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l/ſºft'ſ
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////////'ſ
|AIR
S C I
---
A Tour
Through the Famine Districts
of India


：
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ºººººº
Eſase
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PLAGUE SIGNS.

A Tour
Through the Famine Districts
of India
- º
º *} BY
Aº ojº
F. H. s MEREWETHER
REuTER's specſ. FAMINE COMMISSIONER
LONDON
A. D. IN NES AND CO.
BED FORD STREET






- 1898
º,
º
º
º
ºps -
A-13 - -
, M52 -
RICHARD CLAY & Sons, LIMITED,
LoNDON & BUNGAy


(23 - 73836-1
Ço the ºtlother
WHO BORE ME, AND WHO HAS BORNE WITH MY VAGARIES
FOR MORE YEARS THAN I CARE TO COUNT, THESE
RECENT EXPERIENCES OF HER WANDERING BOY
ARE AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED
BY THE AUTHOR.
Saziage C/úð, AVoz. 1897.



PREFACE
THIS book to any one expecting a mere collection of
the horrors of the Indian Famine will be a bitter dis-
appointment. Our great Eastern dependency is passing
through a crisis which has been death-dealing and far-
reaching in its effect upon the suffering millions of
Ind. The author has, as far as possible, merely hinted
at the awful and gruesome sights and scenes which it
was his lot to witness, and which certainly any word-
painting of his would fail to accurately portray. He
has relied upon a series of photographs taken upon the
spot, to bring forcibly before the mind's eye of his
readers, if any, the state and condition of the oriental
races who owe their allegiance to the Queen-Empress.
This volume is the mere journalistic record of a man
who travelled through the length and breadth of the
Famine Districts of India; in which he has endeavoured
to depict, with perhaps too light a brush, the various
scenes that came under his personal observation. He
has gathered up from various and numerous sources
a mass of information—useful or otherwise—and this
he now, with all diffidence, puts into the hands of the
public. It has been too the object of the writer to
relegate, as far as lay in his power, the dry-as-dust
statistics, which are the natural outcome of such an
enormous undertaking as the Famine Relief of India,

viii AA’AºA'A C/E
to the obscurity of the Appendices. Should even one
heart be touched and one purse-string loosened for
the benefit of the naked and starving myriads of
Hindustan, the author of this work will feel that his
reward is far greater than he deserves.
THE AUTHOR.
Savage Cluff,
AVoz. 1897.
A small portion of the matter herein has already seen the light
in a series of articles contributed to the 77mes of India, and the
Author begs here to express his thanks to the Editor for his courtesy
in permitting the use of this material, which has been incorporated
in the present work.


CHAP.
II.
III.
IV.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
XI.
CONTENTS
PART I
THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY
BOMBAY
THE START
SATARA
KHOLAPUR
IN THE CANNARESE COUNTRY
3Y. THE WAY
BIJAPUR
SHOLAPUR
IN SHOLAPUR CITY
EN ROUTE FOR NAGPUR
PART II
CENTRAL INDIA
NAGPUR
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.
RAIPUR
|BILASPUR
KATNI . . .
JUBBULPUR
MIRGANG
BANDA AND BUNDELKUND
JHANSI...
PAGE
IO
I3
22
29
39
44
57
73
83
9I
Ioé
I 2.2
I33
I47
I6 I
176
I9 I
X COAVZTEAVTS
PART III
IN THE PUNJAUB
CHAP. PAGE
XIX. GWALIOR - - - --- --- ... I'99
º XX. AGRA. ... --- - - - --- ... 2 II
XXI. DELHI . . . - - - - - - --- ... 22 I
XXII. HISSAR. . . --- - - - - - - ... 23.I
XXIII. SIRSA AND THE GHAGGAR CANAL. . . . . . . 239
XXIV. LAHORE --- --- --- ... 25o
XXV. THE JHELUM CANAL --- --- ... 26o
XXVI. UMBALLA - - - --- --- ... 270
PART IV
THE NORTH-WEST PROVINCES
XXVII. LUCKNOW --- --- --- ... 276
XXVIII. SIR ANTHONY MACDONALD AT HOME ... 286
XXIX. ALLAFIABAD --- --- --- . . . .293
XXX. HOMEWARD BOUND . . . . --- ... 3o I
APPENDIX A. FAMINE RELIEF STATISTICS ... ... 3O5
B. OFFICIAL REPORT ON THE GHAGGAR
CANALS ... ... ... 32O
55

ILLUSTRATIONS
PLAGUE SIGNS ... --- --- Aºrontispiece
THE MARINE LINES
A HOT BED OF PLAGUE ---
BY THE SAD SEA WAVE : MAHIM SANDS
DESERTED BOMBAY
A GROUP OF MAHRATTAS . . .
AN INDIAN HOMESTEAD
BIJAPUR BAZAAR --
THE GOL GUMBAZ : BIJAPUR
A LEMANI DANCING GIRL. . .
SHOLAPUR WEAVERS
GRINDING BAJRI
A GURU
THE POOR AND NEEDY
A MELA : RAIPUR --
BEYOND THE PALE : BILASPUR
A GROUP OF ABORIGINES... ---
IN THE NATIVE STATES : REWARIS ...
JUBBULPUR POOR-HOUSE : DINNER-TIME
GONDS ON THE MOVE BEFORE THE FAMINE ...
GONDS DURING THE FAMINE ---
A BHEEL WOMAN IN THE PIPING TIMES OF PLENTY
INDIA'S STARVING MILLIONS
MY STAGE COACH - BANDA
THE HINDOO's END
HUNGRY AND HELPLESS
A COMPANY OF THE PROPHETS ---
A STREET IN LA HORE . . . - - - ---
BIKANIRI NIGHTINGALES .
A DHOOLIE ---
FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS’ SAKE
GHAUT : BENARES
PAGE
2
7
II
I4.
24.
3o
4O
45
53
79
96
Io7
II 3
II.8
I 30
I35
I43
I53
I56
I 59
I69
185
--- 2.
I97
225
232
25 I
26I
295
298
3O2

THROUGH
THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
PART I
THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY
CHAPTER I
BOMBAY
Orós prima in Indis is the proud motto which its
citizens claim for Bombay the Beautiful. It is the front
door of India, as Aden can only be looked upon as the
garden-gate leading to our vast Eastern possessions.
- Any one approaching from the sea cannot fail to be
struck with the beauty of the islands and their sur-
roundings. The island of Bombay, or, as the natives call
it, Mambé, is flat with the exception of the Cumballa
and Malabar Hills. The latter trends upward till it
culminates in Malabar Point—the cold-weather residence
of the Governor. The tropical foliage, the palms which
stand up against the sky-line on the hills, and hide,
in the lower ground below, the populous quarter of
Girgaum, add to the charm, while the background
formed by the deep red ghauts across the harbour gives
a picture which impresses itself indelibly on the mind of
the traveller, to whom the glories of the sunny East
B



2 7A/A’OUGAZ 7"HE FAA/ZAVE /)/STRACTS
have hitherto been more or less of a sealed book. The -
public buildings which line the shore and which face you
on approaching Bombay, though somewhat bizarre and
incongruous in detail, if taken as a whole form a pleasing
view. The whole scene is enhanced during the rains by
the bright green of the Maidans, amidst which the great
public buildings and Government offices stand enframed.
The picturesque thatch bungalows of the Marine Lines
in the foreground form too a striking contrast to the
massive buildings behind.
These old relics of a bygone time have, however,
since the plague devastated the city, been razed to the
ground, and their sites present now a series of immense
rubbish heaps. The whole quarter, by orders of the
Government, has been demolished and burnt. Apart
from the inconveniences and the perpetual growls of the
inhabitants, these old bungalows maſked an epoch and
formed a landmark in the history of Bombay, the
removal of which the conservative lover of the antique
will deplore. Sanitary science, alas, is a stern task-
master, and will brook no interference from insanitary
and dilapidated picturesqueness. -
The fiat went forth, and at one fell swoop the dear old -
Marine Lines passed away. Many and pleasant are the -
associations with these time-worn and worm-eaten
homes; and the messes of the Marine Light Infantry
and the native Bombay Regiment will no longer re-echo
with the merry voices of the gay subaltern and his
friends. We shall probably have some solid stone,
Żucca-built quarters, which will be as ugly as the old
bungalows were pleasing to the eye. How many joyous
evenings have we not spent in these old homes | Never
again shall we lounge after dinner in the long chair,
---



AOA/AEA Y 3
- dear to the Anglo-Indian, and listen to the gup of the
passing hour. This is, however, mere digression, and
memory must not be allowed too full a sway.
Bombay has earned another title to our respect, and
may be justly called Bombay the Busy. With its
immense and beautiful harbour, to which ships of all
nations are attracted by the export trade, the scene
presented is an animated one. The contrasts too
between the various craft thronging the vast land-locked
bay, which forms one of the best harbours of refuge in
the world, are very great, Here, owing to the high tides
which prevail, the largest ships of our navy can not only
ride at anchor in the stream, but enter if necessary the
series of docks which line the shore. You may see the
huge battleship or Peninsular and Oriental mail-steamer, -
with all the latest appliances of modern naval science, -
cheek-by-jowl with the rough and clumsy native &ugg/a,
with its high bulwark of interlaced bamboo and its huge
and unwieldy lateen sail. Amidst all this great mass
of shipping, the small tonies or dug-outs, manned by a
couple of bronze-coloured natives with their primitive
paddles, dart to and fro. In the afternoon, when the heat
has somewhat decreased, the white sails of the dainty º
yachts, owned by the sahibs of the Yacht Club, skim the
deep blue surface of the bay. The Bombay Harbour, -
when seen in the rose-light of the declining sun, with the
setting of the ghauts of the mainland in the back-
ground, is a memory of the beautiful which the beholder
cannot fail to treasure as a new experience.
One of the first things that strikes the new-comer is
the enormous mass of humanity which throngs the
streets of the city; which crowd is intensified tenfold in
the native quarters of the town. This heterogeneous



4 THA’O UGAſ 7//E FAM/AWE DISTR/CTS
collection of all sorts and conditions of men, the snowy-
white clothed Parsee and Bania, the swarthy Arab, the
yellow-skinned Chinaman, the stalwart Mahommedan,
the statuesque coolie, form, with the gay-coloured sarees
of the female portion of the crowd, a kaleidoscopic
picture which is alike pleasing to the eye and bewildering
to the brain.
It is the people, the variegated throng of picturesque
humanity, which after all remains as one of the first and
indelible impressions of Bombay. The submerged tenth
live and have their being in the open air. In the native
quarters at night the footway is simply impassable,
owing to the masses of shrouded natives who use it as
their sleeping-place. In the vicinity of the Crawford
markets and in the quarter of Cammatepura they simply
line the pavement, and wrapped closely in their dirty-
white chuddahs, look like bales of merchandise. But
the destroying angel of the plague altered all this.
In streets where even towards midnight it was im-
possible, owing to the crowds, for a £iccagharry to
proceed beyond a walking pace, a battery of artillery
might have galloped in safety down the now deserted
thoroughfare. I went on a tour of inspection when the
disease was at its height, and found whole streets in the
busiest portion of the native town practically deserted.
The shops were all closed, and the occupants had
disappeared en &/oc. It was calculated at that time that
nearly two-thirds of the inhabitants had fled from the
pest-stricken island to the mainland. This enormous
exodus on the part of the people did incalculable harm
to the Presidency, and without doubt caused the spread of
the fell disease into the country districts of the province.
At a later period on my tour, I found in one remote

AOA/AEA Y 5
-
village of the Konkan that more than forty people
had died of the plague which had been imported by a
sufferer from Bombay.
The hardships and discomforts entailed upon the
European residents of Bombay during the reign of the
pestilence can scarcely be conceived except by those
who were not only eye-witnesses, but actual sufferers
from the panic caused to the natives by the epidemic.
People at home have no idea of how dependent the
Anglo-Indian is upon the cloud of dark-skinned servants
who minister to his necessities and anticipate his slightest
needs. The plague brought this home very clearly to
those who were obliged to remain in the city. I arrived
one day at the Yacht Club for tiffen, and found that with
the exception of three who had remained faithful to their
salt, the whole posse of Servants had fled. It was a some-
what droll sight to see reverend judges, potent collectors
and brave generals, foraging round promiscuously for
means wherewith to stay their appetite or assuage their
|- thirst. With the happy insouciance which characterizes
the Englishman in India, the whole affair was treated as
a huge joke, and a merry and impromptu picnic was the
result.
Another instance will show to what degree of dis-
comfort those who stuck to their guns were put. A
friend of mine who lived in a flat in the fort was
deserted by his retainers with the exception of an ancient
Portuguese cook; and for days he and his wife had to
do their own house-work. The boëach; agreed to cook,
but absolutely refused to bring the things to table or
wash up afterwards, and he was the master of the
N situation. The sahib and his wife had to arrange that
for thermselves. This, with the thermometer standing in
c

6 THROUGH THE FAM/WE DISTR/CTS
the immediate neighbourhood of eighty degrees in the
shade, is no mean undertaking for delicately nurtured
Europeans. They stood it for some time, but at last
turned tail and fled for refuge to an up-country
hotel.
In the earlier stages of the epidemic the municipality
attempted the disastrous plan of concealment; and it
was mainly owing to the fearless policy and tone of the
Times of India in laying bare the actual facts of the
case, and especially in tracing the abnormal mortality to
its true cause, that the Government was forced to take
the strenuous repressive measures it subsequently did.
If from the first the nettle had been grasped firmly, and
a cordon established round Bombay, the disease would
not have attacked Kurrachee nor been so widespread
as it eventually became. The Plague Committee which
the Government too tardily formed, had it been in
existence sooner, would doubtless have achieved at an
earlier stage a still more brilliant success. With such
popular and indomitable chiefs as General Gatacre and
Dr. Pollen, the dread monster would have been sooner
quelled.
It was some time before it was fully recognized that
the plague, of which we had heard such gruesome tales
from Hong Kong the previous year, was really and
definitely in our midst. To all appearance it had come
to stop ; and the city and authorities were more or less
panic-stricken at the thought. There is very little doubt
that in the earlier stages numerous cases were diagnosed
as pneumonia, and the cause of death attributed to that
malady, while the real ſons et origo ma/º was plague pure
and simple. As time went on, experts began to flock
into Bombay from all the known quarters of the


i
:
:
s

AO///5A Y - 7
habitable globe, and were busy from morn till eve in the
laboratories cultivating bacilli in bouillon. Chemists,
scientists, bacteriologists, experts, were as plentiful in Our
city as leaves on Vallombrosa. The theories started
were practically endless. To one it was sea-borne—to
another earth-borne—to another water-borne—to another
land-borne. To another, since it began in Mandvie, the
centre of the wheat and seed bazaar, bad grain was its
alma mater. To another rats were the culprits;–in fact,
Quot homines tot sententia. The daily papers teemed
with letters, scientific articles, theories; and yet the
plague calmly pursued the even tenor of its way and
decimated the population. Eventually, after almost
endless discussion and ventilation of the matter, it was
unanimously agreed that filth and want of sanitation
were, if not the actual germinants, at any rate all-im-
portant factors in the spread and propagation of the
epidemic. The fiat went forth that cleanliness was as
good if not better than godliness, and we set to work,
one and all, to purge, purify and whitewash Bombay the
Bubonic.
The slums of the city, even to one not ignorant of the
homes of the submerged tenth in our own metropolis,
are a new and terrible experience. The quarters of the
lower and poorer classes of the natives in Bombay are
scarcely to be described. One instance will serve: A
party of volunteers with a hose were washing and
disinfecting a chaw/ (native tenement house), the only
entrance to which was down a gully (in the centre of
which ran an open drain), so narrow that one could with
difficulty squeeze through. At the end of this was a
rat-hole of a place, pitch dark, and about eight feet
Square." The hose was turned on, and fearful and


8 THROUGH THE AWAM/AVE DASTRACTS
diabolical yells arose in the far corner of this black-hole
of Bombay. A light was brought, and an old woman, a
mere bundle of rags, was discovered crouching in the
corner, and emitting a stream of ear-splitting screams.
The place was entirely without means of light or
ventilation, and the state of affairs revealed by the
lantern was simply indescribable. There were a couple
of old battered cooking pots; and this kennel which one
would have offered with some feelings of compunction to
a pariah dog, had served this ancient beldame as a home,
in which she had lived, slept, cooked and fed for several
months past. This is only one solitary instance, but
Can one therefore be surprised that the
bubonic plague, which is supposed to be the outcome of
defective sanitation, should have taken such a hold upon
the city when it can find such places as the above in
which to batten, fester and ferment.
Government at last took in hand what the municip-
ality, with all its vaunted ideas of progress and the
advance of civilization, had been found absolutely in-
capable of coping with. Such a crisis required a
Cromwell, and the man arose in General Gatacre, who,
as President of the Plague Committee, took the bull by
the horns. The measures adopted, aided by the advent
of the hot weather, succeeded in eventually scotching the
pest. The Angel of Death, however, had been very busy
in our midst, and the mortality had been enormous.
When a case occurred or proved fatal, a circle was placed
on the door-post of the house, and in one house alone
the number of rings shown adds up to forty-three. There
was also an oart or square where this number was
exceeded. It is without my province to describe the
various scenes and episodes that took place in Bombay
'twill serve.
\º
--
-




AO///3A Y 9
during the raging of the plague. Suffice it to say that
all the open spaces and lungs of the city were devoted
to the hutting and housing of the various castes and
peoples. Hospitals sprung up on all sides like mush-
rooms in a single night. The wail of the mourners was
heard on every side, and one could not pass down a street
without meeting one or more funeral procession. The
burning ghauts were strained to their utmost capacity,
and the Mahommedan burial-grounds could not hide
beneath the earth sufficiently fast the Moslem victims.
On Mahim sands, if in ordinary times you ride out there -
in the early morning, you may generally find the dying
embers of one fire. In the times of the plague the whole - º
sea-shore was clothed with the fires of innumerable -
funeral pyres. People who have lived through these
times can scarcely refrain from shuddering at the sad
thoughts and remembrances which memory recalls.
The plague in Bombay has left an almost indelible
ſ mark upon the commerce and enterprise of that afore-
º time thriving commercial centre. The export, and
º - indeed the import trade has dwindled to almost nothing,
" . while the check to the native mill industry has been such
that it will take some years to recover. God grant that
the dread disease has made its final exit, and may not
be recurrent. There are, however, great fears that the
present monsoon will see a recrudescence of the fell
epidemic. Let us hope that the exponents of this
theory will prove false prophets."
* I regret to say that since this was written, from advices received
from Bombay, the plague has shown strong signs of recrudescence,
and in addition to this, that cholera has broken out in the native
quarters of the doomed city. The death-roll has again risen, and
the arriyal of the monsoon has not tended to mitigate the evils.


CHAPTER II
THE START
ON the thirteenth of January in this present year I
was at Santa Cruz, assisting at a function of the banquet
description, given by the jovial sportsmen of Bombay
who compose the Jackal Club. Even though plague
be raging in the city, the young and ardent of the
European contingent must kill something, and the
pursuit with horse and hound of the wily jackal in the
plains and jungles of Salsette affords at this season
of the year the handiest means of breaking your
neck.
Every “cold weather ” a camp is formed about twelve
miles from Bombay, and here the hounds meet twice a
week in the grey and early dawn. Many of us prefer
on the eve of hunting-days to sleep out there under
canvas; and this will account for my presence in the
camp. While at dinner, a belted chu/prassie of the
Bombay Gazette silently crept to my side and thrust
a note into my hand, saying—“Answer wanted, sahib.”
Thinking that it was a mere request for more copy, or
some trifle of that description, I ordered the man to
Öaito—i.e. sit, wait—and went on with the more impor-
tant business of dining. When I opened the note I:
found the following— -



IO
<！--~~~~（~~~~~ （~~~~ （~~~~ （， ， ，*№ T
(ºspuds ſuņņi IV. uosjuaņſ， ºnștieſ，
“GIAVAA VIGIS CIVS GH HJL X8|


THE STAA’7” II
-
“DEAR M. -
“Reuter wants a man to do the Famine; if
you care for the job, see W.-Yours, G. C. P.”
W. was Reuter's manager, and the note was from the
editor of the Bombay Gazette ; so telling the messenger,
Tumara sahió Áo bahut salaam-àolo—which being inter-
preted means, “Tell your Sahib I have received the chit,
and am much obliged, and will see about it when I have
any spare time,”—and a few other things of that sort,
which the florid imagination of the messenger may
dictate, I turned in.
Since the failure of the monsoon the previous Sep-
tember, we in India had been fully aware that a very
intense and extended famine would result. The Indian
papers had already sent out their “Own Specials,” and
the Lord Mayor's Fund at home was rolling up daily.
The English press, however, had as yet taken no steps, and
their supineness was a matter of surprise to the coterie
of press-men in Bombay. In the famine of 1876, India
was flooded with a crowd of English correspondents, and
the Press Commissioner, whose office had not been
ãDölished in those days, was worked off his legs in his
attempts to please all parties. By parenthesis, judging
from the sedition which at the time of this writing is
rampant in various centres of the Bombay Presidency, a
censorship of the native press would not only be
expedient, but seems an absolute necessity. The re-
organization of this important office would be a right
step in the direction of repressing the hot-headed
fanatics who are stirring up sedition.
The sad murder of my poor friend Lieutenant. Ayerst,
and the death of Mr. Rand, have led me into this



I 2 THROUGH THE AEAM/AVE DASTRACTS
digression, but let me get back to my own personal
affairs. I called upon the manager of Reuter the next
morning, and having settled matters to our mutual
satisfaction, it was determined that I was to travel
through the districts in India affected by famine, and
from the chief centres send telegrams to England, report-
ing upon the state of affairs.
It did not take me long to arrange my business, so
that the world should not cease to revolve during my
absence, and the following evening, in company with my
faithful servant Domenico, I started by the mail-train to
Poona, in search of famine.
In concluding this chapter, I beg leave to crave a
slight indulgence from my readers, if any. I hope that
they will pardon the too-oft recurrence of that wretched
unit, the personal pronoun I. Please remember that
these are the personal experiences of a man who, like
Ulysses, saw many lands and peoples during his wander-
ings ; and so free me from the charge of egoism, and
accept my account as what has been heard and seen by
Reuter's Special Correspondent.


CHAPTER III
SATARA
WITH my start by the Poona Mail, on January 15,
began my peregrinations in search of famine and
starvation, which led me to a tour through India of
some 4500 miles in extent and some seven weeks in
duration. By the help of my friends and colleagues of
the Times of India, I had mapped out a route to which
I more or less adhered in my travels. It had been
decided that I should first exhaust the possibilities of
the Bombay Presidency, and having heard that there
was great scarcity prevailing in the Southern Mahratta
Quntry, I made Satara, an important cantonment at
the foot of the Mahableshwar hills, my first point of
attack. Arriving at Poona in the early dawn, I had
2-lºt time to dash across to the station of the Southern
Mahratta Railway, and take my place before the train
crept out of the station. After the roomy carriages
and huge engines of the G. I. P., those of this line,
which is constructed on the metre gauge, seemed a mere -
toy. They were however to be more or less my home
for the next ten days, and I got quite to love their tiny
daintiness. After having passed Wathar, the station at
which you disembark when en route to the hill-station
of Mahableshwar, to which the Government goes for the
1 Great Indian Peninsular.


- - I3
I4. THROUGAZ THE AWAM/AWE /)/STRACTS
hot weather, we shortly after noon ran into the station
of Satara Road. The city is about ten miles distant,
and is accessible by means of dazº tongas; I shall
have to make frequent use of the term dawé, so I may
as well here explain it. Dawk means a stage, and to
lay a dawk means to arrange for a relay of ponies from
one place to another. A tonga is a two-wheeled cart,
somewhat in the style of a Battlesden cart, in which the
passenger takes a back seat. A couple of wiry native
ponies are harnessed to a pole in the fashion that
prevails at the Cape. These rats of ponies are really
wonderful, and what with hard work and hard fare are
marvels of endurance. A dawk bungalow is a rest-
house, the property of Government, where, when en
voyage, the traveller may put up, paying a fixed charge
of a rupee a day and making arrangements with the
Ä/ansammah or attendant for his messing. You are
provided with bare furniture and necessaries, but have
to bring with you your own bedding. You see, there-
fore, every traveller in India provided with a huge roll -
of bedding, consisting of a resai, or wadded quilt
blankets, and the usual sheets, pillows, etc., which he -
uses either while sleeping in the train or in the daº Tºs,
bungalow. Hotels only exist in the large cities, and -
the further you get off the beaten track the more
uncomfortable the traveller's bungalows become.
After a hot and dusty drive, the city of Satara, with
its celebrated fort crowning the hill and dominating the
town, appeared in the plains below, and in due course
the dawk bungalow was reached. Immediately on
arrival I sent for the bazaar-master, and also for the
dawk-wallah, an intelligent Parsee, who gave me some
of the information I required. I found that though

















"XVºIINO8I CIGH LAIGH SCHCI

SATAA’A I5
there was no actual starvation in the city, yet the prices
of the staple food-stuffs had risen enormously, and that
the poorer classes were feeling the pinch. Jowari and
bajri, the principal grains, which in normal times were
sold at twenty to twenty-two seers to the rupee, were
now being sold at six or seven. Fodder too was very
dear, having gone up 3OO per cent, and the natives were
selling their cattle for what they would fetch. On the
last bazaar-day, bullocks which in ordinary times were
worth from fifteen to twenty rupees were sold for two
or three.
I then sallied forth to call upon the Collector and
the principal civilians of the station. I found however
that, with the exception of the policeman (and he too
was going out the following day), all the civil officers of
the place were out in the district. I then went on to
the mess of the native regiment, where I hoped to find
my old friends of the Tenth Bombay Infantry. They
too had gone to another station, and so, having left my
cards on their successors the Third, I returned to mine
inn. I had not arrived long before Lieut. Rosemale-
Cocq, the adjutant, rode up, and very kindly offered to
put me up, an invitation which I gladly accepted. A
note shortly came from the district policeman, saying
he would be glad if I would go out with him to his
camp at Atit the following morning, and that a few
miles beyond his camp there were at Kahsil large relief
works which I might like to inspect. I accepted and
sent for the Parsee, who managed to lay a dawk for me
to Kahsil for the following morning. I then went out
into the bazaar, and made arrangements with a Goanese
photographer to accompany me with his camera.
After dinner my host sent for a couple of his sepoys,



I6 THROUGH THE AWAM/AVE DASTRICTS
and treated me to an exhibition of native wrestling,
which was curious and interesting. He is writing a
brochure on the subject, and is no mean exponent of
the pastime himself. It seems there are two methods,
the friendly and unfriendly system. In the latter the
object is to disable your opponent as quickly as possible,
and I was shown several tricks by means of which the
arm, leg, neck, or even back of your adversary may be
broken. I believe neck or back constitute what in
sporting parlance is called “a knock-out.” It would in all
probability bring matters to a crisis, if not to a conclusion.
Daybreak the next morning found me in the hands
of the policeman, and when we had driven some ten
miles down the old highway leading from Poona to
Bangalore, we saw below us the white tents of his camp
gleaming in the sun. While we were waiting for break-
fast, I took the opportunity of studying the Famine
Code. This admirable work, which is the result of
official compilation and actual experience gathered
from previous famines, notably the Bengal and Orissa
famine of 1876-7, is to the Indian official in times of
scarcity what the Articles of War are to the zealous
naval officer. It is practically exhaustive, and deals
with almost every possible contingency that may arise.
It settles the hutting, feeding, and sanitary arrange-
ments of a Relief Camp or Works ; and takes under
its protection the starving multitudes who have applied
to Government for its paternal help and guidance.
One great feature of the regulations is that the wages
of the relief workers are controlled by the current price
of food-stuff in each particular locality; but the wages
have to be calculated upon a fixed standard as regards
rations. In other words, each recipient of relief, accord-

SATAA’A 17
ing to his or her class, has to receive a sufficient daily
wage to buy the following food-stuffs.
STANDARD RATIONS.
EXTRACTS FROM BOMBAY FAMINE RELIEF CODE.
Adults (Males). Adults (Females). Children.
Working. Non-
- (7–12 years.) working.
Weight. Weight. Weight. (Under 7.)
Min. Max. Min. Max. Min. Max. Weight.
Oz. Oz. Oz. Oz. Oz. Oz. Oz.
Flour ... ... I6 24 I4 2O I 2 I8
Dal ... 2 4 2 4. 2 3 I
Salt ... ... } | | | | | | | | | 3 || ||
I I 3 l
Ghee ... - # I 3. I 3. 4. 4.
Condiments
and # I 3. I # # 4.
Vegetables
Flour generally consists of ground bajri and jowari,
two kinds of millet in the North-West Provinces; the
mixture made from the two meals is called atta. Dal is
a sort of pea (chick-pea) which is rich and nutritious.
Ghee is clarified butter. Condiments consists of chilies,
Curry-stuff, i.e. cummin and coriander seed, garlic,
tamarind, saffron, etc.
From this it may be gathered that a male cannot get
less than 18 ozs. of food-stuff per day, in addition to a
reasonable and sufficient quantity of seasoning, and the
same holds good with the female adults. Working
children, even if they do not perform their task, get
I4 ozs., while non-workers get 7 oz, daily. This is quite
enough to support life if the recipient is not too run-
- down to start with. A man with a large family—say
wife, two working sons, one daughter and two children
under seven—can fill a very large cooking pot at the end
of the day's work from the collective wages, calculated
on this basis. I shall have occasion to refer to the
C



18 TA/A’OUGAZ 7"HE AAAZZAVAE ZO/SZTA’/C7'S
question of wages later, but I may state here that on
the Kahsil works I found a village watchman, whose
ordinary wages would be three to four rupees a month,
with the help of his family earning the handsome
income of seventeen rupees per mensem. When I had
discussed fully both the Famine Code and breakfast,
another pair of ponies were put to, and I drove on to
Kahsil, about seven miles off, my policeman friend's
camp. I arrived in due course, and made myself and
my requirements known to the engineer in charge, who
courteously took me round the camp and gave me much
and useful information. Kahsil was the first relief
camp started in the district, and had been running since
the previous November. The number on the day of
my visit (January 18) was just below 6000 souls; but
the engineer expected a draft from another camp further
south on the following day of about 2000. The camp
was neatly laid out in streets. The ordinary shelters
of mat huts, in the shape of the French femtes d'affri,
were pitched in orderly lines. These huts are IO ft. by
6, and are built to contain a father, mother, and three
children or three adults. The occupants arrange their
own cooking places in front of their individual tents.
The whole “charge,” as the camp and its inhabitants are
technically called, were occupied in breaking metal for
the roads. There was a regular gang of miners, who
were occupied in blasting and getting the rough material
from a quarry which had been opened on the spot. The
labourers were divided into classes, and were supposed
to perform the following tasks daily—
Males. Females.
A class Io cubic feet. A class 7 cubic feet.
B 2) 9 77 7) B 27 6 27 77
C y) 7 2) » C 27 5 27 35 ºn
SATA/CA I9
-
Nursing mothers did not work, but were paid on the
A class scale. Children under six months old received
full children's wage. -
The pay, as I said before, was regulated by the price
of food-stuff, and the rates were fixed weekly by
schedule. During the time of my visit a man earned
two annas three pies, and a woman one anna Seven pies,
on the basis of twenty seers of jowari to the rupee.
The people seemed and were fairly happy and con-
tented, and I saw no real cases of actual emaciation
such as it was my lot to meet with later. I only had
one case of begging during the several hours that I spent
in the camp, and that was in the bazaar, where an old
woman asked the sahib to give her a cooking pot, as
hers was broken or stolen. The bazaar was a most
flourishing concern, and the bannias were evidently very
well to do, and looked sleek and prosperous. I found
from subsequent experience that you could generally
tell the state of the relief works and the condition of the
workers by the appearance of the bazaar. When first
started, a couple, perhaps, of mere grain shops are
opened; later on comes the greengrocer, with his supply
of vegetables and the commoner kinds of fruit; and as -
things prosper the draper starts in, and the climax of
prosperity is reached when the fancy goods man and
jeweller with European goods begins to minister to
the increasing requirements of his customers. Here in
Kahsil you found bangles, lamps, ornaments, and even
toys, so that the climax had been reached. In the
earlier stages of this camp, public kitchens had been
constructed, but as it was found that the people preferred
their own mºnage, they were turned into a poor-house.
Here the halt, the lame, the blind and the aged were


2O THA’OUGH THE FAM/AVE Z)/STRACTS
housed and fed, and they seemed to be happy and -
recognizant of the bounteous hand of the Sircar. The -
only real difficulty in fact, in the whole camp, was the
scarcity of fuel; and this was causing friction between
the natives and the forest officers, but the engineer
hoped that shortly a part of the forest would be thrown
open; which I heard later had been done.
I must confess, from a special correspondent's point
of view, I was wofully disappointed with the excellent
state of Kahsil camp. I had gone to find famine, but
had come back empty-handed. My British public were
expecting horrors, and alas! I had no horrors to serve -
up. Sadly disappointed in my search for the gruesome,
I retraced my steps to Satara. In making up my first
wire I felt very much in the condition of the early
Hebrews when they took a turn at brick-making. I
prepared, however, a brief account of my day's experi-
ence, and early the next morning sallied out and sought
the telegraph office. I carefully explained to the Čaču
in charge what I wanted, and showed him my authority.
He was somewhat startled at the length of the message,
but said he would set to work at once. I went off for
a stroll into the city, saying I would be back in an hour.
On my return I found the Čaču hot and excited, and he
told me Bombay would not receive my message. I
grasped my club—without which I never think of
interviewing a native telegragh operator—I forced him
down beside the machine, and told him to wire Bombay
that in ten minutes murder would happen at the Satara
end of the wire if they did not accept my telegram.
The trembling Hindoo did my bidding, and the machine
clicked fiercely. The situation was becoming strained,
and the horrified clerk was gazing fearsomely at the


SATA/CA 2 I
clock, when his features broke into a smile that would
have lighted up the Black Hole of Calcutta or the land
of Egypt at the time of the total eclipse, and he
burst out into—“It’s all right, Sahib; a leetel mistake I
make quite right now.” All's well that ends well. I
went home to breakfast, my work, as far as Satara was
concerned, completed.




CHAPTER IV
IKHOLAPUR
WHEN a correspondent has got off his copy, his next
chief anxiety is to procure additional news, and so I
made my preparations for getting on to Kholapur. The
mail-train did not leave till after midnight, and so I
had some few hours at my disposal, which were occupied
in prospecting the ancient city of Satara. The drive to
the station after dinner will always remain as a pleasant
memory. The moon was almost at the full, though it
rose late, and the earlier portion of the route was accom-
plished in the dark. The Indian moon is a thing to
revel in, as it far exceeds in brilliancy the paler beams
of English moonlight. The clear sky above, and the
soft silver light which it sheds upon our Eastern lands,
transform the scenery and cast a glamour over the whole
scene which would stir to enthusiasm the most unro-
mantic soul. About half-way we began to mount the
ghaut, and after an ascent of some two miles the top
was reached. A glorious sight burst upon our view.
The moon, which hitherto had been hidden behind the
shoulder of the brown hill over which the road wound,
suddenly appeared in her full splendour, and disclosed a
magnificent panorama. The valley below lay bathed in
the soft white light, which intensified the shadows, and



22
ATAZO/AA’UAE 23
the rare fires which twinkled below our feet showed
where lay scattered the villages below.
Even the driver, a stolid and silent Mahratta, whom
I had previously in vain tried to beguile with conversa-
tion, seemed touched with the beauty of the scene, and
burst into a low, crooning song which expressed his
approbation—or perhaps the fact that the long drive,
with a possible chance of Čakshees/, was coming to an
end. Anyhow he warmed up his ponies with that
terrible Indian whip of his, and we dashed down the
hill. Shortly after, we arrived at the station in a final
gallop, and the coachman blowing his horn lustily,
heralded the approach of the sahib. My boy, who had
preceded me, showed up and told me he had made all
the necessary 6ando&ust (arrangements) for my comfort.
With true Indian forethought, or with that carelessness
for punctuality which characterizes the Oriental, my
driver had brought me to the station a full hour before
the possible arrival of the mail, and the whole station
was wrapped in slumber from the highest officials down
to the lowest peon. Waiting for a train at a little way-
side station at midnight was to me a novel experience,
and the surroundings struck me as typical of Eastern
life and method. As I said, at the time of our arrival
the station was apparently fast asleep, though my boy
had kicked up from somewhere a sleepy coolie to see to
the luggage, etc. About half-an-hour later a friendly
official up the line rang out a warning tocsin on the
signal-bell, and at once the station started into life.
The station-master emerged from his sanctum, having
donned his robes of office, which, in the seclusion of his
quarters, he had doffed. The Sepoys hurriedly resumed
their uniforms, which they had discarded during the














24. 7"HA’OUGAſ 7TP/E AEAM/AWE D/STRACTS
hours of ease. The buttiwallah, the man in charge of
the lamps, which with commendable economy he had
extinguished since the departure of the last “up,”
mounted the signal-ladder and proceeded to light up;
while his comrade leisurely strolled off to do the same to
the down “distant.” A crowd of passengers emerged from
all sorts of holes and corners, where they had been, as
only a native can, whiling away the hours of waiting in
sleep. They squatted in groups upon the platform, and
began to discuss the ever-pleasant and all-engrossing
topics of pies and rotik/ana (money and food). All
was life and activity, when presently the driver of the
approaching train struck up a lively serenade upon his
whistle, and the train eventually came to a halt.
After much jabbering and confusion on the part of
the native crowd, all got on board, and after the station-
master, with many salaams, has asked if his honour will
allow the train to proceed, we dash off into the unknown
at about fifteen miles an hour. The station and its
staff retire into private clothes and life, and the whole
scene lapses once more into darkness and repose.
I have previously stated above that my next point
d'appui was the native State of Kholapur, whose Maha-
rajah is the chief power of the Mahratta country, and
rules over a territory of some 2500 square miles, though
he holds his sceptre subject to the good-will of the
paramount Power. About four years ago the present
chief was officially installed upon the gadº by Lord
Harris, the then Governor of Bombay, and great and
prolonged were the feastings and general rejoicings
which celebrated the auspicious occasion.
On my way down to the capital, which I reached about
noon the following day, the hopes, or rather expecta-






ATA/O/A/2O/A2 25
tions, of striking the famine trail vanished into thin air.
I passed through a series of most fertile garden-grounds
(muhar), and saw a contented peasantry turning up the
rich black soil for the winter, ploughing with, in many
cases, five yoke of huge white Surat oxen. A short talk
with the Resident on my arrival confirmed my precon-
ceived notions of the absence of scarcity in the regions
I had passed through—though he owned to famine in
the Jat district of his jurisdiction. -
On my expressing a desire for an interview with the
Maharajah, I found that a Durbar was to be held in the
afternoon. I accordingly sent word to the Kharðar:
(Prime Minister), asking for permission to attend, and
also whether an interview with the Maharajah could be
arranged. A mounted orderly shortly after brought me
an invitation, appointing an interview after the Durbar.
His Highness having sent a state carriage, I made my
appearance in the most ceremonial style of dress
that my limited travelling kit would produce. It
consisted of a serge suit and straw hat, and my get-up
presented a striking contrast to the magnificent state
robes of the officials. The Durbar was held in the old
palace in the city, and to one who has never seen
such a ceremony the whole thing is imposing. Native
troops are drawn up in the courtyard, in hollow square,
and behind them are massed the native population.
An Indian dearly loves a tamasha, and any free ex-
hibition will always produce a corresponding swarm
of spectators. As the various officials drive up to the door
of the Durbar hall, the troops salute at the shoulder;
the “present” is reserved for the Resident as the repre-
sentative of Her Majesty, and for the reigning Prince.
The guests are drawn up in two lines at the entrance,



26 THA’OUGAſ TAHE AEAM/AVAE D/STRACTS
and await the royal arrival, which is greeted with the
National Anthem and a royal salute. The Maharajah
with the Resident passes up to the “golden chair” (or
gadº) at the end of the room, the English guests sitting
on a line of chairs on his right hand according to rank,
the native officials on the left. The chief choffa'ar then
recounts the titles of the Prince and declares the
Durbar open. After a short and solemn pause, the
attendants bring in wreaths, attar and Žamsuffari. The
Prince decorates the Resident, and in turn the attendants
proceed to garland the guests. Plates of betel-nut
and bouquets are handed to each, and with a solemn
invocation from the choffdar the ceremony terminates.
The old Durbar hall at Kholapur is worth seeing, as
the carving and gilding upon the walls are very fine. A
gallery runs round the hall, covered with a gilt screen,
from behind which the ladies of the zenana view the
performance. The hall is hung with countless enormous
glass chandeliers, and the thousands of waxlights shine
upon the jewellery and ornaments of the Durbaries and
enhance the spectacle. -
When the Resident had departed in full state, the
Maharajah sent an attendant to summon me, and in a
small room off the audience chamber we had a long
and pleasant chat. I informed him of my business, and
as I had previously made his acquaintance in Bombay,
we talked of men and matters, and also of the chance
of famine in his dominions. He told me that there was
distinct distress in the northern part of the State, but
that in conjunction with his council the sum of five lacs
of rupees had been set aside for relief purposes. In
reply to a question, His Highness said—“Oh, yes, we
always expect famine once in every three-years in
º



ATA/OAAA’UA’ - *
27
certain parts of the Mahratta country, and are prepared
for it.”
There was scarcity in the Jat taluka, but the inhabitants
had migrated to the Konkan, where rice was grown, and
was consequently cheaper.
Their policy was to provide for famine, and taken as
a whole, the native Mahratta States had sufficient funds
to cope with any difficulty that might arise hereafter.
In his State a sum of five lacs had been decreed.
The following sums were to be allowed by the various
States which go to form the jurisdiction of Kholapur.
Jat 28,OOO rupees. Miraj junior 3400 rupees.
Ramdurg I3,OOO , Kholapur 5 lacs o
Sangli 3% lacs , Mudhal senior I lac ,
Kurundwar IOOO y? Mudhol 6OOO ,
The chief of Jamkhandi had just died, but there
was sufficient in the treasury to meet the demands of
the famine.
His Highness further remarked, when I mentioned
the magnificent oxen that I had seen on my way down,
that the policy of his Government was to keep up the
head of cattle, as the first thing a native in distress does
is to dispose of his oxen. The State compels so many
pairs of oxen to be kept per acre of cultivated garden-
ground, and these are continually subject to State
inspection.
Mr. Kirtikar, the secretary, afterwards sent me the
statistics of the relief works contemplated, which con-
sisted of building a bridge over the river, digging several
tanks, and granting money to cultivators to dig wells,
and later to supply oxen to those whose cattle had
died. .
At the conclusion of my interview, the Maharajah told





28 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE D/STRACTS
me that he had decided to throw open the State forests
to the people for grazing purposes. I heard a few days
afterwards at Bijapur that this had been done, and that
the inhabitants of that Zaluža had taken full advantage
of the Mahratta chief's forethought and generosity.
The Mahrattas are the most important tribe of the
Bombay Presidency, and number several millions in all.
Their territory extends from the Chandod hills in the
north to the Wain Ganga, east of Nagpur, and to the
south to Goa. Kholapur, however, may be considered
the centre of the Mahratta Konkan. They are divided
into three castes—the Mahls, Khoras and Murrens.
They were the soldiers of Shivaji, and under his banner
conquered the Deccan. The Mahrattas of the Konkan
are hardy, patient and frugal, but have proved themselves
capable of wielding the sword should occasion serve.
They in many ways resemble the Rajputs, but are more
temperate. The Mahratta Brahmin has a capacity and
intelligence for intrigue, which our rulers know too well,
and the recent events at Poona have by no means
tended to alleviate the anxiety regarding this turbulent
and seditious race. They are, taken as a whole, an
excellent class of husbandmen, and it is from the
Mahratta natives of the Konkan that Bombay chiefly
draws its supplies of mallees or native gardeners.



CHAPTER V
IN THE CAN NARESE COUNTRY
THE same night saw me again in the train making for
Dharwar in the Cannarese country, which place has been -
created of late years by the head offices of the Southern
Mahratta Railway located there. The country between
Miraj (which is the junction for Kholapur, and where I .
again joined the mail) and Belgaum is chiefly forest º
grazing land, and sparsely inhabited. Forest grazing
land does not necessarily indicate a presence of trees,
but the term is used rather in the sense in which it -
is applied in Scotland to the deer forests. It consists of -
large tracts of uncultivated and grass land, interspersed
with low scrubby jungle. In and after the rains it pro-
duces rich grass, and is used in common by the different
villages who have prescriptive grazing right.
On approaching Belgaum the signs of garden culture
were again visible, and in the vicinity of the city, market
gardens appeared cropped with most excellent cabbages
and potatoes, for which this district is famed.
At Belgaum, a railway official on his tour of inspection
joined the train, and as I was the only European
travelling, he courteously invited me into his special
saloon. We got into conversation about the country
in general, and he told me several anecdotes illustrative
of the country and the people.


29
3o THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
One story which shows the blind fatalism of the
oriental still remains on my memory. During the last
rains a family of cultivators, living in a small reed hut
by the side of the line, were one night swamped out, and
their hut blown down. They took refuge on the line
itself, which here runs over an embankment, the rest of
the country being more or less under water. Whether
they imagined that there would be no more trains that
night, or whether they trusted to Kismet is hard to say,
but they actually coiled themselves on the line and went
to sleep. A goods train came by and they were all
killed. The horrible catastrophe was only discovered on
the arrival of the train at Belgaum, and a search party
going down the line discovered the mutilated remains of
a man, woman, and child. f
Belgaum is one of the favourite stations of the Konkan,
and the fort played an important rôle in the Mahratta
wars. After leaving Belgaum about ten miles, one enters
the forest district proper; this belt of forest extends for
some two hundred miles southwards along the coast,
and is the happy hunting-ground of the military and
civilian sportsman. Tigers are fairly numerous, and
sambur and other deer are found, while in the cold
weather the 7%:/s swarm with duck and snipe. At this
season of the year, 2. e. the cold weather, the woods are
really beautiful. Feathery clumps of bamboos of a deep
golden hue mingle most picturesquely with the dark
green of the teak and wild mango trees, while the many
coloured creepers, bougainvillea, et cetera, climb from tree
to tree, and the mhowa and other flowering shrubs form
grand contrasts, and lend a colour to the whole.
On my way down, I passed Hubli, a native town of
importance, and a great emporium for grain and cotton,



‘CIVGIJLSGI INOH NVICINI NV


AAW THE CAAWAWARESE COUAVTR V 3I
which are exported to Bombay. The sudden rise in the
prices of food-stuffs, which was the result of a bannia
ring, was the cause of a serious riot of the inhabitants
about a month previous to my arrival at the place. The
ôannias refused to sell except at a certain price, and the
inhabitants, not seeing the force of the argument that
they should starve while in sight of plenty, looted the
grain shops. The Deputy-Collector was in the town at
the time, and in attempting to pacify the mob, narrowly
escaped with his life. A company of the Southern
Mahratta Railway volunteers, hastily called out, soon
quelled the disturbance.
I was told on all sides that there was plenty of grain
in the country, but that the Öanzias would not put it
upon the market, as they were bearing for an additional
rise in price. When the scarcity first began and prices
rose, the bannias sent enormous consignments to
Bombay, but a sudden fall in the market, and the con-
gested state of the traffic, caused such a change that
many wagons were stopped at Belgaum, and eventually
returned to Hubli. The wealthier ryots in this district
are well known to have had at that time a stock of food-
grain sufficient for three years, but they were very chary
of exposing it, and were sending their dependents to the
nearest relief works.
On arrival at Dharwar I had my first experience of a
bullock dummie. This is a covered two-wheeled cart,
entered from behind by lifting up the back seat, and
drawn by a pair of big white trotting bullocks. There
are a few dog-carts and tongas in the station, but these
are private property, and the only public conveyances
are these dummies. Progression is a somewhat tedious
process, and slow at the best, as it takes a good deal of


32 THA’OUGAſ TAHE AWAM/AVE /)/STRACTS
cursing, thumping, and kicking on the part of the driver
to get his “beasties” to boil up a trot for a couple of
hundred yards or so, after which they subside into a
sedate walk, known only to the snail and the Indian
ôyle. The driver then makes another effort, and they
shamble on again. The offices of the South Mahratta
Railway are an imposing edifice of red brick, standing on
a hill about three-quarters of a mile from the station, and
the whole hill-side is dotted with the picturesque bunga-
lows of the various officials. I had an interview with
Major Burn-Murdoch, the manager, and brother of the
cavalry officer of Egyptian fame. We discussed the
question of railway transport, and he freely admitted
that the present scarcity and high prices in this district
were caused by the railway, as it offers great facilities for
the transport of grain. In the old days of cartage this
would have been impossible. To prove that there was
an enormous increase in the grain carried by this rail-
way during the month of November 1896, compared with
the corresponding month of 1895, Major Burn-Murdoch
kindly gave me the following statistics, the figures of
which speak for themselves.
1895 1896
For the week ending Nov. 7 4,922 tons. 80,714 tons.
27 7) 22 I4 5,706 33 90,222 25
25 22 55 2I 8,536 3) 69,770 22
5) 22 ,, 28 6, II 2 , 74,731 ;
These figures show that railways tend to keep up .
prices in one district, but on the other hand they
enable food-stuffs to be shifted, which do incalculable
good to the hungry recipients in another less-favoured
quarter of the empire, and so things tend to equalize and
adjust themselves. Whenever a famine arisºs in India




AV 7//E CAAVAWA/CAS/2 COUAVZTA’ Y 33
the cry is at once raised that State interference and
control of prices is necessary and called for. It has been
stated on several occasions that railways cause famine,
inasmuch as they enable the dealers to profit by a rise
of prices elsewhere, and denude the country. This how-
ever simply resolves itself into a question of supply and
demand. It may be granted that the sudden exporting
from a certain district of enormous quantities of grain
may enhance for a time the prices of food in that
particular place, but in due course the matter adjusts
itself.
I have endeavoured to show above that the Öazzmáas
by overloading the Bombay market overreached them-
selves, and were obliged to re-import the grain sent away
from Hubli. The advantages of railways in affording
facilities for the quick and easy transit of grain from
a more favoured district to one where the gods have
been less kind, more than counterbalances the former
evil.
Major-General Sir W. Sleeman, in his Ramó/es and
A'ecollections of an Indian Officia/, presents us with a very
true picture of the state of the country in the famine of
1833. He writes of the Bundelkund district, and says
that it suffers more often and more severely from the
want of seasonable showers of rain than any other part
of India. He is writing of the country at a period when
the railway system was only in its infancy in England,
and undreamed of in India. His remarks on transport
I take the liberty of transcribing here.
“They have a great variety of crops, but all are
exposed to the same accidents, and commonly fall at
the same time. The autumn crops are sown in June
and July,"and ripen in October and November, and if
ID



34 THA’OUGAZ 7"HE AEAM/AWE D/STRACTS
seasonable showers do not fall during July, August, and
September (the monsoon), all fail. The spring crops
are sown in October and November, and ripen in March,
and if seasonable showers (the winter rains) do not
happen to fall during December and January, all, save
what are artificially irrigated, fail. If they fail in one
district or province the inhabitants have few equivalents
to offer for a supply of land produce from any other.
Their roads are scarcely anywhere passable for wheeled
carriages at any season, and nowhere for all seasons.
º: *: # * *
“The land produce is conveyed upon the backs of
bullocks that move at the rate of six or eight miles a
day, and add one hundred per cent. to the cost for every
hundred miles they carry it in the best seasons, and more
than two hundred in the worst. What in Europe is felt
merely as dearth, becomes in India under these disad-
vantages a scarcity, and what is there a scarcity becomes
here a famine. Tens of thousands die here of starvation
under calamities of seasons which in Europe would
involve little of suffering to any class. Here man does
everything, and must have his food or starve.”
These words, dealing with our Indian Empire of over
sixty years ago, apply equally now-a-days to Some of
the remoter districts and provinces of the great Eastern
peninsula. In spite of our vaunted civilization and
increased facilities, in spite of the enormous changes
that have taken place, in spite of the fact that the whole
system of distribution has changed by the introduction
of pucca roads, railways, telegraphs, and canals, the famine
fiend still relentlessly claims at every visit thousands of
victims. The reason is not far to seek, as the population
of India since our occupation has doubled, having
ZAV ZAZZ CAAVAWA/C/2S/2 COUAV7'Aº V 35
increased from one hundred and fifty millions to three
hundred millions. The price of food-grains too, even in
normal years, has risen vastly, and what would have been
famine rates in those days are the ordinary normal prices
of to-day.
The introduction of railways has diminished the cost
of transport, and whereas in Sleeman's time it only took
a transit of a hundred miles to double the price, grain can
now be carried over the railway system for over six
thousand miles before this happens. The Southern
Mahratta Railway was carrying grain at #-pie rate," i. e.
33 pies per ton per mile, about one rupee for fifty-five
miles. Thus with grain at four rupees per maund = II 2
rupees per ton, the cost is doubled in 6OOO and Odd miles.
From this it will appear evident that the extension of
the railway system of India will be of enormous benefit
to the country, and that Lord Harris, in his lecture on
the Famine, struck the right note, especially with
reference to the Bombay Presidency, when he put the
claims of railway extension if not before, at any rate on
a par with that of artificial irrigation.
It has, I think, been pointed out that in the famines of
former years the utter impossibility of getting grain to
the affected districts was the chief obstacle that accounted
for the enormous death-bill which times of scarcity
produced. The British ray is changing the aspect of
affairs, and as the railway system year by year spreads
its network over our vast Indian Empire, so in an
increasing ratio will the mortality decrease, and the
chances of acute famine be minimized, if not totally
abolished.
* The rate is reckoned per maund, i.e. 80 lbs. There are twelve
pies to theanna, and sixteen annas to the rupee.



