
 these loans were raised at four per cent. At this very time, 
 too, we were able to take advantage of the term expiring for 
 some of the old five per cent, loans, in order to reduce the 
 interest. This was effected by offering the holders of five per 
 cent, paper the option of accepting four per cent, paper instead, 
 or of being repaid in full ; and they used always to accept four 
 per cent, paper ; or, in some cases, four and a half for a time 
 and thereafter four per cent. About twenty millions sterling 
 
864 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xv. 
 
 of the national debt were, during the five years, subjected to this 
 operation. 
 
 There was not the least difficulty in raising the requisite 
 funds either in England or in India. The moneyed classes and 
 the capitalists in India were known to be able to invest a certain 
 sum annually, from two to three millions sterling, in Govern- 
 ment securities at four per cent., which is for India a very low 
 rate. This amount they were glad to tender whenever sub- 
 scriptions to a Government loan were invited ; and they would 
 have tendered much larger sums had the rate of interest been 
 higher. 
 
 The frequent borrowing might have been expected to have a 
 depressing effect on the selling price of Government securities. 
 But instead of suffering any depreciation, these securities 
 steadily rose in value during the five years, and on the fifth 
 year stood at the highest point they had ever reached. The four 
 per cent, stock in India, called " the rupee debt " (in silver) 
 used to be sold at 91 for 100 rupees ; it gradually rose to par 
 during these years, and in 1873 reached 105, or 5 per cent, 
 premium. In England the Indian four per cent, stock, called 
 "the sterling debt" (in gold) used to stand at 92 for 100; 
 it gradually rose to 106, or 6 per cent, premium. The fact 
 was that all men saw the efforts made by the Government of 
 India to augment income and diminish ordinary expendi- 
 ture. Indeed the very unpopularity of some among the fiscal 
 measures proved the stern resolution of the Government to 
 pursue its policy despite opposition. It was known that the 
 money was being borrowed, not to meet deficit or to pay for 
 unproductive expenditure like war, but for reproductive works 
 railways and canals for irrigation, of all which the merits were 
 patent to the public. It was often predicted that these works 
 would seldom be remunerative, and would sometimes even 
 prove to be national folly. But evidently the moneyed classes 
 thought otherwise, relying on the Government, and the event has 
 shewn that they were right. Eor now these works, both railways 
 and canals, are in technical phrase " paying," that is, yielding a 
 return, net after defrayal of expenses. This return on the 
 
Chap, xv. 
 
 IlEVENUE AND TRADE STATISTICS. 
 
 365 
 
 capital outlay amounts to five per cent, on the railways and six 
 per cent, on the canals. 
 
 During this time the treasury was kept full, as will be seen 
 from the following figures of the cash balances on the 31st March, 
 or the last day of each official year, both in India itself and in 
 Enaland on account of India : — 
 
 Year. 
 
 1869 
 1870 
 1871 
 
 1872 
 1873 
 
 Cash balance on 31st March. 
 
 India. 
 
 England. 
 
 Total. 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 £ 
 
 10,175,80i .. 
 
 .. 3,025,982 .. 
 
 .. 1.3,201,786 
 
 13,940,451 .. 
 
 .. 2,892,483 .. 
 
 .. 16,832,934 
 
 16,818,743 .. 
 
 .. 3,305,972 .. 
 
 .. 20,124,715 
 
 21,997,715 .. 
 
 .. 2,821,091 .. 
 
 .. 24,818,806 
 
 18,787,693 .. 
 
 .. 2,998,444 .. 
 
 .. 21,786,137 
 
 The revenues during the five years were stationary, their total 
 varying somewhat according to the imposition or remission of 
 the income-tax ; wliile tlie ordinary expenditure decreased 
 during the first four years and rose in the fifth year, owing 
 to the Bengal famine, as will be shown by the following figures 
 taken from the returns presented to Parliament : — 
 
 Year. 
 
 Revenue. 
 
 £ 
 
 Ordinary expenditure. 
 
 1869-70 .. 
 
 .. 50,901,081 .. 
 
 .. 50,782,412 
 
 1870-1 .. 
 
 .. 51,413,686 ., 
 
 .. 49,930,696 
 
 1871-2 .. 
 
 .. 50,110,215 .. 
 
 .. 46,986,038 
 
 1872-3 .. 
 
 .. 50,219,489 .. 
 
 .. . 48,453,817 
 
 1873-4 .. 
 
 .. 49,598,253 .. 
 
 .. 51,405,921 (Bengal faniiiie) 
 
 The declared value of the foreign trade of India during the 
 five years stood tlius : — 
 
 Year. 
 
 Declared value of foreign 
 trade of India. 
 
 1869-70 100,396,056 
 
 1870-1 97,469,893 
 
 1871-2 108,351,039 
 
 1872-3 92,980,052 
 
 1873-4 96,522,443 
 
( 360 ) 
 
 CHAPTEE XVI. 
 
 (1869-1872.) 
 LORD MAYO'S INDIAN CAREER. 
 
 Lord Mayo arrives at Calcutta succeeding John Lawrence — Receives visit from 
 Shir All, Amir of Caubul — Boundary between Afghanistan and Central Asia 
 — Relations with Pei'sia — Expedition against tribes on eastern border of 
 India — Sir Henry Durand in the Panjab — Army expenses and accommoda- 
 tion for European troops — Lord Mayo's internal administration — He 
 bestows special care upon finance — Causes increased control to be entrusted 
 to provincial Governments over certain departments — Promotes public 
 works, railways and canals — Endeavours to establish a Department of 
 Agriculture — Progress of legislation — Visit of H.R.H the Duke of Edin- 
 burgh — -Murder of Acting Chief Justice Norman — Assassination of Lord 
 Mayo in the Andaman Islands — Funeral ceremonies at Calcutta. 
 
 On the day in January, 1869, that Lord Mayo succeeded John 
 Lawrence as Governor-General, at the Government House, 
 Calcutta, the contrast, in appearance, between the two men 
 was remarked by every bystander, John Lawrence stood near 
 the head of the flight of steps, wearing full uniform, calm in 
 aspect, and conscious that he had, according to his own phrase, 
 served his time and done all he could. He was somewhat pallid 
 and care-worn, reduced in body from protracted labour while 
 in precarious health, and looking like a hoary weather-beaten 
 rock, round which the elements had oft-times roared and dashed. 
 Lord Mayo, on the other hand, mounted the steps in plain 
 morning dress, robust in frame, beaming with the brightness of 
 health, buoyant in spirits, and elastic with hope. He won 
 favour with every one at first sight, and soon began to acquire 
 a personal popularity, which, with slight intermissions at 
 Calcutta, grew and expanded as he became more widely known. 
 Indeed, he possessed qualifications, for conciliating the regard 
 of an Anglo-Saxon community in the East, such as rarely fall 
 
Cn.vp. XVI. LORD MAYO'S TERSONAL QUALITIES. 367 
 
 to the lot of those who are chosen for such a post as that of 
 Governor-General. The English in India, though willing to 
 make allowance for bodily weakness when combined with moral 
 power, and ready to admire the feeble frame when struggling with 
 difficulties, do yet delight to see physical strength and manly 
 vigour in their rulers. Now Lord Mayo was a capital rider, a 
 practised judge of horses, and the animals which filled liis stable 
 made a sight worth seeing. Having hunted much in England and 
 Ireland he rapidly rose to a high rank among equestrian sports- 
 men in India, and began to lead the field in pursuit of the wild 
 boar. He was fond of using the gun or the rifle and would 
 wade through the marshes near Calcutta to shoot snipe. He 
 occasionally attended some of the principal races, and made 
 official journeys of great length on horseback. Having once 
 led a somewhat hard life while engaged in Irish farming, he 
 had a frank and sympathetic bearing towards those who were 
 battling with difficulties, and a practical insight into all cir- 
 cumstances of perplexity. Yet, without being at all ostenta- 
 tious he always assumed a due degree of state and dignity. 
 Personally he was generous and much given to hospitality, 
 which he dispensed with an urbane freedom and attentive 
 carefulness that charmed all hearts. 
 
 He seemed to us to be different from any Governor-General 
 we had yet seen. Hardinge had been quiet and sedate ; 
 Dalhousie had preserved retiring habits by reason of the pain 
 against which he had to contend amidst all his imperial 
 anxieties ; Canning was naturally grave and reserved, even 
 before he felt the oppressive sense of unexampled anxiety; 
 Elgin had been bright and genial, without displaying any 
 remarkable degree of physical vigour ; and Lawrence never lost 
 the care-worn weather-beaten aspect caused by a life of Indian 
 toil. But Mayo was gay, active, and enthusiastic, without at 
 all derogating from his proper dignity ; indeed enthusiasm 
 pervaded his whole existence, and was his distinguishing mark. 
 
 Almost his first care, after assuming office, was to gather up 
 the threads of the negotiation with the Amir of Caubul, Shir 
 Ali, as John Lawrence had left it. The Amir had not come to 
 
368 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 meet the Governor- General in British territory before the end 
 of John Lawrence's incumbency. Lord Mayo soon learnt, how- 
 ever, that Shir Ali would cross the Panjab border, and arranged 
 that the Amir should proceed as far as Amballa for the meet- 
 ing, as it was well for the Afghan ruler and his advisers to 
 see something of the power and civilization of the British 
 dominions. He fixed a time during April for meeting the Amir, 
 and was accompanied to Amballa by the members of his Council, 
 including myself. He arranged there, for the reception of the 
 Amir and his suite, that display of various military forces, 
 belonging to many nationalities arrayed under one banner, 
 and that expanse of canvas in the tented fields, which never 
 fail to lend a strange interest to occasions of state in India. 
 
 Shir Ali was aquiline in profile, short of stature, broad in 
 build, and seemed to be in the prime of life. He had the cast 
 of countenance which characterizes many of the Afghan chiefs ; 
 wherein a certain sort of exterior polish conceals a fierceness of 
 which momentary flashes could hardly be suppressed. Still he 
 had something of frankness, even of bluffness, and looked like 
 a man who had lived in camps, fought hard-contested fields, and 
 by the sword cut his way to power and fortune. He accepted 
 the subsidies of arms and money which the Governor-General 
 gave as the balance of the £60,000 promised by John Lawrence. 
 He received also the present of a jewelled sword, vowing that 
 it should be drawn henceforth for the British Government alone. 
 He did not obtain, however, the definitive assurances of support 
 which he desired from the British Government, both in respect 
 of foreign war and internal revolution. Then he returned to 
 Caubul, pleased with the reception which had been accorded, 
 and doubtless intending sincerely to act up to all the loyal 
 words he had uttered. Lord Mayo would have rejoiced if he 
 had been empowered to give a more positive guarantee to the 
 Amir, at least, in respect to protection against foreign aggres- 
 sion. Still he continued, by exercising a personal influence, to 
 keep the Afghan ruler in a loyal and contented frame of mind. 
 Thus for several years the Amballa meeting produced valuable 
 results politically, which redounded to Lord Mayo's honour. 
 
Chap. xvi. AFGHAN LIMITS DEFINED. 369 
 
 The reception at Amballa having thus ended propitiously, 
 the Indian public began to hope that relations had been estab- 
 lished on the part of the British Government with a real native 
 ruler at Caubul who, in virtue of these relations, would hold his 
 own against all comers for himself and for England his ally. 
 Once more the vision of a friendly and independent Afghanistan 
 floated before the popular imagination, and great credit on this 
 account was accorded to Lord Mayo, which he fully deserved. 
 At the same time it was necessary to remember the share 
 which John Lawrence had taken in originating these measures, 
 and in preparing the way for their consummation. 
 
 Lord Mayo's cares regarding Afghanistan did not end with 
 the completion of the Amballa arrangement. 
 
 He desired to approach what was really the root of the whole 
 question, namely, the establishment of an understanding 
 between England and Eussia regarding their respective limits 
 of actual possession, or political control, in Asia. He virtually 
 advocated the plan which has since been termed the inter- 
 national delimitation between the two empires. He took a 
 hopefui and friendly view of the policy and intentions of 
 Russia respecting those Asiatic matters in which England was 
 interested. At his instance the English Government permitted 
 Mr. (now Sir Douglas) Forsyth to proceed to St. Petersburg and 
 discuss the subject with the Eussian Ministers. It is probable 
 that Central Asian trade entered into these discussions ; this 
 trade may be valuable so far as it goes, and Lord Mayo took 
 great interest in its development ; the real point, however, was 
 the political safety of Afghanistan as an outwork of India. 
 
 Shortly afterwards the arrangement was begun whereby 
 Eussia agreed that Afghanistan should be regarded as beyond 
 the sphere of her political influence. The next point was the 
 determination of the boundaries of Afghanistan, and Lord Mayo 
 was rejoiced to see much progress made towards the framing of 
 a political map whereby Afghan limits would be defined in a 
 manner satisfactory to England. This result, so far as it went, 
 was really sound and good. Shir Ali too preserved a loyal 
 and comparatively cheerful demeanour. Thus the anxiety 
 
 2 B 
 
370 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 which had been growing so fast in India, as explained in the 
 previous chapter XIV., regarding the intentions of Eussia, 
 began temporarily to subside, and fortune seemed for a moment 
 to smile on Lord Mayo's efforts. 
 
 It was not until after Lord Mayo's death that anxiety was 
 aroused by the Paissian expedition against Khiva in 1873, and 
 the arrangements consequent thereon, which really made the 
 Khivan chief a vassal of the Czar. Thereupon the Amir of 
 Caubul shewed much alarm, and wondered whether, if Eussia 
 having thus absorbed Khiva were to compass the absorption 
 of Afghanistan, there would be anything really to stop her. 
 It was then that he first began to swerve from the fidelity 
 which he had promised to Lord Mayo. 
 
 Then Persia became troublesome, first by aggression upon 
 Seistan on the Afghan border, next by a truly presumptuous 
 claim on territory which belonged to the Khan of Khelat, an 
 ally of the British, and actually touched the British frontier 
 in Sind. Lord Mayo saw at once the importance of keeping 
 Persia at arm's length from the Indian frontier, and arranged 
 for the satisfactory disposal of this unreasonable claim. That 
 affair is known in the diplomatic records as the settlement of 
 the Mekran boundary. The dispute between Persia and 
 Afghanistan soon assumed a serious aspect. Seistan may be 
 described as one of those remarkable depressions which charac- 
 terize the physical geography of Asia. Into it there flows the 
 Helmand, wdiich drains all central and southern Afghanis- 
 tan, and finds no other outlet. It is for the most part a 
 vast swamp, but in former ages was highly cultivated, and 
 possesses classical associations to Persians as having been the 
 native land of Eustam and other heroes. It has, notwithstand- 
 ing its comparative desolation and insalubrity, an important 
 position politically, as being one of the two natural highways 
 whereby Afghanistan may be approached from the west and 
 military communication opened from Persia to Candahar. It 
 was now claimed almost wholly by Persia, and parts of it were 
 seized by Persian troops. The Amir, Shir Ali, remonstrated 
 strenuously, and claimed the good offices of the British Govern- 
 
Chap. xvi. DIPLOMACY RESPECTING CENTKAL ASIA. 371 
 
 ment, which were granted by Lord Mayo. Ilesort was had to 
 arbitration, whereby a part of the disputed territory was 
 adjudged to Persia, while the rest remained in Afghanistan. 
 The final adjudication was not arrived at till after Lord Mayo's 
 time. Meanwhile the Amir did not seem to appreciate at their 
 full worth the efforts put forth by the British Government, but 
 rather to imagine that his just interests were being unduly 
 sacrificed. 
 
 The Muhammadan chief who had overthrown Chinese 
 authority in Yarkand, and whose overtures were rejected by 
 John LawTence, again evinced anxiety for British friendship. 
 Lord Mayo deemed the time had come for renewing negotia- 
 tions, and despatched thither a mission under Sir Douglas 
 Forsyth. The results of the mission proved satisfactory so long 
 as the Muhammadan power lasted in that region. 
 
 So far then Lord Mayo was fortunate in diplomacy 
 respecting Central Asia. He had seen the Afghan ruler esta- 
 blished, in independence indeed, but still distinctly in friend- 
 sliip with England. He had made progress in concert with 
 Kussia toward determining the boundaries of Afghanistan as 
 being outside the limits of Russian interference. The ambitious 
 projects of Persia had been checked, and British influence had 
 been established in Yarkand. The only cloud which hung over 
 this fair horizon was the design which Ptussia was meditating 
 for the expedition which she afterwards launched against Khiva. 
 
 All that was possible at the time for promoting the foreign 
 interests of India had been done, and Lord Mayo might well 
 feel at liberty to bend his mind towards the internal adminis- 
 tration of the empire. 
 
 There was yet, however, one external trouble to be en- 
 countered, for complications of a threatening character arose 
 on the North-eastern border. The extension of tea-plantations 
 under European supervision, and the spread of Bengali cultiva- 
 tion among the naturally fertile and wooded valleys of the liill 
 ranges on the eastern border of Bengal, had been proceeding 
 apace for several years. These circumstances excited the un- 
 reasoning jealousy and cupidity of the tribes inhabiting the 
 
 •2 B -2 
 
372 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 broad belt of mountains which overlook the British border for 
 five hundred miles. Their outrages having become intolerable, 
 two expeditions were despatched against the offending tribes 
 from opposite directions : one from Assam in the north under 
 General (now Sir George) Bourchier ; the other from Chittagong 
 on the south under General (now Sir Charles) Brownlow. The 
 operations were quite successful, and the tribes wliich were then 
 chastised have ever since behaved better than formerly. I had 
 officially to visit a part of that frontier in after years, and found 
 the moral effect of these expeditions to have been considerable. 
 
 The first important appointment which Lord Mayo made was 
 that of Sir Henry Durand (then military member of the 
 Governor-General's Council) to be Lieutenant Governor of the 
 Panjab in succession to Sir Donald Macleod. Durand had, 
 after a long, eventful and perhaps somewhat chequered career 
 in peace and war, ended by becoming more popular with 
 Europeans in India than any one of that time. He was a man 
 of grand appearance, his figure being very tall and broad, his 
 aspect grave resolute and commanding. He was esteemed to be 
 a man of clear vision, calm judgment, just disposition, accurate 
 discrimination, and to all these qualities was added an intrepid 
 courage. Though of warm temper, he was generous, indeed 
 without the attribute of generosity in a large degree it would 
 have been impossible for a man to become as popular as he 
 was. Being an officer of the Corps of Engineers, and well 
 educated in many professional subjects, he had acquired much 
 general culture. Altogether he was a strong man, whether 
 in the cabinet or in the field, and his troops of friends 
 anticipated for him fresh successes in the administrative sphere 
 of the Panjab. But within a twelvemonth he was accidentally 
 killed while marching along the frontier ; at dusk, when mounted 
 on an elephant, he was trying to pass under an archway 
 which proved to be too low for so tall a beast as the one 
 he rode. He was thrown off violently on the ground, and 
 received a mortal injury in the spine. Men in their grief felt 
 that a great spirit had suddenly passed away from their midst. 
 
 The next appointment of this nature made by Lord Mayo 
 
Chap. xvi. LOCATION OF EUROPEAN TROOPS. 373 
 
 was that of Mr. Cnow Sir George) Campbell to be Lieutenant- 
 Governor of Bengal. As Campbell was known to be one of the 
 most active-minded men in the Civil Service, many auguries were 
 formed of progress and improvement for Bengal. It will be 
 shewn in a future chapter how fully these hopes were realized. 
 
 From his habits of mind, Lord Mayo was fond of attending 
 to military affairs, and formed the idea that the expense of 
 the army in India was too heavy. Perhaps he hardly realised 
 the efforts that had been made by some of his predecessors 
 and advisers for diminishing that expense, and the extent to 
 which the reduction had already been carried. That the charge 
 was then, as it ever will be, very heavy, was undoubted ; but the 
 question was whether it could be lessened with safety, and he 
 seemed to think that it could. Certainly he set himself 
 laudably to the study of economy in this branch, and although 
 additional charges were unavoidably caused by improvements 
 in armament, he succeeded in obtaining a diminution of the 
 total expenditure. As might be expected, he examined care- 
 fully the fine barracks for European troops wliich, according to 
 the large scheme mentioned in the preceding chapter XIV., 
 were being constructed at many stations. These also he 
 deemed to be too costly, and strove to effect savings in 
 the outlay. One plan of his was to place more regiments 
 than heretofore in the Himalayas, where barracks smaller 
 and cheaper than those to be erected in the Indian plains 
 would prove sufficient ; in this way the construction of some 
 of the more expensive barracks might be dispensed with. He 
 doubtless saw the political danger of keeping too large a portion 
 of the European troops in the hills, far away from the plains 
 where their services might be required, as has been indicated 
 in the previous chapter VII. But he held, perhaps judiciously, 
 that the introduction of railways had quite altered the aspect 
 of the case — mobilizing the army to an extent hardly con- 
 ceivable in past times — and that it would be both safe and 
 economical to afford to the European soldiers, in a larger degree 
 than formerly, the benefit of a sojourn in the cool climate of 
 the hills. 
 
374 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 Sir William Mansfield (afterwards Lord Sandhurst) was then 
 Commander-in-Chief; and he was disposed to second the efforts 
 of the Governor-General in the direction of economy. The 
 prominent part taken by Mansfield, in the civil as w^ell as the 
 military business of the Government of India, has been already 
 mentioned in chapter XIV. As he was about to resign his 
 command and return to England, Lord Mayo entertained him 
 at a farewell banquet in Government House, and commemo- 
 rated his war services in a suitable and graceful speech. 
 
 Lord Napier of Magdala was welcomed by the public as well 
 as the army on succeeding to the high office of Commander-in- 
 Chief. He was not disposed to lend the weight of his authority 
 to proposals for economy unless they were manifestly consistent 
 with safety and efficiency. Eegarding the style and size of the 
 new barracks for the European troops, he generally concurred 
 in what had been done already, and was inclined to deprecate 
 any considerable saving as being likely to cause detriment to 
 the health of the men. 
 
 Though Lord Mayo was, as has been seen, much interested 
 in political and military affairs, it was towards the internal 
 administration of the empire, and the progress of moral and 
 material improvement, that his best thoughts and highest 
 hopes were directed. His policy has been excellently sketched 
 in an elaborate minute, drawn up immediately after his pre- 
 mature and lamented death, by Sir John Strachey, who was 
 the senior member of his Council, and had the best possible 
 data for preparing such a description. Many facts and par- 
 ticulars also are furnished in the biography of him by Dr. "W. 
 W. Hunter. I shall here mention those circumstances wliich 
 came under my own observation as one of the members of his 
 government. 
 
 The financial policy of Lord Mayo has for the most part been 
 set forth in the previous chapter XV. relating to the Finance 
 Ministership. There remain, however, some particulars to be 
 stated respecting his bearing towards the Financial Department 
 of the Government. It might have been anticipated that 
 being a progressive administrator, an ardent advocate of 
 
Chap. xvi. INTEENAL ADMINISTRATION. 375 
 
 material improvement, an impressionable and popular states- 
 man, a grand and conspicuous man generally — lie would 
 dislike the check imposed by finance, or at least be dis- 
 posed to overlook the cost when in full view of the results 
 attainable by beneficent measures. Such however was not the 
 case with him ; on the contrary, financial considerations were 
 never for a moment absent from his mind. However eager he 
 might be in the pursuit of any advantage desirable for the 
 public weal, he paused instantly on being confronted by a 
 financial obstacle. He would forego his most darling wish 
 rather than incur even the slightest deficit, and submit to 
 any trouble, even sacrificing the popularity which as a 
 generously minded man he liked to retain, in order to secure an 
 equilibrium between income and expenses. So far from under- 
 rating financial difficulties, he was rather inclined to over-rate 
 them, or sometimes even to be unnecessarily disqtdeted on 
 their account* He seemed to feel an absolute respect for the 
 authority and influence of " the Treasury," as he called it, 
 meaning in India the Financial Department ; and was most 
 unwilling to embark upon any course involving the collection or 
 the disbursement of public money, unless his responsible advisers 
 financially concurred. Nor did his care relate only to the plain 
 matters of receipts and expenses ; it extended also throughout 
 the whole field of audit and account. Had his training been 
 in the bureau of an auditor, instead of in the field and the cabinet^ 
 he could hardly have been more punctiliously anxious respect-. 
 ing the public accounts than he actually was. As Finance 
 Minister I foUnd liim a most pleasant and satisfactory Governor- 
 General to deal with. When he suddenly perished he was 
 " flebilis " to many departments, but to none was he " flebi^ 
 lior" than to the Financial Department. On producing the 
 budget for British India in April, 1872, shortly after his deathj 
 it became my duty to express the sentiment of Indian financiers 
 in these words : " Those who were in almost daily communi- 
 cation with him regarding the administration of the exchequer, 
 the work of the treasury department, the gathering in of 
 receipts, the regulation of expenses, must necessarily know 
 
376 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 best how firm he was in the enforcement of economy, how 
 strict in adherence to rule, how anxious that the state resources 
 should be reserved for indispensable or beneficent purposes, 
 how consistent in the vindication of financial considerations, 
 and how generous in supporting those engaged in the conduct of 
 affairs." 
 
 Concerning finance, there was one matter in which he took 
 much personal interest, and for its successful accomplishment 
 he deserved great credit individually, namely, the plan of 
 augmenting the control and responsibility of the several pro- 
 vincial governments in India for certain branches of the civil 
 expenditure, officially styled "the scheme of Provincial 
 Services." 
 
 It had for several years been felt that in respect of moral and 
 material improvement, comprised practically in education, roads 
 and communications, hospitals and sanitation, civil buildings 
 and prisons — the demands of a progTCssive age were constantly 
 causing increase of expenditure. The objects in question, being 
 excellent, were urged by the local authorities and provincial 
 governments wdth indisputable force, but there remained the 
 question as to how the needful money was to be found. The 
 provincial governments were not answerable for its production, 
 though they recommended the expending of it; the supreme 
 authority, namely the Government of India, had to provide the 
 funds. Consequently the Government of India used to check 
 and curtail the proposed measures in every possible way, and, 
 as might be expected, the provincial governments were hardly 
 so economical in framing their recommendations as they 
 ■would have been if answerable for providing the ways and 
 means. But this detailed check on the part of the Govern- 
 ment of India respecting matters wherein the provincial 
 governments and local authorities were the best informed, 
 was in its nature invidious, and produced incessant friction. 
 The modification of this system had been carefully considered 
 by John Lawrence, but he was anxious regarding the finances, 
 and unwilling to relax the financial check which his Govern- 
 ment had vigilantly exercised. So the matter rested until 
 
Chap. xvi. PROVINCIAL FINANCES. 377 
 
 some time after Lord Mayo's arrival in 1869. During the 
 discussions on the budget of April 1870, at Calcutta, he 
 adverted several times to the advantage of relaxing the 
 financial check heretofore exercised by the Government of 
 India in the various branches of moral or material improve- 
 ment already mentioned above, and proportionately aug- 
 menting the financial responsibility of the provincial govern- 
 ments. It was known that one of our colleagues. Sir John 
 Strachey, was especially favourable to this principle. When we 
 were all assembled at Simla, after the publication of the budget, 
 I went one day to see Lord Mayo, and asked him to explain to 
 me his wished, promising that as Finance Minister I would help 
 in giving effect to them. He then said that a yearly grant of 
 money in a fixed amount ought to be made by the Government 
 of India to each of the several provincial governments for the 
 branches and departments already mentioned ; that any unspent 
 portion of the grant should be credited to the next year, and so 
 on ; also that several items of local income should be assigned 
 to them, so that they might have the benefit of good manage- 
 ment, or suffer the loss arising from inferior management. 
 Thus they would have funds of their own, for the administra- 
 tion of which they must be answerable. From these funds 
 they would have to provide the means for conducting the work 
 of the departments above mentioned. If they desired more and 
 more improvements, they might have these if only they could 
 find the money. They would thus be placed in their proper 
 position relatively to the Government of India, would cease 
 to make proposals without regard to expense, and remain 
 content with such a moderate degree of progress as the funds 
 at their disposal might allow. The general control of the 
 Government of India was to be maintained in these particular 
 branches, as in all the larger branches of the public service. 
 The plan was then matured, and assistance was received to the 
 utmost from Sir John Strachey in passing it through the 
 Council. 
 
 The department, however, towards which Lord Mayo's 
 brightest thoughts turned, \vas that of Public Works. He 
 
378 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 delighted in roads, railways, and canals, and regarded India as 
 an imperial estate, upon which capital was to be beneficently 
 laid out to the utmost limit compatible with financial safety. 
 In this cardinal respect he was on a par even with the great 
 Dalhousie, and essentially a Governor-General for such works. 
 He felt so keen an interest in this department that he took 
 it under his own direct control, whereas it had previously 
 been supervised by one of the members of the Government. 
 Ordinarily in the division of labour between the head and the 
 members of the Government, the Governor-General takes the 
 Foreign department, and distributes the other departments 
 among his colleagues. But Lord Mayo managed both the 
 Foreio-n and the Public Works departments, thereby subject- 
 ing himself to an additional burden of work. 
 
 He discerned the precise extent of the need which India had 
 for works of artificial irrigation, and appreciated the magnificence 
 of the canal system which she already possessed. But while 
 anxious to diffuse as widely as possible the blessings of water 
 in season among arid lands, by the outlay of capital on the part 
 of the State — he thought that the canals must be made to yield a 
 profitable return, not in a more or less remote future, but within 
 a very few years after the opening of the works. He held that 
 however demonstrable the beneficence of these works might be, 
 they could not be properly undertaken by the State unless 
 some such remunerative return were, not only promised, but 
 actually secured. With this view, he proposed that a local rate 
 should be levied on those villages which had the opportunity of 
 deriving irrigation from the new canals; for he apprehended that 
 full reliance could not be placed on the sale of canal-water to 
 the farmers and cultivators. In this proposal he was supported 
 by the concurrent opinion of his colleagues in Council, and a 
 bill for levying such a rate was in due course passed by the 
 legislature in India. The measure however gave rise to an 
 animated discussion, and was ultimately disallowed by the 
 Secretary of State in England. 
 
 Ptespecting railways, Lord Mayo deemed that the cost had 
 been excessive of the lines already made in India by the 
 
CiiAP. XVI. DIMINUTION OF RAILWAY GAUGE. 379 
 
 Guaranteed Companies, that is the Companies to whom a certain 
 rate of interest on their capital outlay had been guaranteed by 
 the State. He therefore desired much to try some cheaper 
 system of construction for the future. Believing that the lines 
 remaining to be made could be constructed quite as well and 
 more economically by the Government, he favoured the plan 
 already initiated of forming a department for State railways. 
 Instead of entrusting the new railways to companies with a 
 State guarantee of interest on capital, he promoted the construc- 
 tion of railways by the Government through its own officers. 
 Though he duly appreciated the great services which the 
 Guaranteed Companies had rendered to India, he hoped to 
 profit by their experience for the benefit of the future lines, in 
 economy at least if not in efficiency. In respect to the saving of 
 expense he mainly relied on a specific measure namely, the 
 diminution of the gauge. For the existing gauge of 5 ft. 6 in. 
 he proposed to substitute a gauge of 3 ft. 3 in. This proposal 
 caused a battle of the gauges to be stirred up in India, and it 
 was surprising to note how rapidly the various authorities 
 began to range themselves on one side or the other. The 
 opposition to the gauge of 3 ft. 3 in. proceeded in the first 
 instance from those concerned in the Guaranteed railways who 
 by this time had become a considerable party in the State. 
 Tlieir view spread largely among the mercantile community 
 which was naturally disposed to accept a highly competent 
 non-official authority like this in preference to the official 
 authority of the Government. Then stress was laid on the fact 
 that as a narrow gauge was to be introduced into a country 
 which already possessed many railways made on a broader 
 gauge, there would be a break of gauge in many places. Now 
 a break of gauge is usually dreaded by military authorities in 
 respect to army transport, so they, with Lord Napier of Magdala 
 at their head, arrayed themselves in argument against the pro- 
 posed narrow gauge. The difference of opinion extended to 
 Lord Mayo's own Council ; upon a division there, however, 
 he obtained a majority. The main objection was this, that 
 the narrow gauge while causing manifold inconveniences 
 
380 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 would fail to save expense appreciably. But Lord Mayo had 
 little difficulty in showing that a smaller thing would be less 
 expensive than a larger. Then several of the new State rail- 
 ways were begun upon the gauge of 3 ft. 3 in. and a compre- 
 hensive scheme was prepared whereby the lines generally west 
 of Delhi, namely those in the Panjab and Sind, and those 
 running from the North- western Provinces through Eajputana 
 and Central India towards Bombay, should be constructed on 
 this gauge. This scheme was after Lord Mayo's death aban- 
 doned as regards the Panjab, but is in the main being carried 
 into effect for the lines in Eajputana and Central Asia. 
 
 Lord Mayo was quite prepared to raise money by loan, about 
 four millions sterling annually, for the construction of railways 
 and canals, and to depend on the Government being recouped, 
 by the net income from these useful works, for the interest on 
 the capital laid out upon them. He acquiesced in the principle 
 already established, to the effect that this outlay and all charges 
 and receipts incidental to it should be kept separate from the 
 ordinary budget of revenue and expenditure and treated as 
 technically " extraordinary." But he was anxious that a 
 separate audit should be set up, to be conducted with the public 
 as witness. In these matters he continued to receive the same 
 valuable support which his predecessor had received from 
 Colonel Eichard Strachey, 
 
 He supported all plans which were judiciously and consider- 
 ately framed with a view to levying special rates in the several 
 Provinces of the empire for purposes of local improvement. An 
 important beginning was made in Bengal by the imposition of 
 the road cess for schools and roads, notwithstanding the opposi- 
 tion raised on the score of the permanent settlement. 
 
 Some considerable impulse was given by him to the project for 
 abolishing the inland customs line, whereby sugar and salt were 
 taxed in transit. He induced the Native Princes in whose 
 territory the sources of salt supply were situated to allow them 
 to be managed by the British authorities, so that the duty 
 might be levied at the place of production. He then arranged 
 for the construction of railways to these sources of supply. 
 
Chap. xvi. IMPROVEMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 381 
 
 He strove to systematize the proceedings whereby loans were 
 granted by the State to corporations, municipal or other, for 
 the execution of useful works, and to individuals for the im- 
 provement of their estates. A law indeed was enacted by 
 his Legislative Council for the purpose. Many of the muni- 
 cipalities largely availed themselves of the privilege he thus 
 secured for them, as they thereby obtained from Government 
 better terms than any they could obtain in the money market. 
 As regards the improvement of estates, landowners now borrow 
 but little from Government fpr this purpose save in times of 
 drought, when a demand usually arises for the lesser works of 
 irrigation ; so the hopes formed in this respect have hardly been 
 realized. 
 
 All proposals for sanitation in large towns, and for sanitary 
 reform in the country generally, received Lord Mayo's sympa- 
 thetic attention. 
 
 In respect to internal improvement he greatly set his heart 
 upon founding what in some countries would be termed an 
 agricultural bureau. He thought more upon the improvement 
 of agriculture than any other Governor-General, and at first 
 seemed to cherish a hope that he might see a path of progress 
 opened amidst the maze of popular ignorance, though this hope 
 must have grown weaker and weaker as he gained experience 
 of the dead weight to be overcome. Every one had seen that 
 Indian agriculture was backward in comparison with European 
 countries, and might be improved, but none had known how 
 to promote such improvement. It was admitted that in- 
 struction in scientific agriculture ought to form part of the 
 national education in India ; but, how this instruction should 
 be given, and of what it should consist, were questions far 
 from being solved. The experiments undertaken from time 
 to time were desultory and fruitless. The model farms, 
 established here and there, had failed to prove the practicability 
 of any improvement. Now, Lord Mayo wished to set up a 
 department of practical and scientific agriculture, which should 
 be a part of the ordinary administration, with its head-quarters 
 under the Government of India, and its branches under the 
 
382 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 several provincial governments. This scheme, being based on 
 a sound and scientific idea, was with some modifications 
 accepted by the authorities in India, and would if carried into 
 effect have produced results, slowly at first but surely in the 
 end, though after the lapse of a long time. But when submitted 
 to the authorities in England for sanction it underwent alterations, 
 and instead of being a department of Agriculture only, it became 
 a secretariat of Eevenue, Agriculture, and Commerce, which 
 was quite a different thing. The sort of attention which could 
 be afforded to agriculture in |^njunction with revenue and 
 commerce was already understood in India, and was in some 
 degree bestowed, though doubtless that degree might well be in- 
 creased. The supervision now wanted was specifically different, 
 namely, a scientific attention, which could not properly be 
 afforded by a department concerned in other branches, fiscal 
 or commercial. Moreover the officers concerned in a department 
 embracing three such branches as these above mentioned, must 
 necessarily be men of general qualifications and not professional 
 agriculturists. It would on the other hand be a waste of power 
 to appoint purely scientific men to manage a department which, 
 in addition to science, had charge of revenue and commerce. 
 Thus Lord Mayo's original plan became transformed in effect, 
 and merely improved the existing practice instead of introduc- 
 ing, as he intended, a new one altogether. He, however, faute 
 de mieux, accepted the modified scheme and constituted the 
 new secretariat of Eevenue, Agriculture, and Commerce, ap- 
 pointing as the first Secretary Mr. Allan Hume, of the 
 Covenanted Civil Service, one of the few officers then in India 
 who with administrative ability combined an aptitude for 
 physical science. No marked result to the country at large 
 ensued upon this arrangement being brought into effect. 
 
 The three years of Lord Mayo's incumbency were, in respect 
 of legislation, perhaps the busiest that have ever passed in 
 British India. Henry Sumner Maine was, in 1869, approaching 
 the close of a six years' tenure as legislative member of the 
 Government, the results of wliich have been mentioned in the 
 chapter XIY. on John Lawrence as Governor-General. His 
 
Chap. xvi. ACTIVITY IN LEGISLATION. 383 
 
 successor, James Fitzjanies Stephen, was received in India 
 with the deference due to the high reputation acquired by 
 him in England as a jurist, a legal authority in criminal law 
 especially, and as a public writer. From the beginning of 1870, 
 ritzjames Stephen applied himself with really splendid energy 
 to the pending matters of Indian legislation. He found that 
 his distinguished predecessor had not only procured the passing 
 of several important Acts, but had prepared the way for others 
 of importance to be enacted thereafter; that a High Com- 
 mission had been sitting in England to prepare several projects 
 of gener^l~l^rw^ for the consideration of the Government in 
 India ,\^ a^ndthat considerable progress had been made towards 
 the codifieatioir'of those existing in India partly through the 
 exertions of Whitley Stokes, legislative secretary to the Govern- 
 ment. Thus he found a large field, with a harvest ready 
 to be reaped by a man who possessed, as he did, knowledge 
 combined with administrative power. He perceived the consti- 
 tution of the legislature to have become such that the faculty 
 of oral exposition was almost as useful there as in a British 
 assembly ; and he speedily gave proofs of possessing that 
 faculty in a degree quite commensurate with the importance of 
 the many occasions which were frequently presenting them- 
 selves. Within a month after assuming office he made a speech 
 before the Legislative Council on a bill then pending ; as we 
 walked away together, after the sitting was over. Lord Mayo 
 remarked to me that the man who had just delivered that 
 speech would soon make his mark on the face of Indian affairs. 
 Without apparently attempting the polished oratory which had 
 distinguished so many of Maine's speeches, he spoke clearly as 
 well as with force and energy. Some of his speeches on im- 
 portant measures, such as the Indian Contract Act, form land- 
 marks in the history of Indian legislation. Others, again, 
 such as that upon tlie Marriage Act, for Indians not pro- 
 fessing the Hindu or Muhammadan religion, form striking 
 episodes in the annals of the Legislative Council. His oration 
 too, in reply to the objections of the Bengal landlords to the 
 imposition of the road cess, indicated the most fruitful research 
 
384 MEN AXD EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 into the early history of the Permanent Settlement. He also 
 took a decided part in all the deliberations of the Government 
 on general subjects, and was during his Indian service quite a 
 power in the State. 
 
 In these days his Eoyal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, 
 then in command of the Galatea, honoured India with a gracious 
 visit. Lord Mayo received His Eoyal Highness at Calcutta 
 with magnificence, befitting this the first occasion of a member 
 of the Eoyal family visiting India. The Governors, the Lieu- 
 tenant-Governors, the principal European officials, the Native 
 princes and chiefs of the empire, assembled at the capital to 
 render homage. His Eoyal Highness was invested with the 
 insignia of the Star of India in the presence of one of the 
 larjiest and most brilliant assemblages ever witnessed in India. 
 The royal sojourn was deeply impressed on the hearts of the 
 Natives, and they founded useful institutions in remembrance 
 of it. His Eoyal Highness gave to the community of Calcutta 
 an 9ntertainment on board the Galatea, wliich was then lying 
 in the Hughli river ; and the beauty of the scene that evening 
 will ever be remembered by all who were present. 
 
 In all political and social affairs Lord Mayo derived the 
 utmost assistance from his Private Secretary, Colonel, now Sir 
 Owen, Burne. The duties of the Private Secretaryship being 
 very important, it is essential to the prestige and influence of 
 the Governor-General that his Private Secretary should possess 
 not only ability in business, but also courtesy, judgment, and 
 popularity. Burne had all these qualities in a high degree, 
 and like his cliief was fast acquiring knowledge of Indian policy 
 and of Native sentiments. 
 
 One evening near Calcutta I was riding home with Lord 
 Mayo and our conversation adverted to the several qualities 
 most desirable in an Englishman who rules over an Indian 
 province. I asked him what he considered to be the most import- 
 ant quality of all. He at once answered, an enthusiasm which 
 makes a man believe in the possibility of improvement and 
 strive to attain it. He added that this single-minded zeal 
 pervaded the public service in India. 
 
Chap. xvi. LORD MAYO'S POPULARITY. 385 
 
 By the end of 1871 Lord Mayo had reached the zenith of 
 popularity in India. Every one of the many departments which 
 make up the great entity of the government of India found that 
 his propelling or regulating hand was under the guidance of 
 a master-mind. Every one of the many provinces visited 
 by him acknowledged the readiness of his perception, the 
 genial manner whereby he entered into local questions, the 
 cordiality and tact with which he seemed to identify him- 
 self with the sentiments and genius of the places where he 
 stopped. The provinces as yet unvisited were looking 
 forward with hopefulness to a visit from him. He had by 
 many and varied tours, travelled more than twenty thousand 
 miles since his arrival in India, of which distance much had 
 been traversed on horseback. People were dazzled by the 
 personal vigour thus displayed by him, when they saw that every 
 tour was followed by some administrative result. In his thirst 
 for ocular evidence, he was conscious that at the best he could 
 learn only a little regarding so vast a country as India ; still 
 no man ever saw so much of India within three 5''ears as 
 he. His public labours and anxieties never dulled the warm 
 sunshine of his manner towards all with whom he came 
 in contact. He had maintained a gracious, friendly and con- 
 ciliatory bearing towards the Native princes and chiefs, not 
 only at ceremonial receptions but at separate or confidential 
 interviews. Some of them, indeed, became sincerely attached 
 to him. A college called after his name had been founded 
 by Mm at Ajmir in Rajputana for educating the scions and 
 cadets of princely houses. He had endured cheerfully the 
 unpopularity which had arisen from the support accorded by 
 him to the income tax ; but this shadow was but transient, 
 especially since the diminution in the rate of the tax. There 
 was that glowing sensation of national progress which always 
 delights and exhilarates the Indian public, European and Native 
 combined. The Natives are, indeed, disposed to regard a pro- 
 gressive epoch with timid circumspection, still even they looked 
 upon Lord Mayo as a frank and benevolent ruler. Altogether 
 there was a genial warmth pervading the political atmosphere. 
 
 2 G 
 
386 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xvi. 
 
 But as so often happens in moments of almost universal 
 brightness, some untoward clouds were appearing. Certain con- 
 spiracies on the part of Muhammadans in Calcutta and in Patna, 
 the capital of the Behar Province had been discovered. Patna, 
 indeed, had for many years been known to the Government as a 
 focus of mischief; and the secret designs emanating from this 
 centre, as well as from others in the north, had always been 
 watched, sometimes also frustrated by the British authorities. 
 These particular conspiracies might have been regarded as only 
 forming an exacerbation of a chronic ailment. Piecently, how- 
 ever, there had been in Arabia a reforming and fanatical stir 
 among the Wahabis ; similar movements had occurred, too, in 
 other Muhammadan countries ; and altogether there seemed to 
 be a thrill throughout the whole body of Islam. Though gene- 
 rally unmlling to bring Muhammadan plots into prominence 
 by prosecution, the Government of India deemed that the 
 evidence which existed of these particular conspiracies ought to 
 be produced at the criminal bar against the conspirators. 
 Accordingly several Muhammadans of more or less note were 
 prosecuted before the High Court of Calcutta ; the prisoners 
 engaged in their defence the well known counsel from Bombay, 
 Mr. Cliisholm Anstey. In the course of the defence Anstey 
 adopted a tone, style, and language wliich caused much 
 remark, as being calculated to agitate the minds of the dis- 
 affected. Though unguarded in his expressions, he was 
 loyally anxious on behalf of liis clients, and the Judges felt a 
 delicacy in checking the licence of a counsel defending men who 
 were on trial for treason. Wliile the trials were pending, the 
 Acting Chief Justice, Mr. Norman, was stabbed mortally one 
 morning in October while ascending the staircase of his court- 
 house, the passage being quite unprotected. Enquiry proved 
 beyond doubt that the murderer perpetrated the deed in the vain 
 idea of influencing the judicial proceedings. It was remarkable 
 that the criminal chose for his crime that time and place 
 as affording his only opportunity, so difficult was it for him 
 otherwise to approach his victim under the circumstances of 
 residence at Calcutta. Subsequent reflection showed the local 
 
Chap. xvi. ASSASSINATION OF LORD MAYO. 387 
 
 authorities that while political trials are pending, the avenues 
 and approaches, by which the ministers of justice must pass, 
 should be effectually guarded. The effect of a deed like this 
 is always serious in India, and instantly suggests a repetition 
 of assassination to the thoughts of the evil-minded. No out- 
 break, however, occurred, or other immediate sequel to this 
 grave event. 
 
