Across India; Or, Live Boys in the Far East
Page 15
CHAPTER XIII
LORD TREMLYN DISCOURSES MORE ABOUT INDIA
The delightful weather of the forenoon charmed the party as they walked thedeck. It was mid-summer in the middle of the winter, as they looked at it;for the almanac of home lingered in their minds, though the days werelonger. The sun was rather warm on both sides of noon, though it was notoppressive, and the abundant awnings protected the passengers from its moresearching rays.
Statistical as the lecture had been, the viscount had made it interestingby softening the figures with his comparisons; and some of his points, evenin regard to the States, were new to them, and especially in regard to theUnited Kingdom. In about half an hour they were summoned to Conference Hallagain for a continuation of the lecture.
"From the vast emigration to your country, ladies and gentlemen, I supposethere must be a great variety of people on your territory. The Germans, theEnglish, the Irish, the Scandinavians, the Italians, and othernationalities, in the process of assimilation, although very many of themhave become as American as Americans themselves, take the manners andcustoms, the national peculiarities, of the fatherland with them.
"The Irish drink whiskey, the Germans beer, and the Italians are apt tohave a stilletto about them. Then the antecedents, climate, politics, andother influences, have made the East differ from the West, and the Southfrom both of them. Lynch law prevails to a considerable extent in thelatter, never in the Eastern and Middle States, and very rarely in theWest. But all Americans speak the same language; and foreigners arecompelled to learn English in order to get on at all, and it has become oneof the bonds of your union."
"In India there are not less than twenty-seven languages and dialects inuse; and they indicate so many different kinds of people, for we can hardlycall them nations, though in many respects they are such. This excellentmap behind me, which is worthy of the highest praise as a home-madeproduction, will enable me to give you a better idea of my subject."
"The ingenious artist has colored the different divisions so that you canmake them out. The three presidencies are the most notable divisions, andthey include all the inferior ones. The Bengal Presidency includes thenorth-eastern part, from Afghanistan to Burma. The Madras, the southeasternpart, with most of the peninsula. The Bombay covers the greater part of thewest coast. The Deccan is a portion of the peninsula."
"It would take me three weeks to describe all the divisions of India, and Ishall not attempt to do it. It would be better done as you travel over thecountry. Eighteen of them are Directly governed by the English, andthirteen of them are still under the nominal control of the native princes;but all the latter have a British resident as the adviser of the reigningrajah.
"The English-speaking people of India are a mere bagatelle compared withthe enormous population, being only 238,499; but with the army they havebeen able to hold the country in subjection. The British government takes afatherly interest in the native states, and they have been loyal withoutexception in later years, though the history of India will show that notall of them have always been so."
"Until the year 1858 the government was in the hands of the East IndiaCompany, of which you will learn more in the history of India. In 1877 hermajesty, the queen, assumed the title of Empress of India, and she is theruler of the country. The government of the highest resort in the affairsof India is a secretary of state, residing in London. He is a member of thecabinet, and has an under-secretary. He is assisted by a council of ten orfifteen members."
"The executive government, administered in India, is the governor-generalin council. He is the viceroy of the crown, and is assisted by six membersof the executive council, each of whom has his function in the affairs ofthe state; and the commander-in-chief of the army is _ex-officio_ aseventh member. This body is really the cabinet of the viceroy. The lawsare made by this council, with from six to a dozen members appointed by theviceroy. This is the way the machine is operated.
"The civil service of the government is rendered mainly by Europeans,though the natives are eligible to office as employees. The English systemin the appointment of its officials prevails, and all candidates areregularly examined. Those of you who have looked over Bradshaw's 'Guide toIndia' will find descriptions of the several examinations for variousemployments."
"I wish the English system could be transferred to the United States," saidUncle Moses with great unction.
"You have made a beginning, and perhaps you will come to it in time. Thecivil service prevails in the provinces and states of India as well as inthe general government, though the competition is open to the natives.
"The soldiers of the East India Company became the military force of theBritish crown when the government was assumed. The English army in Indianow consists of 74,033 men of all arms, and the native army of 144,735, atotal standing army of 218,786, which is its strength at the present time.It is a curious fact that, as the native troops are recruited by voluntaryenlistment, all castes and races, including Brahmins, are drawn in by thegood pay and the pension promised.
"The navy of the East India Company was superseded by the royal navy in1863; and a dozen or fifteen ships of war are stationed in these waters,with an admiral as commander-in-chief, whose headquarters are at Bombay.The Indian treasury contributes annually to the expense of this force. Thegreat steam navigation companies are available to recruit this branch ofthe defence of the country.
"The laws are made, and the institutions of India are regulated, byParliament; and the administration of law and justice is substantially thesame as in the United Kingdom. The regular police consists of 160,000officers and men; and a portion of the expense of this force is defrayed bythe towns, the large cities mainly. Besides the city police, there are560,000 in charge of the villages. The constabulary are natives, withEuropean officers, one to every seven square miles and 1,300 inhabitants,indicating peaceful communities. About 12,000 of the 82,000 persons undersentence are in the convict colonies at the Andaman Islands.