36 THROUGH THE AEAM/AWE ZO/STRACTS
There has been much talk about State interference in
the question of the sale of grain. This topic I have
mooted on all possible Occasions, and to all sorts and
conditions of men likely to be conversant with the
matter. From all that I can gather, the general con-
sensus of opinion amongst the cognoscent? is, that State
interference with the mutual laws of supply and demand,
which have been in vogue in India for countless ages,
would be a most disastrous measure. The native is
nothing if not intensely conservative, and though he does
not actively resent the arbitrary measures of the Sărcar,
yet by his masterly inactivity and generic passivity he
would defeat the ends of Government, and still continue
to deal, as of aforetime, with the local bannia, in whose
|-- clutches he has been since he assumed the toga viri/is,
- or took over the ancestral homestead. Many of our
legislators declare that State regulation of the sale of
food-stuffs is the panacea for all the ills to which the
Indian ryot is heir. Let them, however, rest assured
that such a policy would do more to alienate the loyalty
of the cultivator in the future than even the misguided
measure of interference with the disposition of the land
has done in the past.
This chapter is more or less of a railway chapter, and
so I will conclude it with a railway story which I heard
at Dharwar. A few days before my arrival the head-
office got a wire from a small country station up the
line, from the booking-clerk, saying—“The station-
master under arrest; locked in booking-office; wire
instructions.” A native inspector was accordingly sent
off to look into the matter and report, which he did as
follows— -


AAW THE CAAWAWAA’A.S.E COUAV7'RY 37
“HONOURED SIR,
“In accordance with your Honour's instructions as
contained in B. No. 654,321 of 97, I proceeded to
and on arrival found, as had been previously notified to
the head-office, that the station-master was under arrest.
I accordingly instituted an inquiry, and after much
cross-examination of the parties concerned, elicited the
following facts, which I hereby proceed to lay before
your Honour for your due consideration. It seems that
yesterday, upon the arrival of the train No. 29, up mixed,
the station-master duly appeared from his quarters on the
platform to see to the arrival and due departure of the
said train. He found on the platform a man sitting
upon a box. Thinking that he was a mere passenger
and likely to impede the traffic, he knocked the man off
the box. Whereupon the man picked himself up,
unlocked his box, took therefrom a complete suit of
police uniform, which he put on, and at once arrested
the station-master for impeding the police in the
execution of their duty. So the case stands at present.
Will your Honour, on receipt of this, wire definite
instructions as to the proper mode of procedure.
“I have the honour to be,
“Your Honour's most obedient servant,
“ etc.”
This is so exactly typical of the conduct of a native
Jack-in-office, which our system of elevating the native
has produced, that it is worthy of record. So much
talk is taking place, and has always been put for-
ward about the goo/um (oppression) of the European
towards the native, that it is at times advisable to
present the obverse side of the picture. The natives



38 THA’OUGA. THE AEAM/AWE D/S7A2/C7'S
in authority are ten times more tyrannical towards
their inferiors than ever a European official would
dare to be, and are much greater sticklers for the
due observance of proper manners and etiquette than
their conquerors. Look for instance at the minutiae
of etiquette that a native prince requires to be daily
shown to him, the neglect of which he would consider a
deliberate insult to his standing and position, conceiving
that his abru had not been sufficiently cared for. It is
the neglect, though perhaps unintentional, of these
trifling details which causes more heartburnings amongst
the princes or rajahs of the land, than the steel glaive
concealed in the velvet glove.
I said above that this district is the happy hunting-
ground for our exiled fellow-countrymen. The ſera
natura, however, may sometimes be a bit too close to be
pleasant. The very evening I was at Dharwar, the wife
of the padre, while riding home from the club in the
middle of the station, as she was passing through a
bit of jungle to her bungalow, had her favourite dog
lifted by a panther. Burning to revenge the loss of
her pet, she the next morning instituted a shiftar,
and had the jungle beaten, but the panther broke
back. I heard a few days after that at a subsequent
attempt this intrepid sportswoman had her revenge,
and that the animal fell a captive to her bow and
spear, or rather Winchester repeater. It is such stories
as these which throw a side-light upon the lives which
our English women live in India, and make us proud
of the title of Englishman.






CHAPTER VI
BY THE WAY
I WAS now fairly started on the famine track and was
within measurable distance of the scene, as I had got
definite information that great distress was prevalent at
Bijapur.
By the light of acquired experience it would have
been better to have gone straight to Bijapur at the start,
but still the time was not actually wasted, as I had on
my way been acquiring a mass of information and
statistics which proved valuable to me hereafter, and
which would enable me to grapple with the matter
when I should come face to face with actual want and
destitution.
For a time the train took me through the fertile,
irrigated land of the Dharwar Collectorate, where the
inhabitants were all out in the fields busily gathering
in the cotton, of which they anticipated a bumper crop.
Dharwar and Hubli are celebrated cotton-fields, and
these sorts have the distinction of a separate quotation
on the Cotton Green of Bombay. They are chiefly
used for mixing with the longer staple cotton of Central
India and Guzerat. The scene however soon changed,
and as I approached the confines of the Bijapur circle
the aspect of affairs took a turn for the worse. For
miles the train took me through tracts of country where,

39
4o TA/ACOUGAſ THAE FAA/NAVE DAESTR/CTS
as far as the eye could reach, the land lay bare and
cropless. Even the trees, which before had been of
frequent occurrence on the landscape, dwindled down to
mere scanty and isolated specimens of the Acacia
Arabica, which seemed to be the only species of vege-
tation capable of existing on this bare and waterless
expanse.
Bijapur is a district which is absolutely dependent
upon its rainfall for its crops, as the nature of the soil is
unsuitable for irrigation. Even if it were not so, the
supply for the country would not be sufficient, as there
is only one small river, relying upon the monsoon for
its supply, in the whole district. The normal rainfall of
the collectorate, even during the best years, rarely
exceeds fifteen inches. The amount vouchsafed this
country during the last monsoon was only five inches
in the year, hence the failure of the Åharif crops.
Water plays such an important part in the cultivation
of India, that one does not wonder that the inhabitants
of Hindustan have deified the great life-giving streams
and rivers of their land. In Bijapur the soil of the
greater part of the land under cultivation is composed
of what is technically called black-cotton soil. This is
of a very porous nature, and does not retain moisture
for so long as the argillaceous deposits of Upper India
and the North-West Provinces. Hence the digging of
wells, except in a few favoured parts, is a vain and use-
less task. For the same reason no great scheme of
irrigation can be adopted with any prospect of ultimate
success ; and so the ryots have to rely upon what
heaven sends them for their existence. A good
monsoon means a year of plenty, a weak one a year of
starvation, more or less acute according to the average



BIJAPUR BAZAAR,

| – "
A V 7//Z WA Y 4 I
annual rainfall. The Government of India have pre-
pared a chart which shows at a glance the various
districts liable to famine. Bijapur is marked as the
blackest spot in the Bombay Presidency, and one always
more or less liable to famine.
I have already on several occasions mentioned the
monsoon, and the bearing it has upon the agricultural
districts of India. It may be as well to briefly explain
the result and reasons of the rainy season to which our
Eastern dependency owes so much. More than two-
fifths of the cultivated and cultivable area of India
depends upon the amount of rain which does, or should
fall, during the months from June to October. It
replenishes the tanks, raises the water-level over the
country, and enables irrigation to be practised ; for
without copious and constant water Supply, no grain
crop can be either raised or brought to maturity in the
sun-dried plains of Hindustan. A weak monsoon means
the throwing out of cultivation of thousands and
thousands of acres of land, and a consequent and corre-
sponding decrease in the production of food-stuffs all
over the affected parts. Seeing that India is one of
the most densely populated countries of the world, and
that during the last century its population has doubled,
this must mean the practical extinction of the surplus,
unless very strenuous precautions on the part of the
authorities are undertaken.
The crop system of India will bear too a few words
of explanation. I said some time back (vide p. 34, supra)
that there were two sowings and two harvestings in
most districts of India, except where rice is grown, as in
Bengal, and the eastern portions of Central India, where
only one crop is raised in the year. The autumn crops,


42 ZTA/A’OUGAZ ZTA/E AEAA/ZAVAE ZO/ST/C/CTS
-
which are called Áharif crops, are sown in June
and July, and ripen and are gathered in October and
November, and these are dependent upon the monsoon
rains for their success or failure. The spring crops, which
are called raói crops, are sown in October and November,
and garnered in March, and are dependent, especially
in Central India and the north-west, upon seasonable
winter rains. The Kharif or autumn crops are the ones
that supply the chief and staple food-stuffs of the year.
They consist of jowari and bajri (Indian millets),
gram (chick-pea), wheat, barley, and other cereals. It
is upon the success of these crops that the vegetarian
millions of India count for their daily bread and con-
sequent existence for the coming year. The cultivator
after the Ä/arif harvest pays his labourers and depend-
ents in kind, so that a deficient Áharif means starvation
to those who live by the land. In the case of the rice-
growing districts the case is worse, as, raising only one
crop in the year, they have no alternative, and the con-
traction or extinction of the crop means scarcity or
privation for the whole population till the next monsoon.
From this it will be seen that the failure of the Éharīf
is the most disastrous thing that can happen to
agricultural India. The raúz crops, though important,
are not of such vital interest to the general public.
They consist generally of the finer kinds of cereals,
sugar-cane, oil-seeds, such as linseed, gingelly, etc.,
and are for sale and export, not for home consumption.
With the proceeds of these crops the ryot pays his
rent, some of the interest due to the bannia, in whose
clutches he is, and also furnishes himself with seed grain
for the autumn, but it is not of such vital importance
as the autumn crop. Though the failure of the raói is

S-ſ
-
A V THE WA V 43
:
disastrous, inasmuch as it tends to plunge the already
overburdened peasant-proprietor deeper in the hands of
the village money-lender, and diminishes his resources,
yet its effect is not so far-reaching as the extinction of
the food-producing autumn sown Åhariſ. To the failure
of this crop, from deficient rainfall, may be attributed
the very severe crisis through which long-suffering
India has lately passed. From what I have said I hope
it will appear evident, that the material prosperity of
the agricultural portion of India is almost entirely
dependent upon meteorological conditions, which are
beyond the ken and power of man to remedy. Much
may be done, and has already been done, to be pre-
pared for the emergency when it arises, and all a
paternal government can do is to be ready to meet and
grapple with the enemy Famine when he begins to stalk
through the land.
The natives of Bundelkund fully recognize their
powerlessness to cope with these meteorological con-
ditions, and have a couplet which is attributed to Sadhu,
one of the demi-gods of the Mahabarata, which says—
“If it does not thunder on such a night,
You, father, must go to Malwa, I to Guzerat.”
Meaning that if the monsoon does not fall, they must
emigrate to these regions, where such conditions are
unknown.

-
CHAPTER VII
BIJAPUR
BIJAPUR may be called the City of Tombs, as it is
simply a collection of the mosques, mausoleums and
monuments of a departed Moslem dynasty. It was built
by Ibrahim Adil-shah in the year A.D. 1604, and was
originally the capital of the Deccan. What is now called
the city was formerly only the fort, the city in the
days of its splendour having a circumference of thirty
miles, enclosed with walls which have now more or less
completely disappeared. In the suburbs of the present
city are dotted about numerous ruins, which testify to
the vastness of the place and its decayed glories.
Bijapur is out of the beaten track of the ordinary
tourist, and yet its ruins and buildings are well worth
a visit by the antiquarian and archaeologist. So much
is it a city of the dead, that even the dawk bungalow
is an ancient mausoleum, and the utilitarian European
has converted the tomb of Khawas Khan into a rest-
house for the convenience of the passing traveller. It
is somewhat eerie at night as one's footsteps go echoing
through the vaulted dome, and one expects to see
sheeted ghosts of long-departed Moslems flitting about
in the glamour of the moonlight.
Exactly facing the dawk bungalow, and in the same
walled and paved courtyard, stands the Gul Gumbaz or

44
‘’Ina VII º ‘zvºĪJNQ 0 TOÐ GIHAL
！：|-
—~~~~： ：
：




AZ/AAU/2 45
Round Dome, the mausoleum of Muhammed Adid
Shah, seventh king of Bijapur. It is built on a platform
600 feet square, and has the honour of being the second
largest dome in the world. It is 127 feet in diameter,
while that of St. Peter's at Rome is 139 feet, and St.
Paul's Cathedral only Io8 feet.
The city of Bijapur, like all ruined cities, is more or
less unhealthy during the rains. In the famine of '76–
77 Bijapur was severely afflicted, more than 50,000
people dying in the city and surrounding country.
My own personal experience of living amongst the
tombs was limited, as shortly after my arrival I received
a courteous note from the Deputy-Collector, offering
me hospitality. My excellent “boy’” shortly after
transferred my belongings from the cenotaph of the
Sultan Muhammed to the Anand Mahal or Palace of
Joy—where of old time the ladies of the seraglio lived,
but which is now the home of the majesty of the law
and the British ray, as represented by the Deputy-
Collector. At tiffen we had a long talk about the famine.
I had noticed on my way up to the city the clean-picked
carcases of many oxen strewing the fields, and the
Deputy told me that the mortality amongst the horned
cattle had been enormous. Curiously enough, the goats
seemed to be doing well, but the remnant of the bullocks
and milch cattle had been drafted off to the forests of
Kholapur, which had been thrown open to the public
by the generosity of the Maharajah. It was only the
better class of ryots who had been able to save their
stock, but that of the smaller fry had entirely succumbed.
They had been kept alive by being fed on prickly-pear
and the strippings of date-palm leaves. In the country
the poore; people had for a time kept their cattle existing



46 THROUGH THE AEAM/AVE DAST/C/CTS
by digging up the roots of /arrial; grass, but even
this supply had at last failed, and in the neighbourhood
of Bijapur was completely exhausted. The Government
when I was there was just beginning to import fodder
from Belgaum and the Cannarese district, but it was
locking the byre after the Öy/e was dead. If this matter
had been taken in hand in the previous months of
September and October, and supplies of fodder sold at
cheap rates, much mortality might have been avoided ;
but the machinery of government is ponderous, and
the wheels move exceeding slow. Hay at the time I
am speaking of cost some 200 miles up the line between
five and six rupees per ton, and the cutting, carriage
and expenses, commission etc., would have cost about
eleven rupees. The price at Bijapur was about thirty-
four, so that it would not have been an unprofitable
undertaking. Government will have to find the money
to supply the ryots with plough-bullocks, and the final
cost will be far greater than if precautionary measures
had been earlier adopted.
The day of my arrival was bazaar-day, which is
equivalent to market-day in an English country town.
All the inhabitants of the neighbourhood and the sur-
rounding country trudge into the city to sell any produce
they may have for sale, and to renew their supplies for
the week. I had a walk through the bazaar, and com-
muned much with the natives, speaking about the prices
of the various goods and merchandise exposed for sale,
and, like Socrates of old, bothering the people with
many questions. I found that the previous week there
had been 700 head of cattle in the bazaar, and that just
over 200 had been sold ; that this week 375 had been
disposed of, out of nearly 500, for any price they
-
-- ----s--
BZ/APUR 47
would fetch. The best jowari, the staple grain, was
selling at 21 lbs. to the rupee, and the worst at 28 lbs.
The bazaar-master told me that the stocks of grain in
the villages were much larger now than in the year
preceding the '76-77 famine, as they had had fair crops
for the last three years. He did not anticipate any
great mortality amongst the people, but that the dis-
tress would be very acute. Out of a population of
800,000 in the collectorate, at the time of my visit,
over 50,000 were already on the works or in receipt of
relief under the village system. This number would
without doubt increase as time went on. I must say
in all fairness to the Bombay Administration, that they
had saved the people from death by starvation, and
their promptitude in opening relief works at once all
over the Presidency, where thought needful, is deserving
of all praise. If famine is anticipated, the sooner relief
is given the better, and the village relief system is by
far the best. With promptitude and strenuous efforts
at the first, the death-bill can be kept down, though of
course it is impossible to avoid in certain cases death
from starvation. The great thing to avoid and check
is the natural impulse of the native to aimlessly wander
off in search of food and employment. An ably ad-
ministered village relief system, if it does not stop, will
at any rate diminish this. I regret to say that in the
Bijapur district many grain dacoities had already taken
place, and over I2O prisoners were in gaol awaiting trial
for this offence against law and order. A visit I paid
to the poor-house was a somewhat fruitless one, as being
bazaar-day the inmates were nearly all out in the city
supplementing their municipal dole with eleemosynary
charity picked up in the native quarters of the town.



48 7 HROUGH THE AEAM/AVE ZO/STRACTS
I found, however, three old creatures out of a total of
between fifty and sixty, who were unable to go out, and
so could not participate in the mendicant crusade of
their fellow-inmates.
The city of Bijapur is naturally a poor one, and there
is no wealthy class to support public institutions. The
total annual fund of the municipality is only 20,000
rupees, and upon this small sum there are numerous
claims. In the poor-house I questioned one poor old
man, a sad wreck of humanity, very old and feeble, and
found that he had come originally from Amroati in
Central India, some 300 miles distant. There was no
chance of his ever seeing again his native place, and
he had come to the poor-house to die. Here is an
instance of aimless migration ; if his case had been
taken up in his own village originally, his bones might
have been laid to rest in the home of his ancestors; as
it is, he will ere this have passed the bourne alone
and unmourned.
The physical condition of the people of Bijapur was
distinctly below par. I noticed an almost entire absence
of bangles, or ornaments of any intrinsic value, amongst
the female portion of the community. These treasured
possessions, at once a sign of the wealth, well-being, and
social status of a native, had already passed into the
rapacious hand of the ubiquitous marzwarri. The native
women of India, true to their sex, will endure much ere
they part with their beloved gauds and gewgaws. The
absence of jewellery amongst the crowd of women
gathered together in the bazaar was a very sure index
that the pinch of poverty had been already acutely felt.
The next morning the Collector and I made a bando-
bust to visit the relief camp at Torvi, some eight miles

BZ/APUR 49
without the city wall. Starting in the grey dawn, we
drove along the road, where at frequent intervals we
found gangs of workers breaking stones. The nearer
we approached the camp the more numerous became
the crowd of workers. There were between 5000 and
6OOO workers on Camp Number One, as it was
called, exclusive of some 500 non-working children and
a full complement of nursing mothers. We visited a
group of children who were quartered for the day in
a deserted mosque. They belonged to the various
work-parties occupying a certain section of the road,
and were put in charge of a couple of women and an
old pensioner. Their parents claim them at night after
work is over, and they all return to the camp. They
looked poor and emaciated, and evidenced by their
appearance that they had endured hard times and much
privation. With the exception of the weaklings, how-
ever, they appeared to be fairly happy, and with the
careless abandonment of childhood were playing games,
while the old vaulted dome rang with their shrill childish
laughter. A little band of girls were indulging in the
game of hop-scotch, to which the tesselated pavement
of the mosque readily lent itself. The Bumble in charge
evidently had his hands full, and his task of controlling
some fifty or sixty bairnies was no sinecure. The two
old women who represented the maternal side of the
crèche were squatting on their kibes in the shade, and,
as we came upon them, indulging in a pleasant pull at
a hubble-bubble. On our arrival, however, they started
up, and displayed great alacrity in marshalling the
children for our inspection.
Leaving the infants we pushed on again. At one
place a group of women, recognizing the Sircar as we
E

5O TAZAROUGAZ 7THE AEAA/ZAVE /D/STRACTS
came up, prostrated themselves in a body in the dust,
and implored the sahibs to intercede with the gang
mohurrin (head-man of the working party) on their be-
half. They all belonged to one village, and were very
anxious to work in one gang where they were, and not
to be drafted off further along the road. A native
woman of the coolie class does not enhance her beauty,
which is not as a rule striking, when she arises from an
obeisance with a patch of white sand on her forehead,
and a distinct and palpable smudge of mother earth
upon her somewhat snub and retroussé nose. It seemed
quite possible to accede to the request of the fair sup-
pliants, and the Deputy gave orders that they should
be immediately formed into a separate gang. We saw
their names duly inscribed upon the muster-roll, and
a gang-mate appointed before we drove off. We were
accompanied by the more active and younger members
of the gang, singing paeans of praise of the Lat Sahibs'
(Lord Sahibs) clemency, and seeing if it were not pos-
sible to extract in addition a little baksheesh as a fitting
termination to the episode.
In due course we arrived at the camp, which was
neatly planned out on a piece of high ground, with good
water available close at hand. The camp was of the
usual plan, as specified by the Famine Code, the shelters
being mat-huts of the ordinary French tente d'abri
pattern. It was laid out in streets, and the people
classified either according to caste or villages. The
workers being all out on the roads the place was
practically deserted, except for a few sick persons, who
were in charge of a hospital assistant, or, to give him
his Indian title, Áa/a doctor (black doctor). We made our
way to the hospital, where this oriental AEsculapius was

AZ/APUR 5.I
busy attending to his charges. We went into the
different wards, and found some patients, but singularly
few considering the numbers in the camp, which as I
said before amounted to between four and five thousand.
One poor lad suffering from phthisis was a sad sight, a
mere skeleton, and his parents who were with him were
striking evidences of the dread scourge of famine. We
questioned the father, who lay huddled up in a blanket
too weak to rise, and he told us that he had come
from about forty miles north of Bijapur. In more
prosperous days he had owned two pairs of bullocks and
several &/ºgas of land, but bad seasons had caused
his estate to disappear, and finally he had left his bare
homestead, and wandered off with his wife and two chil-
dren, seeking means of subsistence. One child had died
on the road, and he had brought up at Torvi Relief
Camp with his remaining son in a moribund condition.
It was a piteous spectacle, and my heart bled for the
poor sufferers, all of whom were evidently past recall ;
it could only be a question of days at the most. The
Deputy ordered the AEala doctor to give them all medical
comforts, and to make their remaining days as comfort-
able as possible.
We then passed out into the bright sunlight, where we
found a poor old man lying on a chazºoy. He was
sightless from ophthalmia, and altogether a pitiable
object. We inquired what was his case. This gave our
worthy AEsculapius a chance of airing his English, and
his diagnosis of the case was to say the least of it
remarkable, if not unique. “Oh, Sahib, a few days ago,
sahib, old man walking in camp met with slight accident
and fell down—then, Sahib, felt slight Scratching
sensations on knee, now water on knee coming, but I




52 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICZS
cure him soon, Sahib.” From the hospital we went to
the camp itself, where with a certain amount of proper
pride the hospital assistant said he had a couple of
maternity cases, and would we like to see the “babalogue.”
We expressed our wish to see the ladies, who even in
such troublous times had not neglected their duty to
humanity. In the first tent we found a fond Mussulman
mother, whose baby had seen the light on the last
day of the old year. The arrival of this mite of
humanity in no small degree exercised the authorities,
as the Famine Code had made no special proviso for
such a contingency. This young Mussulman, should he
Survive the extraordinary manner of his arrival in this
vale of tears, may boast in after years that he was the
subject of a special Government Regulation dealing with
his due sustenance and infirmity. Such is the spirit of
emulation, that in a contiguous hut we found a Lemani |
(gypsy) woman who had about three days previously
added to the census roll of the suffering millions of the
Dark Continent. Poor soul, in spite of the valueless
gaudy brass bangles and armlets which covered her
arms from wrist to elbow, and her limbs from ankle to
half-way up the knee, she was, and looked, a mere
animated bundle of rags. Her attendant, an old beldame
of the same caste, was perhaps the most hideous old
woman it has ever been my lot to see—she was a
relation to the patient, but I could not make out ex-
actly what the degree of kindred was. She was
toothless, and spoke the vilest patois, which even the
doctor did not seem to understand. With great pride
this old harridan brought out the wee mite for our
|
|
|
|
|
|
* Is there any connection between Lemani, as they are called in
India, and Romany, as the gypsies style themselves in England P


THE LEMANI DANCING GIRL.


BZ/APUR 53
inspection. It was the smallest baby I think I have
ever seen, and looked as if it could comfortably lie upon
one's hand. I did not, however, venture to handle the
atom. The Sarah Gamp laid it down on a scrap of rag
at the tent-door, and there it lay in the sun, looking up
with its immense black eyes, which seemed to be the
only feature in its face, with solemn wonder at the
strange beings who had invaded its dominion. The old
hag then prostrated herself in the dust, and begged the
sahibs to bring the baby luck with silver. We duly
placed under her guidance a small silver coin at each
corner of the rag. The old witch immediately darted
upon the infant, and rolling baby and coins up in the rag
with a shower of blessings upon our heads, disappeared
within the door of the tent. The mother during the
whole interview had sat huddled up in the merest relics
of an old resai, and seemingly utterly unconscious and
oblivious of the scene taking place at the tent-door;
when, however, the old woman entered she turned her
face, and I saw that it was one that had been once
beautiful, but the ravages of time and suffering had left
their indelible marks. She had the fine-cut aquiline cast
of features which one meets so rarely in India, and
which seem to mark a different race from the ordinary
squat-nosed, flat-featured inhabitants of Southern and
Central India. This woman seemed quite patrician, and
of a sect and race apart.
King Sol was beginning by this time to assert his
power, causing us to think of getting home, and so we
prepared for the return journey. I said, however, that
I should like to go and see the water supply, and we
trudged off to the wells. We found here a boy cowherd
watering a few poor-looking beasties, which were more






54 TAZAZO UGA ZTAZAZ FAA/ZAVAE Z)/STRACTS
or less a mere collection of animated bones, and it was a
wonder how they managed to move about at all. I of
course questioned the lad, and found that they were the
property of the head-man of a village which he pointed
out nestling in a mango-tope about a mile away. I then
inquired if many had died ? The hind said his master,
who was wealthy, had a few months back a herd of some
sixteen or seventeen head, but the five which I saw were
all that remained, the rest having perished of starvation.
Wishing to confirm this, I set off for the village, and
going there, the first man I spoke to turned out to be
the Éotwal (village watchman). I got into conversa-
tion, and he told me his story simply and plainly. Yes,
the herd I had met was his—they were the only cattle
that were left in the village; those of his weaker and
poorer brethren had disappeared long ago. How was
he able to preserve his P. Well, he had a stack or two of
jowari stalks, and that saved them. I asked what the
villagers would do for plough-cattle 2. He replied sub-
missively, “God knows there weren't any—the land would
have to go untilled.” This information so completely
tallied with what I had heard previously, that it was a
valuable confirmation of the state of affairs in Bijapur
and district. Setting our face homeward by a different
route, we found a band of Chumbars, one of the lowest
agricultural castes of Central India, but the sinew and
backbone of the country. They were camped by the
wayside. We naturally stopped and interrogated them.
Where had they come from and where were they going
to The chief of the band said that they had come
from some fifty or sixty miles north of the Bijapur
district, and finding that there was no work (not public
relief work) in Bijapur, were travelling onwards till they





AZ/AAUAE 55
either found work or got down into the Cannara country.
They appeared resigned, and I advised them to go
towards Belgaum as the most likely place to effect their
object.
One of the first instincts of the native aboriginal
tribes of India is in times of scarcity to break up their
homes, and migrate to other more bountiful districts. In
the Punjaub, Malwa is looked upon as the land of Goshen,
and among the people of the North-West, tradition has
handed down from father to son that the Deccan is a
land flowing with milk and honey. In the Bombay
Presidency, Guzerat and Cannara serve this purpose.
The Wadyias, who are one of the nomadic tribes of
Western India, constantly pursue these tactics, and
all wander over the face of the country in pursuit of
work, which they undertake under the petty contract
system. I gathered a mass of details about these tribes
from Mr. Morrison, Collector of Sholapur, who has the
subject at his fingers' ends. The study of these under-
currents of Indian native life is most interesting, and on
many occasions during my wanderings I came upon the
camps of these vagrants. They work in the jungle at
tree-ſelling or charcoal-burning, and other tasks of piece-
work upon which they can profitably engage. Many
times in a clearing of the jungle have I found their
camps, and then, when their task is done, hey presto,
they up stick and away, and seek other spots where
work is available. The forest officers know their worth
and usefulness, and they do much excellent work in their
own peculiar sphere.
At Bijapur I had struck the true famine trail, and
from what I had seen and what I had heard, was fully
convinced that the people of the collectorate had a long



56 THA’OUGAſ TAHE AEAM/AVE DASTRICTS
and dreary time of privation, suffering, and starvation
staring them full in the face. God grant that the
coming monsoon for this portion of India may be
bountiful; for another year of deficient rainfall would
produce an extent of suffering and calamity which is too
horrible to contemplate."
* Since the above was written, I have heard that the monsoon
was again deficient this year in Bijapur, so that the inhabitants are
condemned to another year of privation,


CHAPTER VIII
SHOLAPUR
SHOLAPUR, my next resting-place, is about sixty
miles by rail from Bijapur. It is the chief station of a
collectorate of the same name, whose area is 4500 square
miles, and with a population of some 700,000. The
population of the city, according to the last census, was
62,000, but at the time of my visit there had been
a considerable migration of the inhabitants into the
territories of the Nyzam and also to Mysore.
. The fort, which is built on level ground, about a mile
and a half from the dawk bungalow, was taken after a
short siege in 1818 by General Munro.
The ramparts are of mud with a ſausse-àraže, and
would, like the generality of Indian fortifications, be
absolutely useless to resist the attack of modern artil-
lery. One of its gates is called the Khanta Dharwazah
or Spike Gate, from having long iron spikes fixed to
the huge wooden doors. These were useful in the days
of old in keeping off siege-elephants, which were trained
to batter down the gates with their foreheads. Sholapur
is in ordinary times a thriving place, and there are one
or more cotton mills there. The largest belongs to a
rich Bombay merchant named Gokuldass, whose name
will be handed down to posterity as the chief donor and
founder of the hospital in Bombay which bears his



* 57
58 THROUGA THE AEAM/AWE /)/ST/C/CTS
name. Sholapur is one of the chief centres of the native
weaving industry of the Deccan. I shall have occasion
to touch upon the weaving question, and the distress
the high prices have caused amongst the weavers of
Sholapur.
I arrived at Sholapur in the afternoon, and at once
drove to the bungalow of the District Sessions Judge,
who had very kindly offered to put me up for the night.
The Resident of Kholapur (Major Wray) had kindly
given me a letter of introduction to the Collector, Mr.
Morrison, and armed with this I called upon the repre-
sentative of the British ray at his bungalow. The
Collector asked me to dinner, and I drove on to the
Club, where I hoped to meet the European residents
of the station and pick up some AE/zlóðar about the
condition of affairs in the collectorate. Mr. Duxberry,
Messrs. Ralli’s agent, told me that as far as he knew
there were sufficient supplies of grain in the country,
but that the bannias were holding stocks with a view to
higher prices later. He thought, however, that in all
probability the native merchants would, as often hap-
pens, hold too long, and that they would be bitten in
the end. The entire cessation of the export trade in
Bombay, owing to the plague and the quarantine imposed
on home-bound vessels at European ports, had had a
very marked influence upon the up-country export trade
of India. I was very fortunate before starting from
Bombay in getting from my friend Mr. Giro, the
manager of Ralli Brothers in Bombay, a circular letter
to all their up-country agents. I found this of the
utmost service on different occasions during my tour,
and take this opportunity of thanking those who so
frequently and efficiently rendered me gºod service.





S//O/A/2UA’ 59
-
-º
The name of Ralli Brothers in the remote up-country
districts of India is a name to conjure with, and the
ramifications of that wide-world-known firm are very
extensive. I often found when going into a remote
village that there was an agent established there, and
on making myself known to him he rendered me every
possible assistance.
In the course of conversation with various members
of the Club, I discovered that there was severe scarcity
in many districts, and that there was acute distress in
three talukas of the collectorate. The statistics for the
week ending January 23 showed that in Sholapur there
were already seventeen separate relief works established.
The numbers of those capable of doing work was
registered at 44,700, while of non-workers the total was
22,600. Those receiving doles under the village relief
system were 3500 odd. This tots up to 70,800, so that
at the time of my visit every tenth soul of the entire
population of the district was in receipt in some form
or other of Government relief.
If we take into account the very large numbers who
had already migrated, the proportion would be much
larger. This, too, was in a district which was by no
means considered the worst affected in the Presidency,
but it will give a good idea of what a year of famine
means to the masses of India. At dinner Mr. Morrison
and I discussed the famine question in all its bearings,
and he also gave me a most interesting account of
the various nomadic tribes of Western India, of whose
vagaries, if I may use the word, he has made a special
study.
Mr. Morrison declared himself in favour of irrigation
works as an "outlet for famine relief; and a greater part



6o THA’OUGAT THE AEAM/AVE DASTRACTS
of his district, unlike Bijapur, is suitable for this kind of
cultivation. In view, however, of the great scarcity of
food-stuffs, and the importance of the raising of the
staple cereals, he had just previously promulgated the
order that the faghiri (sugar-cane) crops were not to
receive any further supplies of water drawn from the
State and public canals. This was a most proper
measure, and though it might press somewhat hardly
upon a few individuals, the greatest good to the greatest
number would be attained. I remarked that as I came
along I had seen several fields of jowari which in my
ignorance looked fairly flourishing, though the crops
were not as high or as long in the stalks as others which
were under irrigation. “Ah!” said the Collector,
“that is one of the sad parts of the story. All those
crops you saw were the result of re-sowing, and the
peasants had bought, borrowed, or otherwise procured
the seed-grain for the purpose. If only a little season-
able winter rain had fallen, all these re-sown crops would
have matured, but as it is they will be useless.” “Well,
at any rate the cultivators will be able to use the straw
as fodder,” I replied. “By no means,” said the Col-
lector ; “the curious part of it is, that immature jowari
straw is absolutely poisonous to cattle, and the whole
crops will be quite valueless.”
The poor suffering ryot seems to be hardly treated,
and the state of the man who took the trouble to re-sow
his fields is worse than that of him who let things slide,
inasmuch as for a second time of asking he has expended
his means in the purchase of seed-grain, the return from
which will be absolutely nil. It will be the bounden
duty of Government to supply these peasants with the
wherewithal to stock their fields when the monsoon






S//OZA POVA2 6I
º
comes on. This will be a very expensive business, and
the money collected in England, if properly administered,
should do much to obviate this difficulty. It is a
question which the Government of India has to face,
and considering the enormously widespread area of the
famine of '97, it is by no means a light one. -
A paternal government cannot allow four-fifths of
the cultivable area of Hindustan to lie fallow, and the
ryots have not the means or opportunity of procuring
plough-bullocks to supply the place of those that have
perished, or seed-grain to renew the crops that have
failed.
After a most pleasant evening, spent in absorbing the
very valuable details of his district which fell from my
host's lips, it was decided that we should the next
morning go off to visit the relief works at Ekrukh.
“Sari char budgie hai, sahib,” were the words with
which the faithful Domine greeted me the next morning,
and I made out by the light of the lantern which he
held that it was time for me to be up and doing.
“Have you a tonga P” “Yes, sahib, waiting outside.”
It was not till after eleven the previous night that I
had got back to the bungalow and told my boy that I
wanted a tonga ready by half-past four the next morn-
ing. There, however, sure enough, when I dressed and
sallied forth, was a tonga, with a driver huddled up in
his blanket in the foggy morning darkness, and two
little rats of country ponies standing shivering before
the door. At this hour of the morning it is quite chilly,
and one is glad of a great-coat. As the day comes on,
however, and the sun begins to play his part, one is
like the traveller in AEsop; you discard all wraps and
e 1 “It is half-past four, sir.”

62 7"HA’OUGA THE AEAM/AVE /)/STRACTS
unnecessary clothing, till by mid-day you would be glad
to sit in your bones if they did not stand a fair chance
of being grilled.
What a grand comfort a really good Indian servant
is. Nothing seems to disturb him ; he is always ready
and willing, and executes orders without a murmur which
your valet at home would say were impossible. My
boy (Domine"), an excellent Portuguese, between eleven
and twelve the previous night had got my order for a
tonga. He had to go about a mile and a half to make
arrangements with a tonga-wallah, and yet at 4.30 a.m.
he was at my bedside with my chota hagri and the tonga
waiting outside.
My fellow Anglo-Indians, we growl and groan about
our servants when out there, and never have a good
word for them, but it is only when we come back to
England that we recognize the merits, and long for the
long-suffering, ubiquitous and ever-ready bearer, boy,
khansammah, or bootlair—who smooths the crumpled
rose-leaf for his beloved master. We talk in theory
of the neat-handed Phyllis and the trim Chloe, but
give me a really good Portuguese servant or an old-
fashioned native bearer. He is noiseless, punctual, atten-
tive, and above all, if you treat him properly, looks upon
his master as a god. The man who said the master was
not a hero to his own valet, had not been in India, or he
would never have made such a statement. The virtues
of my own servant in particular, who served me during
my long journey in the most indefatigable way, and
lightened the toil and discomforts of the way, have led
me into a discussion on the merits of Indian servants,
1 His full name is Dominiquez de Souza Alvarez Fernandez, but
the front name does for ordinary purposes. º


ſ ,SA/O/AAUWA’ 63
which is however far apart from the subject in hand. In
the meantime the tonga was waiting, and having clam-
bered into the back seat, the driver woke up his slum-
bering ponies, and we dashed off at full gallop to the
Collector's bungalow. On arrival, I found “his Honour”
duly booted and spurred, and ready to start. We waited
for the arrival of Mr. Carmichael, the special famine
officer, and shortly after he rode up. After the necessary
introductions were made, we started for Ekrukh.
Ekrukh is about three miles north of Sholapur, and is
the tank from which the city draws its water supply.
This tank, or rather lake, is the result of the Famine
Relief Works of the years '77-78. An embankment
of earth and rough stones a mile and a half long was
made, which dammed up the course of the Adhin
river.
The lake thus formed is ten miles in its extreme
length, and four miles at its broadest part. When there
is a full supply of water, the area is nearly seven square
miles. The water-works were built in 1881, at a cost of
two and a half lacs of rupees, and are capable of giving
a daily supply of six gallons per head to the inhabitants
of the city of Sholapur.
Murray in his handbook to Bombay says, that “the
road to the lake is impassable in the rains—it crosses
two canals, the first of which is so deep, even in dry
weather, that the water flows into a back seat of a
tonga.”
We did cross this canal, and it may be taken as a
sign of the year that the water was not much above the
: fetlocks of the ponies. The area too of the lake was at
- its upper end much diminished, and through a binocular
I saw crops growing at the far end upon the bed of the
*


64 THROUGAſ THE AWAM/AWE Z)/STRACTS
lake itself, which in ordinary years would be under
Water.
From the Ekrukh lake three canals irrigate the
country. The high level on the left bank waters
some 800 odd acres; while the low level brings under
cultivation over IO,OOO acres, and in its course nearly
circumvents the city. The other high-level canal is a
small one, and distributes its supply over only between
5oo and 600 acres. The low level was the scene of
the relief operations established on behalf of the indigent
inhabitants of Sholapur, and notably for the benefit of
the out-of-work weavers. It is close to the city, and
those engaged upon the works are enabled to return
to their own homes at night, thus doing away with any
necessity for hutting arrangements or the establishment
of a camp proper. There were at the time of my visit
about 4000 engaged at these relief works. The work
consisted in heightening and strengthening the banks
of the canal, repairing weak places, etc. The soil was
dug out of borrow-pits along the sides of the canal.
It was possible, owing to these conditions, to establish
a sufficiently long lead, and the carriers as well as the
diggers could be ably and well employed. The labour
was not severe, and yet it was sufficiently onerous to
a class of people whose previous occupations had been
of a much more sedentary description. Many of the
workers, especially the diggers, showed me their hands,
and in many cases they were very badly blistered, and
showed signs of hard work. The handles of many of
the Áhodalies" were of the roughest description, and
* A Ahodalie is a broad-bladed hoe with a short handle; it is
the almost universal tool of India, and it is astonishing what a big
task a professional digger can get through in a day with this unwieldy




,SA/O/CAA’UR 65
these by no means tended to lighten the labour. Still
I doubt if any task more suitable to the general mass of
people seeking State subvention could be found. Earth-
work will always provide the maximum of employment
for unskilled labour. One digger, if the ground be not
too hard and the lead sufficiently long, is able to keep
employed some four or five carriers, and in this latter
task the women and working children can be profitably
employed. It enables too families to work together,
and one constantly found that the father did the digging
while his wives and family supplied the transport train.
In company with Messrs. Morrison and Carmichael,
I made a thorough tour of inspection of the works, and
followed the windings of the lower level canal for some
three or four miles. There were gangs of about fifty
souls stationed at intervals along the left bank of the
canal. They did not seem to be wretched, and there
was a complete absence of complaints. I on several
occasions loitered behind the burra sahić, Zogue," in the
hopes that when separated from the authorities I should
be approached, and that the workers would air their
grievances. With the exception, however, of one or
two cases of the professional mendicant class, who scented
a possible victim, I was entirely unmolested, and the
people went on with their work with true Moslem apathy.
implement. The natives use it for shovel, pick, hoe, and spade, and
though I have often tried to get my mallee to use English tools, di-
rectly my back was turned he reverted to his ancient and accustomed
weapon. The soil dug out is carried away in strong, round wicker
baskets; these baskets when properly filled contain about one-
quarter of a cubic foot of earth, and weigh from twelve to fifteen
seers. (A seer is nearly two pounds English.)
* Burra sahib logue, high officials, e.g. collectors, commissioners,
etc.; in contra-distinction to chota sahib logue, e.g. clerks, assistants,
journalists, and others.
F
66 TAZAZO UGA 7THE AEAM/AVE DASTRACTS
By far the greater part of the workers were Mahom-
medans, as the weaving industry is almost entirely in
the hands of the followers of the Prophet.
We pursued our inquiries, stopping at nearly every
gang, and questioning both the gang-mates and the
individual workers.
The Collector is a past-master of colloquial Mahratta,
which is the almost universal language in these parts,
and seemed to be able to get at the native, which is
always a fairly difficult task. An instance of the
difficulty one has in getting the truth out of a native
occurred when we were talking to one gang. We
noticed a woman (Mahratta) who had a regular diminu-
endo scale of children with her. We wished to find
out if her husband—as was, alas, a too common case
amongst these workers of Sholapur—was sitting at
home in inglorious ease, while his poor wife and children
were daily out on the works toiling to fill the common
pot. We therefore got hold of this lady, and began
—or rather the Collector did—to question her as to the
whereabouts of her husband. The following dialogue
took place—
Collector. How long have you been on the works
Ma/Araţţa. Lady. About two months, your honour.
Col. Are you married ? -
M. L. Yes, your highness.
Col. Are these your children
M. Z. Yes, lord protector of the poor.
Col. Are you working with your husband 2
M. L. No, Sahib.
Co/. Where is your husband, then P
M. L. He is in Sholapur, your honour.
Col. Why doesn’t he come to work, then }



SAHO/AAUAE 67
M. L. He is in Sholapur, sahib.
Co/. Is he ill 2
M. Z. No, your honour.
Co/. Can't he work 2
M. L. No, your mightiness, he is in Sholapur.
Col. Well, where does he live 2
M. L. In Sholapur, lord protector of the poor.
Co/. Is he weaver ?
M. Z. Yes, and it pleases your honour.
Co/. Is he out of work 2
M. L. Alas, heaven-born one, yes.
Col. Well, come now, my good woman, what is it you
say—he isn't ill, is in Sholapur, can’t work—what is really
the matter with him P
M. L. (with a burst of tears and beating of the breast).
Alas, lord protector of the poor, muzgya (he is dead).
Col. God bless me, why didn't you say so before ?
How long has he been dead
M. L. (with another access of grief). Nearly three
years, your honour.
It is one of the peculiarities of the native mind, to
wish to answer every question in such a way as will
exactly tally with the preconceived notions of the
interrogator. One of the first things an oriental under
cross-examination tries to determine is, what is your
ulterior motive in asking him questions, and what kind
of answer will suit you best? They are naturally very
cunning of fence, and so the extraction of proper evidence
is one of the most difficult tasks that the judicial depart-
ment have to contend with. Added to this is the inherent
want of truth—the cloud of suborned witnesses that are
always available, and the readiness of an oriental to swear
to anything-that will lead to his material advantage


68 THROUGH THE AEAM/AVE DASTRICTS
I call to mind a reminiscence given to me by an
up-country judge, which will illustrate the case in point.
A village marwarri (money-lender) filed a suit against
an old pensioner for a certain sum of rupees lent. A
cloud of witnesses were produced, who swore to the
passing of the money, the due signing of the bond, even
to a participation in the marriage feast for which
purpose the loan had been raised. The bond was
produced in court, duly signed and sealed. It was
handed up to the judge for inspection—by mere accident
he happened to turn it to the light, when he discovered
that the water-mark upon the paper bore a date some
three years later than the bond was supposed to be
signed. This was sufficiently conclusive that the whole
case was a fabrication, and the suit was accordingly
dismissed. The judge was curious to see what kind of
defence the old pensioner had, and so after the catechiz-
ing was over he sent for the defendant and questioned
him.
“Did you ever have the money?” “No, sahib.”
“Why did the shroff bring this case against you ?” “I
have some land which he wants to get hold of.” “Well,
what defence have you ?” “I have several witnesses to
prove that they saw me repay the marzwarri, and besides,
I hold his receipt for the money.” “Show it me.”
From an inner receptacle the old pensioner produced
a receipt and handed it to the judge, who found that it
was written on another sheet of the same date as the
original bond, and in identically the same handwriting.
He found on subsequent inquiry that both documents
had been written for a consideration by the village
writer, and that all the parties concerned were cognizant
of the facts. This will perhaps show that the path


SHO/CAAUR 69
of an up-country judge, willing to do his duty and
administer justice impartially, is not altogether strewn
with roses. The discovery of the fraud was pure
accident, and had it not been found out an endless
litigation would have followed.
A native very rarely is satisfied with any judgment
given, and an appeal to a higher court ensues with the
certainty of light following upon darkness. After this
long digression, which I have entered upon to maintain
my original proposition that the ways of the native are
at times inscrutable, let us return to our workers upon
the banks of the Ekrukh canal.
I was struck with the immense number of non-working
children and babies upon the works. I found that here
too the rule was applied that nursing mothers should
receive the full wage and devote their energies to their
nurslings, and quite understood what the Collector
suggested, that infants in arms were, in the neighbour-
hood of Sholapur, at a distinct premium.
In the immediate vicinity of the canal, and subject
to its influence, we passed through some splendid fields
of jowari, which the owners were guarding most jealously
from the depredations of birds and other featherless
bipeds. When the jowari is ripe the peasants erect in
their fields small watch-towers upon elevated platforms,
which enable them to guard their crops. From these
coigns of advantage they discharge from slings stones
at the flocks of small birds who are constantly settling
upon the rich, ripe, yellow-coloured grain. In some
parts they have scares which stretch across the fields.
These scares are made of string, with feathers and
pieces of rags at frequent intervals, and are very similar,
but on a much larger scale, to the methods pursued in



7o THROUGAT THE FAM/AVE DASTA’/CTS
England to protect the newly-sown peas from the
depredations of the rapacious and ubiquitous sparrow.
These cords, however, all converge upon the central
watch-tower, and are violently agitated at frequent
intervals by the watchman. In other places I have seen
scare-crows erected in the fields. A common method
is to colour a native chatt; white, and place it on a
pole amongst the corn. This appears to the marauders
to be the likeness and verisimilitude of a native in his
white puggaree traversing the field, and no doubt acts
as a deterrent. The string and feather plan, however,
is the one most universally adopted, and the most
efficacious. The possession of a crop during the last
season meant wealth and happiness, and would be a
veritable Golconda to the happy owner. Hence the
extra precautions in keeping what the blessed ryot
owned. Fortunati mimium, etc.
We heard of several complaints of looting the crops,
but when a man's stomach is gnawing at him the code
of morality relaxes, and the fine distinctions between
meumſ and tuitme are likely to fade. It really was a
wonderful thing, and speaks volumes for the morale of
the people in general, that the cases of rioting and
dacoity throughout the length and breadth of the
famine districts did not increase to any alarming extent.
There were certainly several isolated cases of dacoity,
but considering the enormous area over which the famine
fiend was stalking, crime statistics were not abnormal.
Allow the same condition of affairs to prevail in the
civilized West, and the people en masse would become
ill-doers, and require the strong arm of the military
to disperse the rioters. We have already had instances
of this in Lancashire, in the years of the cotton famine.

SA/O/CAA’UA’ 7 I
I have many times during my tour seen a solitary
sepoy guarding the treasure or the bazaar—the looting
of which would mean a prolonged period of repletion to
the thousands of hungry Indians. The dread of the
majesty of the Sărcar is so great that a single individual
can control the appetites and baser passions of an
enormous multitude.
We had by this time come to the end of the working
gangs, and struck across country to rejoin our tonga,
which we had told to wait for us at a certain point upon
the road. On our way we came upon a field which had
been planted with monkey-nuts (ground-nuts is the
name by which they are known in the market of Bom-
bay). They form an important item of export, and are
sent to Marseilles to form the salad oil which we fondly
think is derived from the fruit of the olive.
Sweet are the uses of adulteration, and the Marseil-
laise suck no small advantage from the due and proper
manipulation of the monkey-nut of India.
Here we found several bands of children, mostly girls,
burrowing about in the fields in search of any nuts
which the thrifty husbandman had neglected to garner.
It seems that they take their gleanings home, which
when duly pounded go to strengthen the daily meal of
affa.1
The poor little pickers-up of these unconsidered trifles
looked for the most part as if a really square meal had
been to them a thing unknown for Some time past.
They were probably the dregs of the city, and hangers-on
upon the fringe of civilization.
We had a long and weary trudge across the sun-baked
* Atta, a flour made of a mixture of wheat and jowari, which is
used for making the universal chuppati.

72 THROUGAſ THE FAMIAWE DISTR/CTS
fields before we found our tonga, as the driver had mis-
understood our instructions and awaited us some two
miles from the trysting-place we had appointed. At
last we found him and his ponies asleep beneath a tree,
and having roused the lot, set out upon our return drive
to the city.
I will reserve, however, for another chapter my doings
in the city of Sholapur, and an account of its staple
industry and my inspection of the homes and factories
of its weavers.