 In the following January (1872) Lord Mayo proceeded to 
 inspect the convict settlement at Port Blair of the Andaman 
 Islands in the Bay of Bengal. The superintendent of the 
 settlement was General Stewart (now Sir Donald Stewart, Com- 
 mander-in-Chief of the army in India), who took every pre- 
 caution for the safety of the Viceroy during the inspection. 
 Guarded vigilantly at every step and turn. Lord Mayo safely 
 completed liis inspection exactly according to the official pro- 
 gramme, comparatively early in the afternoon. Finding that 
 there were two hours and more to spare, he suddenly decided to 
 ascend a hill close by, though this ascent was not in the 
 day's programme, and consequently no special arrangements 
 for guarding him had been completed beforehand on that 
 particular line. As he ascended and descended the liill, his 
 course was dogged in the shadow of the surrounding forest by a 
 ticket-of-leave man, who had previously resolved on seizing any 
 opportunity for assassination which presented itself. He was 
 still so surrounded by guards that no chance occurred for strik- 
 ing a blow. He had returned at dusk by torch-light to within a 
 few yards of the steam-launch which was to convey him on 
 board his ship, a man-of-war. Just at the last he walked very 
 quickly a step or two a-head of his staff; at that moment, but 
 not till that moment, the looked-for chance offered itself to 
 the assassin, who instantly rushed forward, sprung like a tiger 
 on his back, and stabbed him fatally in the chest. The man 
 was a Muhammadan of the hills near Peshawur, who had seve- 
 ral years previously been sentenced to transportation for com- 
 plicity in a murder ; he declared to the last that the thought 
 of assassinating the Viceroy had sprung only from fanatical 
 bravado and from a feeling of revenge against the Government 
 
 2 c 2 
 
388 HEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvi. 
 
 which had imprisoned him. Careful enquiry was made as to 
 whether this assassination M'as connected with the recent 
 murder of the Chief Justice at Calcutta; possibly there may 
 have been some indirect connection, though no clue to it was 
 ever discovered. 
 
 At this time I was in Calcutta, as Financial Member in the 
 Council of wMch Sir John Strachey was temporarily President, 
 during the absence of the Governor-General. One afternoon 
 Strachey sent me a message asking me to come and see him 
 quickly. On entering his room, I found our other colleagues 
 coming also ; he said that a cypher telegram had just been 
 received which was being deciphered, but which already 
 showed that something serious had happened to Lord Mayo, 
 We all stood round watcliing while the telegram was being 
 deciphered, and word after word was spelt out completing the 
 melancholy tale. The necessary steps were immediately taken to 
 carry on the Government without the slightest interruption, and 
 Strachey assumed, by law, the Governor-Generalship, until the 
 coming of Lord Napier from Madras, who as senior Governor of a 
 Presidency, became, under the Statute, Governor-General pend- 
 ing the arrival of the person who might be appointed to succeed 
 Lord Mayo. The public grief was manifested in every form 
 and manner; there was much excitement among several dis- 
 affected classes among the Natives of Calcutta, though no overt 
 sign of it was allowed by them to appear. The strictest precautions 
 were adopted to guard against any fresh attempt being made 
 on the life of any prominent European, inasmuch as the 
 occurrence of two very notable assassinations within four 
 months was calculated to give rise to a murderous impulse 
 wdiich, if once started, might spread like an infection. 
 
 A few days afterwards the corpse of Lord Mayo arrived by 
 ship, and was escorted from the landing-place to Government 
 House for two miles by a long procession of all the European 
 notables of Calcutta on foot. The concourse of Native spec- 
 tators was vast, and at Government House the cortege was re- 
 ceived by the European troops together with the Calcutta 
 Volunteer Pvifles. He was borne in his coffin up the flight 
 
Chap. xvi. LOED MAYO'S CHARACTER. 389 
 
 of steps which he had just three years previously ascended 
 full of strength and hope to take charge of his high office. He 
 was then carried into the chamber where only a month before 
 his voice had been daily heard. The burial service was there 
 read before his widow, the members of his staff, his councillors 
 and a few others. A more solemn and impressive scene could 
 not be imagined for us who stood in the very place which was 
 full of the freshest associations relating to his life and actions, 
 where we seemed almost to breathe his presence, and hear the 
 echo of his latest utterances. Then the coffin lay in state for 
 several days in the throne-room, where he had held so many 
 public and private receptions, until it was taken with due 
 ceremony on board a ship of war to be conveyed to Ireland. , 
 
 In November 1868 the Prime Minister, Mr. Disraeli, said : 
 " Upon the Earl of Mayo, for his sagacity, for his judgment, for 
 his fine temper and his knowledge of men, Her Majesty has 
 been pleased to confer the office of Viceroy of India. I believe 
 he will earn a reputation that his country will honour." 
 
 This is a complete as well as concise description of Lord 
 Mayo's character, and the prediction with which it concludes 
 has been abundantly realized. Besides the qualities pourtrayed 
 above, he displayed the energy of an administrator and the 
 capacity of a statesman. At every time and place he made 
 fast friends, whether in the study, the council-chamber, the 
 hunting-field, the social gathering. When sudden death over- 
 took him, he had reached the rare height occupied by those 
 regarding whom all men speak well. 
 
( 390 ) 
 
 CHAPTEE XVII. 
 
 (1872-1874.) 
 LORD NORTHBROOK AND THE BENGAL FAMINE. 
 
 State of public opinion after the death of Lord Mayo — Lord Napier acts as 
 Governor-General — The financial budget — Eiots in the Panjab — Lord 
 Northbrook assumes charge of the Government of India — Voyages down 
 the Indus and visits Bombay — Eemission of the income-tax — Drought in 
 Behar and northern Bengal — Importation of grain by Government — 
 Organization of transport — Character and extent of famine — Estimate 
 prepared beforehand of cost to be incurred in relief — Employment of dis- 
 tressed poor and gratuitous succour to the infirm — Reserve of Government 
 grain — Public criticism on relief measures— Native opinion thereon. 
 
 After the assassination of Lord Mayo, the administration of 
 India went on as usual without the break of a single hour. The 
 members of the Government, though shocked and deeply moved, 
 felt the importance of preserving a calm front before the Native 
 public. From the moment of Lord Mayo's death, Lord Napier 
 (now Lord Napier and Ettrick) the Governor of Madras 
 became by law the head of the Government of India p^o tempore. 
 Until his arrival at Calcutta, the senior member of the 
 Council, Sir John Strachey, assumed, also according to law, 
 the functions of Governor-General. A few days afterwards 
 the King of Siam who had been visiting India, and had 
 recently received hospitable attention from Lord Mayo at the 
 capital, returned to Calcutta on his way home. Strachey re- 
 ceived him at the top of the flight of stairs, and in a few 
 well-chosen words declared that the Government of India, 
 while mourning for its lost Head, nevertheless preserved the 
 tenour of its course uninterrupted. 
 
 Nevertheless there was anxiety in the inner thoughts of the 
 Government, and much agitation in the public mind. Though 
 
Chap. xvii. DISTURBANCES IN THE PANJAB. 391 
 
 the excitement was suppressed it remained for some weeks, so 
 to speak, in a sub-acute stage. The Hindu section of the 
 population at Calcutta is trustworthy, and many excellent 
 Muhammadans also are to be found there. Yet at that time 
 several centres of Muhammadan disloyalty and treason existed 
 at the capital, and whole classes of Muhammadans were ready 
 for mischief, in a more or less aggravated form according to 
 opportunity. There is always a fear at such times, lest one 
 successful crime acquiring an infamous celebrity, should lead 
 to the commission of other crimes. Accordingly the strict pre- 
 cautions, already mentioned in the last chapter, were maintained ; 
 providentially, however, nothing occurred. 
 
 Shortly afterwards, Lord Napier arrived from Madras, and 
 became temporarily the head of the Government of India. At 
 that moment, the preparations were being made for the financial 
 budget which I had to lay before him. Thereupon he applied 
 himself to finance with the utmost assiduity, and the result in 
 regard to the budget has been already mentioned in the previous 
 chapter XV. 
 
 He had to deal with one affair, the issue of which is worthy 
 to be remembered. A disturbance, partly religious and 
 partly political in its character, arose in the Panjab, in the 
 districts near the river Satlej. Its originators were quite in- 
 fatuated, and mad in their conception, ostensibly looking 
 for some prophet to come, while their real design was to raise 
 an insurrection against British rule. The fact that fanatical 
 enthusiasts at a period of general peace should dream of braving 
 the British Government in the plenitude of its power, was very 
 significant to reflective statesmen. Moreover, the trouble for a 
 brief moment seemed to spread like wildfire in a dry forest 
 during the summer heat. It was immediately put down by the 
 authorities with vigour and promptitude ; and during the course 
 of these repressive measures, a number of prisoners were taken 
 in flagrante delicto, having been participators in the outbreak, but 
 not otherwise proved to be guilty of heinous crime. Thereupon 
 a civil officer belonging to the Uncovenanted Service, caused 
 them to be executed on the spot, no doubt believing in good 
 
392 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 faith that this extreme severity was necessary, under the 
 supposed emergency of the circumstances. His conduct was, as 
 might be expected, immediately called into question ; and the 
 Government of the Panjab, though disapproving this action, 
 nevertheless thought that under the circumstances it need not 
 be visited by more than severe censure. The Government of 
 India however, after full consideration, held that the execution 
 was not justifiable on the ground of emergent circumstances 
 which had actually ceased when it took place, the insurrection 
 having been just suppressed; that good faith could not be 
 pleaded as an excuse for an indiscriminate and unlawful execu- 
 tion ; that the moral effect of such proceedings upon the country 
 would be bad, unless an example were set ; and that the officer 
 must be removed from the service of the Government. 
 
 Lord Northbrook arrived at Calcutta in May, 1872, and 
 assumed the oifice of Viceroy and Governor-General. He pos- 
 sessed a greater knowledge of finance, and the several subjects 
 cognate to it, than any Governor-General who ever landed in 
 India. The financial policy which he adopted, so far as it affected 
 the budget of the following year, has been explained in chapter 
 XV. The remission of the income-tax brought to his Govern- 
 ment much popular approval among the European community 
 and the middle as well as the upper classes of the Natives. 
 After sojourning for a brief time at Simla, he proceeded on a 
 voyage down the Indus, holding on the way a reception at 
 Multan for the Native chiefs of the Derajat or southern Trans- 
 Indus territory. In Sind he met the Khan of Khelat and 
 settled many political affairs with that chief. From Karachi 
 he went by sea to Bombay, and there held with due ceremony 
 a levee for the princes and chiefs of western and central India. 
 
 Major Evelyn Baring, R.A., as Private Secretary to the 
 Governor-General, displayed an ability equal to that of his most 
 distinguished predecessors in this important office. He after- 
 wards filled a difficult post in Egypt, and then became Finance 
 Minister of India. 
 
 In legislative business there was a slight lull for a time, as Sir 
 James Fitzjames Stephen, already mentioned in chapter XVI., 
 
Chap. xvii. FAMINE IN BENGAL. 393 
 
 had departed, and Mr. (now Sir Arthur) Hobhouse had succeeded 
 him in the responsible office of legislative member of the 
 Governor-General's Council. Hobhouse was already known as 
 an author upon some branches of law, and had held several 
 important public posts in England. He soon won his way in 
 public as well as official esteem in India, and while steadily 
 promoting the large measures begun by his predecessors, took 
 every suitable opportunity of proposing additional laws when 
 necessary. There never had been any valid reason for the com- 
 plaints often made regarding over-legislation. But the most 
 sensitive critics in tliis respect were obliged to admit that Hob- 
 house displayed judicious moderation as well as professional 
 skill and statesmanlike ability. 
 
 During the autumn of 1873, reports were received from 
 the Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, Sir George Campbell, to 
 the effect that the usual rains had failed, and that danger of 
 famine threatened, though there was hope that seasonable 
 showers might yet come at the eleventh hour to save the crops. 
 We, the members of the Government, were then at Simla pre- 
 paring to return to Calcutta for the winter. Before proceeding 
 thither, I was about to pay, according to custom, a flying visit 
 to some distant parts of the empire in order to master current 
 affairs relating to finance. I had entered a railway- carriage at 
 Amballa, and the train was about to start, when I received a 
 telegraphic message from Lord Northbrook saying that he had 
 just received worse news from Bengal, and requesting me to 
 accompany him immediately to Calcutta, wliich I did. 
 
 After arriving at Calcutta and conferring with the Lieutenant- 
 Governor and the local authorities, we found that in most parts 
 of Behar and northern Bengal, the summer crop of rice had been 
 short in yield, and the autumnal or principal crop was failing 
 altogether, while the seed sown for the coming spring harvest was 
 not likely to germinate by reason of the drought. This disaster 
 affected 20 millions of people in a greater or less degree. The 
 supply of grain was known to be scanty in these particular terri- 
 tories consequent on exportation in former years. In many 
 of the remaining districts of Bengal, the yield of the harvest was 
 
394 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA, Chap, xvii, 
 
 poor, and in the neighbouring districts of the North-western 
 Provinces quite deficient. The deficiency in the food supply 
 then, for so many people could not be made good from local 
 resources, and therefore vast quantities of grain must be 
 brought from a distance. Still, as the distress would not set in 
 until the spring, there was the winter before us in which to 
 make preparations. Again, the sad experience of former occa- 
 sions shewed that the first year of drought would probably be 
 followed by a second, and that our calculations in order to be 
 safe must go beyond the consequences of this drought, and 
 provide for some continuance of the distress. 
 
 Lord ISTorthbrook had, in the first place, to consider the ques- 
 tion whether the Government should undertake the respon- 
 sibility for counteracting the effects of tliis drought, and for 
 averting the famine which would otherwise result. He decided 
 that it should, although such a task had never yet been accom- 
 plished in India. During the former famines of this century, 
 so much mortality had occurred despite the efforts put forth by 
 the State, that loss of life had come to be regarded as inevitable. 
 Nevertheless, it was announced in the Gazette that a wide- 
 spread famine was anticipated, that much was expected of the 
 people in the way of self-help and from the trade in respect 
 of enterprise, but that the Government would interpose to do 
 whatever could not otherwise be done in order that none should 
 perish who might possibly be saved. The general instruction 
 thus conveyed by the Governor-General to the provincial 
 Government of Bengal was in absolute and unqualified terms. 
 
 In pursuing this policy the Governor-General received full 
 support from the Secretary of State in England, first the Duke 
 of Argyll, and then the Marquis of Salisbury. 
 
 The announcement of the Governor-General's intentions 
 quieted the public mind in Bengal, and prevented any agitation 
 arising in respect to the policy of Government. But even with 
 this assurance there was much alarm in the Native mind 
 throughout Bengal, and at Calcutta especially. The remem- 
 brance of the Orissa famine survived, when many famishing 
 refugees wended their weary way to the capital and threw them- 
 
Chap. xvii. PURCHASE OF GRAIN. 395 
 
 selves on the bounty of the charitable there. Unofficial esti- 
 mates of the probable deficiency in food supply were brought 
 forward, and moving representations came from many quarters. 
 The idea, which was oppressing the imaginations of men like a 
 weight, related to the magnitude of the numbers concerned. If 
 such sad consequences followed on the Orissa famine affecting 
 four millions of souls, how dire would be tliis calamity involving 
 twenty millions. 
 
 Having fixed the general outline of what was to be done, 
 Lord Northbrook applied liimself with the fullest precision to 
 consider the means of doing it. Much was to be expected from 
 the operations of trade ; nevertheless, there was a consensus in 
 the warnings which the Government had received from many 
 quarters to the effect that private enterprise would not be able 
 to fill the void caused by the drought. All the best information 
 available pointed to the conclusion that a large quantity of 
 food must be imported by the Government. The neighbour- 
 ing province of British Burma had been blessed as usual with 
 an abundant harvest, therefore Lord Northbrook determined to 
 purchase grain there, through the very competent agency of the 
 Chief Commissioner, the Honourable Ashley (now Sir Ashley) 
 Eden. The quantity of grain thus to be purchased was a 
 matter for anxious consideration, and the decision depended on 
 the time during which the famine might be expected to last. 
 The distress would begin in March, 1874, and should the 
 periodical rains fall propitiously during June and the succeed- 
 ing months, it would be over by the autumn. But the rains 
 might not come in June, and meteorological experience indi- 
 cated the probability that they would fail, as drought once set 
 in generally lasts for at least two years. In that case the distress 
 would continue right through the year 1874. If, then, the pro- 
 vision was to be at all complete and effectual, it must embrace 
 the whole summer autumn and winter of 1874, and there must 
 be a large reserve formed on that understanding. The calcu- 
 lations thus made pointed to an amount of 450,000 tons of grain 
 (rice), which was almost entirely purchased in Burma. 
 
 These supplies of rice were transported from Burma to 
 
396 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 Calcutta with entire efficiency and punctuality by the vessels 
 of the British India Steam Navigation Company. The service of 
 this Company had been very ably organized by Mr. Mackinnon. 
 
 It was fortunate that the Government liad a treasury full 
 beyond all precedent and a large quantity of available cash, 
 wherewith to begin the formidable undertaking on which it 
 was about to embark. As shown in the previous chapter XV., 
 the finances had been in a condition of surplus for four con- 
 secutive years, and the cash balance in India stood at 16 
 millions sterling. Though the fall in the value of silver was 
 beginning to threaten, it had not yet shewn itself in any marked 
 manner, nor did it appreciably affect the rate of exchange in the 
 remittances by Government from India to England. 
 
 In the arrangements for combating the famine, Lord North- 
 brook, in addition to his statesmanlike grasp of imperial affairs, 
 evinced an admirable mastery of finance, economic facts and 
 statistics, such as I have never seen surpassed in India, not 
 even by such economists and financiers as Wilson or Laing. 
 
 While willing to afford sustenance during the famine to all 
 those who could not otherwise support themselves, he desired 
 that the able-bodied should work fully in return for what they 
 received, and that their work should be made as useful as possible 
 to the country. The excavation of tanks, and the construc- 
 tion of roads, would be undertaken by the provincial authorities'. 
 Beyond this, however, there were certain operations for which 
 the sanction of the Government of India was requisite. Such 
 were the works already in progress for the canal from the river 
 Sone and the railway running from the bank of the Ganges 
 through northern Bengal to the foot of the Himalayas near 
 Darjiling. This railway had been previously designed, and was 
 now to be actually begun as a means of employing the dis- 
 tressed people, under the able management of Colonel James G. 
 Lindsay of the Engineers. 
 
 When adopting this positive policy and girding itself for an 
 arduous task, the Government derived much support morally 
 from public sentiment. The organs of Native opinion in Bengal 
 urged the necessity of action and described the misery of wide- 
 
Chap, xvii. ENGLISH SYMPATHY. 397 
 
 spread starvation, with entreaties that Government wouhl 
 stretch out its arm to save the people. The British Indian 
 Association, consisting of the principal Zemindars or landlords 
 of Bengal, signalized itself by its representations, supported as 
 they were by an array of figures. The Indian correspondents of 
 the London newspapers, especially of the Times, sent vivid 
 word-pictures of the coming calamity, and set forth many con- 
 siderations, the moral of which was that the English Sovereign 
 and nation should hold the Government of India answerable for 
 averting, to the utmost of its power, the consequences of the 
 drought. This view was developed by the leading organs of 
 opinion in England itself, and so far as the authorities in India 
 could judge, English opinion was becoming strongly excited. A 
 public meeting, under the presidency of the Lord Mayor, was 
 held in London, and a national subscription was raised with an 
 organization which centred in the Mansion House. Great as 
 may have been the material help thus afforded, the moral 
 effect was greater still, proving as it did to the Natives the 
 sympathy of their English fellow-subjects. Similarly public 
 meetings were held in the Town Hall of Calcutta, and again 
 the sentiments of the community were stirred. Thus the minds 
 of all were subjected to a severe strain, and the officers of 
 Government began to feel that they would be impeached if 
 any failure were to occur, or if life should be lost through any 
 shortcoming of theirs. 
 
 The Lieutenant-Governor, Sir George Campbell, was specially 
 qualified for giving effect to Lord Northbrook's general instruc- 
 tions. Campbell had been for more tlian two years ruling the 
 provinces under the Government of Bengal with a vigour rarely 
 surpassed in Anglo-Indian history, acquiring among many 
 other things an exact knowledge of their resources. Some 
 time before he was placed by Lord Mayo in charge of the 
 united provinces of Bengal Behar and Orissa, he had been 
 deputed by John Lawrence to preside over the commission of 
 enquiry regarding the famine in Orissa, as mentioned in 
 chapter XIV. He thus knew more of the realities of famine 
 than any officer then in India. Orissa, indeed, was on this 
 
398 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 occasion the only one of these provinces which had an abundant 
 harvest, but he would effectively apply the experience gained 
 there to the calamity which, on a much larger scale, menaced 
 Behar and northern Bengal. On receiving from Lord North- 
 brook the general instruction already mentioned regarding 
 the manner in which the famine was to be encountered, he 
 issued an admirable set of detailed directions to his local 
 officers. 
 
 There was, however, one remedy suggested by Sir George 
 Campbell which did not commend itself to Lord ISTorthbrook's 
 judgment, namely this, the stopping of the exportation of rice 
 and other cereals from the ports of Calcutta and British Burma. 
 This was not allowed, as it was thought injurious to trade, and 
 as likely to affect the wealth resources and prosperity of the 
 country, at a time when every sinew would be strained in order 
 to encounter calamity. 
 
 Having settled matters so far, Lord Northbrook proceeded to 
 the north of India, to keep the engagements which he had 
 made for the reception of Native princes and chiefs at Luck- 
 now and Agra long before any apprehensions of drought had 
 arisen, leaving me as President in Council at Calcutta to watch 
 the progress of the famine and the arrangements consequent 
 thereon. 
 
 Shortly afterwards (in December 1873) Sir George Campbell's 
 health became seriously impaired, and medical authorities 
 warned him that he would not be able to bear up against 
 the heat of the next spring and summer. He resolved, how- 
 ever, to sustain his toils despite illness until at least the 
 spring ; but it became necessary to choose a successor. At 
 that time it had been arranged that I should resign my office of 
 Finance Minister in the spring and return to England ; but 
 Lord Northbrook offered me the post of Lieutenant-Governor 
 on Sir George Campbell's departure, which appointment I 
 accepted. 
 
 By January 1874 the consignments of Government grain 
 already mentioned began to arrive from Burma, and were being 
 despatched from Calcutta by railway to the bank of the Ganges. 
 
Chap. xvii. DIFFICULTIES IN TRANSPORT OF GRAIN. 399 
 
 Thence the vast quantities of grain would have to be carried 
 by local conveyance to the distressed tracts distant from 50 to 
 90 miles in north Behar. Anxiety was felt lest the wheeled 
 traffic of the province should prove insufficient, and the supplies 
 procured by Government should fail to reach their destina- 
 tion in time. Lord Northbrook then associated me with the 
 Government of Bengal in order to ensure the completion of 
 all necessary arrangements, and deputed me to Behar for this 
 purpose. I made over to him my financial portfolio, and 
 thenceforth was officially connected with the Bengal adminis- 
 tration only. 
 
 On entering the northern part of Behar at the end of 
 January 1874, I was struck by the difficulties affecting the 
 transport of grain in large quantities during the dry season 
 which had already begun, and would become drier still as the 
 months rolled on. The traffic of the country was ordinarily 
 carried by boats on the many navigable streams which flow 
 from the Himalayas to join the Ganges ; but these streams 
 were now almost devoid of water. Wheeled carriage for com- 
 mercial purposes did not exist in any considerable quantity, and 
 thus trade was for a time paralyzed. The only persons, pos- 
 sessing carts and draught bullocks in large numbers, were the 
 European indigo planters who used these vehicles for their 
 manufacturing work. Their business was so slack, partly by 
 reason of the famine, that they could spare their carts, which 
 were accordingly hired by tens of thousands, and the transport 
 of the Government grain was so far secured. The organization 
 of this enormous amount of hired transport was placed under 
 Colonel (now Sir Charles) Macgregor of the Quartermaster- 
 General's department, a public servant of high capacity and 
 unsurpassed energy, with a large staff of military officers. But 
 as the security of the transport was vital, it was decided to con- 
 struct a temporary railway from the Ganges to every one of the 
 points where distress threatened most. This work was, under 
 the vigorous supervision of Captain Stanton of the Engineers, 
 constructed at the rate of a mile a day. Further, a special 
 transport train, consisting of carts bullocks mules and ponies. 
 
400 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xtii. 
 
 was obtained from northern India, and organized by Mr. Harry 
 Eivett Carnac of the Civil Service with much promptitude and 
 ability. Thus the several hundred thousand tons of Govern- 
 ment grain were, despite the burning heat and the dust-laden 
 tracks, conveyed to the remote villages with absolute punc- 
 tuality and without failure even in a single instance. 
 
 At this time special correspondents deputed by some of the 
 London newspapers had begun to arrive upon the scene. First 
 and foremost among these was Mr. Archibald Forbes on the 
 part of the Daily Neivs, who spared no effort of mind or body 
 to probe the reality of the distress and to understand the 
 measures adopted for its relief. He pourtrayed with graphic 
 force and absolute fidelity, for the information of the English 
 public, the mortal peril to which the people were exposed, and 
 from which they could be rescued only by the utmost exertions 
 of the Government. He discharged his professional duties 
 with signal success, and also rendered much service to the 
 general administration. 
 
 The transport for the Government grain having been secured, 
 my object was to observe personally the physical condition of 
 the people. For this purpose the able-bodied employed on 
 relief works, and the infirm receiving gratuitous relief, were 
 mustered at convenient spots for inspection. Thus tens and 
 hundreds of thousands of poor people, at different times and 
 places, passed under observation, whereby a check was imposed 
 on idleness and imposture. Often, too, when marching through 
 a village we would assemble all the men, women and cliildren 
 in it, so as to note any signs of emaciation or of distress. In 
 short, no pains were intermitted to ascertain from personal 
 observation all particulars regarding the physical condition of 
 the people. 
 
 A system then was organized whereby, as the famine became 
 worse, a visitation should be periodically instituted from house 
 to house in every village, so that no case of individual dis- 
 tress could possibly escape observation. The whole country 
 having been parcelled out into groups of villages, a relief centre 
 and field-hospital were established in each group. 
 
Chap. xvii. ESTIMATE FOR RELIEF OPERATIONS. 401 
 
 I had been in constant communication with the Lieutenant- 
 Governor, Sir George Campbell, in conjunction with whom I 
 was working in Behar, but I was now obliged to proceed on 
 similar duty to northern Bengal. As the famine in Behar was 
 coming on apace, Campbell himself proceeded thither after my 
 departure, despite his failing health, and supervised the details 
 of the relief operations. 
 
 Having studied on the spot the condition of all the distressed 
 districts, I transmitted to Campbell an estimate of the financial 
 cost of the proposed relief operations, on the assumption that the 
 rains would fall propitiously in the coming season, also of the 
 reserve stocks of grain to be provided in event of the rains 
 again failing. He forwarded this to Lord Northbrook, who 
 after a time required us both to revise it by the latest 
 information. 
 
 In April Sir George Campbell proceeded to England, and I 
 received charge of the Government of Bengal. The first step 
 was for me to submit to Lord Northbrook my final estimate of 
 the cost of the relief operations, before I quitted my head- 
 quarters and proceeded to the field to personally superintend all 
 the work. This estimate amounted in round numbers to 9 millions 
 sterling in the gross, but then there were to be large recoveries 
 consisting chiefly of the proceeds from the sale of Government 
 grain to the people in the distressed districts, so that the net 
 cost would be only 6^ millions. Even this amount was seriously 
 large, and I was thankful for the opportunity thus afforded of 
 obtaining sanction for the estimate from the highest authority. 
 I knew that, even if under Providence these great operations 
 should be blessed with success and should fulfil the humane pur- 
 pose for which they were designed, critics would cavil at the cost 
 and perhaps demand enquiry. In that case it would be a source 
 of satisfaction to know that the expense had been thoroughly 
 considered beforehand in each and all of its bearings. After- 
 wards, when tliis affair had ended with a success exceeding our 
 most sanguine hopes, and exception was taken to the outlay, we 
 congratulated ourselves on having followed the financial maxim 
 of undertaking nothing without an estimate beforehand. In 
 
 2 D 
 
402 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 fact we managed to keep the ultimate expenditure just within 
 the estimate. 
 
 The month of May had now set in, and the famine had 
 thoroughly declared itself. Employment, agricultural and other, 
 was at a standstill, and there were no wages for the poor to 
 earn. No supplies of grain were brought out and the corn 
 markets were all closed. The Government, before opening its 
 stores, waited to the latest safe day, in order to afford every 
 possible chance to the trade. Its officers were however obliged, 
 to sell their grain in vast quantities, the prices being fixed at 
 what were regarded as famine rates. Still starvation stared 
 the people in the face, unless the Government should give 
 them employment and pay their wages in grain. Accord- 
 ingly many hundred thousand persons were thus employed 
 and paid ; their employment consisting chiefly of road-making. 
 Those who could not work were fed gratuitously, and search 
 was made in every village, house to house, for the infirm and 
 helpless, so that no deserving person should fail to receive 
 succour. The strain in this contest for life or death became 
 more and more intense as week after week rolled wearily on — as 
 in certain battles it has been said that the struggle is even, and 
 it remains to be seen which side has the stiffest back — till the 
 middle of June, when the rain fell with a propitiousness beyond 
 our hopes. A change for the better was felt at once, and tens 
 of thousands of relief labourers went off to their fields. Still 
 the famine must continue for some weeks till the new grain 
 should begin to come in, and the majority of the poor people 
 thus remained on our hands. Soon, too, the authorities found 
 that those who had gone to till the fields had not the means 
 of sustaining themselves when there, imtil the new harvest 
 should begin to come in. So it was necessary to make large 
 advances of grain to them on their engagement to pay for it 
 after the next harvest. The value of the grain thus advanced 
 was duly recovered after the termination of the famine when 
 plenty had returned. 
 
 The rains, having begun well, became suspended for a time, 
 and the worst fears for the future were resuscitated. At the 
 
Chap. xvii. SALE OF KESEKVE GKAIX. 403 
 
 eleventh hour they again descended favourably, before any 
 irreparable harm had been done by their temporary suspen- 
 sion, and thereafter continued propitiously till in the autumn a 
 good harvest was reaped. Thus week after week the poor people 
 who had been for several months on the hands of the Govern- 
 ment were discharged, till by the middle of October few of them 
 were left. 
 
 The recipients of charitable relief from Government had been 
 chiefly persons who in ordinary times subsist on the private 
 charity of the village folk. The charity, which is thus dispensed 
 in years of average prosperity, redounds to the honour of the 
 Native community. But it is unavoidably suspended during 
 famine, and the many thousands who depend on it must 
 perish unless sustained by Government. These poor people 
 had accordingly been thrown on the hands of the relief officers 
 for several months. But now with returning plenty after the 
 autumn harvest they were sent back in some hundred thou- 
 sands to their villages, where they began once more to receive 
 charitable support as formerly. 
 
 The greater part of the grain procured by Government was 
 used, but a considerable portion remained unused. This was the 
 reserve which had been provided in event of the rains failing 
 for the second time, a failure which, though at one time 
 apparently imminent, had been mercifully averted. The 
 reserve grain then had to be sold, and as by that time the new 
 harvest was coming in abundantly, the sale proceeds proved to 
 be but a small recovery as against the cost which had been 
 incurred. 
 
 Some angry criticism soon arose upon the fact of this grain 
 thus having to be sold, as pro^'ing that, from some faults in 
 the original calculations, there had been an excess provision. 
 It was immediately shewn that there had been no error M'hat- 
 ever, but that as a matter of deliberate policy a reserve had 
 been provided. This reserve, indeed, was not wanted owing 
 to the happy course which events had taken. But if any 
 objections were urged against the policy of adopting this 
 essential precaution, in a case where the lives of millions 
 
 2 D 2 
 
404 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 of people were at stake, they were hardly deserving of 
 refutation. 
 
 The people, in the mass, behaved well throughout these 
 critical trials. They proved themselves to be neither demoral- 
 ized nor pauperized by the receipt of relief. Their zeal and 
 anxiety never slackened for restoring the cultivation and 
 making the most of even momentary opportunities which might 
 offer. Patient courage, unflinching endurance, self-help in 
 extremity, were the honourable characteristics of their general 
 conduct. 
 
 In most of these arduous operations for the relief of 
 famine the chief executive officer was Mr. (now Sir Steuart) 
 Bayley, the Commissioner of Behar, who admirably discharged 
 his difficult duties, and next after him in honour and responsi- 
 bility was Mr. C. T. Metcalfe. The Secretary to the Govern- 
 ment of Bengal in the Famine department was Mr. C. E. 
 Bernard (a nephew of John Lawrence) ; and from him I derived 
 most valuable assistance. The local officers on whom the brunt 
 of the work fell most heavily were Mr. C. H. Macdonnell and 
 Mr, F. C. Macgrath. All the officers mentioned above were 
 members of the Covenanted Civil Service. 
 
 Many European officers of the army were employed in this 
 work with the utmost advantage. Native officers also were 
 selected and placed at our disposal by the Commander-in-Chief, 
 Lord Napier of Magdala, in order that they might render aid in 
 the administration of relief. Their military discipline and 
 training rendered them extraordinarily apt in this work. After 
 the conclusion of the operations, their good conduct was acknow- 
 ledged publicly. 
 
 It became my pleasant duty to prepare a long list of the 
 names of those non-official gentlemen, European and Native, 
 landlords or residents of the distressed districts, who by 
 charitable munificence or unrewarded labours had contributed 
 essentially to the relief of distress. 
 
 Conspicuous service was rendered by the servants of the 
 East India Kailway Company ; indeed without that railway the 
 Government grain could hardly have been conveyed to its 
 
Chap. xvii. UNACCOUNTABLY BITTER ClilTlCISM. 405 
 
 destination in time ; a more signal instance could scarcely be 
 afforded of the value of railways to India. 
 
 Thus the famine of 1874 was over ; the deaths from starvation 
 were so few compared to the many millions concerned, that 
 practically there had been no loss of life. The health of the 
 jjeople had been sustained, agriculture was unimpaired, the re- 
 sources of the country remained uninjured, even the revenues 
 were nearly all realized. But there had been a large expendi- 
 ture, which however had been exactly foreseen, and to which 
 the Government had made up its mind beforehand. 
 
 But when the immunity from loss of life is chronicled it must 
 be thankfully remembered that there was no epidemic of cholera, 
 small-pox, fever, or the like. Indeed throughout this trying 
 time the public health was remarkably good. This is very 
 unlike the experience of other famines, when these fell diseases 
 have come to aggravate the misery arising from want. Such 
 freedom from collateral or concomitant calamity cannot be 
 wholly explained by any known circumstances. One fortunate 
 cause however was this, that in Behar the streams rising in the 
 lower ranges of the Himalayas, while no longer navigable, had 
 yet a good supply of drinking water. The fact, that in time of 
 drought the water supply often becomes impure, is one reason 
 why cholera prevails usually during famine. 
 
 Despite success which owing to the mercy of Providence had 
 been unique in the history of Indian famines, and exceeded 
 any hopes we ever dared to entertain, there emanated from some 
 quarters an unaccountably bitter criticism, directed chiefly 
 against the expense. By an irony of fate it was actually 
 argued that the danger of famine could not have been extremely 
 urgent because it had been successfully overcome. This argu- 
 ment was hardly worth considering in the face of the patent, 
 indeed the notorious, facts of the time as known to a host of 
 witnesses. It were bootless perhaps to divine the reasons of 
 that hostility ; the criticism possibly arose from the disappoint- 
 ment felt by some traders who thought that if the Government 
 had not interposed so effectually some further opportunities 
 might have presented themselves to trade. In fact, however, the 
 
406 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 Government had offered every chance to trade, and had inter- 
 fered only when, under the peculiar circumstances of the 
 threatened or distressed country, the commercial resources 
 were demonstrably insufficient or wholly impotent. It was 
 observable also that, during this time, trade had been extra- 
 ordinarily active in all the districts which it could reach, and 
 where, but for it, there would have been scarcity. 
 
 It was indeed most unfortunate that the drought visited in 
 its worst form the densely peopled tracts which were far away 
 from the nearest railway. These tracts depended for their com- 
 munication upon the very water carriage which from the 
 nature of the case was cut off on this dire occasion. Thus it 
 happened that the trade became powerless and Government was 
 obliged to supply the needful. The lesson to be learnt there- 
 from was this, that such tracts must not be left without com- 
 munication by rail. Had a railway existed in Behar and 
 northern Bengal in 1874, countless cares and labours would 
 have been avoided, and a large part of the relief expenditure 
 saved. The lesson has indeed been learnt with effect, for those 
 tracts of country now have their railways, which advantages 
 they doubtless owe to the famine of 1874. 
 
 Afterwards in 1880, when the Indian Famine Commission 
 was sitting, the evidence shewed that had railways existed 
 there in 1874, offering due facilities to trade, perhaps half of 
 the total expenditure incurred by Government on that occasion 
 might have been obviated. 
 
 It may indeed be conceded to the critics that the relief given 
 to the distressed was liberal and unstinted, that the object was 
 to secure effectually the preservation of life, and that for the 
 complete attainment of this object neither labour nor expense 
 was spared. This was the policy which, to the best of our 
 understanding, we were ordered to pursue, and which we 
 unhesitatingly pursued. The object, then, was absolutely 
 attained ; a contest with famine was undertaken and was won 
 conclusively. Whether any lesser resistance to so dread an 
 enemy as famine would have sufficed is doubtful ; and the 
 doubts which might be felt on this point will have been 
 
Chap. xvii. MANIFESTATION OF POPULAR GRATITUDE. 407 
 
 increased by subsequent experience. Whatever may be the 
 merits or demerits of particular measures, it must be acknow- 
 ledged that in some other instances large expenditure has been 
 humanely allowed by the State and yet there has been loss of 
 life. In this instance the money was liberally spent indeed, 
 but then all the lives were saved. If there are to be great 
 expenses, it is well to make sure of success for the sake not 
 only of the material results, but also of the moral advantages. 
 Not only were the lives of the people saved, but also their 
 lasting thankfulness was earned. Such national gratitude must 
 add fresh stability to the foundations of British rule. 
 
 The manifestation of their gratitude by the people was con- 
 spicuous in various ways. The Native press, both English and 
 vernacular, teemed with commendations of the policy prescribed 
 by the Government and of the proceedings taken by its officers 
 during the famine from first to last. At every place I ever 
 visited in the provinces under the Government of Bengal 
 during the year of the famine, or in subsequent years, whether 
 within or beyond the area which was then distressed — there were 
 addresses presented which included, among many other things, 
 strongly worded allusions to the measures adopted for averting 
 the consequences of famine. Too much stress must not indeed 
 be laid on such addresses, but inasmuch as they contained re- 
 marks on local topics, which topics varied in each locality and 
 consequently in each address — the fact of the happy prevention 
 of famine being the one and only constant theme proved that it 
 was uppermost in the popular thoughts. On my return to 
 Calcutta after the conclusion of relief operations, the Native 
 chiefs and gentry of Behar presented a congratulatory address 
 specifically alluding to each step which had been taken and 
 every measure adopted. If it were supposed that Behar Native 
 gentlemen were naturally disposed to entertain and express 
 favourable sentiments on the policy which Government had 
 followed, still that supposition cannot apply to the British Indian 
 Association which represents the Zemindars or landlords of 
 Bengal. These Bengali Native gentlemen are notoriously out- 
 
408 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xvii. 
 
 spoken and independent in their utterances, so much so that 
 they have often been blamed for evincing an undue willingness 
 to criticize the Government and its officers. Yet they also 
 presented an address declaring in the strongest and warmest 
 terms their gratitude on behalf of the Natives, their belief in 
 the necessity of what had been done and their appreciation of 
 the manner in which it had been effected. 
 
( 409 ) 
 
 CHAPTEE XVIII. 
 
 (1874-1876.) 
 THE GOVEENMENT OF BENGAL. 
 
 Administration of Sir George Campbell as Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal — 
 Locomotion in the rainy season — -Voyage on the great rivers of Bengal — 
 The country boats — Floating cities — Deltaic forests — Chittagong and the 
 eastern frontier — The sights of Orissa — The aspect of Calcutta — Elective 
 ■ franchise in its municipality — The Bengal legislature — Sketch of the 
 principal Native gentlemen — Christian missions — The Brahmo sect — 
 Merits and demerits of the high education— Improved standard of morality 
 — Death of Bishop Milman— Interior of the country — Security of life and 
 property— Agrarian affairs — The Courts of Wards — The peasantry of 
 Behar — Popularity of the Civil Courts — Summer residence at Darjiling in 
 the Himalayas — Scenery of Sikhim — Terrific cyclone in the estuary of the 
 Megna — Departure of Lord Napier of Magdala — Visit of His Eoyal High- 
 ness the Prince of Wales — Lord Northbrook is succeeded by Lord Lytton 
 as Governor-General — My departure to join the imperial assemblage at 
 Delhi. 
 
 British India is eminently a country of large jurisdictions, and 
 Bengal is the largest of them all. The official term " Bengal " 
 comprises several provinces, which at this time were Bengal 
 Behar and Orissa, comprising the territories assigned by the Mu- 
 hammadan emperor to Olive and other provinces subsequently 
 acquired. It had once comprised Arracan which had been trans- 
 ferred to British Burma, Sambalpur which had been incorporated 
 in the Oentral Provinces, and Assam which had just been formed 
 into a separate administration under a Ohief Commissioner. 
 The Bengal jurisdiction was still, however, very vast, for it con- 
 tained an area of 204,000 square miles, and a population stated 
 according to the last enumeration to be 63 millions, but 
 ascertained by a subsequent census to be 67 millions. Its 
 revenues and receipts of all sorts pertaining to the Government 
 and to local funds amounted to nearly 20 millions annually. 
 
410 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 It had been formed twenty years previously into a Lieutenant- 
 Governorship by Lord Dalhousie in 1854, since which time 
 there had been four Lieutenant-Governors, Sir Frederick 
 Halliday, Sir Cecil Beadon, Sir William Grey, men of the 
 highest eminence in the Civil Service, who had received their 
 early training in Bengal itself, and Sir John Peter Grant who, 
 though originally trained in the North-west, had long served in 
 Bengal. Of these, Halliday is now a member of the Indian 
 Council in London ; Grant and Grey both held subsequently 
 the Governorship of Jamaica. The fifth was Sir George Camp- 
 bell, who, though he had learnt his profession in the North- 
 western Provinces and the Panjab, had been a judge in the 
 High Court at Calcutta, and president of the commission of 
 enquiry regarding the famine in Orissa. He had conducted 
 the Government for three and a half years, when being obliged 
 by ill-health to return to England, as mentioned in the last 
 chapter, he was succeeded by me at the end of April 1874. 
 
 Having entered advantageously into the labours of his distin- 
 guished predecessors, Sir George Campbell handed over to me 
 the administration in a state of high efficiency. As a basis of 
 knowledge necessary for devising administrative measures, he 
 caused a regular census to be made, for which the people were 
 counted in a single night, the result being that the population 
 proved to be more numerous by one-third than had been previously 
 believed, that is, more than 60 millions instead of more than 40 
 millions. He then did much for the collection of statistics gene- 
 rally, and of vital statistics especially. He took up the subject 
 of village schools in the organization of w^hich a beginning had 
 been made in Sir John Peter Grant's time. He was the great 
 prom.oter of primary education; he brought most of the old 
 indigenous schools under State supervision, set up addi- 
 tional village schools in great numbers, and caused village 
 schoolmasters to be trained in normal institutions. He gave 
 much impulse to these normal schools, and considered them to 
 be the homes of vernacular learning. He bestowed special atten- 
 tion on the instruction of Muhammadan youth, arranging tliat 
 certain endowment funds, belonging to the community of Islam, 
 
Chap, xviii. SIR GEORGE CAMPBELL'S ADMINISTRATION. 411 
 
 should be applied to the support of Muhammadan colleges and 
 schools. He passed through his local legislature the law for 
 imposing a light cess on the owners and the non-proprietary 
 holders of land, despite all the opposition which might have been 
 anticipated. The proceeds of the impost were to be devoted to 
 the maintenance of local roads and schools. A good beginning 
 with the actual levy of this useful cess was also made in his 
 time. He desired that in addition to the Native medical men 
 educated in the Medical Colleges, there should be a body of 
 Natives trained in a secondary though still efficient degree for 
 service in the hospitals and dispensaries which had been already 
 founded or were being established throughout the provinces. 
 With this view he founded a Medical School at Calcutta, which 
 bears his name, and is separate from the fine Medical College 
 long existing there. He enlarged the executive machinery in the 
 interior of the country, developed the existing plan of parcelling 
 out each district or country into administrative " sub-divisions," 
 and created new classes of subordinate Native officials. He 
 introduced the competitive system for the admission of Natives 
 to all grades of civil employ, and instituted regular examina- 
 tions for that purpose, thereby sacrificing much patronage. He 
 spent great labour in passing through his local legislature an 
 elaborate scheme for rural municipalities, wliich would have 
 had the effect, among many other things, of promoting sanita- 
 tion and improving the water supply among the villages ; but 
 it failed to receive the assent of the Governor-General (Lord 
 Northbrook) because it seemed likely to add unduly to the 
 burdens of the people and provoke discontent. He bestowed 
 much thought upon prison discipline and the construction of 
 Central Jails. He gave, as might be expected, close attention to 
 public works, such as the canals in Orissa and Behar, the rail- 
 way in northern Bengal, the pontoon bridge over the Hughli 
 at Calcutta, the drainage and reclamation of swampy tracts, 
 and the public buildings at the capital, such as colleges, 
 court-houses, hospitals. He kept a kindly and sympathetic 
 eye fixed on the peasantry of Bengal, discountenanced rack- 
 renting and other oppressive conduct on the part of Zemindars 
 
412 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 or landlords, and rough-hewed several measures of agrarian 
 reform which were carried into effect by his successor. His 
 moral influence on behalf of tenant-right throughout the country 
 was marked and even decisive. In fine, with personal diligence 
 consistently exerted, he succeeded in imparting a constant move- 
 ment to every part of an extensive administration. Such a policy 
 was not calculated to win the approval of some classes who not 
 unnaturally dreaded improvement, though as time rolls on it 
 will be regarded with grateful appreciation by the middle classes 
 and the masses of the people for whose benefit it was designed. 
 