"The educational institutions are progressive, and 400 newspapers arepublished in various languages, most of them with small circulations,20,000 being the largest in India. The post and telegraph systems are wellcared for; and 17,564 miles of railway are in operation, with others inprocess of construction. The manufactures, both in metal and fibre, havealways been remarkably fine, and the quality is still kept up. Cottonfactories have been established, with native labor, which promise greatresults to the industry of the country.
"The loss of life on account of famine, caused by the failure of themonsoon rains, has been terrific in some years. Canals and reservoirs forirrigation as well as navigation have been built in order to remove thisevil. In 1874 L16,000,000 was expended in the relief of sufferers by thegovernment. Since that time a famine fund has been established; and inyears of plenty a million and a half sterling has been set aside for thisobject.
"The excessive density of the population has induced the government tofavor emigration; and over a hundred thousand have gone to BritishGuiana and the West Indies, and other countries. The currency of Indiawill be likely to bother you a little. The silver _rupee_ is the unit;though when you see 'R.x.' over or at the left of a column of figures,it means tens of _rupees_. The nominal value of a _rupee_ is twoshillings, about half a dollar of your money; but it is never worth thatin gold, the standard of England in recent years. It was some years agoat a premium of twopence, but for the last three years it has averagedonly 1_s_. 5-1/8_d_. Its value varies with the gold price of silver inLondon.
"There is also a government paper currency in circulation, amounting toL16,000,000 sterling. The smallest copper coin is the _pie_, worth halfa farthing, equal to a quarter of a cent of your money. Three of themmake a _pice_, a farthing and a half, three-quarters of a cent. Four_pice_ make an _anna_, a penny and a half, three cents. Sixteen _annas_make a _rupee_. Sixteen _rupees_ make a gold _mohur_."
"Those small pieces are about as insignificant
as those of Egypt,"suggested Mr. Woolridge.
"There are not many millionaires among the natives, and these smaller coinsare mostly used among them. They are convenient also to the stingyEnglishman when the plate is passed around in church," added his lordshipwith a chuckle, which pleased Uncle Moses more than the remark. India has apublic debt of about L200,000,000, contracted for railways, canals, war,and other purposes. The revenue last year was L84,932,100, and theexpenditures were L84,661,700. Not a large margin; but you must multiplythe pounds by five, or nearly that, to reduce them to dollars.
"The poppy is extensively cultivated in India; and the export tax inCalcutta amounts to six and a quarter millions, in Bombay, to three and ahalf millions, on the manufactured opium. The producer sends his crop tothe government factory, whence it is sold to the exporter; all this toprevent frauds on the revenue.
"Wages and prices have gone up under British rule. The best class oflaborers get four _annas_ a day, and others not more than two,--six totwelve cents a day. Grain for food is a penny for two pounds,--a cent apound. Women and children earn small wages. The clothing of the poor isscanty and cheap; fuel costs nothing; and rent for dwellings is hardlyknown. The masses in the country, not laborers, live on the land as ownersor lessees. There has never been anything like a poor-law, and ordinarilythere is no need of such.
"It would be quite impossible for me to give the history of India in detailin the limited time at my command, especially as we are now approaching theland. Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese navigator, was the first to reach theEast Indies, in 1498; but his countrymen never did much trading here, beingmore intent upon securing the rich treasures of the Indies. As early as1600 the English turned their attention in this direction. Companies wereformed; but being driven by the Dutch from the islands which they stillhold, they began to make settlements on the coast of this peninsula. Madrasdates from 1639, Bombay from 1686, Calcutta from 1686. The Company said,'Let us make a nation in India;' and they went to work at once to do it.They accomplished their purpose, fostered by the government, raised andborrowed money, and in the course of time had an army and a navy, and ruledthe country. They defeated the Grand Mogul, drove the French out of thepeninsula, and were generally very prosperous.
"In 1833 Parliament revoked all the trading privileges of the company; andtheir dividends to stockholders were then paid out of the taxes assessed onthe people of India. They could not trade and could not govern except underthe control of Parliament. All the wars of India have been fought by theBritish nation. After the mutiny, of which more hereafter, the company wascompelled to cede its powers to the crown in 1858.
"The native soldiers of Bengal were called Sepoys, and the name has beenapplied to all native troops. Some small mutinies occurred in this arm ofthe service in the presidency. Early in 1857 the garrison of Meerut, nearDelhi, revolted, and the British troops failed to suppress it. The Sepoysmarched to Delhi, where they were joined by the native troops and the mob.The descendant of the Great Mogul, who lived in the palace of his ancestorsunder British protection, was proclaimed emperor, and his empirere-established.
"Probably 90,000 soldiers, infantry and cavalry, were in a state ofrebellion. In many instances they had murdered their officers and theirfamilies. They were spread over a broad country, and held forts, arsenals,and treasuries. They were disciplined troops armed with European artilleryand muskets, and supplied with ammunition. In portions of the country theBritish were isolated, as in the camp before Delhi, and in the works atAgra, Allahabad, and Lucknow. The mutiny extended over an area of 100,000square miles, with a population of 40,000,000. It came at the worst seasonof the year; and if it had not been speedily suppressed, it would havespread over the whole country. Many believed that the knell of the empirehad sounded.
"At that time there were 40,000 European troops"--
"Land, ho!" shouted the lookout man; and the cry was repeated by thesailors and the officers.
"We will attend to the land now, and I will resume latter," said LordTremlyn, as he descended from the rostrum.