CHAPTER IX
IN SHOLAPUR CITY
My work in the district was now over, but there yet
remained for inspection the city and its weavers. The
Collector suggested to me that I should perhaps like
to go and see the distribution of the municipal doles
to the poor and needy. I gladly consented, and our
coachman took us through the narrow winding streets
of the native city, where in places there was only just
room for the tonga to Squeeze through. The quarter we
drove through seemed to be to a great extent deserted,
and there were not the large crowds of natives that one
generally encounters in a native town. There were cer-
tainly in the big bazaar a fair sprinkling of people hanging
about in a listless sort of way; but there was a total
absence of that bustle and animation which character-
izes an Indian crowd. We passed through the grain-
bazaar, and in the shops there were ample supplies of
jowari and other cereals, but there was little or no
appearance of trade, and the whole place presented a
very woe-begone appearance. We doubled and twisted
about through a labyrinth of narrow streets, all exactly
alike and as bewildering to a stranger as a maze, till in
due time we drew up at a gateway which was the
entrance to the chowri or public hall. It is here that
the publig business of the city is transacted, and the





73
74 THA’OUGAſ TAHAE AWAA/ZAVE /D/SZTA’/CTS
courtyard of the building was the scene of the daily dis-
tribution of gratuitous food from funds furnished by the
municipality and private subscriptions. A member of
the Municipal Council attends daily to see the proper
distribution of relief, and as far as I could gather no one
is sent empty away. I was told that over 200 doles
had already been given, and I found between sixty
and seventy persons still patiently awaiting their turn.
Spread on the ground on cloths, in the usual native way,
are heaps of jowari-meal, dhal, pulse, chilies, and a
large brass lota/, of oil. A native clerk has a register
in which the name, caste and sex of the recipient is
inscribed, and he calls over the roll, when the person
called appears, and receives his dole. Squatting down
before the almoner, he produces a piece of rag into
which is poured certain portions of the various flours
from the different heaps; a few chilies are added and a
small portion of oil. The greater part of the relieved
receive their oil in the half-shell of a cocoa-nut, but those
who have not a separate utensil to receive this seasoning,
are obliged to be content with its being poured over
their mess of pottage. One woman who was very low
down in the Social scale had not even a rag to receive
her portion, and so took it in a corner of her single
garment, a very tattered and ancient sazi. The whole
lot of paupers were very decrepid, and were the dregs
of the population. There were several old and pitiful-
looking creatures, to whom the burden of supporting life
much longer looked almost beyond the pale of probability.
There were a crowd of halt and lame, exhibiting
contortions, contractions and deformities of the most
awful and painful character. The victims of ophthalmia
were very numerous, and it was a sad spectacle to See

AAW SAE/O/AAUA’ C/TV 75
them turn their sightless eyeballs in our direction as we
passed through their ranks. There were, however, little
touches of humanity which relieved the awful monotony
and horrible sameness of distress and disease; such for
instance was the case of a man who, himself suffering
from a loathsome disease which almost rendered him
incapable of motion, yet lending his tottering hand to a
blind brother in misfortune, and thus bringing him in
touch with his daily bread. It is astonishing how kind
these poor dregs of humanity are to one another, and
I suppose the burden of suffering produces a vein of
sympathy which one does not find amongst the hale
and hearty.
There is no doubt that this daily distribution of food
is the means of keeping alive a number of poor and
friendless people, who without this charity would of a
Surety die.
Outside the gates were a row of lepers, squatting
along the wall in the sun, waiting for the rest to be
served, when they too would receive their portion. I
had seen previously many individual cases of this fell
disease, and had thought that I was case-hardened, but
the awful sights which were exposed to view in all their
naked deformity made me turn quite faint and sick,
and I was glad when the Collector proposed a move to
the quarter of the weavers. The first place we visited
was the municipal weaving-shed, which had been started
by the authorities to give work and employment to a
certain number of deserving cases, but this was totally
inadequate to meet the requirements of the case. There
were twenty-two looms at work, and it was hoped that
sufficient funds could be available to increase this form
of relief. The present scarcity and consequent high

76 THROUGH THE FAM/AVE DASTRACTS
prices were telling very hardly upon the weavers of the
city and district. From the nature of the work it is
only a sort of hand-to-mouth existence, and the supply
is strictly regulated by the demand.
Since every tenth man, woman and child in the
district was obliged to apply to Government for the
wherewithal to satisfy the natural cravings of the
appetite, it may be safely conjectured that there were
no pies to spare upon their sartorial requirements. The
depression was far-reaching in its effects, and one of the
first had been the closing of the looms. The municipal
weaving-shed was in the charge of a Parsee, from
whom I gathered the following details. I may, how-
ever, say that the shape of the loom is quite different
from those hand-looms one sees in Switzerland and
other parts of Continental Europe; in the Indian native
loom the web and woof is horizontal and not vertical,
the threads are stretched upon a framework about a foot
above the ground. At one end sits the weaver, at the
other the tightener and closer. The chief material is
the weaving of khadi, or rough native cloth. These
pieces are forty-one feet long by three feet wide, and
when made become dhotzes and saris of the male
and female inhabitants. All weavers are paid by the
piece, and one of these sheets can be woven in three
working days. A weaver will earn about seven annas
for the actual weaving ; for the opening, warping and
winding, women are employed, and are able to earn
about one anna three pies per day. The actual cost-
price of a double Ahadi, when complete and dyed, is about
four rupees two annas, while a plain white AE/had costs
three rupees one anna. Each loom will employ one
weaver, a couple of women to warp and wind, and a boy

AAW SFIO/CAA’UR C/7"Y 77
to feed, so that four souls have to live out of this work,
and it takes three days to earn three rupees for the un-
dyed stuff, apart from the cost of the material, which
must of course be deducted from the gross earnings.
It will be seen that the trade of weaving is not at the
best of times a very lucrative one, and the establishment
of spinning and weaving mills in Bombay and elsewhere
has done much to cut the ground from under the feet of
the struggling native weaver. One great reason for the
shutting down of the looms since the establishment of
the relief works is that the women can earn more per
day on the works than at the loom. Again, only a
limited number of children can earn a wage in the
factories, whereas all children are put upon the pay-
sheet at the works. In the case of a family they do
much better from a pecuniary point of view when
receiving State aid, and so naturally choose the more
lucrative employment. This state of things the Govern-
ment cannot help, it being its first duty to see that
the people of India committed to its care should not die
of inanition. In every great scheme of public charity
there must always arise cases which cannot be foreseen
or even legislated for. The provisions of the Famine
Code are drawn upon the lowest scale compatible with
the saving of human life from extinction, and yet it
will always happen that in certain cases the populace
will from a strict political economist's point of view get
the better of the Sºrcar.
I have discussed this question with various authorities,
and the conclusion I have come to is, that as the Govern-
ment with each recurring famine gains experience, so
surely will the system of public relief works lose ground,
and the system of village relief gain the ascendency.


78 7THA’OUGH 7"HE AEAM/AWE 7)/STRACTS
- -
The arguments against the system of public works are
very strong, while the village system has much in its
favour. In the first place, the establishment of public
works in certain set districts and places tends to the
disintegration of the village system, which is the basis of
agricultural India. Secondly, the congregating in a
fixed place of immense masses of humanity who are
already on the downward grade, and so more liable to
the ravages of disease, invariably produces cholera and
other virulent epidemics. These assemblies of people
also increase the labours of the already over-worked and
under-manned Public Works Department, and it is per-
fectly impossible that an absolutely perfect system of
supervision can be attained. From the very circum-
stances of the case, and the surroundings and the
paucity of Europeans capable of supervising any
public works, a very great amount of the smaller
details of the working must be left in the hands
of native subordinates. Any one cognizant of the
lower-class native official when put in a position of
trust, is well aware that the natural result is goo/u/z and
3%berdustie." In numerous places in India public
works of real practical utility cannot be found; except
where large irrigation works can be established, the
work done is very often absolutely useless, and the
workers themselves are fully aware of this fact. This
tends to listlessness and the performance of the least
possible task for the highest possible wage. In more
than one instance during my tour I found people
employed upon the construction of cutcha roads, which
in the next monsoon would entirely disappear, and in
one case thousands were digging up and making a road
* Oppression and high-handedness. *


JAW SAO/CAAUA’ C/TV 79
through the sandy desert, which the first sandstorm
would obliterate. -
Now in the system of village relief, the population,
instead of being drafted off to a distance, are concen-
trated round their hearths and homes. Works of
sanitation, water supply, and general improvement can
be established. The people are working on their own
for their own; the supervision can be localized, and the
chances of fraud minimized. The conservatism of the
Indian ryot is conserved, and his Lares and Penates
saved and respected. A gang of workers when engaged
upon a work of practical utility of which they can
reasonably expect to see the outcome, will do twice as
much as the same gang employed upon what is to them
an absurd and useless task. I am morally convinced
from what I have seen and what I have heard, that
the death-warrant of the public relief works has
been practically signed, and that in the next period of
scarcity the system of village relief will be universally
adopted.
Let us, however, return to the weavers and weaving
of Sholapur. I visited several private houses where
looms were established. Many of these are farmed out
by the proprietor of the house ; they vary in number
from three to eight, according to the space at disposal.
I found, however, a very limited number at work, and on
inquiry was told that many weavers had gone off to
Mysore, some to Hyderabad, and that large numbers
were on the works. The next place inspected was a
large factory kept by a native of the Padamsah caste.
It was a large building of true Indian architecture.
The inner courtyard was surrounded on all sides by a
three-storied building. The proprietor who showed us


8o THROUGH THE AEAM/AVE ZD/STRACTS
over the place lamented the present crisis, and told me
that though he was the owner of a hundred looms only
twenty were running, and that he was having a very bad
time, and losing “plenty, plenty money” in conse-
quence. It was a well-arranged and organized estab-
lishment, and the proprietor, in spite of his losses, had
not begun to waste, as he looked and was sleek and
portly.
I do not know whether the present stress had caused
him to ask his fate at the hands of the stars, but in the
courtyard were a couple of Joshi (astrologers), whose
long scarlet robes, fanciful puggarees and kowrie, and
bead-bedecked necks and wrists, gave them a picturesque
appearance. I tried to get them to exercise their arts
of divination in my favour, but in spite of all my pro-
mises they firmly and courteously declined. Whether
they feared the presence of the Collector sahib, or
whether they considered it probable that I should be an
unlikely subject, I cannot say, but no inducements on
my part would make them draw back the veil and reveal
my destiny in the future.
After the interview with these wise men of the East,
we went across the road to inspect the cook-rooms of
the establishment. These were a series of tidy and
clean rooms, each caste and sect having a distinct fire-
place, and the Mahommedans a separate room set apart
for the preparation of their creature comforts. The
whole establishment of this worthy master-weaver was
well-conducted, and one felt sorry that a man of his
enterprise should be feeling such hard times. He was,
however, fairly wealthy, and was doing much good to
his poorer brethren in distress.
The sun by this time had approached the meridian,


JAW SAE/O/CAA’UA’ C/Z"Y 8 I
and I began to think that I had done enough for one
morning's work, so this ended my inspection of the city
and its works, and I returned to the bungalow to bath
and breakfast.
When I arrived at Sholapur, I had fully hoped to
meet my old friends the Weirs, whom I had known in
earlier days, when Weir was judicial assistant in Kathi-
awar. He had since those days left the judicial side
and reverted to revenue ; and was at the time of speak-
ing Assistant-Collector of Sholapur. I found to my
chagrin that he was out in the district, in camp, about
thirty miles from head-quarters, and that we should not
meet. Mrs. Weir had been doing a most noble work in
aiding the weavers ; she had got orders for country cloth
from regimental messes, friends and others, and though
suffering from the effects of the climate, had refused to
go home, and had stayed with her husband all through
the trying time. Just before I left Bombay I wrote to
her, asking if she would send me samples of native
cloth, and saying that if possible I would help her in
her noble undertaking. I got the following reply, which
speaks volumes for the energy and indomitable per-
severance of one of our country-women in the cause of
suffering humanity.
“Camp Mohol, 12. iv. '97.
“DEAR MR. MEREWETHER,
- “I got your letter some days ago, but have been
laid up with a bad go of fever and chill, and have not
been able to see after anything. I now send you
patterns—not all—but a portion only. So far we have
been very successful over the weaving, having kept 394
looms in work since Christmas,
G
82 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
“We have employed
338 weavers
4O7 women
664 children
274 dependents
Total ... I683
“In addition to this list, there are other weavers in
other talukas of whom I don't know the particulars,
and in connection with the weaving there are also some
50 souls employed and kept on dyeing the cloth ; also
some 50 souls employed in sewing the cloth—these
should be added to the total. If we said we kept off
the works over 2000 people, I don't think we should be
overstating the number at all. The orders are beginning
to slack off a bit.
“Yours sincerely, M. W.”
This letter will, I think, be ample and sufficient testi-
mony to what one noble-hearted English woman was
able with untiring energy and zeal to accomplish.
After tiffen I had to compose my telegram to London,
and recount my experiences gained in the morning. I
was fully aware that there was scarcity, distress, and
even famine in the districts of Nassik, Admednagar, and
Khandeish, but I felt that I must not devote any more
time to the Bombay Presidency but get further afield.
I arranged therefore to start for Nagpur by the train
leaving that evening, and expected after about twenty-six
hours in the train to reach the administrative capital of
Central India by the following night. “L’homme propose,”
etc., as will be seen by those who follow my experiences
into the next chapter.


CHAPTER X
EN ROUTE FOR NAGPUR
SUNSET found me with my work completed as far as
Sholapur was concerned, and a message was speeding
over the wires which the next morning would appear
in the London papers, giving my experiences of the
previous day. The telegraph, as we all know, now-
a-days annihilates distance; yet the fact is more forcibly
borne in upon one when one considers that in a space of
twelve hours the words that I had penned in the Judge's
bungalow at Sholapur would be in the hands of the
British public, and I was vain enough to think would
form a subject of conversation at many an English
breakfast-table.
I thought too that these words would be read with
some interest by my aged parents in their far-off
Kentish home, though I doubted whether by this time
they were aware of the fact that their son was the
author. My departure from Bombay had been of such
an unexpected and hurried character, that they could
only be informed by mail of my change of plans and the
new departure."
Here I was then, settled in the train which was to
* In my mind's eye I pictured my father opening his copy of the
Times and commenting at the breakfast-table upon the distress in
India. ºn


83
84 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE D/STRICTS
take me to Bhusawal, the junction where I had hoped to
make connection with the Bengal-Nagpur line, and thus
get on to the chief city of the provinces of Central India.
Travelling in India, to any one who is unable to sleep in
the train, is an unmitigated nuisance. I am glad to say
that this never troubled me, and I was able to get a
night's rest as comfortably while being whirled through
the darkness as other less fortunate mortals can obtain
in a stationary bed in the seclusion and comfort of their
own bungalows. This was for me a lucky state of
affairs, as the circumstances of the case and the im-
mense distances I had to traverse compelled me to adopt,
whenever possible, a system of night travelling. Perhaps
earlier training had something to do with this faculty, as
in former years I had often occasion to journey by night
between Bâle and Calais, and vice versä. In fact, I had
made this trip nearly seventy times. I say it with a
certain amount of pride that I had become so accus-
tomed to the journey that I could put myself to bed
at Bâle, and wake up the next day at Calais, the
intervening hours having been passed by me in sleep,
Nature's Sweet restorer. In due course, after having
satisfied the cravings of the inner man by dining en
7 oute at Dhond, I turned in for the night. The next
morning the faithful Domine appeared at the carriage
window, and informed me that an accident had taken
place up the line, and that we were detained. Hastily
assuming my day dress, I stepped out on the platform
and found that we were at Pachola, a little wayside
station about an hour and a half from Bhusawal. I
made inquiries from the officials, and discovered that
up the line a wagon of a goods train which had
preceded us, from some unknown cause had become

AAW A&OUTE AWOR AWAG PUR 85
-
derailed, and that our further progress, till the obstacle
was removed, was blocked. There were one or two other
European passengers, one an officer going to rejoin his
regiment at Neemuch, and we were all fearful that this
delay would cause us to miss our various connections
at the junction ahead. There was no refreshment-room
at the station, and so I sent Domine off to forage at the
dawk bungalow, to see if he could raise materials for
chota hagri. After a somewhat prolonged absence, he
returned with the Éhansammah of the rest-house, bearing
a kettle of tea, in which he had already mixed the milk
and sugar, and a couple of cups. Added to this were a
bunch of bananas. The keeper of this hostelry drew
his supplies from Bhusawal, when favoured with a
visitor, which was rare, and he was not able to raise
a loaf of bread. He certainly offered to procure chup-
paties, but I and my fellow-travellers did not feel that
at that hour of the morning we could tackle this form
of refreshment, so we chota-hagreed off bananas and
weak tea.
By a lucky accident, the permanent-way inspector was
visiting this station, and on being summoned he got
together a gang of coolies, and proceeded to grapple
with the disaster. The station-master was arrayed
in all the panoply of his official dress, consisting of
a cap with the blazon of the company on its front,
and his smart black coat with gold lace; while his
nether man ended in the usual dhotie and bare, black,
hairy legs, and his feet were clothed with the inevitable
side-spring patent leather shoes. He was at his wits'
end. Like all natives in a crisis, he was goóra," and
could only feebly mutter, “Coming all right presently,
*- * Silly, distracted.


86 THROUGAſ THE AEAM/AVE ZD/STRACTS
huzoor; patience, sahib, all will be well.” In all humility
I suggested a solution of the difficulty which seemed to
me feasible—that there was no down-train expected
for at least a couple of hours, and so if he took all
necessary and proper precautions, he might send on
the train to the next station, which was about four
miles distant, on the other and uninterrupted down-
line. This of course would require the utmost pre-
caution, but I did not consider the matter absolutely
impracticable. Fired with this idea, and with an air
of being willing to do or die, the station-master, accom-
panied by the driver and guard, retired into his holy of
holies, the station-master's office, and proceeded to
consult the Sibylline books. These, in his case, con-
sisted of the ample code of instructions which are
the vade meczemz of the native officials. I do not know
whether the supreme powers of the line had ever con-
templated such a thing as a block of one line being
possible, but they had not evidently ever conceived
the notion of utilizing the unblocked portion for the
expedition of traffic.
After a lengthened absence the babu returned, the
traces of his wrestling with the Fates plainly traceable
upon his sombre-coloured visage, and sadly informed
me that he could find no regulation which would allow
him to act thus on his own undivided responsibility;
and that we must await the arrival of the break-down
gang which he had already sent for.
For three mortal, blessed hours we waited, sweltering
and grilling in the sun of that lonesome and unshaded
station. In the meantime the way-warden and his gang
had not relaxed their efforts, and a triumphal shout
announced that they had won a well-earned victory,



ZAV ACOUTE AWOA’ AVA GA2O/A2 87
The recumbent truck had been unloaded of the baulks
of timber it had contained, and the vehicle itself set
upon its legs, or rather wheels, again, and was being
pushed into an adjacent siding. At this moment the
break-down gang, with a “death or glory boys’ ex-
pression upon their faces, dashed with their train into
the station. The tempers of the patient travellers were
by this time somewhat exhausted, but we greeted the
would-be rescuers with a somewhat sarcastic cheer, and
promised that their deeds of derring-do should be
spread over the length and breadth of the land. I do
not know whether the strain had been too severe for
this devoted band of engineers, but they received our
sallies in gloomy and sardonic silence. A good deal of
time was even then cut to waste, while the officials held
a council of war and proceeded to inspect the scene of
the horrible catastrophe.
At length, with a parting blessing and an injunction
to be careful, we were allowed to proceed on our way.
As I had anticipated, my train for Nagpur had already
gone, and I was condemned to kick my heels for over
twelve weary hours in the dreary expanses of this im-
portant junction. My fellow-passengers were more
lucky, caught their up-country train by the skin of their
teeth, and steamed away, leaving the station to desola-
tion and to me. My first step was to order breakfast,
and to see if I could get a bath, of which I stood
sadly in need. I inquired of a ticket-collector, and he
said, “Oh yes, Sahib, beautiful bath in the Railway
Institute over the way.” I sent my boy off to inspect
and make the necessary preparations. He soon came
back with a doleful countenance, and said, “There is a
big tank, Sahib cannot bathe there; no soap or any-


88 TATA’O ÚGAT THE AAA/AWAE ZD/SZTA’/CTS
thing, sahib.” It seems that we had lighted upon the
swimming-bath provided by the thoughtful company
for the delectation of its employés. I was rather in need
of a tub of boiling water and a bar of brown Windsor to
remove the ravages and stains of travel, and so sent
Domine to make further inquiries. He at length dis-
covered that there were proper tubs in the waiting-room,
on the far side of the station, and I was soon splashing
about to my heart's content. A breakfast tiffen followed,
but I had still some ten more mortal hours to kill, ere
I could again get under weigh. I took the opportunity
of getting into conversation with the railway officials,
whenever I could button-hole one, but even this resource
failed me, as they disappeared one by one, and I was
driven back to the poor consolation of making up my
accounts and notes to while away the time. In the
afternoon I strolled over to the Railway Institute
Gymkhana, where the band, composed of some dozen
native railway men, was enlivening the proceedings.
Tennis and Badminton were in full swing, and these
forms of recreation seemed to be the only means of
alleviating the pressure of existence in that lonely and
benighted spot. Almost the first person I came upon
was a man whom I had previously known when stationed
at Bombay, and with true Indian hospitality he at once
asked me to take pot-luck with him at dinner. I was
introduced to his wife, and having most willingly ac-
cepted their invitation, we passed a very pleasant
evening together. The night mail was due at Bhusawal
about half-past ten, and when I came to the station,
having taken leave of my host and hostess, I found that
my servant had already secured a place and made up
my bed. I was condemned by the delay of the previous
AºAV ACOUTE AWOAZ AWAG PUR 89
morning to pass another night in the train, but accepted
the situation with stoical resignation. I had a couple
of fellow-passengers, one of whom I took for a canny
Scot, as he was clothed in heather-coloured clothes and
a very conspicuous Tam-o'-Shanter hat. He had all the
appearance of a lowland laird upon his travels. When,
however, he prepared to get ready for the night, I dis-
covered by his other garments that he was a Parsee, and
afterwards heard he was the owner of the Swadeshi Mill
in Nagpur, one of the largest spinning and weaving
enterprises of Central India. I read the name of my
other stable companion on his dispatch-box, and from
a certain family likeness and similarity of name, asked
him, when we had thawed somewhat, if he had any
relation at Poona, a doctor stationed there. He replied
that the person in question was only his brother. I had
been staying with the doctor during the last Poona
race meeting, and so this formed a bond of union, and
we chummed up. When we had exchanged experiences,
my newly-found friend told me he was the Abkhari
Commissioner for the Central Provinces, and that he
was on a tour of inspection, and busy settling the con-
tracts for the year for the coming m/howa harvest.
Mhowa is a flowering shrub which grows in the forests,
and from the flowers of which is distilled a potent spirit.
The right to make and sell this spirit is farmed out to
different contractors in various districts, and the State
profits very largely by the revenue derived from this
form of excise. The Central Provinces had in many
parts of their jurisdiction decreed to throw open the
forests and their products for the benefit of the dis-
tressed population ; which would cause a general
bouleversement of existing excise arrangements, and


90 THROUGA/ THE AEAM/AVE DASTRACTS
entail an enormous amount of extra and unexpected
work upon the Excise Commissioner. Mr. Cleveland
was running up to his head-office for a day, but after
that we found that our routes would be identical, and
that, if I cared, we could join forces and travel together.
I gladly embraced this opportunity of general com-
panionship, and over a final peg before turning in, we
sealed the compact.
The longest lane has a turning, and even a night in
the train must sooner or later come to an end, so the
next morning, at about nine o'clock, we steamed slowly
into the busy station of Nagpur.



PART II
CENTRAL INDIA
CHAPTER XI
NAGPUR
ON my arrival at the station I was met by a
chupprassie, with a note from the manager of the Bengal
Bank of Nagpur, whom I had known in former days in
Bombay, offering me bed and board for the night. As
I drove up to the Bank bungalow, the native guard
which is always kept at up-country branches turned
out and presented arms, an honour with which I was
duly gratified, and which I recognized with the air of a
general or governor on his tour of inspection.
My friend was awaiting me on the steps, and with
him was another old Bombay friend who was visiting
Nagpur in the interests of his firm at Bombay, and so I
felt quite at home.
When I had tubbed and dressed, we sat down to
breakfast, at which we had an excellent dish of silver
fish, as they are called, which are caught in the adjacent
river. I at once began to discuss the famine, and pro-
ceeded to extract all the information possible from my
worthy host. I gathered that there was great scarcity
in the neighbourhood, and that prices had risen to an
abnormal extent. There was acute distress in the



9I
92 THA’OUGAT THE AEAM/AWE DASTR/CTS
taluka of Balaghat, and this was the blackest spot in
the district. I immediately expressed a desire to visit
this barren region, but on subsequent inquiry I found it
was one of the most inaccessible places in the Central
Provinces. It would have involved laying a dawk of
some forty or fifty miles through the rudest possible
jungle, and as I was travelling against time and the
ever-increasing power of the sun, I had reluctantly to
abandon the project.
Nagpur, as I have previously stated, is the seat of the
Government of the Central Provinces and the head-
quarters of the Chief-Commissioner. The total area of
the province is 3843 Square miles, with a population,
according to the last census, of 737,862. It is divided
into four sub-divisions, named Nagpur, Umrer, Ramtek,
and Katol, which are looked after respectively by an
Assistant-Commissioner. I may mention here that the
term Commissioner is used in the Central and North-
West Provinces and the Punjaub instead of the title
Collector, which signifies the same office in the Bombay
Presidency.
Nagpur is an important trading city, and the emporium
for the cotton of the Central Provinces, the best cotton
being grown at Hinghenhaut. There are several large
spinning and weaving mills, which are in the hands of
Hindoo and Parsee capitalists. It is also famous for its
oranges, and a large export in this fruit is done. In
fact, a wagon-load a day is sent during the season to
Hyderabad alone, and a similar amount is sent to
Bombay and Calcutta. In the station-yard, on arrival,
I saw an immense heap of the golden fruit piled up,
and a crowd of packers and sorters were busy putting
it into crates ready for exportation. -





AVA GA2O/A2 93
Nagpur is 759 miles from Calcutta, 812 from Allaha-
bad, 244 from Bhusawal, and 511 from Jubbulpur. The
chief language spoken is Marathi, though many of the
traders are conversant also with Guzerati.
The Central Provinces, with the Berar's, include that
immense plain of Central India which extends from Jhansi
in the north to Chinoor in the south, and from Bhusawal
in the west to far-off Sambulpur, that charming place on
the Mahanadi river, a paradise for the shikari and the
fisherman alike. A parsimonious policy of the Govern-
ment has kept this vast tract of country inadequately,
if not inefficiently officered ; and the bitter cry that has
for years past ascended to the breezy heights of Simla
from the over-worked and under-manned staff, has been
“Give more help.” When you come to think that one
Assistant-Commissioner holds in the hollow of his hand
the lives of some million of our subjects, and that the
tract for which he is responsible, and over which he has
almost undisputed control, is equivalent in area to the
combined counties of Yorkshire and Northumberland,
with the Principality of Wales thrown in as a make-
weight, one can gather some faint idea of the vastness
of our Eastern Empire.
The Central Province official machinery has always
been run at full pressure, and when a crisis like that of
this present famine arises, a break-down from over-speed
and over-work is the natural result.
I had heard that there was a large poor-house in the
native quarter of the town, so getting hold of a tonga
of the most ramshackle description, I started upon a
voyage of discovery.
We drove some three miles through the crowded
native quarter, where were exposed for sale every





94 THROUGH THE AEAM/AVE D/STRACTS
imaginable article, from the rudely-made articles of
native manufacture to the glittering tinsel ornaments
and Brummagem öðjouterie of Birmingham. My con-
ductor, after passing without the city-gate and wall,
drew up at an ancient building, which he informed me
was the garić logue Áhama, or, in other words, the hostel
provided for the poor and needy.
This was an ancient serai, the blank wall facing the
street being pierced by a massive gateway, with two
very heavily-timbered gates of excellent ancient Indian
workmanship. Every now and then in the native
quarters of a city one comes across these specimens of
native carpentry, generally overlaid with very massive
cross-work beams and showing great solidity. They
are the signs of bygone troublous times, when every
man looked upon his neighbour with more or less
suspicion. These serais, or rest-houses for travellers,
were in fact, more or less, strongholds where the wan-
dering merchants could seek repose, and if necessary
defend themselves from the bands of wandering
marauders which overran the country. We have to go
back to the Middle Ages in civilized England to find a
similar state of lawlessness, but in India it is only of
comparatively recent years that unbridled rapine, murder,
thuggee, and dacoity were rampant in these remote
plains of Central India. Every man carried his life in
his hand, and was always more or less prepared for the
worst. The rule of the Sircar has changed all this, and
the inhabitants of Ind travel with the utmost con-
fidence in the strong and far-reaching arm of the law.
Even in these times of famine, when one might expect
that disorder would be rife in the land, I travelled
through the length and breadth of the afflicted districts,


AVAGA'UA’ 95
and my only weapon of offence and defence was an
ordinary bamboo cane.
This ancient seraz before which I had halted had been
acquired by the municipality some time back as a poor-
house.
When I entered the gates a couple of sepoys saluted,
and in the gate-house I found a £arkoon and his
attendants, busily attending to the clerical business of
the establishment. They were preparing the muster-
rolls, writing up the day-books, and in fact doing that
mass of official correspondence and routine which seem
inseparable from the distribution of charitable funds.
Red-tapeism is perhaps more rampant in India than in
any other known country of the civilized world. The
mass of records, statements, reports, which are deemed
necessary, and which the famine and its attendant
relief-system entailed, would be sufficient to keep all the
buttermen in London in sufficient paper to envelop
their wares for at least a couple of centuries. If I had
accepted even a fiftieth part of the literature, statistics,
etc., which were offered to me during my tour through
the famine districts, I believe that I could have collected
sufficient material to fill another edition of the Encyclo-
padia Britannica.
The courtyard of the serai was surrounded by a
galleried verandah, and on to this in the way usual in
native buildings opened a series of rooms. The northern
side of the courtyard was devoted to a small hospital,
which was in charge of an hospital assistant. He had
under his care only those suffering from the lighter
disorders; all the more serious cases were at once
transferred to the large and well-ordered native hospital
1 Native writer or clerk.


96 THROUGAſ THE AWAM/AVE /)/STRICTS
in the city. I found about a dozen patients who were
attacked with the ordinary diarrhoea, which in times of
famine is a very prevalent disease, especially amongst
the new-comers. Their stomachs, from long-continued
abstinence, have got out of working order and cannot
assimilate their food. In spite of the utmost precautions
of the authorities, the hungry new-comer will stuff him-
self with a mass of indigestible food—chuppaties for
choice—if he or she can by hook or crook lay hands
upon these delectable luxuries. Repletion is the result,
and bowel complaints and dysentery the consequence.
The southern side was devoted to the large kitchen
and water-supply for the inmates, and for the due
housing of the Brahmin cooks who catered for the large
number under their charge. The total number of in-
mates on the day of my visit exceeded a thousand.
The food, consisting of rice, dhal, ghee, and condi-
ments, was being cooked in huge copper ghāndies or
caldrons, and with the heat and the smoke and the
naked attendant sprites, reminded one of the castle of
Mahratta women were busily preparing the atta (a
mixture of jowari and bajri flour), from which the
chuppaties are made. The grain is ground in native
stone mills, which are worked by a couple of women,
The picture recalled the old Scriptural scene of “two
women grinding at a mill.” The flour thus obtained
was passed on to another set of females, who duly made
it into dough and hammered it out into the required
shape of the universal chuppati. -
A chuppati is a flat cake about the size of a dinner-
plate. It is in appearance similar to the good old
Fee Fo Fum or some other giant's kitchen. A band of:
who cause the upper stone to revolve by a short handle.
-
º-





|-‘INITVOEI ONIGINI?IÐ


AVAGAUR 97
Scotch girdle-cake, or the delicacy which in one's boy-
hood one used to get in Leicestershire under the name
of pikelets. In taste, however, it is far different, and it
is of the toughest description, but I believe its properties
when used in moderation, and to a stomach accustomed
to this form of refection, are very life-sustaining. It is
indeed in many, and in fact in most parts of India, the
universal dish of the masses. These chuppaties, when
duly kneaded and beaten out, were passed on to the
chief Brahmin baker, who placed them upon a native
oven made of stonework and heated by a wood-fire
beneath. A special Brahmin was in charge of the
drinking-water, and the utmost care to avoid pollution
was taken. Each huge chatti or earthen jar, which
put one in mind of Ali Baba of pantomime repute, was
carefully covered over the mouth with a piece of muslin,
to prevent the entrance of any flies or other life-bearing
creatures. The whole place was exceedingly well-
ordered, clean, and a perfect model of a native kitchen.
The inmates are fed twice a day, at nine in the
morning and four in the afternoon.
The daily ration consists of
1 lb. of rice boiled.
4% oz. of dhal.
I chuppati at each meal.
# oz. oil.
# oz. of condiments, i.e. chilies, salt, etc.
# oz. of ghee or clarified butter, which are mixed up with the
dhal and made into a thick soup.
The dimensions of the actual seraž itself were of
course quite inadequate to the due housing of the
thousand Odd inmates seeking its shelter. A large
mandap * of matting and bamboo had been constructed,
e 1 Shed.
H

98 7"HA’OUGA 7THE FAM/AWE Z)/STRACTS
to which entrance was obtained by the southern gate
of the building proper. This poor-house is managed
entirely by the native authorities themselves, and every-
thing done upon the caste system. It is regulated by
a joint committee of Hindoos and Mussulmans, and the
religious principles and scruples of the inmates are
rigorously and religiously preserved. This is as it
should be, and were the same rules enforced all over
India we should hear of less complaints from the
natives themselves, and give a handle the less for the
congress-wallah and the brigade of the discontented to
turn. These men are always ready to scoff at our rule
in India, and in many cases our system of administra-
tion gives them a favourable opportunity. In this
serai all the food arrangements are in the hands of
Brahmins, and thus the prejudices of even the high
castes are in no way offended.
The part of the mandap which is not devoted to an
exercise yard is roofed over and divided into wards.
Each ward contains fifty inmates of the same caste, and
they appoint their own head-man, who is responsible
to the officials for his charges' comfort and well-being.
I then began my tour of inspection, and inquired into
the status and place d'origine of several of the inmates.
In many instances I found that the most emaciated and
poverty-stricken cases came from Balaghat, thus con-
firming my previous information about the existence
of severe famine in this district. The general condition
of the people was very low, and that the greater number
of them were reduced to the final stage of destitution
was only too self-evident. Many of them had reached
that stage of callous indifference and torpor which long-
continued starvation produces. They lay or sat about




AVAGAUR 99
listlessly, and even the approach of a sahib, which in
many instances is the precursor of a voluble string of
complaints, failed to rouse them. In fairness to the
administration, I must say that by far the larger pro-
portion of these were new-comers, who had not been long
enough there to recuperate their powers and strength.
I had absolutely no complaints about the food, though
my attention was constantly called to the want of cloth-
ing. Many were the piteous appeals made to me, and
the rags scarcely covering their bodies were frequently
held up, while the wail went up—“Sa/.7%, sa/kiö, copra na
hai, sa/26, bahut fundra /ai, sa/ºb.” I inquired into this,
and the superintendent said that they would all be
supplied with raiment in due course. He added that
when the house was first opened every new-comer had
been given clothing, but that in very many cases the
recipients had sold it in the bazaar. They were now
providing the people with clothing of a particular pattern,
which would not be so readily disposed of, the women
receiving a bright yellow sari and the men a warm sort
of jumper made of gaol-cloth. They had found this plan
answer, but it was difficult to obtain a sufficient supply
of these materials owing to the sudden influx of destitute
visitors. The actual persons that I saw in the enclosure
were those who were incapable of work, with the excep-
tion of a few men and women who were engaged in
making string. The whole place was beautifully clean,
and daily smeared all over with cow-dung. This may
seem repugnant to European ideas, but a native when
he wishes to perpetrate a spring cleaning, instead of
washing the mud floor, gives it a new coat of this
mixture.
* “Sir, sir, I have no clothes; I am very cold, sir.”



Too THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCZS
The able-bodied amongst the inmates were daily
taken off under escort to the river-side, some half-mile
away, where they were engaged in making a dam across
the bed of the nearly dried-up stream. This was of
earthwork, and was later to be faced with stone. It
would do much to make a reservoir and extend the area
of cultivation when the welcome rains should once more
fill the bed of the river. I passed through the various
gangs, and though they were perhaps not doing a daily
task which would gladden the heart of a P.W.D. official,
yet they were working according to their lights and
strength. I was greeted with beaming smiles when I
stopped to question the workers of the various gangs.
From the river “I went on to visit the segregation
camp of the lepers. They were, as is always the case
with this class of sufferers, a horrible sight, and yet
there were not such bad cases as those mentioned in
my chapter upon Sholapur. The number was about a
hundred, and they exhibited every species and form of
deformity. One poor little baby had been attacked ; it
had lost already both its feet, and its sightless eyes as it
turned them towards us on hearing our approach were
an awful spectacle. The mother, whose swollen and
disfigured limbs indicated that she was approaching the
climax of the disease, feebly tried to gather up her babe
in her worn and ragged sari. Leprosy is an awful
Scourge, but one redeeming feature of the malady
seems to be that when it attacks a victim it also takes
away the spirit, and the sufferers become dazed, and
lapse into a helpless and hopeless apathy, which seems
to dim the awful effects of this dreadful malady. Nature
perhaps steps in, and while Surely claiming its victim,
yet deadens the feelings. All I can say is that in all


AWAGAUAE IOI
the cases of leprosy I have seen during my wanderings,
and these amount to several hundreds, I was always
greeted with absolute indifference; no wailing, no ap-
peals, as in the case of the starving, but a horrible and
stony indifference. These particular sufferers were well
looked after, and wisely restrained, as when once they
entered the laggaretto they were not allowed to enter
the world again, but were kept there till a merciful death
ended their career of suffering and disease. I inquired
about the death-bill in the poor-house proper, and found
that it had already amounted to fifty souls, and the daily
average was four or five. Over seventy cases had been
transferred to the city hospital. The chief cases in the
poor-house hospital consisted of pulmonary diseases,
which are so prevalent in India, and diarrhoea. The
children were largely afflicted with ophthalmia in various
stages. It was sad to see a poor little baby with a Swarm
of flies clustering upon its diseased eyelids. The patients
showed distinct signs of the hospital assistants' attention.
I found many of the inmates with sores and wounds,
but they were either bandaged or had been treated with
mercurial ointment. As regards medical attendance,
the paupers of Nagpur have very little to complain of, and
the dispensary doctor seemed to be an intelligent man
and solicitous for the welfare of those under his care.
Seeing that there were over a thousand inmates in
the house, and the greater part of these completely run
down, the mortality did not seem excessive. It is very
true that the more serious cases of disease were, as I
have remarked above, taken to the hospital, and their
deaths would appear upon the hospital's books, but still
the number was small. The superintendent showed me
the death-rell, and I found his figures correct. He





To 2 ZTAZAZO UGAſ ZTAZZ A.4//ZAVAE ZO/ST/C/CTS
added, that the more frequent deaths occurred amongst
the new-comers who had put off seeking relief till it was
too late.
I was shown the grave-yard, which is situate upon a
piece of waste land about a mile from the poor-house.
There were several graves already dug, and these were
at a depth of five or six feet, so that the dead were
ensured proper burial, and their mortal remains would
be secure from the attacks of jackals and pariah dogs.
In the Madras famine of 1876-77, one reads of many
horrors of mutilated graves, but this could not occur in
the last resting-place of the poor and needy of Nagpur.
The institution is certainly the best of its kind that
I visited, either before or after, and may serve as an
excellent example to similar places in the provinces of
Central India, inasmuch as many poor-houses inspected
hereafter left much to be desired. The whole affair is
run entirely by natives. The total cost per month did
not exceed 1600 rupees, and as there were over IOOO
recipients of relief, it can be seen how far, with good
administration, a small sum, judiciously expended, will
go towards alleviating the sufferings of a starving Hindu
population. I produce opposite the balance-sheet of the
Institution for the month of December 1896, which will
corroborate my statements.
Mr. Cleveland had given me a letter of introduction
to Mr. Nedham, the Deputy-Commissioner, so when I
had completed my tour of inspection of the poor-house,
I drove off to interview this gentleman. I was fortunate
in finding him at home, and at once plunged in medias
7%.S.
The Deputy-Commissioner informed me that a relief
work had been started, in which the maximum numbers


MONTHLY ABSTRACT ACCOUNT OF THE POOR-HOUSE, NAGPUR,
FOR MONTH OF DECEMBER 1896.
INCOME. EXPENDITURE.
R. A. P. R. A. P.
Donations ... --- --- ... 545 O O I Purchase of grain through Seth Jamnidas Potdar ..., IOOO O. O.
Monthly subscriptions ... ... I512 8 o 2 Lugras. Dhoties and cloth for coats purchased from
Miscellaneous receipts, such as sale Empress Mills, and sewing charges of coats, etc. ... 252 8 9
proceeds of Bhoosa, undisbursed 3 Wages of Poor-house servants for the month of Novem-
wages of Poor-house servants, ber 1896 ... --- --- --- --- --- --- 95 II 3
and refund of pay of sweepers 4 Erection of chappars and latrine for Poor-house inmates Io9 o o
engaged for the Relief Camps IO 9 II 5 Purchase of fuel ... --- --- --- --- --- 53 I2 O
- 6 Purchase of salt, masala, vegetables, etc. --- --- 22 I4 3
7 Purchase of linseed and kerosene oil --- --- --- I7 I5 O
8 Purchase of earthen and iron pots, and repairs to cook- º
ing pots and tin-coating pots, etc. --- --- 23 I5 3 Š
9 Railway charges of persons sent to their homes in the Q
Balaghat and Bandara districts -- --- --- 32 I4 3 SS
Io Miscellaneous expenses, such as purchase of medicines, S
stationery, diet of patients, etc. --- --- --- 32 I4 8 S
Total receipts ... 2068 I II Total expenditure ... --- ... I64I 9 5
Balance with Superintendent of Poor-
house ... --- --- --- --- 3O I5 IO
Add opening balance ... ... 694 I3 I Balance with R. B. Seth Kasherchandt ---
Firm, Nagpur, January I, 1897 ... Io90 5 9
Closing balance --- --- ... II2 I 5 7
Grand total ... 2762 I5 o Grand total ... --- --- ... 2762 I5 O
(Signed) B. K. BOSE, Treasurer of Poor-house, and K-
KHANDE RAO PANDURANG, Superintendent of Poor-house. & -
(Handed to me on January 7, 1897.-F. M.)


IoA. THA’OUGH THE FAMAVE D/SZZºZCTS .
of workers had reached 2500. At the time of speaking,
not more than 1700 were employed, the others having
gone off to their homes to prepare for the harvesting of
the crops. For the last year both the Ä/arif and rabi
crops had been only 8-anna ones, or in other words a
half-crop.
Balaghat was the worst place in the Nagpur district,
and here there was real famine and distress.
In the city there was a great deal done by private
charity, the recipients of which never reach the poor-
house, so that it was very difficult to accurately gauge
the actual distress within the city walls. The Govern-
ment had conceded all the edible products of the
reserved forest lands, and these would keep the people
who could get at them going for a couple of months.
After that period the number seeking relief would
largely increase. The fodder-supply in the district was
sufficient for present needs, and the good rains that had
fallen in November and December, and also a few days
previous to my visit, would relieve all anxiety as regards
the cattle. The Deputy-Commissioner thought that
they had not to fear any great mortality amongst the
plough and store cattle. There had been an enormous
migration of people from outlying districts to the city,
but proper measures had been taken. Large fażazz
advances had been made to the ryots for land improve-
ments. New tanks were being made all over the
district, and the existing irrigation works repaired and
improved. This would provide labour, and would reduce
the number on the relief works. The impression left
upon my mind after my interview was that the famine
was not considered to be a very serious one in this
district, and that the authorities thought themselves
º
º













AVA GAUA’ Io 5
fully capable of coping with any pressure that might
OCCUl1.
Fresh from my visit to the poor-house, and with the
sights I had seen there indelibly impressed upon my
mind, I must confess that I conceived the idea that the
officials had not sufficiently grasped the real importance
of the situation. Ea uno disce omnes, and I must say
that in my whole tour through the Central Provinces the
more I saw of the crisis the more was this opinion con-
firmed. From high quarters the hookum (order) had gone
forth, there was to be no famine in Central India, and
the subordinates of Government were trying to carry out
this order. How ineffectually it will be my duty to
show hereafter.
At dinner that night I met one or two officers of
the State, and the general tone of the conversation
showed me that had it been advisable these men, who
had every opportunity of arriving at the true state of
affairs, could present a very different picture. One man
mentioned incidentally that on a small shikar expedition
he had come across the body of a woman, the corpse
still warm ; and yet this woman had died of inanition
almost within grasp of help. This was not a solitary
instance, each man there being able to recount similar
recent experiences.



CHAPTER XII
RAIPUR
I STARTED the next morning for Raipur, which is
some one hundred and ninety miles farther down the
Bengal-Nagpur line. I passed the large military can-
tonment of Kamptee, which is nine miles from the city
of Nagpur. This place of comparatively recent origin,
as a military station was first formed there in 182 I, and
for about fifty years it was entirely under the jurisdiction
of the military authorities. When the adjacent city of
Nagpur was the capital of the State of that name, and
the residence of the native court, it was extremely
politic that a military station of some importance should
be formed in the vicinity. Autre temps autres maeurs,
and the decadence of the native power, combined with
the rise of the British raj in these regions, has abrogated
the necessity. It is, however, still kept up as one of
the chief military stations of Central India, and in the
cold weather the gay doings of the military make it a
pleasant place of sojourn. The farther one got down
the line, the wilder grew the country, till it culminated
at Dongargargh in a series of hills clothed with wild
and picturesque bamboo-jungle. On approaching the
station the train enters a pass through the hills, the
summit being pierced by a long tunnel. There is a
legend that this jungle is the home of a man-eating

Ioé
A GURU.


A2AAA’UA’ 107
--
tiger, and while the railway was being constructed
| several natives were carried off as victims of this fierce
monster. I am not aware if it still exists, but I do
know that a few years back Cleveland was commissioned
to institute a big hunting expedition, and, if possible,
sweep this part of the country clear of these obnoxious
pests. He told me that he had shot several tigers in
this particular neighbourhood, and that he believed the
country was now comparatively clear. He had to go
down to the Sambulpur district if he wished to kill a
tiger now-a-days. -
One curious feature of the country is the groups of
isolated rocks which crop out at intervals. They are
enormous piles of stones heaped one upon the other,
# and present a similar appearance to the tors of Devon-
shire. The inventive native has no doubt many legends
- and sagas of these being the battle-fields of the gods,
but I was not able to pursue any inquiry in this direc-
tion. I saw several instances of one rock balancing
upon another, and one huge rock, which with its pedestal
looked like an enormous mushroom, had a peepul-tree
growing on the upper stone. There were several flags
waving, which usually denote the presence of a guru or
anchorite, and I am sure that this freak of nature was a
subject of particular veneration to the simple-minded
husbandmen of the vicinity. In India, as in ancient
Greece and Rome, every river, mountain, hill, valley
and plain is peopled with its imaginary tutelary deities ;
the natives are always prone to venerate, if not to
worship, any of the ultra-fantastic handicraft of Dame
Nature, and they have a mass of legendary lore which
spreads over and coils round these scenes, even the
highly educated having an apt mythological story to










IO8 7"HAEO UGAſ THE AEAM/AWE D/STRACTS
account for anything out of the common order of things.
The peculiar sanctity in which the rivers, streams, pools,
and even tanks are held, can be well understood in that
thirsty land, where the presence of the precious liquid
means actual life and existence to the inhabitants. All
over India you will find countless shrines, Zingas or
sacred stones, holy wells, sanctified groves and other
places. A legend is attached to each of these ; could
one spare the time the study would be interesting.
Folklore is imbued in the mind of every individual unit
of the millions who people India, and perhaps more
deeply engrained than in any other nation or people
of the world’s surface. Sleeman, more than any other
European, got a complete insight into this matter, and
the stories and legends which he has collected in his
Åambles and Recollections, in the district of the sacred
Nerbudda, must always be of the greatest interest to
those attracted by the study of comparative mythology.
In this quarter of the globe the natives use a very
curious wheeled conveyance. It is called a ring?, and
consists of a pole attached to two light wheels. The
passenger sits astride this pole, and from personal
experience I can testify that it is a very shaky mode
of conveyance. These carts are drawn by a breed of
oxen peculiar to these parts ; they are very small and
yet fast, as they are able to keep up a trot which is
equal to that of an ordinary horse.
Horse-exercise is very little practised, and you see
even the better class of natives using the native vehicles.
In Kathiawar the reverse prevails, and you never see a
native journeying except on pony-back, with that awful
native pad-saddle, which invariably produces a Sore
back upon the poor beastie underneath. º
-






AºA WAZUA’ Io9
I had now got into what is known as the Chattisgargh"
district. The inhabitants consider themselves a distinct
race from the other tribes of India, and call themselves
by the distinguishing and proud title of Chattisgaris.
The Commissioner of Raipur is known officially and
locally as the Commissioner of Chattisgargh. In olden
days the rajahs of Ratanpur held the Sway, but about
the year 750 A.D. the kingdom was split up, and a
separate rajah ruled in Raipur. This district is known
as one of the richest corn-growing countries of the
world, and is known locally by the vernacular name of
Ahalottee, which being interpreted means the “granary
of India.” It is a vast amphitheatre, extending from
the plains of Raipur, with ranges of hills forming a back-
ground, towards the north and west. These hills are
the watershed, and when the monsoon comes, send
down the fertilizing streams upon the immense alluvial
plain lying at their feet. Rice is very largely grown in
every spot suitable for its cultivation ; and as far as the
eye can reach one sees the terraced fields with their
restraining &nds.”
The greater part of the corn is grown for export, and
the inhabitants of the district rely upon the rice-crop
for their staple food.
I have previously mentioned that land which is
devoted to rice only bears one crop a year, and is
entirely dependent upon the autumn rains for its proper
production. Last year the crop completely failed, and
thus the people were quickly brought down to starvation
* The kingdom of the thirty-six forts.
* A bank of mud to keep back the water. This causes a rice-
growing country to look like the terraced vineyards on the shores
of the Lake ºf Geneva.