 My imperative duty on assuming the government was, as seen 
 in the last chapter, to minister to the needs of nearly one-third 
 of the whole population, vast as it was, and to provide bodily 
 sustenance for them, before adopting measures for their moral 
 and material advancement. The necessity of being in camp or on 
 the move, supervising the operations of relief and commanding 
 vast establishments in the field for several months, made it 
 difficult for me to conduct simultaneously an extensive and com- 
 plex administration, and to despatch punctually a mass of current 
 business. In these affairs the utmost assistance was received 
 from Mr. Elvers Thompson, the principal Secretary at the head- 
 quarters of Bengal, a most able officer. He was afterwards 
 appointed by Lord Northbrook to be Chief Commissioner of 
 British Burma, and is now a member of the Governor-General's 
 Council. 
 
 Steuart Bayley and C. T. Metcalfe have been already men- 
 tioned in the last preceding chapter with reference to their 
 services in Behar. In the Secretariat at Calcutta excellent 
 service was performed by Ross Mangles, who received the 
 Victoria Cross for gallant conduct near Arrah during the events 
 of the mutinies in 1857 ; also by Herbert Eeynolds, who had 
 won honours at Oxford. Mangles is the son of the East India 
 Director so well known in former days. The statistical bureau 
 was managed by Henry Cotton, an officer of remarkable promise. 
 The burden of preparing the elaborate projects of law, for sub- 
 mission to the Legislative Council, devolved on Henry Lucius 
 Dampier, to whose experienced aid I was much indebted. 
 
Chap, xviii. THE RIVER-KINGDOM OP BENGAL. 413 
 
 When the distressed population had safely passed through 
 the burning heat of May and June and the rains had fallen 
 bounteously everywhere, the crisis of the famine was seen to 
 be over for the moment at least, though utter want still pre- 
 vailed, for which the relief organization had to be maintained. 
 There would at all events be some slight respite for a time, so 
 I determined to seize the opportunity of making a tour in 
 Bengal. 
 
 The rainy season was now at its height, the rivers were in 
 flood, the swamps and marshes flushed with water, and the 
 masses of floating vapour surcharged with moisture. In all 
 other parts of India except Bengal, this would be the very last 
 season which any one would choose for a tour ; on the contrary 
 this is the close time when all people both European and 
 Native stay at home. The roads are impassable or passable only 
 with extreme difficulty, the carts are shut up and the draught 
 cattle sent away to graze. The transport being impeded or 
 stopped, trade is slack and all work out of doors, excepting 
 agriculture, is suspended. The husbandman is working in his 
 fields close to his own door ; but those, whose avocations ordi- 
 narily carry them to long distances, rest for a while till the 
 weather shall become open, the rivers subside and the roads 
 be dry. 
 
 But the inhabitants of Bengal have a practice which is dia- 
 metrically opposite. Bengal is essentially a river-kingdom ; it 
 possesses but few roads in comparison with other Indian pro- 
 vinces, but then it has for its highways the rivers threading and 
 permeating the country like a network, and constituting natural 
 channels of communication on a magnificent scale. These 
 rivers, then, are during the winter and summer shallow, full of 
 shoals, and not conveniently navigable. The great navigation 
 begins towards the end of June, comes into full play during 
 July and August, and slackens after the middle of September. 
 During the winter and summer many of the boats are laid up, 
 but all are brought out in July ; and then the inland traffic 
 of Bengal bursts into life. The husbandman, village artisan, 
 pedlar or market-gardener does not keep a cart ; he has a boat 
 
414 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 instead, in which he sculls along the watery ways with his 
 produce or his wares. Even the labourer or menial learns to 
 paddle his canoe. 
 
 The tours of Anglo-Indians are made mostly when the sky 
 is azure, the landscape in the foreground being coloured brown 
 or ochre, but in the distance having hues of orange, pink or 
 bluish-grey ; and the water — what little there is of it — becoming 
 clear, even transparent. But now for some months con- 
 secutively I was to see an almost changeless grey in the sky, 
 an unbroken green in the landscape, and a dull mud-brown 
 colour in the waters. Nevertheless this circuit of Bengal in 
 the rainy season afforded not only a novel but an unique ex- 
 perience of journeying in India, and presented spectacles of 
 which perhaps few countries in the world afford an example. 
 
 With this vieM', full use was made of the state barge, the 
 Ehotas, belonging to the Government, for the purpose of seeing 
 Bengal. I went on board of her on the 15th of June on the 
 Ganges within the limits of Behar, lived in her for three months 
 and a half, that is, till the beginning of October, and dis- 
 embarked from her with regret. She was a barge towed by 
 a steamer the William Feel, named after the naval commander 
 who did such good service in the war of the mutinies; and 
 she belonged to a class of vessels called "flats." Before the 
 introduction of railways all the Government stores and much 
 other valuable produce used to be conveyed on the Ganges and 
 its branches by vessels of this character, as far as Allahabad, 
 and are still carried on the Brahmaputra river to Assam. The 
 Feel was a powerful steamer with small draught ; the commander 
 was trained to handle her with much skill, turning her in and 
 out of the tortuous channels, despite her great length, and also 
 the length of the barge attached to her. 
 
 The EJiotas then was a barge with a large clear deck, at the 
 end of which was a dining saloon. Below deck she had a 
 series of cabins for the Lieutenant-Governor, his suite and 
 guests. Steamer and barge together made up a floating and 
 movable Government House. As the principal stations and 
 towns are on the banks of the rivers, the Lieutenant-Governor 
 
Chap. XVIII. VOYAGE IN THE STATE BAEGE. 415 
 
 thus steamed at a quick rate from place to place, seven miles 
 an hour against stream, and at a much quicker rate with it. 
 Indeed when the Brahmaputra was in flood and the Rhotas 
 was steaming full speed down stream, she would for several 
 hours cover the same distance as a railway train. But 
 she must always cast her anchor at sunset, and could hardly 
 weigh it before sunrise. Thus, arriving at a station the Lieu- 
 tenant-Governor would not only entertain, on board, the 
 European community of the place, but also hold a cere- 
 monial reception (" durbar ") for the Native chiefs and gentry 
 on the deck. Under several successive Lieutenant-Governors 
 on this very deck proclamations have been read to the Natives, 
 titles conferred, rewards declared, honours awarded. Sometimes 
 we used to take large parties of Native gentlemen for a short 
 trip on the river, and this kind of entertainment was more 
 popular with them than any other which could be given. 
 When the barge and her steamer were illuminated for a social 
 gathering, if there be such a thing as a fairy-like scene it was 
 this, when she lay a mass of party-coloured light on the bosom 
 of the river. One night an entertainment was given at the 
 close of the famine in honour of tlie officers engaged in the 
 relief operations ; it was kept up all night and shortly after the 
 lights were extinguished we steamed away to keep other engage- 
 ments*. 
 
 Once Lord Northbrook honoured the Bhotas by holding a 
 vice-regal reception on her deck for Europeans and Natives at 
 Dacca, the capital of Eastern Bengal, on the occasion when he 
 laid the foundation-stone of the new waterworks in the city there. 
 For these works a munificent donation had been made by Nawab 
 Abd-ul-Ghani, a wealthy Muhammadan gentleman of that place. 
 
 As a part of the establishment we had a little steam launch, 
 The Fanny, with which we could enter creeks and channels 
 in order to study the country and its ways, while the larger 
 vessel lay at anchor mid-stream of some mighty river ; many of 
 the most interesting of our detailed inspections were made in 
 this way. 
 
 Sometimes we cast anclior during the cool of the afternoon in 
 
416 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 order to man a rowing boat. On one occasion Bishop Milman, 
 who was among our guests on board, steered for us. 
 
 The river scenery was essentially flat, being the very opposite 
 of that wliich has been described in chapter XI. regarding the 
 Central Provinces. For many miles we appeared to be per- 
 meating a waste of waters, as the inundation spread over the 
 rice-fields, and the villages built on mounds, stood out like 
 islands. But we knew that underneath this seeming waste 
 there was a marvellous fertility being nourished. Though far 
 inland, we would be almost tempted to exclaim " nihil est nisi 
 pontus et aer." Often the expanse of river was motionless like 
 a mirror : or again we were 
 
 But sometimes the wind lashed up the river into waves, 
 " fluctibus et fremitu assurgens marino," enough to give an un- 
 dulating motion to our barge and steamer. Or there were 
 opposing currents, as for instance where the mighty Ganges 
 and the mightier Brahmaputra collide in fierce encounter near 
 Goalundo, making quite a maelstrom. Then indeed there is 
 an example of Greek meeting Greek with the strain of aquatic 
 contest. Once when massive breakwaters and other engineering 
 works had been thrown out to protect the terminal railway- 
 station and engine-house there, the river descended tearing away 
 the costly structures as if they had been made of frail brittle 
 materials, and confounding the devices of the ablest engineers. 
 We approached to within sight of this scene, and watched the 
 whirlpools eddying and surging. 
 
 Again, during a wild night the lands of whole parishes would 
 be swept away by an " erosion," as it was called, and shortly 
 afterwards would be thrown up as islands in the watery expanse. 
 The disputes between the people of the villages parishes or 
 hundreds can be imagined, as the new land comes to be dis- 
 tributed among them. But as the disappearance and reappear- 
 ance of riparian lands are constant phenomena, the villagers 
 become practised in identification and the authorities in adjudi- 
 cation. 
 
Chap, xviii. BOAT TRAFFIC ON THE BRAHMAPUTRA. 417 
 
 All this time the boats of Bengal, the " country craft " as 
 they are termed, with their striking varieties of build and 
 rigging, afforded frequent diversion. Some, with their light 
 structure, swelling canvas and airy movements, seemed like 
 birds as they flitted past us. Anon, as a flotilla of a larger 
 class approached, the long line of horizon wovild be broken 
 by objects which loomed as moving towers of brilliant white, 
 but which were the lofty sails set one above the other. 
 Again, the boats in a string .would draw up near a village to 
 moor for the night, their, painted hulls and red-coloured sails 
 being set off against tlie dense foliage of bamboo and plantain. 
 Or in some sheltered creek many hundreds of boats would 
 be crowded together, their bare masts standing like a leafless 
 thicket in mid- winter, while close by were the branchless trunks 
 and leafy canopies of the cocoa-nut palms. On festal occasions, 
 races were held at Dacca for each of the several classes of 
 country boats before a great concourse of Natives. The river 
 then was gay with all the diversified circumstance of an 
 Oriental regatta. 
 
 At two points on the Brahmaputra, the smaller boats, navi- 
 gating its upper course in Assam, tranship their cargoes into 
 larger boats which can bear the stormy and dangerous naviga- 
 tion of its lower course after the junction of its great affluent 
 the Megna, and so pass through the wide-spreading delta to Cal- 
 cutta. The principal of these two points of transhipment is called 
 Seraj-ganj, there the boats of all sizes in thousands are moored 
 and lashed together, thus constituting stages, almost roadways 
 along which people can move to and fro. Tens of thousands of 
 boatmen, workmen and traders are congregated ; this concourse 
 induces villagers and tradesmen to bring supplies on board the 
 boats ; the merchants find it convenient to arrange their trans- 
 actions on board also. Tlius a floating city is actually formed 
 on the river for several months in the year ; on board of 
 this vast flotilla, markets are held, goods disposed of, even 
 rates of exchange settled, and transactions proceed as if on 
 land. But, as already explained, the river-banks and the tempo- 
 rary islands mid-stream change every year, therefore the floating 
 
 2 E 
 
418 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xvtii. 
 
 city, wliile it keeps its name, has not a local habitation. It 
 has been not inaptly termed " a town without houses." It 
 assembles at a certain season and remains, so to speak, in session 
 for so many months, then disperses and reassembles the follow- 
 ing year at some other point in the river, though it hovers 
 around the same neighbourhood as nearly as possible. 
 
 At several places on the river-bank there are building-yards 
 entirely belonging to Natives where these boats are built in the 
 various forms and styles suited to the broad rivers with their 
 storm-waves, the swift rivers with their treacherous currents, 
 the shallows with their shifting shoals, the creeks with their 
 tortuous windings. The bustling activity of these yards, the 
 contrivances designed to meet the exigences to which the 
 vessels are liable, afford a good notion of indigenous enterprise 
 and skill in the shipwright's art. 
 
 Of all the river wonders, the most striking is that afforded 
 by the joint delta of the Ganges and Brahmaputra, called " the 
 Sundar-ban " (commonly but incorrectly written " the Sunder- 
 bunds ") on the northern shore of the Bay of Bengal. There, 
 the absolutely flat surface of alluvial deposits is clothed with a 
 forest dense but low, extending over many hundreds of square 
 miles. Whether this fbrest is truly primeval is a question for 
 the geologist and antiquarian ; for at rare spots deep underneath 
 the surface, remains have been found of solid buildings indi- 
 cating the sites of perhaps buried cities ; nor would it excite 
 surprise if from under the river-bed traces of vegetation were to 
 be disinterred. In the present age, however, the closeness of the 
 thicket, and the abundance, though not the size nor the altitude, 
 of the timber trees, are the all-pervading characteristics. The 
 channels of varying breadth permeate this low forest in all 
 directions ; the term network would give but an imperfect idea 
 of this particular river system, which might better be called a 
 labyrinth. If a boatman or a stranger without a compass were 
 to become separated from his companions in cloudy weather, he 
 must be lost. The intricacies of the channels would bewilder 
 him, and the walls of forest on both banks would prevent his 
 perceiving anything beyond ; being unable to see the sun, he 
 
Chap, xviii. THE DELTAIC REGION. 419 
 
 would lose all idea as to whither he was wending. He would 
 thus perish slowly, though perhaps many boats unseen might be 
 near, unless he were meantime snatched up by some of the 
 tigers wliich infest these jungles. 
 
 Nevertheless certain channels running through these tracts are 
 navigated by boats in vast numbers, and the boatmen from long 
 habit can recognize every turn and twist in the several routes, 
 and discriminate the difference in their aspect, though to a 
 stranger they very much resemble one another. Under the 
 guidance of Native pilots our barge and steamer used to go 
 safely to and fro. 
 
 There was at that time a particular reason for observing the 
 Sundar-ban," which means "the sundar forest," the sundar 
 being a tree much used for building the Native boats above 
 described. Inroads had been made in many directions upon this 
 broad growth of sundar, without any arrangement for reproduc- 
 tion. Happily the heart of the forest was still intact, and the 
 wasteful cutting had not gone so far as to render recovery hope- 
 less. Still if this process should continue unchecked the ex- 
 haustion tif the sundar trees must ensue in time, and thereby an 
 almost fatal blow would be struck at the river navigation of 
 eastern Bengal. The old supply of timber close at hand would 
 fail, and new supplies, if procurable at all, must come from a 
 distance at a higher cost. Our trip was fruitful in results for 
 forest conservancy, as a large deltaic area previously unpre- 
 served was placed under the able Conservator of forests, 
 Dr. W. Schlich. By that measure there was secured the future 
 supply not only of the best and cheapest timber for boat- 
 building, but also of fuel for the markets of Calcutta. 
 
 The mass of the population — cultivators, fishermen, boatmen, 
 small traders, artisans — in the regions of eastern Bengal, which 
 have just been described, is Muhammadan. It is by their hands 
 that the jute fibre used in the Dundee factories is produced. 
 These Bengali Muhammadans are not less than 20 millions in 
 number, and are not ethnologically or physically distinguishable 
 from the Hindu people of the rest of Bengal. They must have 
 been converted en masse by force or influence under the Mogul 
 
 2 E 2 
 
420 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cuap. xviii. 
 
 empire. If the idea of so large a conversion shall seem sur- 
 prising, it is to be remembered that in those days the popu- 
 lation hereabouts was sparse, consisting of hardy boatmen with 
 a few husbandmen clearing the jungle, perhaps under the 
 auspices of Muhammadan rulers ; it was during subsequent 
 generations that the population attained the growth which we 
 now see. The ordinances of Islam are followed by these people 
 in the most perfunctory way ; the village mosque is a barn 
 of bamboo matting, and a few texts from the Koran translated 
 into Bengali suffice for the service. Their social condition is 
 low, the marriage tie having but little permanency or effect, and 
 legislation was being undertaken with the view of providing 
 machinery for the regulation of their marriages and divorces. 
 
 The landlords however (with the exception of a few great 
 Muhammadan families such as that of Abd-ul-Ghani already 
 mentioned) are Hindus, as also of the officials and the law- 
 yers. Near Dacca, the capital of eastern Bengal, is the town of 
 Bikrampur, scattered among miles and miles of groves, the 
 ancestral home of a larger number of educated Hindus, in 
 the service of Government, than any other place in the country. 
 
 In eastern Bengal we observed the people to be robust and 
 
 sturdy, though somewhat stunted in stature. But towards the 
 
 centre of the province the extensive swamps and marshes had 
 
 grievously impaired the health and strength of the inhabitants, 
 
 prostrating them with fevers periodically, even causing them at 
 
 times to subside gently from life into death without any violent 
 
 disease or distress, and 
 
 " sink into darkness 
 As when a lamp is blown out by a gust of wind at a casement." 
 
 The reclamation of the marshy tracts was an object of constant 
 solicitude to the Government of Bengal ; to this end some 
 important measures were adopted, but the progress was small 
 relatively to the numerous and extensive areas of swamp, 
 inasmuch as much capital and combination among neigh- 
 bouring proprietors had to be secured. 
 
 In many places the villages cluster thickly in the neighbour- 
 hood of malarious hollows. The Bengali village is very 
 
Chap, xviii. SCENERY OF CIIITTAGONG AND ORISSA. 421 
 
 unlike ordinary Indian villages, which with their mud walls 
 and tiled roofs present in the aggregate an arid mass of ochre 
 colouring, with one or two shady trees near at hand. In 
 Bengal the village viewed from a short distance seems like a 
 dense grove of palms and bamboos ; entering the grove the 
 traveller finds that nestling in the deep shade are the cottages 
 of wicker-work with thatched roofs covered by climbing plants 
 and creepers. 
 
 Shortly afterwards we crossed the Bay of Bengal by an ocean- 
 going steamer to visit Chittagong, thence ascending in a small 
 steamer the river Karnaphuli to near the Lushai frontier, for the 
 purpose of settling questions regarding the defensive post on the 
 British frontier. The tribes that inhabit the adjoining territories, 
 though quite different from those on the North-west frontier, 
 described in previous chapters, are yet in their way troublesome 
 and even martial. The river scenery was here very unlike 
 that just described in eastern Bengal, and though less strange 
 and imposing, was much more beautiful, in the ordinary 
 sense of the term. The channel wound through low hills wdth 
 gently sloping sides covered with vegetation in tropical luxu- 
 riance, from the ferns and grasses to the timber trees which 
 stretched their broad arms over the stream and spread leafy 
 canopies over its waters. 
 
 " The meeting boughs and imphcated leaves * 
 
 Make network of the dark-bkie light of day 
 
 the translucent wave 
 
 Images all the woven boughs above." 
 
 On the opposite shore of the Bay of Bengal we visited Orissa 
 — sailed up the new canal from the coast to Cuttack, the capital 
 of the province, passing by means of a lock the massive dam 
 constructed in order to form a great reservoir opposite the city 
 — noted the value of the irrigation works in progress for the 
 prevention of famine — galloped over the sands of the sea-shore 
 towards the Black Pagoda, a landmark on the coast — saw the 
 famed car of Jaganath which through British humanity is 
 no longer allowed to pass over the bodies of the devotee- victims 
 — held a state reception for the neighbouring hill chiefs to whom 
 
422 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Cuap. xviii. 
 
 were to be handed patents of privileges which had been con- 
 ferred upon them by Government — had an interview with the 
 Kaja at Puri, little thinking that despite his sacred character he 
 would one day stand at the criminal bar on a charge of homi- 
 cide and aggravated cruelty — saw the surging of a fanatical 
 multitude at the grand temple of Bhuvaneshwar, which the 
 Brahmins illuminated in commemoration of our brief sojourn 
 in the province — wandered through rock-cut temples less carved 
 and ornamented but more antique than those of the Deccan — 
 and observed how the province had not only recovered from 
 the famine of ten years previously, but was actually richer 
 than ever. 
 
 As the winter, called locally " the cold weather," approached 
 it was necessary to return to Calcutta, and to stay for several 
 months at that place as being the head-quarters of the provin- 
 cial Government. In other parts of the empire, the provincial 
 Governors are usually absent from their head-quarters during a 
 great part of the winter months. But in Bengal the general 
 interests centred in Calcutta are so great, the European com- 
 munity is so influential, and the business of local legislation 
 so considerable, that the Lieutenant-Governor must be there 
 during the winter, which is the busy season. It is further 
 very desirable that he should be at hand, as the Government 
 of India are residing at Calcutta during this season. Again 
 he is ex officio a member of the Governor-General's Legisla- 
 tive Council, which is in session there also. Thus I lived 
 mainly at Calcutta for two winters consecutively, and found it 
 a charming place of residence during this, the brisk season. 
 The official mansion is named Belvedere, and well it deserves 
 the name, being situated in a richly wooded suburb where the 
 bamboos in fine profusion throw up their tall stems, tapering to 
 the most delicate sprigs, and bending so as to over-arch the 
 roads and lanes. There, too, the plantain puts forth its great 
 leaves, several feet long, in form like a scimitar, and with a 
 sheen on the surface resembling green satin. Outside the 
 grounds of Belvedere, the new Zoological Gardens were then 
 being laid out in a style that might please the landscape gar- 
 
Chap, xviii. THE CITY OF CALCUTTA. 423 
 
 dener as well as the naturalist. Close by is the racecourse, 
 three miles round, with galloping-ground of green turf that 
 never withers even under the hottest sun. 
 
 Being now answerable for the local Government of Calcutta 
 I had to examine the place carefully, and found it much 
 changed for the better from the Calcutta of 1847, which has 
 been briefly described in the previous chapter II. 
 
 The long line of villas on the bank of the Hughli, so 
 famous in Anglo-Indian history as " Garden reach," was indeed 
 spoiled because the ex-King of Oudh, with his motley host of 
 retainers, had been allowed to take up his residence there. In 
 every other direction, however, the city was marvellously im- 
 proved. Instead of the unwholesome water from tanks and 
 wells, there was a fine supply conducted by pipes from filtering 
 beds fifteen miles distant. The open pestiferous drains were 
 being gradually replaced by closed sewers underground, and 
 masses of sewage were pumped daily by machinery into 
 channels leading to a distance. The health of the dwellers in 
 the city and the sailors in the port was improved in a pro- 
 portionate degree ; and cholera, though occasionally appearing, 
 was no, longer endemic. Jetties, landing-places and ware- 
 houses were being constructed along the river-bank for the 
 accommodation of the trade, and chain moorings had been 
 provided for the vessels. A handsome commodious Sailors' 
 Home had been provided. A broad roadway was being 
 arranged across the Hughli by pontoons from Calcutta to 
 Houra on the opposite bank, which was becoming to the 
 capital what Birkenhead is to Liverpool. In the outskirts of 
 the city many factories with their tall cliimneys were springing 
 up for the manufacture of jute fibre. Public structures, court- 
 houses, or rather palaces of justice, postal and telegraphic head- 
 quarters, museums, colleges, university halls, market-places, had 
 been or were being built in every direction. Statues of states- 
 men and generals had been erected in conspicuous places. The 
 Eden gardens were artistically laid out with serpentine ^\^ater, 
 carved pagodas and tropical plants. 
 
 The constitution of the Calcutta municipality was at this 
 
424 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 time being keenly, perhaps acrimoniously, discussed. The muni- 
 cipal corporation had charge of the conservancy, the local 
 taxation and the police. Sir Stuart Hogg (brother to Sir 
 James Macgarel Hogg) was its chairman ; he was a very able 
 and zealous officer, so the business was efficiently done, and 
 the whole place kept in good order. Still the constitution of 
 the municipalty was not popular ; the members of the corpora- 
 tion being all appointed by Government, the tax-paying citizens 
 were becoming generally dissatisfied with this arrangement. In 
 fact an educated middle class had arisen which objected to the 
 exclusive power heretofore pertaining to the upper class, and 
 desired to have a voice and share in the urban administration. 
 A bill was therefore passed through the Legislative Council, 
 whereby only one-third of the members were to be appointed 
 by Government and the remainder elected by the rate- 
 payers. This measure was, as might be expected, displeasing 
 to the upper classes among the Natives, and even to the Euro- 
 peans, who apprehended that, with so great a numerical pre- 
 ponderance of Native voters, none but Natives would be elected. 
 The Government, however, having the power of appointing 
 one-third of the members, was thereby enabled to secure a 
 due proportion of Europeans in the municipality. At first the 
 rate-payers seemed hardly to comprehend the liberality of the 
 concession which had been made to them, being careless in 
 exercising their new franchise. The candidates elected often 
 failed to give practical attention to progressive measures for 
 the improvement of the place. Subsequently, however, there 
 must have arisen that benefit which cannot fail to arise from 
 the Natives having some power over and interest in their muni- 
 pal affiiirs. The moral effect too must be beneficial in forming 
 their national character, and making them feel jointly responsible 
 with the Government for the improvement of their city which 
 comprises so many interests. 
 
 The business of legislation was, on the whole, the largest and 
 most important of any that pressed on my attention at this 
 time. It has been explained in the previous chapter VIII. 
 that a Legislative Council was established for Bengal separate 
 
CuAP. XVIII. THE BENGAL LEGISLATURE. 425 
 
 from the Legislative Council of the Governor-General. The 
 Bengal Legislature then consisted of some ex-officio members, 
 the other members being appointed by the Lieutenant-Governor, 
 who was 3.1so the President. They were partly European and 
 partly Native, official and non-official ; their number was small, 
 being limited to thirteen. One or two would be chosen 
 from among the European members of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce or of the Trades Association, and some few from 
 among the Native noblemen or gentlemen of Bengal. It was 
 quite possible for an independent member to bring in a bill ; 
 but tliis was rarely done. In the main it was the duty of 
 Government to propose all the laws ; and the bills were brought 
 forward by the officials who were members of the Council. The 
 Act of Parliament, when constituting this local legislature, gave 
 it full power to legislate for everything requiring legislation, save 
 certain specified matters. But as its Acts required the assent 
 of the Governor-General before becoming law, the Government 
 of India had full control and would not allow it to legislate in 
 respect to anytliing for which the Governor-General's Council 
 had legislated. Thus there were many restrictions upon its 
 proceedings ; even with this limitation, however, there was an 
 extensive field open for its operations relating to the internal 
 affairs of Bengal. The Native members took great part in the 
 discussions, and their speeches were criticized by the public 
 outside. Thus the Native community was induced to take 
 an interest in framing the laws under which they lived. 
 
 Among the Native members the most useful in my time was 
 Kristo Das Pal, and if there was such a thing as the functions 
 of a legitimate opposition they were ordinarily exercised by 
 him. The proceedings being conducted in English he was a 
 good speaker, with a very correct pronunciation, and more fiuency 
 than most Englishmen; as a debater, too, he was ready and 
 acute. He was, on the whole, next after Sir Madhava Eao, 
 mentioned in chapter XIIL, the best-informed Indian whom 
 I have ever known ; Ms assistance in legislation was really 
 valuable ; and in public affairs he had more force of character 
 than any Native of Bengal. He belonged to a caste below that 
 
426 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 of Brahmin and was the editor of the Ilmdit Patriot newspaper, 
 published in English. This paper was the organ of the Bengal 
 Zemindars, and was in the main sustained by them, but it had 
 a large circulation otherwise both among Europeans and Xatives, 
 being conducted with independence loyalty and learning. 
 
 Another Native member was Molavi (now Nawab) Abd-ul- 
 Latif, the most progressive and enlightened among the Muham- 
 madans of Bengal. He believed that unless the rising genera- 
 tion among his co-religionists exerted themselves intellectually 
 with more effect, they would be utterly outstripped by their 
 Hindu fellow-subjects in the race of life. He was the prime 
 mover in the ]\Iuhammadan Literary and Scientific Society, 
 which gave an annual soiree in the Town Hall with an extensive 
 display of objects in science and art. 
 
 As a member of the Legislature was ordinarily appointed for 
 two years, • it followed that in course of time nearly all the 
 eminent Natives of Bengal passed through the Council. 
 
 There were two leading clans of high caste at that time in 
 Calcutta, namely, the Tagores and the Sobha Bazaar family. 
 The Tagores have during the last half-century done more for 
 the moral and mental progress of their countrymen than any 
 family which has yet been seen under British rule. Erom 
 them sprang the Hindu religious reformers, whose lives have 
 been so well summarized recently by Monier Williams, and 
 from whom the Brahmo sect really had its origin. They were 
 at this time represented by Eamanath Tagore, a man possessing 
 some of the fire and forcefulness of disposition characteristic of 
 his race ; being well stricken in years he was regarded as the 
 Nestor of Bengal. Next after him was Jotendro Mohan Tagore, 
 on whom the rank of Maharaja has since been conferred ; he 
 was a man of milder disposition perhaps, but independent in 
 spirit and liberal in thought ; quite an eleve of the new school, 
 yet without the forwardness and self-assertion which sometimes 
 characterize it. He combined the polished politeness of the old 
 school of Natives with the educational accomplishments of the 
 new, and in him this combination was more complete than in 
 any other man of that time. 
 
Chap, xviii. THE PRINCIPAL NATIVE GENTLEMEN. 427 
 
 The Soblia Bazaar family had historic antecedents dating 
 from the battle of Plassey and the political arrangements made 
 by Clive. The head of this family was Eaja Kali Krishna, a 
 pattern of Hindu orthodoxy and an exemplar of the virtues 
 which characterize the Hindu race. A firm believer in the 
 ancient religion, he laboured to assist in preserving its purity 
 and efficacy. Yet his mind was always receptive of light from 
 modern and "Western ideas. His scholarsliip extended to 
 English and European learning and to the classical languages 
 of his own country. His literary taste displayed itself in trans- 
 lations of English poetry into the Indian vernacular and in the 
 composition of Sanscrit verses. His rank and wealth, his public 
 worth, his social merits, endeared him to his countrymen and 
 earned for him the regard of the European community. 
 
 After his lamented death in 1874, the leading members of 
 this important family were IsTarendra Krishna, since dignified 
 with the rank of Maharaja, Kumal Krishna and Harendra 
 Krishna. They too had the refinement of former times together 
 with the modern culture, yet as Hindus of the highest caste 
 they carried great weight socially, and were thoroughly loyal 
 men. 
 
 These were all Zemindars, though they were city men as 
 well, being influential both in town and country. 
 
 Below these families in rank, but still holding a position of 
 some consequence, was Degumber Mittra, who was more com- 
 pletely a landlord than any. He understood the management of 
 estates and all affairs relating to the peasantry better than most 
 of his contemporaries. By his premature death Bengal lost a 
 loyal liberal independent and useful member of the community. 
 
 The Maharaja of Bard wan, a highly educated though retiring 
 and unobtrusive man, employed his vast wealth in works of 
 munificent charity among his tenantry and dependents. 
 
 Much regard was attached to the memory of two Native 
 Judges, Anukul Mukerji and Dwarkanath Mittra, who had 
 both sat on the bench of the High Court. Their learning and 
 character reflected honour on their race and on the Western 
 education by which they had been trained. 
 
428 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 Of the Muhammadans the most prominent figure was Nawab 
 Amir Ali ; he was one of the old school, and afforded a complete 
 example of its virtues and merits ; he never even learned to 
 speak the English language. He made his fortune at the 
 Native Bar, and during the war of the mutinies was deputed 
 on political service to the disturbed province of Behar, He 
 afterwards became manager for the estate of the ex-King of 
 Oudh. Entire trust was placed in his loyalty and fidelity, and 
 next after Salar Jang (n^entioned in chapter XIII.) he was the 
 best Muhammadan I have ever known. 
 
 In eastern Bengal the most influential Muhammadan was 
 Nawab Abd-ul-Ghani, of Dacca, already mentioned. Tlie fortune 
 of his family had been made chiefly by trade, and he had great 
 landed possessions. He also was a man of the old school, 
 munificent in disposition and loyal in conduct. His son 
 seemed to have inherited the paternal qualities, but was some- 
 what more a man of the new school. 
 
 Rajendra Lai Mittra, the most effectively learned Hindu of 
 that day, both as regards English and Oriental classics, was pre- 
 paring his great work on the Antiquities of Orissa. He felt a 
 justifiable pride in the wondrous achievements of the Hindus of 
 old, and doubtless grieved over their political decadence. 
 
 The Brahmo preacher Keshub Chander Sen had long been 
 very prominent at the capital ; he was still in the zenith of his 
 usefulness, with hardly any symptom of decline, though some 
 of his views were regarded as extravagant and rhapsodical. He 
 was much esteemed by all classes ; his English oratory was 
 listened to with rapt attention by Bengalis, and thought excel- 
 lent even by English auditors. He and his immediate followers 
 maintained a gentle and conciliatory manner, carefully avoiding 
 the display of anything like aggressiveness towards their Hindu 
 fellow-countrymen. 
 
 Among the Native Christians the foremost was the Eeverend 
 Krishna Mohan Banerji, a clergyman of the Church of England. 
 Though zealous for the faith and ready to attack incisively what 
 he regarded as the pseudo-Christianity of the Brahmos, he yet 
 retained much influence with the middle classes among the 
 
Chap. xvni. NATIVE LIBERALITY. 429 
 
 non-Christian Hindus. Sprung from the highest caste, he learnt 
 from Christian teaching to feel a catholic charity for all the 
 humbler castes of his countrymen, and seemed to perceive that 
 one mode of propagating Christian principle among the heathen, 
 is to let them feel the warmth of Christian sympathy. Though 
 his influence was perhaps not acknowledged by the upper 
 classes, it really was considerable among the numerical 
 majority of educated Hindus at the capital. In this respect I 
 have never known his equal among the Native Christians. One 
 of his daughters was married to the Eeverend Mr. Wheeler; 
 afterwards Mrs. Wheeler undertook, at the instance of Govern- 
 ment, the inspection of the Zenana mission classes, and 
 rendered much service in that way. 
 
 The Eeverend Lai Behari Dey, one of the earliest converts 
 made by the Scottish missionaries, was professor in a 
 Government college. His character was marked by firmness, 
 independence, and ambition for doing good in his generation. 
 Having been in intimate communication with the missionaries 
 he possessed an exact knowledge of the best points in the 
 European character, and his writings displayed much insight 
 into the thoughts and ways of the poorer classes among his 
 countrymen. He possessed much literary skill and wrote 
 English prose with purity and perspicuity. 
 
 Of all persons in Bengal, the most munificent was a widow 
 lady Eani (now Maharani) Sharnomoye. She was a strictly 
 orthodox and devout Hindu, much given to works of piety, but 
 ever ready to dedicate some part of her great wealth to 
 works of practical benevolence. Her gifts were generous, not 
 only for the relief of famine, but also for the alleviation of 
 suffering in every form; nor were appeals for help in pro- 
 moting objects of public utility ever made to her in vain. I 
 have had the pleasure of holding communications with her, not 
 in an interview face to face, but by audience with a curtain 
 drawn between us. She has, by the gracious favour of the 
 Queen, been admitted to the order of the Crown of India. Her 
 career used to remind us of the historic record of the good 
 Mahratta princess Ahalya Bai of Central India. 
 
430 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 Liberality in contributing towards works of public usefulness 
 was eminently displayed by a rich firm of Native bankers who, 
 though domiciled in Bengal, were Marwaris from Eajputana. 
 The honoured heads of that family were Dhanpat and Ganpat : 
 much of the trade in lower Bengal was managed by them. 
 
 Solicitous care was given by Government to the training of 
 young chiefs, during their minority, often with good results, but 
 not always with success, and sometimes with discouraging 
 failure. In these days there were three young men who, after 
 receiving an education according to Western principles, had just 
 been or were about to be inducted into the management of large 
 territories ; their total rental being not less than half a million 
 sterling annually. These were the chiefs of Kiich Behar, Dar- 
 bhanga and Hatwa ; each of whom gave the fairest promise 
 regarding his future career. 
 
 I carefully inspected in those days the Christian missions 
 among the Kols, Santhals, and other aboriginal tribes on the 
 western borders of Bengal, and found the results of the work to 
 be very considerable. There were many thousands of converts, 
 and whole tracts of country were inhabited by Native Christian 
 families. The mission schools became largely attended by 
 heathen as well as by Christian children. The influence of the 
 missionaries in those wild districts was a power for good, and 
 the political effect of their presence proved to be excellent. 
 Hence also many Native Christians went forth to labour in 
 the tea-gardens of Assam, where they would doubtless spread 
 a knowledge of their faith among their comrades. 
 
 At that time Colonel Dalton was quitting for ever this home 
 of the aboriginal races, where his long administration had 
 endeared the British name to the people, while his learned 
 researches had illustrated their idiosyncrasy and ethnology. 
 
 Among the educated Natives, the first-fruit of the new 
 education was an improved standard of rectitude and integrity. 
 The men themselves saw that this was the case, and attributed 
 it unhesitatingly to educational influences. Much, happily, was 
 due to this cause, much also was assignable to other causes, such 
 as the improvement of official and professional prospects for 
 
Chap, xviii. THE TENDENCIES OF EDUCATION. 431 
 
 tliose who had character as well as ability. The change for 
 the better was perceptible with the utmost distinctness in the 
 upper classes of the Native officials, especially in the judicial 
 department. When I had first known Calcutta, more than 
 twenty years ago, honesty among these men was, according 
 to common repute, the exception; now by the same repute, 
 dishonesty was the exception and honesty the rule. Indeed 
 I scarcely then expected to live to see the change for the 
 better in these respects which I now saw. 
 
 There was, on the whole, an upheaval of the Native mind in 
 Bengal consequent on the spread of secular education, although 
 the influence of Christian missions, however great elsewhere, was 
 not much felt in Calcutta. The principal factor was the Brahmo 
 sect, of which the adherents gathered largely at the capital and 
 were scattered throughout the country. In religion they 
 followed the precepts of the Bible without acknowledging the 
 divinity of Christ; but they accepted in addition many 
 doctrines of the Hindu sacred writings. There had been a 
 Hindu Synod named the "Dharma Sabha" instituted to 
 counteract these innovations by recalling tlie thoughts of the 
 faithful to the ancient ways ; many organs of opinion also 
 spoke as if the old belief survived. But it was doubtful 
 whether any resistance, passive or active, would long with- 
 stand the advance of new opinions. The existing tendencies 
 were rendering educated Hindus less submissive in tone and 
 language than formerly, more erect in mental and moral stature 
 in the presence of Europeans, even jealous of the superior 
 positions held by Europeans in the country, not altogether 
 disposed to acquiesce in their present status, but rather inclined 
 to criticize the conduct and policy of the Government and to 
 demand increased privileges. Without going so far as to ask 
 for representative institutions, they aspired to have a greater 
 share than previously in governing themselves, though they had 
 not formed exact ideas as to how that share was to be secured. 
 They perhaps desired in effect to have the satisfaction of ruling 
 the country while the Europeans had the labour of defending it. 
 They had an overweening notion of their own intellectual 
 
432 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 ability, believing themselves to be in this respect equal to any 
 nation and superior to most races. They cherished the notion 
 that wherever brain-work might be absolutely required in India 
 they would rise like oil to the surface of water. 
 
 This uneasiness and restlessness — all the more irksome as 
 arising from no definable cause, and not being susceptible of 
 any specific remedy — found vent in the vernacular Press. 
 Of these utterances some were certainly disloyal or even 
 worse, while others were merely captious, peevish, fractious, 
 petulant. On the other hand there was frank outspoken 
 criticism of men measures or policy, wliich was not to be con- 
 founded with disloyalty, and which did good every way, as 
 exercising the faculties of the critics and pointing a moral to 
 those criticized. There was also much, which if rightly inter- 
 preted was tantamount to real loyalty such as freemen owe to 
 their liege. 
 
 It was probably the contemplation of these faults which 
 induced many observers to deprecate the high or superior 
 education wliich was being given. Some critics recommended 
 that Government should withdraw from taking part in high 
 education, leaving it to private enterprise, and devote to the 
 promotion of primary education all the resources which could be 
 afforded by the State. So far from coinciding in that view, how- 
 ever, we strove to foster alike both kinds of education, higher 
 and lower. We diffused superior instruction by the establish- 
 ment of additional colleges in the interior of the country, at 
 the same time developing the village schools and adding tens of 
 thousands every month to the number of children under primary 
 instruction. The policy was to refrain from supporting any branch 
 of education entirely by the State resources, but to induce the 
 people themselves to contribute at least half. This proportion 
 was maintained for the whole educational expenditure, and also 
 for the education of each sort, upper or lower. 
 
 The real fault in the high education was the undue and dis- 
 proportionate attention devoted to literature and philosophy, as 
 compared with physical science and the cognate branches of 
 practical instruction. This caused the legal judicial and ad- 
 
Chap, xviii. DEATH OF BISHOP MILMAN. 433 
 
 ministrative professions to be overcrowded, while the scientific 
 and practical professions relating to civil and mechanical 
 engineering, to chemistry botany agriculture and the like were 
 starved and neglected. It was impossible at that time to remedy 
 this fault without the co*operation of the Calcutta University. 
 But this institution relating to other provinces besides Bengal, 
 and being under the Government of India, was not amenable 
 to the Government of Bengal. Meanwhile the dif&culty which 
 very many highly educated men, even graduates of the Uni- 
 versity, found in obtaining suitable employment, was producing 
 discontent. 
 
 The memory of the learned and accomplished Archdeacon 
 John Pratt was cherished by all classes European and Native. 
 
 Among our educational officers the most popular was Henry 
 Woodrow, an old schoolfellow of mine at Kugby. His sudden 
 death, shortly after he had been appointed Director of Public 
 Instruction, was lamented not only by his European friends but 
 also by all classes of educated Natives throughout the country. 
 
 Eemarkable services were rendered to education, not only 
 among Europeans and East Indians but also among Natives at 
 the capital, by the Jesuit fathers of St. Xavier's College under 
 the direction of Archbishop Stein. One of the best teachers of 
 physical science in the country was the Eeverend Father Lafont, 
 who was much esteemed by the non-Christian Natives as a 
 secular instructor. 
 
 The completion of the Bengal Gazetteer, an important work 
 in twenty volumes, was expedited under the supervision of 
 Dr. W. W. Hunter, who brought remarkable accomplishments 
 and ability to the task. 
 
 The Bishop of Calcutta, Dr. Eobert Milman, while most 
 zealous for the faith, was also much respected by the members 
 of other religious communities. At Calcutta almost every 
 religion in the world is more or less represented, so occasionally 
 at the soirees in the Bishop's Palace there used to be gathered 
 the ministers of all these religions, and the liberal sympathy 
 thus evinced produced much moral effect. The public grief 
 was keenly excited by Dr. Milman's untimely death from 
 
 2 F 
 
434 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 fatigues and exposure during his episcopal visitations in an 
 enormous diocese under various climates and often at insalu- 
 brious seasons of the year. This melancholy event led to the 
 creation of a new bishopric for northern India, namely that of 
 Lahore. 
 
 There was some agitation at that time under the benevolent 
 auspices of Archdeacon Baly on behalf of the children of " poor 
 whites " at Calcutta, Europeans and East Indians, many of 
 whom were growing up in ignorance. Most of them, being 
 Portuguese in origin, were much intermingled with the Natives 
 by blood. Assistance was rendered by Government to the 
 several religious communities in order to mitigate this evil. 
 