I Io THROUGH THE AEAM/AWE DISTRACTS
point. For two or three seasons previously the out-turn
of the rice-crop had been extremely patchy, and so the
husbanded supplies were at a low ebb the time the last
crop was due.
I may, perhaps somewhat ruthlessly, scatter one of
the cherished theories of our childhood, at any rate as
far as India and its rice-crop is concerned. Casting
one's bread upon the waters and finding it after many
days, has always been supposed to refer to the oriental
method of Sowing rice. I can only say that as far as
I have seen in the gorgeous East this haphazard method
does not prevail. A well-chosen nursery for the grain
is carefully sown. When it has reached a sufficient
height it is then lifted and replanted in tufts in the
paddy fields proper, and the vivifying stream is then
conducted into the fields thus planted. The rice-plants
are allowed to grow in the actual water ; the greater
part of this soaks eventually into the ground ; and as
the rains cease the water disappears, and the crops in
the month of October, under the influence of the burning
Sun, quickly ripen, when they are duly garnered. A
threshing-floor is prepared by beating down the ground
in a part of the field. A post is driven into the ground
in the centre, and all the available oxen are attached by
a rope to this and slowly driven round and round. In
due time they tread out all the grain, which is then
handed over to the women, who winnow it by throwing
it up into the air from a large shovel-shaped basket.
The whole process of husbandry in India is of the
most primitive description, and for that very reason
doubly interesting. One sees in actual practice the
agricultural customs which one is wont to associate with
ancient biblical history.
º



AºA/AUR III
Curiously enough, the peasants in Chattisgargh were
themselves somewhat to blame for the failure of the
rice-crop, and the consequent scarcity which produced
such distress. In July 1896, the monsoon set in with
great violence in the district, and a very heavy and
unprecedented rainfall in the early part of the season
was the result. Planting operations were concluded,
and the natives, seeing that the season was yet young,
were afraid that the excessive supply of water would
rot the crops before they could mature. They accord-
ingly cut the bunds which kept in the flood, and
allowed the precious water to escape. Nemesis was
following hard upon their heels, as no sooner had they
done so than the monsoon suddenly ceased and no more
rain fell. The crops, unable to resist the power of the
sun, withered, and the hopes of the husbandmen for the
year perished. Re-sowing was useless, and the food-
supply for the coming year had failed.
Another thing which militated against the hard-
pressed hinds was that, with a desire to gain a higher
price for their toil, in a great many instances they had
sown upon the lower grounds a higher quality of rice,
which is suitable only for the uplands. In good seasons
this speculation succeeds, but it is always attended with
a certain amount of risk, and though the crop if gathered
gains a higher market-price, yet in a bad year the result
is total failure. One cannot blame the hard-working
ryot for trying to put a few more pies in his purse, but
it is a gamble pure and simple, and more frequently a
case of “Heads you win, tails I lose.” In the long run
the ryot is the sufferer; but who could ever restrain the
Hindoo from having a gamble when he willed God
knows, we Westerns, with our mines and Stock Exchange
-

II 2 THA’OUGH THE AEAM/AVE ZD/STR/C 7'S
and other means of adding to our purses, should not be
the first to throw the stone at the patient ryot of our
great dependency. Still, from the strict, political econo-
mist's point of view, the system is bad, and certainly
“Me few me vaut pas la chandelle.”
I have been betrayed into a lengthy excursion into
the realms of agricultural methods in India, and
especially in Chattisgargh; let me, however, return to
Raipur.
When the train drew up, I found Cleveland, according
to promise, awaiting me in company with Mr. Oswald,
the principal of Rajkumar College, who was to be my
host. In my entertainer I found an old college friend,
whom I had lost sight of for over twenty years. It was
a curious coincidence and a strange rencontre. As soon
as we had exchanged salutations, I was bundled into
my host's dog-cart, and hustled off to see the poor-house,
as we should arrive there just as the inmates were re-
ceiving their evening meal. My host was the chairman
of the municipality, and so this poor-house was strictly
under his jurisdiction. It lay about two miles from the
Station on the confines of the native city. In spite of
the unremitting attention of Mr. Oswald, the generality
of the patients were in a very poor way. We discussed
the question, and came to the conclusion that the
allowance of food as per State regulations was not all-
sufficing, and ought to be increased. The daily dole,
though sufficient to keep life in the recipient, was not
enough to build up his strength. The chairman had
memorialized Government on this point, but had not
received an official reply. In the meantime he was
supplementing the Government grants with funds drawn
from private charity. There were great numbers of the


AºAAA’UA’ II.3
Chambar fat, and these were typical specimens of the
country. Great hulking fellows, some five feet ten high,
who ought to have been the backbone of the country,
showed me their bodies, of which only the framework
remained. One man, picking up the loose fold of
wrinkled skin which represented the pit of his stomach,
and indeed it was an awful pit, said sadly, “How can
one work like that, sahib P”
Another, a bundas? or cattle-man, said he had lost
all his cattle, that he had nothing, and showing me his
limbs, where his joints stood out in awful prominence,
and his ribs seemed to be bursting his tight-drawn skin,
said there was nothing left but to die. Now both these
men had been in the poor-house for over two months,
and yet they were merely the effigies of men. This is
a mistaken policy, and it would surely be better economy
to attempt to build up these relics again more quickly
and efficiently, that they might earn a day's wage by a
day's work. As it was, they were merely dead-heads
on the hands of the Government. I could have multi-
plied instances of this by the score, but these two will
serve as types to point my argument.
Another case attracted my attention ; it was that
of a poor bag of female bones, which lay huddled up on
a bundle of rags nursing an infant, or rather fondling it,
for her means of supplying nourishment to her nursling
had long ago failed. I asked the old woman who was
with her what ailed the sufferer. She replied in the
poetic vernacular, that after child-birth “the wind struck
her and she died.” By this orientalism she wished to
convey that, owing to cold and privation, her daughter
had become paralyzed, and was practically dead to the
- 1 Caste.
I


114 ZAIROUGH THE FAM/AWE Z)ZSTRZCZS
world, as the whole of her lower limbs had become stiff
and useless. I suggested that it was a fitting case for
the hospital, but when I mentioned the words hakim
and duć/ank/ana, her eyes gleamed, and she muttered
that “if it was God's will her daughter would die; but
that she would rather she should die where she was than
enter that accursed place.” It is strange how deeply
rooted is the antipathy of the natives to putting them-
selves into the hands of a duly-qualified physician, and
more especially do they fear entering the dread portals
of the hospital. The recent experiences of the plague
searchers in Bombay have tended to bring to light the
horror in which all places of segregation where the
healing art is practised, are looked upon alike by the
educated and ignorant native. They consider that their
caste privileges will be broken down, and prefer death
to desecration.
While we were making our tour of inspection the
officials were busily mustering the inmates of the poor-
house for their evening meal. When they had them all
squatting in lines, with their chatties and platters before
them, the distribution began. First of all came two
stalwart and lusty Brahmins bearing huge pots of cooked
rice. This was doled out to each person, man, woman,
or child, and then followed another kavas (cook) bringing
a big chatti filled with a savoury mess of chilies, oil,
dhal, and other seasonings, a modicum of which was
poured over each dole of rice. So strong are the religious
feelings, that many of these poor people, though without
doubt ravenous, would not begin to satisfy their cravings
in the presence of the infidel Sahib logue, and so we dis-
creetly retired and left them to their prejudices and
portions. There were about 300 adults in all, and a

A2AAA’UA’ II 5
great number of children, whose numbers I did not
take. These people may be safely taken as a fair
sample of the condition of the people in the district, and
their forms and figures, or rather want of them, showed
very plainly that the dread hand of Famine had them
in its clutch. Many of the children exhibited that
abnormal and swollen stomach, a sure sign of great
privation, which heralds the approach of speedy death.
I am sure that there were over a hundred children there
upon whose grave the next waxing moon would shine.
The general appearance of the whole crowd was much
worse than I had remarked at Nagpur, and testified
that the famine in the Chattisgargh district was only a
too sad and patent fact. There were a few, but an
almost infinitesimal portion, able to do light work, and
these were employed in making mud-bricks during the
day outside the precincts of the enclosure. By far the
larger portion, however, were totally incapable of any
form of exertion, and were there awaiting release either
by recovery, or, what was far more probable, by death.
Here we had an instance of a poor-house looked after
by an energetic, intelligent, and really philanthropic
European, and yet he was unable to absolutely cope
with the matter or hold out any reasonable hope of
setting these poor people on their legs again. What
then must have been the condition of those starving
thousands whom Government aid or private charity
could not reach * There could be but one solution,
namely that Death must inevitably claim them as his
victims. --
The further I got into the heart of Central India, the
more was my opinion confirmed that the dilatory
measures pf the Supreme authorities were, and would


II6 7. HA’OUGAT THE AEAM/AWE DISTRACTS
be, responsible for an enormous and abnormal mortality
amongst its suffering millions.
On our way home to dinner we looked into the Club,
and there I met a cousin of mine whom I had not seen
for years. She had married the station doctor, and was
settled at Raipur. This place was fated to be remark-
able for unexpected meetings, as at dinner, when with
my host, Cleveland, the Deputy-Commissioner and
the writer, we formed a pleasant partie carrée, we dis-
covered that we all four were contemporaries at Oxford,
two being members of Balliol and two of Keble
College. For four men to meet unexpectedly in a small
up-country station who had all been friends at the
University, and who had not seen each other for nearly
a score of years, was, to say the least of it, a curious
coincidence. Conversation naturally turned upon the
famine question, and as the Deputy-Commissioner had
just returned from a lengthened tour in the worst-
affected part of his district, he was able to tell me a
great many interesting details of his work.
Ere the sun was up next morning, Oswald and myself
were in the dog-cart ready for a tour of inspection of
the native city and the public relief works. Test works
had been opened in the previous October, and had
demonstrated the necessity for repressive measures being
at once taken in hand. The works I inspected were in
the immediate vicinity of the city, in fact two were
within the confines of the city itself. They consisted of
the filling-up of old and disused tanks. These places
were merely hot-beds of disease, and the work, apart
from supplying employment for the workers, was in
itself an excellent sanitary measure. These tanks,
relics of a bygone time, had ceased to be a necessity

AºA/AUR II 7
for the population, since the establishment of the water-
works some few years back. There were in all about
8000 souls engaged on these works, which were being
run by the municipality and a managing committee,
of which my host was the head and ruling spirit.
On Our return we paid a visit to Rajkumar College,
and there I made the acquaintance of several of the
future rulers of India. These colleges, as their name
implies, are for the Éumars or heirs-apparent of the
native princes of India. The Government has already
established three of these excellent institutions. There
is one in Rajkote for the native princes of Kathiawar,
which owes its great success to the unremitting and life-
long toil of its late lamented principal, Mr. McNaghten.
Another has been founded at Ajmere, which bears the
title of Mayo College, and draws its pupils from the Pun-
jaub and the native States of Rajputana; while Raipur
supplies the needs of Central India. There is another
in Madras for the sons of Zemindars, but of that I am
unable to speak. With regard to the other three, I have
seen and known the excellent work that they have done
and are doing, and feel convinced that this is one of the
most judicious steps that Government has ever taken.
Any one who like myself has had any experience of a
native court and its system of flattery and intrigue, to
say nothing of the dominant influence of the Zenana,
will know that better measures could not be taken for
the proper formation of the minds and morals of the
young Scions of royalty, who in due time must ascend
the thrones of their fathers. -
I had arranged to tiffen with Mr. Laurie, and so as
soon as I had returned I set off again to his bungalow.
From him? I gained the following details. Raipur is the


II.8 7"HA’OUGH THE AEAM/AVE DASTR/CTS
largest district of the Central Provinces, embracing as it
does an area of twelve thousand square miles, with a
population of a million and a half. We are not
accustomed to deal with square miles, so let us put
it into acreage, with which at home we are more
familiar. The acreage then of the district of Raipur
works out to seven million, six hundred and eighty
thousand (7,680,000). The acreage of Wales is 4,722,573,
so that the superficial area of this portion of the
Central Provinces, for which Mr. Laurie was re-
sponsible, is more than half as large again as the
Principality. It is of course beyond the power of one
human being to be constantly in touch with such an
enormous area and its inhabitants; while a tour of the
whole district cannot possibly be completed during the
few cold-weather months at the disposal of the European
officials. The Deputy-Commissioner had just returned
from a tour of inspection in the Dharmapura taluka,
where he had found the condition of things very bad
indeed. In one village there had occurred over twenty
deaths from starvation, and yet the Éotzval or watchman
had done nothing to alleviate the distress, as he was
afraid of acting upon his own responsibility, and awaited
the arrival of “his Honour.” In another village many
more were on the brink of death, which the timely
arrival of the Commissioner averted—many of the poor
creatures were unable to stand, and these were by no
means isolated cases, but fairly represented the condition
of the country. In a voice in which there were tears,
the Deputy said—“By God, it is too awful. There are
over 1300 villages affected in my district alone, so you
may judge of the amount of distress there is ; the staff
is quite inadequate to cope with the difficulty, and God



‘NIQāIVNI “VIGIIN V

AºAAAUA’ II 9
knows what will happen. Village relief works have
been started all over the place. There are, as I have
said, I 3OO villages requiring help, and an average of
forty in each village, so this would represent over half
a lac of people.” There was no doubt that great
mortality had taken place already, and it was almost
impossible to say definitely where the death-roll would
CC2S6.
A real and burning question when the famine was
got in hand would be the question of seed-grain, and
it was a grave matter which the Government would
have to face, or otherwise the horrors of the present
season would be prolonged into the next year.
Attempts had been made to buy grain privately and
supply the peasants, but they had failed, owing to the
vast area which required aid, and also from an insuffi-
ciency of funds. The Government were now offering
very favourable terms for takavi advances free of
interest; and with a possible rebate later. It was how-
ever only the better class of ryots who would avail
themselves of this. It would be quite useless as regards
the sudha (low-caste) masses of the people. It was clearly
evident to me that the burden thrown upon the officials
was greater than human strength could bear, and though
to a man they were making almost superhuman efforts,
yet their numbers must, to be of any avail, be increased,
and their hands considerably strengthened.
In the telegram which I sent home I touched upon
the mortality question in Central India, but did not
pledge myself to any definite number. My wire, it
seems, provoked a question in the House, which a
friend sent me subsequently, and which I here annex.
I can only say that the numbers quoted were not


I2O THROUGH THE AEAM/AWE D/STRACTS
furnished by me, nor did they, as far as my knowledge
went, appear in the copies of the daily English papers
who were subscribers to Reuter's Special Service.
“Aſouse of Lords,
“Monday, Feb. 9th,
“THE INDIAN FAMINE.
“LORD KINNAIRD inquired whether the Government
were in a position to affirm or contradict the statement
made by Reuter's Agency, that in the Central Provinces
of India many deaths from starvation had already taken
place, and were taking place; that many persons were
on the brink of starvation, and that a district with a
- population of a million and a half was almost without
- food-supply; in the worst district of each of the affected
provinces what was now the selling price of grain in
common use in towns and in the interior ; and whether
the Government would give an assurance that whenever
the price of grain in any district was raised to 18 lbs.
per rupee, they would direct that grain should be
imported into such district 2
“The EARL of ONSLow, in reply, said he was not in
a position to contradict the assertion that in the district
of Raipur there had been 250,000 deaths, but he would
be very much surprised if it turned out to be correct.
He could only assure the noble lord that the statement
made by Reuter's Agency was quite contrary to the
information which the Government had received. He
could not at the moment say what the number of deaths
at Raipur may have been, but the Secretary of State
had communicated with the Government of India by
telegraph, and he would be happy to hand, his noble














AºA /A2O/A’ I2 I
friend a copy of the telegram received in reply. A
reference to the report of the Famine Commissioners
would show that the actual price of grain in a particular
district was no real criterion of the power of the
population to purchase. For instance, taking the
district of Raipur, on December 31st, 1896, rice and
wheat were obtainable at Io seers per rupee, whilst in
1895 (the year before the famine prices) rice was
obtainable at 16 seers per rupee, and wheat at 16% seers
per rupee. He had received a telegram from the
Viceroy that day which he believed would go a long
way to allay the apprehension of the noble lord.
The Viceroy telegraphed—‘Our latest information is
generally re-assuring. Steady prices generally; and
fall which has now begun in Punjab and North-West
Provinces, and sufficiency of visible supplies for daily
requirements, are favourable indications. Punjab prices
reported 15 to 20 per cent lower than two months ago.
Apprehension of failure of stocks would be indicated by
rise of prices. Spring crops promise well in Northern
India and Hindustan, and ought to add considerably to
existing stocks. Sufficiency of existing stocks for all
probable emergency. Not capable of precise quanti-
tative answer, but no reason to doubt correctness of
policy affirmed in your dispatch (No. IO, of June 15),
that trade, as a whole, can supply food demands better
and more effectively than the Government.’”





CHAPTER XIII
BILASPUR
THE evening of February I saw me in company
with Mr. Cleveland on my way to Bilaspur, which
is about seventy miles down the line. We started at
4.30 p.m., and arrived at our destination at 7.30. The
Commissioner had very kindly offered me a shake-down
in the Circuit House, to which he was going with the
intention of establishing his office there for a couple of
days. In Central India, at the most important stations,
the Government has established a series of bungalows,
which go by the name of Circuit Houses. They serve
the same purpose for the grand officials of the land that
the dawk bungalow does for the humbler portion of the
travelling European public. A cutcherry" is generally
attached, and here the high officials on their tours of
inspection hold high court and dispense justice in their
different departments. As a continuous stream of burra
sahić logue, with their crowd of dependents and clerks,
are constantly on the move round the Provinces, these
Circuit Houses serve a very useful purpose, and far
exceed in comfort and even luxury the poor and humble
travellers' rest-house. Cleveland and myself were both
travelling light, and so had not brought with us our
mistri or cook. It was impossible to make a bandoffus?
1 Court-house. -

I22
A/Z.A.S.POW/º I 23
for food in the Circuit House, so we therefore arranged
on the way down that we would take our khana at the
refreshment-rooms at the station, and simply use the
cutcherry as a dormitory. It was naturally quite dark
when we arrived at the station, and as the Railway
Volunteers had just broken up camp, and were returning
to their various homes down the line, the scene on the
platform was a busy one. With the help of a lantern
dimly burning, our impedimenta were collected, and
orders given to our respective boys to see our effects were
taken to the house. It was especially important that we
should get our mail that night, and so, having ordered
dinner, we dashed off in a tonga to the post-Office. We
drove along the dark and solitary road for some time,
and I remarked that the dawk office was a long way off,
when the driver turned into a compound and pulled up
at the dawk bungalow. Mad with rage and starving with
hunger, we set to work and abused the driver, who had
mistaken our orders of dawk office (post-office) for dawk
bungalow. After cursing that driver in our very best,
we at last got him to understand. “Place for the /effers,
not place for the travellers, you son of an ow/.” “Aahal;
atcha, sa/hiff,” he meekly replied, and we began to retrace
our steps. Eventually we arrived at the right place, but
all was in darkness. We prowled about, and with the
light of one of the tonga lamps discovered a sleeping
peon in the back verandah. Him we quickly roused,
and demanded the post-master. In due time the official
appeared, and armed with the majesty of the law, as
represented by the Abkhari Commissioner, and the
sanctity of the press by your humble servant, we at last
persuaded the tepa/-wallah" to open his office and look
- 1 Letter-man.







124 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DASTRICTS
for our mail. After digging about amongst a mass of
correspondence, with the aid of a very smoky cocoa-nut
oil lamp, he unearthed one small letter addressed to me.
On further investigation this turned out to be a small
bill, which had been following me round up-country.
This then was the result of our feverish search for home
news; we had driven about four miles from the station
in the dark, cut a lot of time to waste, and our bag was
a bill. Angry and disappointed, we drove back to
dinner, which we found waiting our arrival. In the
station-yard was Cleveland's chupprassie, mounting
guard over our luggage. It seemed that no bullock-
carts were procurable, and that our boys had gone off on
a voyage of discovery. The manager of the refreshment-
rooms at Bilaspur is a German. He is quite a character,
and well known to all who use the line for his quaint
ways and affability. In fact, it is quite one of the
features of the Bengal-Nagpur line to dine with Strauss
at Bilaspur if possible. On this occasion he had out-
shone himself, and gave us a really first-class dinner.
When we had got to coffee and cheroots we invited the
old fellow in, and he kept us in fits of laughter with a
series of funny stories told in an inimitable way. The
time flew by, and to our horror we found it was nearly
midnight. On parting with our host, he told me in
German that he would make a special dish for our tiffen
the next day. “Ach, mein lieber Herr / 24m Mittagsessen
zwill ºch //ºnem etzwas Delicates machen–Sauerkrauz mit
Sc/.2/8e72.”
We found our tonga-wal/a/. coiled up asleep in his
chuddah, and also the faithful “belted one” still mounting
guard over our heavy baggage. Our servants had come
back and removed our light packages, but the chºprassie


A/LASPUR I 25
had received orders to watch the remainder till morning.
We drove down the same road that we had previously
gone earlier in the evening, and about a quarter of a
mile beyond the post-office found the Circuit House,
where we turned in, thankful to get to bed, as we were
dog-tired. I took a bit of a Europe morning the next
day, and long before making my appearance the Com-
missioner had started off for his work, leaving word that
he would meet me at the station at noon for breakfast.
I spent the forenoon in working up arrears of work and
correspondence. Just as I was starting for tiffen, a
telegram was handed to me from my chief in Bombay,
telling me to get on as soon as possible to Jubbulpur, as
I should meet there Sir Roper Lethbridge, who, in the
interests of the Standard, had just come down from a
tour in the Punjaub and North-West Provinces, and that
he would be able to afford me much useful and reliable
information. Orders from head-quarters must always be
obeyed, and so I gave directions to Domine to see that
we started for Jubbulpur by the night-mail.
I must confess I was a bit disappointed, as I had made
arrangements to go a detour to Ratanpur, and to that
lovely spot upon the Mahanadi, Sambulpur. The former
town was the old capital of the self-contained kingdom
of Chattisgargh. It ceased to be so in 1787, and its fort
and ancient palace have been allowed to lapse into
decay. The town covers an area of fifteen square miles,
and contains within its walls a very large mango-tope.
The Brahmins of Ratanpur are still the leaders of the
sect in the whole district of Chattisgargh, and the city is
renowned for its special sanctity. There are an enormous
number of tanks within the city, and the constant use of
this polluted Water has brought in its train the usual



I 26 ZTA/A2OUGAſ ZTHE AWAAZZZVE Z)/STRACTS
disease. In fact, one of the features of Ratanpur is that
every third man, woman, or child of its inhabitants is
victim either of elephantiasis or leprosy. Sambulpur, on
the contrary, from what I have heard, is a most charming
place, and the jungle abounds in large game, while the
Mahanadi Swarms with ma/Aseer of a size and gameness
to make the mouth of the angler water at the prospect.
This too is the country of the wild elephant, and tigers
are plentiful ; while buck and small game are very
abundant. The Collector is a shakari of the first order,
and I am afraid to say the exact number of tigers that
have fallen to his rifle, but it is one of the records of
Indian tiger-shooting. I bowed to the fates, and went off
to tiffen.
My friend turned up at the station, and I was quite
shocked with his appearance ; he looked quite ghastly
and white, and I asked him what on earth was the
matter 2 He said he had just come away from the poor-
house, and had seen such horrible sights there that he
felt knocked out of time. Here was a Strong man, a
splendid athlete, in fact, a double-blue at Oxford and
a Rugby international, completely unmanned by the
sights of suffering humanity which he had just witnessed.
I was in a way prepared for horrors, but what I did find
on arrival at the poor-house far exceeded anything I had
possibly imagined.
The poor-house at Bilaspur is situate amongst a grove
of jungle mango-trees outside the native quarter of the
town. It consisted of a mere thorn-fence, with a
series of rough grass-huts round the sides. The space
was quite inadequate for the number ; in fact the
authorities were trying to solve the problem that
Suraj-u-d-daulah essayed, and over six hundred souls






A/ZASA’UR I27
were crowded into a space sufficient perhaps for one
hundred and fifty. The stench, filth and dirt, the natural
consequences of such over-crowding, was simply appalling
and indescribable. Outside the pale I found a man
dying of dysentery, absolutely uncared for. A couple of
yards away lay the still warm Corpse of a man, from
which the flies arose in myriads as I approached to
examine him. A group of poor skeletons, scarcely
human beings, were squatting close by, worn down by
suffering and disease to the last state of callousness and
apathy. I questioned them about this man, and they
replied—“Yes, sahib, he is dead. He crawled here this
morning, but was too late for the morning meal, and he
has died. He told us he had had no food for four days.”
Here was a man who died of starvation under the very
eyes of the authorities, and within hand-grasp of the food
which might possibly have saved his life. Scattered all
round the mango-tope, wherever they could find a scrap
of shade, lay huddled in groups two or three hundred
starving and emaciated wretches, who were the over-flow
from the poor-house proper, or rather improper, for it
was the worst managed I had seen in my whole tour.
I have been into and through some dozen or two of
poor-houses, but Bilaspur Stands out by itself as a
pattern of monumental mismanagement. When I had
been dodging about for nearly an hour, a sepoy, very
much in undress uniform, strolled up from the kitchen,
where no doubt he had been discussing pies, rot?%ana,
and dustoorie" with his fellow-officials. Inside the walls,
if one can call the thorn-fence such, the sights were of
the most horrible and pitiable description, and I say
* Money, food, and perquisites. These are the perpetual and
all-engrossing topics of conversation of the lower-class natives.


I 28 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DASTRICTS
advisedly and with due reason, from personal observation,
that the inmates of this supposedly charitable institution
were being condemned to a horrible and lingering death.
Many of them told me that they had been there for
months, and could not get enough to eat. In fact, the
universal wail was, “Bhukha, bhukha, sahib. Mahaaraj,
sahib, ham buſſha hai; dekho, sahib’ (“Hungry, hungry,
Sahib. Lord sahib, I am hungry; look, Sahib’’); and they
pointed to their bodies, where the bones showed clearly
the very articulation of the limbs, and their joints stood
out in awful prominence, like skeletons tightly covered
with skin. One poor little child, whose mother said she
was five years old, was a sheer horror, and looked more
like an anatomical monstrosity than a human being. The
skin of her face was so tightly drawn back that all her
teeth were exposed, while on her skull one could see
clearly the very joints of her cranium. Her arms were
not any thicker than my little finger, and her thighs
about the circumference of my thumb. I lifted her up,
poor soul, and put her weight down at about twelve
pounds, and yet she was five years old and had all her
teeth. This creature with her mother had been in the
house six weeks, and yet was not suffering from any
organic disease. This was starvation pure and simple.
Another man, a mere skeleton, had been receiving the
Government dole for two months and a half, and he
certainly did not weigh five stone, as I lifted him quite
easily. The greater part of the women were quite naked,
except for a rag round the loins, and were brought so
low that they had lost all sense of the innate modesty
which is so strong a characteristic of the native woman
in India. Instead of, as is generally the case, retiring
and trying to cover themselves from the gaze of the




A/Z.A.S.POWA’ I 29
sahib, these women, overcome with misery and destitu-
tion, thrust their naked bodies before our eyes, and
boldly and lamentably kept up an incessant wail for
food and clothing. Another case was a baby lying
screaming with hunger upon a bundle of rags, while its
poor mother, with the tears streaming down her face,
pointed to her wasted form, from which her sources of
supply for her baby had long since dried up, and im-
plored us by the gods not to let her only male child die.
Her husband was at the tea-gardens in Assam, and how
could she face him on his return when her baby-boy was
dead It is scarcely conceivable, but none the less a
fact, that notwithstanding the very apparent and appal-
ling famine which was prevalent in this district, the
Government of India at such a crisis had chosen this
time for demanding from the civil authorities of Bilaspur
a careful report and returns showing the effect that the
present distress was having or likely to have upon the
cloth industry of the district. The whole of the clerical
staff were fully occupied from early morn till dewy eve
in preparing the most elaborate and careful statistics
upon this all-engrossing topic. In the meantime the
actual inhabitants of Bilaspur were dying of starvation,
while under the supposed aegis of the Government and
within their very gates. I mentioned previously that
my opinion was that the famine in the Central Provinces
was grossly mismanaged. I collected tangible proofs of
this daily, till I had to hand a mass of reliable and irre-
futable evidence, which showed only too clearly that the
officials and those responsible had not, and did not, fully
recognize the gravity of the situation. With reference
to the poor-house, there can be no doubt that in addition
to supineness and mismanagement, there was decided
K

130 TAZAZOUGH THE FAM/NAE DISTRZCZS
*
fraud going on, and the poor hopeless and helpless in-
mates were being condemned by a paternal Government
to a slow, horrible, and lingering death by starvation.
I here came across the first specimens of “ Famine
Down,” which is produced by long-continued starvation.
At certain stages of want a fine down of smooth hair
appears all over the bodies of the afflicted. It has a
most curious look, and gives the wearer a more simian
look than ever. When this has once appeared, I heard
from those learned in such matters that the Ultima Thule
of privation had been reached, and that there was no
hope for the sufferer except a speedy release by merciful
death. There were more than a score of souls who had
reached this stage, and their bodies were covered from
head to foot with the soft-looking black fur.
Among the children there were many instances of
spleen, and the swollen feet and stomach which herald
the speedy approach of the king of terrors. In the case
of these poor wretches death had lost its sting, and a
speedy dissolution would be welcomed as the simplest
way out of their troubles. The motto that might appro-
priately be placed over the gates of the poor-house is,
“Let all abandon hope who enter here.” These are
strong words, but out of a full heart the mouth speaketh,
and one's gorge rises when one sees undeserved misery,
which might be alleviated, allowed to have its full bent
without let or hindrance.
In my telegram home I called attention to the
abnormal condition of activity on the part of the labour
agents for the tea-gardens of Assam. I used the word
“coolie-snatchers,” which is the term by which these
recruiting agents are known generally in India. Whether
it was the use of this term, though used in by no means


AZZASA’UAE I31
an invidious sense, or whether it was that my facts were
not considered reliable, my wire called forth an indignant
letter to the Times, from the Secretary of the Tea Asso-
ciation, who pointed out “that the tea industry does not
seek to separate families, but to promote the settlement
of households in a province where food is abundant and
famines are unknown.” This may be true in theory, but
it is open to question in fact. I interrogated over a
score of women individually in the poor-house at Bilaspur,
and the invariable answer given in reply to my question
“Where is your husband 2" was, “He has gone to Assam
to the gardens.” If the proverb et uno disce omnes holds
good, surely this score of instances was fairly conclusive,
that there were a very large proportion of wives who
had been deserted by their husbands going off to seek
their fortunes in these favourable and famineless districts
in the north of the peninsula. I pursued my inquiries
further, and found that the civil doctor of the station
was passing 1600 tea-coolies per week from this district
alone. The normal figures in previous years were at
this particular season of the year not above 200. I
think these facts and figures are fairly conclusive that
the trade of coolie-snatching showed unwonted activity,
and that there must be a very large number on the
whole, if out of some 250 women in the poor-house,
over a score on my own finding were starving and
husbandless.
I had an interview later with the Deputy-Com-
missioner, who had been at the cutcherry, occupied
the whole day in trying a grain dacoity case. I told
him what I had seen, and he was as much shocked as
I was, and immediately set off to inquire into the
matter. Ha had only the day before come in from

132 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRZCTS
a tour of the district, and had not as yet been able to
visit the poor-house. I commented upon the lack of
supervision, and he replied that, according to the code,
overseers were not to receive money wages but be paid
in kind, and that under these circumstances suitable
men would not apply for the post. (I should like to
have had the hanging or whipping of those overseers.)
Money was now to be given, and the Deputy hoped for
a better state of things in the near future. There had
too been a sudden influx upon the poor-house, as the
numbers had suddenly jumped up from two to five
hundred, and the authorities were caught unawares.
Forewarned, however, is forearmed, and experience of
previous famines must have told that in cases of this
nature it is well to be prepared for the worst. I heard
afterwards that since my visit the most strenuous efforts
were being made, so that throwing the lurid light of
public opinion upon the remote and obscure district of
Bilaspur may have resulted in some benefit accruing to
its suffering inhabitants. If such was the case I shall
feel that my mission was not altogether a futile one.

CHAPTER XIV
RATNI
I WAS destined to pass another night in the train, but
as I had been in a comfortable bed for the last three
nights, I was well able to face the journey. The
Commissioner and I had a farewell banquet, prepared by
our excellent friend Strauss, in his very best style, and
afterwards separated on our respective routes, he off to
Sambalpur, I off to Katni junction, where I hoped to
arrive at noon the next day. I should have liked, if
possible, to have made the journey on this line of
railway during the daylight, but the only service that
one can use with any comfort to oneself is the mail;
and even this takes sixteen hours to accomplish the
hundred and ninety odd miles between Bilaspur and
Katni. It can be done much quicker, if required, of
which I had practical, ocular demonstration. The
managing-director of the line and his staff arrived in
a special train at Bilaspur while we were dining. My
train left at 7.30, and the special was timed to leave two
hours later, and to proceed to Katni. When I was
breakfasting at Umaria, on the way up, the next morning
at about nine o'clock, the special ran through. It had
been up to Katni and back, having passed us in the
night, and was returning to Bilaspur. I arrived at
Katni Soma three hours later. Fes/?na /enſe is the

I33
134 7//ROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCTS
motto and method pursued by the dear old Indian
railway system on these cross lines, though I have
found on the main routes that the travelling is both
rapid and comfortable.
Not being a burra sa/ºff, but a poor and humble
penman, I was obliged to content myself with the mail.
The country that one passes through, so my friends told
me, is some of the wildest and most picturesque jungle
and forest land of India. Game abounds, and it was
here, Some few months previous to my passage, that a
wild elephant conceived it his duty to charge the train
in transit ; the result being similar to what Stephenson
predicted would be the fate of the “coo" if wishing to
enter into conflict with his then new-fangled notion of
steam transport. The picture papers of the period
made the most of the incident, and a graphic scene was
the result of the special artist who wasn’t there. Any-
how, the elephant got the worst of it, was knocked down
the Ahud, and an end put to its sufferings by an
intrepid sportsman who happened to be travelling by the
train. We crossed the Pendah valley on an immense
earthwork, which is a triumph of modern engineering,
and is supposed to be one of, if not the highest, mud-
banks of its kind in the world. Umaria is the centre of
the coal-fields of Central India, and the output of coal
from here is increasing yearly. There is no doubt that
the coal of Central India and Mysore enters into very
serious competition with that of Bengal, which in former
years had the absolute monopoly of the “country-born "
fuel. The mills of Bombay are taking largely to the
use of Indian coal, owing to its cheapness ; and the
Swansea coal-trade, which in former years used to be of
* Slope, declivity. -



ATA 7TW/ I35
great importance, has received a serious check by the
discovery of carboniferous regions in India. I found at
certain stations along the line a number of beggars
awaiting the arrival of the train, and begging from the
passengers. It was perhaps my misfortune and not my
fault that I did not come across the benevolent rajah (as
depicted in an illustrated home-paper of the period)
riding on an elephant—without a mahout—the animal
being led along by a string presumably passed through
its trunk, while the rajah distributed baksheesh with
unsparing hand to the crowds of his subjects prostrat-
ing themselves in the dust before him, in his royal
progress |
The man who trusts to his pen is often fertile in
imagination, but his word-pictures pale before the florid
imagery of the pencil. I must have one more growl at
my artist friends. A moving scene was given of a rail-
way-station, with a philanthropic globe-trotter dashing
out of his carriage and distributing unmistakable
English-made penny-loaves to the crowds of emaciated
natives awaiting his bounty. As a matter of fact, nine-
tenths of the people prefer starvation to food given
them by an accursed Kaſir, and not one in a hundred
would even look at, much more eat, Bilate rhoti." The
staple form of bread is the chuppati, in colour and
consistence resembling nothing more closely than a
piece of leather which has been soaked for hours by the
cobbler previously to being applied to an old boot
needing re-soling, -
Well, the artists serve their purpose, even if they raise
a laugh amongst the cognoscená at their ignorance of the
detail of oriental life and thought.
- * English bread.

136 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DASTRZCZS
I had three or more hours to wait at Katni before I
could get to Jubbulpur, and so instinctively turned my
steps towards the poor-house. A colleague of mine some
months previously had done the poor-house of Katni,
and the account he sent to the Times of India led me
to suppose I should find a repetition of Bilaspur. I am
glad to say that since his visit matters had very much
improved, and the working of this institution was in
much better fettle. I cannot do better than give some
extracts from his article, which appeared in the Times of
India of January 15–
“ Katni is a junction of the East Indian and Bengal-
Nagpore railways a little way east of Jubbulpur, but
the name is not officially recognized. Moorwara is the
name of the town and tehsil, and these are in the
Jubbulpur district of the Central Provinces. There
are extensive lime-kilns less than two miles away,
which employ 2000 people. Moorwara begins only a
few yards from the railway-station, and is a small town
of 9600 inhabitants, with a fine market-place; there is
no building. From the appearance of the houses, and
the large number of bunnia/s, one would suppose the
place to be prosperous, and I am told that before the
Bengal-Nagpore railway came here, Moorwara used to
be an important grain-centre; but much of the trade
is now diverted to Jubbulpur, and the Öumnia/s have
become reduced. Nevertheless, they subscribed liberally
when famine relief was begun here about eighteen
months ago. As in other parts of the Central Pro-
vinces, relief was not officially undertaken in earnest
till the beginning of December. It was on the 5th of
last month that the local poor-house was put on pro-
vincial funds. For more than a year previously, the
A. A 7TAV/ I37
terrible distress and mortality, similar to that of Banda,
Saugor, Jubbulpur and Damol, were left to the inex-
perienced and unregulated efforts of private and muni-
cipal charity.
“Five hundred rupees was given by the municipality,
Rs. 1500 was subscribed by private individuals, and
Rs.22OO was given, with the sanction of Government,
by the District Council. With these funds, a voluntary
committee has been struggling to the best of its ability
to relieve the local distress. The late Deputy-Commis-
sioner, Mr. Duff, was here in October ; poor man, I saw
him a month ago at Jubbulpur, and I hear to-day that
he died last week of pneumonia. The Commissioner
and Chief-Commissioner were here a few days before
I crossed their path in Saugor. The new Deputy-Com-
missioner, with Mr. Maw, C.S., whose appointment on
special famine duty I mentioned about five weeks ago,
was here on Sunday. So the Government ought to be
aware of what is going on. Sixteen paupers died in the
poor-house since yesterday. Five or six were dying
when I visited the place this morning. One expired
while I was there, and another, who had died already,
was carried to burial—decently enough—before my eyes.
Eleven died the day before yesterday—that is, up to
yesterday's report; eighteen and seventeen died the two
days before, and a day or two before that again a maxi-
mum of twenty-two deaths in twenty-four hours was
reached. Perhaps as many die in the town and in the
fields. Two bodies were found one morning much eaten
away by dogs or jackals.
“With these perfectly awful facts before us, and know-
ing that twenty or thirty little places as bad as Katni
º

138 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DZSZTK ZCZS
can be found, may the question not be asked, Is this
state of things to be accepted as inevitable And are
we to look forward calmly to months of it to come, as
there have been months of it past 2 -
“The only local authorities are the fa/sildar and the
hospital assistant; and the former seems particularly
kind to the perishing paupers. But they have little
experience, and less authority to spend money, which
since December 5 is Government money, and to
initiate radical reforms. The district officers are the
men to lay down peremptory orders and then see for
themselves how they do... I know the district officers
are worked off their feet. But so are the fa/asg/aſay's
and Extra Assistant-Commissioners, and Deputy-Col-
lectors throughout the famine tract. It is a time of
hard work. I am working harder than I have worked
for some years. Besides, there are officers specially set
apart to do famine duties. One of them might leave his
statistics, tables, returns, registers, and reports, and keep
the people from perishing. As things are, a man dies
on the bare ground, in the very midst of the other
paupers, as I saw several dying this morning, with no
one to do anything for him since the last meal, and the
last visit of the doctor. But when he is dead, the
mu/ºurrèr brings his writing materials, and the servants
gather about, and the person's name, sex, time of life,
caste, occupation, and place of residence, and the charge
for burial, are recorded with the care which characterizes
our Government, and the record goes off to the ta/si/dar,
from whom it will be submitted to the Chief-Commis-
sioner, and perhaps to the Government of India. Nobody
seems to think that in the unavoidable absence of a
º

A. A 7TAV/ I 39
hospital assistant, some kind of nurse to be kind to the
dying people, even to see that they die in the hospital-
shed, is more important than ten mu/ºurrèrs.
“Let us take it for granted that every pauper, even
those who, are unable to crawl out of their sleeping-
places, gets the full allowance of food ordered for him.
There are two things about this poor-house enough to
account for its being the place of death it is. First, the
people ought to be fed twice a day, as they used to be
when the poor-house was first opened, although the
allowance of food was not as large then as it is now, under
Government. When the Deputy-Commissioner was here
two days ago, he expressed a wish that the people might
be fed twice a day, but some difficulty was raised, and
the committee are to meet to-morrow to consider
whether it is practicable to act on the Deputy-Com-
missioner's suggestion. Meanwhile a dozen more
paupers will die, and another dozen become ready
to die. The second thing is to keep the paupers
from leaving the poor-house. This is not a matter
of opinion, but a matter of famine law, and it should
have been diligently put in hand on December 6.
If an enclosure with walls ready-made be not avail-
able, a wall may be built, or a trench dug, or a
broad hedge laid out, or watchmen appointed. But
to keep up a poor-house without confining the inmates,
is to throw away money, and to condemn the paupers
to a lingering instead of a speedy death. The place
as I saw it this morning consisted of three lines of grass
huts, roomy and warm enough, forming three sides of
a square. One line had been burned down, but it was
to be rebuilt. The fourth line was a fence of twigs, too
light to obstruct a child, and the chupprassie pointed out

14o 7///&OUGAZ 7//E FAM/AVE Z)/STRACTS
--
several places where the twigs had been pulled up or
trodden down by paupers wishing to go into the town.
Moreover, the back wall of many of the huts had
been broken through for the same purpose. In fact,
the gate was the only part of the enclosure where it
was not quite easy to go in and out. And nobody
denies that all the paupers who are strong enough to
walk, go into the town as much as they please. While
I was there a batch of about fifty boys and girls, run-
aways, were brought to the gate by four men who had
been sent after them, and the principal chupprassie
scolded them soundly. Somebody said the men and
women would not come back when they were called.
“Inside, the place was clean, and the people, men,
women, and children, were sitting and lying all over the
ground. A few were in the huts. The sick and the
dying lay among the rest. Some of these too were
in the two hospital-sheds. The chupprassie said the
number of sick was twenty or thirty ; but the higher
figure would only be two days' deaths. I could not
always tell the sick from the utterly emaciated, but the
number of the latter was very large. The chu/prassie
told me that the tahsildar came every morning to
inspect the place; the hospital assistant once a day to
treat the sick ; and one member of the Relief Committee
daily, at the hour when the paupers were fed. Also,
that the dead were buried in sight of a policeman, who
saw that the graves were dug four feet deep. I have
almost forgotten to say that the site of the poor-house is
about a quarter of a mile from the outermost dwellings
of the town ; but it is very near the river.
“I went to the place where the dead of the poor-house
are buried. It is half-a-mile from the poorehouse, but
º



ATA 7TW/ I4 I
very close to the river; and there have been interments
at a quarter of a mile. I must have seen nearly a
hundred graves, but there was no sign of one of them
having been disturbed, and no skulls or bones were
lying about, nor any vultures near the spot. So the
interment is well carried out. But the place chosen is
only the next worst to the bank or bed of the river.
The ground there is cut up into deep channels, almost
like ravines, leading into the river. In the rainy season
these must all contain streams draining the land; and
it is in the soft beds of these channels that the dead are
buried. The ta/si/dar asked me if I would suggest any
change in the management of the poor-houses, on which
I pointed out all this, and he said he would give orders
to have the dead buried in another place. It was
unnecessary to tell him about the evil of letting the
paupers wander, for he has dozens of them caught and
returned every day. The only remedy for that is to
make the poor-house secure.
“On returning from the graves, I found all the
paupers who could move arranged in rows to receive a
treat of /ud/oo, which the ta/si/dar had provided for them
at his own expense, as this day is a Hindoo festival.
This sweetmeat is parched rice and maize made into
balls with treacle. Some time ago the same officer found
means to provide several hundred pairs of drawers for the
paupers; for it is always a sign of prolonged want, where
the climate is not of the coldest, that the sufferers reach
the poor-house in a state nearly nude.
“The registers show only one-fourth of the paupers to
belong to this te/si/; and half or more of the rest are
from native States. The number of starving beggars
in the straets is much larger than in Banda. The
142 TAZAOUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRICTS
ôunitia/s expose large quantities of grain of several
kinds in baskets and on cloths, right on the roads, and
the poor starvelings, with Hindoo patience, crawl about
picking up single grains that have fallen among the
dust, but restraining their hands from making a snatch.
I saw one boy run off like the wind—he was not one of
the weaklings—with a very small stick of firewood from
a bundle which a woman was selling, and she sent
alternate yells and wails after him.
“The number of paupers reported at the Katni poor-
house this morning was 732; but it seemed to me
there were a good many more. When they were seated
in lines to receive the fa/si/dar's treat, I felt sure about
it, and counted 200, and then no doubt remained that
the total number was not less than IOOO. The discrep-
ancy is quite intelligible. The roll is called in the
morning, after many of the paupers have gone off to the
bazaar to beg. When the meal hour arrives they crowd
back. This is all simple. But how Iooo are fed with
food which was got ready for 700 is not so plain.”
My impressions after my visit were that the ménage
of this poor-house had distinctly improved since the
inspection of my friend who wrote the foregoing pages.
The ta/si/dar was there on my arrival, and as my
visit was quite a surprise one, it showed that he took an
interest in the work of supervision of the people com-
mitted to his charge. He was a keen, hard, bitten-
looking native, and the poor people welcomed his
appearance. The AEa/a doctor was there too, a fat,
jolly-looking man, and the sufferers’ faces lit up as he
went his rounds, ministering to the sick and needy.
He deplored the death-rate, which was perhaps excessive,
as during the three previous days the death-roll was
º


ATA 7TW/ I43
twelve, eleven, and eleven ; while six had died that
morning. The people who mostly succumbed were the
11GW arrivals, who had so run down in the vital scale
that even his most unremitting attention was unable to
put new life in them. The enclosure itself had been
lately walled in, and a new set of chu//ars erected
round the sides; they were clean and tidy, and the
inmates were duly restrained from wandering afield
during the day. A squad of Sepoys were on guard at
the gate, and several mohurrºrs constantly patrolling
the compound. I examined the muster-roll, and found
that the number on the day of my visit was Io/4. I went
into the question of the inrush of paupers from the native
State of Rewah ; an examination of the books and
registers, which by the way were very well kept, showed
that out of the entire total of IO74, 635, or rather two-
thirds of the present inmates, were Rewaries. This is an
additional and unfair burden to be laid upon the shoulders
of the already overtaxed Government officials and State
resources. It was of course impossible to refuse ad-
mittance to these poor creatures craving food and
shelter, but a system of drafting off the stronger of the
aliens to their own homes in the Central Province
Agency had been adopted, and had met with fair success.
There can be no doubt that the native States, pursuing
the policy which they have aforetime adopted, did not
take any very strenuous measures to alleviate the
distress of their subjects, and I believe that later this
brought out a very strong remonstrance on the part of
the Supreme Government. I had occasion to verify
what was told me about the distress in the native
States, and found that the case had been by no means
overstated. I may give one instance which will show

144 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCTS
what difficulties the Government has to contend with,
and what unexpected obstacles at times crop up. The
Commissioner of Jubbulpur had sent up an official to
Bijorogargh, a place about twenty miles north of Katni,
and on the confines of the native State of Rewah. He
was furnished with all the proper tools, supplies, and
other commissariat stores, and was told to open a relief
camp. It had been previously ascertained from local
inquiry that one change, as it is technically called,
would be sufficient, and arrangements were made for
providing for about 5000 souls. Within three days of
the establishment of this relief camp and works,
a sudden inrush of people from Rewah occurred, and
within this period the numbers had gone up to 19,000.
The poor officer was at his wits' end, and telegraphed
his dilemma to head-quarters. These people had
come, many of them, long distances from their homes,
and their latter state was really worse than their first.
The supplies were rapidly exhausted, and the con-
dition of this starving mass of humanity was truly
pitiable. By means of most unheard-of toil and
exertion on the part of the head officials, the Supplies
were brought up, and the people's cravings satisfied. It
increased the difficulty that the camp was at some
distance from the railway and the means of communica-
tion were of the most limited description. Still, all's
well that ends well, and very shortly all difficulties
were smoothed over. We are all too ready to abuse
the powers that be—it is our blessed privilege to grumble
—but unless one has been on the spot, one can hardly
recognize or appreciate the unexpected difficulties which
the officials of India in this late famine have had to
combat and surmount. I am sure when I have seen the
ATA TAV/ I45
toil-worn and brain-weary wheels of the machinery
which turn that huge machine, the Indian Empire, I
have found it hard to speak a word of dispraise. There
are, however, always faulty pieces in such a stupendous,
heterogeneous mass of material, and it is only a crisis
like the one India has lately passed through that brings
the hitherto concealed defects into prominent notice.
My visit to the poor-house was naturally a somewhat
hurried one, but I had gained an experience of what to
look for and gird at. In fact, before the end of my tour,
I was able at once to lay my finger upon the weak spots
of the administration, and no doubt raised a scare or two
at times in the apprehensive minds of the native officials.
Fażerientia doceſſ, and ere I had done with the famine,
I had heaps of experience. In the train down to Jubbul-
pur I fell in with Dr. Ogilvie, who was on one of the
relief works on the Sihora road. He told me that his
patients were in a very bad way, and that the death-rate
had been very excessive, but he hoped to be able to
mend the condition of the people, and stop their dying.
It was a question of time, but he had the working out
of these matters well in hand. When we got into the
Nerbudda valley, I fell into the same error that H.E.
the Viceroy did, when I saw the smiling crops that
met my eye on every side. Lord Elgin had a few weeks
previously visited Jubbulpur, and in his reply to the
address of the municipality had rather pooh-poohed
the notion of famine ; and hinted that he had come
through a land flowing with milk and honey, and one
that ought to gladden the heart of the Jubbulpur and
Central Province agriculturist. I must confess that I
thought so too, but when I got further afield, and out of
the reach of the fertilizing stream of the Nerbudda, I
L


146 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE D/STRACTS
found that the statement of those who were likely to know
the real state of affairs had been in no wise exaggerated.
On arrival at Jubbulpur, I put up at Jackson's Hotel,
the first time I had been in an hotel since the commence-
ment of my tour. This I mention to show what great
hospitality and kindness I had received all through my
journey. I found out that Mr. A. Harmsworth was
staying there, but was leaving the next morning on a
shooting excursion; and so had no opportunity of
making myself known to this journalistic prince. True
--- to my Bohemian instincts, I found that there was a
company of players at the Railway Institute, and so
after my dinner wended my way to the temple of the
classic drama. They played a good old Adelphi sort of
piece, of the blood-and-thunder description ; I think it
was called Ou/d Ożre/and, with of course a sub-title of
a patriotic description. The play has not left a very
vivid picture on my mind, but I can recollect that the
villain was the most villainous villain I have ever seen,
and one fully qualified “to play the villains at the Vic.”
The hero was simply bulging with heroism and manly
virtues, and the virtuous heroine, the most virtuous
heroine compatible with these fin de siècle days. It
was midnight ere I could seek the comfort of my bed,
which I stood in dire need of.
-


CHAPTER XV
JUBBULPUR
JUBBULPUR is the head-quarters of a division of
Central India. The whole area is some 19,000 square
miles, or nearly the size of Belgium and Holland
combined. Comparing it with English standards, it is
equivalent to that portion of England which lies north
of a line drawn from the Wash to the Dee, and bounded
on the north by Scotland. In other words, its acreage
is equal to the combined counties of Northumberland,
Cumberland, Westmoreland, Lancashire, Yorkshire and
parts of Cheshire, Derbyshire, Nottingham, and Lincoln.
The province of Jubbulpur is subdivided into the
following districts—Jubbulpur, Saugor, Damol, Mandla,
and Seonee; and each is under the jurisdiction of a
Deputy-Commissioner, who is responsible for the ad-
ministration of his district, subject to the orders of the
Chief-Commissioner of Jubbulpur. The population of
the whole province is some two millions and a quarter.
The sub-district of Jubbulpur is the most densely
populated, which, apart from the town-population of
over 84,000, contains some 2300 villages. The parts
affected by the famine were the whole of the forest
district of Mandla, which was very badly distressed
two-thirds of Jubbulpur and Damol, and a large
-



º I47
148 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE D/STRACTS
portion of Saugor, while Seonee was in a slightly
better condition than its neighbours. The chief staple
products of the outlying districts are rice and the
smaller millets. In the fertile valley of the Nerbudda.
wheat is largely grown, but the aboriginal tribes depend
upon the former grains, and so were in dire distress.
There had been a series of unfavourable seasons, which
culminated in the failure of the monsoon, and at the
time of my visit, except in rare isolated places, the food-
supply on hand was not more than sufficient to supply
the demand for another month.
In this province the poor-house system had been in
active existence since 1895, but from the enormous area
involved, the number of famine houses in existence
were not sufficient for the population. In Jubbulpur
- sub-district there were four famine houses in full blast,
in Damol four, in Saugor five, and in Seonee two.
º |Mandla was the thorn in the side of the authorities,
owing to the difficulty of communication. I may
mention as an instance of this that a relief works had
been established in the heart of the forest district,
consisting of the opening and making of a road under
the supervision and direction of the Public Works
Tepartment. The copper money for the payment of
the workers had to be carried up from Mandla, and it
took an elephant five days to accomplish the single
journey, which was through the densest jungle. This
involved an almost continuous service of an elephant
train for even the supply of cash, to say nothing of the
enormous difficulty of keeping up the supplies of food
and grain necessary for the workers. That the officials
were doing their best to alleviate the distress may be
gathered from the subjoined figures; and yet, as Mr.



JUAA V/AUR I49
Julian Hawthorne" and myself found after elaborate
inquiry, there were thousands of people whom these
sources of relief could never and did never reach. It
is almost impossible to say what the actual mortality
from starvation and its after-effects has been, but even
the official returns, when they come to be worked out,
will show I fear very startling results, and they cannot
and will not embrace an enormous percentage of human
beings who have simply sunk down under the stress
uncounted and unaccounted for.
On January 23 the official returns of those seeking
State aid were—
In poor-houses. On P. W. D. relief works.
Jubbulpur --- --- 3814 2I,OOO
Saugor ... --- --- 2845 21,000
Damol ... --- --- I334 7,OOO
Seonee ... --- --- 48o 3,OOO
Mandla ... --- --- 25 I IO,OOO
Besides these, there were doing light work at various
relief centres near Jubbulpur, chiefly in the Moorwarra
tahsil, 39,000; Saugor IO,OOO, Damol IO,OOO, Seonee
I6OO, Mandla 30OO. There was a great apprehension
amongst the peasants as to the payment of the February
Ääss, or assessment of the land revenue, but Government
stepped in and allayed their fears. In Jubbulpur the
whole tax was remitted or suspended as occasion and
circumstances required. In Damol it had been simply
wiped off the slate, while in Mandla two-thirds had
been remitted. In Saugor, in the worst parts, it had
been totally suspended, and in others better off, partially
remitted. In half the district of Seonee it had been
totally remitted.
* Mr. Julian Hawthorne was the Commissioner appointed by
the Government of the U. S. America to report upon the Famine
and Plague in India.