 In the interior of Bengal proper, the change for the better in 
 the condition of the peasantry within the last generation was 
 remarkable. Though the police had still many faults, its 
 efficiency had been improved by the infusion of European blood, 
 so to speak, into its body, and by the ameliorated condition of 
 its Native officers. The crime of gang-robbery had ceased, 
 which within living memory was the midnight scourge, hated 
 by all yet resisted by none, and the dread of which was the 
 skeleton in every villager's closet. Armed ruffianism no longer 
 stalked abroad to harry terrify and plunder those who had an 
 unlimited capacity for fear but no stomach for self-defence. 
 Eack-renting and lawless oppression were comparatively rare ; 
 and peasants garnered their crops without the surveillance of 
 land-agents, each man resting with comparative comfort under 
 liis own bamboo-clump, or his cocoa-nut tree, or the eaves of 
 his thatched roof with its festoons of creepers. Not indeed 
 that the lot of the peasantry had been altogether raised out of 
 degradation, still it had improved and was yearly improving. 
 
 On the other hand a new evil had during recent years arisen, 
 and was at this time assuming formidable proportions. In 
 several districts of northern and eastern Bengal agrarian riots 
 had broken out under the instigation of known agitators, some 
 landlords had been murdered under circumstances reminding us 
 of less favoured lands, and a cry arose not only for diminished 
 rents but for no rent at all. However we passed a law to 
 
Chap. svni. INTERNAL PROGRESS. 435 
 
 strengthen the machinery for determining rents, exercised our 
 legal power of quartering police on turbulent villagers at their 
 expense, urged on the Zemindars the expediency of moderation 
 in demand and procedure, and made it clear to the tenantry 
 that unlawful conduct on their part would be repressed with 
 the whole force of the executive arm. Thus the agrarian storm, 
 after much muttering and growling of thunder and some flash- 
 ing of electricity, passed off. 
 
 The Court of Wards, by managing the estates of minors and 
 others who from any cause were unable to manage their 
 affairs, was conducting quite a gigantic business. In some 
 districts the properties of embarrassed chiefs were being 
 brought under an Encumbered Estates Act. Still in the 
 main the Zemindars were administering their estates fairly 
 well, though perhaps disposed to spend too much time at the 
 capital and too little in their villages. The territorial circum- 
 stance most noteworthy in recent times is the increase of small 
 properties ; during the last two generations the tendency has 
 been for the large estates to split up ; and the Bengali bar- 
 rister, la^vyer, official, litterateur, trader, while following dili- 
 gently his calling in the city, contrives to acquire his bit 
 of land. 
 
 In Behar as the clouds of confusion caused by the famine 
 cleared away they disclosed a peasantry much lower in status 
 and in economic condition than their brethren in other pro- 
 vinces. It appeared too that the usual rights of cultivators 
 hardly , existed or at least had not been respected, and that 
 in some classes of cases the law was so strained as to become 
 an engine of oppression. Such evils, having grown gradually 
 through several generations, seldom admit of an immediate 
 remedy, still remedial measures were at once set on foot. 
 
 The condition of indigo-planting in Behar was at times 
 threatened with dangers similar to those which beset the 
 culture of this valuable dye in Bengal, as explained in 
 chapter VIII. The European planters, however, were disposed 
 to profit by the experience of their brethren in Bengal, and to 
 make timely and judicious concessions to the Native planters. 
 
 2 F 2 
 
436 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 The difficulties had not, however, been fully overcome up to 
 the date of my departure, though I learn with thankfulness 
 that they have since been much mitigated. 
 
 The insalubrity of many among the jails, and the high death- 
 rate shewn by the returns of prisoners, caused constant anxiety. 
 In so far as these sad results were traceable to overcrowding, 
 remedies were applied by the construction of additional buildings. 
 Originally the jails had been built without due regard to ventila- 
 tion. Great improvements had some years previously been intro- 
 duced by Dr. Mouatt, formerly Inspector-General, whose humane 
 and philanthropic efforts were directed with administrative skill, 
 and who is to be numbered among the benefactors of Bengal. 
 
 The sanitary measures adopted by us in different parts of the 
 country were largely based on the information laboriously 
 gathered and the principles scientifically expounded by Dr. 
 Norman Chevers, who was one among the many ornaments of 
 the Medical Service. 
 
 No change was to my eye more noteworthy than the 
 increased popularity of the Civil Courts. In former days they 
 were thought to be arenas where the rich would overbear the 
 poor, but now their existence was respected as the segis and 
 palladium of the just rights and interests of the weak against 
 the strong. The hopes and fears of the people seemed to be 
 centred in the proceedings of these courts and the results of 
 judicial action. The Native judges were, as might be expected, 
 often criticized in regard to their decisions opinions or argu- 
 ments, but rarely or never distrusted in respect to the upright- 
 ness of their intentions. 
 
 I had the pleasure of giving at Belvedere a farewell banquet to 
 Sir Eichard Couch, the Chief Justice of Bengal, on his retire- 
 ment. In provinces where civil justice is more than ordinarily 
 important to the social life of the people, it is essential that the 
 relations between the Lieutenant-Governor and the Chief 
 Justice should be cordial, and so they were at that time. The 
 High Court at Calcutta supervises the examination of Natives 
 for admission to the bar and the bench ; it nominates Natives 
 in the first instance for appointment to the judicial service, and 
 
Chap, xviii. SCENERY OF THE EASTERN HIMALAYAS. 437 
 
 upon its report the Government mainly depends for informa- 
 tion in respect to the promotion of the Native judges from one 
 grade of the service to another. In these matters great assist- 
 ance used to be derived from one of the Judges of the High 
 Court, a very able man, Mr. (now Sir Louis) Jackson. 
 
 At intervals between these cares and labours I visited Dar- 
 jiling in the eastern Himalayas during two summer seasons, 
 and derived much advantage from the companionship of 
 John Ware Edgar, the head of the local administration there. 
 That region including both British and Native Sikhim, is 
 one of the most beautiful in the world, and the admirable 
 description of it published by Sir Joseph Hooker more than 
 thirty years ago is still applicable. Its mountains form a 
 division territorially between the Buddhist and Brahminical 
 religions, like the watershed between two vast river systems. 
 On one side of them there tinkles the bell of the temple belong- 
 ing to that faith which spreads southwards through India to 
 Cape Comorin. On the other side there resounds the gong of 
 the chapel appertaining to the reKgion which extends north- 
 wards through Thibet and China to Pekin. A fresh interest, 
 from an economic point of view, has been excited by the 
 rapid extension of tea-gardens representing what is now a 
 great industry, and by the establishment of cinchona planta- 
 tions where cheap quinine is produced for the fever-stricken 
 millions. "Wliile at Darjiling I took occasion to improve our 
 communications along the border between Sikliim and Nepal, 
 a truly wonderful line adorned with the most splendid rhodo- 
 dendrons. Here are comprised in one matchless panorama 
 the groups both of Everest and of Kinchinjanga, the two 
 loftiest snowy mountains yet discovered on earth. Again, 
 I examined the frontier line between Sikhim and eastern 
 Thibet, where the two empires of Britain and of China meet, and 
 where a series of lovely lakes embosomed amidst the snow-tipped 
 gneiss rocks is to be seen at altitudes ranging from ten to fifteen 
 thousand feet above the sea. Passing to and fro we visited the 
 monasteries of Sikhim, gazed at the countenance of the Buddha, 
 impassible with mystic calm, and watched the processions of 
 
438 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 abbots and monks in their purple vestments. Or again while 
 enveloped in the rain-cloud and unable to discern any object 
 whatever we listened to the roar of countless cascades and 
 cataracts around us. Then as the wind rolled away the mist- 
 curtain we saw Kinchinjanga and his attendant peaks 
 
 " Lift through perpetual snows their lofty and luminous summits." 
 
 There too we admired the quasi-tropical vegetation which is to 
 be seen in no other part of the Himalayas — the graceful cane, 
 the tree-fern, the flowering magnolia, and the climbing plants 
 which swinging from the great arms of lofty trees 
 
 " Hang their ladder of ropes aloft like the ladder of Jacob." 
 
 Once too, having much official business with the authorities 
 in Assam, I proceeded thither in the State barge Uliotas 
 which has been already described. Thus we passed along the 
 broad Brahmaputra having hills on both sides, and exceeding 
 in grandeur either the Indus or the Ganges, with snowy peaks in 
 the distance. We inspected the tea-gardens on the banks, and 
 then leaving the quasi-tropical vegetation ascended in one ride 
 to the pine forests on the heights of Shillong. 
 
 Subsequently while steaming down the Brahmaputra for the 
 last time, I received reports of a terrific cyclone having just 
 occurred in the deltaic district, near the estuary of the 
 Megna, desolating populous tracts of country. Taking a large 
 supply of provisions on board the BJiotas and a force of 
 police to render aid, I proceeded as fast as possible to the scene 
 of disaster, and fortunately was the first authority to arrive 
 there. The storm-wave had subsided, leaving the fertile and 
 thickly peopled territory a complete wreck. In some places 
 the ground was strewn with corpses like a battle-field , every- 
 where dead bodies of human beings and cattle in horrid 
 confusion lay festering in the sun. The cottages were falling to 
 pieces, the gardens were turned into saline swamps, the villages 
 presented a ghastly and sickening spectacle. The evening before 
 the occurrence, the people, about 300,000 in number, retired to 
 rest as usual. Before midnight the wind suddenly freshened. 
 
Chap, xviii. VISIT OF THE PRINCE OF WALES. 439 
 
 soon there arose a cry "the water is on us," and a wave 
 several feet high burst over the country, followed by another and 
 again by a third. The people were thus caught up by the surg- 
 ing flood and many were lifted on to the trees which surrounded 
 their homesteads. Those who became stopped by the branches 
 were saved, those who were not thus stopped must have been 
 swept away and lost. The cyclone with its gyrations first drove 
 the salt water from the Bay of Bengal into the Megna, banking 
 up the river and flooding its banks, then blowing from the oppo- 
 site direction propelled this mass of water back again across the 
 country towards the sea; hence the succession of destructive 
 waves over the doomed villages. Everything that medical skill 
 could suggest or administrative resources provide was bestowed 
 to relieve the sufferers. 
 
 In those days Lord Napier of Magdala was about to resign 
 his liigh office as Commander-in-Chief of the army. A public 
 meeting was held in the Town Hall at Calcutta, when due 
 honour was done to the manifold achievements of the depart- 
 ing General ; and arrangements were made for erecting a statue 
 in his memory by public subscription. 
 
 The auspicious visit, with which His Eoyal Highness the 
 Prince of Wales honoured Bengal, took place in December 
 1875. His Eoyal Highness, on landing at Calcutta, was saluted 
 by a vast concourse of people, and was received by the Viceroy, 
 Lord Northbrook, at Government House. The city and all the 
 grand buildings, standing in an amphitheatre round the plain of 
 Calcutta, were illuminated. The Natives founded useful insti- 
 tutions for literature, science and art, as permanent memorials 
 of the royal visit. The principal Native rulers and chiefs from 
 Central India, Eajputana, the Panjab, Oudh, Nepal, joyously 
 assembled at the capital in order to render homage to the 
 Prince of Wales, and to many of them separate interviews were 
 graciously granted by His Eoyal Highness. A chapter of the 
 Order of the Star of India was held in a stately camp pitched 
 on the great plain, when the Prince invested several persons 
 European and Native with the insignia of the Order in the 
 name of Her Majesty the Queen. The Natives of Calcutta 
 
440 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xviii. 
 
 were privileged to receive the Prince of Wales at an entertain- 
 ment wherein all their resources of Oriental ornamentation 
 were displayed. The European inhabitants gave an entertain- 
 ment in the Western style at the Town Hall in honour of His 
 Eoyal Highness. 
 
 After leaving Calcutta the Prince of Wales stopped for a few 
 hours at Patna, the capital of Behar. There the Native chiefs 
 and gentry marshalled their elephants and paraded them before 
 His Eoyal Highness with a very imposing array. Then were 
 presented to His Eoyal Highness the officers, European and 
 Native, who had rendered good service during the recent famine. 
 
 Nowhere in India did the royal sojourn make a more profound 
 and happy impression than among the Natives of Bengal. 
 
 Soon afterwards it became known that Lord Northbook would 
 be shortly leaving India for England, and would be succeeded 
 by Lord Lytton. As the day drew near for Lord Northbrook's 
 departure from Calcutta, a public meeting was held at the Town 
 Hall in order to consider the most suitable means of doing him 
 honour. It was then decided that a statue of him should be 
 erected at the capital. 
 
 Having conducted the Bengal Government for more than two 
 years, I received through the Marquis of Salisbury then Secre- 
 tary of State an offer of the Governorship of Bombay, which I 
 accepted. During these years the various things relating to the 
 administration had been claiming attention — the progress of 
 canals already under construction and the elaboration of new 
 projects for irrigation — the preparation of plans for branch 
 railways — the repair of embankments — the execution of drain- 
 age works — the designs for the reclamation of swamps — the 
 assessment and levy of cesses already authorized by law for 
 roads and schools — the founding of new colleges, the opening 
 of additional medical schools and the development of primary 
 education — the legislation regarding the land, the partition of 
 joint undivided states, the registration of possessory titles, 
 the determination of agrarian disputes — the extension of the 
 forest laws to many hundred square miles of woods and 
 jungle — the organization of the rural post — the improvement 
 
Chap, xviii. IMPERIAL ASSEMBLAGE AT DELHI. 441 
 
 of the village police — the development of the statistical depart- 
 ment — the constitution of the municipality at the capital on the 
 basis of the elective franchise — the modification of the procedure 
 in the department of civil justice — and the limitation of the 
 licence of appeal by providing new appellate courts in the 
 interior of the country with power of deciding finally. 
 
 By this time I had formed a favourable estimate of the people 
 of Bengal. Many classes among them are milder in disposition 
 and less robust physically than the other Indian races with 
 which I had been brought in contact. But these evinced an 
 assiduity in self-discipline, and a power of intense mental 
 application, rarely to be found in any race. Many classes again 
 in the eastern districts are sturdy, wiry, and courageous. A 
 number of the principal men in Bengal accompanied me 
 to the imperial assemblage at Delhi, and received titles or 
 other honours on that auspicious occasion. I was then com- 
 pleting the annual administration report, and my description 
 of the character of the people concluded thus — subject to the 
 exceptions which must be remembered whenever generalization 
 is attempted respecting a vast population consisting of diverse 
 elements : — 
 
 " At heart and in the truest sense the Bengalis are thoroughly 
 loyal. In this respect there are not in British India better 
 subjects of the Crown. Under all circumstances, adverse or 
 propitious, they evince a steady industrious and law-abiding 
 spirit which must command regard and esteem from every 
 Englishman who knows them. Their sentiments of reverence 
 for the British Crown and respect for the British nation will 
 have been enhanced by the State ceremonies instituted for 
 proclaiming the imperial title." 
 
( 'i^^ ) 
 
 CHAPTEE XIX. 
 
 ,(1877.) 
 
 THE AFFAIKS OF SOUTHERX INDIA. 
 
 My deputation to the distressed parts of the Madras Presidency to make 
 enquiries and offer suggestions — Communications with the Governor, the 
 Duke of Buckingham — Condition of the drought-stricken districts in the 
 north — The ruined city of Bijayanagar — Famished fugitives betake them- 
 selves to the city of Madras — Condition of the southern districts — Arcot, 
 Trichinopoly, Madura and Tinnevelly • — Christianity among the Natives 
 of the southern peninsula — Bishops Sargeant and Caldwell — The Roman 
 Catholic clergy and community — The Native State of Mysore — Substance 
 of my report on the famine in southern India during its earlier stages — 
 Destruction of the forests — Conduct of the people during the distress. 
 
 In April 1876 Lord Lytton succeeded Lord ISTortlibrook as 
 Viceroy and Governor-General. During the Christmas week of 
 that year the ceremonies, receptions and festivities of the 
 Imperial Assemblage at Delhi, were being conducted, under 
 Lord Lytton's auspices,' with a grandeur not to be surpassed. 
 The title of Empress of India assumed by Her Majesty the 
 Queen was becoming memorable for ever in the minds and 
 hearts of the vast Native population throughout the empire. 
 The Native Princes and chiefs felt that the bonds between 
 themselves and the supreme head of the empire were being 
 strengthened. All men from the highest to the humblest 
 realized better than before their position as members and 
 subjects of an imperial State. 
 
 During the autumn there had been reports of famine in the 
 Deccan districts of the Bombay Presidency. But as the season 
 wore on, it became apparent that famine to a much larger 
 extent impended in southern India, embracing much of the 
 Madras Presidency and the greater part of Mysore. Already the 
 Madras Government, of which the Duke of Buckingham was 
 the head, had begun to purchase grain as a reserve supply, and 
 
rHAP. XIX. FAMINE-STRICKEN DISTRICTS OF MADRAS. 443 
 
 to open relief works which were attended by many thousands. 
 Wliile we were all assembled at Delhi Sir John Strachey, who 
 was then Financial Member of the Government of India, asked 
 me whether I could proceed to the Madras and Bombay Presi- 
 dencies on deputation from the Government of India in com- 
 munication with the Madras Government, in order to visit the 
 distressed districts, to examine the relief works already begun 
 or yet to be opened, and to suggest for the consideration of 
 the local authorities whatever measures might seem necessary 
 or desirable. I replied that my time and exertions were at the 
 command of the Governor-General ; and the next day I 
 received instructions from Lord Lytton to proceed on this 
 deputation. My functions were purely those of examining, 
 reporting and suggesting ; I was not vested with any executive 
 authority, and it rested with the provincial Government to 
 decide as to what action should be taken on any recommenda- 
 tions I might make. 
 
 This deputation would last for a short time only as on the 
 1st of May following, 1877, I was to assume charge of the 
 Government of Bombay. Meanwhile it was necessary that 
 another Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal should be appointed 
 in my stead. Lord Lytton accordingly chose the Honourable 
 Ashley (now Sir Asliley) Eden, who has been already men- 
 tioned in chapter XVII. I then proceeded to the Madras 
 Presidency about New Year's Day, 1877, on my new deputa- 
 tion, accompanied by C. E. Bernard, who was chosen to be Secre- 
 tary, and has been already mentioned in chapter XVII. as having 
 special experience in all that pertained to the relief of famine. 
 
 "We travelled by rail to the districts of the Bombay Deccan, 
 stopping a short time to examine the effect of the drought 
 there and the operations in progress for the relief of famine. 
 This done we proceeded to Hyderabad, the Nizam's capital, by 
 railway, the very line for the construction of which I had to 
 obtain the Nizam's sanction, as explained in chapter XIII. 
 Thence we journeyed by post to the northern frontier of the 
 Madras Presidency where the most serious phase of the distress 
 was likely to be found. 
 
4J4 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 I had previously some general acquaintance with the Madras 
 Presidency, having visited it several times officially. Thus I 
 already knew its grand works for irrigation and navigation in 
 the deltas of the Godavery, the Kistna, and the Cavery — the 
 great rivers dammed up as they issue from the mountain ranges, 
 their waters being by these means diverted to supply the canals 
 — the water channels first supplying moisture to the crops, 
 and then conveying the produce to market — the school of 
 hydraulic engineers who acquired their training in this wide 
 sphere of experience — the lakes, tanks or reservoirs of various 
 sizes and capacities, maintained in every group of villages 
 throughout the country — the equitable settlement of the land 
 revenue and the consequent expansion of cultivation together 
 with the growth of the agricultural community — the natural 
 wealth and fertility of the Malabar coast, with its coffee plan- 
 tations, spice gardens, cocoa-nut groves, and its numberless 
 coasting vessels. 
 
 On entering the Madras Presidency I duly placed myself in 
 communication with its Governor, the Duke of Buckingham, and 
 during my stay in his jurisdiction I received from His Grace 
 and his officers of all grades the utmost courtesy and assistance. 
 I transmitted to him reports of the enquiries which were made, 
 and of the suggestions which seemed desirable. The various 
 recommendations received prompt consideration from him and 
 from all concerned. The hospitable kindness of the Madras 
 officers was indeed such as to impress itself indelibly upon my 
 memory. 
 
 My inspection began, in January 1877, on the bank of the 
 river Tumbadra, dividing the Madras Presidency from the 
 Nizam's dominions, and extended through the Madras territory 
 known as the Ceded districts. 
 
 Near this point are the unfinished works of the project under- 
 taken by the Madras Irrigation Company at the instance of 
 Sir Arthur Cotton for conducting a large canal from the 
 Tumbadra. 
 
 The aspect of the country at that time was dreary and 
 desolate in the extreme. The plains of black soil stretched 
 
Chap. xix. DESOLATE STATE OF THE COUNTRY. 445 
 
 widely, but were for the most part without vegetation, whether 
 crops or herbage, and the surface of the earth preserved its 
 dusky colour. The country, too, was for the most part tree- 
 less ; here and there stood a solitary tree, a clump, or a 
 grove, but literally for miles together the fields were desti- 
 tute of hedge-rows, or of any plant save their periodical 
 crops, which crops had now perished. The contour of 
 the country was not, indeed, monotonous ; on the contrary, 
 it was frequently diversified by hills and masses of granitic 
 rock. The town of Adoni, near the border of the Madras Presi- 
 dency, on the main line from Madras to Bombay, was the 
 centre of perhaps the greatest distress. Close by there rose 
 up from the dark-coloured plain a noble mass of granite bear- 
 ing on its face various hues of red and orange. So also at 
 Bellary, the capital of these districts, a very fine cliff overhangs 
 the town and is fortified as a citadel ; the rocks of its scarped 
 sides are rounded off and smooth ; and from its summit a survey 
 was obtained of the drought-stricken country around. The 
 great hill fortress of tliis neighbourhood is Guty, which rises 
 more than a thousand feet above the plain. Once it thoroughly 
 commanded the surrounding country, being elaborately fortified 
 according to the best Asiatic skill by successive dynasties, Hindu, 
 Muhammadan, Mahratta ; and the possession of this strong- 
 hold was the mark of dominant sovereignty. The British 
 Government held it for a long time, after receiving possession 
 of the district. From its bastions were fired the minute guns at 
 the funeral of the Governor, Sir Thomas Munro. Some years 
 ago, however, its occupation was deemed unnecessary, and in 
 order to save the cost of maintenance it was effectually dis- 
 mantled. To us the ascent was severe under the hot sun, but 
 the scarps and precipices were very fine, and from the top could 
 be seen the general configuration of the country about to become 
 the scene of so much suffering. The military value of such forts 
 as those of Guty and Bellary, once potential in wars and politics, 
 is much affected by the opening of the railway which runs near 
 their base. The territory is fraught with associations and 
 memories of Sir Thomas Munro, who was its first British ad- 
 
44(3 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 ministrator after the cession. Among his assistants was Mr. 
 Eobertson, who became afterwards the head of the district 
 administration. Eobertson was keenly alive to the utter want 
 of trees in an otherwise fine territory, and caused numerous 
 groves to be planted in suitable places. He died in the district, 
 and on his tombstone there is a record of his labours to restore 
 shade and verdure to the land. Of these beautiful groves many 
 are preserved, wliile others have been injured and some even 
 destroyed. It was in one of these umbrageous woods, so grateful 
 in a bare and treeless tract, that Sir Thomas Munro was 
 encamped when he was seized with the cholera which rapidly 
 carried him off. We encamped for two days on the very spot, 
 and there many thousands of poor people, candidates for relief, 
 were assembled for our inspection. 
 
 Some years previously cotton-mills had been successfully 
 established in the Bellary district, and were once busily at 
 work. But now, owing to failure of the cotton supply, the 
 factories were closed and the machinery was at a standstill. 
 
 In these districts the most interesting place is the site of the 
 ruined Hindu city of Bijayanagar, near the present village of 
 Hamphe. These famous ruins, extending over many square 
 miles, are in the very first rank among the sights even of this 
 wonderful empire. The kingdom of Bijayanagar comprised the 
 best part of southern India, and for some time stemmed the 
 tide of Muhammadan conquest. It was subdued at length by 
 an alliance of the several Muhammadan kings of the Deccan, 
 and with its fall the last hopes of Hindu autonomy in the 
 peninsula were extinguished. The style of its architecture is 
 for the most part primitive, but the quaintness is very attrac- 
 tive. We observed with admiration the remains of gateways, 
 cisterns, fountains, terraces, towers, palaces, elephant stables ; 
 and were enabled to realize the spots where the Eajputs of old 
 must have held the reviews, pageants, tournaments, festivals, 
 and other spectacles in which Orientals delight. The earliest 
 temples were perhaps not remarkable, but at a somewhat later 
 period some fanes were erected, outside the city, which are 
 deemed by antiquarians to be among the most ornate specimens 
 
Chap, xix, RUINED CITY OF BIJAYANAGAR. 447 
 
 of Hindu art. Inside the city there is a temple with one of 
 those lofty gateways, called Goparams, towards which hosts 
 of worshippers once marched, and many yet march, by a broad 
 roadway. Standing there we readily imagined the religious 
 processions with the Jaganath cars, the catafalques and other 
 paraphernalia which must have passed along this way in the 
 palmy days of the kingdom. The natural beauties of the place 
 set off the objects of art in an extraordinary degree. The site 
 was originally chosen for the sake of the water supply from the 
 Tumbadra, which here runs through the midst of low hills and 
 granite boulders. The levels being very suitable, channels and 
 watercourses were conducted from the river to all parts of the 
 extensive city. The Tumbadra sometimes courses over its 
 rapids, and then rests in its deep pools which reflect the bright 
 sky and dark rocks. It was once crossed by a viaduct, with 
 monolith granite piers, of which many are yet standing. Several 
 of the old watercourses are still in use, and from them is 
 derived irrigation for the rich soil in the hollows surrounded 
 by granite. After our weary journeyings in aridity, dust and 
 glare, it was passing strange to find ourselves in the midst of 
 gloom, shade and moisture, contemplating the green patches of 
 sugar-cane and listening to the murmurs of the watercourses. 
 The wide-spreading city, once crowded with hundreds of thousands 
 of people, is now tenanted ordinarily by a mere handful of 
 villagers. At this time, however, it was occupied temporarily 
 by a multitude of a different class, for there we found gathered 
 together for our inspection many thousands of poor people who 
 were being employed on the roads in the neighbourhood. 
 
 Thus after inspecting the fields villages and market towns, 
 examining the condition of the distressed poor, and the manner in 
 which the able-bodied were engaged, also observing the prin- 
 ciples on which relief was being administered to the infirm, we 
 were able to form a precise idea regarding the nature and 
 progress of the famine. 
 
 The circumstances fortunately differed from those described 
 in chapter XVII. regarding Behar and northern Bengal. Here 
 a railway was running right through the distressed country 
 
448 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 from end to end ; good roads branched off in every direction ; 
 draught cattle and wheeled carriage for trading purposes were 
 abundant ; the grain trade was extraordinarily active, and the 
 markets both in towns and villages were well supplied. There 
 was plenty of food in the country, but vast numbers of persons 
 had no means wherewith to buy it, because there was no 
 harvesting, nor any work in the fields, and consequently 
 no wages could be earned. Again, those who were able 
 to sustain themselves were yet pinched, and had no surplus 
 wherewith to support others ; therefore the numerous class 
 dependent on alms or some form of subsidy were being left 
 unsupported, and must perish if not assisted extraneously. 
 The necessary employment and assistance were being afforded 
 on a large scale, quite adequate to the circumstances of the 
 moment, and the people were then in good physical condition. 
 Thus while it was absolutely necessary for Government to con- 
 tinue finding employment for the able-bodied and food for the 
 infirm, there was no need whatever for it to import grain as 
 was done in Behar and northern Bengal. Though a small 
 supply had in the first instance been laid in by Government 
 as a reserve, it was decided that there should not be any more 
 importation by the State and that reliance must be placed 
 on the grain trade, which was proving itself to be quite 
 worthy of confidence. On the whole the condition of affairs 
 in the Ceded districts was at that time favourable and 
 satisfactory. 
 
 During the famine of Behar and northern Bengal, the remark- 
 able immunity from epidemic sickness has been mentioned in 
 chapter XVIL, as partly owing to the excellent and unfailing 
 water supply. In the Madras Presidency, on the contrary, this 
 supply was defective by reason of the drought, and when the 
 wells or tanks became very low the water itself was impure. 
 From this cause, and from the unknown conditions relating to 
 epidemic disease, cholera often broke out as an epidemic among 
 the large gangs of labourers and small-pox frequently appeared. 
 Often the gangs dispersed for a time, flying in abject terror from 
 the deadly pest, although for them to fly M^as to run the risk 
 
Chap. xix. UNPROMISING CONDITION OF AFFAIRS. 449 
 
 of starvation. Mortality thus arose and increased the death- 
 rate in the drought-stricken districts. 
 
 A discussion arose as to the wage to be allowed to the people 
 labouring on the relief works. The Madras wage was found to 
 be higher than that which was allowed in the Bombay Presi- 
 dency. I urged that the Bombay scale should be adopted, the 
 Madras authorities however demurred on the ground that any 
 reduction of their wage would be detrimental to the health 
 and strength of the labouring poor, the Bombay experience not- 
 withstanding. As the Madras sanitary authorities held to their 
 view the chief sanitary officer of Bengal was consulted, who, 
 after examining many of the gangs on the works, decided in 
 favour of the Bombay scale. Accordingly that wage was for a 
 time adopted, but as the season advanced the Madras Govern- 
 ment reverted to its original rate. 
 
 The Ceded Districts are called Balaghat or " above the moun- 
 tains," in contradistinction to the rest of the Madras Presidency 
 or the southern peninsula, which is considered to be below 
 them. We travelled then from the Balaghat by rail, through 
 the mountains which are partly clothed with forests. Thereby 
 a grateful contrast was afforded to the bare and desolate country 
 in which we had been sojourning. Below the mountains are 
 Madras, Arcot, Pondicheri and other historic places. 
 \/ At and near Madras, I found the condition of affairs as regards 
 the famine much less promising. In its vicinity there are 
 extensive territories called " Zemindaris," which are not under 
 British administration, but are ruled by chiefs of their own. 
 These territories, though having some considerable population, 
 are yet poor and their chiefs somewhat resourceless ; when the 
 crops failed utterly no system of relief was introduced, and the 
 destitute poor, wandering about, found their way to the Madras 
 city. Again, near the base of the mountains just mentioned, 
 through which the railway passes, there are many sacred places 
 of wide celebrity, to which pilgrims and professional beggars 
 resort habitually in great numbers. These classes are always 
 among the first victims of distress, and they at this time crowded 
 the temple precincts more than ever. The priests, on the other 
 
 2 G 
 
450 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 hand, found tlieir resources affected by a sensible diminution in 
 tlie offerings of the faithful owing to the hard times, and were 
 unable or unwilling to meet extraordinary demands on their 
 bounty. Thus the distressed people, when turned away from 
 these old founts of charity, resorted to Madras. Then the 
 city and suburbs of ]\Iadras became crowded with refugees in 
 various stages of misery, among whom many were verging on 
 starvation or were past recovery even by the most humane 
 and skilful treatment. The sentiments of the community at 
 Madras were much moved by the piteous and distressful sights 
 thus presented day after day and constantly increasing in 
 number. The Government and its officers put forth the most 
 strenuous efforts to relieve the sufferers; hospitals and relief 
 camps were established under medical supervision and with all 
 the resources which good management could supply. Still the 
 death-rate in these excellent institutions was very high, inas- 
 much as when nourishment was given, even with the most 
 judicious moderation, dysenteric affections would but too often 
 supervene whereby the patients were wasted to death. 
 
 The landing-places on the Madras sea-shore were loaded with 
 vast consignments of grain imported by sea from Bengal and 
 Burma. At this the centre of the grain trade of southern India, 
 the most enterprising vigour was being displayed. 
 
 Near Madras we visited the ruined fane of Mahabalipuram 
 on the very margin of the ocean, sitting on the flight of steps 
 up wliich the waves surged and dashed. We saw also the rocks 
 near the sea-shore which the ancient Hindu architects hewed 
 into shapely temples, excavating the chambers out of the solid 
 mass. Southey the poet had read of this place as the fabled 
 city of submarine structures. The realities as testified by the 
 remains might justify all the invocations, as he has imagined 
 them, in honour of Bali, the tutelary deity of the place. 
 
 I took the opportunity while at Madras to pay a short visit 
 to the Governor of Pondicheri, and received much kindness and 
 hospitality from His Excellency. Eelatively to the size of the 
 territory, the French institutions there are numerous and appear 
 to be well conducted according to the best Indian standard. Tor 
 
Chap. xix. ARCOT AND VELLORE. 451 
 
 many miles around, the lands are cultivated in an assiduous 
 and careful manner, indicating that the cultivators must be in 
 the possession of rights well defined and efficiently protected. 
 
 From Madras I proceeded northwards along the coast to Nel- 
 lore. There I inspected the gangs of relief labourers, many 
 thousand in number, who were working on the broad channel 
 then in course of construction along the coast, in order to 
 connect Madras with the canal system of the Kistna delta. 
 This beneficent project was undertaken under the auspices 
 of the Governor and now named after him " the Buckingham 
 Canal." This is the district which is watered by the Pennaar 
 river, and in which Sir Arthur Cotton designed a project whereby 
 the waters of that river should be utilized for irrigation. 
 
 It then became necessary to inspect the districts which lay 
 along the base of the Ghat mountains already mentioned. 
 
 Of these the first was that of North Arcot in which are situate 
 the historic towns of Arcot and Vellore. In both these towns 
 the walls, fosses, gateways, bastions and towers remain, enabling 
 the student to follow the military events which happened 
 there in the last century. The memory of such events ought 
 to be perpetually kept alive in the minds of Indian offi- 
 cers, civil and military, in order that if required to dare and 
 suffer for the empire, they may be encouraged by the knowledge 
 of what men in the last century were inspired to do. In this 
 neighbourhood there are many fine lakes for irrigation, but 
 their waters were very low after the drought, and it was melan- 
 choly to see many rich fields lying temporarily wasted, being 
 deprived of their customary irrigation. In the sandy beds of 
 streams the cultivators dug wells from which they pumped up 
 water for their thirsty fields ; indeed they had improvised 
 means of irrigation in various ways, and thus in the midst of 
 the parched tracts there were green oases of crops in every 
 direction. The district is interspersed with hills from the summit 
 of which we could see the effects of dry weather upon a fertile 
 and populous district, and also the efforts which the people were 
 making to sustain their cultivation notwithstanding the general 
 desolation. Many Hindu shrines of celebrity were situated in 
 
 2 G 2 
 
452 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY T .IE IN INDIA. Cuap. xix. 
 
 this district, and consequently there were half-famished pilgrims 
 and devotees wandering about. It was difficult to manage these 
 people, as they refused to become inmates of poor-houses, and 
 preferred to run the risk of starvation rather than accept relief 
 from the authorities. 
 
 In this part of the country hand-loom weaving is a very 
 large manufacture, producing a great variety of beautiful fabrics 
 and employing tens of thousands of hands. But the people 
 in the main were now wearing out their old clothes instead 
 of purchasing new, so the demand upon the manufacturers 
 slackened. Wages were not forthcoming at all for many work- 
 people, and those who still earned some wages, though much 
 less than usual, found the earnings insufficient for their support 
 when the price of food was more than doubled. The weavers 
 and their families then came very largely upon State relief. 
 
 Here also cholera was rife, causing much mortality and 
 arousing alarm in the public mind. Some idea of its prevalence 
 may be gathered from the fact that in one day no less than five 
 men in my own suite, Natives employed with the horses, were 
 stricken by this malady. 
 
 The next district was that of Salem, of which much mention 
 was made in the Life of Sir Thomas Munro, and wliich is 
 situated near the base of the Mysore plateau. Indeed some of 
 its outlying portions being on that plateau were suffering very 
 severely from the drought. We ascended the fine group of the 
 Shevaroy hiUs, which are near the town of Salem, and on the 
 heights of which many coffee plantations have been established 
 with success. 
 
 Travelling westwards I came to the districts of Coimbatore, 
 which is the favourite among all the districts of the Madras 
 Presidency and is one of the most interesting tracts in the 
 country. It consists of a broad undulating plateau with the 
 Nilgiri mountains on the north, the Palni group of lulls on the 
 south, and on the west the mountain pass called the Pal Ghat, 
 through which the railway runs from Madras on the Coromandel 
 to Beypur on the Malabar coast. At other times I should have 
 been tempted to pay at least a flying visit to the Nilgiri hills, 
 
Chap. xix. THE SOUTHERN PENINSULA OF INDIA. 453 
 
 so close at hand — to behold once more the tropical vegetation 
 and finely engineered road of the Konur pass — the botanic 
 gardens of Utacamand — the coffee plantations of the Ochterlong 
 valley mth the blue Mlgiri peak and the glittering sea in the 
 distance — the Cinchona gardens of Mdawattam — the Wynaad 
 hills rolled about like the waves of the ocean and interspersed 
 with coffee culture. I had seen these things before, however, 
 and now there was no leisure for aught save the inspection of 
 hospitals, relief camps and gangs of labourers in thousands 
 working upon roads. 
 
 On my journey thence to the southern peninsula, the first 
 station at which I arrived was Trichinopoly, with the temple- 
 crowned granite cliff rising straight out of the cultivated plain, 
 and with the town nestling around the base of the rock. From the 
 top a striking view is obtained of the rich valley of the rivers 
 Cavery and Colerun, with their banks fringed by avenues and 
 groves, and the wooded island of Sri-rangam celebrated for its 
 groups of Hindu temples with their tall gateways. Few 
 places have been more enriched by Hindu art than this island 
 of Sri-rangam. Though this district is not largely irrigated, 
 it contains the head works of the canal system which has 
 made Tanjore the best-irrigated district in the empire, perhaps 
 in the world. Here again I should in other circumstances have 
 been tempted to look once more at the antiquities of Sri-rangam, 
 and the engineering works which have made Arthur Cotton 
 and liis school household words to millions — to visit Tanjore 
 again with its grand pagodas, its fine city, and its canals spread- 
 ing like veins and arteries through a province which they have 
 converted into a garden. But these things I had known previously, 
 and after enquiring into some outlying tracts which had suffered 
 from drought, I passed rapidly through Tanjore ^^dthout stop- 
 ping to visit ISTegapatam on the sea-coast, where quantities of 
 imported grain were being landed by the trade ; it being neces- 
 sary to see whether these stores were rapidly carried into the 
 interior by the railways. 
 
 Thence we proceeded to Madura, a district where drought 
 had prevailed, in a degree which might prove serious unless 
 
454 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 timely showers should be vouchsafed in the spring. Though 
 not so favourite a district as Coimbatore, Madura is second 
 only to it in beauty and interest. Indeed the city of 
 Madura is not equalled in southern India, being justly famed 
 for the palace of Tirumal-Naik, with its colonnades, rotunda and 
 banqueting-hall, the finest existing specimens of Hindu civil 
 architecture — and also the temples with the perspective of carved 
 figures down their grand corridors. These fanes are not desolate, 
 but on the contrary are crowded with throngs of worsMppers, 
 sightseers, and men buying or selling jewelry, tinsel, flowers, 
 fancy-work, in the precincts of the holy places. The old palace 
 is being restored tastefully by the Madras Government, and 
 fitted up for courts of justice and public offices. In this district 
 are the Palni hills some 8000 feet above sea-level, affording a 
 summer resort for Europeans ; we ascended them by a road 
 leading up the bed of a stream which presented a series of 
 cascades. Thence we had a view of the numerous tanks for 
 irrigation which seemed to dot the Madura district like little 
 mirrors. Just then welcome showers were falling and we 
 noticed the tanks gradually becoming filled. 
 
 The last district I visited was Tinnevelly, which forms the 
 southern apex of the peninsula and reaches to Cape Comorin, 
 the drought having extended even so far south as this. We 
 travelled through parched tracts by rail to the port of 
 Tuticorin, saw Cape Comorin itself in the distance, and then 
 stopped for a short time at Tinnevelly, where once again the 
 eye was relieved by the sight of well-watered fields and rich 
 crops. 
 
 At Tinnevelly I made the acquaintance of the Eeverend Mr. 
 Sargent of the Church Missionary Society, who was about to 
 proceed to Calcutta together with the Eeverend Mr. Caldwell 
 of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in order that 
 they both might be consecrated missionary Bishops. It was 
 interesting to hear from Mr. Sargent the real effect which 
 Christianity was producing upon the conduct and character of 
 the Native Christians who were now forming an extensive com- 
 munity. I learnt much on this subject from many authorities, 
 
Chap. xix. THE NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 455 
 
 some of whom were, while others were not, connected with 
 missions. The Indian Church was being gradually, perhaps 
 in some places rapidly, organized ; Native clergymen were 
 ordained, deacons lay-readers and catechists appointed. For 
 the maintenance of this organization, the Native Christians were 
 raising funds according to their slender means. So numerous 
 were the candidates for confirmation and the applicants for 
 admission to the several grades of ecclesiastical service, and 
 consequently so fast was the demand increasing for the exercise 
 of episcopal functions, that the appointment of two missionary 
 Bishops had become necessary, mainly for Madura and Tinne- 
 velly. Subsequently, too, a third Bishop has been appointed for 
 the neighbouring territory of Travancore. As we travelled 
 through the country I met many Native Christians at different 
 times and places, I also passed often by their villages. My 
 conversation with them impressed me with their simple and 
 absolute fidelity, their loyal feeling towards their European 
 pastors, their resolute desire to transmit the faith unimpaired to 
 their cliildren. They seemed quite to feel that they had a 
 religion and a religious system, which served as a light amidst 
 the surrounding darkness, and the idea of keeping that lamp 
 alight was familiar to their imagination. The ancestral senti- 
 ment, which in all secular matters has so much sway over them, 
 immediately asserts itself in respect to the faith of their adoption. 
 Many of them referred with pride to the conversion of their 
 fathers or grandfathers, and regarded the early missionaries as 
 heroes who vanquished error. Such feelings will doubtless grow 
 in strength from generation to generation. These Christian 
 communities are now becoming so extensive and wide-spread 
 that an estimate of their character and conduct can be formed 
 with confidence. On that subject I never heard but one opinion 
 from magistrates, civil officers and independent observers, 
 namely this, that these people are well-behaved, law-abiding, 
 free from crime, temperate, harmless ; that they are more regular 
 in sending their children to school than their neighbours of 
 other religions, a very important point ; that they are 
 amenable to the advice of their pastors, and attentive to 
 
450 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 religious ministrations ; that they never cause scandals to arise, 
 never apostatize, never compromise themselves with idolatrous 
 practices, and yet never engage in feuds or even in disputes 
 with their heathen neighbours. As for their inner life, let 
 any person — who is acquainted with the practical ethics of 
 Hinduism, not as gathered from sacred writings accessible only 
 to the learned, but as displayed in the conduct of public 
 worsliip and the effect of private example — contrast all that 
 with the pure belief and the virtuous instruction under which 
 they now live. He will then find it impossible to doubt 
 the enormous effect morally and spiritually produced by 
 Christianity on their minds and hearts. But in order to pre- 
 serve an exact standard of comparison, it must be remembered 
 that these communities, though growing fast, have not yet out- 
 grown the personal control of the European missionary. Their 
 social life and education have still the priceless advantage 
 of European care. But it is not practicable, even if it were 
 desirable, that such supervision should expand equally with 
 the increase of the Christian population, and the desideratum 
 is to train up a body of Native clergy imbued with the 
 qualities which have rendered their European brethren so 
 successful as they prove to be. 
 
 I visited at Dindigal, near Madura, the institution be- 
 longing to the Society for Christian Vernacular Education. 
 This well-managed and efficient institution is supplying 
 both books and teachers for the schools tliat have now become 
 numerous. 
 
 I also met several Eoman Catholic Bishops together with their 
 clergy and visited their establishments, which are very influential 
 and extensive in southern India. The manners, life and conver- 
 sation of these Native Christians have characteristics similar to 
 those just ascribed to the Protestants, though doubtless there 
 must be considerable differences in religious system or practice. 
 In their congregations there are included many East Indians 
 who have by intermarriage become almost Natives, though 
 retaining European names in memory of their extraction. 
 Among the purely Native population, the Eoman Catholics do 
 
Chap. xix. FAMINE IN MYSORE. 457 
 
 not appear from the statistics to be making as much progress as 
 the Protestants. 
 
 Having been instructed by the Government of India to visit 
 Mysore, where also the drought had been very severe, I pro- 
 ceeded to Bangalore. We were most kindly received there by 
 Mr. C. B. Saunders, who as Chief Commissioner was managing 
 the State until the young Eaja should come of age. Extensive 
 reservoirs for water supply, and other public works, were being 
 constructed near Bangalore for the employment of the able- 
 bodied poor, and large establishments had been organized for 
 feeding the infirm and the helpless. The relief of all sorts was 
 being administered with humane care though with due regard 
 to economy, and up to that time (April 1877) no considerable 
 mortality had occurred. That was the third consecutive year 
 of drought or bad seasons affecting at different times one part 
 or other of the whole province. The people had borne up 
 bravely against this protracted misfortune, and no considerable 
 mortality had occurred. But it was felt that if unhappily a 
 fourth season of failure should supervene, then grave emergencies 
 must arise. This question for weal or woe could not solve 
 itself till July, in other words, for two or three months to 
 come ; meanwhile hope was being cherished in the public mind 
 owing to the seasonable spring showers which were then falling. 
 After all their sufferings men trusted that there would be a 
 termination with the fourth year, and felt as if " Deus dabit his 
 quoque finem." But the sad event proved afterwards that the 
 end was not to be yet, and that still another trial was to be 
 piled on the heap of trouble. 
 