150 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTR/CTS
I had sent a note to Sir Roper Lethbridge, informing
him of my arrival in Jubbulpur, and asking if he could
appoint a time for seeing me. I was cramming up the
statistics of the district, when a messenger arrived
asking me if I could go over to the Residency, where
Sir Roper was staying with Mr. Anderson, the Com-
missioner. I sent for the ubiquitous tonga, and was
shortly on my way to my interview with the ex-Press
Commissioner. Sir Roper Lethbridge was the last
holder of that office, which had been abolished during
the reign of Lord Ripon. His duties were to exercise
a judicial and judicious control upon the native press,
and to supervise generally the fourth estate, as repre-
sented by the various native organs of the Indian
empire. The trial of Tilak, the editor of the Åesari,
which at the time of this writing is exciting a great
deal of public interest, points to the fact that the
unbridled licence of our irresponsible native press is a
danger to which India is specially liable, and which
requires special measures for its due surveillance and
control. The dastardly and cowardly attack on Mr.
- Rand and Lieut. Ayerst, which not only convulsed
Poona, where the outrages occurred, but raised a storm
- of indignation all over our empire, are said to have
been largely instigated by the seditious utterances of
the Mahratta native papers. A wave of discontent has
for some time past been rolling over the greater part of
Hindustan, of which those who are and have been able
to read the signs of the times have been frightfully
cognizant. This culminated when the plague began to
*
devastate the Bombay Presidency, and famine stalked
abroad in the land. I could quote many instances of a
feeling of unrest, which has shown itself only too clearly


JUAAUZZ”OR I5 I
in the course of events which have during the last few
months taken place, and even now are taking place on
our northern frontier. This, however, is perhaps some-
what without the province of this work, and yet many,
may almost all, who have an intimate knowledge of the
ways and manners of thought of our subjugated millions
in the East, have clearly perceived and acknowledged
that the spirit of discontent is abroad. It is all very
well for the stay-at-home portion of our population to
pooh-pooh the idea, but it is my firm conviction, and I
am by no means alone in this idea, that the native of
India has got it into his head that the ray of the
paramount power is on the downward grade, and that
now is the time for the Crescent to try and assert its
supremacy over the Cross, and for all devout Mussul-
mans to combine to sweep the accursed Kaſirs off the
face of the earth, or at any rate to drive them from the
shores of Ind. The articles which appeared in the
Daily Mail, from the pregnant and prescient pen of
Mr. Alfred Harmsworth, so exactly struck the true note
that they deserved even more attention than they got.
They emanated from a man with a thoughtful and
trained faculty of observation, and though written some
months before the actual events, yet they very clearly
foreshadowed what was likely to happen in the near
future in our vast Eastern dependency. Our papers,
both daily and weekly, are teeming with articles upon
the Unrest in India ; and yet in nearly every case a
most optimistic view of the whole affair has been
entertained. I do not for a moment maintain that
there is any very serious danger, since the bundle of
sticks, of which India is made up, will never combine
into the solid and unbreakable faggot ; but there can be


152 THROUGH THE FAA//WE Z)/STRACZS
very little doubt that there will be for some days to
come, stormy times and scenes in our far-off Eastern
possessions. But I have been led into a discussion
upon the present situation in the East, which is far
beside the matter in hand; let me hie me back to my
talk with Sir Roper Lethbridge.
When I arrived at the Residency, I found Sir Roper
awaiting my arrival, immersed however in his work;
and I waited his pleasure till he had completed the
article he was engaged upon, for transmission by the
mail to the Standard, which same article I read with a
great amount of interest some month later in the Club
at Lucknow. Sir Roper and myself then plunged into
an animated discussion about the famine, its probable
area and extent. The ex-Press Commissioner had just
come down from Rawal Pindi, and had passed through
the greater part of the Punjaub and North-West
Provinces. By a careful comparison, we were able to
establish that the area affected was certainly the largest
of any of the recorded famines of the century, and that
the Madras and Orissa famine of '77-78 paled to insig-
nificance before the present scarcity, both in extent of
country affected and in severity. On an examination
of the map, and in the light of our combined experience,
we determined that the famine area would be marked
by a line drawn from Guntukul in the Madras Presidency,
to Rawal Pindi in the Northern Punjaub. This would
pass through the centre of the affected parts, and as the
crow flies is some 1400 miles in length; and the famine-
belt may be fairly said to extend 200 miles east and
west of this dividing line. This does not comprise
those parts of Bengal which were suffering, and of
which the chief districts are Patna, Benares, and the
(‘ºut! I tºituſ (I)|-
‘GISQOHNHOOGH RIQ GHT Q {{{HQ [


JUABUZZ”OR I 53
native State of Dhurbhanga. With the help of the
gained experience of Sir Roper, I was able to definitely
settle my further plan of campaign, and we decided
that my best route would be through the Bundelkund
district, and then on to the Punjaub till I reached
Lahore. This would take me through the worst parts
of the country, and enable me to visit the large irriga-
tion works which were being carried out on the Ghaggar
and Jhelum canals. Mr. Anderson, the Commissioner,
then appeared upon the scene, and courteously invited
me to join Sir Roper and himself that afternoon on a
projected visit of inspection to the Jubbulpur poor-house.
True to the appointed time, I turned up again at the
Residency and found my friends waiting to start. We
drove to the poor-house, which is a permanent institution,
and the most solidly built of its kind that I had yet
Seen. It is an immense courtyard, with pucca masonry
walls, a space of ground some five acres in extent. In
accordance with the usual plan of these places, a series
of lean-to chaftars (grass huts) had been erected round
three sides of the Square. I was much struck with the
order and cleanliness of the place. The number of
inmates on that day was 1787, of whom 681 were
immigrants from other provinces and states. The
people were being mustered for the evening meal, and
so we were able to pass down the lines and thoroughly
inspect the whole body of men, women, and children
assembled. I made a most rigid inspection all down
the lines, and did not come upon more than a dozen
cases of real emaciation among that class of people
whom one would normally expect to be hale and
hearty; from whom I exclude the professional beggars,
who trade upon their condition and infirmities. The
154 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
few bad cases were all amongst the newly-arrived.
Both the superintendent and the Kala doctor were in
attendance, and both these officials seemed to have won
the confidence and even the affection of the people
under them. There was certainly no fraud here, and
even when I wandered away from the burra sa/º logale,
I had no complaints.
The organization is good, there being no fewer than
eighty-four chozwózdars chosen from among the inmates,
who each is responsible for his gang. These men are
rewarded by getting two extra chuppaties at meal-times,
and are allowed the luxury of a fire at night. Following
my usual plan, I selected a test case or two and inquired
of their history. One man, whose appearance and
facial expression struck me, had by a succession of bad
seasons been forced on the downward grade. Some
five years ago he was a cultivator holding several &/ºgas
of land, but this he was obliged to get rid of little
by little, and when his patrimony had completely dis-
appeared he was forced to become a mere ploughman
and work for others. Misfortunes pursued him relent-
lessly, and he had lapsed into a common day-labourer.
Eventually the final pinch came, and in the previous
October he had drifted into the poor-house. This is
doubtless the case of many others whom a succession
of bad harvests has plunged into the lowest depths of
want and misery. The man told his story pathetically,
but resignedly, and there was a distinct ring of truth
about his simple answers to my cross-examination. I
inspected, too, a band of men who were making baskets
and string. They were of the Kachli and Lodi castes,
and a few of them were ahirs. These are the men
| Shepherds.
-


JUABUZZ”OR I55
from whom the peasant proprietors of India spring,
and are the bone and sinew of the country. They, too,
had descended from being landowners to a landless,
penniless, homeless condition. We inspected the hos-
pitals, where we found in the chief one (there are two
others, segregation ones for small-pox and other in-
fectious diseases) II4 patients, who were nearly all
suffering from dysentery. The doctor said that nine-
tenths of them were down with the disease. The simple
reason is that the new-comers, in spite of the precautions
and warnings of the medical staff, will get hold of and
devour greedily at their first meal as many chuppaties
as they can lay their hands on. Their stomachs, un-
accustomed for some time past to such rich and dainty
fare, cannot assimilate it, and the result is dysentery and
other bowel complaints. Altogether we spent some
three hours in the poor-house, and left thoroughly
satisfied with the aspect and arrangement of the whole
place.
The Commissioner as we were leaving told me that
he was going to show Sir Roper the relief works at
Mirgang, and asked if I would care to join the party.
I gladly accepted his invitation, and arranged to be at
the station at 6.30 the following morning.
I devoted the evening to getting up the subject of
the aboriginal hill-tribes of Central India, and it may
perhaps help my readers to understand the peoples
of India, if I condense here the result of my researches.
The jungle or forest tracts of Central India have been
from time immemorial inhabited by two classes or
tribes of people, who are not only distinct in themselves
but are very different from the other ordinary race of
Hindustan. In the Bombay Presidency around and



156 7//ROUGH THE FAM/AWE Z)/STRZCTS
:
about Khandeish we have the Bheels. They are found
in the Maratha country and along the Sahyadi moun-
tains north of Junar. They live upon the forest produce,
and when they drift into the villages become the village
watchmen. They are naturally by profession thieves,
and yet when the country became more settled, turned
out to be useful auxiliaries to the police. When the
country was more disturbed and anarchy prevailed, they
used to quit their homes and go on marauding expedi-
tions into the rich and prosperous plains surrounding
their forest homes. Like the old Scotch reivers, they
dropped across the border and returned to their fast-
nesses rich with the loot of money and cattle taken
from their peaceable neighbours. Their weapons were
the bow and arrow, though of later years one finds in
their possession ancient matchlocks. In a s/.7%ar ex-
pedition they are excellent ; and of great use as trackers,
being endued with a sense of sight as keen as an
Australian aboriginal bushman or a North-American
Indian. They are matchless in woodcraft, and a really
tame Bheel is a sportsman of the first water and a real
good fellow to boot.
The other and great aboriginal tribe of the Central
India Provinces are the Gonds, the various subdivisions
of which number, according to the census of 1891,
nearly two and a half millions, or over a fifth of the
total population. The Gonds a century and a half ago
were a very important people, and the Gond kings
reigned over the greater part of the Jubbulpur country.
In fact the provinces of Central India still in the ver-
nacular bear the name of Gondwarra. This race have
left marks of their former greatness in the names of
five great forts which marked the head-quarters of their

"GHAOIN GI HJL NO SCINO O

JUABUZPUR I57
various rajahs when at the zenith of their power. Their
rule ended when the Mahrattas overran Central India
in 1784, but they had before this been declining. With
the arrival of British rule these people sank lower and
lower. In the old days they had the free and sole use
of the forests, and they were able to get a scanty liveli-
hood by gathering for sale for the purposes of distillation
the fruit of the m/zowa tree, and by sowing in the forest
clearings small patches of the lesser millets. Large
tracts of country in the Damol and Seonee districts, which
were once almost exclusively inhabited by this tribe,
are now depopulated. Many have wandered off to other
parts, a very large proportion have died, and thousands
have migrated to the tea plantations of Assam. The
present famine has pressed upon no race or tribe more
hardly than these frugal and hardy forest tribes; those
in the Mandla, Seonee and Balaghat districts have been
the greatest sufferers. Mr. Goodridge, who has lately
retired from the Indian Civil Service, and whose know-
ledge and experience of the native population of Central
India cannot be surpassed, thus wrote in the Zndian
Agriculturist with reference to the Gonds and their ills—
“A high official in the Central Provinces, who recently
passed through these districts, told me that he had
found nothing but depopulated villages and a few
wandering skeletons on the road. They Were On Ce
largely employed in what are called ‘forest villages.”
They undertook the work of the Forest Department
generally, and were in return permitted to live in the
forests and to cultivate portions of land on easy terms.
Many of these forest villages have now almost entirely
disappeared. Always reduced to the lowest condition
compatible, with existence, they are without reserves of


158 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCTS
any kind; the successive failures of the crops on which
they depend have left the Gonds destitute.”
Mr. Mahony, the missionary of Mandla, who by his
work and exertions on behalf of these poor people has
made a niche for himself in the temple of Fame, thus
writes about them—
“The Gonds will not rise or riot, but they will die
in silence; of this I feel confident, and many of them
I have seen die already.”
I quote again from Mr. Goodridge, who certainly
knows what he is writing about, and who puts the
matter very succinctly and very properly before the
reading and thinking public. He says—
“On a recent occasion, when the Chief-Commissioner
asked a forest officer what could be done for those forest
villages, he received the reply, ‘Nothing, as there were
no longer any forest villages in existence ; the inhabit-
ants having left the forests.” The spring crops of 1894
failed, owing to an excess of moisture, and both spring
and autumn crops perished during '95 and '96 from
drought. At the beginning of '96 want of food first
began to be severely felt by the Gonds. In October,
when the autumn crops on the ground also failed, and
especially the grains on which they live, there being
no food or employment available, a widespread migra-
tion set in towards Nagpur and Jubbulpur. Numbers
perished on the roads in search of employment and
food, and a still larger number dispersed themselves in
the jungles, where they had gone in search of wild fruits
and roots, but only to find the forest produce had also
suffered from drought. As soon as this aimless wander-
ing had set in, the great majority were hopelessly lost,
and not a fourth of them will ever return to their homes.


:

JUAAUZAUR 159
It is impossible to get any approximate idea of the
mortality which has followed this migration from the
hills, for many perished in the jungles and by the road-
sides, and were devoured by jackals and vultures. Several
Gond villages were left without a kotwal (village watch-
man) to report deaths, but some idea may be formed of
the mortality amongst those who were too feeble to
leave their villages, and whose deaths were reported by
the village Kotwal when he had not joined the exodus.
In one district alone the number of deaths recorded for
the month of December 1896 was 2894, while in the
corresponding month of the following year it was 3904,
that is, the death-rate has been steadily rising till it was
trebled in two years, and this too, it must be remembered,
took place among the population which was being
steadily thinned.
“A large proportion of the Gond villages have been
totally or partly deserted, and it is improbable that they
will be taken up again for years, if ever, by the Gonds.”
This is a truthful picture drawn on the spot by one
who is thoroughly conversant with the people and the
district, and shows clearly the state to which a failure
of the crops will reduce a population already, even in
the piping times of peace, hovering on the brink of
starvation. It is absolutely futile to give people of this
description money for the purchase of seed-grain, as they
will only spend it in other ways. Seed-grain must be
found, or else the horrors will be indefinitely prolonged.
An enormous difficulty always arises in any distribution
of funds, and that is the system of dustoorie and pecula-
tion which runs through the whole gamut of the social
native scale, and which is looked upon as natural and
in due order by the highest and lowest in the land.



I6o 7THROUGAſ TAHE AEAA/NAVE DASTR/CTS
The idea of commission is deeply imbued in the oriental,
and it is a feature which no amount of watchfulness on
the part of the European can ever eradicate. From the
prince to the pauper, san' is a word to conjure with, and
all alike are ready to profit by the custom. The Mansion
House Fund could not be better employed than in
enabling the starving millions of India to garner in
another harvest, and, should the gods permit, save their
lives; but the great problem for the Government to
solve is—How shall this stream of gold reach the fields
for which it is intended, without, in its course, being
diverted into innumerable side-channels 2 England has
found the money, and she may properly say, “See ye
to that.”
* Sam, a toll or tithe or commission given in every transaction.



-
-
CHAPTER XVI
MIRGANG
THE party assembled at the station for the visit to
the works at Mirgang consisted of Mr. Anderson (the
Commissioner), Mr. Leaventhorpe (the Executive En-
gineer), Sir Roper Lethbridge and myself. On arrival
at our destination, some seven miles down the line,
in the direction of Nursingpur, we found that the
Commissioner had thoughtfully arranged for a carriage
to be sent forward, and in this we drove to the Sihora-
Nursingpur road, where the works were established.
This is the main road from the north to the south of
India. This district and road acquired in the past an
unenviable reputation, by being the scene of the labours
of that extraordinary band of murderers called “Thugs,”
who overran this part of India, and numbered their
victims by hundreds. In the old days no travellers were
safe, and the order of the roomal (handkerchief) was
bestowed by these assassins, with the utmost impar-
tiality, on both rich and poor. No one seemed to be
too insignificant, and even the poorest wayfarers were
ruthlessly done to death for the sake of the paltry
blanket which stood between them and a state of
nature. The topes in the neighbourhood are supposed to
contain the graves of countless victims of this organized
system of highway robbery and murder.
~ I61 M
º -




I62 THA’OUGAſ ZTA/AE FAA/ZAVE /D/STR/CTS
Sleeman made an ever-enduring name for himself
when, by his efforts, he was able to break up and dis-
solve this association of assassins, and his name has
been perpetuated in the town of Sleemanabad, which is
some twelve miles north of Jubbulpur. It is ancient his-
tory now, how by a system of paid informers he was able
to crush this society, and how he housed and protected the
people who had served his purpose, by affording infor-
mation, in what was termed the Art School of Jubbulpur.
Here all connected with the proceedings were carefully
looked after and protected from the machinations of the
Thugs. The original inmates have ere this disappeared,
and the building has been turned into a Reformatory
for boys; but there are still a few remnants of the
Thugs to be found in the bazaar of the city.
This road leads to the Deccan and the plains of
Guzerat, which tradition has handed down to be a
veritable land of Goshen for the peoples of Central
and Northern India.
The part of the road we visited was in the immediate
neighbourhood of the Nerbudda, and close to one of the
sights of Jubbulpur, namely, the “Marble Rocks.” We
were however on business, not on pleasure bent, and
though I should dearly have liked to have seen these
curious phenomena, yet the call of duty prevented our
making the diversion. These relief works were in the
hands of the Public Works Department, and the persons
employed upon them were all more or less capable of
doing a day's work for a day's wage. They were the
show works of the district, and the Commissioner and
Engineer were justly proud of being able to dilate upon
their excellency and general organization. They were
by no means a fair criterion of the condition of the




M//øGAAVG I63
people, as one had to get further afield and see the
village relief works to grasp the depths to which the
people had sunk. They showed, however, that the
Government was taking a paternal interest in its sub-
jects, and giving them an opportunity of obtaining the
means of subsistence.
This road when done would be of actual service to
the country, as it was one of the few I saw, except in
the Bombay Presidency, where the Executive intended to
metal it properly, and was not merely a makeshift to
provide work which the first monsoon would convert
into an impossible and impassable quagmire. With
this object in view, a separate camp had been formed
some four miles up the road in the direction of Jubbul-
pur. There was a large stone-quarry, and some five or
six thousand people were busily employed in digging
stone and breaking up the metal.
There were on the whole series of works, three grades
of workers; and they received a corresponding wage
according to the task set them to do. In the A class
were the stone-diggers and breakers, who received the full
A wage. In the B class were put the road-makers and
diggers, who, taking soil from borrow-pits at the side of
the road, had to raise its level some three feet above the
adjacent fields. The last class of all were those who
were too weak to do a proper day's hard work. These
latter were provided with baskets, and sent off in gangs
of fifty to collect Áunker" from the bed of the Nerbudda,
some mile and a half away. This was an easy and excel-
lent method of keeping a large mass of people employed
who would only have been a hindrance to the proper
workers.
1 Limestone.



164 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
I must mention here a circumstance that occurred two
days after our visit, at these very works, with reference to
this latter class of Áuzzáer-collectors. It will tend to
show what difficulties the authorities have to contend
with in the case of an unreasonable and unreasoning
people. I may premise my statement by saying that
the harvest, such as it was, was at hand, and the people
were beginning to draft off to their homes. The case
as related to me by the Engineer on the day of its
occurrence was as follows—When the class C came to
be paid, they strongly objected to the fact that they
received less pies than the others, and wished to be paid
at the same rate as the other strong and capable workers.
It was pointed out to them that they were at full liberty
to go into any higher class if they proved themselves
able to do the work. No, this did not suit their book,
and they wanted to keep on at the old task, but have
the full pay. Argument, persuasion, everything was
useless, and the final result was that 1700 of them
struck work and took themselves off. I quote this in
refutation of the remarks often made that the Public
Works Department were carrying matters with a high
hand, and trying to sweat the people for the good and
ultimate glorification of the department. I think that
what I have written above will show that even with
India's starving millions, the post of those responsible
is not altogether a bed of roses.
Sir Roper had just got a new Žodać, and we mus-
tered several gangs of workers for the purpose of per-
petuating their portraits: he took quite a nice series,
and we looked forward with a pleasurable anticipation
to having these mementoes of our day at Mirgang.
Alas and alack when the films came to be developed


M//&GAAVG I65
it was found that they were too old, that Sir Roper had
been badly “ spoofed,” and the would-be pictures were
an indistinguishable and unreproducible blurr.
When we had got about two miles down the road on
our own flat feet, as the road was impassable for a
carriage, we arrived at a coolie settlement. There were
the usual huts and office for the gang mo/hurrin, etc.
When a fresh gang of workers is formed they are given
all materials to build huts, and two days' wages are
also given. They make their own shelters out of the
materials furnished. This plan has been found to work
well, and less expensively than the putting up of huts
by the authorities, and the people prefer to be their
own architects and builders. -
One of the chief growls of the Engineer was that the
people do not do a task anything like in proportion to
the wage given, and even if they are put upon the penal
rate of wage no good purpose is served ; it only gives a
handle for the men of Belial to rejoice, scoff and gibe at
the Government. With the present provisions of the
Famine Code, which sets its face steadily against piece-
work and the petty contract system, the hands of the
officials are tied, and they have to grin and bear the
insufficiency of the out-turn.
The petty contract system is thoroughly understood
and appreciated throughout the whole of India. It is
the usual and ordinary way in which all irrigation, rail-
way and other works are done, and it seems to be a case
of monumental red-tapeism to taboo it in the case of the
famine relief works. It will of course be argued that
this system lays itself open to the chances of goolume,
guóðerdustie and dustoorie. That I will allow; but on the
other hand; have the powers been able to repress these

I66 ZT///('OUG// ZTA/E FAA/ZAVE /D/STA’ſ C7'S
very things on the relief works, and is it not the cry
all over India that the petty native officials on all sides
have feathered their nests at the expense of the labour-
ers ? The Executive have only gone half-way in the
matter, and if they had gone a step or two further they
would have solved the difficulty. As it is, every gang
of workers is allowed to elect its own mate, and these
gangs are usually arranged by the inhabitants of the
same or neighbouring villages working together. In
several gangs I saw, the ganger was a mere lad of some
fourteen or fifteen summers, and on inquiry found that
he was the son or relation of the head-man of the
village, and by divine right, I suppose, assumed the
temporary headship of the clan. If the ganger was
allowed to take up a certain piece of work, for which he
would receive the price agreed upon, he could sub-let it
to his fellow-gangsmen. It would be to their interest to
get the work done quickly, and being fifty to one, you
may be sure that they would not allow their ganger to
rob them with impunity; unless they looked upon it
with toleration, on the ground that the proceeds would
still remain in the family. Seeing that the gang elect
their own gangers, they would look to their own interest
in the matter. What the natives do object to, is filling the
pockets of the native subordinate officials at the expense
of their own. I have no doubt that the cashiers and
the other native authorities were fleecing these workers,
as we were continually met with the cry—“Panch pies
&as maž /ai, sahib’ (“Five pice is not enough, Sahib’’),
whenever we approached.
I found from experience that where this cry was
general, a very extensive system of peculation on the part
of the subordinate officials was going on. If, however,

A/VRGAAVG 167
the tasks were let out on the petty contract system,
a greater out-turn of work would be the result, and the
cost of supervision, and the wonderful series of pecula-
tive under-strappers would be abolished. In the Punjaub
and in the North-West, the code has been considerably
modified on these lines, but the Central Provinces are
still tied and bound by red-tapeism. This fetters the
hands of the higher powers, and in many cases quadruples
their work.
The road is patrolled by a series of police, and one
sepoy that we met reported that in the course of
his beat he had come across a man dying, and was about
to seek help to have him looked after, and, if possible,
removed to the huts where we were.
While we were discussing this, and the Commissioner
was giving the necessary orders, a fat and sleek Brahmin
came up and began to complain of his pay. His condi-
tion showed that his corn did him good, and we then
and there christened him “The Friar of Orders Grey.”
Both the officials listened gravely, and then, drawing
aside his jacket, we examined his ribs. He was well-
nurtured, and even if he did not get his five pies, was
well able to look after himself. He was in the pink of
condition, and a sleek and plausible scoundrel.
The wages here are paid every other day, and a firm
of sowcars, or native bankers, of Jubbulpur had con-
tracted to find the needful. It required about 450
rupees' worth of copper money daily to meet the pay-
sheet. These men, the sowcars, were also allowed to
act as bannias to the camps and open grain-shops. It
was thought that in this way the money paid on the one
hand would return to the Öa/zzas on the other. It is a
curious thing, however—and the officials were not able


I68 7TP/ROUGH THE AWAM/AVE DISTRICTS
to account for it—that only some 200 rupees' worth of
the money daily returned to the shops. A portion of
the deficit might be spent in the neighbouring villages,
say IOO rupees; this left, however, daily I 50 rupees to
be accounted for. Could it be possible that these
workers were able to save this amount daily from their
Famine Code wage? or did this sum find its way into the
pockets of the subordinate officials, who naturally would
not be lavish with their money on the very scene of
their dishonest operations P This was a crux which was
sadly bothering the officers, and which to the best of
my belief remains, even to the present day, unsolved.
When we had finished the road, we went on to
Kurambul, where were established the stone and metal
breaking works. There were, on the day of our visit,
5387 engaged in this camp. They looked well and
happy; but it must be remembered that they were
the pick of the people. They are divided into gangs of
Ioo, and each mo/hurrir is the proud bearer of a red
Turkey twill flag and a red and white belt, with the
number of his gang blazoned in white letters upon both
banner and belt.
We caused a muster to be made ; and it was a gay
scene to see the bannerets gaily waving, and the people
collecting under their various standards. The women
of Central India wear much brighter colours than the
ladies of the Bombay Presidency, and the bright reds
and yellows of their saris gave a colouring to the picture
which enhanced its effect.
I must relate the following anecdote which actually
occurred at Kurambul some few days before our visit,
and which is certainly Čen trovato. It is another
side of the shield, and shows up the famine question


------
~---
~~~）__）
A BHEEL WOMAN.

MIRGAAVG I69.
in a different and perhaps humorous light. I have
previously mentioned that women who have lately
done their duty to their husbands and the State, in the
reproduction of the species, are treated with special
leniency, and every provision made for their condition
and infirmity. In other words, nursing mothers are
looked upon as a genus apart, and are put up into the
A class, and receive wages and diet in accordance with
that scale. Lately a woman arrived who wished to be
taken on to the works. She came up to the official
cuddling in her sarà what was supposed to be her last
addition to the census. She demanded to be taken
upon the roll as a woman who had recently done her
duty to humanity. She was ordered to sit down and
wait her turn, when her needs and requirements would
be duly attended to. The only rift within the lute was
that her infant began to howl. The man in charge,
evidently a family man himself, did not seem to recog-
nize the familiar cry of an infant, hungry and in distress.
He approached the lady, and gently pushing aside her
sari, in which the babe lay wrapped, exposed to view
a mice fat little puppy dog, which was yelping at the top
of its little shrill voice. The lady then perceived that
the game was up, and “vamosed the ranch,” pursued by
the derisive laughter of the onlookers. This will show
that for tricks that are vain, and for ways that are dark,
the heathen Chinee cannot give many points to his
dusky sister of Hindustan.
We had finished our task, and, beguiling our long
drive into Jubbulpur, we arrived in the afternoon, and
were able to throw off our harness and take a well-
earned tub and szesła.
Mr. Julian Hawthorne, the Special Commissioner








17o THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
sent in the interests of the American Government to
inquire into the famine and plague in India, made a
most careful and extended tour through the Central
Provinces, and other parts of the famine districts of
India. He was able to devote much more time to his
mission than I, in view of my rapid and extended tour
through the length and breadth of the land, could com-
pass. Since his return to the States, he has contributed
a series of pregnant articles upon the subject, and being
a man with the trained faculty of observation very
largely developed, his statements may be accepted as
the plain and unvarnished facts of the case, as seen by
himself in propria personſ. He has given, in the
August number of the Cosmopolitan, such an excellent
and graphic description of his visit to an orphanage, in
which he so exactly reproduces what I too have seen,
that I have taken, with his permission, the liberty of
quoting his account in extenso—
“We first entered an orphanage, being met at the
gate by a native Supervisor, a shrewd and hard-looking
oriental of sixty. There were hundreds of children,
mostly under ten, sitting or standing about the large
enclosure. They had lost their parents either by death
or starvation—for at a certain stage of starvation the
parental instinct disappears, and fathers and mothers
abandon their offspring with a terrible apathy.
“Indian children are normally active, intelligent and
comely, with brilliant eyes like jewels. A few of these
little creatures, who had been taken in before starvation
had gone too far, looked fairly well; but the majority?
Death had walked among them, and would sooner or
later carry them away. You could count the ribs
in the least emaciated of them ; but there were scores
º
.

M/AE GAAVG I7 I
of figures there upon which I could scarcely endure to
look. Starvation kills Indians very slowly ; the present
famine had been preceded by years of ‘scarcity’—which
would be starvation in white men's countries—and the
bodies of the victims had been reduced gradually, but
still life lingered, if that can be called life which enabled
them to draw breath, and move feebly the bones that
were their legs and arms. The fat of their bodies had
first been consumed, then the flesh, leaving only gristle
and sinew. Finally (what I should not have supposed
possible) these also were attacked ; there are left the
shrunken veins, the nerves, which now but imperfectly
transmit the impulses from the brain, which is itself
anaemic and scarcely human ; the wasted internal
organs, and the skin, which is shrivelled, cold, and dry
to the touch. The abdomen, especially in children, is
often largely distended, and tight as a drum, as if over-
loaded with food ; and I have heard persons, looking
at photographs of such, remark that these, at any rate,
must have had a hearty meal. But it is not food, but
the lack of it, which causes this distension ; there is
disease of the liver, which becomes enormously swollen,
and wind. A child who reaches this condition hardly
ever survives. The contrast between this abnormal
rotundity and the emaciation of the limbs, chest and
back is grotesque and horrible. I can compare these
little creatures to nothing so well as to beetles ; their
legs and arms are like the legs of insects, and their
movements slow. The utter disappearance of the
gluteal muscles (buttocks) gives a repulsive aspect to
the figure, and quite alters the pose and gait. Indeed
the walk, while walking is still possible, resembles noth-
ing properly called by that name; it is a kind of totter,



172 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
there being no power to rise on the ball of the foot, or
to lift the thigh. The arms swing lifeless by the sides,
or are lifted with difficulty. As for the faces of these
children, nothing child-like remains of them. The dark
skin is stretched on a fleshless skull; the lips are mere
skin, and shrink back from the teeth; the eyes glimmer
dimly in hollow sockets, unless, as is often the case,
they have been eaten away by the ophthalmia which
is among the consequences of starvation. The neck is
hardly larger in circumference than the spinal column,
and insecurely supports the skull. The scalp is fre-
quently attacked by a disease which completely covers
it with a kind of thick, hard, whitish scab–a skull-cap
of death. The inside of the mouth is also subject to
ulcerous swellings, hard and painful, which force it open,
prevent the swallowing of food, and discharge a viscid
matter. The bones of the legs are often raw with
ulcers, on which swarms of flies settle and feed. Crea-
tures thus reduced are not seldom fed by the native
supervisors on insufficiently cooked or even raw grain—
the result is diarrhoea, dysentery and cholera, of which
every camp of this kind contains many cases. Well,
this is starvation.
“One of the first objects I noticed on entering was
a child of five, standing by itself near the middle of the
enclosure. Its arms were not so large round as my
thumb; its legs were scarcely larger; the pelvic bones
were plainly shown ; the ribs, back and front, started
through the skin, like a wire cage. The eyes were fixed
and unobservant; the expression of the little skull-face
solemn, dreary and old. Will, impulse, and almost
sensation, were destroyed in this tiny skeleton, which
might have been a plump and happy baby. It seemed
Al///&GAAVG I 73
not to hear when addressed. I lifted it between my
thumbs and fore-fingers; it did not weigh more than
seven or eight pounds. Probably its earliest recollec-
tions were of hunger, and it could never have had a full
meal. It was now deserted by those who had brought
it into the world, or they were dead ; its own life would
be gone in a day or two. Its skin was quite cold, dry
and rough. Pain had been its only experience from the
first ; it had never known or imagined the comforts that
babies have. I thought of my own children when they
were this age. Hindoos love their children, perhaps as
much as we do. Hunger and hopelessness have brought
them to a state where they will eat the food that might
keep their children alive, and, when that is gone, abandon
them. We can comprehend what this means of suffer-
ing, only by supposing ourselves doing the same thing.
Ask your wife whether she can conceive of any circum-
stances that would induce her to abandon her precious
baby. She cannot reply for indignation. But after
a year or two's starvation, she would no longer be the
tender, sensitive mother you know her to be now ; she
would slowly have turned into a callous, dull, desperate
animal. She would force from her baby's little hand
the grain of corn which it had picked up in the dust of
the road, and put it into her own mouth with a snarl.
She would get up from the shadow of the rock under
which she had been resting, leaving her baby there for
the birds and jackals to make merry over, and stagger
away, without remorse. When suffering has extir-
pated the maternal instinct, the last word has been
said.
“We went towards the sheds, where were those who
Were too enfeebled to stand or walk. A boy was squat-

174 THAOUGH THE FAMINE DISTRZCZS
ting over an earthen saucer, into which he spat continu-
ally ; he had the mouth disease ; he could not articulate,
but an exhausted moan came from him ever and anon.
There was a great abscess on the back of his head.
Another, in the final stage of dysentery, lay nearly dead
in his own filth; he breathed, but had not strength to
moan. There was one baby which seemed much better
than the rest ; it was tended by its own mother. Being
only half an orphan, it did not rightly belong there;
but for some reason it had been admitted. Now, this
child was in no better condition than the rest of them
when it came, but its mother's care had revived it.
That meant simply that it received its full allowance
of the food which is supposed to be given to all alike.
Why had the others—the full orphans—not received
theirs 2 Because the native overseers had withheld it
from them. There was no mother to protect them ; and
what is a child’s life in comparison with a few paise'
(farthings) worth of grain After all, there was hardly
a chance that even this child would live. A few days
later in Allahabad, I saw a number of children who had
been rescued by the missionary there before starvation
got full hold on them ; everything that tender care and
judicious feeding could do to restore them had been
done; they had never in their lives had treatment any-
thing like so watchful and wise. But out of a hundred
of these children, twenty had died in spite of all that
could be done ; and though the rest now seemed hearty
and lively, their little bodies well filled-out with flesh,
yet they were not safe ; they were only reprieved. In
a year or two, or three years, most of them will surely
die ; there is no strength in them to resist disease—no
recuperative power. The scar of the blow which famine
3.


A///&GA/VG I75
-
had dealt them was gone ; but it had been fatal none
the less.
“While we were walking about, those of the children
who were able to keep their feet, followed us round, and
when we came to a stand would collect about us, staring
at us with dull looks, and often dropping on their knees
and elbows at our feet, and putting their claw-like little
hands on our boots. It gave me a shudder; it was like
insects crawling at us. They knew not what to ask for,
but vaguely recognized in us a power which it was
expedient to propitiate. There was nothing to be done.
The supervisors would promise everything, but we knew
that as soon as our backs were turned, the robbery would
continue just as before—and the murder which robbery
of the starving involves.”

CHAPTER XVII
BANIDA AND BUNDELKUND
THAT same evening I was dining with Mr. Anderson
the Commissioner, and while there a telegram came in
announcing that a most regrettable catastrophe had
occurred at Khurai in the Saugor district. The poor-
house, which consisted of the usual grass-thatched sheds,
was burnt down, and twenty-four of the inmates lost
their lives. The next day an inquiry on the spot was
opened by the Assistant-Commissioner, who had hurried
down to Khurai on hearing of the disaster. The inquiry
revealed that the fire had originated in the middle of
the shed on the eastern side of the square. One of the
paupers had lighted a few sticks to warm himself, and
a spark caught the thatch. A strong east wind was
blowing, and the fire once started spread with such
rapidity that the whole place was burnt to the ground
within half-an-hour. The panic-stricken inmates bolted
en masse for the one gateway. This exit was twenty-
four feet wide, and had the paupers exercised any self-
control, there was nothing to prevent the safe egress of
the whole number. A wild rush was made, and the
weaker in the stampede were trampled under-foot.
This was proved by the fact, that out of the total
number of twenty-four victims, no less than twenty-two
were found within a distance of fifteen feet of the gate-
-




176 -
AAAW/DA AAV/D AE UAV/D/E/ATO/AW/D I77
º
-
way. The remaining two bodies found were those of
children, which were in the corner of the shed, and it
was supposed that they were suffocated in their sleep.
The disaster was so sudden that no assistance of any
kind could be rendered. The whole thing was due to
an accident caused by the infringement of the rules
by one of the pauper inmates. I am indebted for the
above details to the official report of the disaster, which
was later forwarded to the authorities and afterwards
put into the hands of the press.
I was very anxious to make an excursion into the
outlying district of Mandla, and for that purpose sent
for the tonga-wal/a/. He rejoiced in the name of
Kamta Praseh, and was a grand and patriarchal-looking
old man, with an enormous white beard which flowed
down to his waist. We discussed the question, but as I
found that the round trip, as Our American cousins say,
would consume five valuable days, I gave up the project,
and determined to hasten on to Banda in the Bundel-
kund district, which dovetails into the Central Pro-
vinces, but is within the jurisdiction of the Lieutenant-
Governor of the North-West Provinces. I had been
informed that this was the blackest spot of the North-
West, and that my information was correct may be
gathered from the following remarks made by Sir
Anthony Macdonald at the Civil Service dinner held at
Lucknow. -
Speaking of the famine in the North-West, and of
the tract of country called Bundelkund, and the ad-
joining portion of the Allahabad district, he said—“Of
these parts it is unquestionably true that they have not
known such a scarcity as the present for the last
hundred years. The people there have suffered from
N

178 TAZA'OUGH THE FAM/AWAE Z)/STRACTS
an accumulation of misfortunes that is only paralleled
at the present moment by the plight of Saugor and
Jubbulpur. After a succession of bad seasons, culmin-
ating in a famine during last Spring and autumn, they
obtained no more than a five- or six-anna crop from the
autumn harvest, and now the prospects of the rabá, from
fair to good elsewhere, are equally poor. It is not
improbable, therefore, that by May in the worst parts—
namely, Banda, Hamarpur, Jalaun, and South Allaha-
bad—half the population may be upon the hands of
Government. A famine of this severity earlier in the
century would have meant for a certainty that half the
population would have died outright. Probably a great
many more, for Supplies from outside could not possibly
have reached such a land-locked country.”
He then went on to talk about the agitation which
had been raised about the spending of the fund reserved
by the Indian Government to meet the exigencies of
famine, and which had been expended from time to
time in the formation and extension of the Indian
Railway system.
“One wonders, by the way, what those who talk of
the misappropriation of the Famine Fund, and seem to
think that that money ought to be kept in a bag by
itself until famine comes, have got to say about the
Indian Midland Railway. Possibly they would fall
back upon the argument that railways do as much
harm as good, inasmuch as though it cannot be denied
that they bring food to places where it is scarce, they
make it dear in others where it would otherwise be
abundant.”
The editor of the Pioneer, from which this speech is
taken, closes the report with the following trenchant



AAAV/DA AAV/D /3 UAV/D/E/CATUAV/O I79
remark—“It is a pity that the sleek Babu essayists, who
present these views to the world, could not be put to
spend a week in an isolated famine district in the olden
time, where they might feed on the reflection that one
man's hunger may after all only mean another's satiety.”
I left Jubbulpur at 9 a.m. the next day, and hoped to
arrive at Banda by midnight. On my arrival at Katni
Junction, I had some time to wait for the arrival of the
East Indian train which connected with ours on the
G. I. P. The station-master welcomed me as an old
friend, and told me that that morning he had received
the first consignment of Burmah rice from Calcutta,
and that he had five wagons in the yard awaiting un-
loading. He added that the baſznias had arranged to
sell it in the bazaar at the rate of ten seers to the
rupee.
At Katni a Kentish man who came from my neigh-
bourhood joined the train, and got into my carriage.
He has four sons in the Indian Civil Service, and was
over from home paying them each a visit in turn. He
had just come up from Bilaspur, where he had heard of
my visit, and said that the authorities there, since my
representations, were beginning to stir their stumps in
the matter of looking better after the poor.
When we got out of the fertile valley of the Nerbudda,
the aspect of the country changed for the worse, and its
general appearance reminded me of the dry and sterile
tract of country between Dharwar and Bijapur. There
was the same absence of all signs of recent cultivation,
and the general outlook was of a most forbidding and
gloomy nature. At every station where the train
stopped, it was immediately surrounded by swarms of
emaciated and clamorous natives, who, pointing to their

I8o ZTA/A2O ÚGAZ 7"AZ AAA/ZAVE ZOZSTA&AECTS
wasted limbs and mere effigies of bodies, begged in
piteous accents for pies. I had heard that this would
be the case, and so had told my servant to provide a
bag of copper coin. With these demari: I was able, at
any rate, to put a morsel of bread into the stomachs of
some of the hundreds who asked for alms, but the
crowds were so great that my store was soon exhausted,
and my heart bled for those poor sufferers whose hard
lot it was beyond my meagre powers to alleviate. The
deeper we got into the Central Province Agency, the
more pronounced became the numbers of the suppliants,
and the more abject the component parts of that great
Seething and starving mass of humanity. At Badanpur,
where the crowd was very great, I questioned the
station-master as to whether any official means were
being taken to mitigate the distress. He told me that
the Political Agent had just issued orders to the various
jehagidars under his control to expend money on
relief works, and that the nearest chief to his station (I
forget the name of the ſe/agidar) had allowed a sum
of IO,OOO rupees to be set aside for this purpose. But
when thousands of his subjects were starving, this
sum would soon be swallowed up.
The misery and distress seemed to culminate at
Maghawan, where they find a rich yellow ochre. This
is exported to Calcutta, and after due preparation, forms
the dye which lends its rich orange colour to the saffron-
hued shawls so beloved of the Bengali Babu. The
officials here told me that the distress was awful, and
that the poor people had no means of subsistence except
the precarious charity which they could extract from
the travellers of each passing train. They were from
the native States, and the poor wayfarers were thrust out


JºA/V/DA A/V/O /3 U/V/D/E/ATOW/V/O I81
from village to village, the inhabitants having no food
for themselves, much less for the stream of immigrants.
They wandered on, till the final stage came and they
sank down to die alone, a prey to jackals and vultures.
That very morning the station-master said five corpses
had been found on the line, between this station and the
next, of poor wayfarers who had fallen by the way.
The native rajahs here were doing absolutely nothing to
help or alleviate these people, but, in accordance with
the old time-worn policy of inaction, were allowing them
to starve or drift, or both.
About eight o'clock in the evening I arrived at
Manikpur Junction, where I was able to snatch a hasty
meal before changing into the Indian Midland Railway,
which was to take me to Banda. I made inquiries here,
and found that the dawk bungalow at Banda was at
Some distance from the station, so wired to the station-
master to reserve the waiting-room for me. On the
Indian railways there are waiting-rooms which bond.
ſide passengers can use if necessary. They are fur-
nished with beds, but of course no bedding, and have a
bath-room attached. At out-of-the-way stations I found
these resting-places convenient on more than one occa-
Sion. On arrival at Banda at I a.m., you can imagine
my disgust when I found that the waiting-room was
already occupied by a couple of snoring natives, and
that there was no room for me. While I was storming
about the station, speiring where I could lay my head
for the remainder of the night, a magnificent specimen
of a Mussulman, over six feet high, and with a beard
of enormous dimensions, respectfully approached and
asked, “Is sahib wanting dawk bungalow 2° “Yes,” I
replied, “but I hear it is some two miles from here, and


182 THA’OUGH THE AEAM/AVE /D/STRACTS
there are no gharries.” “No, your honour, the bungalow
is just there across the station-yard.” So after all I had
been misinformed, and found my night's lodging was to
hand. I ordered my kit to be taken across, and was
very thankful to find that the difficulty of accommo-
dation was so easily solved. Another European had
alighted at the station, and he soon turned up at the
rest-house. We chummed in, and I found on inquiry
that he was a Major Pond, who had been sent down by
the authorities from Allahabad, to take charge of the
famine and relief works in the Banda district. The
room allotted to me was the largest in the place; it was
about fifty feet long by twenty feet wide, and was
evidently used as a durðark/lana 1 by the Öurra sa/ºffs
visiting the place. Our other neighbour was a Bengali
Babu, a barrister who had come down to defend a native
who had been accused of murdering his wife. The trial
had concluded that very day, and the murderer had
been condemned to suffer the extreme penalty of the
law.
Banda is one of the most God-forsaken places it was
ever my luck to strike. There were no tongas or
vehicles of any kind, except the native ek/ča, which is
one of the most uncomfortable vehicles to ride in I have
ever tried. The country is poor and sterile to a degree,
and one remarkable feature is the lowness of the water-
level all over the country. I measured the depth of a
couple of wells, and found that one was over a hundred
feet, while the other was about seventy. In India, as a
rule, the water-level is a very little way below the
surface, but here I found that the aVerage Was OVer
sixty feet. This makes well-irrigation an impossibility,
1 Hall of Audience. -
AAAWDA. AAV/D BUAV/9/E/ATUAVZ) 183
and the district has to depend entirely upon the clouds
for its water for crop-cultivation.
The first thing in the morning I called upon the head
clerk of the District Survey-office, and from him
acquired the following details anent the Bundelkund
district.
The area of Banda is 3061 square miles, with a
population of 705,OOO. The city population itself is
60,000, but during the famine the numbers had greatly
decreased, owing to large numbers of the people having
deserted their homes and gone upon the relief works.
The total number of those getting Government aid at
the time of my visit were—

Active workers on relief works... ... I25,OOO
Dependents --- --- --- ... 28,000
Number in poor-houses ... - - - --- 6,000
Number receiving gratuitous relief ... Io,000
Total 169,000
The worst sub-district was Mau, and here the propor-
tion of paupers to the population figured out at forty-
five per cent.
The works consisted of road-making, and there were
three sections being made, which would connect the
three principal towns of the district.
From the survey-office, where I was able to inspect
the district maps and get a fair grasp of the system of
relief, I went on to the treasury, where I found the Stunt
Sa/.26, as the Deputy-Collector is called, hard at work
with his staff counting out thousands of pies for the
payment of the workers. In the course of a conversation
he informed me that the first works had been opened in
February 1896. There had been scarcity for the last
three years, and this year ('97) both Āharif and rab?
184 THROUGH THE FAM/WE DISTR/CTS
crops had failed. The district was purely agricultural,
and the chief products were wheat, grain, and cotton.
The bannias had begun importing Burmah rice, and also
large consignments of potatoes had been received from
Cawnpur and Allahabad. Very large takavi advances
had been made, and the Ääss (land revenue) for the year
had been remitted. The deputy feared that the pressure
would increase, and before and during the rains he fully
expected that more than half the entire population would
be under State protection. There were already seven
poor-houses in the district open, and it was contemplated
opening more, as the present ones were full to their
utmost capacity. An orphanage had been established in
the city for those children whose parents had either died
or deserted their offspring. This orphanage, which I
afterwards visited, was established in an old and disused
seraž, and was just as full as it could hold of parent-
less bairns. They are admitted at any age up to fifteen,
and there were on the muster-roll over 400 on the
occasion of my visit. This will give some idea of the
mortality which had taken place, and was still going on,
as these numbers were confined to children found deserted
or neglected in the city itself and its immediate neighbour-
hood. As is so often the case amongst the young of
India, ophthalmia was very prevalent, and also ringworm.
There were also many instances of “famine scab.” This
is a white sore, which comes upon the head, and also
covers the whole skull; it is most repulsive-looking, and
the sufferers from this are doomed. The mortality was
heavy, but one cannot expect frail childhood to with-
stand the hardships and hunger which more matured
humanity can bear more easily, and these waifs and
strays succumbed daily in large numbers. There was a



Jº A/V/DA A/V/O /3 UAV/D/E/CATUAV ZD 185
crèche established for babies, and three or four women
had been appointed to look after these helpless atoms.
One woman, a comely and maternal-looking female, was
nursing a poor wee mite of human skin and bone. It
had been found two days previously in a deserted house
in the town, and brought in by the police. There was
absolutely no hope for this babe, and in spite of the care
of its foster-mother, it was bound to die. There was a
hospital attached for the ordinary sufferers from the
universal bowel complaints; but all infectious diseases,
such as Small-pox, mumps, etc., were sent off to a
segregation hospital, which had been established in
the Bhuragargh, or old palace of the late Nawab of
Banda. I mounted up the tower over the gateway, and
got an extensive view over the country. It looked bare
and desolate, and the signs of crops, or cultivation even,
were few and far between. Looking across the river, I
saw a curious volcanic hill, with a fort on the top. This,
they told me, was the poor-house. In old days it had
been the stronghold of Gurram Singh, who was one of
the thorns in our side during the time of the Mutiny.
I had the orphanage practically to myself, as the
hospital compounder, who was in charge, was away, and
I only had a couple of sepoys to deal with. I was
therefore able to pursue my inquiries unmolested, and
questioned several of the orphans. They one and all
told me the same story, that food had become scarcer
and scarcer in their homes ; that their parents had either
died or drifted away, leaving their offspring unprovided
for. They were poor and miserable relics of childhood,
and resembled apes rather than human beings. They
were however well-clothed, every one of them having a
white linen jumper and a blanket. I only wish I could


186 THA’OUGAſ TAZAZ AAA/ZAVE /)/ST/C/CTS
say that their actual bodies were as well covered, but
except in a few isolated instances, they were the merest
frameworks of humanity. With their swollen stomachs
and shrunken limbs, their appearance, if it were not so
horrible, would be grotesque, as they had no semblance
of thriving and prosperous childhood left. In spite of all
this, I had no complaints about the insufficiency of food.
They were fed twice a day, and the dole received seemed
to be sufficient. I spent a long time in their midst, hear-
ing their histories and asking and answering questions.
On my way back to mine inn I went through the
bazaar and native town. It was a typical native city,
with very narrow streets and gullies, leading to oards,"
where were huddled together, in every possible position,
the ordinary square-roofed mud-huts of native India. I
found a great number of these houses deserted, and the
doors locked, and learned that the inmates had either
died, drifted off to other parts, or had gone on to the
works on the Banda-Baburu road. The town was
evidently a poor one, and even the bannias who held the
shops looked poverty-stricken.
I had had a long and tiring day, and was glad to get
back to the dawk bungalow. In the evening Major Pond
and I dined together, and spent the rest of the time in
pleasant chat. He recounted to me his experiences in
Burmah, where, when the country was first settled, he
spent several years as police-officer of a remote and up-
country district. On his first arrival there he was much
annoyed at being sniped at in his rounds, till he thought
of a plan which might, perhaps, prevent his being picked
off by a dacoit from behind a tree. He ordered up the
chief man of the village, and told him that he was to
* Squares. -

(ºppupg)
“ HOVOO GIOVALS VIN

AAAV/OA AAV/D /3 (7/V/D/E/ATUAV/O 187
accompany him in his daily rounds. The man was told
that on the first shot fired his brains would be blown out,
and a couple of the Major's Gourkha escort were told
off for this duty. The man's fright was something too
funny to see, as he went quite green, and at every nasty
place upon the road where treachery might lurk, he
squirmed in his saddle like a wounded snake. The
measures, however, were effective and our policeman was
never Sniped at after his adopting this plan. As I have
previously stated earlier in this chapter, Banda was one
of the most carriageless places I had ever struck. Early
the next morning, after a great deal of research, I dug
out a tum-tum, the like of which I never wish to drive in
again, and having borrowed a horse, drove off to the
relief works along the Banda-Baburu road. I drove
down this track, to which a Canadian Corduroy road
would have given points, till I came to the scene of
operations. The number on the works is about 36,000,
and I and the old waler stumbled and blundered along
the new road for some five or six miles, during which I
found a continuous stream of people at work, digging up
the hard black soil at the side of the road, and piling it
up in the middle. There seemed to be an absence of
bandoffust about the whole thing, and I was met on all
sides by the cry, “A”anch pies paſte äurra/, /da/.2m /o/aga,” "
as these poor workers lifted the folds of their wrinkled
skin, which did duty for their stomachs, and it certainly
seemed, looking at them, that in many cases this was
true. The sudden influx of workers, and the plague in
Bombay having paralyzed trade, had upset all calcula-
tions, and there was a distinct scarcity of Áhodalies and
other proper tools. I saw one poor old creature trying
* “Five pice will not make my stomach to grow big.”

I88 7"HA’OUGAſ THE FAA/ZAWE D/STRACTS
to do his allotted task of digging with the aid of a
crooked stick, while two or three others were working
with merely the backbone of a £/oda/ie, the blade long
ago having gone into the Ewigkeit. Women, too, were
carrying the earth in the small brass dishes they use for
their food, and altogether it was a sorry spectacle.
The ta/si/dar, when I had been there for some time,
came cantering up on a white pony with pink eyes and
dyed mane and tail, so dearly loved by the opulent native.
He seemed a specious, plausible sort of creature, who re-
quired hanging, and was most fulsome in his compliments
to me, and assumed quite a paternal manner with the
workers. He was got up within an inch of his life in the
highest style of native dandyism, patent leather side-
spring shoes, with white pearl false buttons included, and
his steedwas gaily caparisoned with a bran new saddle and
bridle, so I have no doubt that he found his stewardship
a profitable one. It is an ill wind that blows nobody
any good, and many a native subordinate official thanks
the gods that the famine has, at any rate, been the means
of lining his pockets with good rupees at the expense of
his humbler brethren. It was an excellent thing that a
special famine officer had been appointed for this district,
and not before he was wanted. I have no doubt that
Major Pond found several things which required rectifica-
tion, and notably that the workers should get their full
wages, which, judging from what I saw, and the numerous
complaints I heard, I should say was not the case.
The poor-house next received my attention. Here
the people were being fed when I arrived, and the con-
dition of the place, taken as a whole, was no worse and
no better than several others I have seen. It was filled
to overflowing, and the surplus was camped Qutside.

AAAW/DA AAV/O AP UAV/D/E/LA UAV/O 189
While I was there, a woman was brought in by the
police, who had found her deserted, and left to die, in an
empty house in the bazaar. She was absolutely naked,
except for a blanket which had been thrown over her
when placed upon the charºoy on which she was brought
in. This was certainly the very worst case I saw, and
even as I write I cannot refrain from shuddering when
I recall her awful state. She was filthy to a degree, and
her black hair, which hung down her back, was a matted
mass of vermin and dirt indescribable. Her limbs and
body were shrunk down to absolute nothingness, and the
mere shell of her carcase was all that was left. Even the
Áala doctor, who was there, when he saw her, shook his
head, and said mournfully—“Poor thing, she is past
recall. I can do nothing to save her.” He gave her a
strong dose of opium, which would deaden, if not
alleviate her sufferings, and help her out of this world in
as easy a manner as possible. She died before I left.
I visited the small-pox hospital, which was, of course,
separate and segregated from the main building. This
dread Scourge was raging all over Banda, and there were
over fifty cases of this disease from out of the inmates of
the poor-house alone. -
The poor-house was most picturesquely situated on a
high hill which dominated the town, and the road which
led to it was also worthy of notice. As I drove down to
the river I noticed a curious blending of the new and old.
The shelving banks which lead down to the river are a
picturesque and tumbled mass of rocks, through which
the road has been cut. The river itself is crossed by a
rude bridge of native boats, which are lashed together,
and in the thatched ends of which the people who look
after the bridge and tolls live. Hard by, a little above,


190 T//Å’OUGH THE FAAZZAWE DZSZTK ZCZS
the river is spanned by a modern and high railway-
bridge, which, in the rainy season, is the only means of
crossing, as the river level rises high up the brick piers
of the bridge, and the boat-bridge is useless, and in fact
taken away.
I drove, on the way back, through another part of the
bazaar, which by the bye is lighted in a most primitive
manner, a number of hurricane stable-lanterns being
placed, at rare intervals, on poles along the streets. I
stopped to watch some native turners at work with the
rudest of lathes, worked by the foot; they were turning
out a series of Indian toys, and legs for charºoys, which,
when covered with the bright red and green colours so
dear to the oriental, gladden and brighten their some-
what dirty and dingy homes.
One curious thing I noticed in my tour was how, with
the change of latitude, the seasons changed and the
climatic seasons varied. At Bijapur the people were
praying for rain to help to mature the crops, such as
they were. In the Bundelkund tract, however, rain
would have been a calamity, and have spoilt what
little produce there was, by inducing mould and mildew
amongst the fields, which stood ripe for the sickle. In
the Punjaub and North-West the opposite was the case,
and here rain, if not of too heavy a nature, was anxiously
looked for.
That night, having exhausted, as far as lay in my
power, the possibilities of Banda, I left at midnight for
Jhansi. -

CHAPTER XVIII
JHANSI
JHANSI is the head entrepôt of the Indian Midland
Railway. It is the junction for Cawnpur, Agra, and
Manikpur. It is a busy place, and owes its recent
growth to the settlement here of the railway and all its
official appurtenances. The station is an imposing
building of red brick, and the railway offices are built
in a corresponding style of magnificence. Our train on
arrival, owing to the plague scare in Bombay, which had
now reached the up-country districts, was, with its
passengers, subjected to a vigorous search, by the medical
staff appointed for the purpose, for suspected plague
patients. I was able, however, to satisfy the authorities
that I had been absent from Bombay long enough for
possible infection to either have declared itself or
vanished ; and, after a short parley with the doctor, was
permitted to leave the precincts of the station with my
bag and baggage. It was, however, otherwise with the
native portion of my fellow-travellers, as they were
individually gone over like persons passing the Customs,
and in Some cases which looked suspicious the tempera-
ture of the suspects I believe was taken ; however, they in
the long run all passed safely through the ordeal. I did
not stay to see the end of the proceedings, but hurried
off to the dawk bungalow, anxious for bath and break-

I9I

192 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRACTS
fast. When I had cleansed the Outer and refreshed the
inner man, I went off to look up Mr. Allen, the Deputy-
Commissioner. After being, hustled about from pillar
to post, I at last ran this official to earth in the Court
House, where he was trying an assault case between a
couple of peasants. He invited me on to the Bench,
and I sat through the case, listening to the mass of
conflicting evidence produced and volubly sworn to by
both sides. When the case was over—I think the man
who had been hammered by his compatriot won—and
the Deputy asked me into his private room, he let me
look at the statistics of his district, and left me busy,
pencil and note-book in hand, while he returned to the
court to serve out another dose of justice.
The area of Jhansi is 3587 square miles, with a
population of nearly seven lacs, of which the city and
cantonment absorb half a lac.
The numbers employed on works on February 6
, Were—
- Men. Women. Children.
Workers ... --- ... II,927 16, 186 Io,394
Dependents ... --- --- 254 282 7,357
12, 181 16,468 I7,75I
Grand total ... 46,400.
The death-rate for the month of December in ’95
showed for the district 2362, while for the corresponding
month of '96 the numbers had jumped up to 3618.
The relief works were the usual making of cutcha
roads, but a couple of tanks were also in course of
construction, and the numbers employed on these latter
during the coming hot weather would be considerably
augmented. In other parts of the district a goodly
number were employed in village relief works, in making
small tanks for local requirements and digging cuácha
JAZAAVS/ I93
wells. I had better perhaps explain what a cutcha well
is. It is a hole dug in a field where there is a likelihood
of water being found. It is merely left rough, and its
sides are not bricked as in the case of pucca wells. The
former last about three years before becoming silted up.
The water is lifted by the wheel-system, a couple of
bullocks drawing up a skin which on arriving at the
surface is tipped into a small tank made to receive the
stream. The water is then conducted off by means of
small channels over the field to be irrigated. It is
astonishing what a quantity of water a couple of
bullocks can raise in this primitive way during a
working-day. The system is prevalent all over the
Punjaub and North-West, and I saw in my travels
thousands of these wells, with bullocks and peasants hard
at work supplying the crops with the refreshing water.
In the North-West Provinces alone, as a result of famine
labour during the last twelve months, over a million of
these wells had been sunk. The staple product of the
Jhansi district is jowari ; only 37 per cent, however, of
the cultivable area had been sown, but what had been
laid under cultivation had produced excellent results.
The out-turn of the cotton crop was very poor, the
estimate being from 4 to 6 annas.' About a month
ago excellent rain had fallen, and this had been the
salvation of these parts. The officials said they had
the famine practically under control, and knew where
| Crops and their out-turn, as in fact most things, are spoken
of by the ratio of the divisible fraction of a rupee. A 16-anna
crop means a full one ; an 8-anna, half; 4-anna, quarter; and so
on. In racing parlance, we talk of a pony going a 12-anna gallop,
instead of three-quarter speed. An 8-anna gallop indicates half-
speed. This is convenient, but is somewhat puzzling to those
unacquainted with the method.
O

194 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCTS
the food-supplies were, and that these were ample for
present needs. Prices since the rain had fallen slightly.
Fodder was a difficulty, as the supply was even then
short, and would become scarcer as time went on.
In the afternoon, when the sun had become less
powerful, I went off on a tour of exploration to the old
fort. It stands on a hill which dominates the city, and
is a strong place. In the old days it was considered
impregnable, till Sir Hugh Rose proved that British
pluck and endurance could overcome what was previously
considered insuperable. Even now it is a stronghold
of no mean order, and should troublous times again
arise, would prove a valuable place of refuge for the
European residents of the station and cantonment. It
has been armed with some old 64-pounder M. L. siege-
guns, which would give a good account of themselves in
case of necessity. My tonga-wallah, fearing I think the
stability of his harness, absolutely refused to drag me
up the steep winding road which led to the fortification,
and so I toiled up this on my own feet in the hot sun.
A detachment of the Royal Artillery guard the fort,
and the Sergeant in charge took me under his wing, and
thoroughly and efficiently explained the whole plan of
campaign which ended in the defeat and flight of the
celebrated Red Queen of Jhansi. He showed me the
route taken by Sir Hugh Rose with his avenging army
from Nandgaon, and where he took up a position
behind a small hill to the right, from which he eventu-
ally breached the wall of the city.
Murray gives the following succinct account of the
history of Jhansi–
“The district remained under the rule of the Peishwas
till 1817, when they then ceded their rights to the East


JAAAWS/ I95
India Company. The native rulers ruled under British
protection until their folly and incompetency ruined the
country. When the dynasty died out in 1853, their
territories lapsed to the British Government. The
Jhansi state, with Jalaun and Chandau, was formed
into a Superintendency, while a pension was granted to
the Rani, or widow of the late Rajah Rao. The Rani,
however, considered herself aggrieved, both because she
was not allowed to adopt an heir and because the
slaughter of cattle was permitted in the Jhansi territory.
The events of 1857 accordingly found Jhansi ripe for
rebellion. In May it was known that the troops were
disaffected, and on the 5th of June a few men of the
12th Native Infantry seized the fort containing the
treasure and magazine. Many European officers were
shot the same day. The remainder, who had taken
refuge in the fort, capitulated a few days after, and were
massacred with their families to the number of sixty-six
persons, in spite of a promise of protection sworn on the
Koran and Ganges water. The Rani then attempted to
seize the supreme authority, but the usual anarchic
quarrels arose between the rebels, during which the
Orchla (a neighbouring fort) leaders laid siege to Jhansi,
and plundered the country mercilessly. On the 5th
April, 1858, the fort and town were recovered by Sir
Hugh Rose.” The rebels were driven out of the fort,
and eventually took refuge on a high hill with a
precipitous scarp, about three miles away. This is called
“Retribution Hill,” as the avenging army pursued the
foe relentlessly, and scaling the heights they eventually
drove the insurgents over the precipice, where they were
dashed to pieces at the bottom. The Rani herself fled
with Tantia Topi, and finally fell in battle at the foot of

196 THROUGH THE FAMINAE DISTRZCTS
the rock-fortress of Gwalior. Malleson, quoting Sir
Hugh Rose, says—
“The town and fortress were garrisoned by 11,000
men, composed of rebel sepoys, foreign mercenaries, and
local levies, and they were led by a woman who believed
her cause to be just.”
While at Banda I had forwarded to Major Ivor
McIvor, the Resident of Gwalior, a letter of introduction
from my good friend Dr. Pollen, the Collector of
Bombay, asking him if he would grant me permission to
put up at the Guest House. The Maharajah Scindia
has built a most sumptuous house for the benefit of
European travellers visiting his capital. He however
quite rightly expects that intending visitors should write
beforehand and ask leave to occupy this excellent private
hotel. On my return from the fort I found a wire from
Major McIvor, most courteously asking me to be his
guest at the Residency, and saying that he would send
a carriage to the station to meet the train arriving at
Gwalior at 4 p.m. the next day.
I had made arrangements with Mr. Allen to go with
him to the poor-house at Jhansi early in the morning,
and so at about six o'clock he called for me in his cart
at the dawk bungalow. We drove to the poor-house,
which is some three miles off, situated at the foot of
Retribution Hill. The Deputy intended to make a
draft of those of the inmates who were fit to go on the
works. Out of a total of 650, he was able, with the help
of the Civil Surgeon, to select over 80 men and women
capable of doing a day's work for a day's wage. This
spoke well for the management of the establishment,
and the morale and physique of the paupers was far
better than in many other poor-houses. We then went

JHAMSI I97
on to visit the segregation camp, which the Civil Surgeon
had just fitted up for the reception of plague cases,
should any occur. There were three distinct camps—one
for Europeans, Mahommedans and Hindoos respectively.
The arrangements were first-rate, and great care had
been bestowed upon the details, even to the provision
of coffins and a pile of wood for the funeral pyres of
possible Hindoo victims.
The place, however, had no inmates, and I believe it
was never called into requisition. It was, however,
comforting to feel that everything was ready if one did
succumb to an attack of the plague. On the way up to
Gwalior I had passed the palace of the Rajah of Datia.
He is a petty chief of the second-class, with a revenue of
nine lacs of rupees. His palace stands in a command-
ing position upon a hill, a magnificent white pile of
buildings, which is a conspicuous object from the train.
A little further on we came to the town of Sonagar,
which presents a striking view to the passenger. It is
built on the side of a hill, and the fort and palace are
on the top. The white flat-topped buildings, with
the innumerable pinnacles and minarets of the palace,
silhouette the sky-line, and present a striking contrast to
the bright blue vault of heaven above, and the deep
brown hill upon which they stand.
The whole country I passed through was at first
rough, scrubby jungle, but later we came into a curiously
broken tract of clay, where the rains and consequent
erosion had formed a series of nullahs, the most fantastic
shapes being assumed by the mud-pillars and ravines.
Wherever there was a chance of a crop, cultivation
had been pursued, but the greater part of the country
was only fit for grazing purposes. I was much struck

198 ZHROUGH THE FAM/NAE Z)/STRZCTS
with the herds of excellent cattle that I saw, and
especially the sheep. The latter were of really good
quality, and in size and shape reminded me of the
Cotswolds of the Oxfordshire Downs. They had the
same black faces and broad backs, and were very
different from the gaunt, goat-like animals I had seen in
other parts of India. True to time the train ran into
Gwalior, and I found a scarlet-coated chupprassie, with a
gorgeous gold belt, awaiting my arrival, with one of the
state carriages for my personal use and benefit, ready to
convey me to the Residency. Assuming the air of a
Lieutenant-Governor at least, when all was ready I gave
the order to proceed, and was quickly whirled off to the
comfortable and hospitable Residency, where I received
a warm welcome from Major and Mrs. McIvor.



PART III
IN THE PUNJAUB
CHAPTER XIX
GWALIOR
WHEN we had discussed afternoon tea, Major McIvor
asked whether I were ready for work or play ? I
naturally agreed to play, and so he proposed that we
should go to the Club and have a round of golf.
Nothing loth, we set off to the Club which the
Maharajah of Scindia has built for the convenience and
comfort of the European residents of Gwalior. It is a
most compact and yet commodious building, and is the
daily meeting-place of the station ; and there are golf-
links, tennis and cricket-grounds outside, while the
building consists of a large reading-room, a ball-room
and billiard-room, the whole being very comfortably fur-
nished, and lit with the electric light. How very different
was my experience from that of Sleeman, who about
forty years ago visited this very place. He remarks
that on pitching his camp on the confines of the palace,
he was much annoyed by the disorderly soldiery of the
Rajah, who invaded his camp, and upon whom he had to
keep a watchful eye lest they should loot any of his
possessions, horses, or camp equipage. While I was
-
-



I99

2 oo ZTA/A2O ÚGAZ ZTAZAZ AAAZZAVE ZO/SZTA’/CTS
playing billiards with the uncle of the present
Maharajah, who with the prince came down to the club
that afternoon, I could not help the thought of the great
contrast between the old régime and the new crossing
my mind. In former days here was Sleeman strictly on
his guard against the followers of the king ; while I
upon a first-class billiard-table by Burroughes and Watts,
with electric light as an illuminant, was playing a friendly
game of billiards with a scion of the noble house of
Scindia. Autre temps autres maeurs, and in nothing is
the power of the British shown more clearly than in the
beneficent and civilizing effect contact with Europeans
has had over the dominant races and families of India.
Gwalior is a State which has a very interesting history,
and played no mean part in the earlier days of
Hindustan. The earliest records date back to, as some
authorities say, the year B.C. 3 Io; while others fix the
foundation of the raj' in the year 275 A.D. Cunningham,
in his Reports on the Archaeological Surveys, agrees
with the latter date.
According to Cunningham, Toramanna, a tributary
prince under Guptas, rebelled, and obtained the
sovereignty of all the territory lying between the Jumna
and Nerbudda, and in the reign of his son, in 275 A.D.,
Gwalior was founded by Suraj Sen, a Kachhwale chief,
who was a leper. There is a legend which says that this
chief was once hunting on the hill of Gopagiri, upon
which the fort of Gwalior now stands. He obtained a
drink of water from the hermit Gwalipa, which cured
him of his leprosy. In gratitude for this cure, he built a
fort on the hill, and called it Gwaliawar or Gwalior.
This Kachhwalia dynasty was succeeded by seven
* Raj, throne; dynasty, power. “
G: WAZ/OA’ 2O I
Panhara princes, who ruled till 1232; when Gwalior fell
into the hands of Altamsh. From 1232 to Timour's
invasion in 1398, the Emperor of Delhi used Gwalior as
a State prison. The Gwalior chiefs paid tribute to Delhi
till 1465, when it was besieged by the King of Jaunpur,
and compelled to acknowledge his allegiance. In 1761
Gwalior was taken by the Jat Rana of Gohad, and in
I779 was captured by Major Popham from the Marathas,
into whose hands it had fallen, and it was restored to
the Rana of Gohad. It was again taken by the
Mahrattas under Maharajah Scindia in 1784, re-captured
by the English under General White in 1803, and re-
stored to Scindia in 1805. It was occupied for a third
time by the British in 1844 after the battles of Maharaj-
pur and Paniar.
At the time of the Mutiny the great warlike Mahratta
prince, Scindia, had a very powerful army of IO,OOO
troops," consisting of irregular cavalry, seven regiments
of infantry, and twenty-six guns, with their proper com-
plement of artillery. This force was officered by
Englishmen, and was well- drilled and disciplined.
Scindia was at this time twenty-three years of age, a
first-rate horseman, and a brave and intrepid leader of
his soldiery. Had he decided to throw in his lot with
the rebels, he might have marched to Agra and made
himself the master of that city, which is only sixty-five
miles distant from his capital. But the more prudent
and far-seeing counsels of his minister prevailed ; who
persuaded Scindia to deal subtilely with his dangerous
army, and by a policy of evasions and delays kept it
from joining the then victorious rebels. Scindia was,
* This force had been originally brought to its present state of
perfection by Skinner and Bernier.


202 ZTA/A2OUGAZ ZTA/A2 AAA/ZAVE ZOZSZTA’/CZ'S
however, powerless to prevent his mutinous soldiers from
killing their European officers. Seven officers and
several ladies escaped the massacre and reached Scindia's
palace. They were sent on by the prince to the Rajah
of Dholpur, where they were most kindly treated, and
eventually forwarded to Agra. For some months
Gwalior remained quiet, though the whole surrounding
country was in rebellion. On May 22, 1858, Sir Hugh
Rose fought the battle of Kalpi, and inflicted a severe
defeat upon the mutineers, who retreated to Gwalior.
On June I Scindia with his army moved out to meet
them, and an engagement took place near Morar.
Malleson thus describes the battle which ensued—“About
7 a.m. the rebels advanced, and Scindia's artillery opened
fire upon them. But the smoke was scarcely cleared
away when the rebel skirmishers closed to their flanks,
and 2000 horsemen charging, carried the guns. Simul-
taneously with this charge, Scindia's infantry and cavalry,
with the exception of his bodyguard, either joined the
rebels or took up a position indicative of their intention
not to fight. The rebels then attacked the bodyguard,
who defended themselves bravely, but the contest was
too unequal, and Scindia turned and fled, accompanied
by a very few of the survivors. He did not draw rein
till he had reached Agra.”
Sir Hugh Rose followed up the enemy, and eventually
was joined by Brigadier-General Sir Robert Napier
(Lord Napier of Magdala) at Bhadapur.
Arrangements were at once made to attack the enemy,
and they were driven from their position. The next
morning was fought the battle of Kotah-ki-serai, about
five miles south-east of Gwalior. The resistance was
stubborn, but eventually the British carried the day
G WAZ /OA’ 2O3
and put the rebels to flight. Amongst the fugitives
was the rebel Queen of Jhansi, who, resolute in council
and on the field, was the soul of the conspirators; clad
in male attire, she led her cavalry to the attack—but
her men failed her, and she was obliged to fly. She
might have escaped, but her horse stumbled, and a
hussar, ignorant of her rank or sex, cut her down. That
night her devoted followers burned her body upon the
field of battle. The whole of Gwalior city and environ-
ments, with the exception of the fort, were now in the
hands of the British. This fort was still held by a hand-
ful of fanatics, and its capture discloses a bright page
in the annals of British pluck and daring.
Murray thus describes the attack and capture—
“On the morning of the 20th, Lieutenant Rose (25th
Bombay Native Infantry) was in command of a de-
tachment of his regiment at the Kotwali, or police-
station, not far from the main gateway of the rock-fort.
As the guns from its ramparts continued to fire, Rose
proposed to a brother officer, Lieutenant Waller, who
commanded a small party, that they should attempt to
capture the fortress with their joint parties, urging
that if the risk was great, the honour would be still
greater. Waller cheerfully assented, and the two officers
set off with their men and a blacksmith, whom, not
unwilling, they had engaged for the service.
“They crept up to the first gateway unseen. Then
the blacksmith, a powerful man, forced it, and so with
the five other gates that opposed their progress. By
the time the sixth gate had been forced the alarm was
given, and when the assailants reached the archway
beyond the last gate, they were met by the fire of a
gun which had been brought to bear on them.


204 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE Z)/STRACTS
“Dashing onwards, unscathed by the fire, they
speedily engaged in a hand-to-hand contest with the
garrison. The fight was desperate, and many men fell
on both sides. The gallantry of Rose and Waller and
their men carried all before them. Rose especially dis-
tinguished himself. Just in the hour of victory, however,
as he was inciting his men to make the final charge
which proved successful, a musket was fired at him from
behind the wall.”
“The man who had fired the shot, a mutineer from
Bareilley, then rushed out and cut him down. Waller
came up and dispatched the rebel, but too late, how-
ever, to save his friend. But the rock-fortress was
gained, and continued in British hands till 1886.”
It is such deeds of “derring-do" which stand out
in the history of our nation, and have made our empire
what it is.
That evening at dinner I met Mr. Maris, who is the
conservator of the Museum and general superintendent
of the gardens, parks, and pleasaunces of the Maharajah
of Gwalior. Mr. Maris has had an almost unique ex-
perience in his life, and he was one of the first, if not
the very first European, to get beyond the treaty ports
of Japan, in the old days when the interior was a closed
and sealed book to the adventurous traveller. Even
before Miss Bird made Japan famous and known to the
English reading public, Mr. Maris had traversed the
islands in the interests of an enterprising English firm,
and had sent home a valuable collection of botanical
and entomological specimens. The Resident asked me
that night if I would not like to go and inspect the
fort, and on my assenting, gave orders for a carriage to
be ready for me, and telephoned to the State stables for
G WAZZO/º - 2O5
an elephant to await my arrival the next morning at
the foot of the road leading to the fort. The road, which
is scarped out of the rocks, is inaccessible for wheeled
traffic, and the best and only way of reaching the summit
is on elephant-back.
After choſa /agri the next morning, I sought Major
McIvor, whom I found hard at work in his den, and
went into famine matters with him. I obtained the
following details about the state of Gwalior and its
dependencies. The area is 13,000 square miles, and the
population is nearly twenty lacs. The jurisdiction of
state is divided into three prants, as the sub-divisions
are called, viz. Gwalior, Malwa, and Isagargh. The
prant officer is known by the vernacular name of
Sirsoopa/. There was slight famine and distress in
certain districts in the northern parts of the State which
border upon Dholpur and the Agra division, notably at
Etawah and Towagargh, the latter being the worst spot
in the dominions. Several local relief works had been
started, and the State was supporting some I 5,OOO souls.
There had been a certain amount of migration over the
border to Agra, but in this direction it was small. There
had been a large migration from the other districts to
Malwa, but this was chiefly on account of the cattle,
owing to the scarcity of fodder in Gwalior. In Towa-
gargh it was estimated that ten per cent. of the popula-
tion would be on Government hands in the near future.
In the other parts afflicted it would not amount to
more than half that percentage. The area of land under
cultivation was only eighteen per cent. under raói, as com-
pared with last year in the worst districts; but in the best
years the cultivated area of the whole country rarely
exceeds fifty-five per cent. The Durbar had voted large

206 THA’OUGH THE AEAM/AWE /)/STR/CTS
sums of money to have the famine well in hand, and
were fully prepared to take the matter up. The chief
staple products of the soil were ſoward and macca?
(Indian maize). Large takavi advances had been given,
some free of interest, some at a specially low rate, at
the discretion of the district officers, and the AEzss had
been remitted either wholly or in part where necessary.
The Government of India had already sanctioned the
construction of a two-foot gauge railway from Gwalior
to Sipri, and this would furnish earth-work upon which
relief labourers could be profitably employed. It was
also on the tapis to construct a similar railway from
Gwalior to Bhind ; while sanction had been already
given, and the works begun, on the Bhima-Goonaburah
extension of the Bhima-Goona line. There were some
I8,OOO souls already at work on this line, but this, being
a Public Works Department scheme, did not enter into
the calculations of the famine relief works.
This line will touch Kotah, and will also open up
the rich grain-producing districts of Rajputana. Major
McIvor, though naturally very anxious about the pros-
pects of the coming season and the likelihood of distress,
did not think that the matter would be beyond their
powers to successfully combat, and spoke hopefully
of the arrangements being made and already in full
Swing.
After breakfast I started for the fort, and at the foot
of the hill found the gaily-caparisoned hat/ſ, with his
attendant mahout and a State chºrassie, awaiting my
arrival. The huge and unwieldy beast made light of
the ascent, and wobbled up the road cut out of the face
of the cliff. I passed through the gateways which were
so successfully carried by assault by Messrs. Rose and
--"
º
--
- -


















G WAZ/O/º 2O7
Waller, and eventually arrived at the wide plateau on
the top. My guide gave me a most fluent description
of the various buildings and temples. He knew a few
words of English, and after a florid description in the
vernacular, would give me the key-note of the situa-
tion by winding up with “Monkey Temple, sa/º,” or
“Elephant Gate, ſkuzoor,” as the case might be. I made
a hurried tour of the whole place, which is most interest-
ing and well worthy of a visit by any one interested in
the archaeological relics of ancient Ind.
I will not weary my readers with details, for is not the
description of the fort and the temples and other wonders
that it contains written in the chronicles of Murray P
I went to the northern corner of the plateau, and from
there the panorama of the country and the city and
palaces, glistening white in the sun, lay like an open
book at my feet. I gazed over the plain which had been
the scene of the final and decisive battle; and saw on the
arid and Sandy plains the “dust devils” Swirling and
dancing over the wide expanse which lay below. On my
way down I visited the rock sculptures, which are unique
in Northern India, both for their number and gigantic
size. They are hewn out of the steep cliff on the north-
west scarp below the fort. The largest figure of the group
is 57 feet high. The largest figure of Shiva in the Caves
of Elephanta is only 16 feet, so that the figures of
Gwalior dwarf into insignificance what is considered to
be one of the wonders of the East by those of our
European brethren lately landed in Bombay. My time
was limited, and I hurried off to keep an appointment
made with Mr. Maris at the Museum. He has devoted
several years to a complete collection of the flora, fauna,
etc., of the State, and the specimens that he has carefully




208 7"HA’OUGH 7THE FAM/AVE D/STRICTS
arranged in the handsome building erected by the
Maharajah for the purpose, are practically unique. I
particularly admired some cases of the indigenous birds,
which were most beautifully set up amidst a faithful
copy of the scenes and habitat in which they had
lived. They were some of the best specimens of the
taxidermist's art that I have ever seen. Mr. Maris told
me with peculiar pride that they were his special hobby,
and the work of his own hand. I could have spent
hours in this place, but, alas, I was working against time,
and so had to get on after a véry hurried inspection of
the wonders of nature arranged and displayed in this
excellent institution. I drove to the palace with the
intention of inscribing my name in the book kept for
the purpose. The palace is a fine building surrounding
a courtyard, and with magnificent gardens at the back.
At the far end of the courtyard one drives under a
porte-cochère, which gives upon the Maharajah's private
apartments on the one side, and the Durbar hall and
State apartments on the other. His Highness, hearing
of my arrival, kindly sent an attendant down to say that
he would be happy to see me. I was accordingly,
ushered up-stairs, where in a library, furnished in the
latest and best European style, I found the Maharajah
seated at a table covered with papers, and immersed in
affairs of State. Looking round at the pictures on the
walls, on which there were some excellent engravings, I
saw the place of honour was occupied by a magnificent
photogravure of the Queen-Empress. The Maharajah
courteously waved me to a chair, and pushing over a
box of cigarettes, asked me how I liked Gwalior? I
replied that I was pleased and charmed with the whole
place. His Highness speaks English perfectly, and is


G WAZZOA’ 209
one of the best types of a highly-educated and polished
Indian prince. Scindia attends to his own State, and is
well up and fully cognizant of all that goes on. He has
indeed a very important finger in the pie, and I found
that he was fully posted in all the affairs going on
around him. After discussing London, and the regret
that he would not be able to take part in the coming
Jubilee rejoicings, our talk drifted naturally into famine.
I briefly sketched to him my tour, and gave him some of
my experiences, in which he took a deep interest. We
must have been chatting for nearly an hour, on all sorts
of topics of general and particular interest, before the
Maharajah gave me an opportunity of taking my leave.
As I was making my adieux, his Highness said, “Oh, by
the bye, to-morrow I am going off to my country-seat.
Will you come 2 I will take you over in my own train.”
His Highness has a hunting-box about six or seven
miles from his palace, to which he retires at times from
the cares of State. It is connected with the palace by a
toy two-foot railway, which the Maharajah has recently
made.
I was very much disappointed that I could not
accept his kind invitation, and told him that the British
public was a stern task-master, who would brook no
dalliance with its interests; that I had made arrange-
ments to get on to Agra that very afternoon, and so was
most regretfully compelled to decline his kind and
courteous invitation. I then took my leave, expressing
a hope that on some future occasion I should have an
opportunity of renewing an acquaintance so pleasantly
begun.
That same night found me at Agra, and installed in
Laurie's Hotel. My stay at Gwalior, and the great
P





2 To THROUGH 7THAE AEAM/AWE /)/STRACTS
kindness and hospitality I received there on all hands,
will always remain a very pleasant memory.
NOTE.-Since these lines were written it is with the deepest
regret that from an Indian paper I learned the sudden death by
cholera of Major McIvor, the Resident, at the early age of 51.
Indian climate, and the ceaseless work and responsibility which
high office entailed, have claimed another victim to add to the
almost countless roll of devoted Englishmen who have died at
their posts at the call of duty. Henry Lawrence's epitaph, “He
tried to do his duty,” might be graved o'er many a tomb where lie
the mortal remains of those brave Englishmen who have given
their lives for England's and India's good.
Poor McIvor, cut off in practically what was the zenith of his
power—it is sad to reflect on his comparatively early death. He
was always a marked man—a giant amongst Tritons—and his
conspicuous ability led him on throughout his triumphant and suc-
cessful career. Even at Trinity, Dublin, he was remarkable for his
great ability, and excelled in all he undertook. Besides being a
first-class scholar and the best man of his year, he was one of the
finest oars that T.C.D. ever produced, and stroked the first Dublin
boat that ever rowed at Henley. We could better have spared
another man.


CHAPTER XX
AGRA.
AGRA is the second city in size in the North-West
Provinces, and has a population of 187,000. I have
included it for the purposes of consecutive narrative in
the Punjaub part of my wanderings, but it must not be
forgotten that it is really under the jurisdiction of
the Lieutenant-Govenor of the North-West Provinces.
Agra is 84.1 miles from Calcutta by rail, and I39 from
Delhi. It is built on the western bank of the Jumna,
which is crossed by a magnificent railway-bridge of six-
teen spans. At the time of my visit this river had
dwindled down to a mere stream, and its bed was
occupied by gardens for the cultivation of melons and
gourds, for which Agra is famous. These gardens
exhibit the ingenuity of the native mallee, and as the
soil is the mere sand of the river, and liable to be
carried away by the first dust-storm that blows, each
small plot is enclosed by wind-screens made out of
elephant-grass to restrain, crib, cabin and confine the
ever-shifting sand. In the rainy season the Jumna be-
comes a turgid, swollen river, which washes the walls of
the fort, and is about two miles wide from shore to
shore.
After breakfast I drove to the bungalow of the Com-
missioner of Agra, Mr. Rose, who kindly granted me

2II
2 I 2 THA’OUG// THE FAM/AVE DAS7R/CTS
an interview. The total area of the Agra division
is over Io,000 square miles. Besides the city of
Agra, it contains the important towns of Farukabad
(73,000) and Muttra (57,000). The total number on
relief works in the division was 53,000, and these works
were conducted and managed by the Permanent Works
Department. Fearing that famine was approaching, a
careful inquiry was made in 1896, and it was then fore-
cast that Muttra, Agra, and a portion of Etawah, were
liable to be affected. Subsequent events proved that
this forecast was correct. In the previous September
and October, large advances (takavi) to dig cutcha
wells were made, and this did much to save a large area
of the raúz crop. In every village in the district special
lists of the inhabitants had been prepared, of persons
entitled to and likely to require gratuitous relief, viz. the
aged, the infirm, and purdah mashin women."
When the pinch came these lists were quickly verified,
and relief at once afforded. This precaution, taken in
time, saved a very vast number of lives, and I have no
doubt whatever that the policy pursued by the Govern-
ment of the North-West Provinces will be coded and
adopted all over India, in subsequent periods of scarcity
and distress. The present head of the North-West (Sir
Anthony Macdonald) is one of the greatest living
authorities on the famine question, and it is owing to
his special knowledge and grasp of the subject, that the
famine of 1896–97, which was the severest ever felt in
these Provinces, was so successfully grappled with.
One of the great features of the Agra organization
was the relief afforded to purda/ mas/ºn, and to the
respectable poor. An almost insuperable difficulty in a
* Women behind the veil; Zenana women.


A G/&A 2 I3
crisis of this kind, is approaching these secluded women,
and finding out their wants and requirements. Their
creed prevents official entry into their homes, or personal
inspection, and it is only by indirect means that their
cases can be looked into. The European ladies of Agra
did noble work in visiting their homes, and committees
were formed, amongst which the city was parcelled
out. In this manner was the difficulty surmounted.
Great help, too, was given by many influential and
energetic natives. At the time of my visit over 3000
purda/; mashin, in the city of Agra alone, were receiving
relief sufficient for their maintenance, and a similar
scheme was being carried out simultaneously at Muttra
and Farukabad. The actual cost of this relief in Agra
amounted to 5000 rupees per month; half of this sum
was found by the Government, the other half being
raised by subscriptions amongst the influential European
and native residents of the station. Were it not for
these relief measures, the distress and mortality in the
crowded city would have been enormous. The state of
the poor-house will show that efficient measures were
being taken, as, notwithstanding the vast population,
there were at the time of my visit only some 300
inmates, and these were the waifs and strays of the
population.
In spite of the extreme precautions of the Govern-