 Wliile in the Mysore province, I visited Nandidurg, a 
 grand mass of scarped granite rising abruptly out of the 
 cultivated plain. On its summit Sir Mark Cubbon, the well- 
 known Commissioner of the province, used to dwell in the 
 summer months during the latter years of his long incumbency. 
 He left a name which is still a sound pleasantly familiar to 
 the community, both European and Native, and he is revered 
 as having possessed a sympathetic acquaintance with the 
 notions, feelings, sentiments and prejudices of the Natives. 
 
458 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 It thus became interesting to see the now deserted mansion 
 where he lived, the study wherein he would hold long conversa- 
 tions with his Native friends, and the terrace wherefrom, as he 
 paced up and down with halting gait or hesitating step, he 
 would gaze wistfully over the broad territories which, after a 
 lifetime of labour, he was about to quit for ever on account of 
 his failing health. 
 
 After a very brief sojourn in Mysore I made a general 
 report on the progress of the famine in southern India, and on 
 the means which had been or were being employed for the 
 administration of relief. The calamity had up to that time (the 
 end of April 1877) been encountered by the Madras Govern- 
 ment and its ofiicers with devoted zeal and with a considerable, 
 though not an unvarying, measure of success. The relief works 
 had been established everywhere at suitable places, and the 
 numerous gangs of labourers were kept in fair order and disci- 
 pline, but an increase of professional supervision by experienced 
 engineers was needed. Gratuitous relief was being adminis- 
 tered to the infirm and helpless with liberality and care. In 
 all branches of the relief work, the desideratum was European 
 agency, as experience had abundantly shewn that for affairs of 
 this nature the Government cannot depend on Native agency 
 uncontrolled. The Madras Government had strenuously ex- 
 erted itself to supply European agency accordingly, and to 
 strengthen it as the distress increased. Still the question of 
 the hour was whether the staff of English officers would or 
 could be augmented sufficiently to cope with the famine, which 
 was becoming more and more intense. There had been some 
 mortality from starvation, as already explained, at Madras itself ; 
 not indeed that any inhabitants of the capital had starved, but 
 that wanderers from a distance, taking refuge there, had suc- 
 cumbed. Elsewhere the mortality had up to that date been 
 caused in a lesser degree from hunger, but largely from epidemic 
 diseases, such as cholera and small-pox. 
 
 It was now necessary for me to quit the Presidency of 
 Madras and proceed to that of Bombay. After my departure 
 there occurred another calamity of season in southern India, 
 
Chap. xix. THE DESTRUCTION OF FORESTS. 459 
 
 the famine became much more intense and the gravest conse- 
 quences ensued. But being without personal knowledge of 
 those events I do not allude to them further. 
 
 The wasteful destruction of trees, woods or vegetation gene- 
 rally, and the necessity of forest conservancy being enforced 
 more efficiently than before, formed common topics of conversa- 
 tion among the most thoughtful and earnest of the Madras 
 officers. The hill ranges in the interior of the country had been 
 utterly denuded of vegetation, and inroads were being made 
 into the forests which still remained in some of the mountains. 
 To these causes was in part attributed the disastrous irregularity 
 of the seasons, whereby the drought in some months was 
 succeeded by rainstorms and by inundation in others. Obser- 
 vant men declared that in many places a sensible deterioration 
 of the climate had resulted from the partial clearance of the 
 forests. Again, woods would be sometimes cut down which 
 had retained or husbanded the moisture forming the supply of 
 reservoirs for irrigation. Then the rain-water unrestrained 
 would rush in superabundance to the reservoirs, silting them up 
 or bursting their embankments ; the water having thus exhausted 
 itself would cease to flow, and thereafter the supply would 
 fail. All this was duly represented to the Madras Government 
 and doubtless many remedial steps were taken. Still, by 
 reason of the treeless state of many districts and the diminution 
 of forests generally, there is danger lest the climatic conditions 
 of southern India, including the greater part of the Madras 
 Presidency and of Mysore, should undergo modifications produc- 
 tive of economic effects often adverse and occasionally disastrous. 
 In respect to the prevention of drought and its train of evils, 
 there is no subject more urgently demanding the attention of 
 Government than the preservation of the for^ts. 
 
 In the social condition of the people in southern India, the 
 most noteworthy feature was absolute preponderance of the 
 Brahmin caste. Elsewhere Brahminical influence, however great, 
 is moderated by that of other castes, for instance by the trading 
 and literary castes in Bengal, by the Eajputs the Kayasths and 
 Muhammadans in the North-western Provinces, the Sikhs in the 
 
460 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xix. 
 
 Panjab, the Mahrattas in the Central Provinces, the Parsis 
 and the Jains in Bombay, and so on. In the central or 
 southern parts of the Madras Presidency the Brahmins are 
 supreme, the other castes being mentally and morally prostrate 
 before them. In Madras, as in Behar or Bengal, the people 
 amidst all the dread categories of misery consequent on the 
 drought, evinced a courage which was not the less real from 
 being humble and unostentatious. As the Duke of Buckingham 
 justly said, their conduct was patience exemplified in life and 
 death. 
 
( 461 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 (1877-1880.) 
 THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY. 
 
 Sir Philip Wodehouse Governor of Bombay- — He administers relief of famine 
 — Kuined city of Bijapur — Plague of vermin — Partial indebtedness of the 
 peasantry — Eailways and canals for irrigation — Serious gang-robberies in 
 the Deccan — Preservation of the forests — Native States of Kathiawar — 
 The Legislative Council — Character of the principal Natives — The Uni- 
 versity — National education — The High Court — The city of Bombay — 
 Despatch of troops to Malta — The Bombay army — Rajputana and Central 
 India — The province of Sind — The transport for the Army in southern 
 Afghanistan — The railway from the Indus towards Candahar — My return 
 to Bombay and departure for England. 
 
 On 1st May, 1877, I received charge of the Governorship 
 of Bombay from Sir Philip Wodehouse, and Sir Ashley 
 Eden succeeded me permanently as Lieutenant-Governor of 
 Bengal. There is a considerable difference between the posi- 
 tion of the Governor of a Presidency, and the Lieutenant- 
 Governor of a province or a group of provinces in India. The 
 Governor is the head of the Government of the Presidency, 
 under which is the civil administration and the army, also 
 several extraneous departments such as the guaranteed rail- 
 ways, and almost all State departments. He has two Councils, 
 one for executive business, consisting of the Commander-in-Chief 
 of the army and two members of the Civil Service, which is like 
 a cabinet on a small scale, the other a Legislative Council con- 
 stituted as described in previous chapters. The constitution of 
 the Government is fixed by the Act of Parliament known as 
 the Indian Councils Act. The Governor has the power by law to 
 act on his own judgment in certain specified kinds of emergency, 
 but ordinarily for every executive proceeding the decision is 
 
402 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 that of the Governor in Council. In other words, he must obtain 
 the concurrence of a majority of his colleagues ; though, as he 
 has the casting vote, the concurrence of one colleague is 
 sufficient. There is thus a considerable check upon him, wliich 
 in the long run is of great advantage as preventing hasty or 
 ill-considered changes of policy and practice. The Lieutenant- 
 Governor, on the other hand, has no executive Council, though 
 in the case of Bengal he has a Legislative Council : he therefore, 
 in administration, acts and decides alone without any permanent 
 check. He thus has a less varied sphere than the Governor, 
 but within that sphere he is individually more potential. In 
 Bengal, however, the civil administration is so vast that there 
 may be doubt as to whether it ought to be placed in charge of a 
 single individual without the assistance of a Council. 
 
 At this time the famine in the Bombay Presidency had been 
 successfully encountered by Sir Philip Wodehouse. I was well 
 acquainted with all the proceedings, having been, as explained 
 in the last chapter, deputed to visit the distressed districts. 
 I therefore knew that, under my predecessor, the able-bodied 
 had been judiciously employed, that the works to which 
 their labour was applied were really useful, that a reasonably 
 full task was exacted from them, that gratuitous relief was 
 administered with discrimination to the infirm, that due 
 precautions were taken to search out the helpless who 
 might otherwise escape observation, and that generally the 
 European supervision over the work was complete and effec- 
 tive. The strong sense, steady judgment and practical 
 ability of Sir Philip Wodehouse had been well seconded by 
 the Secretary, General (now Sir Michael) Kennedy of the 
 Engineers. To sound professional knowledge Kennedy added 
 a general aptitude for civil administrative affairs, and a disposi- 
 tion to cope resolutely and vigorously with emergencies. He 
 continued to afford me the same aid which he had given to my 
 predecessor, until he was appointed to a high position in the 
 Madras Presidency. 
 
 The month of May had now set in with famine spreading 
 over the Bombay Deccan just as it had over Behar and northern 
 
Chap. xx. RUINED CITY OF BIJAPUR. 463 
 
 Bengal in May 1874, that is, three years previously. The relief 
 operations went on almost like clockwork, and the distress was 
 relieved without any loss of life or other mishap occurring. 
 The relief labourers were to be seen in many thousands 
 building up mighty dams of earthwork, or excavating reservoirs 
 whence irrigation was to be drawn, or digging out the channels 
 of canals — 'thereby beginning works that should prevent the 
 occurrence of famine in future. 
 
 One of the principal centres of these operations was the 
 famous city of Bijapur, formerly the capital of the Muham- 
 madan kingdom which embraced the greater part of western 
 India. The dome of the great mausoleum there is the largest in 
 the world, and many of the ruins have imposing dimensions and 
 an almost unique style of architecture. Here within the long 
 shadows flung by the cupolas, the lofty minarets and towers, 
 or underneath the overshadowing archways, were assembled 
 tens of thousands of infirm people to receive each man his dole 
 of food, or of relief labourers to take their wages. Or again, 
 a still greater multitude would be mustered in order that any 
 change in their physical aspect for the better or for the worse 
 might be noted. The masses of distressed humanity gathered 
 together, in the midst of the stately ruins, suggested many 
 strange reflections. 
 
 At that time plans and estimates were being made for 
 restoring many of these old buildings at Bijapur so far as to refit 
 them for use. The ancient hall of audience was to become a 
 judicial court crowded with siiitors, not for favour as of yore but 
 for justice, the palace chambers were to be converted into 
 public offices, the war ministry into a central police station. 
 More particularly the old waterworks, for which the place was 
 originally famed, were to be rehabilitated, the channels blocked 
 with debris were to run again with water, the shattered 
 reservoirs to be refilled, the broken fountains to play once 
 more. The idea was the same as that which was being so 
 judiciously carried into effect by the Madras Government at 
 Madura, as explained in the last chapter. 
 
 The periodical rains descended propitiously in June, and 
 
464 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 till the middle of July the prospect was favourable. Then the 
 rain were suspended for a while during a critical part of the 
 season throughout western India, and fears were renewed. These 
 apprehensions grew fast into alarm, when news came daily that 
 the rains had ceased in southern India, that the danger in the 
 Madras Presidency had become aggravated, that drought had 
 spread throughout the North-western Provinces the Panjab, 
 and most of the larger Native States, that, in short, the whole 
 empire was threatened, with the exception of Bengal, Behar, 
 Orissa and British Burma. For several weeks the prospect 
 continued gloomy, and there was more real apprehension of 
 national disaster from famine than at any time within the last 
 two or three generations. Previously when famine had visited 
 some parts of the empire, there had been abundance in 
 others, no fear had been felt for the total supply of food 
 within the country, and no thought entertained of im- 
 porting grain from foreign countries. But now, with the 
 contingency of general failure, men began to enquire anxiously 
 whether sufficient quantities of food could ever be imported 
 from abroad for the teeming millions of India. The possibility 
 of any such importation, too, was diminished by the grave fact 
 that there was then a severe famine in the northern half of 
 / China. Meanwhile the grain trade was more active than ever, 
 the railways were overworked with the transport of food 
 supplies to southern India, and for a time the general traffic, 
 that is, the transport of all articles save food grains, had to be 
 suspended, in order that the entire resources of the lines might 
 be devoted to the relief of famine, whereby inevitable sacrifices 
 were imposed on the merchants. The servants of the Great 
 Indian Peninsula Eailway Company fulfilled all the behests of 
 Government with the most commendable zeal. We seized the 
 opportunity of constructing a chord line of railway by Ahmed- 
 nagar in the Deccan, in order to relieve the overburdened 
 railways. 
 
 It was at this time that the Governor-General, Lord Lytton, 
 left his summer residence at Simla and journeyed to southern 
 India, in order to personally examine the relief operations, and 
 
Chap. xx. PROTRACTED DISTRESS IN WESTERN INDIA. 465 
 
 support the Madras Government in such measures as might 
 be deemed necessary for meeting the aggravated emergency. 
 He stopped on his way for a short time at Poena, the head- 
 quarters of the Bombay Government. It was then that General 
 (afterwards Sir Michael) Kennedy was transferred from Bombay 
 to Madras for service in the relief operations of southern India. 
 
 At last as autumn was beginning, the rains returned in time 
 indeed to avert destruction, but not until much irreparable 
 damage had been done. But the rainfall was now unseasonably 
 heavy and protracted, the ground became excessively moist at 
 the fall of the year, the chills and damps produced fever in an 
 epidemic form, and many thousands, who had been saved by the 
 Government from starvation for all those weary months, were 
 perishing from malignant fever. Nevertheless the crops were 
 gathered, though the people were often in impaired health. 
 
 In the following year (1878) the periodical rains were late 
 throughout western India, and were scanty or precarious in 
 several of the districts which had been recently distressed. 
 But again they came copiously in autumn, and in many places 
 the crops were abundant. Now, however, a new plague 
 appeared in the shape of rats by myriads. The mediaeval stories 
 of rats in the subterranean buildings of Europe, or in the 
 " maiise-thurm " of Bishop Hatto in the Ehine, were quite 
 feeble in comparison with the strange reality of this vermin in 
 the Deccan. These creatures laid waste not only acres but 
 square miles of flourishing crops ; they ate the grain to satiety 
 and ingeniously stored the rest in the holes which they burrowed. 
 The peasants often extracted the grain from its concealment, 
 and thus recovered it for human use. The efforts of Government 
 were immediately directed to inducing the people to combine en 
 masse for the extermination of the rats, which were accordingly 
 destroyed literally by millions. Then the periodical rains came 
 and drowned all the vermin that remained. 
 
 This succession of plagues, from drought, damp, malaria, and 
 vermin, seriously affected the health or condition of the people 
 in several districts of the Deccan, and inflicted blows on their 
 prosperity from which they can hardly recover for several years 
 
 2 H 
 
J 
 
 466 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 to come. The peasant proprietors bore their misfortunes with 
 admirable fortitude ; and the punctuality with wliich they 
 strove to discharge their fiscal obligations to the State was 
 exemplary. 
 y Such misfortunes as these caused us to reconsider the question 
 whether anything could be done by legislation to mitigate the 
 evils which arose from the indebtedness of some classes among 
 the peasantry of the Deccan. There had in 1873 been some 
 agrarian riots in the Deccan, the peasants attacking the money- 
 lenders. This untoward affair was investigated by a special 
 Commission ; from their report, and from the evidence they 
 collected, it was found that the indebtedness was limited in 
 extent, affecting only one-third of the peasantry — though even 
 that proportion was serious. Owing to the circumstances as 
 set forth in the previous chapter XII. the peasantry had become 
 extravagant in reference to their normal condition, and had 
 learnt to live beyond their humble income. They had begun 
 to avail themselves of the facility for borrowing afforded 
 by the newly established property in land, which offered 
 available security. The money-lenders had taken advantage 
 thereof to enrich themselves and enslave their creditors 
 by bonds for sums composed in some part of the original 
 principal, but in most of usurious interest. There was careful 
 consideration whether the land revenue settlement (already 
 mentioned in chapter XII.) was in any way defective. No par- 
 ticular fault, however, was found in a system of which the 
 general merits were acknowledged on all hands. On the whole 
 the Government did not see its way clearly to legislating, and 
 deprecated the making of attempts by authority to remedy 
 economic defects wliich had their origin in the character of the , 
 people and the circumstances of the country. 
 
 Viewing the case, however, by the light of the misfortunes 
 just described, I and my advisers thought that there were certain 
 palpable faults in the existing law and procedure, and that in con- 
 sequence of these defects, the ignorant debtors became morally 
 bondsmen to their educated creditors. We accordingly proposed 
 certain changes which would effectually check the evil, without, on 
 
Chap. xx. THE PEASANTRY OF THE DECCAN. 467 
 
 the other hand, destroying the credit of the peasant proprietor in 
 the money market, or preventing him from obtaining temporary 
 loans, which he must need just as reasonably as the English 
 farmer needs accommodation from the bank. These proposals 
 touched the general laws relating to civil justice, and therefore 
 required the approval of the Government of India before being 
 introduced to the legislature. They did not receive approval, 
 however, and subsequently a draft bill was prepared in consul- 
 tation with us, and in due course was passed into law by the 
 Governor-General's Legislative Council. This law did all, and 
 more than all, we ever proposed respecting procedure — perhaps 
 even too much — but failed in our judgment to remedy the fault 
 in the substantive law. So the matter stood at the time of my 
 departure from India, and subsequently some further modifica- 
 tions of the new Act have been contemplated or are being made 
 In the end, some sort of remedy and some degree of improve- 
 ment in respect to admitted evils will be doubtless attained. 
 
 The peasant proprietors of the Deccan deserve well of the 
 State; in hardihood, endurance and industry they are not sur- 
 passed by any section of the Indian people. They are little 
 addicted, in this generation, to the military service which their 
 forefathers liked so well. Their preference is for remaining in 
 their fields and homesteads, as agriculture, despite its drawbacks 
 and uncertainties, is regarded as the better employment. If they 
 were to enlist now as of yore, they would prove to be among the 
 good soldiers of the empire. They are often ready to supple- 
 ment their little income by carrying in their carts the produce 
 for traders, and even by labouring for a few weeks on the public 
 works. During the famine, they for the most part not only 
 sustained themselves, but also paid their land revenue with com- 
 mendable punctuality. And they comparatively seldom applied 
 for aid from those who had the dispensing of relief among the 
 distressed. 
 
 The weak point in the agriculture of the Deccan is the want 
 of irrigation ; and yet the configuration of the country supplies 
 the means of supplying the want, if only enough capital shall 
 be laid out by the State on that object. A great impulse was 
 
 2 H 2 
 
468 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 given to beneficent enterprise in this direction by the results of 
 the drought in 1877. Canals were already drawn from a great 
 reservoir near Poona, called Lake Fife after the eminent engineer 
 who designed it. These canals were now extended, a new canal 
 from the Nira river was begun, and another near Gokak pro- 
 jected ; at least seven large reservoirs, having the dimensions of 
 lakes, were in part excavated, of which some were nearly 
 finished. Wliile the famine lasted we obtained imperial funds 
 for these works, as the distressed people were employed thereon. 
 When it ceased the grants were discontinued, but we laid before 
 the Government of India a fresh scheme with the able assist- 
 ance of Colonel Merriman E.E. our chief engineer for irrigation. 
 A certain capital outlay was to be incurred by the State in a cycle 
 of years for the completion of all the irrigation works which had 
 been designed. We then proposed to guarantee the interest on 
 this outlay from provincial resources, augmented by a very light 
 cess to be laid on the land for this special purpose. Effect 
 was not, however, given to these proposals, and the works were 
 carried on from time to time, with many interruptions, when- 
 ever funds were obtainable. Without some financial founda- 
 tion such as that which we suggested, the progress of these 
 works is unavoidably precarious. 
 
 Similarly the occasion of these misfortunes was utilized for 
 the extension of the railway system in the Deccan. The chord 
 line by Ahmednagar has been already mentioned ; though con- 
 structed partly as a temporary line, still it was kept open. 
 Another line by Bijapur, already described, was begun ; and a 
 third from the coast south of Bombay was proposed. We desired 
 that the coast line should start from the British port of Karwar, 
 but ultimately it was decided that the railway should be taken 
 inland from the Portuguese port of Goa, by reason of the assist- 
 ance derivable from the Portuguese Government. 
 
 If our proposal to base upon local taxation the finance of 
 works, intended for the prevention of famine, had been accepted 
 by the Government of India, we should have included railways 
 as well as canals in the scheme. 
 
 It was the distress, thus " long drawn out " through several 
 
Chap. xx. GANG-ROBBERY AND POLITICAL MISCHIEF. 469 
 
 seasons, that was really the proximate, though not the original, 
 cause of "what became known as the Deccan dacoities of 
 1879. The crime of "dacoity," being merely robbery, would 
 be ordinarily regarded as a deed of violence and nothing 
 more. But in the Deccan, which is the heart of the country, 
 it is apt to assume a political significance. It was the 
 weapon whereby the Mahrattas of old encountered their 
 Muhammadan conquerors, and with which they would en- 
 counter the British to-morrow, if they had the chance. The 
 mass of the people are not disloyal, but there is more of 
 national feeling among the peasantry there than elsewhere ; 
 and among the Brahmins, quite a dominant class, many are 
 restless, ambitious, discontented. The Brahmins indeed are 
 not all disaffected, many of them are doubtless good and 
 loyal. But it were vain to shut our eyes to the fact that 
 there are elements of mischief at work which can hardly be 
 eliminated by any policy which the British Government may 
 reasonably be expected to pursue. If it be true that national 
 character is formed partly by physical surroundings, climate 
 and scenery, partly also by historical associations, — then any one 
 who sees the Deccan, and reads its history, will not have far to 
 go in order to discover the reasons why the political tendencies 
 there demand vigilance on the part of the British Government. 
 The events in different parts of the world, wherein the 
 British empire was concerned during 1878-9, had lent a spark of 
 excitement to ignite the combustible materials existing in the 
 Deccan. So when gang-robbery, under known leaders with a 
 certain sort of organization, suddenly appeared, it became neces- 
 sary for us to take precautions with military force. The 
 "Western Ghat mountains run through the territory from end to 
 end, with fertile valleys on either flank. From their summits the 
 robbers swooped down on the villages, carrying off the plunder 
 into fastnesses among the hills ; in some cases fights ensued and 
 innocent blood was shed. Emboldened by casual success, they 
 threatened even the highroads near Poona, the capital, and issued 
 a proclamation in the name of a Brahmin leader, declaring 
 that their proceedings were really directed against the Govern- 
 
470 MEN AND EVENTS OF IMY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 ment. The movement was within a few weeks effectually put 
 down, owing to the exertions of the European police officers backed 
 by military force, and its leaders expiated their folly and wicked- 
 ness, some by death in action or on the gallows, others by penal 
 servitude. Their ignorant followers, peasants of humble caste 
 but of hardihood and courage, were actuated by the hope of gain 
 in times when employment and labour had proved scanty. Still, 
 the readiness with which they answered the mandate of their 
 shadowy and half-mysterious chief, like bees hiving, the 
 apathetic and unsatisfactory behaviour of the people in many 
 villages, and the sympathy known to be felt if not openly 
 evinced by many of the upper classes, were grave circum- 
 stances demanding reflection on our part. The conduct of 
 Major Daniell of the police, both as regards personal prowess 
 and detective skill, entitled him to the acknowledgments not 
 only of the Government, but of the community. 
 
 An incendiary fire, malignantly planned, broke out in the 
 old palace of the Mahratta sovereigns in Poona just at the time 
 when the gang-robberies were at their height. In a few hours 
 this beautiful building, built mainly of teak wood, perished by 
 the flames ; and thus was lost a structure unsurpassed in its 
 wood carvings and in an original style rarely equalled. There 
 was indeed much melancholy in the thought that now the two 
 great monuments of Mahratta palatial architecture had been 
 burnt, one at ISTagpur (already mentioned in chapter XI.) by 
 accident, the other at Poona by the hand of Mahratta criminals. 
 If it should seem almost incredible that any Mahratta could be 
 found " with soul so dead " as to destroy such a building, we 
 must remember that at the time it was used by the British 
 Government for public offices. Thus the deed was perpetrated 
 for the sake of doing mischief to the Government, and must 
 have had instigators undetected, who were far more important 
 than the wretched man who was caught and punished. This 
 event occurring at the same time as the gang-robberies outside 
 was certainly fraught with some political significance. 
 
 As there are few parts of India more worthy of the attention 
 of politicians than the Deccan, I was careful to inspect the 
 
Chap. xx. ' INSPECTION OF WESTERN GHATS. 471 
 
 Western Ghat mountains which form the backbone of that 
 region. Any one who tries "rerum cognoscere causas" will 
 perceive that it was the existence of these mountains which 
 enabled the Mahrattas to overthrow the Mogul empire. The 
 lairs retreats and strongholds, in this mountain range, sustained 
 Mahratta resistance, and baffled the armaments of the Afghan 
 horse or the artillery of the Great Mogul. With the history 
 book in my hand, I used to scan the old fortress lifting its head 
 among the surrounding peaks, clamber up its steep sides, mount 
 the jagged and broken steps to the postern, admire the trap- 
 rock precipices and the ledges on giddy heights, mark the 
 defences skilfully constructed for the warfare of that age, note 
 the glories of the landscape prospect, and observe how com- 
 pletely the position would command the valleys lying far 
 below or the passes by which we had come. Thus the political 
 events which had occurred in this scene, and the combinations 
 arising from them, became intelligible with a clearness which 
 reading alone could never afford. Such fortresses were not few 
 in number, but were dotted at brief intervals along the range 
 for 400 miles, and made up a military line which the Muham- 
 madans never succeeded in effectually breaking or in permanently 
 wresting from the Mahrattas. The case is different now, for 
 the British Government has pierced the heretofore inaccessible 
 range by many well-engineered lines of road with zigzags and 
 gradients, by which not only the wheeled traffic of commerce 
 but also troops, guns and munitions can pass. Again, the 
 mountains have already been crossed by two lines of railway, 
 and will yet be crossed by a third. Thus the range has been 
 deprived of its old resources for sustaining rebellious resistance 
 on a large scale. But it is still capable of assisting mischief of 
 a lesser sort, and the Government should ever strive to develop 
 communications across it, remembering that every roadway 
 opened in this region adds to our political strength. 
 
 The marcliing along the liills afforded ample opportunity of 
 studying the forests. Additional measures for preserving them 
 were being adopted under the recently enacted Forest Act, with 
 the zealous supervision of Mr. A. Shuttleworth the Conservator. 
 
472 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 Beyond the main range of the Western Ghats, the Deccan was 
 denuded of its vegetation as completely as the most treeless 
 parts of the Madras Presidency, already described in chapter 
 XIX. Within the range, however, many forests happily 
 remained and were being diligently conserved. The cattle- 
 grazing which ordinarily proved injurious to the forests was 
 being restricted to particular "blocks" or areas, so that the 
 vegetation might spring up on the remaining areas. Here were 
 perceived all the ordinary reasons for preserving forests, the 
 husbanding of the vegetation as a part of the national wealth, 
 the permanent supply of the timber and fuel markets, the 
 improvement of climatic conditions as affecting the regularity 
 or irregularity of the periodical rains, the retention of moisture 
 in a land where aridity prevails for several months in the year. 
 In addition to these, however, there was a special reason in 
 that from the mountains spring many rivers or streams which 
 had been or were to be utilized for the storage of water in 
 large quantities for irrigation. If the vegetation be preserved, 
 the waters near the sources are retained to supply the canals ; 
 but if it be destroyed the waters become exhausted or evaporated 
 and the canal must be left unsupplied. The destruction in the 
 past of some forests, and the wasteful use of others, must be 
 regretfully accepted as a proof that formerly neither the Govern- 
 ment nor its officers adequately appreciated the value of scienti- 
 fic forestry. The Natives have been wholly blind to the subject, 
 and find difficulty in opening their eyes to it now. Whatever 
 privileges of a definite character they possess will be secured 
 to them by law, whatever wood is needed for agriculture or 
 domestic purposes they are welcome to take. But they often 
 want more than that, and seek to enter forests in order 
 that they may lop or fell, not for their own use but for 
 the purpose of exportation or of sale. This they have never 
 been entitled to do without control — nevertheless they often 
 succeed in doing it by pretending that the wood is wanted 
 not for the market but for themselves. If this were to 
 be permitted in the future, as it has too often been allowed 
 in the past, then the exhaustion of the forests would be 
 
Chap. xx. THE WESTEKN GHAT MOUNTAINS. 473 
 
 only a question of time. The private forests are by the terms 
 of the land revenue settlement recognized as the property of 
 the people. The public forests, which comprise most of the 
 tracts that are well stocked with timber, are by law under the 
 control of the State. The object is to treat the vegetation on 
 the same principle as that wliich is applied to money by a 
 financier, who takes care of the capital and lives on the interest. 
 The State forester is always cutting wood, large or small, and 
 sending it to market, whereby the public really draws interest 
 from the store of forest wealth. But he is careful to leave 
 enough for reproduction, the decrement from felling is re- 
 placed by a corresponding increment from fresh growth, and 
 the corpus of the forest, as representing principal, is preserved. 
 The public, however, if left to itself would carve and hack the 
 woods and forests without any care for reproduction or any 
 regret for wastage, in the end destroying uselessly as well as 
 consuming, and would treat the national wealth just as a spend- 
 thrift would treat his money, who lived on the capital for 
 momentary convenience without thought for interest thereafter. 
 
 The scenery of the "Western Ghat mountains leaves a series 
 of pictures imprinted on the tablets of the memory — the basaltic 
 and plutonic cliffs rearing their heads wreathed in mist, the mar- 
 vellous stratification of the rocks, the long layers of indurated 
 lava ; the fortresses crowning scarped precipices and standing as 
 silent yet most eloquent witnesses of daring deeds in times 
 past ; the deluging rainfall followed by cascades bursting forth 
 and leaping down the hillsides ; the viaducts with lofty piers 
 spanning deep ravines, the roadways blasted out of the solid 
 rock, the interminable strings of laden carts creaking and 
 straining throughout the moonlight hours in this wild scenery ; 
 the distant ocean descried from summits and glistening under 
 the light of the declining sun ; the forests of the broad-leaved 
 teak, of the arrowy trees used for masts of ships, the terminalia 
 some with black and rough bark, others with smooth bark, 
 arranging their trunks like a row of marble columns on the 
 water's edge. 
 
 Between the base of this great range and the sea, lies the 
 
474 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 littoral tract named the Concan, which being comparatively free 
 from vicissitudes of season is flourishing better than the Deccan. 
 The redundancy of population makes this tract the best recruiting 
 ground in western India, and the infantry of the Bombay army is 
 chiefly drawn from it. I had to visit the many harbours which 
 are formed by the indentations of the coast, to arrange marine 
 surveys, to provide accommodation for the country boats, 
 and to note where navigable estuaries were being silted up with 
 the debris carried by rivers that flow through hills denuded 
 of their forests. 
 
 The most prosperous division of western India is Guzerat, 
 an alluvial tract lying along the coast north of Bombay ; which 
 is not only the best part of the Bombay Presidency, but also one 
 of the richest tracts in the Indian empire. With it the name of 
 Mr. Theodore Hope (now Financial Secretary to the Government 
 of India) is honourably associated. The trunk line of railway 
 running through it has been already described in the previous 
 chapter XL Branches were being carried from this line to the 
 outlying tracts which produce cotton and other exportable articles. 
 One of the largest towns in tliis tract is Surat, which was famous 
 in the early days of the East India Company, but has within 
 the last century become commercially quite secondary to 
 Bombay. For many years past a discontented spirit has 
 existed in this city, and its annals have been more than once 
 disfigured by the records of disturbance. Now in 1878 we had 
 to levy the license-tax, imposed by a law which the Govern- 
 ment of India had enacted for the whole empire. Without 
 any reason beyond this, that the tax was disliked by the 
 townspeople, the mob of persons not touched by the tax, 
 doubtless at the instigation of some among the tax-payers, rose 
 in insurrection very early one spring morning, attacked the 
 railway station, the telegraph office, and other public depart- 
 ments in the city. They would have proceeded to burn the houses 
 of the European civil ofiicers had they not been stopped by a 
 body of Native troops, but they stoned the soldiers and retired 
 only when fired upon, and after blood had been shed. The 
 political excitement of the time, extending as it did to so many 
 
Chap. xx. THE NATIVE STATES OF KATHIAWAR. 475 
 
 parts of the world, was one out of several causes which gave 
 birth to this disturbance. 
 
 This occurrence ought to be considered together with the 
 affair, already described, of the Deccan gang-robberies and the 
 Poona fire. These are weak points, in our tenure of the Indian 
 empire, which ought to be remembered when the many strong 
 points in that tenure are summed up. They may also be cited 
 as instances shewing that the British Government must main- 
 tain its political prestige undiminished in the eyes of the 
 Indian people. 
 
 Adjoining Guzerat is the peninsula of Kathiawar, which is 
 occupied by a cluster of Native States. When Foreign Secre- 
 tary, I had seen many reports whereby it was manifest that 
 these States had long remained in an unsettled and lawless 
 condition wliich retarded their material progress, despite their 
 natural advantages. I now found that the turbulence had been 
 overcome and disorder composed, that the cliiefs lived in 
 neighbourly amity and combined in peaceful federation for 
 preserving order from one end of the peninsula to the other. 
 The richer among them were devoting a part of their income to 
 works of public utility, roads and communications. The result 
 was manifest in cultivation expanding, inland traffic increasing, 
 harbours crowded with vessels, exports growing, and the cotton 
 becoming a source of untold wealth. An excellent college had 
 been established for the education of the sons and relations of 
 the chiefs. The territory had recently suffered from drought 
 with its attendant scarcity, and had narrowly escaped through 
 timely showers from a much worse disaster. Use was being 
 made of this dearly bought experience in order to promote the 
 construction of railways. Some progress was made at once 
 with the work, leaving still much to be done, which will doubt- 
 less be accomplished in due course. My immediate predecessors. 
 Sir Philip Wodehouse and Sir Seymour Fitzgerald, had bestowed 
 special attention to these Native States. Among the Political 
 Agents, in the peninsula. Colonel Eichard Hart Keatinge, 
 distinguished in other fields of duty besides this, and Mr. J. B. 
 Peile, were conspicuous. The position of Kathiawar is a signal 
 
476 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 instance of what may be effected in Native States by political 
 management, firm and persevering, yet judicious and con- 
 ciliatory. 
 
 The course of internal affairs in the Presidency was regulated 
 very much by legislation. The establishment of the Legislative 
 Council for Bombay has been already mentioned in chapter XII. 
 The Council was performing its duties with much efficiency in 
 my time ; many elaborate Acts were passed, such as the consoli- 
 dation of all the revenue regulations, the laws relating to canals 
 of irrigation, the rules concerning tenant-right in the Concan, 
 the amendment of the Acts regarding excise, municipalities, and 
 other subjects. The Native members were zealous in represent- 
 ing the interests of their countrymen. A prominent part in the 
 debates (conducted in English) was taken by Vishwanath Na- 
 rain Mandlik, already mentioned in chapter XII. ; and he held 
 much the same position as that ascribed in chapter XVIII. to 
 Kristo Das Pal in the Bengal Council. He was a man exemplary 
 in private life, and possessed great talent for public affairs ; he 
 was a Concani Brahmin of that class which once was the main- 
 spring of the Mahratta empire ; he enjoyed the confidence and 
 respect of his countrymen, and altogether was one of the ablest 
 Natives I have ever known. Bechardas Ambaidas, though he 
 usually gave silent votes, watched the proceedings with keen 
 interest ; he was a Guzerati banker, of the old school indeed, 
 but a friend of education and disposed to observe closely the 
 effects of the new civilization. There were two Parsi gentlemen 
 in the Council, namely Dosabhoy Framji, one of the most 
 faithful, trustworthy and experienced among the servants of 
 Government ; and Sir Jamsetji Jijibhoy, who had recently 
 acceded to his title, and was a young man of excellent promise. 
 The Muhammadan members were, first, Muhammad Ali Eoghe, 
 a man of the new school, acute in perception, frank and out- 
 spoken in manner, acquainted with foreign countries, and dis- 
 posed to criticize the British Government ; then Syud Idrus of 
 Surat, a good example of the old school, courtly in language 
 and manner, a man of proved fidelity, esteemed by me as one 
 of the most loyal Muhammadans I ever met. 
 
Chap. xx. THE UNIVERSITY AND NATIONAL EDUCATION. 477 
 
 Besides those who served in the Council, there were several 
 eminent Natives, namely Sir Mangaldas Nathubhai (already 
 mentioned in chapter XII.) ; Balwant Eao Venaik Shastri, a 
 loyal and enlightened man, a chief of rank in the Deccan and 
 the son of a father who lost his life in what was virtually the 
 British cause; Nanabhai Haridas, a judicial officer of high 
 character and ability, who was more than once appointed to 
 act as a judge of the High Court ; Atmaram Pandarang, a 
 medical practitioner, distinguished for the wise liberality of his 
 views, who served for a year as Sheriff of Bombay ; Manockji 
 Cursetji (previously noticed in chapter XII.), who laudably 
 persevered in his efforts for promoting female education, and 
 Nouroji Fardunji, a municipal commissioner who became, as it 
 were, a tribune of the city people. 
 
 The University was answering fully the expectations with 
 which it had been established; its senate comprised all the 
 highest talent, literary and scientific, that existed in western 
 India. Its best interests had suffered, in the same manner as 
 the Calcutta University, from the insufficiency of the attention 
 allowed to physical science. After careful discussion the senate 
 decided to grant degrees in science after the model of those 
 granted by the London University, whereby an impulse was 
 given to scientific studies among the Natives. Mr. James Gibbs 
 (member of the Bombay Government) and Mr. Eaymond West 
 (a Judge of the High Court) were successively Vice-Chancellors ; 
 the Governor himself being the Chancellor, while Mr. Peter- 
 son was the learned and able Eegistrar. The Elphinstone 
 College at Bombay was under the care of a distinguished Prin- 
 pal, Mr. William Wordsworth. This College and the Deccan 
 College at Poena being the only affiliated institutions, it was 
 decided to establish a third College at Ahmedabad for the 
 Guzerat province, with the help of public-spirited Natives. The 
 commercial and agricultural depression of the time affected 
 education generally ; the number of those seeking the superior 
 and the middle-class instruction remained stationary ; while 
 primary education declined for a time, the first instance of re- 
 trogression as yet experienced in western India, breaking the 
 
478 MEN AND EVENTS OP MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 continuity of progress. A real beginning however was made 
 with practical instruction in agriculture, partly through the 
 experienced aid of Mr. Eobertson of Madras, whose services were 
 lent to us temporarily by the Governor (the Duke of Bucking- 
 ham). The Natives of Guzerat evinced a remarkable aptitude 
 for this important branch of study. Much progress was made 
 with the instruction in civil engineering and in science gener- 
 ally, under the able management of Dr. T. Cooke. 
 
 The School of Art was for a time supervised by Major Charles 
 Mant, E.E., during the absence of Mr. Griffith an accomplished 
 artist. Major Mant had a genius for architecture ; he designed 
 many important structures in various parts of India and com- 
 pleted some of them. His premature death caused a great loss 
 to the public service. 
 
 Several Medical Schools were established in the interior of the 
 country — separate from the large Medical College at Bombay 
 — ^mainly through the exertions of Dr. J. G. Hunter, the 
 Surgeon-General, and Dr. T. Beatty ; both these gentlemen were 
 ornaments of their profession, having zeal and benevolence 
 commensurate with their learning and talents. 
 
 The sanitary department was subjected to a severe strain 
 owing to the plagues and epidemics already mentioned ; it was 
 efficiently conducted by Mr. Lumsdaine, and then by Dr. Hew- 
 lett a most meritorious officer who rendered signal services in 
 the relief of famine. 
 
 In 1879 the Indian Famine Commission held some of its 
 sittings at Bombay. Colonel Eichard Strachey was President ; 
 among the members were Mr. James Caird (from England) and 
 Mr. H. S. Cunningham. The Bombay Presidency was repre- 
 sented in the Commission by Mr. J. B. Peile and Mahadeo 
 Wasudeo Barve, Minister of the Kolhapur State, a Native 
 gentleman of the highest character and attainments, indeed one 
 of the best Mahratta Brahmins I have ever known. 
 
 The maintenance of good relations between the Government 
 and the High Court of Judicature is very important for the 
 public Avell-fare, and happily those relations were excellent. 
 The Chief Justice Sir Michael Westropp, having formerly 
 
Chap. xx. THE CITY OF BOMBAY. 479 
 
 served as Advocate-General, had great experience regarding 
 the needs and interests of the community, and applied his liigh 
 attainments not only to the adjudication of complex and diffi- 
 cult causes, but also to the aid of the general administration. 
 
 Bishop Mylne, besides supervising the ecclesiastical establish- 
 ments in his See, laboured with signal success in the cause of 
 Missions to the heathen. 
 
 The city of Bombay itself, with its vast and varied interests 
 and its fast-growing importance, claimed constant attention. 
 The police (under the able management of Sir Frank Souter, the 
 Commissioner) was a really efficient body and popular withal. 
 Allusion has been made in the previous chapter XII. to the 
 municipal improvements effected there under Sir Bartle Frere's 
 administration. The public structures, begun or designed then, 
 were advanced towards completion, and although these shewed 
 a goodly array, still not a year passed without several new 
 buildings being undertaken, as the demands of an advancing com- 
 munity in a great seaport are incessant. The stream of ISTative 
 munificence continued to flow, though somewhat diminished in 
 comparison with former times by reason of the agricultural and 
 commercial depression consequent on the famine. A marble 
 statue of the Queen had been erected by the Native community 
 on the esplanade. Sir Albert Sassoon presented to the city a 
 bronze equestrian statue of the Prince of Wales, in memory of 
 the visit of His Eoyal Highness. The new " Sailors' Home," 
 built partly through the munificence of Khunde Eao, Gaekwar 
 of Baroda, in honour of the visit of His Eoyal Highness the 
 Duke of Edinburgh, had become a noble institution. The new 
 wet dock, accommodating the largest ships, was named " The 
 Prince's Dock " because the first stone of it was laid by the 
 Prince of Wales. This fine work was designed by Thomas 
 Ormiston as part of a scheme for improving the whole foreshore 
 of the harbour. The project was first undertaken in Sir Bartle 
 Frere's time, as already mentioned in chapter XIL, by the 
 Elphinstone Eeclamation Company. Under the administration 
 of his successor, the Eight Honourable Sir Seymour Fitzgerald, 
 the property of the company was purchased by the Government, 
 
480 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 the scheme was enlarged, the wet dock undertaken, and a 
 harbour trust established. Progress with this great work was 
 made under his successor, Sir Philip Wodehouse. In my time 
 the dock and its subsidary works were finished and opened for 
 traffic. It was found, however, that neighbouring docks which 
 were private property interfered with the general management 
 of the foreshore ; therefore these also were purchased for the 
 State, and the constitution of the harbour trust was further 
 developed after the model of the trust which succeeds on a 
 much larger scale for the Mersey at Liverpool, The Vehar lake 
 for supplying Bombay with water, already mentioned in 
 chapter XII,, being found insufficient for the growing com- 
 munity, the formation of an additional lake was undertaken in 
 the time of my predecessors ; the work was completed in my 
 time, and the water was conducted to the city at a higher level 
 than before. Much had already been done at great cost and 
 labour for the drainage of the city ; still a mass of sewage 
 entered the harbour to the great detriment of all concerned. So 
 additional drainage works were undertaken for diverting the 
 sewage to a quarter where it would not be hurtful. 
 
 The elective principle had been introduced into the muni- 
 cipality of Bombay by Sir Seymour Fitzgerald and established 
 by Sir Philip Wodehouse, and I found it to operate advan- 
 tageously. The citizens and ratepayers exercised their franchise 
 judiciously, electing good and able men, Europeans and Natives, 
 to serve on the municipal corporation. 
 
 The English Press at Bombay was strong in talent ; Mr, J, M. 
 Maclean of the " Bombay Gazette " prepared an admirable 
 handbook of the city; Mr. Grattan Geary of the "Times of 
 India " was an author as well as a traveller. 
 
 The resources of Bombay were tested when in 1878 an 
 expeditionary force was despatched to Malta. Within fourteen 
 days after the receipt of orders from the Governor-General 
 in Council (Lord Lytton), the Bombay Government (of which 
 Sir Charles Staveley, then Commander-in-Chief, was a member) 
 engaged 48,000 tons of merchant shipping then in the harbour, 
 despatched 6000 men and 2000 horses, with two months' sup- 
 
Chap. xx. THE BOMBAY ARMY. 481 
 
 plies of provisions and six weeks' supply of water. They all 
 arrived at their destination in good condition, and after some 
 months returned equally well ; still the risks attending the 
 navigation of the Ked Sea, with sailing ships towed by steamers, 
 caused us anxiety. Signal service was rendered by the Quarter- 
 master-General's Department under Colonel Burrows and Major 
 (now Brigadier-General) Hogg, also by the Marine Department 
 under Lieutenant Searle. 
 
 During the next year, 1879, the Commission, appointed to 
 enquire into the army expenses in India, addressed many ques- 
 tions to us regarding the numbers and distribution of the 
 Bombay army, especially the Native forces. In these delibera- 
 tions I received great assistance from the then Commander-in- 
 Chief, General H, Warre. We were obliged to deprecate any 
 reduction of the Native troops, in reference to the vast area 
 requiring to be occupied at its strategic points by military 
 strength, and the many elements of danger existing in western 
 India. All I saw and heard of these troops, in the territories 
 beyond the Indus and elsewhere, gave me a very favourable 
 impression of their discipline, fortitude and endurance. 
 
 With the help of Admirals Macdonald, Cockburn and Gore 
 Jones, successively, the defences of the Bombay harbour were 
 maintained in provisional safety. 
 