ment, the native organs of the press cavilled at their.
proceedings, and complained of the inattention of the
authorities. A story which was at the time of my
visit extant, and out of which the native organ made
much capital, will serve to point the moral.
A woman, a few days previously, had been found on
the river-bank taking the corpses from the sacred stream

2I4 ZAZROUGH THE FAAZZZVE D/STRACTS
and subsisting on them. Here was a horrible and re-
volting instance of distress. The native papers made
the most of it, and reviled the Government for its
supineness, to the full extent of their powers of vituper-
ation. Pious Brahmins and irrepressible Babus rushed
into print, and loaded the powers with every opprobrious
epithet in their extensive vocabulary. The woman was
conveyed to the poor-house, and given the vegetarian
diet of the orthodox Hindoo. This fare she steadily
declined to partake of, and her state became a parlous
one. The officials visited the poor-house, and on insti-
tuting an inquiry, it was discovered that the woman
in question was a ghor?" by caste, who had subsisted on
human flesh all her life. This caste is very scarce in
India at the present time, though in former days it was
much more numerous. Here then was the mare's nest;
revolting and filthy as it seems to be, yet the powers
were in no way responsible for the state of affairs. It
only shows how careful and watchful of the interests of
the general public they were, that amidst the seething
mass of humanity of the teeming population under their
control, they should have found and laid hands, with a
beneficent object, upon this repulsive and inhuman atom.
During our conversation Mr. Rose discussed with me
the question of current prices of food-stuffs in Agra;
which had reached an unprecedented level during the
present famine. In 1877, in the Agra division, the price
of grain never went below ten seers to the rupee, and
was generally twelve and upwards. In the present year
it had sunk as low as seven and a half, and had con-
tinued for weeks together at eight and a half or nine.
* Has the word ghor: any connection with the word ghoul? I am
not philologist enough to discover. - -



A GA’A 2 I 5
It had now slackened a bit, and yet the distress of the
people was far more intense in 1877 than in 1896. Mr.
Rose's solution of this was the great improvement in
the material condition of the people generally. The
status of the small landed proprietors and cultivators,
to say nothing of the mere labouring class, had
shown immense signs of amelioration during the last
quarter of a century. Under these circumstances,
though the prices were higher, yet the masses were
better provided for, and more able to resist the pressure.
Another side-light upon the famine, was that the con-
tractors of the ferries, who had bought the right of
exacting tolls from wayfarers using these means of
transit, were not able to recover their dues. They had
appealed to Government, who had to remit a portion of
the money covenanted for. The fiscal arrangements of
the State would suffer, but not in the way it was ex-
pected. It had been originally estimated that only
about a quarter of the Ääss, which totalled nearly forty
lacs of rupees in the division, would be recoverable. It
turned out, however, quite unexpectedly, that a much
larger portion would be paid, and the Government
entertained hopes, with anything like decent luck, of
getting in thirty-five lacs. On the other hand the Öye
revenues would suffer, and they counted on a large loss
in excise and stamps; but the income-tax would in-
crease. It is beyond my province to discuss these
details to show how wide-spreading and far-reaching in
its consequences a scarcity in India becomes. The
estimate of the expense to the Government of the
famine in the Agra division was put down at eight
lacs of rupees, and this money the powers that be would
have to find in addition to current expenses.
-



2 I 6 TAZA2O ÚGAſ ZTAZAZ FAA/NAVAE /D/STRACTS
Before leaving, the Commissioner invited me to go
the next morning to see the relief works, and promised
to call for me at the hotel about seven o’clock.
When I got back to my inn, I found that the occu-
pant of the next room to mine was an artist, and he
was painting the Taj. After watching him at work, I
asked, “Does the Taj look like that 2 What extra-
ordinary colouring !” “Oh,” he said, “I see you don’t
understand ; this is a sketch of the buildings by moon-
/*g/ºt/" After some conversation we exchanged names,
and I found he was a Mr. Rich, an American, who was
a great friend of a friend of mine, the American Vice-
Consul at Bombay. The Vice-Consul had told me that,
in the course of my travels, I might run against Mr.
Rich, as he was wandering about somewhere in the
northern parts of India. This mutual acquaintance
helped us, and we sat after lunch in our long chairs
exchanging confidences and experiences, or, as our
Yankee friends say, “swapping lies.” Mr. Rich has
attained a celebrity in the artistic circles of Boston for
his picture of the Sphinx by moonlight; which he had
painted on the spot, and Subsequently exhibited with
the due accessories of a darkened room, with electric
light thrown upon the picture. It was shown in what
corresponds in Boston to our Academy in London, and
at once achieved a big success. My artist friend was
following out the same idea when he grappled with the
Taj under the soft influence of Luna's rays. As we
were whiling away the time till the Sun became less
powerful, we were pestered by a series of “box-wallahs,”
with their “ Want to buy a nice shawl, sahib P’ “ Model
of the Taj, sa/º 2'' and the thousand and one things
that these itinerant rogues plant at fabulous prices upon

A GA’A 2 I 7
the unwary globe-trotter. It was only when I let the
assembled crowd have a stream of the finest invective
and profanity, in which I cursed their relations to the
remotest degree in the vernacular, that they left us in
peace. We retained, however, a ventriloquist and con-
jurer, and he gave a very good exhibition of his powers.
As the grand “finale trick-act,” as the circus folk say, he -
said, “I will call the crows, sahiff, you see, sa/kiö.” He
produced a bundle of crow-feathers from his bag of
mysteries, and went out into the compound; and waving
these feathers in his hand, he imitated exactly the cries
of a wounded crow. Previous to this not a bird was to
be seen, but in a minute or two the sky was black with
excited Indian crows, wheeling aloft and uttering piteous
caws, probably in sympathy with their distressed com-
rade. I saw him do this ventriloquial trick on several
subsequent occasions, and he never failed to draw to-
gether a flock of mourners.
In the afternoon I visited the Taj, to get the propor-
tions of that magnificent pile duly settled in my mind
before seeing it again by moonlight. Everything that
can be written has been written from “Keene’’ down to
“ Mukarji,” the compiler of the Agra guide-book, and I
will not swell the list. I took my note-book, but felt
that the subject was too sublime and awe-inspiring for
mere journalistic notes. I will, however, give my idea
of the best way to view this building. Go first in the
daylight, and examine it thoroughly. Time your
arrival in Agra to arrive at the time of the full-moon.
After dinner drive out in the white flood of the Indian
moonlight, which gives the dust-laden trees by the way-
side the appearance of being covered with hoar-frost.
Then go to the centre seat of the platform where the

218 7"HA’OUGAſ ZTAE/E AEAM/AVE DASTRACTS
tank is, and sit down facing the building till the moon
rises over the trees on the right. Then in absolute
silence let the ineffable beauties of the structure sink
into your soul, and as the moon rises it will define the
glorious detail and harmonious beauty of the whole.
In this way you will carry away a mental photograph,
which will remain ineffaceable upon the retina of the
brain, as long as the mind retains its inner conscious-
ness. I should advise intending visitors to see the fort
and Jehangir's palace first, and leave, like an epicure,
the Taj for a final bonne ôouche.
The next morning the Commissioner and I drove to
the relief works, which are situated on the ground be-
tween the fort and the Taj Mahal. The work consists
of levelling the very rough ground, deeply intersected
with nullahs, which from time immemorial has been a
sort of Tom Tiddler's ground. Over 20,000 people, the
inhabitants of the city, were employed in beautifying
this spot, for countless ages more or less the wash-pot
and rubbish-receptacle of Agra. In the hot weather its
condition used to be insufferable. Now the mounds
have been cut away, and the valleys filled up, and it is
the intention of the Commissioner to eventually lay it
out as a people's park, in commemoration of the
Empress's Jubilee—a truly beneficent object, and one
which will be a standing memorial of the hard times of
the year of grace 1897.
In the evening at dinner I sat next to Mr. Jacobs,
the celebrated jeweller of Hyderabad diamond fame,
whom Crawford has immortalized in his //7. /saacs.
We had a long chat on Indian affairs, and I found him
a mine of information concerning native manners,
customs, and history. -



A GACA 2 I 9
I saw that a show was billed that night at the
Institute, and so went to see it. It was a variety enter-
tainment, with any amount of variety and very little
entertainment. We started with a five-act drama, in
which there were seventeen characters, and as the whole
company was only five souls all told, the characters were
not only doubled but quadrupled, except the funny man,
who always remained the same, so the other parties of
the troupe had their work cut out. Then followed a
farce. Then a music-hall programme. I had sat it out
for two hours and three-quarters, when a sergeant of
artillery behind me could contain himself no longer, and
while a lady was singing the “Rowdy Dowdy Boys,” ex-
claimed, “For Gaud's sake, miss, chuck it, and let us all
get home.” This so exactly expressed my sentiments
that, taking my courage in both hands, I fled and left
them to it.
On the following morning I visited the poor-house,
and found there some 300 odd of the flotsam and jetsam
of the great city. The majority of them were pro-
fessional beggars, whom the police had been able to
sweep up in the purlieus of the native town, and quietly
and unostentatiously confine within the precincts of the
institution. This was, without doubt, a blessing for the
rest of the inhabitants, but these mendicants rather
kicked against the imposed restraint. In the afternoon
I went to see a grand assault-at-arms given by the
military of the district, under the direct patronage of
Sir Bindon Blood, whose name has come into promi-
nence lately in connection with the war going on against
the frontier tribes of Northern India. I was very much
struck with the excellence of the performance all round.
The tent-pegging for officers was exceptionally good.

220 7"HA’OUGAſ THE AEAM/AVE /)/STRACTS
The Maharajah of Gwalior competed in this, but he was
riding a very “beany” Arab, which, though a magnificent
charger, yet wanted a little more training in this
particular kind of sport. The brute “jinked ” at the
pegs, and so lost Scindia an opportunity of showing
what a really first-class tent-pegger he is. The display
of native horsemanship was quite unique, and the feats
performed by the native cavalry (Beluchis and Rajputs)
would have put a performance of Buffalo Bill's cowboys
quite into the shade. At the conclusion we had a
torchlight procession, and a Beluch dance, performed by
Beluchis in their native war-paint. It was very weird
and interesting.
That evening I went down to the Club, where I saw
in the English papers my telegrams dispatched from
Kholapur, Bijapur, and Sholapur. The next morning
found me in the train for Delhi, where I arrived at 7.30
in the evening.


CHAPTER XXI
DELHI
ON leaving Agra we passed over the Jumna railway-
bridge. This construction contrives a double debt to
pay, as like the bridge at Allahabad the rail runs
underneath, while above is a road for carts: though in
the case of Allahabad the position of the tracks is
reversed. The view of the Taj from the river-side is
very fine, as too is the fort with the golden pavilion of
Jehangir gleaming in the sun; and the setting of the
water enhances the beauty of the structures. All
along the line, from Agra to Aligarh, cultivation is
carried on by means of cutcha wells. There are an
enormous number, one to nearly every field, and the
peasants were hard at work supplying water to the crops.
From Cholla to Delhi, which is within the sphere of the
irrigation scheme of the North-West, and supplied by
the great Jumna canal, the crops were excellent. I saw
here for the first time a primitive method of raising water
from a lower to a higher level. Two men stand on each
side of what I may call a dipping-hole, holding in each
hand a string, to which is attached a basket. With a
rhythmical Swing they dip all four baskets into the water
simultaneously, and pulling on the ropes heave the water
into a reservoir above. They can raise the water in this
way some eight or ten feet, and such is their precision

22I
º
ºº
--*-
.
º
222 7TA/A&OUGAZ ZTAZZ AAA/ZAVE ZOZSZTA’ACTS
that they keep up an almost continual stream. It
argues long practice, as they never seemed to miss their
tips; and I heard that an enormous amount of water
could be raised in a day by a quartette of skilful
workers.
Never did the fertilizing power of water become so
evident to me as when passing through this district,
which the hand of man and human ingenuity had con-
- verted from a howling wilderness into a smiling and
bountiful grain-growing country. It is marvellous what -
British occupation and British engineering skill have
done for this portion of India. A study of the map of
the Irrigation Department of the North-West, which I
had an opportunity of seeing at Lucknow, showed a
bewildering net-work of canals and off-sets, which owed -
their birth and origin to European skilled industry and
organization. The ramifications of this vast project go -
on increasing yearly, and one result of the famine of
'97 will be several very important additions to the irriga- -
tion of the Punjaub and the North-West Provinces. I ;
shall touch upon these undertakings in their proper __
place. In the meanwhile, in the gathering darkness, I
approached the famous city of Delhi.
Delhi is full of memories of the past, and ought by
right to be the seat of the Government. For countless
ages Delhi has been imbued with the divinity of royalty,
and it is without doubt a meet and fitting site for the
representative of our Queen-Empress to pitch his tents,
when business calls him and his attendant train from the
pleasant hills of Simla. But I am writing anent famine,
not Indian history.
According to my wont, I paid my respects to the
Commissioner, whom I found at home. Mr. Clarke is a


A) /º/A/Z 223
pleasant and genial Irishman, and one who has the
working of his division well under his grasp. He did
not own to much famine in his jurisdiction, except in
the Hissar district. All irrigated lands would produce
a twelve-anna crop, although they had no rain for the
past four months. The sub-divisions of Delhi, Gurgaon,
Rohtak, and Koornoul had a certain amount of irriga-
tion, and the famine would not be severe, as there were
only about 3OOO in each circle on the relief works.
Government had wisely sanctioned all works asked for
by the Commissioner. The Ghaggar canal had been on
the tapås for the last twenty years, and it was now to be
carried through. Another work to be undertaken was
the re-alignment of the Hansi branch of the Jumna canal,
and this would provide labour for 20,000 souls for six
months. I mentioned to Mr. Clarke my idea of going
to Hissar, and so on to Sirsa. He very kindly said that
he would write to Captain Dunlop Smith, the Assistant-
Commissioner, who would make all necessary arrange-
ments for me. He also added that it was a most out-of-
the-way place, and that if I went down in a haphazard
way I should be stranded. I therefore gladly accepted
his proposal, and said I would wait in Delhi till he got a
reply to his letter.
I was much struck with the various types which one
meets here. One is naturally quite familiar with the
ordinary specimen of the Delhi “ box-wallah,” whom one
sees wherever the European memsa/2}, their chief
supporter, likes to congregate ; but the Punjaubi is
quite a different creature from the native of Bombay or
the Bengalee Babu. On leaving the Commissioner, I went
on a voyage of discovery, with a view to investigating the
extent of the pressure and scarcity felt in the royal city


224 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRACTS
of Delhi itself. First and foremost, I had myself con-
veyed in one of those fearful and wonderful gharries,
which seem to be a special feature of Northern India,
to the public kitchen. These vehicles resemble nothing
so much as a bathing machine on wheels, and will
guarantee to excite into lively action the most torpid
liver. They rattle ten times worse than the most
dilapidated and ancient growler of our London streets,
and can give many points in the matter of discomfort to
any other known vehicle of the civilized world. I had
immense difficulty in getting my Jehu (Jehu only in
name, as he had none of the noted qualities of the son of
Nimshi) to take me to the public kitchen. I tried him
with duć/amk/ama, then Garrió Zogue Æe-passe,” but he
stolidly denied all knowledge of such a place, thing or
people, till at last I was obliged to invoke the assistance
of a spotlessly-clad Delhian, who started us on the right
track. After jolting about through the fashionable
quarter of the town, we at length got into the slums, and
after innumerable twistings and turnings through the
narrow and squalid streets of the worst part of the
native bazaar, we at length emerged at the Kabulee-gate,
without which lay the object of my quest. This kitchen
had been started some three months; and a daily feed
of chuppaties and curry and rice is given to Some
thousand people, who come duly furnished with a proper
ticket. It is in the hands of the Municipal Committee,
and seemed to be fairly well managed, the expenses
averaging a little over 300 rupees weekly. I arrived
there about noon, and though the feast is not advertised
to begin before two o'clock, yet several hundred would-
be guests were already sitting in the compound, awaiting
1 Feeding-place. * Poor folks' place.




A)/2ZA// 225
with sublime oriental patience the due distribution of
the daily dole. There were two kitchens, one for the
Hindoos and Mahommedans respectively, and a posse of
chefs were busily preparing for the coming civic banquet.
After going my rounds, I went on to see a small relief
work which was being carried on near the Cashmere-gate.
There were some thousand people filling up a nullah and
levelling the ground. This will be of future benefit to
the golfers of Delhi, as this piece of ground constituted
a formidable bunker to the wielder of the “niblick,”
and lay right in the centre of the newly-started links.
I had heard previously to my arrival in Delhi that the
art-workers of the place were feeling the pinch of poverty,
and that Mrs. Flora Steele's letter to the Tâmzes of the
Ist of January fairly represented the state of the case.
Mr. Clarke had told me that in response to this letter
he had received several orders for embroidery from
England, and that he was able to do great good with the
money thus placed at his disposal. A great crux was
the almost unsurmountable pride of the poor of Delhi ;
and many instances had been found amongst the Jains,
who tried to keep up a brave appearance abroad, while
in their homes there was the direst distress, which their
notions of family pride prevented them from making
public by applying for State aid. There was a regular
organization of a native and European committee to
inquire into and quietly alleviate the necessities of
these poor people. Another section of the community
that were feeling the pinch were the scions and offshoots
of the ancient royal house of Delhi. There are some
three to four hundred of these offspring of nobility still
existing. They are in receipt of a small pension from
the Government; but in this time of high prices they
Q



226 7THROUGH THE AWAM/AVE DASTR/CTS
found that the State allowance was totally inade-
quate to provide them with the barest means of sub-
sistence. Additional money grants were being given to
these poor and deserving remnants of a departed royal
dynasty.
It is the bounden duty of a newspaper man to believe
nothing he hears, and only about half of what is shown
him. I thought I would pursue the investigations
personally. For this purpose I engaged the services of
Bapuru, the celebrated Delhi guide, whose father did
such good service to the British during the Mutiny; and
gave him explicit instructions that I wanted to investi-
gate the conditions of the Äänkoč 1 workers in the bazaar.
The Brahmins had lately published an edict prohibiting
any Hindoo weddings, as the year was an unpropitious
one. This had had a disastrous effect upon the wire-
drawers and embroiderers of Delhi, as the lack of a
demand for wedding garments had to a very large extent
stopped their means of subsistence. In accordance then
with the plan above stated, I first drove to the Chandi
Chowk, which is the principal street in Delhi, and where
the larger purveyors of Indian merchandise and goods
have their shops. I first went to the shop of Ram Chand
Hazari Mal, who keeps on the premises some forty or
fifty workmen. There I saw a few men at work, doing
the most delicate embroidery for d'oyleys and dinner-
table slips. The proprietor, however, told me that his
orders for goods had fallen off considerably in the last
six months, and lamented his lack of custom. He
pointed to several empty places in his workshop, and said
that the men had been obliged to give up the struggle
against hard times, and had gone on the relief works.
* Gold embroidery, re

A)/2/A// 227
Fancy these poor effeminate, delicate and nimble-fingered
gold-workers obliged to handle the rough AE/oda/ie in
search of their daily bread. I then went into various
works in different parts of the bazaar, and very queer
places they were too. The slums of Delhi are of a kind
peculiar to themselves. I found many of the places
deserted, and in some only a few workers. I then told
Bapuru I wanted to go and see a real native jeweller,
not a man who made goods to sell to Europeans, but
one who worked exclusively for a native clientèle of
rajahs and rich natives. Leaving the carriage in the
Chowk, we dived into a labyrinth of narrow passages,
and eventually brought up before a steep wooden stair.
Mounting this, I found myself in a low-pitched room, and
on a divan at the far end reclined a portly Hindoo. He
was, I think, a Jain, and wore the spotless muslin clothes
and low, flat white turban peculiar to the inhabitants of
Delhi. On my entering he rose, salaamed, and invited
me to take a seat on the divan. I told him that I wished
to inspect some jewellery of native manufacture, and he
bowed solemnly. After a due pause—an oriental is
never in a hurry—he signed to his attendants, and they
brought in two or three common steel trunks. By this
time quite a crowd had assembled in the room, and were
squatting in solemn silence on the floor facing me, and
watching every movement with the deepest interest.
Then began a display of jewellery which increased in
splendour and magnificence as time went on. I was first
shown a necklace of pearls and uncut emeralds, the latter
being some of them larger than hazel nuts. The price
of this was 20,000 rupees. Then followed another of
diamonds, cat's-eyes and pearls (30,000), with an aigrette
in the same style for a similar amount. Another necklace

228 THA’OUGA THE AEAM/AVAE ZO/STR/CTS
was priced at half a lac, and another of Benares work
with diamonds, at 70,000. There were also rings
bracelets, armlets, nose-rings, bangles—in fact, every
conceivable ornament that native feminine frivolity could
wear or hanker after. One very curious specimen was a
pair of gloves. These were made of delicate gold scale-
work, with a handsome ring for each finger-joint and
terminating in a splendid bangle ; the whole lavishly set
with precious stones. The pair were offered to me for
three-quarters of a lac of rupees. These no doubt will
some day deck the dusky hands of some powerful
favourite wife of an Indian potentate. It would be
tedious to recount all the wonderful things I saw, but
here in this sordid two-pair back was accumulated so
much wealth that if a poor journalist could have success-
fully looted the place, he need never have put pen to
paper to earn a crust again.
This prince of dealers in precious stones knew full
well that I was not a purchaser, and yet, with stately
courtesy, brought out his most precious wares to gratify
my idle curiosity.
I was much pleased with the whole show, and express-
ing my thanks to the proprietor crept down the dark
stair into the glare of the Indian sun. The whole scene
was like some enchanted fairy tale, and might have
been taken bodily from the Arabian AVåghts.
In the afternoon I of course visited the Ridge, and saw
all the places and the landmarks of the memorable
siege. When I got back to the hotel, I found a note
from Mr. Clarke, inviting me to dinner the next evening,
and saying that he expected to have a reply from Hissar
by that time. All my racketing about for the last
month had brought on an attack of my old enemy





A) E/A// 229
rheumatism, and I determined to take a Turkish bath,
as I heard that such a luxury was procurable in Delhi.
I told my “guide, philosopher and friend " Baparu, and
he said that he would see the proprietor of the Hammam,
and make all arrangements. The next morning I there-
fore set off, taking the Jumna Musjid mosque on the
way. In spite of aches and pains, I climbed the steep
stair of one of the tall minarets which flank its four
quarters, and the view from the top well repaid the toil.
Delhi lay like a picture beneath me, and as I gazed over
the city, Rudyard Kipling's description of the “City of
Dreadful Night” crept into my mind, and I recalled his
description of the scene. One could see in the mind's
eye the countless mass of seething humanity below, and
one shuddered to think of the misery which these masses
must endure in the awful breathless nights of the hot
weather.
I found the bath in a back street, and the obsequious
Mahommedan proprieter bowing lowly told me all
was prepared for “his Honour’s’ service. When I had
been in the hot room, which was only very dimly lighted
by a small glass dome, two nude muscular Mussulmans
appeared. They seized my helpless body, and then began
such a thumping and rubbing and kneading of my
muscles and limbs, that I thought they would pull me to
pieces. They insisted on making every one of my joints
crack. And the climax was reached when the burlier of
the two placed his knees in the small of my back, and
twisted my shoulders round till my poor back-bone
went off like a pistol-shot. Then clapping the hollow
of his hand upon his biceps, and producing a similar
sound (in the same way as native wrestlers do before
engaging in the grip), he muttered with a guttural laugh,

23o THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTR/CTS
“Bahut atcha hugoor bolta” (“Very good lord protector
of the poor, it has spoken").
When I emerged, clothed and another man, into the
reception-room, the proprietor asked me to write him a
testimonial in his visitor's book. Looking at the names
inscribed, I found there several of the prominent and
popular jockeys of India. As the Sky Races were on
in Delhi, they had evidently taken advantage of this
method of wasting. I went to the races in the afternoon,
and met a lot of my racing friends from Bombay. At
the Commissioner's that evening, he told me that he had
heard from Dunlop Smith of Hissar, and that he would
put me up and make all arrangements for my getting
on to Sirsa, if I would let him know the probable.
time of my arrival. I met that evening Mr. Symes, the
Director of Public Education for the Punjaub, and I
told him I would look him up at Lahore, if he had got
back to head-quarters from his tour of inspection by the
time I arrived there. We played at word-puzzles in the
evening, and as a parting gift I left Mr. Clarke, Charles
Collette’s “Cryptoconchoidsyphonostomata” to decipher!
I hope he found it out, but I have it on my conscience
that it might be another case of Mark Twain’s “Punch,
brothers, Punch.” The next day I wired to Captain
Dunlop Smith, saying I would arrive the following
morning, at four o'clock, at Hissar. There is only one
train a day available, and this lands you at your destin-
ation at that unearthly hour of the morning.
In Indian travelling you cannot do otherwise than
follow the time-table, and at some wayside stations it
gets you in and out at very impracticable hours.


CHAPTER XXII
HISSAR
WHEN the united efforts of the guard and my boy
had succeeded in dislodging me from the train, I found
myself, in the dark, cold, raw morning, on the platform
of the Hissar station. Mr. Butler, the Stunt Sahib,
had very kindly come to meet me and conduct me to
the Assistant-Commissioner's bungalow. Mr. Butler had
only recently joined the service, and was one of the
University candidates under the new scheme. At
Cambridge he took a double-first in the tripos, obtained
a fellowship at his college, and then turned his attention
to the Indian Civil Service, into which he passed very
high. This young man has made an excellent start,
and achieved, in what one may call his salad days, no
mean record. It is another instance of heredity, as he
is a nephew (I believe) of Dr. Butler of Trinity.
We arrived at the bungalow in due course, and as it
was still pitch dark, I turned in to finish my broken
night's rest. Some few hours later I met my host,
Captain Dunlop Smith, and his wife at breakfast. The
first project of the day's work was to drive to the
cutcherry and office of the Commissioner. Though it
was a public holiday under the Act, yet Dunlop Smith
had arranged for his head Áarkoon to be there for a


- 231
232 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DZSTR/CTS
º
couple of hours to give me any details, figures, etc.
I might require. The area of the Hissar district is - º
over 5000 square miles, and has a population of º
seven lacs and three-quarters (to be more accurate,
according to the last census, 776,006). The actual
number of people employed on the various public works
was just below 60,000, but it was expected that this
number would be doubled before the rains. The con-
dition of the whole circle was very critical, as last year
there had been absolutely no crops, except in a very
small area on the canal in the Hansi and Hissar ta/s2/s.
In fact, in the latter tahsil, the average crop for the last
three years, on the area sown, had only reached twenty-
three per cent.
There was no food-supply in the country, and fodder
was being imported for the few cattle that still existed,
but this was only being done by the wealthier zemindars.
There had been an enormous amount of cow-killing in
the district, for the mere sake of the horns and hides,
and this had caused considerable friction between the
Hindoo and Mahommedan sections of the community ;
in fact, there had already been one or two minor riots
and beatings, between these two classes, which had been
more or less suppressed, and there was a very distinct
undercurrent of feeling prevailing amongst the bigoted .
and zealous Hindoos. This required very careful watch-
ing on the part of the Commissioner, and added to his
already very onerous labours. Captain Dunlop Smith
is absolutely Prussian in his minute and careful methods
of organization. In fact, he was treating the famine in
his district as a campaign or a game of “ Kriegspiel.” º
One wall of his office at the cutcherzy was covered
with an enormous map of the whole circle under his



Aſ/SSAA’ 233
s
jurisdiction, every particle of relief work going on,
whether it were canals, walls, roads or tanks, being
accurately marked. By an ingenious system of coloured
flags, which indicated certain numbers, he was able to
tell at a glance how many workers there were at work
at any particular place. When the daily reports came
in these were checked and verified, and one could stand
before the map, when one had mastered the colours, etc.,
and tell at a glance what was being carried on and
where it was, what sort of work and how many
working.
I obtained from the Æarkoora one valuable bit of
information, the result of his researches into the prices
of food-stuffs in the Hissar district, of the famines
of note during the last century. In the Chalisa famine
of 1783, the whole country was depopulated, but since
that, in other periods of scarcity, the price of food has
always ruled higher than in 1896-97, as the subjoined
table will show.
Description. 1783. §.; sº, º | 1896-97.
Wheat º j. § 9 9:6 I3; 7
Barley = , = I4 I 2.8 2O 7
Granir ... 3.3 I2 13.8 2 I 9
Jowari § º º II Io'8 2O IO
Bajri $2 º I2 IO'4 17; 8
Noth ..? § # - Io’8 22 -
Ming t - Io'8 2O -
These figures are fairly conclusive of the severity of
* A seer = 2 lbs. English nearly. 2 Chattak.





-
4.
234 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRICTS
º
Tº.
distress and scarcity in Hissar and the surrounding
country.
As we were coming back from the court-house, the
Commissioner pointed out to me a few frameworks of
cattle on the wayside; they were absolutely burrowing |
in the ground, like pigs, to get at the roots. The mor-
tality has been enormous amongst the flocks and herds,
as over two-thirds of the animals in the district have
either died of starvation or been slaughtered. Hissar
in ordinary times is an excellent grazing and pasture |
land, and one of the features of the place is the Bir,
whose perimeter is some forty miles. It is a Government º
farm for the breeding and raising of draught-oxen for
military transport purposes. In good years this spot
is one of the finest grazing grounds in India ; but in
the course of a long ride I took with the Commissioner,
scarcely a blade of grass was to be seen. He told
me that the greater part of the store cattle had been
deported to other places, and that the few that remained
were being stall-fed at a ruinous expense. The probable
cost of the famine in Hissar was estimated to amount
to about five lacs of rupees, and of this sum a lac and
a half had been spent up to date. One of the great
questions to deal with in these parts was the enormous
transfer of land that was going on. The mortgaging of
land in the fa/s/ had increased more than three hundred
per cent, and all the registrars were clamorous for more
help to meet the increased demand upon their time
and work. The land was going into the hands of the
ôamnias, so that the peasant-proprietor, the mainstay
and chief prop of agricultural India, has been reduced
to the status of a mere village hind, dependent on the -
will of the Öammza. - º
|


Aſ/SSAA’ 235
I cull the following facts from the report of the
Assistant-Commissioner for the week ending February
20, 1897–
“Canal crops developing fairly; rain urgently wanted.
From Sirsa the prospects of irrigated lands reported
poor. Hissar only fair, Hansi good. Sa/a/ia crop"
in Sirsa and Falebad, very poor. Number of relief
works, twenty-four. Tanks started all over district
where proper supervision can be obtained. Rise of
prices in food-stuffs, owing to slackening of Scinde
imports, and stores of grain thrown on the market,
owing to bankruptcy of several bannias, have now been
exhausted. Mortality of cattle increasing, and will
continue.”
Captain Dunlop Smith, in writing to his chief about
the famine in his report, thus touches upon the land
question—
“The large number of villages and zemindaries owned
in this district by wealthy mortgagors of the money-
lending class, is a melancholy heritage of past famines.
On inquiring into the history of such villages, it is
found almost invariably that the mortgagor or his
ancestors acquired the proprietary rights of the villages
at a time like the present. Now-a-days, fortunately, the
administration of the revenue is carried on more
sympathetically, and wholesale transfers of villages to
the highest bidder, under express orders of Government,
are now impossible. At the same time, the unfettered
power of alienation the peasant-proprietor possesses,
brings about very much the same results, when the
scarcity is as acute as it is now. I conclude that there
can be no worthier object to which sums at your disposal
* Casual irrigation by overflow streams.

236 THA’OUGH ZHZ FAM/AWE Z)ZSZRZCZS
may be applied than to the redemption of such mort-
gages as may have been caused by actual want. But
the redemption of mortgages will not be a difficult
matter. I know from an experience of years how utterly
the land-owning classes feel the yoke of mortgage, which
they rarely shake off. They know that this system of
free power to alienate is a creation of the English rule,
and no measure would be more effective in itself, or
would make a more lasting impression, than the devotion
of a large sum, which in the main has been raised by
people in England, to the restoration of their lands to
families who have parted with them from no fault of
their own.”
There is too another point, which I may here touch
upon, and which has a very important bearing upon the
question raised by the Commissioner in the extract I
have quoted above.
In the majority of the villages owned by the wealthy
bannia mortgagors, the greater part of the borrowers
were quite unable to pay their rent. The sums have
been recorded in the landlords' books, and are gathering
interest daily. It would too be an excellent thing if
some part of the relief fund were assigned to the liquid-
ation of these debts, and would tend much to free the
peasants from the cumulative pressing burden of debt.
I think, however, that the latter question is not of such
paramount importance as the former—that is, the
redemption of the mortgaged lands of India’s sheet-
anchor, the peasant-proprietor. Hissar, apart from the
part it played in the present famine, is a country full of
interesting historical reminiscences. It is the scene of
the exploits of “the Adventurers,” chief amongst whom
figure the names of Bernier, Skinner, and George Thomas,


Aſ/SSAA’ 237
who, originally a sailor, left his profession and attained a
position of eminence in the country. Bernier's descend-
ants still own a considerable quantity of land round
Hansi, while the Skinner estates are at Dhunoor in the
neighbourhood of the Ghaggar canal, of which I shall
have more to say hereafter. These men played a
prominent part in the wars between Scindia and Holkar.
When Scindia fought the British in 1803, Skinner, with
the other Englishmen in the service of the Maharajah,
was dismissed, and sided with the British. Subsequently
he became a Colonel and C.B. Skinner's Horse, which
he raised and commanded, were a notable body of native
cavalry, and rejoiced in the pseudonym of the “Yellow
Boys.” Before his death he built at his own expense
the church at Delhi, which is an exact imitation in
miniature of Wren's masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral.
One of his sons did good service by holding Hansi for
the British during the troublous times of the Mutiny.
Two of his grandsons are still living at Hansi, and they
can show you many relics of this extraordinary man.
One is a poor horn spoon of the rudest workmanship,
which even in the days of his greatest prosperity, and when
he was surrounded with all the pomp, splendour and
circumstance of an Indian Nawab, was invariably laid at
his side at table. He used to say that it was an unfailing
reminder of his early days of poverty, and would help
him not to forget his humbler origin in the midst of his
present magnificence. One has heard of the eminent
millionaire railway contractor who in after years re-
ligiously preserved the tools of his earlier working days,
when he toiled as a mere navvy. The cases are almost
identical, and it is of peculiar significance that these two
men, whose careers pointed to rare examples of energy





238 THROUGH THE FAM/AVE DZSTRZCZS
and industry, should be fired with the same laudable
ambition of striving not to forget the humbler beginnings
from which they sprang into wealth and social promi-
11C11CC.
Taken as a whole, the district of Hissar is well
worthy of a visit, as it is off the beaten track of Indian
travellers, and yet presents features which are very
dissimilar to other well-worn routes.




CHAPTER XXIII
SIRSA AND THE GHAGGAR CANAL
THE main and chief object of going to Sirsa was to
visit the large works which were established at Dhunoor,
in this neighbourhood. Captain Dunlop Smith had
written to his assistant at Sirsa, and told me that he
had heard from Mr. Hamilton that arrangements were
being made for me to go on to Ghaggar the next
morning. I was accordingly obliged to get down to
Sirsa that evening, and in company with Mr. Butler we
started the same evening, and after a run of some two
and a half hours by rail, landed at Sirsa. I was most
courteously received by Mr. Hamilton, the sub-divisional
officer, who placed himself and his house at my
disposal.
A word of digression here upon the truly remarkable
kindness and hospitality with which I was everywhere
received. On starting I was fully impressed with the
notion by various friends that a meddlesome, trouble-
some pressman, dodging and “Speiring” about, and
asking all sorts of uncomfortable questions, would cer-
tainly and assuredly be looked upon somewhat askance.
The fact of “a chiel amang ye takin' notes, and faith
he'll prent it,” would be—so said my own familiar friends
—quite sufficient for the turning of the cold shoulder.
My friends, however, were entirely and completely


239
24o ZTAROUGH Z//E FAM/AWE Z)/STRZCTS
wrong. It is always satisfactory to prove other people
wrong, and I am happy to say that the treatment
I received from everybody I met was most kind and
courteous; and most of them went out of their way—
and often a long way—to give me information and the
most valuable assistance. In fact, had it not been for
the courtesy and kindness of the various officials whom
I came across, and their valuable help, I could never
have got over the ground I did traverse, or have seen
in the time half what I saw. Like the fiery cross of
Scotland, I was rapidly passed on from hand to hand,
and thus able to collect my news far more rapidly than
if I had been left to my own sweet self, to find out what
I could. Let me, however, get back to famine tracking.
Sirsa, which borders on the native State of Bikanir, is
an appanage of the Hissar circle. It has certainly a
most arid and sterile appearance, and it looks as if
Dame Nature, in taking out her quantities for the con-
struction of India, had made a wrong calculation, and
dumped her surplus sand down in these parts. There
are only twenty-one miles of Żucca roads in the whole
district, and the chief means of progression is the
“bubbling Snaky-headed oomf.” Even these hardy
creatures, who I believe live on babul thorns for choice,
were feeling the scarcity of fodder—or thorns—in the
district. My host, after we had enjoyed a bit of a
symposium round a cheerful wood-fire, told me that
he had made all arrangements to go to Dhunoor the
next morning as soon as we liked, and that camels,
ponies, etc. had been provided. I went to bed and
dreamed of wild and unstoppable camels bolting with
me over the vast plain. What was my surprise the
next morning to hear outside my window the rattling



S/RSA AAVZ) ZAZE GAZAGGAA’ CAAVAZ 241
of harness and the champing of bits ; and on looking
out, lo, there was a wagonette drawn up with a pair of
fiery, untamed steeds of the Ukraine, or any other
breed. They were, in fact, a pair of snow-white country-
breds, and though showy did not look to me as if they
really liked or wanted hard work.
In due course Butler and I got off, with our red-
coated chupprassie on the box, with the driver, and the
syce standing and hanging on behind. Oh, that drive lº
We had about two of the twenty-one miles of pucca road
in the district, and then got into a real old sand-bank. Our
method of progression was to go for about 300 yards,
quite twelve annas, and then a dead stop, while both
animals jibbed for all they were worth. Our duty was,
while the coachman held the reins and the syce lugged
at the horses' heads, to nip down and push the wheels—
when after a certain interval, which lengthened the
further we went, the horses suddenly bolted off without
any warning, and we had to scramble in at the back as
best we could. And so da capo at frequent intervals,
till the bungalow at Dhunoor hove in sight, and our first
stage of the pilgrimage was at an end. We had taken
nearly three hours to do the ten miles which lay be-
tween the city of Sirsa and the canal bungalow at
Dhunoor. Here we were met by the engineers in
charge, and I found that a steady old weight-carrier of
the equine race and the Arab persuasion had been pro-
vided for my sole use and benefit, so that all the terrors
I had gone through in anticipation of mounting “the
humming-bird of the desert” vanished into thin air.
On the way up to Dhunoor we passed several villages,
but they were practically deserted, the inhabitants being
on the canal wrorks. The Ghaggar canal is to be the
R



242 ZZZAZOOGAZ Z'HE AAAZZAVE Z)/STRACTS
scientific storage and distribution of the flood-water of
the Ghaggar river, which, as many people know, is the
purling stream which in the earlier days, before the
establishment of the pucca Kalka-Simla road, had to
be negotiated on elephant-back, when en route for that
elysium of the hills. Practical engineering has bridged
the obstacle, and now no portage is necessary, and the
tonga takes you up without interruption. This river,
after coming down from the Himalayas in a gushing
flood at the time of the melting snows, eventually loses
itself in the sands of Sirsa. The Dhunoor lake will
form the head-water and catchment area, and the fructi-
fying liquid is to be distributed by two branches—the
northern and southern canal—to the extreme frontier
of British territory, and then the canal will be carried
on into dry and dusty Bikanir, some forty miles in all.
There were some 40,000 Souls upon the work, and
the scene as we rode up was a gay and busy one. On the
left were some 3OOO people busily making an enormous
flood-water embankment, which is to be seventeen
feet high to the top, and extends across the valley
of Ghaggar about two miles in a southerly direction.
Within this is to be constructed a weir, which will con-
tain 18O,OOO cubic feet of brick-work, and will employ
daily 500 masons. This had to be finished by the end
of May to catch the early floods, and the engineers were
very anxious that they should not be caught by the
flood-water ere the dam was completed. This weir is
the only piece of skilled labour that will be employed
upon the whole work, the rest of the digging and earth-
work having been admirably performed under due sur-
veillance by mere famine coolie hands. It is astonishing
how well a native will work at anything in which he





S/AESA AAWD THE GAAGGAR CAAMAZ 243
,
takes a real interest, and which is likely to be of some
permanent good to him and his descendants. Any
portion of irrigation work is always cheerfully under-
taken, and performed more in the light of a religious
exercise than a mere manual task. The native fully
understands the benefit likely to accrue from work of
this description, and does not look upon it in the light
of “Love's labour lost,” as he does in the case of con-
structing cutcha roads which he won't use, and which
experience tells him the elements will soon make
sport of.
We rode down the southern branch some four or five
miles, and inspected the various gangs at work, and the
camps, which are situated two miles apart all down the
alignment. We came upon a gang being paid, and
alighted from our steeds to inspect. They were squat-
ting round the cashier and the naib-tahsildar, who were
seated on their kibes before a sheet spread with piled
heaps of silver and copper money. The majesty of the
law was represented by a truculent-looking sepoy, who
stood with drawn sword guarding the treasure like the
angel at the gate of ancient Eden, except that here no
Eve seemed inclined to break in and steal. The workers
came up meekly when their names were called, and
took their panch-pies, or whatever they had earned, with
a deep salaam to the //goors grouped around, and
silently and uncomplainingly departed. It was a plea-
sant sight, and among the toilers the merry jest and
laugh went round, and they all seemed as jolly as sand-
boys. I regret to say, however, that quite inadvertently
I disturbed the harmony at one place of a group of
women who were levelling the top of the canal-bank.
It was a picturesque group ; and producing a £odać I




244 THROUGH THE FAM/VE DISTR/CTS
was about to take a snap-shot, when lo! and behold, they
fled en masse, and vanished as the mists at daybreak.
Whether they thought it was shaitan or no I cannot
say, but afterwards I had to be more circumspect, as
they were evidently under the impression that I was
casting over them dread spells of magic. We then went
on to see the camp shops, etc. The Government had
here departed from their usual plan, and had erected
splendid mandaffs of siréi- (elephant-) grass for the
dwellers in the plain. They found, however, that the
aborigines would have none of these palatial edifices,
and so afterwards each family was given a grass mat
or two, and allowed to erect their own shelters.
When we were strolling about the camp, a man came
and prostrated himself; he was girt only with a linen
cloth about his loins, and seizing the feet of the engineer-
in-chief, implored him for clothing. The “boss” re-
garded the man silently, and then said quietly in English
to the rest of us, “I am sure I gave that man a blanket
yesterday. I remember his face.” He said to his col-
leagues, “Go off with a chowkidar and search his tent.”
In the meantime he kept the suppliant in conversation,
listening most attentively and sympathetically to his
tale of woe. In a minute or two the search-party re-
turned, and the result of the shikar was a bran-new
blanket, a very good wadded coat in an excellent state
of preservation, and a pair of wadded pantaloons. When
the would-be receiver of additional clothing saw these
garments he fled, and the chief, with a smile, turned to
me and said, “You see it does not do to believe every-
thing one hears, and yet they talk of the guóðerdºsłże
and harshness of us poor public-works men.”
The work at Ghaggar is of the most satisfactory nature,










S/ASA AAWD 7"HE GAZAGGAR CAAVAZ 245
and the out-turn is about the highest that has ever
been recorded for earth-work of this kind done by famine
coolies. It is, of course, quite patent that famine work
costs many times more than the usual system of petty
contract work, but here at Ghaggar it worked out to
only about double the price. This is distinctly a feather
in the caps of the Public Works Department in whose
hands the work is. In fact, Messrs. Floyd and Wakefield
have achieved a great work and an enviable reputation
for the way in which, in face of great difficulties, they
successfully managed this big irrigation scheme. In
other parts of India the cost of the work as compared
with the out-turn is four and even five times more
expensive.
We then rode on to the northern branch, where an
exactly similar state of affairs prevail. As we were
riding over the plain I said to Mr. Wakefield, “Where
is the exact bed of the river Ghaggar?” “Well,” he
said, “you are as nearly as possible in the centre of the
stream now.” It was a dry, sandy desert with a great
many boulders scattered about, and here and there
straggling patches of maccai stalks, but not at all my
idea of a river. “Yet in about three months from
now this whole valley will be one mass of water, and
it is to restrain this that we are doing all this work.”
He then in the course of conversation said–% A.
curious thing happened here last week. We had a very
heavy thunderstorm, and during it a group of five
women, who were squatted down over there, were struck
by lightning, but none of them killed. I will show you
a couple of them in the hospital. Floyd and I, too, had
a narrow Squeak, as that tree that you see by our tent
there was struck, and we both rushed out at the crash.”




246 ZZZROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTR/CTS
In the hospital I saw these victims of the elements;
they were both paralyzed, and their bodies and arms
scarred and burnt. The doctor said he thought they
would pull round, but it was doubtful whether one of
the poor creatures would ever regain the use of her
limbs.
In the first camp I saw, an instance of the danger
of the system of elaborate hutting of the camps was
shown me. A couple of days before one of these large
mandaps had caught fire; and a boy of Some eleven
years (a cripple) was burnt to death before he could be
rescued. Our inspection of the works being over, we
rode back to Dhunoor proper, and after being hospit-
ably lunched by the Engineers, started for home, i. e. my
present lodging at Sirsa.
On the homeward route our horses began the same
old game, but I could not stand the native coachman
any longer, so pulled him off his box and assumed the
reins. Whether it was my bamboo-stick, which I kept
going like a flail, or my sweet voice, with which I
encouraged them with a series of wild Irish yells, that
startled them out of their sedateness, or rather sit-
downedness, I do not know. The brutes broke into a
wild canter of some eight miles an hour, and at this I
kept them going till we drew up at our cottage-door,
seventy minutes after the start, by the Assistant-Com-
missioner's chronograph, and I have a paper signed to
that effect by the two witnesses inside. The passengers
in the “convanience” were a bit nervous, and I re-
marked to my trembling friends, “Sand's mighty soft
and aisy fallin', so sit tight, boys.” Those milk-white,
pink-eyed steeds were done to a turn when we got
home, but the red c/.4%rassie Smiled a grim approval,



S/RSA AAWD THE GAAGGAA’ CAAWAZ 247
and the respect of the syce and driver for the “lat coach
zwań sa/ºzó " was much enhanced. When we touched
upon the question of Čakshees/, I suggested they ought
to give me money, instead of the opposite course of
proceeding. The driver said—“Ah, Sahib, these horses
are devils, but the huzoor sahib is a giant, and has
beaten his enemies.” I fear, as far as I can remember,
that the fulsome flattery fetched me, and *I parted with
hard-earned shekels to these obsequious but diplomatic
horse-keepers.
We had had a really long and tiring day, and as the
next day was the blessed Sabbath, I determined to lie
up and devote it to getting off my telegram for London.
After working the next day at my wire, I went off in
the afternoon to the post-office, some two miles away,
and handed in my copy to the Babu, showing him my
authority, and telling him to send it off at once.
We, Butler and I, then strolled about the native
town, visited the poor-house, and saw what there was to
be seen. I had got to the bungalow, when in came the
pale and perspiring post-master. He said, “Sahib, the
people at Delhi won't take your telegram ; what can
do ’’’ Reaching for my forms I wrote out an urgent
message to the Director-General at Calcutta. It was
in full, and in the form of an official letter beginning,
“Honoured sir,” and finishing up with, “I have the
honour to be, sir, Your most humble and obedient
servant,” etc. -
In this I expatiated upon the folly of the Babu clerk
in Delhi, flying in the face of the orders of his chief in
Calcutta, requesting that the amount of this wire might
be refunded to my firm, and expressing a hope that
the Babu at Delhi would be made to pay the piper.


248 7"HA’OUGAZ 7//E FAM/AVE D/SZZZCZS
This totted up to about fifty or sixty rupees, and giving
this to the post-master, told him to send it at once.
The cream of the joke was, that the unfortunate
operator at Delhi would have to pass this message
through himself. Two hours later I got a chit from the
post-master, saying my wire had gone through. I was
particularly annoyed at the delay, as I was very anxious
that my experiences should appear in the early Monday
morning editions of the English journals.
The next morning I took the train for Lahore, and
I shall never forget that memorable journey. No sooner
had we started than a dust-storm arose, and we were
enveloped in this for seven mortal hours, during which
the train slowly panted, wheezed, and croaked along till
we reached Ferozepur, where it turned into rain. It
was so dark in the carriages that one could not even see
to read, and before the journey ended the whole of the
cushions, floor, etc. were covered with about two inches
of sand. Of course everything was apparently hermeti-
cally sealed, and yet through every hidden chink and
unperceived cranny the blinding, choking sand drove
in. It was very curious to see the objects we passed
looming through the darkness of the storm. This, like
a London “particular,” has the peculiarity of magnifying
objects, and a caravan of camels, which we passed
struggling along the road, assumed the most weird and
fantastic shapes, and looked more like the denizens of
a prehistoric age than the patient but long-suffering
ships of the desert.
We halted at a place called Bhatinda for tiffen, and
dashed across the platform to the refreshment-room.
The curry and rice, however, was more than three-parts
sand, and even the whisky-peg when drained had a



S/AESA AAVZ) ZZZZ GAZAGGAA’ CAAWAZ 249
deep sediment at the bottom of the glass. I am morally
convinced that in those seven dreary hours I consumed
my whole allotted peck, and ought to be absolved from
the ignoble proceeding of eating dirt for the rest of
my natural life. I began to feel that I was enduring
a similar fate to that which overtook the better half of
the old patriarch Lot, except that I was a pillar of mere
clay, and by the time I reached Ferozepur felt that
there was not enough liquid to be found in that part of
the world to sufficiently moisten the aforesaid clay.
The longest day ends at last, and nearly four hours
late I turned up, about eleven o'clock at night, in Lahore,
the capital of the Punjaub.
NOTE.-In Appendix B will be found the official report of the
Ghaggar canal, and an account of the special visit paid by Sir
Dennis Fitzpatrick to these works.


CHAPTER XXIV
LAHORE
LAHORE is a municipal city and the capital of the
Punjaub. It is the head-quarters of the Lieutenant-
Governor, and also the high officials have their head-
offices located here. The “Mall,” which is the principal
thoroughfare, and round which the chief offices and shops
cluster, is a fine, broad road, with shady trees on each
side. The houses and buildings generally are fine, and
the whole place gives you a sort of Brighton-by-the-Sea
effect, if we substitute the sandy expanse for the blue
and ever-changing ocean.
On my arrival at the capital I found the place all agog,
paying due respect and honour to the retiring Lieutenant-
Governor, Sir Dennis Fitzpatrick. The place was redo-
lent of rajahs, anxious to welcome and speed the parting
governor. Le roi est mort, vive le roi, was the programme
of the day and night during the week. It was impos-
sible to stir out of doors without coming across the gay
pageant of some Punjaubi potentate, with his glittering
array of accompanying body-guard. The processions
consisted of a string of carriages, which decrease in
splendour from the highly-polished and electro-plated
barouche of the king himself, till you get down to the
common hired third-class ticcagharry, which conveys
his choödars (pipe-bearers) and silver-sticks in waiting.
-,
º



250
LAHORE.
A STREET IN

ZAAAO/CAE 25 I
The air was thick with the smoke of incessant salutes,
and all day long one heard the guns continuously boom-
ing. I, too, paid my state visits to the Maharajahs of
Patiala and Kapurthala, but did not attempt to see the
retiring Governor, as I knew his time would be more
profitably occupied than in granting me an interview.
Both Patiala and Kapurthala told me that there was com-
paratively little famine within their districts, and that it
was only a few of the hill-tribes who were affected, but
that there was plenty of food-supply in the plains for all
needs. Both princes most courteously invited me to
visit their kingdoms, but as time was flying I was, much
to my regret, obliged to plead more important business
in the North-West. I called, too, upon Mr. Fenton, the
Revenue Secretary of Government. He most kindly
gave me every assistance, and placed a series of all the
public reports in my hands. I told him that I was very
anxious to get up to the Jhelum canal-works by Lala
Musa, and he most courteously said he would telegraph
to Captain Douglas, who was in charge of the works, and
tell him I was coming up to see him and his charge.
The native part of the city of Lahore is one of the
most interesting in Northern India, and has distinct
architectural features which raise the buildings very
much above the level of the ordinary native town. Huge
buildings tower up skywards, storey after storey, in the
intensely narrow streets, till on looking upwards one
only sees the merest strip of blue sky above. The
houses themselves are profusely decorated and orna-
mented, and are full of quaint fantastic nooks and
corners. Here one sees a tiny balcony perched in mid-
air, and catches a glimpse through the carved screen of
white-robed figures gazing at the moving scene below:


252 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRZCTS
there an oriel window or a quaint turret jutting out at
the corner of the street, where reclines a turbaned form
slowly and majestically smoking his peaceful marghileh,
while giving on the street below are the dim, small shops
of the traders, and the ever-changing, countless throng of
passers-by. One of the streets I drove down was so
narrow that on one occasion a Brahmani bull, which was
in possession of the roadway, had to be driven into a
shop before my gharry could pass, and on another occa-
sion a laden camel had to be hustled and shoved into a
narrow side gully to leave us the right of way of the
roadway.
I presently got clear of the city, and emerged on the
river-bank, where was the ancient fort and palace. There
is inside this latter building, a building called the
Naulaka, which is an imitation of Jehangir's palace at
Agra. It is, however, poor in comparison with the
former, and a great deal of the carving is very dilapi-
dated, while a large proportion of the mosaic decora-
tion of flowers, etc. has either dropped or been picked
out. Another sight is the Palace of Mirrors, the whole
walls, roof, etc. being formed of small portions of
looking-glass set in cement. When the guardian of the
place lit a torch, and waved it about in the dimmest
corners, the effect was weird and fantastic. The chief
object of interest, however, in the whole fort is the
armoury. Here is an excellent collection of native
and European arms, from the ancient matchlock to the
more modern Snider. The camel-cannons were most
interesting and wonderful specimens of ancient Indian
Smith-work. The whole fort is of great archaeological
interest, but the interior has been very much spoiled by
the erection of modern buildings, which serve as quarters


AAA/OAC/2 253
for the soldiers garrisoning the place. They were incon-
gruous to a degree, and did much to destroy the harmony
of this ancient pile. On the outer wall there is an
ancient frieze of coloured tiles which represents various
animals. The colouring and artistic work is super-
excellent, and the best thing of its kind I have seen in
India. The gardens of Lahore are well worth a visit,
and one's eyes were gladdened with seeing all the old
English flowers which flourish so well in these Northern
latitudes during the cold-weather season. I chummed
up with the superintendent and we had a good old
horticultural “buck.” He showed me a collection of
pansies, in which he took great pride, and they were cer-
tainly the best I had ever seen, some of the blooms being
as large as the palm of my hand, and the colours exqui-
site. We exchanged experiences, and I was able to give
him some account of my own horticultural failures in
beautiful Bombay, where gardening is pursued under
climatic difficulties which the horticulturists of Northern
India have not to contend with. I made that evening
the acquaintance of the editor of the Civil and Military
Gazette, and over pipes and pegs we concocted a leader
for his paper upon the question of famine in the Punjaub,
portions of which I have annexed to the end of this
chapter.
The next day I heard from Fenton that Douglas's
camp was at Ala, and that he would be ready for me
whenever I came. The next morning I drove to the
station, to make inquiries as to the best method of reach-
ing this place. After an interview with the station-
master, I found that Ala was merely a “flag” station,"
on the Bhera branch of the Sind-Sagar railway, and that
* A station where, if required, the train stops by signal.


254 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRZCTS
it was just beyond the celebrated battle-field of Chillian-
wallah. The best and only way to get there would be
to have a special carriage attached to the night-mail,
which could be shunted into a siding at Lala Musa
Junction and attached to the morning and only down-
train to Ala. The carriage could drop me there, and be
brought back on the evening train, and I could have
Supper and sleep again in Lala Musa siding. I should
arrive at Lahore by the down-mail at about eleven the
following morning. I accordingly agreed to this plan,
and went off to make my arrangements for a start that
evening. -
In the afternoon I went to witness the official departure
of Sir Dennis Fitzpatrick, which was an imposing
function. The Civil and Military thus described the
ceremony—
“Sir Dennis Fitzpatrick's career in the Punjaub was
brought to a close on Friday evening, when he left
Lahore by special train. The hour of departure of the
late Lieutenant-Governor was 6.30 p.m., but the Lahore
railway-station was crowded with European and native
residents long before that time. The native chiefs arrived
in their due order, and included the following: the Maha-
rajah of Kashmir, the Maharajah of Patiala, the Raja of
Kapurthala, the Nawab of Bhawalpore, the Raja of Sind,
the Raja of Faridkot, and the Raja of Nabha. Practically
the whole of the civil and military residents of Lahore
and Mian Mir were present, to bid good-bye to Sir
Dennis and the Misses Fitzpatrick. An escort of the
Punjaub Light Horse accompanied the late Lieutenant-
Governor, and there were two guards of honour provided
by the North-Western Railway Volunteers outside, and
that of the Somersetshire Light Infantry inside the




AAA/OA'A' 255
station. Hearty cheers were given to Sir Dennis while
the band played ‘Auld Lang Syne, and the train
steamed out of the station.”
Mr. Mackworth Young assumed charge of the office
of Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjaub and its depend-
encies the following day.
“THE FAMINE IN THE PUNJAUB.
“The state of the agricultural prospects of this Pro-
vince, and the condition of the famine labourers on the
different works that have been opened in various
districts, must be already fairly well known to any one
who has followed the scattered reports which have
appeared in these columns from time to time, from the
different centres concerned. Nevertheless, it may be well
at the present moment to gather up some of the dis-
connected threads, and at a time when the new crop is
practically safe, to present a complete picture of the
situation brought about by the failure of previous seasons.
“Beginning with the south of the Province, as has
already been stated, four districts in the Delhi division,
namely Delhi, Gurgaon, Rohtak and Karnal, have re-
ceived no rain. There is, however, a certain amount of
irrigation there, and although irrigation alone will only
produce a twelve-anna crop, that is sufficient to prevent
the famine being severe in those parts, and there are
only about 3000 in each district on the works. On the
western side of Delhi city, and for ten miles west and
south, there have only been four-anna crops for the last
three years, and at present there is a distinct scarcity;
the canals do not reach this region, and even though all
above this is under irrigation, it is doubtful whether



256 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRZCTS
there will be sufficient water to ripen the crops in every
district. South of that, the winter rains fell, and there
should be an average twelve-anna crop. In Delhi itself,
the public kitchen which has been started feeds about
750 people daily; the food is given at two o'clock, and
consists of four chuppaties for a man, three for a woman,
and one or two for the children, and the number of
persons in receipt of this relief is increasing; there are
two kitchens, one for Hindoos and one for Mussulmans,
both classes getting the same food. This relief is sup-
plied by the Municipal Committee, and costs them
325 rupees a week, one member of the Committee in-
specting the kitchens daily.
“Next we come to Hissar, a district in which there
are absolutely no crops, and where, if anywhere in the
Province, a pronounced State of scarcity may be said to
exist; out of a population of seven and three-quarter
millions, in all about sixty thousand are in receipt of
relief, being spread over the works on the Ghaggar
canal, the Western Jumna, Rangoi tank-works and roads.
The Government sanctioned all the works asked for
by the Commissioner; amongst these was the Ghaggar
canal, which has been on the tapås for the last twenty
years, and which, as we have remarked before, is an
excellent work, carrying as it does water right through
into Bikanir. The original forecast for the labourers on
this work was ten thousand, but it has already risen to
twenty-five thousand, and there should be enough work
on it and on the Western Jumna canal to supply sufficient
relief until the monsoon begins in July. The average wage
is one anna two pies, children getting either one or two
pies daily, that being left to the discretion of the district
officers. It is expected that before the rains there will






AAA/OACA2 257
be quite a lac on relief works in Hissar. There are
absolutely no crops, except a small area on the canal in
the Hansi and Hissar tahsils; neither is there any food-
supply in the country, and fodder is being imported for
the few cattle that exist; this, however, can only be
done by the richer zemindars. The rest of the cattle live
on trees, shrubs, and any roots they can find, and have
taken to burrowing out the roots like pigs. The mor-
tality amongst the cattle is enormous ; over 40,000 have
already died or been slaughtered, that is, two-thirds of
the whole stock possessed by the district, so it is easy to
see what a fine field exists here for the work of the
Punjaub Provincial Fund, in supplying new stock as well
as seed. Fortunately, as a contrast to this, the pre-
cautions taken by Government have resulted in there
being no excessive mortality amongst the people. The
probable estimate of the cost of the famine in Hissar
is four and a half lacs, of which one and a half have
already been expended.
“Perhaps the most disquieting aspect of the scarcity in
this district is the rate at which the land is going out of
the hands of the peasant-proprietor, into the hands of the
bumnia/ ; the mortgaging of land has increased by more
than 300 per cent., and all the registrars have applied for
an increase in their establishments. Upon this subject we
have dealt sufficiently often and at length for there to be
little left to say here, but it may be remarked that the
zemindar recognizes that the free power given to him to
alienate his land, which is the root of the present state
of things, is a creation of the British rule, and that no
application of the relief funds now being collected in
England and elsewhere, would be more popular than the
redemption of these mortgaged lands lost through no
S





258 THROUGH THE FAM/VE DISTR/CTS
fault of their owners; aid might also be extended to
those zemindars who have got in arrears with their rent,
but this is a less pressing question, and of course both of
them are very difficult to settle in actual practice.
Returning to the Ghaggar canal, the mixture of Hindoos
and Mussulmans in the same camp at first caused a
difficulty, owing to the latter slaughtering cattle; now if
a man wants to kill a cow he must ask permission, and a
place is appointed for him to do so. The work on the
canal itself is described as being wonderfully well done;
it takes two and a half famine coolies to do the same work
as one skilled hand, but otherwise the result is much the
same. At first the same tendency to scamp the work
was observed that is to be found in practically all
contractors' work, and in other countries besides India ;
the coolies used to dig only nine inches deep instead of
their allotted amount of one foot, but that has now been
got over by giving each man a stick twelve inches long,
and he is not paid until he has done his full task.
Every third person on these, as on all other relief works,
is a non-worker.
“The chief works in the north of the province are those
on the Jhelum canal, but they can bear no comparison
in the matter of urgency with those of Hissar, as the
degree of scarcity in the two districts is entirely
distinct. On these works there were, on March 3rd,
39,000 persons in all, one-third of whom were zemindars
and two-thirds mossalis ; they are split up into camps
of 2000 each, there being six camps in each division, as
the original plan of one large camp for 50,000 persons
was found to be entirely impracticable. The work done
up to February 27th, measured 3 IO,OOO cubic feet, the