 The Volunteer movement made progress during these years. 
 Prom among the servants of the Great India Peninsula Eailway 
 Company a strong and effective battalion was formed ; a lesser 
 though also an effective force was embodied from among the 
 employes of the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Eailway. 
 A new battalion, of considerable numbers and efficiency, was 
 obtained from among the European community of Bombay, 
 
 I cannot omit to mention with grateful regard the names of 
 my colleagues in Council, James Gibbs (now a member of the 
 Government of India), Lionel Ashburner and Edward Eavens- 
 croft. Among our secretaries C. Gonne, J. B. Peile, J. Nugent 
 and Colonel Macdonald rendered us special assistance. It is 
 truly said that in the interior of Indian provinces the Magistrates 
 and Collectors are really the local governors. Among this 
 
 2 I 
 
482* MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 important class of officers, the most notable of that day in the 
 Bombay Presidency were G. Pedder, W. Propert, G. Norman, 
 E. H. Percival, J. G. Moore, A. Macdonald, G. F. Sheppard, 
 J. B. Eichey. Nor can I forget to mention the good service of 
 C. Pritchard, the Collector of Customs. 
 
 I several times visited the Baroda State, and especially on 
 the occasion of the young Gaekwar's marriage, and witnessed 
 all the good work of Paja Sir Madhava Eao the Minister. The 
 State was under the care of the Governor-General's Agent, 
 Mr. Philip S. Melvill. 
 
 Next I visited the stations in Central India and Eajputana, 
 which are held by troops of the Bombay army. The first of these 
 was Mhow, near Indore, the capital of the Maharaja Holkar, 
 who has been already mentioned in chapter XIII. I had visited 
 this place in former days, passing by the fortress of Asirgarh, the 
 key of the Satpura range, holding the passage between Bombay 
 and Calcutta, crossed the Nerbadda at points where its rock- 
 bound bed is overlooked by temples, spires and palaces, and 
 then rode up the steep road of the Vindhya range to Mandu, 
 a ruined Muhammadan city. Here, according to an authentic 
 tradition, a tigress with her cubs was found in what once had 
 been the apartment of queens, and I, while sketching the 
 remains of an old reservoir, heard a tiger roaring at sunset 
 on the other side of the water. Now, however, the journey 
 was rapid and easy, as we travelled by railway and admired 
 the engineering works on the flank of the mountain. After 
 visiting the several military cantonments we passed through 
 Oodeypur, famous for its lake surrounded by the tasteful 
 structures which the Eajput princes and priests love to build. 
 The wooded islets in this lake, with their edifices reflected in 
 the water, are objects in which nearly all the natural and 
 artificial beauties characteristic of India will be found. The 
 Eana has the bluest of all the blue blood in Eajputana, that 
 land of Indian kings in the heroic age. He had just been 
 inducted into his responsibilities after being educated under 
 European supervision. He had the good manner of the old 
 school combined with that of the new. His appearance was 
 
Chap. xx. THE PHOVINCE OF SIND. 483 
 
 prepossessing, as might have been expected from his lineage. 
 We visited in this neighbourhood Chitorgarh, a citadel on an 
 isolated hill famed for its peculiar yet beautiful structures 
 called " towers of victory." There we marked the spots 
 where the Muhammadan besiegers erected batteries, sapped, 
 undermined, stormed, where the Rajputs, staunch to the bitter 
 end, fell almost to a man, king, chiefs, soldiers, retainers, and 
 where their women killed themselves to avoid falling into the 
 hands of the victors. We made the acquaintance of the 
 Ulwar chief, a promising young man, fond of manly pursuits. 
 Several times I met Faiz Muhammad, next after Salar Jang, 
 the best Muhammadan administrator whom this generation has 
 beheld. Eeturning to Bombay we visited Abu, fondly called 
 "majestic Abu" by the men of western India— observed the 
 grand masses of granite, the walks and rides frequented by 
 Tod, by Henry Lawrence, and other eminent men of the past, 
 and the sanitarium where the children of Europeans are 
 brought up in health and vigour. 
 
 The affairs, arising out of the second Afghan war, compelled 
 me several times to visit Sind. Generally the sea voyage was 
 preferred; once, however, I journeyed thither by the desert 
 route, galloping along the seasliore bestrewn with myriads of 
 dead locusts, or jolting on a camel's back up and down the 
 sandy billows, with heights and hollows alternating, like the 
 crest of waves and the trough of the ocean. Nothing can be 
 more hopelessly hideous than the ordinary landscape of Sind, 
 the expanse of undulated soil interspersed with scrub, the lands 
 desolated by inundations and clothed with rank vegetation as 
 with a ragged garment. For several months in the year even 
 the canals are waterless, and look like extensive trenches. 
 Karachi, the capital on the sea-coast, has one of the best climates 
 in all British India, and with its harbour, its public buildings, its 
 streets and its municipal arrangements is worthy of its position 
 as a rising seaport. For the harbour works the public owes 
 much to the labours of Mr. Price, the Engineer. But the heat 
 of Upper Sind is truly terrific, exceeding that of the most 
 torrid regions in the East. Nevertheless, the European officers, 
 
 2 I 2 
 
484 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 who serve there, love the province ; nowhere in the empire 
 is local attachment more intense tlian in Sind. Apparently 
 the Indus permeating the country from end to end, rolling down 
 in mighty volume the drainage from Himalayan and trans- 
 Himalayan regions, and bestowing at least a partial fertility upon 
 rainless resiions — affects the imagination of educated men. The 
 traditions survive of Alexander and his matchless Macedonians ; 
 the name of Nearchus, the navigator, is still a living memory. 
 Every desert, too, has its oasis ; as the heat waxes, the waters 
 are swollen from snows melted in far-off climes, the dry canals 
 begin to fill, and are shaded by groves and avenues in the midst 
 of a dreary land. There is one great lake, many square miles in 
 extent, the surface being covered with aquatic plants and 
 skimmed by water-fowl, the air at times almost darkened by 
 the circling flights of birds. The Indus is generally " liber et 
 exultans " amidst alluvial deposits ; at one point only is its 
 course cribbed and confined between low hills. There the 
 town of Sakkar on one bank, of Eori on the other, and the 
 rocky island of Bakkar in mid-stream, make up one of the 
 best pieces of river scenery in the empire — especially when 
 illuminated. Elsewhere the river runs along the foot of the 
 Lakki cliffs, along the side of which the railway is carried. 
 
 The Natives of Sind are Muhammadans, tall and broad in 
 stature, but somewhat enfeebled in health, and neither long-lived 
 nor prolific. Notwithstanding security and good government for 
 more than a whole generation their numbers hardly increase, 
 and remain scanty for so broad an area. Existence is probably 
 harder for them than for any Indian race; they never know 
 from one season to another whether the Indus will leave them 
 high and dry or submerge them entirely ; their lands are 
 alternately enriched by deposits of silt, or torn up by destructive 
 floods ; during the summer they swelter in the ardent heat, in 
 autumn they languish in the exhalations from the subsiding 
 floods, in the winter they might regain vigour were it not that 
 the sharp cold is biting and nipping to enervated frames. The 
 tendency to pneumonia and pulmonary complaints is aggra- 
 vated by the national habit of wearing cotton clothes ; the 
 
Chap. xx. ADMINISTRATION OF SIND. 485 
 
 man who may succeed in teaching them to wear woollen will be 
 a benefactor of their race. Despite persistent and costly efforts, 
 the survey and settlement operations are not so far advanced as 
 in most parts of India. The cultivation in almost every part of 
 the province depends upon the canals, many old and some new, 
 laboriously maintained, supplied with water from the Indus, 
 and spreading like veins and arteries throughout the country. 
 To protect the channels great embankments were thrown up for 
 many miles along the river-bank. With the improvement of 
 these canals the name of Colonel Fife is honourably associated. 
 Owing to the vagaries of the great river the injuries to the 
 works are constant and prove disheartening to the engineers. 
 Often after the completion of head works for irrigation, with 
 much cost and trouble, a sweep of the Indus current will 
 destroy them all, leaving a wearisome task to be reijeated the 
 next year. 
 
 Despite drawbacks and disadvantages, the administration of 
 Sind begun by Sir Charles Napier, and carried on by his suc- 
 cessors, especially Sir Bartle Frere, had comprised all the 
 improvements ever introduced into the other Indian provinces 
 which enjoyed far greater facilities and advantages. Under 
 General John Jacob — a man of marvellous resource, self-denial, 
 and persistency — the frontier, in respect to all its affairs, civil, 
 political, military, had been managed in a manner honourable 
 to the British name. He had been wortliily succeeded by 
 Sir Henry Green. In Sind Sir William IMerewether was at 
 this time the able and j)opular Commissioner. He was ulti- 
 mately succeeded by Mr. Erskine, an excellent administrator. 
 Among those who had spent their lives in the service of tlie 
 province were Lambert, Dunsterville, Wallace, Haig, Crawford, all 
 " soldier-civilians " as Sir Charles Napier would have called them. 
 
 Beyond the frontier of Sind lie the dominions of the Khan of 
 Khelat. My visits to that territory from 1878 to 1880 were 
 caused by the necessity of helping to provide transport for the 
 army operating in southern Afghanistan, and of arranging for the 
 construction of the railway from the Indus towards Candahar. 
 
 Owing to the severity of the climate, the inhospitable 
 
486 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 character of the country, the difficulty of finding or laying in 
 supplies of fodder, the dislike felt by the camel-drivers for 
 the work, the climate alternating at different times and places 
 between the extremes of heat and cold, — it happened that 
 the losses of camels by death, and desertion on the line of 
 march, were enormous. Not only did thousands of these 
 animals perish from fatigue and hunger, but thousands also 
 were driven away by their owners who deserted. At one time 
 there was anxiety regarding the food supplies of the army, 
 though it was afterwards dispelled by the vigorous arrange- 
 ments of the Commander, Sir Donald Stewart. The Govern- 
 ment of India decided, for the sake of safety, to store 
 reserves of food within the mountains, and I was enjoined by 
 the G overnor-General (Lord Lytton) to see personally that all 
 losses of transport were replaced, and that no failure occurred 
 in the arrival of supplies. I accordingly galloped backwards 
 and forwards across the desert, intervening between Sind and 
 the Khelat mountains, to organize the halting-stages and the 
 supply-depots of the military transport. Very able aid was ren- 
 dered by my Military Secretary Major Stirling Eivett Carnac. 
 I also inspected the Bolan Pass, greatly admiring its bold bluffs, 
 its pellucid streams, and its grand background, all doubly wel- 
 come after the dreary expanse of the desert. The principal 
 chiefs of the Khelat country presented themselves, and the im- 
 provement in the relations, between them and their liege the 
 Khan, was manifest. The Khan himself I did not see, but had 
 met His Highness at the Delhi Imperial Assemblage. Formerly 
 the strife between him and his nobles threatened to tear his 
 State to pieces ; but now everything wore the aspect of order 
 and stability. The Political Agent to the Governor-General was 
 Sir Ptobert Sandeman, whose labours were most laudable and 
 successful in preserving peace throughout the Khelat terri- 
 tory, and in vindicating British authority or influence among 
 the predatory tribes in its neighbourhood. The perfect security, 
 with which quantities of British stores streamed along the 
 Bolan Pass and other wild parts of the Khelat territory, 
 redounded to the honour of the Khan and his subjects. 
 
Chap. xx. RAILWAY PROM THE INDUS TO SIBL 487 
 
 The province of Sind is rich in camels and in cattle ; still its 
 resources were severely strained on these occasions. It fur- 
 nished 30,000 camels, and then its supply was exhausted. It 
 also provided 6000 pairs of draught bullocks, and could have 
 supplied many more if necessary. The carts were made in 
 Bombay, and sent by sea and rail to the frontier ; the animals 
 were purchased in the delta of the Indus. This carriage and its 
 draught bullocks joined for the first time on the frontier of Khelat. 
 
 The military transport was most ably managed by G-eneral, 
 now Sir Eobert, Phayre, and remarkable service was rendered 
 by Major (now Brigadier-General) Hogg, already mentioned. 
 
 When in the autumn of 1879 the news was flashed of the 
 destruction of Cavagnari's mission at Caubul, the energy, capacity 
 and resolution with which Lord Lytton's Government faced the 
 emergency elicited general admiration and sustained the public 
 confidence. 
 
 Shortly afterwards Lord Lytton directed me to cause a rail- 
 way to be constructed from Sakkar on the bank of the Indus to 
 Sibi near the foot of the Bolan Pass. This railway was begun 
 on the 5th October, 1879, and was opened on 14th January, 
 1880, the time being 101 days, and the distance being 133^ 
 miles, shewing a daily average of 1-i- mile. The progress was 
 for some weeks together at the rate of a mile a day, and for 
 some days consecutively at the rate of more than two miles a 
 day. The work was of a temporary description ; the ground was 
 generally flat and easy ; the difficulty was to collect rapidly the 
 stores and materials from distant parts of the empire, and to 
 supply water in the heart of the desert to many thousands of 
 workpeople. The Chief Engineer, to whose skill and energy much 
 of the success must be attributed, was Colonel James G. Lindsay. 
 
 I was further instructed by Lord Lytton to arrange for 
 continuing the line through the mountains to Pishin on the 
 border of southern Afghanistan, in view of a further extension 
 to Candahar. With the assistance of Colonel the Marquis 
 de Bourbel, of Colonel Lindsay and Sir Eobert Sandeman, 
 I caused the surveys to be made, through rugged passes 
 leading up to heights of 6000 feet (above sea-level), the line to 
 
488 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xx. 
 
 be marked out by the engineers, and the rails with other ma- 
 terials to be carted to the necessary points within the mountains. 
 I then rode on to Candahar, to confer with General Sir Donald 
 Stewart there, and to satisfy myself that all the requirements 
 for military transport were being met, so far as they depended 
 on the basis of supply in Sind. 
 
 On these long rides, the scenery which I saw was generally 
 striking and sometimes beautiful, leaving pictures imprinted on 
 the memory of such views as those of the fertile basin of Quetta, 
 closely environed by bare rocks (10,000 feet above sea-level) — 
 the lofty walls formed by narrow rifts and chasms through which 
 the rivers pass in their course from the elevated plateaux to the 
 plains beneath — the landscape seen from the historic crest of the 
 Khojak Pass — the undulating desert of southern Afghanistan, 
 dotted with abrupt granitic hills — the dust-storms rising against 
 the blue sky in vast columns and then careering along till earth 
 and air are enveloped in obscurity — the city of Candahar, with 
 smiling cultivation around, and boldly shaped hills standing 
 like a row of sentinels behind it — the clear-running Argandab, 
 with long lines of fruit-gardens on one side, and a distant view 
 stretching to the Hazara mountains on the other. 
 
 Having completed all the arrangements for organizing the 
 military transport from the Indus to Candahar, for securing the 
 commissariat supplies, for carrying on the railway towards the 
 Afghan border, and for despatching the reinforcements of troops, 
 according to Lord Lytton's instructions, — I returned to Bom- 
 bay. It was shortly afterwards necessary for me to quit India 
 suddenly, for I had already accepted an invitation to stand 
 for East Worcestershire (my native county) at the general 
 election, and in the first week of March 1880 the news of the 
 dissolution of Parliament was flashed to India by telegraph. 
 I sailed from Bombay on 13th March, 1880, regretting all my 
 good friends there, but feeling that, inasmuch as at that 
 moment all was well in the Bombay Presidency from end to 
 end, with its interests stretching from the border of Mysore in 
 southern India to the frontier of Candahar, I was officially 
 *' felix opportunitate mortis." 
 
( 489 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Imiwrtant questions relating to the effect of British rule upon the people — 
 Their material condition now as compared with former times — -The new 
 or Western education — Originality of mind in the Natives — Progress of 
 Christianity in reference to the heathen religions — Ambition and aspira- 
 tions of educated Natives — Array of political forces on the side of, or 
 militating against, British rule — Loyalty and trustworthiness in many 
 classes, elements of trouble in others — Substantial safety of British rule 
 — Sources of its stability and causes of its permanency. 
 
 In the foregoing chapters no attempt has been made to 
 discuss questions relating to the condition or prospects of the 
 country and of the people, lest disquisition should interrupt 
 the course of the narrative. Nevertheless a consideration of the 
 events, which have occurred during this generation, seems to 
 present several questions as deserving a specific answer. Such 
 questions are so comprehensive in their character and so grave 
 in their import, that to substantiate and illustrate fully the 
 answers would require a volume. Much matter, too, bearing 
 closely upon them has been set forth in my former work ' India 
 in 1880.' Still, as doubts on these subjects frequently recur 
 in the public mind, it may be well to give here, by way of re- 
 capitulation, a summary of the conclusions at which I have 
 arrived as the results of study, observation and experience. 
 The questions then, which have been suggested to me, may be 
 stated thus : — 
 
 First. — What is the economic and financial effect of British 
 rule upon the masses of the people ; that is to say, are they grow- 
 ing poorer or richer, irrespective of the question whether India 
 as an empire is increasing or decreasing in wealth and 
 prosperity ? 
 
490 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 Secondly. — Has the English or Western education elevated 
 the character of the cultivated classes of the Natives ? Has this 
 elevation been obtained at the cost of originality in the Natives, 
 and has it lessened the chance of their self-development upon 
 natural and therefore Asiatic lines ? Ought the education to 
 be in Entjlish or in the Indian vernaculars ? 
 
 Thirdly. — Is the Western education subverting the several 
 existing religions ; and if so, is Christianity advancing suffi- 
 ciently to take their place ? How far is the system of caste 
 shaken ? 
 
 Fourthly. — Are the highly educated Natives likely to become 
 discontented with their existing status socially and politically, 
 and to ask for privileges which the British Government can 
 hardly consent to grant ? 
 
 Fifthly. — Is there any dislike to British rule felt by consider- 
 able sections of the Native population ; is it deeply seated, and. 
 has the Government any serious consequences to fear from it ? 
 
 Sixthly. — On the whole, is British rule in a state of acci- 
 dental equipoise, balanced between forces some favourable 
 others unfavourable, or is it substantially safe and based upon 
 a foundation of permanent stability ? 
 
 The first question, then, runs thus : what is the economic and 
 financial effect of British rule upon the masses of the people ; 
 that is to say, are they growing richer or poorer, irrespective of 
 the question whether India as an empire is increasing or de- 
 creasing iu wealth and prosperity ? 
 
DEGREES OF PROSPERITY IN THE SEVERAL CLASSES. 491 
 
 There is indeed every reason to believe that as an empire 
 India is rising in wealth and prosperity, inasmuch as popu- 
 lation increases, cultivation expands, trade internal and external 
 grows apace, quantities of food grain are exported, prices rise 
 invariably, wages generally — but not always — are augmented, 
 large amounts of foreign capital are invested, the diminution in 
 the rate of interest attests the accumulation of Native capital and 
 the strengthening of security, new industries more than replace 
 the old industries decaying or extinct, communications by rail 
 road and river are improved, irrigation is extended, a hi<Ther 
 standard of domestic comfort is perceptible even among many 
 of the humbler classes. 
 
 This being so, it follows that at least a large portion of 
 the people must be better off than formerly, and that some 
 classes must be considerably enriched. Nevertheless, it is very 
 possible that some classes may be impoverished, and that even 
 the masses may not be improving in condition. It is there- 
 fore well to see what classes come under this category, and 
 what are the masses. To assist the view in this respect, the 
 following table is extracted from the report of the Indian 
 Famine Commission, regarding the occupations of the adult 
 males, who amount to 62 millions out of the whole population 
 of British India, about 200 millions. 
 
 Occupation. Per Cent. .^"f^t'',°^ 
 
 Adult Males. 
 
 I. Commercial 5*2 3,224,000 
 
 II. Professional, including Government service 3 • 6 2,232,000 
 
 m. Domestic 6-2 3,844,000 
 
 IV. Independent and non-productive ., ., 3*4 2,108,000 
 
 V. Industrial 13-1 8,122,000 
 
 VL Agricultural 56-2 34,844,000 
 
 VIL Labourers 12-3 7,626,000 
 
 100 62,000,000 
 
 Now of these, the classes I. and II., commercial and pro- 
 fessional, comprising nearly 9 per cent, of the whole, are decidedlv 
 flourishing more than formerly. The classes III., IV., and V., 
 domestic, non-productive, and industrial, comprising 23 per cent. 
 
492 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 of the whole, are in much the same condition as before. The in- 
 dustrial class has in some respects declined, in others it has risen. 
 The real doubt then refers to classes VI. and VII., agricultural 
 and labourers, comprising 68 per cent, of the whole. The two 
 classes may well be considered together, for the labourers are 
 mostly employed on the land. Of the agricultural adult males, 
 34 millions in all, about half, or 17 millions, are either pro- 
 prietors, great and small, or else have proprietory rights. These 
 are all unquestionably richer and more comfortable than for- 
 merly, they are the yeomanry and the flower of the peasantry, 
 and are to the population what the phalanx was to an army 
 of old. The remainder of the agricultural males, or 17 mil- 
 lions, are set down as farmers, tenants, cultivators, though of 
 these many possess a sub-proprietory status or tenant-right 
 in some shape. Perhaps half of them are thus situated : 
 and they are, equally with the proprietors, much more pros- 
 perous than of old. The other half are tenants at will, some 
 of whom after paying their dues to the proprietor, have a 
 narrow margin only for subsistence. Still their condition 
 improves in each succeeding decade. The labourers, 8 millions, 
 chiefly employed in the fields, have very low wages, notwith- 
 standing the rise in prices, but then they do not need to 
 purchase food, their main item of expense, whenever their 
 wages are paid in kind, as is often perhaps generally the 
 case. They are not appreciably better off than formerly, but 
 then they are at peace and in safety, whereas in the old 
 days of war and revolution they must often have perished 
 from various causes, while in times of famine they were left 
 to their fate. They doubtless are under these circumstances 
 multiplying ; still tliey are not pauperized, as they all work 
 hard for their living. Those who know the historic details of 
 the ravages committed by armed violence during the century 
 preceding British rule, like the darkest hours of night before the 
 dawn, and in some centuries before that — can realize what the 
 misery of the helpless poor must have been. Exemption from 
 that misery is a palpable benefit, which must be taken into 
 account in a comparison between their past and their present. 
 
CiiAP. XXI. FAVOURABLE RESULTS OF BRITISH RULE. 493 
 
 From this brief analysis it appears that 50 per cent, of the 
 people, namely, commercial 5"2, professional 3'6, three-quarters 
 of the agricultural or 42 — are decidedly much more prosperous 
 than in former times. Then 22"7 per cent, of the people — 
 namely, domestic 6-2, independent 3"4, industrial 13"1 — are in 
 much the same condition as formerly on the whole, with a slight 
 degree of improvement. Lastly, 2 6 '3 per cent, of the people — 
 namely, one-quarter of the agriculturists, or 14, and labourers 
 12-3— are in a doubtful case. They are not flourishing, poor 
 people ; they have never flourished under any Government ; and 
 their lot is in some respects hardened amidst the general pros- 
 perity, while in other respects it is softened by the effects of a 
 civilized order. In general terms, then, the condition of half 
 of the whole people, comprising the most intelligent, vigorous 
 and progressive classes, is decidedly ameliorated by British 
 rule ; the condition of one-quarter is nearly stationary with a 
 slight improvement, while that of the remaining quarter is in a 
 dubious stage, with only that sort of improvement wliich arises 
 out of security from the consequences of tumult and bloodshed, 
 and a comparative, though by no means an entire, immunity 
 from the consequences of famine. Upon the whole, there is a 
 clear gain on the side of British rule. 
 
 Calculations have been made on independent data to shew that 
 about one-fifth of the population is insufficiently nourished. 
 These estimates are based mainly upon a consideration of the 
 density of the people in certain areas, and the production of food 
 in those areas. Manifestly, such estimates must be subject to 
 manifold qualifications. Still it may be at once admitted that 
 some of the poorest classes are insufficiently nourished. But, 
 alas, similar classes are insufficiently nourished in many other 
 countries besides the Indian empire. In India, however, owing to 
 the mildness of the climate, poverty of sustenance causes much 
 less suffering than in colder climes. My impression is that very 
 poor people in India do not endure nearly as much misery as 
 very poor people in the British isles or in the north of Europe. 
 
 The answer, then, to the question comes thus : while the 
 empire generally is increasing in wealth and prosperity, and 
 
494 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 several large and important classes are proportionably prosper- 
 ing, — the better sections of the masses are also growing richer, 
 while the humbler sections of the masses are in a doubtful 
 stage, certainly not deteriorating below the standard which in 
 all ages has been low for them, but improving very slowly. 
 
 The second question stands thus : has the English or "Western 
 education elevated the character of the cultivated classes of 
 the Natives ? Has this elevation been obtained at the cost 
 of originality in the Natives, and has it lessened the chance 
 of their self-development on natural and therefore Asiatic 
 lines ? Ought the education to be in English or in the Indian 
 vernaculars ? 
 
 Now, the English or Western education has greatly elevated 
 the character of the Natives who have come within its influence. 
 It has taught them truthfulness and honour both morally and 
 intellectually. It has made them regard with aversion that 
 which is false and dishonest. It has imbued them with a love 
 of abstract truth and a desire to exercise the reason with fear- 
 less impartiality, to insist upon knowing the why and the 
 wherefore for the faith they may be required to accept. They 
 will no longer tolerate superstitions or any absurdity whatso- 
 ever. This improvement is conspicuously manifest in their 
 public conduct, and in all those relations of life which may be 
 called external in contradistinction to domestic. It must doubt- 
 less affect beneficially their home life also, but regarding 
 that an European has but little means of judging. In one 
 essential part of domestic conduct they are exemplary, and that 
 comprises the efforts put forth by them to impart the new educa- 
 tion to their sons. The sacrifices they make, and the self-denial 
 they undergo, for this object, will hardly be surpassed in the 
 most advanced nations. How far the education of itself has 
 endowed them with amiability, with charitable sentiments and 
 other gentle virtues, may be doubtful ; for it will probably be 
 
EFFECT OF THE ENGLISH OR WESTERN EDUCATION. 495 
 
 held that they possessed these virtues before. They take 
 hopeful views of the life to come after the death of this body, 
 and respecting the eternal destiny of man. They form positive 
 conceptions regarding the human soul and its expansive capa- 
 cities under other conditions of existence. They acknowledge 
 their responsibility to God for their thoughts, words and deeds. 
 
 Some few of them have been charged with yielding to intem- 
 perance, a vice which is not confined to the West, but has 
 always existed in the East also. But this fault has never been 
 enough to detract from the repute of the education and the 
 educated. As a rule the young men are temperate, steady and 
 capable of mental effort long sustained. 
 
 The education is imparted directly or indirectly in two ways. 
 The primary way consists of definite instruction in ethics or the 
 science of human duty, of the inferences derivable from "Western 
 history and literature, of the mental training from logic and 
 mathematics, and (most important of all) from daily contact 
 and conversation with European professors. The secondary way 
 consists in the contemplation of the example set by the British 
 Government in India in its wise legislation, its dispensation 
 of justice between man and man, its humane administration, 
 its scientific and mechanical achievements, its conscientious 
 efforts for the good of the people. The educational effect of 
 these things upon the population at large may be greater than 
 is, perhaps, imagined by those who are engaged in the thick of 
 affairs. 
 
 The effect of this education, direct and indirect, undoubtedly 
 was in the first instance to suppress the natural originality of 
 the educated. Formerly, they ofttimes, indeed, kept their minds 
 at a fairly high level, observing a right standard. But ofttimes 
 they descended to the depths of moral and mental degradation ; 
 from such slough they have been extricated by education, and 
 now breathe a purer air. Eor a time, bewildered by the superiority 
 of the new civilization, they sought nothing beyond it. They 
 crammed their memories with bare facts ; they learnt the 
 noblest prose or poetry by rote and repeated it mechanically. But 
 this tendency, militating against their originality, operates less 
 
496 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap, xxi- 
 
 and less forcibly with every decade, and its disappearance after 
 one or two generations may be anticipated. They no longer 
 accept a doctrine secular or religious merely because it is a 
 res^^lt of "Western civilization. They search for new standards 
 of their own, outside Europe and its ways. For that purpose 
 they go far afield, reverting to the remotest periods of Asiatic 
 philosophy, and in spirit crossing the Atlantic to grope for light 
 in the New World. Their antiquarian research is frequently 
 (though perhaps not always) conducted after a method quite 
 their own. Despite their Western preoccupations, it is towards 
 their own traditions that their loving gaze is turned. Their study 
 of Shakespeare, Milton, Bacon, Locke does not in the least di- 
 minish their reverent allegiance to the Asiatic heroes, poets, saints 
 and law-givers of old. Morally, almost spiritually, they approach 
 Christianity, verging actually towards its very borders. But 
 though they venerate its efficacy, they decline to profess it as a 
 religion. Their interpretation of the poetry in nature differs 
 from ours ; while learning our notion of "the unseen universe," 
 they do not adopt it unreservedly. They will study the writings 
 of philosophers and economists as Bentham or Malthus, and 
 criticize tlie conclusions therein set forth. Their ideas regarding 
 the theory of punishment and several branches of civil and 
 criminal law, differ essentially from those which we strive to 
 impress upon them by our legislation. They frequently con- 
 trovert the economic conclusions which we assert regarding the 
 material condition of their country. In such arguments they 
 often apply the established doctrines of political economy to 
 complex statistics in a manner which, if not just, is really 
 original. The " enthusiasm of humanity " is one of the prin- 
 ciples which Christianity introduced into the world ; and they 
 have caught some of its sacred fire. But, once touched by this 
 hallowed sentiment, they have followed its dictates with an 
 earnestness all their own. Numberless instances of their far- 
 sighted munificence might be cited in illustration. 
 
 In former ages there was little of philosophizing in respect 
 to Indian art, but much of real art existed. In later times there 
 has been much philosophizing but less of actual art. At one 
 
Chap. xxi. NATIVE ADMINISTRATION, 497 
 
 moment there was danger lest the very life of Indian art should 
 be stifled by European influence. The European instructors, 
 however, awoke to the danger in time, and now full play is 
 allowed to the fine originality of the Native genius. 
 
 The British system, in which the Native administrators are 
 now trained, does at first suppress their natural originality. On 
 the other hand it may be argued that some of the salient fea- 
 tures in our system have their prototypes among the Indians — 
 for instance the settlement of the land under Todar Mall, the 
 Minister of Akber the Great, is in several respects a model 
 for British arrangements. The Native States, indeed, copy 
 much that belongs to the British Government, and curiously 
 appropriate English official designations for every department 
 civil or military. Yet they retain in their management very 
 much which, being their own, must be regarded as original, and 
 which is thought by some, rightly or wrongly, to be better suited 
 to the Natives than our own method. Of living statesmen among 
 the Natives, Salar Jang of Hyderabad perhaps has become 
 Europeanized in his method of administration. But Dinkar Eao 
 of Gwalior was quite original, so was Kirpa Earn of Jammu, and 
 more especially Jang Behadur of Nepal, who governed after his 
 own fashion with hardly any tincture of European notions. 
 Madhava Eao of Baroda, too, though Anglicized to some extent 
 is quite Asiatic au fond, and, if left to his own resources 
 entirely, would evince striking originality. 
 
 The Mahratta Brahmins, again, some of the very ablest 
 among the eleves of the modern education, keep their minds 
 riveted upon national models, and would strenuously repudiate 
 the notion of their inner thoughts being transformed by what 
 they have been learning. They must perforce admire much of 
 all the moral and intellectual novelties to which they have 
 been introduced. On the other hand, it is to be feared that 
 nothing can shake many of the prepossessions, favourable to 
 their own ideas and adverse to ours, wliich have gained strength 
 from father to son through many centuries. They will learn 
 much from us, and may even acquire new faculties, for all that, 
 as a race, they will retain their individuality. Their association 
 
 2 K 
 
498 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 named the Sarva Janik Sabha may be hypercritical, but is 
 certainly original. 
 
 In authorship the educated Natives are prolific even in 
 English, and in the vernacular the mass of current literature is 
 known to few Europeans save those who, like Grarcin de Tassy, 
 make it their special study. Native authors have produced 
 some works of original merit, but not so many as might have 
 been expected. 
 
 Kespecting physical science, they are already apt in verifying 
 its teachings by experiment. Whether they will become dis- 
 coverers cannot be predicted, for as yet our State education, 
 though now improving fast, has been quite deficient in all 
 branches of this science, except the medical where it has always 
 been excellent. Nor can any forecast be hazarded as to 
 whether they will be inventors, for as yet their natural in- 
 genuity has been but little developed by mechanical instruc- 
 tion. But the constant spectacle of wonder-working mechanism, 
 under British management, must stimulate their thoughts. 
 
 The new religious sects which have arisen or are arising — the 
 Brahmos of the east and north of India, the similar commu- 
 nities in the west — are essentially original, notwithstanding 
 that they owe their origin to the new education. There is a 
 philosophic mysticism, a transcendentalism, about them which 
 so far from being derived from the Western teaching given ^ 
 them, is positively opposed to it. They gather all they can 
 from European instructors in Christianity, and then apply the 
 instruction after a manner of their own. 
 
 Taking all these considerations together, we may trust that 
 the English or Western education will not impair the originality 
 of the educated, nor lessen the chance of their self-development. 
 It would be sad if these men were confined to springs of 
 thought belonging not to themselves but to their masters ; in 
 that case their mental growth would be sickly and stunted. 
 We can never desire that they should be intellectually prostrate 
 before us in servile imitation. But there is no probability 
 of this happening; on the contrary, while abandoning some 
 things of their own, and adopting others from us, they are 
 
Chap. XXI. THE NEW VERNACULAK LITERATURE. 499 
 
 likely to cherish the essence of nearly all that is indigenous. 
 Already this development of theirs is moving in what must be 
 called Asiatic lines — as the lines are not exactly European — and 
 will probably diverge still more in an Oriental direction. So far 
 from lessening this chance for them, our instruction has been 
 the main factor in producing it. The education has furnished 
 them mentally with wings; and though fledgelings as yet,- 
 tliey are essaying flight, and none can now foresee how high 
 they will soar. "Without it, no such possibility would have been 
 opened out for them. For they had lost all power of self- 
 improvement when British rule dawned upon their horizon. By 
 reason of the invasions from without, the disturbances from 
 within, the disruption of ancient systems, the submergence of 
 learning by floods of violence, they had long lost all means of 
 recovering themselves. 
 
 Female education offers the greatest field now open to bene- 
 volent effort ; in no other respect socially is there so much which 
 needs doing, and wliich might practically be done. Doubtless 
 some great result will ere long be attained and that will 
 affect mightily the coming generation. It is not likely that the 
 Western education will at all extinguish the originality of mind 
 which Indian women often have, notwithstanding the repressive 
 influences of centuries. The flashes of ability and the sparks of 
 character which have emanated from them — despite disadvan- 
 tages which to European women would seem incredible — afford 
 indications of what they may become hereafter, when their 
 minds shall be freed. 
 
 As to whether the superior education generally ought to be in 
 English or in the Indian vernaculars — it may be said that 
 while English is, and must be, the medium of imparting much 
 of the best and highest education, — the various vernaculars, 
 eighteen in number, will probably continue as at present to be 
 the media for instructing the masses. The cultivation of the 
 vernaculars does certainly strengthen originality among the 
 Natives. Despite their thirst for Western literature, the 
 educated classes, in common with the rest of their countrymen, 
 venerate their own languages, whether classical or spoken. As 
 
 2 K 2 
 
500 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxt. 
 
 the old vernacular literature is both scanty and obsolete, the 
 necessity of providing food for the mind of the rising genera- 
 tion is evoking, and will yet further evoke, the original talent of 
 Native authors. The Government has responded to the popular 
 sentiment by promoting the culture of the vernaculars to a 
 degree unknown even among the best of the preceding Native 
 governments. Indeed, the successful vigour, with which this is 
 done by the British in India, is a fact probably unique in the 
 history of conquering races. 
 
 The third question is stated thus : is the Western education 
 subverting the several existing religions, and if so, is Christianity 
 advancing sufficiently to take their place ? How far is the 
 system of caste shaken ? 
 
 The Western education has not affected the Muhammadan 
 faith. It has subverted the Hindu faith, or the Brahminical 
 religion, among the educated classes of Hindus, but not among 
 the masses. The educated people on abandoning what 
 may be termed the religion of mediaeval Hinduism, do not 
 become irreligious, but revert to the primitive Hindu faith, or 
 else adopt some form of theism. Christianity is not advancing 
 sufficiently to take the place of the heathen religions whenever 
 they are renounced. It is growing, however, absolutely fast, 
 though it still covers but a small part of the ground rela- 
 tively to the vastness of the population. But the number 
 of Native Christians has increased at the rate of fifty per 
 cent, in every decade for the last thirty years, or one gene- 
 ration, and with the existing missionary agencies, some 
 considerable ratio of increase will probably be maintained. 
 Whether any decided expansion shall occur, must depend upon 
 the efforts of the Christian Churches. It may occur largely 
 if the missionary zeal and the resources of the Churches shall 
 increase. Meanwhile the results, as compared with the agency 
 employed, are quite satisfactory to all concerned. Christianity 
 wins no rapid way among the educated classes by reason of 
 
Chap. xxi. SENTIMENTS OF THE EDUCATED NATIVES. 501 
 
 their education. Some of them become Christians, some 
 also among the humbler classes ; the proportion of high-caste 
 and humble-caste men among the Native Christians probably 
 does not differ from the proportion of the same castes in the 
 population generally. On the other hand the Missions may, 
 if their means be adequate, effect decisive progress among the 
 aboriginal races and others who are outside caste, numbering in 
 all 27 millions. The conduct of the Native Christian communi- 
 ties, now reckoning nearly half a million of souls (Protestants), is 
 good, and worthy of the faith they profess. With judicious 
 guidance and encouragement from Europeans, there is every 
 chance of a Native Christian Church being organized with 
 Native clergy and deacons sustained by the congregations. Such 
 a Church may have liberty to grow in an Indian or Asiatic 
 manner suitable to the circumstances of the East. 
 
 Eespecting caste, it is shaken somewhat among the educated 
 classes, and inroads in various directions have been made into 
 its well-guarded pale. Many tendencies of the age, too, militate 
 against its prevalence. Nevertheless it is as yet quite un- 
 shaken among the masses, and it possesses social as well as 
 religious force. 
 
 The fourth question is in this wise : are the educated Natives 
 likely to become discontented with their existing status socially 
 and politically, and to ask for privileges which the British 
 Government can hardly consent to grant ? 
 
 In the Native States, which comprise statistically one-fifth of 
 our empire, and should be estimated morally at a higher pro- 
 portion — the educated Natives are not at all likely to become 
 discontented with their status socially and politically. On the 
 contrary they are there finding already, and will find still more as 
 time roUs on, a scope and a sphere for their ambition and their 
 energies. But in the British territories they are now feeling 
 this discontent, and may perhaps feel it in an increasing degree. 
 It has sprung up within twenty years and has grown somewhat 
 
502 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 during the last decade. British rule being what it is, the 
 presence of Europeans in all, or almost all, the important posts 
 is absolutely essential, and must necessarily bar a career of the 
 best sort for the educated Natives, who, seeing this, must 
 sooner or later become dissatisfied. This disadvantage under 
 our Government is being, and may yet further be, mitigated, 
 but cannot be wholly avoided. Nor does this fact, jper se, prove 
 any superiority on behalf of the Native States over British 
 rule. For it is the British paramount power that enables the 
 Native States to be what they are ; without the aegis of Eng- 
 land, they would relapse into the barbarism whereby education 
 is stamped out under the iron heel of violence and careers are 
 closed to all save the stalwart. 
 
 Socially, the educated Natives probably feel discontent at 
 not being admitted more than they are to European society in 
 India. But they will doubtless secure this admission more and 
 more, as they become qualified for it. On the other hand, 
 Europeans have been in a still stricter degree debarred from 
 Native society. But as the dominion of caste recedes and as 
 Native ladies become educated, there may possibly be a social 
 union between Europeans and Indians such as no previous era 
 has witnessed. 
 
 The educated Natives will ask for much that the Government 
 can concede, such as improved status and emoluments in the 
 public service, besides opportunities of influential useful- 
 ness by serving in honorary capacities for the welfare of the 
 community as gentlemen serve in England. The progress, wliich 
 the Government has secured for them in these directions 
 %vithin the last generation, is an earnest of similar benefits to 
 come. It is to be hoped that they will entreat the Govern- 
 ment to give a more practical turn to several branches of the 
 higher education, and to impart scientific instruction more 
 largely and ef&ciently than heretofore, so that they may acquire 
 the knowledge necessary for carving out new careers. 
 
 Our object should be to educate the character as well as the 
 intellect, teaching the non-official Natives to feel public spirit 
 and the official Natives to bear responsibility. Hitherto we 
 
THE ELECTIVE FRANCHISE IN MUNICIPALITIES. 503 
 
 have succeeded most in training ISTatives to rise to high posts 
 in the judicial service. Our ambition should be, however, to 
 train them for the executive posts demanding the sterner quali- 
 ties on which Englishmen justly pride themselves. Most of 
 those posts must needs continue to be held by Europeans ; it 
 would be dangerous to place such duties in the hands of 
 Natives. Still there are many posts of a responsible character 
 which Natives might occupy, if only they were endowed with 
 the more robust qualities. It should be the aim of the 
 Government to endow them with such qualities, by means of 
 education direct and indirect. 
 
 They will also ask for some privileges which the British 
 Government cannot concede in full, inasmuch as they will 
 express a desire for representative institutions in the English 
 sense of the term. They seldom formulate such requests very 
 specifically, for, although they themselves understand the 
 meaning of " representation," they remember that the vast 
 majority of their countrymen do not. They perhaps would 
 like an oligarchical council to be formed from among them- 
 selves by some State procedure, or else that the power of 
 electing should rest with the educated only, who form but a 
 very small minority of the people; but they have never, 
 probably, thought out such schemes. They certainly wish 
 to have the power of the purse, which power would dominate 
 the internal administration, while they are quite content to 
 leave to the Government the duty of external defence. 
 
 Now the Government, believing that the elective franchise 
 had a good moral effect upon those wdio are reasonably qualified 
 to exercise it, has already entrusted, subject to an ultimate con- 
 trol by the State, the municipal administration of the capital 
 cities of Calcutta and Bombay to corporations elected by the 
 ratepayers, and has extended or is likely to extend the principle 
 to the largest municipalities in the interior of the country. 
 Further, the Government seems disposed to entrust some share 
 of power respecting local and provincial finances to elected 
 representatives ; but here it cannot relinquish its controlling 
 authority. The Native members of the Legislative Councils are 
 
504 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 at present appointed by the Governor-General. Possibly they 
 might be elected, if only any constituency for such a purpose 
 could be devised, which would indeed be difficult to devise. At 
 all events, however, the Government could not allow them to 
 have anything approaching a majority or equality in the 
 Council. That source of power it must retain in its own hands. 
 Some observers may hold that if high education tends to 
 political discontent, the Government should prudently refrain 
 from imparting it. But such a view could not be maintained in 
 the nineteenth century. Surely it is our bounden duty to give 
 to the Natives the benefit of all that we know ourselves. If we 
 admit that there are cases in which plain dictates of duty must 
 be followed and reliance placed on Providence for the result, 
 then here is an example of the strongest kind. Politically we 
 are so secure that we can afford to be generous in imparting 
 knowledge, even though in some respects disaffection were to 
 spring up in consequence; but in fact true loyalty and con- 
 tentment in other and more important respects will thereby 
 be produced or confirmed. At all events this is an occasion 
 for putting into practice the maxim, " be just and fear not." 
 
 The fifth question is in these words : is there any dislike of, 
 or hostility to, British rule felt by considerable sections of 
 the Native population ; is it deeply seated, and has the Govern- 
 ment any serious consequences to fear from it ? 
 
 In order to answer this question, the population may be 
 classified thus, respecting degrees of loyalty or otherwise : — 
 
 I I. The Princes and Chiefs of the Native States. 
 11. The banking, trading and industrial classes. 
 
 III. The Zemindars or landlords of permanently- 
 settled estates. 
 
 IV. The peasant proprietors, and the cultivators. 
 V. The labourers. 
 
 VI. The educated classes. 
 
 Actively loyal 
 Loyal but passive 
 
 Many loyal, but , _^^^ ^, ^^ . . . , -r^ . . , . • 
 
 { VII. The Native aristocracy m the British territories, 
 
 some the reverse J ,^,^^ „„ ^^. , ■, ,, , ■, . , ■, 
 
 \ Vlll. i he Hindu and Muhammadan priesthood. 
 
Chap. xxi. CLASSIFICATION OF POPULATION. 505 
 
 , ( TX. The fanatics. 
 
 Excitable or ready ^ m, i, r ^ j 
 
 { X. The hangers-on of courts and camps, 
 
 for mischief ( XL The mob. 
 
 The most potential numerically are classes IV. and V., 
 which comprise two-thirds of the whole population, and consti- 
 tute the backbone of the body politic. In the main, they are 
 attached to British rule, so far as their nature is capable of 
 political attachment. They cheerfully acquiesce in it, and 
 have everything to gain by its continuance. They are sure not 
 to do anything against it ; if it be threatened, they will show it 
 such favour as they secretly or quietly can without compromis- 
 ing themselves. But they cannot be depended upon to fight 
 for it, or to make any vigorous efforts on its behalf. It is 
 melancholy that such should be the case ; but this is the con- 
 sequence of invasions having swept like waves over the country 
 at frequent intervals during many centuries. The succession of 
 conquerors, and the change of masters from time to time, may 
 be expected to produce an apathetic and submissive character 
 in the people, which is transmitted from generation to genera- 
 tion. They will give the British Government their hearty 
 goodwill, so long as it can hold its own ; but if it begins to 
 stagger under hostile blows, they will try to make terms, or at 
 least to be on a friendly footing, with the party that may possi- 
 bly be victorious. On the other hand, the securing of their 
 contentment is primarily important, because in the last resort 
 they would rise against oppression, and if, without being 
 actually oppressed, they were discontented, their dead-weight 
 would be thrown into the scale of our opponents, which for us 
 w^ould be a serious contingency. 
 
 Outside this solid and stolid mass, which, though not im- 
 movable, is hard to move, there are political forces, some 
 operating for British rule, others militating against it, some, 
 too, having a doubtful and vacillating movement. 
 
 The princes and chiefs in the Native States (I.) are at heart 
 among the best friends we possess ; their relations with the 
 British Sovereign have within this generation become more 
 close and cordial than before, and they are proud of being the 
 
506 MEN AND EVENTS OF INIY TBIE IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 feudatories of a world-wide empire. The Native States, the 
 commercial community, and the landlords of permanently 
 settled estates (I., II. and III.) being actively loyal, it follows 
 tliat tlie time-honoured traditions which powerfully affect the 
 l~)opular imagination, the capital and enterprise of the country, 
 and a large portion of its territorial influence, — are all arrayed 
 on the side of British rule, and afford truly immense advantages. 
 But then the landed aristocracy, in the British territories, 
 cannot possibly have the same status now which it had under 
 the preceding Native rule ; the educated classes have unsatisfied 
 aspirations ; the priesthood dread the new education ; therefore 
 these three sections VI., VII., VIII., are in a fitful mood in 
 respect to the existing state of things. They all acquire advan- 
 tages under British rule, and many of their impulses are loyal ; 
 among them are many good and faithful men, while some (we 
 must hope they are but few) are to be counted as undoubtedly 
 inimical. Lastly, the fanatics (IX.) — not numerous, but capable 
 of making their shrill and angry voices heard — the men who 
 prefer service as armed retainers rather than more industrious 
 employment (X.), and who on the morn of revolution issue 
 forth like insects on a summer's day — the mob (XL) among 
 whom ruffianism is not subdued by peace and revolution — 
 all are fermenting under British rule, and entertain towards 
 it a hostile feeling, not because they have any assignable 
 reason therefor, but because we are foreigners able to stop 
 mischief and to answer for order. If any nucleus of re- 
 bellion were formed, the disaffected sections would rally 
 round it; nevertheless, as a rule, they are inapt at com- 
 bining, or else their combination would be unstable and 
 ineffective. 
 
 The Native army, being composed of various elements, reflects 
 nearly every phase of the thoughts which pervade these several 
 sections of the community. If it were to become overgrown, 
 as was once the case, it would on occasions assert itself with 
 dire efiect amidst the conflict of the diverse elements described 
 above. But if it be kept low, as at present, in proportion to 
 the European forces, it will be faithful in obedience, and will 
 
Chap. xxi. POPULARITY OF BRITISH RULE. 507 
 
 remain an important factor in the might wielded by the British 
 Government. 
 
 Thus upon a reckoning up of forces for and against us, 
 there seems to be a clear balance in our favour — when this vast 
 population is considered in the aggregate. 
 
 Then, added to this preponderance on our side within the 
 country itself, there is the priceless advantage of the clear head, 
 the stout heart, the strong arm, all directed with that unity of 
 will which peculiarly characterizes the English in comparison 
 with Asiatic races. Moreover, there are the appliances and 
 contrivances of western science, which are many times more 
 potent than physical power. 
 
 The answer to the question, then, comes thus : there is no 
 dislike of or hostility to British rule felt by any considerable 
 section of the Native population. But while some sections are 
 actively loyal, others have a mixed character, partly loyal, 
 partly unsatisfactory, while some again are excitable and ready 
 for mischief. The hostility, in so far as it exists, is deeply 
 seated, still the Government has not any serious consequences 
 to fear from it, so long as the just rule and the European 
 armament, now existing, shall be maintained. 
 
 The sixth question is : on the whole, is British rule in a state 
 of accidental equipoise, balanced between forces some favour- 
 able others unfavourable ? Or is it substantially safe, and 
 based upon a foundation of permanent stability ? 
 
 The answer to the last preceding question has shewn that 
 British rule is not in a condition of bare equilibrium politically, 
 and that it does not fall within the category of those insti- 
 tutions whose 
 
 " lives are kept in equipoise 
 By opposite attractions and desires." 
 
 On the contrary, it has within the country and among the 
 people a clear balance in its favour. By its just administration, 
 
508 MEN AND EVENTS OF MY TIME IN INDIA. Chap. xxi. 
 
 and by its right arm, it renders this balance quite overwhelm- 
 ing. It is, therefore, substantially safe ; indeed it is grandly 
 secure at the present time. 
 
 But whether it is based upon a foundation of absolutely per- 
 manent stability, no well-informed man can say ; perhaps this 
 cannot be said of any foreign rule in a conquered country. 
 Certainly it has not founded, nor is in the way of founding, poli- 
 tical institutions for the sake of which the people will, if need 
 be, turn out to light ; for it, such a task is probably impossible, 
 Neither has it acquired that hold upon the affections of the 
 Natives, which an indigenous Government, identical with its 
 subjects in colour, creed, tongue, race, and custom, may possess. 
 It has given them many noble institutions, and many boons 
 which are calculated to secure their fealty, and for which they 
 ought to do battle, " sua si bona norint." It must not be over- 
 confident, however, of receiving all the gratitude which it really 
 deserves. At the very least, it is rooted in the respect and 
 regard of the great majority, and that is a cardinal point ; never- 
 theless implicit reliance must not be placed upon such a basis. 
 Again, all the thriving classes, wliich are by far the most 
 numerous, remain bound to the Government by ties of material 
 advantage. Still entire confidence must not be placed even on 
 this, for such ties may be snapped suddenly if a whirlwind 
 of fanaticism or of passionate nationality were to come. 
 
 The empire is safe, provided that vigilance is unceasingly 
 exercised. It is fraught with elements of trouble and sur- 
 rounded with dangers, of a secondary degree perhaps, but yet 
 enough to be serious, if our affairs were to take any untoward 
 turn. But with the necessary vigilance, the Government is 
 quite master of the situation. British rule has two supporting 
 pillars — just administration and physical power. But this 
 physical power must in the main be European ; in other words, 
 an European army must be maintained decisively superior 
 to all the other armed bodies in combination. This plain truth 
 became obscured, or was overlooked for many years, and the 
 gravest consequences at length occurred in 1857. There are 
 abundant signs to shew that like consequences might recur, if 
 
Chap. xxi. IMPERIAL RESPONSIBILITY. 609 
 
 ever the European army were allowed to fall below that 
 strength, which is wisely established at present. Without a 
 just administration, and with a discontented people, not even 
 an European army would keep India down. But with good 
 government, and with a people contented in the main, as at 
 present, the European army, together with the favouring influ- 
 ences within the country, will keep the Government settled as 
 on a rock. 
 
 The atmosphere of settled peace must conduce to the material k ^ 
 
 prosperity of the Natives, and the sense of being in a direct ^^ja jt. 
 relation to the British Crown, as subjects towards their Sove- v, u, 
 
 reign, must arouse and elevate the sentiments of which their ^^ 0> 
 imaginative temperament is susceptible. Thence arises an 
 imperial responsibility to move the conscience of all British 
 born people, 
 
 " Who love 
 
 Our ocean-empire with her boundless homes, 
 
 For ever-broadening England, and her throne 
 
 In our vast Orient, and one isle, one isle, 
 
 That knows not her own greatness," 
 
 Finis. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 ABBOTT. 
 
 ABBOTT, James, 57 
 
 Abd-ul-Ghani, of Dacca, 415, 420, •128 
 
 Abd-ul-Lattf, of Calcutta, 428 
 
 Aborigines, 242-244 
 
 Aboriginal races, 493 
 
 Abu, Mount, visit to, 483 
 
 Abyssinia, expedition to, 337 
 
 Adoni, town of, 445 
 
 Adoption, of beirs bv natire princes, 173 
 
 by Raja of Sattara, 107, 108 
 
 by Rani of Jhansi, 108 
 
 by widow of Raja of Nagpur, 235 
 
 Adoption, right of, in Native States, 106 
 
 ■ recognition of, 107 
 
 Afghanistan, 71, 303, 487 
 
 apprehension regarding, 340-344 
 
 approach to, 370 
 
 boundaries of, 369 
 
 character of people of, 339 
 
 dispute between Persia and, 370, 371, 482 
 
 disputed succession in, 339 
 
 John Lawrence's opinions, 93 
 
 Afghans, character of, 343 
 
 Afghan State, 343, 345 
 
 Aga Khan, his character, 261, 262 
 
 Agra, district of, 35, 398 
 Agriculture in the Deccan, 467 
 Agricultural bureau or department, 381, 382 
 
 classes, 492 
 
 education, 478 
 
 exhibition at Calcutta, 314 
 
 sections of the people, 491, 492 
 
 Ahalya Bai, Mahratta princess, 427 
 Ahmedabad, college at, 477 
 Ahmednagar, visit to, 226 
 
 railway at, 464, 468 
 
 Airy barracks erected, 117 
 Aitchison, booli on treaties, 338 
 Ajmir, college at, 385 
 Akber the Great, 498 
 
 tomb of, 35 
 
 Akyab, in Arracan, 207 
 
 harbour, 210 
 
 Allahabad, visii to, 38 
 
 arrival at, 127 
 
 troops at, 160 
 
 Allegory aimed at British Government, 296 
 Alexander the Great, traditions of, 484 
 
 ARSENALS. 
 
 Amar Kantak, mountain of, 232 
 Ambair, near Jyepur, 305 
 
 Amballa, meeting between Lord Mayo and Amir 
 of Cabul, 369 
 
 reception of Amir at, 369 
 
 American civil war, 239 
 
 effect on India, 268 
 
 result of, 329 
 
 Amir Ali, of Calcutta, 428 
 Amir-1-Kabir in the Deccan, 224, 289 
 
 description of, 290 
 
 Amir of Caubul, 303, 339, 343, 344, 3 15, 367, 309, 
 370: s,ee Shir Ali. 
 
 description of, 368 
 
 Amritsar, sacrod tank of, 54 
 
 city of, 133 
 
 fort of, 114 
 
 Andaman Islands, 387 
 
 Anderson, Colonel W. C, 263 
 
 Anglo-Indian community, 167 
 
 Anin.als, wild, 245 
 
 Annexation of Native States, 105, 106 
 
 opinions regarding, 106, 111 
 
 Anson, General, commander-in-chief, 131 
 Anstey, Cbisholm, barrister, 261, 274, 386 
 Antique remains in dominions of the Nizam, 297 
 Antiquities, exploration of, 4 
 Anukul Mukerji, Native Judge, 427 
 Arab chief, mortgage redeemed, 291 
 
 chiefs in Nizam's service, 291, 292 
 
 soldiers employed by the Nizams, 291 
 
 organization of, 292 
 
 Arbitration, 75 
 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, 18 
 
 Stein, 433 
 
 Archdeacon Baly, 434 
 
 Pratt, 433 
 
 Arcot, near Madras, 4-19, 451 
 Argandab, river of Candahar, 488 
 Argyll, Duke of, 360, 394 
 Aristocracy, Native, 61 
 
 treatment of, 72 
 
 Army Sanitary Commission, 317 ^^ 
 Arnold, W illiam, 90 
 Arnould, Sir Joseph, 2G2 
 Arracan, coast of, 207 
 
 territory of, 407 
 
 Arsenals under native management, 144 
 
INDEX. 
 
 511 
 
 ART. 
 
 Art, Native, 496 
 
 Arthur, Sir George, 255 
 
 Ashburiier, Lionel, 4*1 
 
 Asia, Central, proceedings of Russia in, 339 
 
 Russian advance in, 343 
 
 Asiatic races, 507 
 
 lines of civilization, 499 
 
 Asirgarh, fortress of, 482 
 Assam, 372, 407, 417 
 
 visit to, 438 
 
 Assemblage, Imperial, at Delhi, 441, 442 
 Assessments of land revenue cash, 83 
 Atmaram Pandarang, 477 
 Attaran, the river, 211 
 Attock, on the Indus, 152 
 Aurangabad, 226, 227 
 Auraiigzeb, Emperor, 227 
 Ava, mission to, 209 
 
 BACK BAY RECLAMATION COMPANY, 270 
 
 shares in, 270 
 
 Badli Serai, battle of, 132 
 
 Bagdad, 260 
 
 Bahawalpur, State of, 70, 71 
 
 Bakkar, island of, 484 
 
 Balaghat, in Madras Presidency, 449 
 
 Balfour, Sir George, 176 
 
 skill in finance, 176, 200, 218-220 
 
 Bdlkrishna Pitale, 276 
 Ballantyne, principal of college, 33 
 Balrampur, Maharaja of, 308 
 Balwant Nao Venaik Shastri, 477 
 Baly, Archdeacon, 434 
 Bangalore, 457 
 
 town and station, 222, 223 
 
 Bank of Bombay, 274, 330 
 
 of Bengal, 274 
 
 of England, 197 
 
 Banking classes, 504 
 
 Bardwan, Maharaja of, 427 
 
 Bari Doab Canal, in the Panjab, 120 
 
 Baring, Major Evelyn, 392 
 
 Barnes, George, 57, 86, 131, 141 
 
 Barracks, state of, 317 
 
 improvement of, 318 
 
 in Dalhousie's time, 117 
 
 Basra, town in Mesopotamia, 339 
 Bay of Bengal, 418 
 Bayley, Sir Steuart, 404, 412 
 
 Beadon, Sir Cecil, 314, 327, 410 
 
 Beatty, Dr., 478 
 
 Bechardas, Ambaidas, of Bombay, 476 
 
 Becher, John, 57 
 
 Beder, ruins of, 225 
 
 Behar, canals in, 411 
 
 famine, compared with Madras, 448 
 
 famine in, 393, 406 
 
 native gentry of, 407 
 
 peasantry of, 435 
 
 supply of drinking water, 405 
 
 visit to, 399, 414 
 
 Bellary famine, 445 
 
 district, 446 
 
 fort of, 445 
 
 BOLAN PASS. 
 
 Belvedere, near Calcutta, 422, 436 
 Benares, sojourn at, 31 
 
 city of, 32 
 
 Maharaja of, 308 
 
 Bengal, bad condition of jails in, 436 
 
 bank of, 272 
 
 boats of, 417 
 
 improvement of peasantry, 434, 435 
 
 conclusion of famine, 405, 408 
 
 entertainments in H.R.H.'s honour, 439-440 
 
 famine, 361, 393, 395, 402-405 
 
 relief of. 390-408 
 
 government of, 401 
 
 Lieutenant-Governorship of, 122 
 
 Native army of, 167 
 
 navigation at, 414 
 
 people of, described, 441 
 
 river, scenery at, 416-419 
 
 sanitary measures, 436 
 
 visit of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales to, 439 
 
 visit to, 415 
 
 Bengali village, 420 
 
 Bentham, 496 
 
 Bentinck, Lord Wm., popularity of, 125 
 
 Berar, province of, 105, 111, 282, 283 
 
 cotton fields of, 268 
 
 cultivators, 238 
 
 scenery of, 298 
 
 under British rule, 109, 110 
 
 visit to, 227, 228, 297 
 
 Berkley, James, civil engineer, 263 
 
 Bernard. Mr. C. E., 253, 404, 443 
 
 Bethune, Drinkwater, 121, 122 
 
 Beypur, 222 
 
 " Bhai," brother or comrade, 94 
 
 equivalent to Fra, 141 
 
 title of, 141 
 
 Bhao, Daji, of Bombay, 269 
 
 Bhartpur, Raja of, 35 
 
 Bhonsla-', Mahratta clan, 235 
 
 Bhopal, Begam of, 112 
 
 Bhore Ghat, railway incline, 255 
 
 Bhotan, hostilities against, 316 
 
 state, 326,327 
 
 Bhuvaneshwar, temple of, 422 
 
 Bijapur, city of, 463, 468 
 
 Bijayanagar, city of, 447 
 
 Bikrampur, town of, in Bengal, 420 
 
 Bird, Mertens, 49 
 
 Birdwood, Sir George, 278 
 
 Bishop Cotton, 240, 332 
 
 Middle ton, 22 
 
 Milman, 332, 433 
 
 Mylne, 479 
 
 Wilson, 22 
 
 Bishop's College, at Calcutta, 22 
 
 Blair, port, 387 
 
 " Blocks " system of grazing, 472 
 
 Board of Administration for the Panjab, 55, 68 
 
 matters carried out by, 79-82, 85, 96 
 
 military, in Dalhousie's time, 118 
 
 Boards, Dalhousie crusher of, 118 
 
 Bokhara, 304 
 
 Khan of, 339, 340, 343 
 
 Bolan Pass, 340, 486, 437 
 
512 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 BOMBAY. 
 
 Bombay, population of, 8 
 
 appointed as 3ovemor of, 440 
 
 arrival at, 461 
 
 bank of, 274, 330 
 
 city of, 269, 479, 503 
 
 departure from for England, 488 
 
 depression at, 273 
 
 failure of bank at, 274 
 
 famine in, 462 
 
 famine threatens the whole empire, 464 
 
 fort of, 276 
 
 harbour of, 481 
 
 Native Army of, 167 
 
 presidency, 255, 462 
 
 public buildings, at, 277 ;. 
 
 resources of, 480, 487 * 
 
 return to, 488 
 
 School of Art founded, 277 
 
 speculation at, 269 
 
 university of, 477 
 
 visit to, 255 
 
 Bourbel, Marquis de, 487 
 Bourchier, General, 372 
 Bowring, Lewin. 184 
 
 Sir John, 184 
 
 Brahmaputra, the river, 414, 416 
 
 delta of, 418 
 
 navigation on, 417 
 
 scenery of, 438 
 
 Brahmin caste, 459 
 Brahmins, Mahratta, 235 
 
 in Madras, 460 
 
 Brahmo sect, 428 
 Brahmos, sect of the, 498 
 
 their originality, 493 
 
 Brandis, Dr. Dietrich, 210 
 
 visit to central provinces, 245 
 
 Brinjaras, tribe of carriers, 248 
 
 British India Steam Navigation Company, 396 
 
 — Indian Association, 397, 407 
 
 rule, 101 
 
 effect of, 489-490, 493 
 
 sentiments regarding, 501, 502 
 
 in India, 492, 505, 507, 508 
 
 Broach, view at, 264 
 Broughton, Lord, 109 
 Browne, Colonel, 223 
 Brownlow, Charles, 69 
 
 General, 372 
 
 Bruce, Colonel Herbert, 207 
 Buckingham, Duke of, 444 
 
 his canal, 451 
 
 governor of Madras, 442 
 
 opinion of Madras people, 46C 
 
 Budget by Wilson, 191 
 
 by Laing, 214,219 
 
 financial, 350, 356, 3)8, 360 
 
 system, 12 
 
 Budgets introduced, 350, 356-358 
 
 results of budgets, 361-366 
 
 summary of, 361 
 
 Burma, British, 109, 395 
 
 Chief Cummissionership of, 211, 4t9 
 
 grain obtained from, 398 
 
 Burmese people, 208, 209 
 
 CANNING. 
 
 Burne, Colonel Sir Owen, 384 
 Burrows, Colonel, 481 
 
 CAIRD, Mr. James, 478 
 
 Calcutta, city of, 503 
 
 conspiracies at, 386 
 
 description of, 21 
 
 European community at, 169 
 
 Free Church institution ar, 258 
 
 headquarters of Government, 319 
 
 High Court, 386 
 
 improvements in, 423 
 
 leading clans of high caste in, 426 
 
 legislation at, 424, 425 
 
 local government of 423 
 
 Muhammadans at, 391 
 
 municipality, 423-424 
 
 my return to, 407 
 
 official mansion at, 422 
 
 political situation of, 171 
 
 population of, 8 
 
 Prince of Wales at, 438, 439 
 
 Review, 48, 49, 179, 184 
 
 season at, 422 
 
 visit to, 302 
 
 Caldwell, Rev., missionary, 454 
 Camels in Sind, 486 
 
 losses of, 486 
 
 Cameron, Hay, 122 
 
 Campbell, Sir George, 238, 401 : Pre/, vii. 
 
 his administration of Bengal, 409-412 
 
 knowledge of famine relief, 397 
 
 Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, 373, 393 
 
 return to England, 401, 410 
 
 John S., 252 
 
 Sir Colin, 128, 256, 319 : gee Clyde 
 
 Camp life, 34 
 pCanals, 11 
 
 I in Bfhar, 396 
 
 in Bombay, 467, 468 
 
 In Madras, 444 
 
 "^ in Panjab, 79, 9i\x 
 
 in Sind, 488 
 
 under Lord Mayo, 378 ^ 
 
 under John Lawrence, 328 j 
 
 Candahar, 303, 485 
 
 lost to Shir Ali, 344 
 
 ride to, 488 
 
 view of, 488 
 
 Canning, Lord, 101 : Pre/, vii. 
 
 ability as administrator, 182 
 
 address voted to him, 185 
 
 administration of, 165, 169 
 
 advisers of, 183 
 
 at Allahabad, 127 
 
 becomes Viceroy, 174 
 
 brave demeanour of, 167, 169 
 
 death in London, 231 
 
 estimation of, 125 
 
 first meeting with, 164 
 
 Governor-General, 108, 109 
 
 his conduct at Meerut rebellion, 166 
 
 ideas on finance, 181 
 
 issues " waste land rules," 179 
 
INDEX. 
 
 513 
 
 CANNING. 
 
 Lord Canning, Journey from Himalaya, 194 
 
 leaves Calcutta, 171 
 
 left England dttermlned on peace, 165 
 
 order regarding Delhi, 136 
 
 policy of, 168, 169 
 
 proclamation to landowners of Oudh, 172 
 
 regarding European troops, 161 
 
 regarding tenures in Oudh, 323 
 
 sanctions right of adoption, 173 
 
 statue raised in his memory, 185 
 
 Lady, her death, 184 
 
 her popularity, 184 
 
 Cape Comorin, 437, 454 
 
 of Good Hope, merchandise carried by, 4 
 
 Capital, borrowing of, 5 
 
 invested, 491 
 
 Carey, Dr., Baptist Missionary, 24 
 Camac, Mr. Henry Rivett, 400 
 
 . Major Stirling Rivett, 486 
 
 Carts, local, in Central Provinces, 247 
 Cash balances of India, 365 
 Cashmir, 28, 112 : Pref. vjii. 
 
 fondness of Mogul Emperors for, 161, 307 
 
 gate of, 129 
 
 journey to, 161, 162 
 
 panorama of, 162 
 
 Caste, dominion of, 502 
 
 how far shaken, 501 
 
 its present position, 501 
 
 —^ system of, 490 
 Cathedral at Calcutta, 22 
 Caubul, 303 
 
 Amir of, 344, 368, 369. 370 
 
 Russian approach towards, 341 
 
 Caucasian region, 343 
 Cautley, Sir Proby, 52, 120 
 
 Cavagnarl, death of, 487 
 
 Cawnpore, associations of, 128 
 
 troops at, 160 
 
 Cavery, the river, 444, 453 
 
 Ceded districts of Madras, famine in, 449 
 
 Central Asia, movements in, 93 
 
 Asia, Russian position in, 343 
 
 Provinces, 228, 229 
 
 situation of, 231, 232, 254 
 
 Chamber of Commerce, 425 
 
 Chamberlain, General, 92 
 
 at Delhi, 134 
 
 Neville, 69 
 
 " Chandni Chouk" at Delhi, 130 
 
 Chapman, R. B., financial secretary, 361 
 
 Chenab, river, 83 
 
 Chevers, Dr. Norman, 436 
 
 Chief Commissioner, John Lawrence, Panjab, 84 
 
 Colonel Elliott, In Central Provinces, 228, 229 
 
 of Central Provinces, 231, 238 
 
 my appointment as, 229 
 
 Chief Commlssionership of Oude, 155 
 
 of Central Provinces, 233 
 
 Chilianwala, action of, 83 
 
 China, 183, 464 
 
 Chinese Tartary, revolution in, 340 
 
 Chini in Himalayas, 124 
 
 Chittagong, visit to, 421 
 
 ChitOrgarh, citadel of, in Rdjputana, 483 
 
 CONVOCATION HALL. 
 
 Cholera, 233 
 Christian, George, 57 
 Christian missions, 4 
 Christians, Native. 429, 454, 500 
 
 conduct of, 455 
 
 Christianity in India, 148, 496 
 
 advance of, in India, 500, 501 
 
 among the educated Natives, 500 
 
 effect on Natives, 454-456 
 
 Church, Native Christian, 501 
 
 Missionary Society, 454 
 
 Churches, building of, 239 
 
 Christian, 500 
 
 Cinchona plantations, 437, 453 
 Circles of issue of paper currency, 213 
 
 of issue, 2 
 
 Cis-Satlej States, 71 
 
 territories, 308 
 
 Civil Code, Panjab, 86 * 
 Engineers introduced into India, 119 
 
 finance commission appointed, 177 
 
 courts in Panjab, 75 
 
 Increased popularity of, 436 
 
 Engineering College at Poena, 278 
 
 Procedure, 333 
 
 Clarke, John, 85 
 
 '• Clemency Canning," 169 
 
 Clerk, Sir George, 106, 226 
 
 Cleveland, tomb of, 30 
 
 Clyde, 161 
 
 Lord, 171: see Campbell, Colin. 
 
 Commander-in-Chief, 175 
 
 Coal, 4 
 
 mines, 9 
 
 supplies of, 121 
 
 Cockburn, Admiral, 481 
 
 Cocks, Arthur, 57 
 
 Coffee-planting, 4, 179 
 
 Coimbatore, district of, 452, 454 
 
 Coke, John, 69 
 
 Colebroke (Hindu law), 87 
 
 Collection of land revenue in kind, 62 
 
 College of Civil Engineering, Rurki, 48 
 
 College, additional, in Bombay Presidency, 477 
 
 at Benares, 33 
 
 at Fort William, 21 
 
 for young chiefs at Ajmir, 384 
 
 in Kathiawar, 475 
 
 Poona, 263 
 
 Coleriin, the river, 453 
 
 Commercial classes, 491, 504 
 
 Commission of enquiry regarding Indigo, 203 
 
 on Orissa famine, 397 
 
 appointed, 179 
 
 civil finance appointed, 202 
 
 reviews expenses, 202 
 
 for military finance, 176 
 
 its functions, 176 
 
 Communicatioiff in Central Provinces, 249 
 Communities, Mative Christian, 501 
 Concan, the territory, 474 
 Conservancy of forests, 6, 11 
 
 department for, 121, 244 
 
 Contract Act, 333 
 Convocation Hall, Bombay, 277 
 
 2 L 
 
614 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 V 
 
 COOKE. 
 
 Cooke, Dr. T., of Poena, 478 
 
 Corbett, General, 146 
 
 Cordery, Mr. J. G., 296 
 
 Comwallis, Marquis, 30 
 
 Coromandel coast. 222 
 
 Cotton, Dr.G. E. L., Bishop, 239, 331 : yref. vii. 
 
 at Nagpiir, 240 
 
 General Sir Sydney, 146 
 
 Henry, 412 
 
 Indian, in English marliets, 272 
 
 Sir Arthur, 221, 250, 444, 451 
 
 "Cotton Supply Association," 272 
 
 Couch. Sir Richard, 436 
 
 Councils, legislative, 503 
 
 Court of Directors of East India Company, 119 
 
 Covenanted civil servants, 9 
 
 service, 154, 202, 334 
 
 Cowa^i Jehangir, 259 
 
 Crawford, Arthur, of Bombay, 277 
 
 . of Bind, 485 
 
 Crimea, invasion of, 93 
 
 Crimean war, 343 
 
 Criminal procedure, 333 
 
 Crown, administration of India by, 7 
 
 of India, Order of the, 429 
 
 Cubbon, Sir Mark, 457 
 Cultivators, 505 
 Cunningham, Mr. H. S., 478 
 Currency, paper, 196, 199, 213 
 Cust, Robert, 85 
 Customs duties, 181 
 
 line, 380 
 
 Cuttack in Orissa, visit to, 421 
 
 Cyclone near estuary of the Megna, 438 
 
 destruction caused by, 433, 439 
 
 DACCA CITY. 415, 418 
 
 regatta at, 417 
 
 "Dacoity," or gang-robbery, Ueccan, 469,470, 475 
 
 in Bengal, 434 
 
 Daily News newspaper, 400 
 
 Dalhousie, Lord, 39, 49, 52, 101 : Pref. vii. 
 
 annexation of Native States, 105-113 
 
 assists movers in Ganges canal scheme, 120 
 
 behaviour to Court of Directors, 123 
 
 called Great Proconsul, 103 
 
 career, administrative, of, 116, 125 
 
 conduct towards opponents, 123 
 
 controversy with Sir C. Napier, 113-114 
 
 death of his wife, 124 
 
 establishes Lieutenant - governorship of 
 
 Bengal, 122 
 
 his personal influence, 124 
 
 Improves barracks, 117 
 
 Introduction of railways, electric telegraph, 
 
 and post ofBce reform, 121 
 
 legislation of, 122 
 
 merit of, 122 
 
 — — promotes public works, 119 
 
 salles from Calcutta, 103 
 
 Dalton, Colonel, 430 
 Daly, Henry, 69 
 Dampier H. Lucius, 412 
 Daniell, Major, 470 
 
 DYAS. 
 
 Daolatabad, fortress, 227 
 
 description of, 227 
 
 Dartihanga, chief of, 430 
 
 Darjiling, in Himalayas, situation of, 322 
 
 visits to, 437 
 
 Davidson, Colonel Cutbbert, of Hyderabad, 223 
 Davies, Henry (of the Paojab) 85 
 Debt, public, of India, 364 
 Deccan College building, 278 
 
 Nizam of the, 281 : Pref. vill. 
 
 agrarian riots, 466 
 
 conservation of some forests, 471-473 
 
 forests In the, 472 
 
 importance i.f its position, 471 
 
 peasant proprietors of, 467 
 
 regency in the Mizam's dominions of, 301 
 
 situation of, 465-470, 475 
 
 Deficit, financial, 352-360 
 
 Degumber Mittra, 427 
 
 Delhi, seizure of^ by mutineers, 127, 129 
 
 ex-King of, 135 
 
 imperial assemblage at, 441 
 
 recapture of, 147 
 
 seized by Sepoys, 166 
 
 siege of, 132 
 
 stay at, 130 
 
 Denison, Sir W., Governor of Madras, 221 
 
 acts as Governor-General, 312 
 
 Deo Naraln Sing of Benares, 308 
 
 Deogarh, fortress of, 226 
 
 Dhanpat, Native banker, 430 
 
 " Dharma Sabha," 431 
 
 Dharmsdla, in Hlmalyas, description of, 53 
 
 Lord Elgin dies at, 311 
 
 scenery of, 311 
 
 Dhulip Sing of the Panjab, 72 
 
 Dlndlgal, visit to, 456 
 
 Dlnkar Eao, Sir, 294, 305, 497 : Pref. viii. 
 
 description of, 305-306 
 
 Director of PubUc Instruction, 240 
 
 Directors, Court of, for East India Company, 123 
 
 Dispensaries In the Panjab, 5 
 Distribution of work between members of Go- 
 vernment, 187 
 
 " Dock, the Prince's," 479 
 
 Dods, Captain, 240 
 
 Domestic classes, 491 
 
 life of natives, 489 
 
 Dosabhoy Framji, of Bombay, 476 
 
 Dost Muhammad, 94, 150 
 
 death of, 339 
 
 Dragoons, 3rd, 27 
 
 14th, 40 
 
 Draught bullocks In Slnd, 487 
 
 Duff, Alexander, Scotch missionary, 23, 184, 257 
 Pref. vill. 
 
 Dundee factories of jute, 419 
 
 Duumvirate of the Lawrence brothers, 59 
 
 Dunstervllle, of Slnd, 485 
 
 Durand, Major, 25 
 
 Lieutenant-Governor of the Panjab, 372 
 
 Sir Henry, 348 : Pref. vii. 
 
 Durbar reception, 144 
 
 Dwarkanath Mittra, 427 
 
 Dyas, Lieutenant, 79 
 
INDEX. 
 
 515 
 
 EAST. 
 
 EAST India Company, abolition of, 2 
 
 directors of, 4 
 
 early days of, 474 
 
 its territories, 2 
 
 Kailway Company, 404 
 
 Eastwick, Edward, 19 
 
 Eden, Hon. Ashley, 395, 4-13, 461 
 
 Edinburgh, H.R.H. Duke of, visit to India. 384 
 
 entertainment, at Calcutta, given by, 384 
 
 sailors home at Bombay, 478 
 
 Edinburgh Remew, article In, 343 
 Edgar, John Ware, 437 
 Edmonstone, George, 84, 173 
 
 foreign secretary, 172 
 
 Educated classes, 491, 505 
 Education, 90, 240 
 
 agricultural, 478 
 
 faults hi, 432 
 
 female, 4, 266, 499 
 
 high, 180 
 
 in English, 494 
 
 state of, 266 
 
 Edwardes, Lieutenant, character of, 54 
 
 Sir Herbert, 57, 146 
 
 Egerton, Robert, 252, 253 
 Eg5T3t, overland route by, 4 
 Elective franchise, 503 
 
 In Calcutta, 424 
 
 in Bombay, 480 
 
 Electric telegraph, 11 
 
 introduced by Dalhousie, 120 
 
 Elgin, Lord, 166 
 
 administration of, 310 
 
 arrival at Calcutta, 230 
 
 death of, 312 
 
 illness of, 311 
 
 stay in Calcutta, 231, 263 
 
 Ellenborough, Lord, 24, 43, 120 
 
 Secretary of State, 172 
 
 Elliot, Henry M., 29 
 
 Colonel, 228, 229 
 
 secretary of Lord Dalhousie, 66 
 
 EUis, Mr., 257 
 
 Sir Barrow, 356 
 
 Ellora cave temples, 227 
 Elphinstone High School, 277 
 
 College, 277, 477 
 
 Mountstuart, 50 
 
 Lord, Governor of Bombay, 113, 265 
 
 " Elphinstone " Reclamation Company, 270, 479 
 
 Empress of India, 2 
 
 Empson, WilUam, 18 
 
 Encampments, 248 
 
 Encumbered Estates Act 435 
 
 Endowments, religious, 74 
 
 English education, 494, 498, 499 
 
 Englishman newspaper, 184 
 
 " Enthusiasm of Humanity," 496 
 
 Equipoise or otherwise, of British rule, 503 
 
 Erskine, Mr., of Sind, 485 
 
 European army, 508, 509 
 
 opinion in India onfinanccF, 353, 354 
 
 soldiers, 2, 117 
 
 at Hyberabad, 224 
 
 force insufflcient, 115 
 
 FOETKESSESj 
 
 European forces, mutiny of, 157, 161 
 
 inhabitants offer to arm, 169 
 
 officers, 280 
 
 troops, 146, 316 
 
 victims, 139 
 
 Europeans, murder of, during mutinies, 136 
 
 resort for, 232 
 
 Eusufzye, near Peshawar, 152 
 
 Everest, Mount, 437 
 
 Evidence Act, 333 
 
 Exhibitions, art, industry. Central Provinces, 240 
 
 agricultural, Calcutta, 314 
 
 Ex-King of Delhi, trial of, 135 
 Expenditure, under Lord Mayo, 375 
 Ex-Rani of Jhansi, 113 
 Extraordinary expenditure in budget, 380 
 
 FAIZ, MUHAMMED, of Rajputana, 483 
 
 Falkland, Lord, 255 
 
 Famine in Behar and Bengal, 393-408 
 
 in Bombay, 461-468 
 
 in Orissa, 327 
 
 in Madras, 442-456 
 
 in northern India, 48 
 
 Fanatics in India, 506 
 Fane, ruined, near Mathra, 34 
 " Fee-simple," 179 
 Female education, 499 
 Ferghana, 343 
 Ferozpur, mutiny at, 143 
 Ferozshah, battle of, 27 
 Field force, before Delhi, 147 
 Fife, Colonel, 485 
 
 Lake, 468 
 
 Finance ministership, 347-365 
 
 military commission, 200, 214 
 
 Financial department in Lord Mayo's time, 375 
 
 measures considered by J. Lawrence, 348 
 
 member of Council, 187 
 
 policy of John Lawrence, 334-337 
 
 of Lord Canning, 181 
 
 of Laing, 212-220 
 
 of Lord Mayo, 349-3 j9, 374-377 
 
 of Wilson, 186-205 
 
 position of, 337 
 
 Fires in forests, 245 
 
 Fitzgerald, Sir Seymour, 475, 479,480 : rrtf. vii. 
 
 Fleming, John, 258 
 
 Foley, sculptor. 29 
 
 Forbes, Archibald, 400 
 
 Force for Panjab frontier, 69 
 
 Foreign Office, 303, 304 
 
 Secretary, 280 
 
 appointment as, 343 
 
 duties attached to the Post of, 281 
 
 Forests, 244 
 
 of Bombay, preservation of, 471-473 
 
 of Madras, 459 
 
 teak, Burma, 210 
 
 Forsyth, Douglas, 131, 244 
 
 visit to St. Petersburg, 369 
 
 Yarkand, 371 
 
 Fortnightly Review, article in. 342 
 Fortresoes in western Glials, 47 1 
 
 2 L 2 
 
51G 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 FRANCHISE. 
 
 Franchise : tee Elective. 
 
 Francis, Colonel. 268 
 
 Free Church of Scotland, 241 
 
 Institution at Bombay, 257 
 
 at Calcutta, 23, 258 
 
 French, of Guzerat railway, 264 
 Frere, Sir Bartle, 20 : Pre/, vii. 
 
 ability in dealing with Native chiefs, 265 
 
 adviser of Canning, 183 
 
 arranges structures at Bombay, 276, 277 
 
 capacity of, 148 
 
 departure from Bombay, 279 
 
 Governor of Bombay, 254-256 
 
 encourages Native benevolence, 275 
 
 his enthusiasm, 262 
 
 his interest in railways, 263 
 
 his popularity among the Natives, 265 
 
 his views regarding frontier, 315 
 
 improvements during administration, 479, 
 
 485 
 
 interest in education, 265 
 
 member of Governor-General'? Coimcil, 255 
 
 Frere, Sir Bartle, regarding Quetta, 340 
 
 resemblance between Thomason and, 279 
 
 Lady, efforts for female education, 267 
 
 Miss, 267 
 
 Frontier, Eastern Bengal, expedition, 371, 372 
 Frontier of Panjab, 68, 92, 315, 316 
 
 of Sindh, 315, 316, 485 
 
 force belonging to, 69 
 
 GAEKWAR of Baroda, loyalty of, 112, 482 
 
 Mulhar Rao, 306 
 
 Gaht, western, mountains, 255 
 Ganges Can.il, 6, 29, 48 
 
 when begun, 120 
 
 bank of, 399 ' 
 
 delta of, 418 
 
 river, 416 
 
 first sight of, 52 
 
 Galatea, H.M.S., 384 
 
 Gang-robberies in the Deccan, 469, 470, 475 
 
 in Bengal, 434 
 
 Ganpat, native banker, 430 
 
 Garcin de Tassy, 498 
 
 " Garden Reach " at Calcutta, 423 
 
 Gauge of Indian railways, 379, 380 
 
 Gawilgarh, fortress of, 298 
 
 Geary Grattan, of Bombay, 480 
 
 Gholam Hyder, son of Dost Muhammad, 94 
 
 Gibbs, James, 477, 481 
 
 Goa, port of, 468 
 
 Goalnndo, whirlpool at, 416 
 
 Godavery, river, 249 
 
 navigation of, 250 
 
 project for, 250 
 
 scenery of, 252 
 
 Goculdas Hospital at Bombay, 277 
 
 Gokak canal, 468 
 
 Gold coinage, 348 
 
 Golconda, Mausolea at, 224, 225 
 
 Goldney, Philip (in the Panjab), 85 
 
 Golab Sing, of Panjab, 28, 70 
 
 character of, 143 
 
 HIOH. 
 
 Gonne, C, 481 
 Gomm, Sir W., 114 
 
 Gonds, vassals of the Muhnmmadan empire, 
 243 
 
 architecture, 243 
 
 national vice, 244 
 
 palaces, 243 
 
 the race of, 242-244 
 
 their forts, 243 
 
 works of irrigation, 243 
 
 Goparam, gateway, 447 
 Gough, Sir Hugh, 26 
 
 Lord, 40 
 
 public opinion of, 4 1 
 
 Viscount, 42 
 
 Gordon, J. D., in Mysore, 338 
 Governor-General, 172 
 Government paper currency, 196 
 Govindgarh, near Anu^itsar, 114 
 Grattan, Geary, of Bombay, 480 
 Grant, John Peter, 171 
 
 Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, 179, 410 
 
 Great Mogul, 127 
 
 Green, Sir Henry, 340, 485 
 
 Grey, Sir Wm., in Bengal and Jamaica, 410 
 
 Griffith, Mr., 478 
 
 Guaranteed railway companies, 263, 379 
 
 Gujerat, district, 83 
 
 battle of, 41 
 
 battle in, 83 
 
 cotton fields of, 268 
 
 Gulf, Persian, politics of, 338 
 Gumti, the river, 228 
 Gurkhas of Nepal, 27, 134 
 Giity in Madras, fort of, 445 
 Guzerat, province of, 474, 475 
 
 Natives of, 477 
 
 Gwalior, 149, 305 
 Gyne, the river, 211 
 
 HADRAMAUT in Arabia. 291 
 Haig, Colonel, R.E., 250 
 
 of Sind, 485 
 
 Haileybury, College at, 18 
 
 Halllday, Sir Frederick, 410 
 
 Halifax, Lord, 121 
 
 Hamilton, George, in Panjab, 85 
 
 Hamphe, village of, 446 
 
 Harendra Krishna of Bengal, 427 
 
 Hardinge, Lord, 18, 21, 26, 39, 120: Pref. vii. 
 
 Hardwar on Ganges, 52 
 
 Harington, Mr., 86 
 
 Sir Henry, 195, 196 
 
 Harris, Lord, in Madras, 177, 201 
 Hasan, Muhammadan martyr, 156 
 Hastings, Warren, 50 
 Hathaway, Dr. Charles, 75 
 Hatto, Bishop, legend of, 465 
 Hatwa, chief of, 430 
 Herat, 344 
 
 Persian aggression upon, 94, 165, 304 
 
 Herries, Mr., 109 
 
 Hewlett, Dr., of Bombay, 478 
 
 High Courts, 8 
 
INDEX. 
 
 517 
 
 moH. 
 
 High Court at Calcutta, 386 
 Himalayas, barracks in, 373 
 
 first view of, 52 
 
 eastern, near Darjiling, 43t 
 
 — schools in, 332 
 
 tea planting among the, 179 
 
 Hindu faith, 500 
 
 kings, 282 
 
 law, 107 
 
 religious reformers, 4, 9 
 
 Hindu Patriot, newspaper, 426 
 Hislop, Rev. Stephen, 241 : Pref. viii. 
 Hobhouse, Sir Arthur, 393 
 Hogg, Sir James, 19, 424 
 
 Sir Stuart, 424 
 
 Major, 481, 487 
 
 Hooker, Sir Joseph, 437 
 Holkar, the Maharaja, 112, 306, 482 
 HoUirigbery, Mr., 361 
 Honorary capacities, 503 
 Hope, Theodore, 474 
 Hopkinson, Colonel, 211 
 Houra, near Calcutta, 423 
 Hughll, navigation of, 318 
 
 the river, 273 
 
 Hume, Allan, 382 
 Hunter, Dr. W. W., 374 
 
 Dr. J. G., of Bombay, 478 
 
 Husen, Muhammadan martyr, 156 
 Hyderabad, 220 
 
 British Residency at, 253 
 
 " contingent," 221 
 
 departure from, 281 
 
 • entertainments at, 300, 301, 302 
 
 races at, 299 
 
 visit to, 223, 4-13 
 
 IMAGES, Buddhist, 209 
 
 Imperial Assemblage at Delhi, 441, 442 
 
 Income tax proposed by Wilson, 181 
 
 upheld by Canning, 181, 195 
 
 imposed, 351, 352 
 
 in progress, 216-217 
 
 objections to, 355, 356 
 
 relinquishment of, 360 
 
 Indebtedness of the Deccan peasantry, 466 
 
 legislation regarding, 467 
 
 Independent class, 491 
 
 India, British, jurisdictions of, 409 
 
 central, 482 
 
 military stations in, 482 
 
 southern, 542 
 
 Laing's opinion of, 215 
 
 Indian army, 334 
 
 ^ expenses in. 481 
 
 ^ Contract Act, 383 
 
 V/ Councils Act, 461 
 
 ^ Empire, our tenure of, 475 
 
 \j Famine Commission, 406, 478 
 
 ^ navy, 202 
 
 A/ abohtion of, 218 
 
 ^' Marriage Act, 383 
 
 V sanitation barracks, 317 
 
 Indigo, 17b 
 
 KARSUNDAS. 
 
 Indigo, disputes between Native and European 
 cultivators of, 179 
 
 planting in Behur, 435 
 
 planters, their services in famine, 399 
 
 riots, 203 
 
 Indore, in Central India, 482 
 Indus, Delta of, 487 
 
 river, 484 
 
 Industrial classes, 491 
 Inland customs line, abolition of, 8 
 Irawaddy, voyage up the, 209 
 Iron, supplies of, 121 
 Irrigation : see Canals. 
 
 works of, 5 
 
 Irrigation, system of, 6 
 
 JABALPLTR, visit to, 228 
 
 exhibition at, 240 
 
 railway to. 249 
 
 trunk road between Nagpur and, 247 
 
 Jackson, Charles, 122 
 
 Louis, 437 
 
 Jacob, John, of Sind, 316, 340, 485 
 Jaganath Shankarset, 259 
 Jains, religious sects, 260, 460 
 Jalander, arrival at, 52, 53 
 
 magistrate at, 54 
 
 " Jama Mosque '' at Delhi, 130 
 Jamaica, Governor of, 410 
 James, Hugh, of the Paigab, 57 
 Jammu City, 112 
 
 John Lawrence's visit to, 142. 307 
 
 Jang Behadur of Nepal, 150, 308, 309, 497 : Pref. 
 viii. 
 
 Sir Salar, 497 : Pref. viii. See Salar Jang. 
 
 Jenkins, Sir Richard, 235 
 Jeremie, James Amiraux, 18 
 Jesuits of Calcutta, 433 
 Jhansi, annexation of. 111 
 
 adoption case, 108 
 
 outbreak at, 113 
 
 Jhelam, river, 40 
 
 Jhind, chief of, 140, 141. 308 : Pref. viii. 
 
 Jijibhoy, Sir Jamsetji, 476 
 
 Jones, Admiral Gore, 481 
 
 Richard, 18 
 
 William, 87 
 
 Jotendro Mohan Tagore, 426 
 Judicature, High Court of, Bombay, 478 
 
 at Calcutta. 436, 437 
 
 Judicial establishment, 8 
 Jute-flbre, 4 
 
 Jyepur, Maharaja of, 304 : Pref. viii. 
 capital of, 305 
 
 KALI KRISHNA, of Calcutta, 427 
 
 Kangra. fortress of, 53, 311 
 
 Kanh Sing R'ohsaof the Panjab, 151 
 
 Kamaphdli, river, near Chittagong, 421 
 
 Karnill, visit to, 223 
 
 Karrachi, 483 
 
 — library at, 255 
 
 Karsundas JIuIji, 260, 261 : Pref. viii. 
 
 action for libel against, 261 
 
518 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 KAHSUNDAS. 
 
 Karsundas acquitted, 261 
 
 his virtue, 261 
 
 his writings, 261 
 
 Karwar, port of, 468 
 
 Kashgar, 340 
 
 Kathiawar, Native States of, 475 
 
 Kayasths, the caste of, 459 
 
 Keatinge, Richard Hart, 475 
 
 Kedgeri on the Hugbli, 20 
 
 Kellner, Sir George, 361 
 
 Kennedy, General Sir Michael, 462, 465 
 
 Kerman, province of, 262 
 
 Keshab Chander Sen, 302, 428 : Pref, viii. 
 
 " Khalsa," meaning of, in Panjab, 74 
 
 lihatri, caste in the Panjab, 308 
 
 Khelat territory, 340 
 
 chiefs of country, 486 
 
 dominions of, 485 
 
 — frontier of, 487 
 
 Khan of, 370, 392 
 
 visits to, 485 
 
 Khiva, Russian expedition against, 370, 371 
 
 Khojak Pass, 488 
 
 Khojas, sect of the, 262 
 
 Khoten In Tartary, 340 
 
 Khunde Rao, Gaekwar of Baroda, 479 
 
 Khyber Pass, 71 
 
 visit to, 152, 340 
 
 Kincardine, Earl of Elgin and, 230 
 
 Kinchinjanga Mountain, 437, 438 
 
 Kirpa Ram, of Jammu, 308, 497 
 
 Klstna, river, 440 
 
 Kohat Pass, 152 
 
 Kokand, Khan of, 93, 340, 343 
 
 Kolhapur State, 478 
 
 Kols, aborigines, 430 
 
 Konilr Pass In the Nilgiris, 453 
 
 Krishna Mohan Banerji, Rev.. 428 : Pref. vIU. 
 
 Kristo Das Pal, of Calcutta, 425, 476 : Pref. vlil. 
 
 Kuch Behiir, chief of, 430 
 
 Kumal Krishna, of Bengal, 427 
 
 Kythal, descendants of,. 141 
 
 LABOURERS, 491, 505 
 
 classes of, 491 
 
 Ladakh, 162 
 
 Ladies, Native, education of, 602 
 
 Lafont, Father, 433 
 
 Lahore, city, 93 
 
 — ^ Lord Elgin's Intended council at, 310 
 
 — troops at, 160 
 Bishopric of, 434 
 
 Lalng, Samuel, 177, 181 : Pref. vli. 
 
 arrival at Calcutta, 211 
 
 his characteristics, 212, 228 
 
 his first budget, 215 
 
 his second, 219 
 
 returning to England, 229 
 
 on license-tax, 335 
 
 the financier, 206 
 
 Lake, Edward, of Panjab, 57 
 
 Lakki cliffs, in Sind, 484 
 
 Lai Behari Dey, Rev., 429 : Pref. viii, 
 
 Lambert, of Sind, 485 
 
 Lancers, 9th, 27 
 
 LICENSE-TAX, 
 
 Land revenue, 62, 267 
 
 Lapse, right of, 106 
 
 Lawrence brothers, duumvirate of, 59 
 
 agreement of and difference between, 60-63 
 
 propose Doab canal, 120 
 
 Lawrence, Henry, 29, 55, 114, 184 : Pref. vli. 
 
 biography of, 54 
 
 character of, 55-57 
 
 interest in prison reform, 75 
 
 his residence at Abu, 483 
 
 members of his school, 85 
 
 President of the Board, 73 
 
 promotion of, 64 
 
 scene of his death, 228 
 
 Lawrence, John, 43, 50 : Pref. vli. 
 
 acquaintance with, in Panjab, 51, 55 
 
 Administrator-in-Chief, 83 
 
 anxiety regarding finances, 334 
 
 arrival at Calcutta, 312-315 
 
 as Viceroy, 310 
 
 character of, 57-59 
 
 departure from India, 345 
 
 determines to complete barracks, 317, 318, 
 
 334, 335 
 
 developes the Sanitary Department, 318 
 
 encourages preparation of Civil Code, 87 
 
 financial result during his incumbency, 
 
 336-337 
 fixes summer residence of Government at 
 
 Simla, 319-321 
 
 foreign policy of, 342 
 
 hastens on railways and canals, 327-329 
 
 his camp at Delhi, 129-139 
 
 his historic position, 50 
 
 his opinion of Thomason, 43 
 
 regarding mutinies, 131, 145 
 
 regarding Russia, 93 
 
 regarding Afghanistan, 341, 342 
 
 illness of, 84 
 
 interest in Christian missions, 331 
 
 magistrate of Delhi, 26 
 
 management of the Panjab, 85 
 
 meeting with, at Calcutta, 303 
 
 official life, 95-101 
 
 policy on tenant right in Oudh, 323-324 
 
 policy regarding education, 330 
 
 promoted by Lord Hardinge, 29 
 
 saw much of the Natives, 338 
 
 Secretary to,' 129 
 
 stay at Simla, 345 
 
 turning-point of his policy, 147 
 
 view regarding finances, 34 ■< 
 
 Lawrence, Richard, 142, 143 
 Legislative Councils, 8, 324, 503 
 
 appointed, 178 
 
 at Bombay, 267 
 
 bill introduced for raising income-tax, 351 
 
 for Bengal, 424-426 
 
 for Bombay, 476 
 
 its efficiency, 476-477 
 
 Native members of, 425, 426, 476, 495 
 
 Leupolt, Charles Benjamin, missionary, 31 
 Licences on trades and professions, 181 
 
 not enacted, 216 
 
 License-tax, 195 
 
INDEX. 
 
 519 
 
 LIEUTENANT-GOVERNORSHIP. 
 
 Lieutenant-Governorship, 122 
 
 duties of, 458 
 
 of Bengal, 360, 397 
 
 of Panjab, 154 
 
 Light Dragoons, 14th, 40 
 Lindsay, Colonel J. 6., 396, 487 
 Local European force, 7 
 
 troops, 157 
 
 Loudon Press on famine, 397 
 
 London University, 477 
 
 Lord Mayo, financial policy, 350-352 : Pref. vii. 
 
 Lord Mayor of London, 397 
 
 Low, Sir John, 106 
 
 Loyalty, degrees of, 505 
 
 Lucknow, recapture of, 139 
 
 falls to British, 149 
 
 visited by Canning, 173 
 
 visit to, 228, 398 
 
 Lumsdaine, of Bombay, 478 
 
 Lumsden, Harry, of Panjab, 69, 152 
 
 Lushal frontier, 421 
 
 Lytton, Lord, Governor-General, 442 : Pref. vii. 
 
 orders railway, Indus to SibI, 487 
 
 sends deputation to Madras, 443 
 
 an'anges assemblage at Delhi, 442 
 
 directs war, Southern Afghanistan, 4 86. 487, 
 
 488 
 
 — orders despatch of troops to Malta, 480, 481 
 journeys southward to Madras, 464, 465 
 
 — visits Poona, 465 
 Lyall, Sir Alfred. 298 
 
 MACDOMALD, A., of Bombay, 482 
 Macdonald, Colonel, 481 
 Macdonald, Admiral, 481 
 
 John, of Calcutta Review, 184 
 
 Macdonnell, Mr. C. H., of Behar, 404 
 Macgrath, F., of Behar, 404 
 Macgregor, George, 57 
 
 Colonel Sir Charles, 399 
 
 Mackay, Wm., 184 
 Macl^enzie, Colonel Hector, 253 
 Mackeson, Colonel, 57 
 Mackinnon, Mr., 396 
 Maclean, J. M., of Bombay, 480 
 Macleod, Donald, 43, 53, 84 
 
 colleague of John Lawrence, 94 
 
 John Lawrence's opinion of, 95 
 
 Macnaghten, Sir William H., 87 
 Macpherson, J. Duncan, of Panjab, 146, 147 
 Macrae, Dr., Wilson's physician, 204 
 
 Elgin's physician, 204, 311 
 
 Madhava Kao, 294, 306, 425, 497 : Pref. viii. 
 the minister, 306 
 
 Raja, Sir, 482 
 X/ Madras, administers famine relief, 459 
 ^ aspect of the country, 444, 446 
 
 city, distress from famine, 450 
 
 epidemic sickness In, 448, 449 
 
 Government of, 458 
 
 grain traffic at, 450 
 
 preponderance of Brahmin caste in, 459 
 
 ^ Presidency, deputation to, 443 
 
 \^^ distress from famine, 443 
 
 ^ relief wages at, 449 
 
 n 
 
 V . 
 
 V - 
 
 MAYO. 
 
 Madras, report of famine, 458 
 
 I visit to, 302 
 
 I Madura, visit to, 453 
 \;; — description of, 454 
 
 Magazines under Native management, 144 
 
 Magdala, expedition against, 337 
 
 Magistracy in Panjab, 70 
 
 Mahabalipuram, near Madras, fane of, 450 
 
 Mahableshwar, in Bombay Presidency, 322 
 
 Mahadeo Wasudeo Barvg, of Bombay, 478 
 
 Mahanaddy, river, 249, 250, 251 
 
 scenery of, 252 
 
 Maharaja of Jammu and Cashmir, 112, 142 
 
 of Pattiala, 140 
 
 of Jhind, 140, 141 
 
 Maharajas sect, 261 
 
 Mahratta Brahmins, 269, 305, 497 
 
 country, 481, 483 
 
 court and camp, 235 
 
 festivals, 236 
 
 landlords, 235 
 
 language, 254 
 
 nationality, 234 
 
 nobles, 236 
 
 officials, 254 
 
 rule in Nagpur, 234 
 
 State, 234 
 
 Mahrattas, 234, 460, 469 
 
 tenure established by, 237 
 
 Malleson, Geo. Bruce, 170, 176 
 
 Maine, Sir Henry Sumner, 332, 333 : Pref. vii. 
 
 legislator, 333, 382 
 
 Malabar coast, 222 
 
 Malthus, 496 
 
 Manchester Cotton Supply Association, 272 
 
 Mandii, ruined city, 482 
 
 " Man-eater " tiger, 246 
 
 Magnaldas Nathubai, of Bombay, 259 
 
 Mangles, Ross, of Bengal, 412 
 
 Manjha, in the Panjab, 79 
 
 Manockji Cursetjl, of Bombay, 267, 477 
 
 Mangel, C. 6., in Panjab, 55, 64 
 
 Mansfield, Sir Wm., on finance, 348, 349 
 
 Commander-in-Chief, Bombay, 256 
 
 India, 319 
 
 chief of the staff, 128 
 
 departure from India, 374 
 
 views regarding gold, 348 
 
 Mant, Major Charles, 478 
 
 Market, Crawford, 277 
 
 Marlborough school under Cotton, 331 
 
 Marshraan, of Serampore, 24 
 
 Marwar, in Rajputana, 235 
 
 Marwari bankers, 235 
 
 Marwaris of Rajputana, 430 
 
 Massey, Rt. Hon. Wm., 335 
 
 finance minister, 347 
 
 imposes license-tax, 348 
 
 Mathew, of Guzerat railway, 264 
 
 Mathra, district of, 33 
 
 Matla, river, near Calcutta, 273 
 
 Mayo, Earl of, 217 : Pref. vii. 
 
 Mayo, Lord, 250 
 
 aptitude for military affairs, 273 
 
 arranges provincial services, 377 
 
520 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 MAYO. 
 
 Mayo arrival at Calcutta, 349 
 as Governor-General, 366 
 
 — assassination of, 387 
 
 attention to public works, 377-378 
 
 sanitation, 381 
 
 contrast between J. Lawrence and, 366 
 
 financial policy of, 374 
 
 his financial management, 349, 358 
 
 his funeral at Calcutta, 388, 389 
 
 his popularity, 385 
 
 ideas about railways, 378-380 
 
 maintains Lawrence's financial policy, 349 
 
 meets Amir of Caubul at Amballa, 369 
 
 policy regarding Central Asia, 369, 371 
 
 projects for internal Improvement, 381,382 
 
 qualifications and character, 367 
 
 raceives H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh, 
 
 384 
 Medical instruction, 5, 10 
 
 schools, 473 
 
 school at Calcutta, 411 
 
 in Bombay, 478 
 
 Melvill, Henry, 18 
 
 Philip S., 482 
 
 in Panjab, 85 
 
 Mesiua, river, 417, 438 
 Mekran boundary, 370 
 Jlerewether, Sir Wm., in Sind, 485 
 Mersey dock trust, 480 
 Metcalfe, Charles (Lord), 50 
 
 Mr. C. T., 404, 412 
 
 -^— Sir Charles, correspondence of, 295 
 
 conduct of, 296 
 
 Meeaday, 210 
 
 Meerut, insurrection at, 143, 166 
 Mhow, iu Central India, 482 
 Middleton, Bishop, 22 
 'Military Board, 118 
 
 \ • Department, 69 
 
 Finance Department, 176, 200, 214, 218 
 
 MUmau, Robert, 332 
 
 death of, 433 
 
 Minutes published by Dalhousie, 104 
 
 comprising Dalhousie's administration, 104 
 
 Mission-stations, 5 
 
 Missions, Christian, in Northern India, 31 
 
 in Bengal, 331, 429 
 
 — in Southern India, 455, 456 
 Mitchell, Dr. Murray, missionary, 258 
 M'Leod, Dr. Norman, 302 
 
 his character, 302-303 
 
 Mob, Indian, 506 
 
 Mogul Empress, 55 
 
 Molavi, Abd-ul-Latlf, 426 
 
 Montgomery, Robert, 43, 50, 55, 64 : Pref. vli. 
 
 character of, 65 
 
 colleague of John Lawrence, 94 
 
 his services in mutinies, 146 
 
 John Lawrence's opinion of, 95 
 
 Judicial Commissioner, 84, 86 
 
 succeeds John Lawrence, 155 
 
 supervision of Civil Code, 87 
 
 Morris, J. H., iu Central Provinces, 253 
 Mosques at Lahore, 155, 156 
 Mouatt, D. inspector of prisons, 436 
 
 ^1 
 
 NAPIER. 
 
 Moulmein, 210 
 
 Moore, J. G., of Bombay, 482 
 
 Muezzin, the, 297 
 
 Muhammadan education, 410, 411 
 
 element at Lahore, 155 
 
 in the north-west, 459 
 
 faith, 500 
 
 Mubammadans, Deccani, 301 
 
 Bengali, 419 
 
 at Calcutta, 391 
 
 Muhammed All Roghe, of Bombay, 476 
 Muir, John, 33 
 
 William, 20. 49 
 
 Foreign Secretiiry, 303 
 
 Lieutenant-Governor, 3"3 
 
 secretary to Canning, 172 
 
 Mulraj, of Multan, 39, 41 
 Mul Sing, Rai, of Punjab, 151 
 Mulkar Rao, of Baroda, 306 
 Multan, 39,41 
 
 railway to, 92 
 
 Municipal improvement, 180 
 Municipalities, 7, 503 
 
 of Calcutta and Bombay, 11 
 
 Municipality of Calcutta, 423, 424 
 
 of Bombay, 277, 479, 480 
 
 Munro, Sir Thomas, 445, 446 
 
 Ufe of, 452 
 
 Muscat, Sultan of, 338 
 
 Mutiny and rebellion, mention of, 2 
 
 of 1857, 115 
 
 of Native army, 126 
 
 origin of, 144 
 
 war of the, 126 
 
 Mysore, famine to, 457 
 
 my sojourn in, 458 
 
 the Chief Commissioner of, 338 
 
 visit to, 457, 222 
 
 NAGPUR, 105, 106, 108, HI, 247, 255 
 
 Christian cemeteries at, 240 
 
 church at, 239 
 
 city of, 236 
 
 conspiracy at, 112 
 
 cotton fields at, 268 
 
 exhibition at, 240 
 
 fire at, 236 
 
 irregular force, 233 
 
 palace at, 236 
 
 peasantry of, 238 
 
 railway to, 249 
 
 schools at, 241 
 
 territory, 234 
 
 Nagpur, visit to, 207 
 
 Naldnlg, hills of, 225 
 
 Nana Ahirao, of Nagpur, 235 
 
 Nanabhai Haridas, of Bombay, 477 
 
 Nandidiirg, in Mysore, visit to, 457 
 
 Naoshera, station of, 152 
 
 Napier, Lord, Governor of Madras, 302 
 
 acts as Governor-General, 359, 391 
 
 Robert (Lord of Magdala), 78, 128, 149, 
 
 183 
 Chief Engineer, Panjab, 91 
 
INDEX. 
 
 521 
 
 NAPIER. 
 
 Napier, Commander-in-Chief of Bombay army, 
 337 
 
 India, 374 
 
 departure from India, 439 
 
 military achievements, 128, 149, 183 
 
 • military member of Council, 317 
 
 opinion on railway giiage, 379 
 
 Sir Charles, 42, 52, 63 
 
 Commander-in-Chief, 356 
 
 controversy with Dalhousie, 113, 114 
 
 improves barracks, 1 1 7 
 
 on Sind frontier, 316 
 
 repairs canals in Sind, 485 
 
 Narendra Krishna, of Calcutta, 427 
 
 Nalhubhai, Sir Mangaldas, of Bombay, 477 
 . National education, establishment of, 121 
 ^ Native army, 3 
 \' formerly too large, 115 
 
 chiefs, 89 
 
 Christian church, 500, 501 
 
 Christian village. 32 
 
 Christians, 500 
 
 number of, 500 
 
 girls, school for, 121 
 
 V Infantry, 66th, 114 
 
 Judges, 5 
 
 merchants. 273 
 
 V ofBcers and soldiers services in famine, 404 
 
 ofiBcials, 5 
 
 population, conduct of, 137 
 
 practitioners, 75 
 
 ress on Bengal famine, 407 
 
 princes, 35 
 
 rule, 71 
 
 servants, 2 
 
 ■ society, 261 
 
 ■ soldiery, 144 
 
 States, 7, 12, 501, 502, 505 
 
 annexation of, 105 
 
 conservative element of, lOS 
 
 not superior to British rule, 502 
 
 Natives, advance of, in physical science, 498 
 
 customs of, 36-38 
 
 . educated, 498, 502 
 
 ^^ in Native States, 501 
 
 demands of, 502 
 
 giatitude of, 145 
 
 improved moral standard of, 430, 431, 494 
 
 influence of education on, 494, 495 
 
 originality in, 4S5, 499 
 
 originality of, 497 
 
 — education not likely to check originality 
 
 of, 498 
 
 promotion of, 10 
 
 skill in authorship, 498, 499 
 
 training of, 503 
 
 Nawab Abd-ul-Ghani, 415, 428 
 
 Amir Ali, 428 
 
 Abd-ul-Latif, 426 
 
 Nearchus, navigator, 484 
 Negapatam, in southern India, 453 
 Negotiable Securities Bill, 333 
 Nellore, visit to, 451 
 Nepal, kingdom of, 308 
 conduct ol, 309 
 
 \. 
 
 OUDB. 
 
 Nepal, native ruler of, 435 
 Nepalese State, 150 
 Nerbadda, the, 228, 232 
 
 viaduct across the, 264, 482 
 
 Nicholson, John, 57, 128 
 
 character of, 132 
 
 Nicholson, Jobn, colmnn despatched to Delhi, 133 
 
 exploits of, 133 
 
 visit to scene of his death, 133 
 
 Nldawattam, cinchona gardens of, 453 
 Nightingale, Florence, 317 
 Nilgiri Mountains, 179, 452 
 
 peak, 453 
 
 Nira, river, canal in Deccan, 468 
 Ni^am, 110 
 
 dominions of, 110, 282, 283 
 
 gives up Berar to the British, 110 
 
 govenmient of, 110, 112 
 
 his character, 287 
 
 his death, 301 
 
 his failing health, 298, 299 
 
 his jealousy towards Salar Jang, 287 
 
 reason for, 289 
 
 of the Deccan, 220, 221 
 
 parade of his troops, 293 
 
 position of, 283 
 
 visit of the Resident to, 285 
 
 " Non-regulatiou " system, 75 
 Norman, Colonel, 319 
 
 assassination of Mr. Chief Justice, 385 
 
 G., of Bombay, 482 
 
 Sir Henry, 319 
 
 Northbrook, Lord, Governor-General, 360, 361 
 390 : Pref. vii. 
 
 arrival in Calcutta, 392 
 
 departure from Calcutta, 437 
 
 on board the Eliotas, 415 
 
 mastery of finance, 396 
 
 proceedings to stop the famine, 394, 395, 401 
 
 visit to Bombay, 392 
 
 North of India, 398 
 
 voyage down the Indus, 392 
 
 Northcole, Sir Stafford, 347 
 Nortli-westem Provinces, 167, 172 
 
 . scarcity in, 393 
 
 settlement, 3 
 
 Nouroji Fardiinji of, Bombay, 477 
 
 OLD DECCAN DAYS, popular work, 367 
 Oodeypur, in Eajputana, 482 
 
 Kana of, 482 
 
 Opium, Laing's opinion regarding, 220 
 Order of Star of India, 253, 439 
 
 of Crown of India, 429 
 
 Orissa, famine in, 327, 410 
 
 canals in, 411 
 
 state of m 1874, 3i)7, 398 
 
 visit to, 421 
 
 Ormiston, Thomas, of Bombay, 472 
 Oude, annexation of, 109, 111 
 
 effect of atmexation, 113, 149 
 
 ex-King of, 423 
 
 landowners of, 172 
 
 native chiefs of, 228 
 
522 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 OUDE. 
 
 Oude, tenant-right In, 303, 323 
 
 Ouseley, Major J. W. J., 19 
 
 Out ram, Sir James, 183 
 
 Overland journey, 20 
 
 Oxus, tlie, river, 343 
 
 Russian approach towarda, 341, 34 1 
 
 PACHMARI, hills of, 232 
 
 sacred shrines at, 233 
 
 Pacification of provinces, 117 
 
 Pack-bulloclis in Central Provinces, 248 
 
 Pagah In the Nizam's dominions, 289 
 
 Palanquin, 29 
 
 Pal Ghat near Coimbatore, 452 
 
 Palmer and Rumbold, Messrs., 295, 296 
 
 Palmerston, Lord, 319 
 
 Pahii hills, in southern peninsula, 452, 454 
 
 Pandit Manphul, 151 
 
 Panjab, journey to, 51 
 
 administration of, by board, 65-82 
 
 by John Lawrence, 84-101 
 
 after the mutinies, 146, 147 
 
 annexation of, 111 
 
 cultivators in the, 324 
 
 disturbance in the, 391 
 
 frontier force, 68 
 
 \ Panjabl people, temper of, 147 
 
 troops, 134, 149 
 
 Panther, 245 
 Paper currency, 213 
 
 department, 355 
 
 introduced by Wilson, 196-199 
 
 settled by Laing, 213 
 
 Parsls of Bombay, 258, 460 
 
 •^^ view of female education, 267 
 
 Patna, troops at, 160 
 
 conspiracy at, 386 
 
 H.R.H. the Prince of Wales visits, 440 
 
 Pattiala, chief of, 140, 141, 308 : Pref. viii. 
 
 Peacock Barnes, Sir. 122, 178, 198 
 
 Pearson, Capt., forester, 244 
 
 Peasant proprietors, 3, 8, 237, 491, 505 
 
 Peel, Sir Lawrence, 22 
 
 Pegu, annexation of, 109, 111 
 
 Peile, J. B., of Bombay, 475, 478, 481 
 
 Pelly, Colonel, 338 
 
 Peninsular and Oriental Co., steamships of, 6 
 
 Pensions, 239 
 
 Percival, E. H., of Bombay, 482 
 
 Permauent'settlement, 194, 384 
 
 of Bengal, 325 
 
 Persia, aggressions in Afghanistan, 370 
 
 Shah of, 165 
 
 Persian Gulf, British expedition to, 165, 166 
 
 affairs of the, 338 j 
 
 Peshawar, visit to, 151 
 
 expediency of retaining, 152 
 
 valley of, 152 
 
 Peshwas of Poona, 235 
 Peterson, Mr., of Bombay, 477 
 Phayre, Sir Arthur, 209 : Prtf. vii. 
 
 General. Sir.Robert, 487 
 
 Pir Panjal, crest of, 161 
 
 " Pirs," or mountain pealts, 162 
 
 PURI. 
 
 PIshin, 487 
 Plague of rats, 465 
 Plane trees at Cashmlr, 162 
 Police, 5, 10 
 
 organization of, 69, 70, 201 
 
 reorganization of, 177, 233 
 
 commission, 233 
 
 Political department, 280 
 Pondicherl, 449 
 
 governor of, 450 
 
 Poona, visit to, 222 
 
 afBlidted institution at, 478 
 
 canal near, 468 
 
 college of Civil Engineering at, 263 
 
 fine buildings at, 278 
 
 fire at, 470 
 
 Poplar avenues at Cashmir, 162 
 
 Postage, establishment of, 9 
 
 Postal lines, 6 
 
 Post-ofBee under Dalhousle, 120 
 
 Pratt, Archdeacon, 433 
 
 Premchand Roychand, of Bombay, 259 
 
 Presidency seaports, 8 
 
 banks, 196 
 
 President in Council, 398 
 Press, newspaper. 169, 480 
 Price, Mr., of Karachi, 483 
 Priesthood, 504 
 
 of Sikh sect, 74 
 
 Primary education, 9 
 
 Thomason, father of, 48 
 
 under John Lawrence, 79 
 
 Prince of Wales, H.R.H., the visit of, 440, 441 
 
 lays first stone of dock at Bombay, 479 
 
 statue of, 479 
 
 Prisons, their management, 5 
 
 Improvement of, 10 
 
 reform, 75, 76 
 
 Pritchard, C, of Bombay, 482 
 Proclamation of the Queen, 152 
 
 by Canning in Oudh, 173 
 
 Proconsul, Dalhousle the great, 102 
 Professional classes, 491 
 
 men, 491 
 
 Prome, city of, 209 
 
 hill of, 210 
 
 Propert, W., of Bombay, 482 
 Proprietors of land, 92 
 Prospect point at Simla, 345 
 Protected Sikh chiefs, 112 
 
 States, 139 
 
 Protestant Cburch, 5 
 
 missions, 9, 33 
 
 Protestants, 451, 456 
 Provincial services, 376-377 
 
 financial, 216, 357 
 
 Public instruction, 9 
 
 department for, 121 
 
 director of, 430 
 
 works, 118 
 
 department, 118 
 
 under Lord Mayo, 378 
 
 improved by Ualhousie, 119 
 
 Punchayets In the Sikh array, 100 
 Puri, in Orlssa, 422 
 
INDEX. 
 
 523 
 
 QUESTIONS. 
 
 QUESTIONS relating to British rule, 489-492 
 Quetta, occupation of, 340 
 basin of, 488 
 
 RAIKES, Charles, 57, 85 
 Railway, Ahmednagar, 464 
 
 at Lakkl pass in Slnd, 484 
 
 East India, 404 
 
 from Calcutta to the Ganges, 121 
 
 from Indus to Sibi, 487 
 
 Baroda and Central India, 481 
 
 in Behar, 399, 398, 406 
 
 In Central Provinces, 249 
 
 In Madras, 445, 446 
 
 in Northern Bengal, 396 
 
 In Panjab, 92 
 
 in time of famine, 406 
 
 in western India, 263, 264 
 
 to Hyderabad, 299 
 
 Great India Peninsular, 481 
 
 Railways, Introduction of, 6 
 
 in India, by Dalhousie. 120 
 
 Rai Mul Sing, 151 
 
 Rainy season in Bengal, 413 
 
 Raja of Mysore, 222 
 
 Sahib-dyal, 151 
 
 Tej Sing, 151 
 
 Rajendra Lai Mittra, 428 
 Rajmehal, in Bengal, 29 
 Rajput bravery, 48 
 
 princes, 112, 304, 482 
 
 Rajputana, States of, 64, 385 
 
 station of, 482 
 
 Rajpilts in the Panjab, 70 
 Ramanath Tagore, of Calcutta, 426 
 Rambhir Sing, Maharaja of Cashmir, 307 
 Rampur, Nawab of, 308 
 Rana of TJdeypur, 478 
 Rangun, 207 
 
 description of, 208 
 
 pagodas, 210 
 
 Ranikhet, In Himalayas, 321 
 Ranjit Sing, tomb of, 55 
 
 government of, 71 
 
 widow of, 150 
 
 Ravenscroft, Edward, 481 
 
 Ravi river, 79, 91 
 
 RajTnond in Xizam's service, 293 
 
 " Record of Rights," 77, 88 
 
 " Reformed troops " at Hyderabad. 292 
 
 Reform of Post-office by Dalhousie, 120 
 
 Resency, Council of, 72 
 
 Regiment, 24th, 40 
 
 Regulations, framing of, 3 
 
 Relief of famine in Behar and Bengal, 406 
 
 Report, Punjab, first, 55 
 
 first and second, 101 
 
 "Representation," political, 503 
 Representative institutions, 503 
 Residency, the, 284 
 Residentship of Hyderabad, 281 
 Revenue, Agriculture and Commerce depart- 
 ment of, 382 
 
 8ANTHALS. 
 
 Revenues of India, 365 
 
 Rewards offered for killing wild beasts, 346 
 
 Reynolds, Herbert, of Bengal, 412 
 
 nhotas State Barge, 414, 415, 438 
 
 Richey, J. E., of Bombay, 482 
 
 Ridge at Delhi, 130 
 
 Ritchie, William, of Calcutta, 332 
 
 River kingdom of Bengal, 413-418 
 
 scenery, Chittagong, 419 
 
 Rivers of Central Provinces, 250-252 
 
 Panjab, navigation of, 91, 92 
 
 Road-making in India, 6 
 
 at Calcutta, 423 
 
 Roads In Central Provinces, 247 
 
 in western India, 262, 471 
 
 Roberts, Arthur, of Panjab, 85 
 Robertson, Mr., of Bellary, 446 
 
 of Madras, 478 
 
 Robinson, Mr, 177 
 
 Sir AVilliam, 201 
 
 Rohilla tribe, 292 
 
 Roman Catholics, 431, 453 
 
 " Roman hand," the trace of the, 104 
 
 R6ri, town of, in Sind, 484 
 
 Rose, Sir Hugh, 128, 149 
 
 succeeds Lord Clyde, 175 
 
 now Lord Strathnairn, 175 
 
 Rupee debt, 364 
 
 Rural muuicipalities, 11 
 
 Rurki, college at, 48 
 
 Russell, Wm. Howard, 139 
 
 Russian power in Afghanistan, 340 
 
 Russians, 93, 304, 340, 343, 344 
 
 Rustamji of Bombay, 258 
 
 " Ryot Wari " settlements, 268 
 
 SAILORS' HOME at Bombay, 277. 479 
 
 at Calcutta, 423 
 
 Sakkar, town of, 484, 487 
 
 Salar Jang, 224, 286, 497 : Pref. vlii. 
 
 behaviour to the Nizam, 286 
 
 conduct with regard to debts incurred, 
 
 295 
 
 description of, 288 
 
 has a prominent part In the Regency, 301 
 
 narrow escape from death, 302 
 
 position strengthened, 293 
 
 with regard to the Nizam, 288 
 
 Salaries, revision of, 329 
 Salem, district of, 452 
 Salisbury, Marquis of, 394 
 Salwin, the river, 211 
 Samarkand, 343 
 Sambalpur, 409 
 
 annexation of, 105 
 
 " Sanad " of adoption, 108, 173 
 Sandeman, Sir Robert, 486, 487 
 Sandhurst, Lord, on finance, 348, 349 
 
 : see Mansfield. 
 
 Sanitary department, 10 
 
 commissioner, 318 
 
 Sanitation, 5 
 Santhals, the, 430 
 
524 
 
 IJJDEX. 
 
 SARGENT. 
 
 Sargent, Rev., Missionary, 454 : Pref. vili. 
 
 Sassoon, David, 260 
 
 Sir Albert, 477 
 
 Hospital at Poena, 278 
 
 Satlej, crosalng of, 52 
 
 river, 91 
 
 Satpura range, 232, 249, 482 
 
 forests of, 233 
 
 mountains, 237, 240 
 
 slope, 298 
 
 Sattara, 105, 106, 111 
 
 ^— . adoption refused, 107, 1 08 
 
 mutiny prevented at, 112, 113 
 
 Saunders, Mr. C. B., 222, 457 
 
 in Mysore, 457 
 
 John O'Brien, 184 
 
 Savings banlis, 349 
 
 " Scheme of Provincial Services," 376 
 
 Schiller, Ferdinand, of Calcutta, 273 
 
 Schlich, Dr, 419 
 
 School of Natives, old and new, 180 
 
 Scott, Hercules, at Jalander, 52 
 
 Michael, 258 
 
 Seaports of Presidency towns, 3 
 
 Searle, Lieutenant, 481 
 
 Sebastopol, 93 
 
 Secretariat of the Panjab Board, 69 
 
 Secretary to John Lawrence, 83 
 
 Seistan, 370 
 ^ Sepoys, 166, 144, 115, 126, 144 
 
 Serajganj floating city, 418 
 
 Seringapatam, capture of, 222 
 
 visit to, 223 
 
 Serampore, in Bengal, 24 
 
 Seton-Karr, Walter Scott, 179, 184 
 
 Settlement of land revenue, 89 
 
 in Panjab, 76, 87 
 
 in Central Provinces, 237 
 
 . in Bombay, 267 
 
 of provinces, 117 
 
 Shamomoye, Native lady of Bengal, 429 
 
 Shiah sect, 156 
 
 " Shiliaris," huntsmen. 246 
 
 Shillong, heights of, 438 
 
 Shir Ali, Amir of Caubul, 303, 313, 315, 367 
 
 description of, 363 
 
 his fears and hopes, 371 
 
 Shepherd, G. F., 482 
 
 Shevaroy hills, 452 
 
 Sholapur in the Decc;in, 226 
 
 Shuttleworth, A., forester, 471 
 
 Shwe Dagon pagoda, 208 
 
 Siam, King of, 390 
 
 Sibi, railway to, 487 
 
 Sikli army, disbandmeut of, 67 
 
 faith, 72 
 
 government, 79 
 
 nation, 100 
 
 V troops, 149, 150, 155 
 
 Sikhim, 437 
 
 monasteries of, 438 
 
 Simla, scenery of, 52, 53 
 
 Lord Nurthbrook at, 392 
 
 scene at, 345 
 
 TEA. 
 
 Simla, residence of Government at, 320, 321 
 
 Sarva Janik Sabha, 498 
 
 Sind, province of, 1S3, 255, 316, 392, 487 
 
 administration of, 485 
 
 climate of, 484, 486 
 
 landscape of, 483, 484 
 
 natives of, 484 
 
 Sindhia, the Maharaja, 112 
 
 State, 149, 305 
 
 Smith, George, 24, 184 
 
 Colonel Baird, 79, 184 
 
 Rev. AVilliam, 31, 32 : Pref. viii. 
 
 Sobha Bazaar family, of Calcutta, 426 
 
 Society for propagation of the Gosp'^1. 4 54 
 
 "Solomon's throne " at Cashmir, 162 
 
 Son' river canal, 396 
 
 Souter, Sir Frank, of Bombay, 479 
 
 South Mahratta country, cotton-fields of, 268, 
 
 Southern States, resistance of, 273 
 
 Sri-rangam, Island of, near Trichinopoly, 453 
 
 St. Xavier's College, 433 
 
 Stamp duties, 181 
 
 Stanton, Captain, 399 
 
 Star of India, Order of, 258, 439 
 
 Statistics, general, 12 
 
 Statue of H.M. the Queen, 479 
 
 of H.R.H. the Prmce of Wales, 479 
 
 of John Laurence, 345 
 
 of Lord Hardiuge, 29 
 
 of Lord Northbrook, 437 
 
 Staveley, Sir Charles, 480 
 Steamers in Indian waters, 6 
 Stein, Archbishop, 433 
 
 Stephen, James FitzJames, 383, 392 : Pref. vli. 
 Sterling debt, 364 
 
 Stewart, General Sir Donald, 387, 486, 488 
 Stokes, 'Whitley, in legislation, 383 
 Strachey, Colonel (now General) R., 329, 380, 
 478 
 
 John, 252, 348 
 
 Sir John, 374, 375, 388, 443 : Pref. vu. 
 
 Strange, the jurist, 87 
 Strathnalrn, Lord : see Rose. 
 Subsidiary force at Hyderabad, 221 
 
 ' Sundar-ban," the, 418 
 Sunderbund delta, 418 
 
 forest of, 419 
 
 Supreme Courts, 3 
 
 amalgamation of, 8 
 
 Surat city, 4 74 
 
 disturbance in, 475 
 
 Surplus, finjmcial, 359, 361 
 Sykes, Colonel William Henry, 19 
 
 Syud Idrus, of Bombay, 476 
 
 TAIT, Archibald Campbell, Archbishop, 18 
 
 Tagores, the family in Bengal, 426 
 
 Talukdars, 173, 323 
 
 Tanjore, town and district, 453 
 
 Tassy, Garcin de, 498 
 
 Taylor, Reynell, 57 
 
 Sir Alexander, 78 
 
 bravery of, 132 
 
 Tea planting, 4, 179 
 
INDEX. 
 
 525 
 
 TEA. 
 
 Tea, culture of, 121, 170 
 Telegu race, 282 
 Tenant-right, 3, 8, 238 
 Tenants of various classes, 89 
 Tenures of land, 237 
 Thall Ghat, railway incline, 263 
 Theodorus, King, 337 
 
 Thomason, James, Lieutenant - Governor, 29 
 Pref. vii. 
 
 character of, 43-47 
 
 compared with Frere, 279 
 
 completes landed settlement, 46 
 
 educational policy of, 121 
 
 establishes engineering college, 48 
 
 farewell letter from, 32 
 
 government of, 31 
 
 introduces education, 48 
 
 promotes irrigation, 48 
 
 regarding education, 79 
 
 urges prosecution of Ganges Canal, 120 
 
 Thompson, Mr. Rivers, 412 
 Thornton, John, 48 
 
 Edward, 43, 84 
 
 character of, 33, 34 
 
 Tiger in Central Provinces, 245 
 Timber, supply of, 121 
 Times, newspaper, 397 
 Tinnevelly, visit to, 454 
 
 Bishop at, 454 
 
 Tippoo Saib, 222 
 
 the Muhammadan iconoclast, 222 
 
 Tobacco-tax, 192, 195 
 
 abandoned, 216 
 
 Canning disapproves of, 181, 195 
 
 proposed by Wilson, 181 
 
 Todar Mall M' jister, 497 
 
 Tod at Abu, 483 
 
 Tours of state, 173 
 
 " Towers of victory," 483 
 
 Town Hall, Calcutta, meeting at, 336, 397 
 
 Townsend, Meredith, 24 
 
 Trade, Indian foreign, 8, 365 
 
 Trades' Association, 425 
 
 Transfer of Property Bill, 333 
 
 Trans-Indus frontier, 92, 150 
 
 Transport of Government grain, 399 
 
 Travancore, minister of, 3C6 
 
 Bishop at, 4 55 
 
 Trevelyan, Sir Charles, 193 
 
 finance minister, 334, 335 
 
 leaves Madras, 193, 201 
 
 Trichinopoly, visit to, 453 
 Trunk Road, 78 
 
 Grand, 129 
 
 Tumbadra, the river, 444, 447 
 Tuticorin, port of, 454 
 Tweedie, Major, 296 
 
 ULWAR, Cluefof,483 
 Dncovenanted Service, 334 
 Universities, incorporation of, 9 
 
 at Bombay, 478 
 
 Calcutta, 478 
 
 WODEHOtfSE. 
 
 Universities, Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras, 180 
 Utacamand in Nilglri Hills, 321, 453 
 
 VEHAR LAKE, near Bombay, 480 
 Vellore, town of, 451 
 "Vermin, rats, plague of, 465 
 Vernacular education, 456, 499 
 
 press of Bengal, 429 
 
 Vernaculars, Indian, culture of, 499 
 Vice-chancellor, Calcutta University, 333 
 
 Bombay, 477 
 
 Viceroy, office of, 392 
 
 Victoria Museum at Bombay, 277 
 
 Vindhya mountains, 232, 482 
 
 Vishwanath Narain Mandlik, Bombay, 259, 476 
 
 Volunteers, Calcutta, 314 
 
 Bombay, 481 
 
 movement, 481 
 
 WAHABI power in Arabia, 338, 386 
 
 Wallace, of Sind, 485 
 
 Wards, Court of, 435 
 
 Warre, General H., 481 
 
 " Waste " land, 179 
 
 " Waste land rules," 179 
 
 Well at Cawnpore, 128 
 
 Wellesley, General Arthur, 226, 298 
 
 Wells, Sir Mordaunt, 196 
 
 West, Mr. Raymond, of Bombay, 477 
 
 Western education, 494, 498, 499 
 
 literature, 499 
 
 Western Ghat mountains, 255, 469 
 
 -^ scenery of, 473 : Pref. ix. 
 
 Westropp, Sir M., Chief Justice of Bombay, 478 
 
 Wheeler, Mrs., 429 
 
 Sir Hugh, 128 
 
 Widow of Ranjit Sing, 150 
 Widows of Raja of Nagpur, 235 
 Wild animals, 245 
 
 elephants, 247 
 
 Williams, Monier, 19, 426 
 Wilson, Horace Hayman, 19 
 
 Bishop, 22 
 
 James, arrival in India, 175, 176 : Pref. vii. 
 
 arrival in Calcutta, 187. 
 
 as a financier, 187 
 
 as an economist, 186 
 
 character of his intellect, 190 
 
 his principle of paper currency, 199 
 
 finance minister of India, 181 
 
 his funeral, 205 
 
 last illness, 203-205 
 
 on license-tax, 335 
 
 personal characteristics, 188 
 
 produces financial budget, 191 
 
 proposes income tax and other taxes, 181 
 
 summary of budget, 192 
 
 ■ Rev. John, of Bombay, 257 : Pref. viii. 
 
 Sir Archdale, of Delhi, 143 
 
 Windham, General, at Cawupur, 128, 159 
 
 conduct when mutiny threatened, 160 
 
 Wingfield, Charles, of Oudh, 323 
 
 Wodehouse, Sir P., 461, 462, 475, 480 : Pref. vii. 
 
526 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 WOOD. 
 
 Wood, Sir Charles, 109, 121 
 
 Secretary of State, 193, 198, 324 
 
 Woodrow, Henry, 433 
 
 Wordsworth, William, of Bombay, ill 
 
 " Writership," 18 
 
 Wyllie, John, 303, 342 
 
 Wynaad Hills, 453 
 
 WyoDB, Henry Le Poer, 303 
 
 XAVIER, Saint, CoUege, 433 
 
 ZOROASTER. 
 
 YARKA.ND, 340, 371 
 
 Yule, Henry, 209 
 
 Sir George, 281, 284 
 
 ZEMINDAKS, 194, 353, 40T, 411, 435, 504 
 
 in Bengal, 426 
 
 Zemindaris, petty, 237, 449 
 Zenana Mission classes,. 429 
 Zone of jungle, scenery of, 251 
 Zoroaster, mention of, 257 
 
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