daily out-turn for each person being 204 cubic feet per




-
º
ZAZZOA'Z 259
worker, and the total expenses for the week 26,000
rupees. Each section of IOOO feet is given to a special
gang, containing 900 workers, and the mossalis and zemin-
dars have to be kept apart, as they will not work
together. On all the relief works in the Province, how-
ever, the people are extraordinarily quiet and well-
behaved ; they sit in rows to obtain their wages, and come
up to receive it each in their turn, and, as Sir Roper
Lethbridge noticed during his visit to the works at Jhelum,
only one policeman is required to guard the whole
wages of the camp. Where else but in India would
you find such want joined to such lack of disorder P’—
The Civil and Military Gazette, Lahore, March 8, 1897.



CHAPTER XXV
THE JHELUM CANAL
IN pursuance with my pre-arranged plan, I caught
that evening the Peshawur Mail, and in due course,
about one a.m., arrived at Lala Musa Junction. Here I
was hustled and shunted about for some time, but my
carriage was eventually brought to a standstill in a
distant siding, to await the dawn, when my journey
would be continued.
Shortly after daybreak I was again en route, and
watched with much interest the country which I was
passing through ; on the right-hand side were the range
of the Salt Hills, while behind them, in the far distance,
towered skywards the lower ranges of the Himalayas,
which I saw gleaming in the morning sun. We passed
through the low scrubby jungle on the left, which
historic ground was the scene of the battle of Chillian-
wallah.
In due course the train halted at the station of Ala
which is a mere hut in charge of a single official. I asked
the station-master where was the sahib's camp, and he
pointed to a collection of tents standing out dazzlingly
white in the morning sun, and distant some mile and a
half across the plain. Followed by coolies—who seemed
to have sprung from the earth, as there was no sign of
habitation beyond the station-hut—carrying my kit, I set
26o



·
‘SGITIVONIJIHO IN INI INVXII:ſ

THE /HEZUM CAMAZ 261
out to walk across to the camp. The scene was quite a
pastoral one, and indeed the patriarchal effect was much
increased by the fact that Captain Douglas was standing
at the door of his tent, and seeing me while I was yet
a great way off, ran to me with words of welcome ;
and secondly, they hastened to take a kid out of the
flock, and having seethed it, made me a mess such as
my soul loveth.
After breakfast it was arranged that we should visit
the works, and I then discovered that my fate was sealed,
and I was expected to tempt Providence from the front-
seat of a real Bikanār; sowarz camel. I found the
creature doubled up at the door of the tent, and got
up outside, when the beast unfolded itself, and I arose
like a star in the firmament, but luckily not a falling one,
and off we jogged. The sight must have been a somewhat
comical one, and the contrast between my slightly
portly figure, joggling and swaying with the every
motion of the oomſ, and stiff, bolt-uprightness of the
Bikaniri attendant on the hind seat, was, as Douglas in
fits of laughter told me, very striking. There were at
the time of my visit some 30,000 employed on the works,
the numbers having dropped considerably since the
start, when Sir Roper Lethbridge saw 50,000 working
like one. It was soon found that the herding together
in one spot of nearly half a lac of human beings was
flying in the face of Providence, and invoking the appear-
ance of the dread cholera demon. The whole mass had
been gradually drafted into separate camps, line upon
line, here a few and there a few, and the whole works
were going on in the most orderly and approved fashion.
The Deputy-Commissioner has an innate talent for
organization, and had the whole thing working like




262 TAZA’OUGAZ 7//E FAM/AVE ZO/ST/C/CTS
clock-work. These are the only works I had seen where
the system adopted afforded an easy opportunity for
practical supervision of the out-turn of the allotted task.
The work of digging is measured out for each gang,
3O I
29 2
28 3
27 - 4
26 5
25 6
24 7 -
23 8 º
22 9
2 I IO
2O II
I9 I2
18 I3
I7 I4
I6 I5
which is again split up into working parties, each party
consisting of two diggers and three carriers.
The bed of the canal is then divided into thirty portions
of a certain number of cubic feet to be removed, and


THE ///EZUM CAMAZ 263
these lots are numbered, corresponding numbers being
given to each work-party. These work-parties generally
consist of groups of relatives—each section of IOOO feet of
canal being allotted to a tribal task-party of 900 workers.
By the sub-division mentioned above, a skilled super-
visor of work can almost see at a glance which particular
work-party has scamped its work. He is thus able to
penalize the small party of five workers who are deficient
in the task without the others of the gang suffering. In
other words, he can spot the defaulters, and make them
pay for their defaulting without mulcting those who have
earned their full wage. This system worked admirably,
gave great satisfaction to the workers themselves, and
reduced to the lowest possible minimum the cost of
supervision and direction.
Captain Douglas thoroughly understands and appreci-
ates the natives, and is a man who has gained their
sympathy, and even affection, as I could see by the way
in which the faces of the workers lit up when he
approached a gang of workers. The whole lot seemed
very ſºoosh," and looked upon Douglas as their ma–6ap,”
treating him with the most profound respect and ad-
miration. One thing that he has introduced has appealed
to the native love of pomp, circumstance, and revelry.
It was, that the gang who during the week had
managed the greatest out-turn of work, was for the
next week solemnly escorted to and from their work by
the beat of drum, and a professional tom-tomist had
been specially engaged to relieve the monotony of the
work with soul-inspiring music. This was a great
feature, and excited a great deal of friendly rivalry
between the competing gangs. We rode to the gang
* Happy, contented. * Father and mother.




264 ZAZROUGH THE FAA/NAVE DISTR/CTS
who occupied this position of trust, and the player
greeted us with a perfect cataract and hurricane of
regulated and chromatic tappings of the instrument.
The rattle of the divine instrument sounds to European
ears somewhat monotonous, but any particularly brilliant
piece of execution of a difficult passage, brought out a
loud “s/abasſ. ” 1 from some bronzed worker of the
plains, and he struck his Á/odalie into the hard ground
with renewed energy. The system of payment is an
advance upon what I had seen elsewhere, and by it one
naib tahsildar (head-man) can properly supervise and
direct the proper payment of three gangs at one and
the same time. Martial law and the soldiers' pocket-
book are the chief factors in the whole working, and
everything is done with the utmost military precision.
The three groups are drawn up in hollow square, with
the three cashiers and treasury-clerks inside, and in the
centre is the directing genius, the maid tahsildar. The
people are all numbered, and when the roll is called,
the same three numbers from the three gangs advance
simultaneously to receive their pies. We rode down the
bank of the canal for some distance, and inspected
several gangs of workers. The bed of the canal will be one
hundred and eighty feet wide, the spoil-bank is ninety
feet wide on each side, and the canal will be from fourteen
to sixteen feet deep in all, so that the work is a large one.
We then rode to one of the refuges, which Captain
Douglas had established for taking care of the non-
working children during the day. While going across
the rough country, my dear old dromedary made a very
bad stumble, and how it was he did not have me off I
cannot imagine. It is no joke to fall off a camel, as it
1 “Very good,” “bravo ''


THE ///EZUM CAMAZ 265
-
is somewhat similar to falling out of a third-floor
window, and I can only conclude that I am being
reserved for some higher fate. Douglas was as much
startled as I was, exclaiming, “Good heavens ! that was
a near thing.” To make matters worse, the Bikaniri
driver on the back seat welted his property for all he
was worth, and we started off full-bat across the plain.
I remember the effect in earlier days of being tossed
in a blanket, but that is mere child's play to the motion
of that old “humming-bird ” when at full speed ahead.
But to get on to the refuge, which, at the rate we were
skimming over the desert, was soon reached.
These children at first had been allowed to wander
all over the camp, to the detriment of themselves and
those of the workers to whom they belonged. This
was found unsatisfactory, and so in each camp, large
and shady enclosures had been made, and here the
children were brought by their parents in the morning
and removed at night. Another improvement had been
effected. In the earlier days of the formation of the
camp, the non-working children had received their dole
in money, but the Commissioner had found that this was
not good for the youngsters, as they did not get from
their parents their due share of food from the common
pot. He introduced a system of feeding these children
twice daily with a good square meal, the effect of this
being that at once the number of children sank from
eighteen to fourteen thousand. The obvious inference
to be drawn is, that at least four thousand of these
bairns were on the works for the purposes of speculation
and profit on the part of the parents.
From the crèche to the langrawala + was a good
* The sick-folk place.





266 TAZAZO UGAZ ZTA/E AEAM/AVAE Z)/STA’/CTS
step, but the motto which I had adopted at the
beginning of my tour being Cóigate quo fas et gloria
ducunt, I manfully plodded on. This Zangrazvala was a
place where the halt, the lame, the blind, and the
generally infirm were kept, and were looked after by a
posse of old, pensioned sepoys, whose services Captain
Douglas had largely and most successfully enlisted on
the works for all minor positions of trust and super-
vision. They had had the benefit of drill and discip-
line, were amenable to orders, and in fact made most
valuable under-officers. The inmates of this hospital
were of course a very poor lot of specimens, but when
one recollected that they were practically the sweepings
of an afflicted district, one was not surprised at their
somewhat wan and sickly appearance. The physique
of the greater part of the workers stood out in distinct
contrast, and though there were several bad individual
cases amongst them, yet the general standard was far
above what one expected to find in such a large collec-
tion of famine coolies. We then went on to the head-
office, where I duly went through the return of tallies,
details, reports, registers, etc., which I will not retail,
though they showed me that the whole bandoãust was
excellent, and that a master's spirit of organization
dominated the whole concern.
I had now, off and on (voluntarily), been the victim
of the vagaries of that bounding camel for some five
mortal hours, and when the deputy-sahib proposed a
jaunt of some ten miles in the opposite direction, I
flatly refused. For some years past, though I had been
a man of somewhat sedentary habits, yet I distinctly
felt that the noble animal which I was above, was
wearing a hole in my system, and thinking that I had

THE ///EZOM CAAMAZ 267
done enough for England, home, and duty, ignobly but
firmly preferred a speedy return to the tents of Kedar,
as represented by the Commissioner's camp and the
inglorious ease of a long-chair in the shade. After tiffen
we had another long discussion about the famine, and
the Commissioner told me a yarn illustrative of one
side of the famine question. When he moved to his
present camp, he told his head-clerk to make arrange-
ments with the proprietor to purchase a field of standing
corn hard by, which would serve as fodder for the
horses. An acre of this was bought, and the price
covenanted upon was some four-score silver rupees.
A few days later, Douglas was wishful to pay for his
purchase, and said to the clerk, “Where is the man I
bought this Naboth's vineyard from ?” “Oh, Sahib, he
is in gang No. 27 ; I will fetch him.” Here was this
peasant-proprietor, to whom the Commissioner was the
debtor of this sum of rupees, calmly working as a
famine coolie on the Government works. Another
amusing thing was the Christmas greeting to Douglas
from his head-clerk, of which I made a copy. Printers'
ink cannot reproduce the gorgeous emblazoning and
decoration of this wonderful memento, of which I annex
the mere script (p. 268).
We spent the remaining hours in pleasant conversa-
tion, till the man set to watch said it was time for us to
start to catch the train, as he could see the smoke in the
distance. Mounting again the faithful oozet, we trotted
off to the station, the Commissioner whiling the time by
telling me an experience of his a few days before. He
wished to go up the line, but cut it rather fine as regards
time, and had to push the beast for the last mile. He
arrived at the station, the train waiting. When they






268 7"HA’OUGH THE AEAM/AWE D/STRACTS
halted the old dromedary turned sulky, and nothing would
induce him to lie down to let the sahib get off, in spite
of the repeated “shoosh,” “shoosh,” which is the mystic
sound the Bikaniri driver uses to make his camel kneel.
And though Douglas pulled his head till it nearly came
A MAS GA’AºA27TWAVG
eV). S.
& Á
G.
*Q,
&
º
1897.
c-r
Welcome I bid thee, thou Happy New Year ! 3.
Be thou prosperous to my master dear; o
Piety his path, on virtue's road he walks, E.
Ready redress he gives, to all he talks. 3.
a;
Js
&
O
ºw
*
O
S
5
Let Health, Wealth, Happiness smile on his door,
à. Pour on him thou Heaven's blessings in thy store.
º
2.
2
*
Shad, needn't groan under misfortune's rod : Sº
For help seek Douglas, for luck look to God. Go
31–12–96. &
o
% &
ºr 03
°. §
.” oº:
. Q º Nº
J. .xy?
off, that beast simply stood and bubbled. What with
Douglas shouting to the officials to wait, and the native
passengers filling the windows of the train admiring
the tamasha presented to them by the Lat sahić, the
scene must have been a most comical one. We fully
suspected the same thing would happen to-day, but with




THE ///EZUM CAAMAZ 269
the usual contrariness of the beast, at the first “shoosh"
he shut up like a clasp-knife, or, perhaps better, a pair
of folding-steps, and nearly sent me to kingdom come
over his head. In fact, if the driver hadn’t seized my
belt, I should have pitched over the bows of the ship of
the desert, head first. In the train going up I had a
glorious transitory glimpse of the snow-clad Himalayas.
They stood up in the sky suffused with that lovely
rose-coloured glow that one is familiar with at sunset
on Mont Blanc, when viewed from the Place at Geneva.
The gorgeous Indian sunset made, however, the colouring
more pronounced. It eventually faded away, and the
mists rising in the gathering darkness enveloped the
mountains in their fleecy folds. It was, however, a
memorable sight. I arrived at Lala Musa in time for a
meal, and going to bed in the carriage in the siding,
was safely landed back at Lahore the following morning.
Thus ended my trip to the Jhelum canal, which, from the
courtesy and hospitality received at the hands of Captain
and Mrs. Douglas, was marked with a double dis-
tinguishing star in the diary of my tour, and with a
white stone in the recesses of my memory.






CHAPTER XXVI
UMBALLA
THE state of the agricultural prospects of the Punjaub
about Christmas-time was giving the authorities much
cause for anxiety, but the rains which fell in the end
of December and beginning of January, in a great
measure removed the pressure in several districts. The
7&62 crop was therefore practically assured in the regions
lying between Lahore and Meerut; north of this the
scarcity was severe, and the Jhelum district particularly
felt the strain. Irrigation plays such an important part
in the out-turn of the food-stuffs from the Punjaub, that
it may be worth while to touch briefly in detail upon
the subject. The complete crop-returns for the past
Ä/arif indicated that the area of matured crops was
fifteen per cent. below the average of the last ten
years; of this season's crops forty per cent. were irrigated,
compared with the irrigated area of only twenty-five
per cent. in normal years. A contraction of a mere
fifteen per cent. of the cropped area hardly, however,
explained an enhancement in the price of grain to
nearly one hundred per cent. above normal rates. It
has been proved by subsequent knowledge that ze-
mindars in many cases in these provinces largely profited
by famine—that is to say, those who had been able
to raise a good crop. The trite saying that “What is



27O
UM/34 Z/A 27 I
one man's meat is another man's poison,” applies in some
of these districts to the cultivators, who, like Jeshurun
of old, have waxed fat and kicked, or in other words,
from the exceptional prices realized, have been able to
throw from off their necks the galling yoke of mortgage
on their land. So that in these favoured regions of the
Punjaub, exactly the converse of what had happened
in the Hissar district took place, and the zemindars,
instead of increasing their burden of debt, were able to
somewhat lighten it. -
This will show the intense difficulty that everybody
connected with the famine had to contend with, due to
the sudden variations in the condition of the people
owing to a difference of climatic influence. In one part
you found a prosperous peasantry; in another circle,
perhaps not fifty miles away, the whole mass of the
population were plunged into the lowest depths of
misery and want.
Unfortunately, the collective gain of the agriculturists
as a body is a balance of gains and losses, and the losers
are for the most part the poorer peasant-proprietors,
to whom this present distress means hopeless entangle-
ment in the net of the Öazzzzza. The increase of the
Stamp and Registration Fees in the land of the Five
Rivers clearly showed this. I hope that a very large
part of the funds raised by the open-handedness of our
home-staying countrymen, in the final stages of the
famine, have found the excellent outlet of the restitution
to the Punjaub peasant of his ancestral acres, which
passed out of his hand through force majeure, and not
by any individual or collective laxity on his part.
It is and always will be the province and foremost
duty of the Government to protect and save the lives
-
º
-



















272 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE Z)/STRACTS
of its Indian subjects. Private charity, or funds raised
in any public fund, would have been grossly misappro-
priated if applied to the mere affording relief from
starvation of India's millions. It has been estimated
that the bill Government will have to pay will amount
to about ten millions sterling in all. In this the Mansion
House and other funds ought not to figure, and we shall
await with some interest the report of the Famine Relief
Committee.
With this exordium, which a careful perusal of all
the famine literature I could lay my hands on in Lahore,
anent the burning question of scarcity in Northern India,
has invited, let me get on with my story. In addition
to the Jhelum canal, of which I have given an account
in the previous chapter, there is also another immense
work in course of construction. The Chenab canal is
a Government undertaking for the eventual benefit of
its own exchequer and its humble subjects. It has been
under course of construction for several years, and
though the Bakh–Mian-Ali and Jhang branches are now
practically complete, yet a vast amount of earth-work
remained to be done on the Gugeria branch. It was
estimated about five lacs’ worth of work was to be done
here, and though a great portion had already been put
into the hands of petty contractors, yet it was calculated
that the residuum in the Gujranwalla-Jhang and Mont-
gomery districts would find employment for over six
months for some eighty or ninety thousand souls.
I rested on Sunday, as I was dead tired after my trip
to Ala, and left Lahore on Monday, arriving at Umballa
in the evening. I had reached with Ala the Ultima
Thule of my tour, and was on the homeward track. The
country I passed through on my way down to Umballa



UM/3A//A 273
showed no signs of scarcity. I crossed the Beas, which
even then contained a fair body of water, and in flood-
time must be about a mile wide. I crossed too a couple
of splendid canals, the Mari Doab and Sirhind ; these
intersected the country, and I believe draw their supplies
from the Sutlej river. As I got further down south, and
towards Umballa, I came again upon the bullock-and-
rope method of raising water; as in the Lahore district
the Persian wheel-system was almost universal. In
many parts the peasants were engaged in their spring
ploughing. A Northern Indian plough is a simple affair,
consisting of a more or less crooked stick, with a cross-
bar, on which the gentle ploughman stands, and thus
his patient oxen slowly scratch the surface-soil. When
the seed is sown, the method of pressing it in is equally
primitive, but without doubt effective. The oxen are
attached to a mere baulk of timber, and this they drag
over the field, the driver again standing on the baulk
to steady it. It certainly has the effect of smoothing
the field, but the labour entailed upon the patient àyles
must be excessive.
I had really no occasion to go or stop at Umballa,
but I had heard that Sir Anthony Macdonald was on
tour, and would not return to Lucknow till the thirteenth
of the month. It happened curiously enough to be
race-week at Umballa, and so I thought I might just
as well kill time there as anywhere else. I had been
told at Delhi by some of my friends that the best hotel
was Lumley's, but that it was kept by an old spinster
who was very peculiar, and if you got in her bad books
you were stranded, as there was no other hotel that a
Christian could put up at or put up with. I was told
too that she had a special aversion to racing men, and
2.
T


274 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRICTS
looked upon book-makers and persons of that ilk as
children of darkness. When I got to Umballa I drove
to the hotel, and found an elderly party, clothed in rusty
black, with an impossible false-front and a somewhat
stern visage, sitting at the receipt of custom. I went
up and said, “Can I have a room ** “Are you a bookie 2."
“A what ?” “A book-maker, a betting man, a man
that goes racing 2* I was just about to explain, when
up strolled two well-known owners, who with one voice
exclaimed, “Hullo, old man, come racin’? Where have
you been 2 Haven’t seen you since last Poona Cup-day!”
Things were getting pretty bad for me, as I saw the
landlady's cold steel-grey eye was on me, and the situa-
tion required drastic measures. Looking at the two with
cold deliberation, I eyed them and remarked, “Gentle-
men, you have the advantage of me, and must be taking
me for somebody else.”
It took an awful lot of drinks and explanation to put
that little matter right with my friends, later on, when
I was in possession of my room. That dear old lady
eyed me with much suspicion, and I think that to this
day she believes I am a child of sin, especially when she
found me hobnobbing with the racing coterie, whom she
had allowed to make the best use they could of her
hospitable roof-tree and board.
The Maharajah of Patiala had brought his eleven
down to play the station, and I put in the morning
watching the match, which his Highness' lot won com-
fortably. Going to the races in the afternoon, I passed
a shop which bore the following sign—
RAM BUX. MAKER OF POLO-STICKS AND COFFINS.
Any one knowing the normal condition of the polo-







UM/3A//A 275
ground of Umballa, which resembles nothing more than
a hard-baked plate, will perhaps consider the conjunction
fortuitous, if not ominous. There was a high wind blow-
ing, and the first two races were run in a dust-storm,
which was so thick that nothing was visible of ponies
or jocks till they were just on the post.
So idling away my time in cricket and racing, I got
through a couple of days before starting for Lucknow.

PART IV
THE NORTH-WEST PROVINCES
CHAPTER XXVII
LUCKNOW
I WORKED my way steadily down to Lucknow,
making a call at Saharanpur en route. The most
careful and diligent personal investigation failed to
discover any real famine in the vicinity of Saharanpur.
The crops looked smiling where they had the benefit of
well and tank irrigation, and this too was fairly wide-
spread. I was told too that the winter rains saved at
the right moment a very large area which the officials
had forecast as liable to suffer, and so had lessened the
burden which has this year been placed upon the
shoulders of those responsible for the welfare of the
people. I noticed, however, in more than one instance
during my progress, that man had taken the place of the
patient àyle in the haulage of water from the irrigation
wells, and that four, and in some cases even half-a-dozen,
stalwart peasants had manned the rope which brought
to the surface the all-beneficent liquid. I have been in
many parts of India, and have seen much of the enormous
mortality amongst the draught and store oxen, but it
was reserved for the North-West to give this new
experience of manual instead of animal labour.


276
A, UCATAWOW 277
On arrival at Lucknow I drove at once to Hill's
Hotel. The proprietor, Old Hill, as he is known all
over India, is a bit of a character. He is one of the
survivors who, in the time of the Mutiny, marched to the
relief of the beleaguered city. Since that, however,
lang syne, he has turned his sword into a cork-
screw, and from relieving his fellow-countrymen in
distress, now takes them in and does for them. And
very comfortable he makes his guests. We had a
long confab one evening when he invited me into his
private sanctum, and over whisky-and-water gave me
a history of his life, which was cram full of interesting
details of Mutiny times. He is the sole survivor of
his family, and has not been out of India for the
last forty years. Now-a-days he goes off during the hot
season to a house at Naini Tal, but formerly he estab-
lished a record of having passed twenty consecutive hot-
weathers in the plains. He is a splendid specimen of the
old system of long-service soldier, and when he warmed
up to the subject, gave me a very lucid account of the
history of those stirring times. On the afternoon of my
arrival at Lucknow, I took a carriage and called upon
the Commissioner, Mr. Hardy, who made an appoint-
ment with me to go to the relief works on the following
Sunday. I told him that I was very anxious to obtain
an interview with the Lieutenant-Governor, but doubted
much whether his Honour would see me. He kindly
promised to mention the matter to Sir Anthony, whom
he would see that afternoon, and advised me to write to
his private secretary, Mr. Dobbs. This I did, and spent
the rest of the day in visiting and exploring the
Residency and all other places of interest made memor-
able in that siege and subsequent relief. The guide who





278 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DZSTRZCZS
showed me over was himself an old pensioner, and son of
one of the native soldiers who did not betray his salt
during the crisis. Mr. Hardy had kindly furnished me
with a large file of famine statistics, which I took home
and devoted the evening to getting up, so that I might,
should an occasion occur, be able to meet Sir Anthony
Macdonald, at any rate not quite unarmed.
The Lucknow district has a population of three-
quarters of a million, of which there is a quarter of a
million souls in the city alone. Two-thirds of the whole,
however, are non-urban, or in other words agriculturists.
The hangers-on and dependents of the old Court of
Oude were an important factor in the urban population,
and the officials experienced the same difficulties with
those pseudo-royalties that arose with the ancient royal
house of Delhi. In the previous October it was clearly
foreseen that distress would arise in the city, and funds
had been established which were subsidized by Govern-
ment. Over 15,OOO purda/; masſºn and respectable poor
were at the time of my visit being helped from this local
charitable relief fund, and it was expected that the
numbers in the next two months would largely increase.
In December the death returns in the city were 37.2 per
thousand, but the cold of the month of January increased
this to the rate of 45'50. Directly the rains failed the
Government at once stepped in, and in the agricultural
districts gave enormous takavi advances. By being
prompt with this measure, they prevented aimless
migration and the disintegration of the village system.
This policy turned out to be far the cheaper in the long
run, and though the famine-bill in the North-West
Provinces will be enormous, yet without doubt the stitch
in time saved nine.

A UCATAVO IV 279
Hardoi was the worst district in the North-West, and
with a population of I, II 3,OOO, the total on relief of all
kinds reached the astounding number of 157,000 souls.
One chief reason for this abnormal amount of distress
was that the cultivators in this district had had their
sufferings intensified by a succession of floods during
the preceding three years, which had almost entirely
washed away and annihilated the standing crops. Such
then is a brief réchauffe of "my midnight researches into
the statistics of the Lucknow district.
Sunrise the next morning found me equipped and
awaiting on the verandah of the hotel the arrival of
the Commissioner. With soldierly punctuality, a few
minutes later Mr. Hardy drove up, and we went off to
pick up Colonel Pulford, R.E., who was the spring and
fount of all famine works and relief measures in these
Provinces. I found both him and the Commissioner -
very smart men, and fully masters of all details of
organization. A story I was told anent a recent visit to
the works will serve to illustrate this, and to show what
a very firm grip of the method and manners of the
natives can be obtained by men who are really willing
to study their characters. A group of men came up to
the Commissioner with the usual wail of “Panch pies &as
ma hai, Žužoor, burra paſſe mai hoaga.” (“Five pice is not
enough, lord protector of the poor, my stomach will not
become big”). Our friend scanned the lot, who were
prostrate at his feet, and curtly ordered one man to
currero (stand upright). He then deftly began to
examine this fellow, and feeling his ribs, commiserated
him on his poor condition. The search continued till
the nimble fingers of the Commissioner struck a hard
protuberance in the waist-belt of the suppliant. “What's


28o THROUGH THE FAM/AVE DISTRACTS
this 2" said the Commissioner. “Nothing, sahib,” was
the reply. “Why, bless me, you must be suffering from
a tumour; let me see.” Deftly unrolling the dhotie, he
produced a hard roll of bright copper coin. “Quite
right, my poor fellow,” said the Commissioner, “in this
way your stomach will never become big.” A trifle
abashed the fellow slunk away, and a deep “shabash **
from the other suppliants betokened their approval of
the Commissioner's astuteness. They had played the
game and lost, and with true oriental fatalism accepted
the situation. The hookum, however, went round the
camp, and never again was the cry of “fanch-pies”
heard.
With this interlude by way of introduction to the
Commissioner, let us get on to the relief works. These
were situated at the Maclhi Bhawan, or old arsenal, which
was blown up by the English in the earliest stages of the
Mutiny, and has remained a mass of ruins ever since.
The work consisted in excavating the old walls and
foundations, and removing the ruins generally. They
extracted therefrom millions of old bricks, which had a
distinct marketable value, and which were being carried
and piled in orderly lines on a vacant plot of ground
below. The spoil and rubbish is employed in raising
a long flood-embankment upon the banks of the Goomtee
river, which will be of distinct use in preventing this
river in flood-time from encroaching as of old upon the
low-lying ground situate outside the city walls. When
the whole place, site and ground of the palace, had been
trimmed and shaved and tidied up, it was intended to
turn it into another public garden, a continuation of the
public park, which was the outcome of public labour in
1 “Very good.”













ZUCATAVO IV. 281
the previous famine of '77. It will be another lung
for the populous and overcrowded city of Lucknow. It
was at these particular works that Colonel Pulford
instituted the system of classification and identification
of each individual unit receiving relief, whether worker,
non-worker or dependent, which system is absolutely
unique and infallible, and has been universally adopted
all over the North-West Provinces. There can be very
little doubt that the repressive measures and methods of
combating with the famine under the régime and ex-
perience of the officers of the North-West will, on a
future occasion, should it arise, become universal all
over India. As far as I could see, it was absolutely
incapable of improvement, as I will shortly endeavour to
show. The Commissioner and Colonel Pulford fully
explained its working, and very shortly I had an occasion
to test the accuracy of their statements. I wandered off
by myself, while they were engaged in supervising some
details of administration and talking to a gang mo/hurrir.
I found ensconged behind a pile of bricks a chubby little
black atom of some five summers, who was solemnly
engaged in making a mud-pie. He was absolutely alone
and in a complete state of nature, with not even a ticket
round his neck. With a certain scepticism about the
perfect ability of the identification system, I went back
to the sahibs, and said, “Come along here, I want to
show you something.” Leading them up to the infant,
I said, “Who's that " The Colonel immediately
summoned the gang-mates in the immediate vicinity,
and made an inquiry. At last one said, “That boy
belongs to a mother working in my gang. Fetch her.”
The woman came, bringing two other children. On
questioning her as to her name, etc., she produced three







282 ZTA/A&O UGAſ ZTAE/A2 AAA/ZAVAE ZOZSZTA’/CTS - -
tickets from her waist, saying the bucha logº were likely
to destroy them, and gravely proceeded to hang them
round the necks of her family. On inspecting the
muster-roll we found that this would-be waif belonged -
to such-and-such a gang, that his name was so-and-so, -
corresponding with the name given him by his mother -
and on his ticket, that he was five years old, had been
on the works a month, had been paid his pies yesterday,
and that his number corresponded with the series of the
other members of the family. I climbed down, and
with a quiet smile the Commissioner said, “Seems
pretty perfect, eh?” while the gallant Colonel chuckled
behind the baffled reporter and would-be picker-of-holes
in the system, for the next couple of hundred yards.
If there is not system and method in the North-West,
there is nothing; and this was further exemplified
during my visit of inspection that morning. It has
always been urged that the working charges on a
famine relief works could never be paid daily, and
that the best that could be hoped for was three days a
week. I saw 6500 people paid in half-an-hour.
Another of Colonel Pulford's marvellous methods of
system and organization. Although it was not the rule
to pay on Sunday, yet to show me the Colonel said he
would make an exception in my favour. At about
eleven o’clock we went over to the head-office of the -
works, where we saw the money locked up in a strong
room, with a sepoy guard. A hookum was then sent -
off to the six gang mo/ºurrèrs to assemble. (A gang
mo/ºurrèr is a head-man in charge of IOOO workers.) -
In a very short time they arrived with their proper &
badges of office, and were told that they would have to
1 Children.
-


J. UCATAVO IV 283
pay the workers. The gang mohurrirs then went to the
head-clerk, and each drew from him a wooden box
containing fifty rupees' worth of copper coin. The
mohurrin knows exactly how much his whole pay-sheet
comes to, and opening the box, he extracts the difference
between his pay-sheet and his fifty rupees, say exemp/7
grafia two rupees, seven annas. This balance he gives
back to the head-clerk's subordinate, who gives him a
receipt. Here then in one minute he has the right
amount of coin for his whole IOOO souls. He sets his
underlings to work, and they count out the exact
amount wanted by each of his twenty gang-mates.
This he has from a special register. The exact sums are
then put into numbered bags, which correspond with
the gang-mate's badge from one to twenty. A bugle is
then sounded, the gang-mates assemble, each gets his
bag, which he verifies and signs for. They then, at
another given signal, go off and pay their gangs down
to the veriest baby in arms, a native writer checking
each pay-sheet. The money of absentees is handed
back, and voilà tout.
As I said, at eleven o'clock we went to the head-office,
saw the money taken out and the boxes opened, and the
whole process from start to finish did not absorb two
hours. The whole affair is really so simple, and yet so
rapid, that the various subordinates have not time to
falsify their accounts. Again, too, the whole 6OOO were
paid simultaneously, and this prevented false represent-
ation and personification, a fruitful source of gain in
other places ; but even the wily Hindoo cannot be in
two places at once. At the start a Babu had tried
peculation, but was at once found out, and, four décourager
/es autres, he was at once tied up to the triangles and


284 THA’OUGH THE FAM/AVE DISTRACTS
given a sound flogging. The stick is the only method
of appeal to an animal that would condescend to fill his
pockets at the expense of his starving brethren. The
measure, though perhaps somewhat stringent, was
salutary, and after that no more frauds were attempted.
There was a story extant in the North-West, which
is said to be true. It speaks well for the harmonious
working of the various officials. The scare of the plague
in Bombay had reached these remote regions, and the -
most strenuous efforts were made to prevent the intro-
duction of the disease into the densely-populated cities -
of the plains of Upper India. Well, one day an eſºka
with a closely muffled-up figure of a woman approached
a city-gate. The sepoy on guard stopped the vehicle,
and the driver halted. Whether it was the sudden
jerk of the stoppage or not I cannot say, but at any º
rate the woman fell off the ekka on to the roadway. *
The sepoy went to pick her up, as she lay there im-
movable, when he discovered that it was a corpse, and
one which was simply rotten from bubonic plague. He
at once sent for the magistrate; in the meantime the
driver had left all and fled. The magistrate hurried
down to the spot, and ordered an immediate holocaust -
to be made of the whole affair, corpse, pony, vehicle and
all; which was done. In due course he went to report
the case to his chief, who listened quietly to the recountal,
and then merely added, “Piły the driver escaped /*
When we had finished the works, the Commissioner
and I drove on to the poor-house, but there was nothing
of much interest to record. The place was well-managed - |
and clean, and there were a large number of inmates, &
but chiefly of the professional mendicant class, with the -
other waifs and strays of the city population. When I





ZUCATAVO W 285
got back to my hotel I found a note from Mr. Dobbs,
the private secretary, saying that Sir Anthony Mac-
donald would be happy to grant me an interview at one
o'clock on the following day, if I would call at Govern-
ment House. I must, however, reserve my meeting
with his Honour for another chapter. I dined with the
Commissioner that night, and met Mr. Stoker, a brother
of Bram Stoker. He was secretary to the famine, and,
in addition to favouring me with a series of well-told
and amusing stories, gave me a fund of useful informa-
tion about the famine, which I found of great ultimate
advantage.



CHAPTER XXVIII
SIR ANTHONY MACDONALD AT HOME
THE heading of this chapter is appropriate in more
senses than one, for I doubt if there is any one in India
who is more at home with the famine question than the
Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West Provinces. I
was much more fortunate than my colleagues “the
Specials,” who had preceded me, and, though I too
made my request for an interview, I doubted very much
if it would be granted. Imagine my surprise when I
got the invitation from his Honour's private secretary
mentioned in the preceding chapter. Armed with my
note-book, I drove to Government House, and after a
chat with Mr. Dobbs was ushered into the “presence.”
Sir Anthony Macdonald was seated at his table sur-
rounded naturally with piles of official papers. The
present Lieutenant-Governor is a man of medium
size, but of fairly stout build, with a massive head,
betokening great brain-power. The walls of his large
room were simply plastered with maps, plans, etc., and
I was introduced to these more particularly later. His
Honour chatted a few moments with me about various
topics. I explained to him my mission, saying that
I always made a point of coming to the fountain-head
as invariably the best source of information. I then
opened my note-bock, after the most approved fashion
286



S/A AAV7'HONY MAC/DOAVAZZ) AT HOME 287
of that curse of modern society, the interviewer. I
opened fire with the question whether there was any
famine in the North-West Provinces 2 This, as I thought
it would, put Sir Anthony on his mettle, and like a war-
horse scenting the battle, he replied, “Perhaps you had
better let me tell you something about the famine.”
Then he began one of the most masterly expositions
upon the subject of famine that it has ever been my
fortune to listen to. As our American cousins would
say, “he sailed right in.” I did my best to follow him,
and tried verbatim reporting, but what with the
Hindustanee terms, the technical words, and column
after column of figures, which Sir Anthony reeled off to
illustrate, elucidate, or clench a point in his lecture, I
shut up my book in despair, and tried to absorb it as
much mentally as I could. It was impossible for me,
however, to load my mind with the mass of figures, facts,
and statistics which his Honour rattled off as if it had
been the mere multiplication table.
The following is but the veriest skeleton of the
admirable lecture with which Sir Anthony favoured me,
illustrated and emphasized, and in fact rammed home, by
frequent excursions from the table to the series of
excellent maps of the various districts of the provinces
which hung round the room.
Since last year it seemed the Lieutenant-Governor
and his staff in several parts of the provinces had been
quietly and unostentatiously grappling with the famine
question. In the original forecast, the area of distress
was expected to be contained in a parallelogram de-
scribed by the four points, Muttra, Phillibit, Rewah and
Gorakhpur. Rain, however, fortunately fell in December,
and decreased the area; the worst-affected parts now



288 7"HA’OUGA 7THE FAM/AVE DASTRACTS
were the divisions of Lucknow, Allahabad, Bundelkund
and Benares. In these parts there could be no hope of
respite till the next kharif crop (garnered in September);
and the Government of the North-West Provinces ex-
pected to have upon its hands till that time more than
a million people. The high-water mark of the first
stage of the famine was reached when the total number
of persons relieved reached the enormous total of a
million and three-quarters. Since that, with the ap-
proach and actual reaping of the raói, a certain pro-
portion of the people had been drawn off from the
works for a short time. The second stage had now
been entered on, and though in places the numbers to be
relieved would decrease, yet in the black spots the
Government could hope for no alleviation of the distress,
and it expected to have more than half the total
population of these parts receiving State aid in some
shape or other.
The following was the programme which had been
laid down and was being effectually carried out. In the
first place employment is found by the Public Works
Department for all able to work. Secondly, gratuitous
relief is provided for all those unable to work. The
poor-houses in the North-West system were merely
organized receiving-houses, in which homeless, destitute
people were kept, and in which waifs and strays can
find temporary help, till it can be ascertained where
they come from, and they can then be sent to their
homes, or if not homes, places d'origine. The system of
village relief had been brought to a considerable degree
of perfection, under the excellent administration of
the authorities, and it might well serve as a model,
from the use of which other portions of India, were




SZR AAV7//ONY MAC/DOWAZZ) AT A/OMAE 289
-
they to adopt it, would derive no small degree of
benefit. Briefly the system is this—
On arrival in a village the inspecting-officer calls
together a Panch (a council of five), which generally
consists of the Æotzwal and four other most important
personages in the community. A census of the entire
village is then taken, the whole of the male inhabitants
being mustered. It is found by experience that the
people when assembled instinctively fall into groups,
which enables and simplifies classification.
Firstly, all those who do not receive or require relief
are separated from the rest; in fact they do this of their
own accord. Secondly, the status of the purdah mashin
women is carefully gone into, and their wants attended
to by the Panch. A number of the other inhabitants
may be found to be away on relief works, and so the
process of selection and elimination is proceeded with,
till eventually it is found that perhaps about a score or
so of people are evident and proper recipients of
charitable aid. These are duly tabulated and registered,
and the patzwari (head-man) of the village is made
responsible for the production of these persons in a fit
and suitable condition of boldily health whenever called
upon to do so by the inspecting-officer.
The system of inspection has been brought down to
such a degree of excellence and order, that the inhabit-
ants of every village in the provinces come under the
eye of a competent inspecting-officer at least once in
every ten days. There were 243,000 persons at that
time receiving gratuitous village relief, so this was no
slight task or number to deal with.
Sir Anthony, after this slight digression to explain the
village system, resumed the leading question of the famine.
U
290 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DISTRACTS
The second stage of the famine would begin in the
month of April, and was expected to end in the
month of July. It would be a stage of smaller dimension
territorially, but would be increased largely in intensity,
and would be exposed to cholera epidemics, which indeed
had already begun. In reply to a question as to what
precautions or preventions would be undertaken against
this disease, his Honour said—“We have duly considered
and thrashed out, I think fairly successfully, this question.
Should cholera appear, the works where it breaks out will
be at once broken up and abandoned, and the healthy
persons will be given money and sent to their homes,
where they will be engaged upon works of local interest
and importance, such as village sanitation and the
improvement of the drinking-water supply—one of the
crying evils of rural India, and one which does more to
foster deformity and disease than the other ills to which
the Indian ryot is heir by lot, inheritance and choice.
Previous experience has shown that after the reaping of
the raffi, there is a distinct diminution of the numbers on
relief works, but a notable increase in the number seek-
ing charitable and gratuitous relief, and this will continue
till September. You know, I suppose, the failure of the
Áharif means the cutting-off of the daily bread of the
masses, as the raói crops are the better kind of grains,
which are cultivated mainly for export purposes and not
for home consumption, so that the lack of Á/arif in the
North-West means the absence of abundant food-stuff
for the masses for the twelve months following the
failure of the crop.”
I next questioned his Honour as to what were his
intentions with regard to seed-grain.
He replied that previous experience had shown that



SZR AAV7'HONY MAC/DOMAZZO AT HOME 291
it was to the interest of the bannia that the ground
should be seeded, and that the grain would be forth-
coming at the appointed time. The question, however,
of supplying the ruined peasantry with plough-bullocks
on the arrival of the rains was one absorbing the whole
interest and faculties of the Government ; and if they
were not to hand, as they must be, it would involve
the throwing out of cultivation of an immense area
of cultivable territory. The English funds, he added,
ought to be employed to a very large extent for this
purpose—the rehabilitation of a ruined and unfortunate
peasantry.
His Honour then touched upon the question of orphans.
It seems that the greater part of these are abandoned at
the first pinch, but when the pressure is relieved a large
proportion are handed back to their friends and relations,
who claim them. Only the residuum of real orphans
are handed over to the missionaries, with a Government
allowance for their proper maintenance till they are of
a fit age to grapple with the ills of life. As a final word,
Sir Anthony, in wishing me good-bye, said that the
Government in his provinces were duly tackling the
question as to what was the best method of applying the
funds raised in England for the penniless and suffering
Indian ; he was himself, as he said, in favour of the
purchase of cattle, and he was just about to attend a
council meeting at which this question was the principal
one upon the agenda. -
I took my leave, and left the presence, simply dripping
with famine statistics at every pore. -
I may say, in conclusion, that the North-West
Provinces accomplished much ; and it is owing to the
promptitude With which their repressive measures were
292 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DZSTR/CTS
adopted and carried out, that, though the pressure was
perhaps even severer there than in the Central
Provinces, the butcher's bill was not a tenth of that in
Central India. There was, of course, mortality, but the
North-West Executive stopped at an early stage, by
their excellent system of village relief, what is always
the first natural instinct of the aboriginal, to “up stick
and away,” and go wandering over the face of the earth.
They become then mere nameless atoms of humanity,
and die by the roadside unaccounted for, or perhaps even
unburied. -


CHAPTER XXIX
ALLAHABAD
ON my way down to Allahabad, I made a diversion
for a couple of days and stopped at Cawnpur. I did
not find any famine of a serious character here, and so
employed the time at my disposal in visiting the city
and the places made memorable by the Massacre of the
Innocents at the time of the Mutiny. Cawnpur has
achieved another notoriety apart from being the scene
of the brutal murder of the Europeans, and has built
up for itself the reputation of being the most prosperous
manufacturing city of India. It is in fact a judicious
mixture of Manchester, Nottingham, and Birmingham
rolled into one. There are very extensive cotton and
cloth weaving mills, the manufacture of canvas and
tents for civil and military purposes being a speciality
of the Elgin Mills. Then again, the Cawnpur saddlery
and harness is known all over India for its cheapness
and good workmanship. The Government has estab-
lished a very large boot factory, from which all our
sepoys and a great number of the British regiments
receive their ammunition boots. In a word, Cawnpur is
a very prosperous city, and its commercial importance
is steadily increasing.
I saw a curious sight while strolling about the environs
of the native city. A camel belonging to the native


293
294 THROUGH THE FAM/WAE DISTRZCZS
regiment was bringing the money for the payment
of the soldiers from the Currency-office. It became
frightened, I suppose, at the rattling of the bags of
money which composed its load, and bolted. The
Áarkoon, who was in charge of the money, and the
sepoy driver tried their best to stop the mad career of
the huge, unwieldy beast, but to no avail. The panic-
stricken, “bubbling, snaky-headed oont" would pay no
heed, and being still more frightened by the clattering
behind it of the troop of sowars who formed the escort,
Suddenly turned sharp round and bolted up a bank, and
at the top turned head-over-heels—an awful operation
for a camel—and chucked pies and riders nearly into
another world. The wreck was finally assorted, and the
camel reloaded, but nothing would induce the karéoom—
and in that I commend his discretion—to mount the
treacherous quadruped again.
At Allahabad, one of the first things I did was to
call upon Mr. Palmer, who was the superintending
engineer in charge of the Famine Relief Public Works
of the North-West Provinces and Oudh, and he fur-
nished me with a great deal of useful information. He
informed me that the famine was spread over an area
larger in itself than the afflicted parts of the Punjaub,
and one too that was much more densely populated.
In the tahsil of Bara, out of a population of a little
over 60,000, more than half that number were in receipt
of relief. The total number receiving relief in the
provinces was roughly a million and a quarter, and out
of the forty-eight districts which go to make up the
provinces, only eleven were free from famine, We then
got on to the question of cholera, which was troubling
him very much in some parts of the districts. The
__




"GIITIOOHCI V



AZZA HAAA/) 295
-|-
outbreak of cholera is always more or less expected,
but curiously enough the disease, instead of appearing
in districts where the water-supply was poor, and where
it was naturally expected that the epidemic would show
itself first, had chosen an opposite course, and was
ravaging districts with a good water-supply, and where
it had not been anticipated. Mr. Palmer said cholera
might be compared to a Chinese cracker, as it exploded
in the most unlikely places, and it was almost impossible
to track its sporadic and erratic course till the mischief
had been done.
He then told me an experience of his a couple of
days previously, which will show how the capacity of
the native for hoarding and scraping together cannot
even in times of such distress be eradicated.
He was riding alone to visit some works, when he
came upon a native in the last stage of emaciation and
exhaustion, and evidently in extremis from privation
and want of food. By his side was a pile of the common
brass dishes out of which the country folk eat their
food. There were some seventeen or eighteen of these,
and they represented a market value of some eight or
ten rupees. Mr. Palmer at once rode off to the nearest
Kotwali (police-station) to obtain help, a dhooſie and
bearers, with the intention of taking the sufferer to the
hospital at the works. On his return the man was dead.
From subsequent inquiry, it was found that this old
man had out of his famine relief-pay, by starving him-
self, contrived to scrape up a few rupees, and with these
he had started to buy from his more impecunious
neighbours their eating- and cooking-pots, out of which
he hoped to make an ultimate profit. He had, however,
died from exhaustion during the operation. In the
-


296 THAOUGH THE FAMINE DISTRICTS
absence of Mr. Palmer the whole pile had disappeared,
and this poor old man had sacrificed his life for the sake
of the gain of a few paltry pies.
One of the works of the relief series was the excava-
tion of a huge tank at Janakigang, on which there were
at the time of my visit some 5000 coolies at work. An
area of about half a square mile was being dug out
to a depth of ten or twelve feet. The huge spoil-
heaps surround three sides of the square, and the other
is left open for the entrance of the surface-water, which
will in the rains be dammed up and stored. There were
certainly several very bad cases of emaciation amongst
the workers, but the average condition of the people
was fair. The rate of wages given at this particular
work was—
Gangsmen ... --- --- --- --- ... 9 pies.
Diggers --- ---
Weaker men and lad
Women carriers
Children 12–16 years
22 7–12 ,
Babies up to seven ...
, in arms
The Allahabad poor-house contained some I4OO souls,
and here too were several terribly bad cases. Attached
to this is the orphanage, where the numbers were nearly
3OO, a sure sign of the distress prevalent in the district.
I found at the hotel my friend Mr. Rice, whom I had
left at Agra. We arranged to visit the fort, which is
one of the sights of Allahabad. It stands some four
miles outside the city, at the junction of the Ganges
and the Jumna. It forms a striking object on the river-
bank. The walls are from twenty to twenty-five feet
high. Inside the fort is that curious mgnolith called
AZZA//A/3A/) 297
Asoka's pillar; it is about fifty feet above ground, and
highly polished. On it are inscribed the edicts of Asoka
(circa 240 B.C.), and also a record of the victories of
Gupta in the second century. There is one of these
relics of the age of Asoka at Janagad in Kathiawar,
which was rescued from oblivion by the late prime
minister of the State, who, when I was visiting the
place some few years ago, took me to see this curiosity,
which lies at the foot of the sacred mountain of Girnir.
The most curious phenomenon, however, in the fort is
the AAEshai Bar, or undecaying tree. At one corner of
the square is a flight of a few steps leading underground,
and here you find a few sleek Brahmins who exploit
this marvel. On your arrival you are conducted down
the stair, and at the bottom an attendant lights a rude
lamp, which consists of a mere wick of cotton floating
in a rude earthen vessel full of rancid cocoa-nut oil, and
which not only gives off a sickly smell, but also fills the
underground passages with fetid fumes of smoke. You
are then taken slowly round, and shown the collection
of idols, gods, and heroes which pious hands have
collected here. One is then brought to the holy of
holies, the sacred shrine, where in old days the tree was
surrounded by the bones of the pilgrims who had sacri-
ficed their lives on the sacred spot. The tree itself
consists of a trunk, the bottom of which is placed,
planted, or grows (?), in the altar erected at its foot, while
the join at the top is carefully concealed with a fringe
of tawdry, Indian, tinselled drapery. What with the
lamps, the presence of the numerous pious Hindoos, and
the odour of decaying flowers, one does not care to stay
too long in this underground shrine, so having duly
placed our propitiatory oboli in the dish ready to receive


298 THROUG// ZYZZ FAM/NZ Z)/STRZCTS
impartially the alms and offerings of the devout and the
unbeliever, we sought the upper air. On our passage
upward we were shown a hole in the wall, which was
said to be an underground passage to Benares. Neither
Rich nor myself thought of availing ourselves of this
route, as the railway seemed to be more in accordance
with our modern notions.
Talking of Benares puts me in mind of a good story
which my artist friend, who had come just from the
sacred city, told me. About two or three months ago an
American globe-trotter had done the usual rush through
India, and had had among other things, by means of an
interpreter, an interview with the famous ascetic of that
place. When Rich came, he as usual got into talk with
the man, who produced from his waist-belt a type-
written letter, with a heading done in the usual Ameri-
can lithographic style. This letter, which the guru
asked Rich to translate, came from this smart American.
He said in his whole tour he had enjoyed nothing so
much as his talk with the hermit, and in conclusion begged
to enclose his business card. He was a dry goods store-
keeper. If you will look at the picture of the holy man—
who will deny that the Yankee trader whips the world 2
With such converse we walked round the ramparts,
and saw the confluence of the Ganges and Jumna. The
former is one and a half miles broad, flowing from the
north, while the Jumna from the west is about half-a-
mile across. The mingling of the two rivers presents
a curious phenomenon, as the Ganges is of a muddy
yellow colour, while the Jumna is blue ; for a short
distance the two streams keep distinct before they
merge. It reminded me of the entrance of the Rhone
into the Lake of Geneva, where the contrast between the







A Z/A//A/3A/) 299
ſ
colour of the river and the water of the lake is strongly
marked, and continues for a long distance down the
lake. On the ground by the river-bank is held yearly
an enormous Mela, or fair, at which annually assemble
over a million of pilgrims to bathe in the sacred streams.
The worship of water, as we all know, plays a very
important part in the ritual of Hinduism, and in a
country like Hindustan this worship of the life-giving
element is by no means incongruous. I had received an
invitation from the sub-editor of the Pioneer to dine, and
we had a long cosy chat in his sanctum afterwards. It
was “budget-night” of the paper, or in other words the
staff was very busy setting up and bringing out the finan-
cial statement of the Government for the year 1896-97.
My work was now done, and I had nothing but to get
back to Bombay. It had originally been intended that
I should go on to Bengal and do the Dharbhanga and
other districts afflicted there. The Cretan crisis, how-
ever, was in full blast, and absorbing the interest of the
British public; and so my tour ended at Allahabad.
I append here an extract from the Pioneer of
February 24, which deals with the Bengal distress; and
may add that the native State of Dharbhanga was sorely
afflicted, but that, owing to the efforts of its enlightened
and energetic ruler, the people were well looked after,
and the distress mitigated, if not entirely destroyed.
“As regards famine in Bengal, public attention so far
had been directed mainly to Behar, but there has been
distress also in the districts of Nadia and Khulna. From
a letter sent by the local Government to the Government
of India, it appears that the area affected in Khulna is
only 442 square miles in extent, with a population of
262,000 persºns. Nearly the whole of this area is land

3oo 7///&OUGH THE FAAZZAVE Z)/STRACTS
reclaimed from the Sunderbunds, and intersected by tidal
rivers and channels, forming a network of waterways.
The people rely upon the winter rice-crop for their food
for the year, and rain is mainly useful in washing the salt
from the soil. The fields are protected against the in-
roads of the sea by embankments, and the local land-
owners seem to have neglected their duty in main-
taining these. The result has been that in some parts,
where the rainfall was deficient, the soil would yield
nothing. A tidal wave, in October 1895, had injured
most of the cultivated land, so that the people are now
suffering from the effects of two bad seasons. The
winter rice-crop failed altogether in portions of two sub-
divisions, and as no rabě is grown, food-supplies are
short. The distress is not acute, however, and local
traders are importing grain. The Government have
had test relief works open for some time past, and the
district officers are quite ready with their plans of
relief should they be needed. In Nadia distress is said
to be spreading, and an area of 815 square miles, with
a population of 428,OOO, is affected. Here, again, the
winter crops failed altogether, and the rabi harvest is
likely to be scanty. As a large proportion of the popu-
lation consists of landless labourers and poor cultivators,
relief must be given freely. Some IO,000 persons are
now on the works or receiving gratuitous relief. Else-
where in Bengal, there is some distress in Palamau,
Manbhum, Puri, but the position is nowhere serious.
In all districts, however, the poorer classes are feeling
the effect of high prices, and these will not drop until
the people take more kindly to Burma rice, which is
beginning to find its way to most markets in Bengal.”—
AEzoneer, February 24, 1897.
---
--


-
CHAPTER XXX
HOME W.A. R D B O U N ID
MY mission being now ended with my visit to Allah-
abad, my next move was to make arrangements for
my return on the cars across India to Bombay. Allaha-
bad is some 850 miles from Bombay, and on the map
the journey looks nothing, but it takes thirty-eight hours
to accomplish. This time spent in being baked in a
train on the plains of Central India is at best a mediocre
sort of amusement, and I had had almost enough of
railway travelling. For sixty-seven days I had been a
wanderer on the face of the earth, and was excessively
glad to get back to my ark in Bombay.
On Friday, March 19, in the afternoon, I got into the
Bombay Mail at Allahabad, and arrived in that beautiful
city on the Sunday morning. Directly we got into the
Central Province Agency the crowds of beggars at the
station began. At many places there were several
hundreds, and there were at some stations a strong
posse of sepoys to restrain them from mobbing the
train. In an earlier portion of my book, in talking of a
native not eating English bread, I said that not one in
a hundred would break his caste in this way. I saw at
one station the exception that proves the rule. The
driver got down from his engine and placed a large
hunk of bread on the platform. A poor weird and
-
-
-

- 3OI
302 THROUGH THE FAMINE DISTRZCTS
*.
bony youth, about fifteen, stealthily crept up to this
treasure, and in a moment it had disappeared into some
inner recess or hiding-place in the rags with which he
was clothed, or rather unclothed.
At Sutna, where we stopped for dinner, John China-
man, the manager of the refreshment-rooms, gave us a
capital dinner.
I have travelled now, I think, on every railway system
of India, and I can confidently assert that in the Great
Indian Peninsular Railway the comforts of the passengers
are less regarded than on any other line. You can tell
in a moment when you strike this line by increased dis-
comfort and the general badness of the food, etc. which
you consume en route. One instance will serve.
On nearly all the other lines of India, at any rate on
the mail-trains, there is a compartment reserved for the
sale of ice and aerated waters ; this is an immense con-
venience to passengers, as no one who has not had an
Indian railway thirst can appreciate what a luxury a
cold soda can be. We had of course our ice and soda
shop as far as Jubbulpur, but directly we struck the
G. I. P. this convenience ceased, and the next evening
about five o'clock, wanting a soda, my boy brought me
one that was nearly red-hot.
Another growl. Why should one have to wait till ten
o'clock at night to get one's dinner at Munmar, when a
dining-place might be arranged higher up the line at a
more reasonable hour?
Well, even a railway journey must end some time or
other, and in due course I landed at the Bori-Bandar
(Victoria terminus) at Bombay.
I had spent five solid consecutive years in India, and
thought it time to run home to see my friends and
*





º




AſOA/A IVA/e/O BO UAV/O 303
relations. My passage was booked on the old Peninsular,
and in due course I was on board, en route for England,
home and beauty. It is said that one of the best signs
of a successful agriculturist is the fact of his being able
to make two blades of grass grow where previously
there was only one, or perhaps none. How much more
then, as Euclid says, must the speculative enterprise
of that enormous passenger-carrying corporation be
eulogized which has solved so successfully for itself the
problem of putting three passengers in the space only
fit for two Our ship was the last of the “plague
ships,” as they were called, and we were under the
strictest quarantine at every port we touched. The
passengers who went right round extracted a certain
amount of amusement in exaggerating the horrors of
the disinfecting process carried on by the authorities at
Brindisi. We promulgated the idea that it was very
trying to the system, and that persons who were even
slightly touched with alcoholic poisoning were likely to
succumb under the ordeal. Several hard-livers swore
off for several days previous to their disembarkation on
that lone Italian shore.
Our voyage home was uneventful, except that the
skipper had the bad luck to poke his ship's nose into a
storm every time we turned a corner.
At Malta those passengers who were simply suffering
from suppressed shopping mania were able to land at
the Zagaretto, and get rid of the coin that had been
burning in their pockets for the last fortnight. It was a
strange sight, a long white-washed room with a double
barrier, behind which were on one side the anxious
English buyers, and on the other the calm but crafty
Maltese sellers. If you took a fancy to anything, you

3o4 THROUGH THE FAM/AWE DZSTRZCTS
pointed to the article in question, and after the usual
haggling the article was handed to you with a long pair
of tongs, and the filthy lucre, which you placed in a
receptacle like the old-fashioned collecting-box, was
then immediately dropped in a pail of water very
strongly impregnated with carbolic.
It is said that he who sups with his Satanic majesty
needs a long spoon, but he or she who shopped with a
Maltese under these disadvantageous circumstances must
needs have a long purse. After the Maltese diversion,
where we were again filled up with men home on short
leave, in due course we dropped anchor at Plymouth, and
once more one's foot was upon British soil and at home.
Let me here take my leave and write—
FINIS.
APPENDIX A
SOME EXTRACTS FROM THE STATISTICAL GOVERN-
MENT REPORTS FOR THE LATTER END OF THE
MONTH OF FEBRUARY
THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY.
THE appended progress statement of relief measures
during the week under report, shows a decrease of 7962
in the daily average number (237,057) of relief workers
as compared with the previous week, but returns for
some works in the Poona district have not been received.
A new metal-collecting work has been opened in the
Ahmednagar district. One small work has been started
in Khandesh, and a sum of Rs. 6000 has been allotted
for it. Proposals have been submitted to Government
regarding a project for a storage reservoir on the Pravara
river in the Ahmednagar district, and pending the
preparation of detailed plans and estimates, authority
has been given to commence such portions of the
work as are suitable and needed for famine relief. The
work is expected eventually to give employment to
about 25,000 people. Government have had under
their consideration a scheme for the employment of
distressed weavers in making coarse cotton cloth to
be used for the covering of relief-workers' huts, kitchens,
and poor-houses in place of bamboo-matting. The
scheme has been approved, subject to the following
conditions —
(1) That coarse cloth is about as suitable as bamboo-
matting for the purpose for which it is intended ;
(2) That the excess cost, if any, is probably not
-> 305 X
--
-
--
-





















306 AA’/2ZAV/D/X A
greater than the excess of cost of employing weavers
on ordinary works over the value of the work they will
do on them ;
(3) That the course suggested is not likely to bring
the bamboo-matting makers into as great difficulty as
the weavers are in ;
(4) That structures which are not really needed are
not made on this account.
From further reports received from officers of the
Sanitary Department regarding the inspection of relief
camps in the Ahmednagar, Nasik, and Bijapur districts,
it appears that the general health of the workers and
their condition continues to be satisfactory. On one of
the works in Bijapur there were fifty female weavers, who
were specially examined, and found to be in good health.
The attention of the district officers has been drawn
to certain defects in the sanitary arrangements at the
Camps.
The number of persons gratuitously relieved in
villages or poor-houses during the week under report
was 16,402, as compared with I 3,128 in the preced-
ing week. A further amount of Rs. 15,OOO has been
placed at the disposal of the Collector of Poona for
expenditure on gratuitous relief, including doles to
inferior village servants. Allotments of Rs. 15,000 and
Rs. 8700 have also been sanctioned for kitchens in Poona
and Khandesh respectively. Authority has been given
to give jowari instead of flour, and the grain equivalent
of the other items constituting the dole prescribed in
Section IO7 of the Famine Code, where such a course
is found to be expedient.
An extra assignment of Rs. 15,OOO has been made for
takavi advances in the Kolaba district. The first instal-
ment (Rs. 75,000) of a loan of three lacs of rupees
applied for by the Administrator of the Jath State for
expenditure on relief measures in that State, has been
made available out of the funds at the disposal of this
Government. The Collectors of the affected districts
have been authorized under Section 145 (%) of the Code
to confer on ordinary Mamlataars and Mahalkaris the
powers of a sub-divisional officer under the rules relating
to takavi loans.
n




A PPAEAV/D/X A 3O7
NUMBERS EMPLOYED ON RELIEF WORKS
ºn 3 5 cº + o c .# -
# |#### #4
ăj #3; # *, jà
s= |**śāgá š:
i 5 “F 5.9 9 ºn . -
District, Number º º relief or ### ## #### *#
# #3 ###3 f ää
Daily Daily Daily
average average average
number. number. number.
Fifteen Relief works un- 59,669 22,162 |
der Public Agency 1
Bii Six Relief works under | 1,480 368 |
1Japur Civil Agency (includ-
ing two Local Boards
and Municipal works)
Twenty Relief works un- 62,437 32,149 || 6,138
der Public Works | º, 13
Sholapur Agenc (in 30
p gency 1.)
One Relief work under 85 V11.
Civil Agency
A h m e d - || Nineteen Relief works || 47,244 25,488 796
nagar under Public Works (in 402
Agency vil.)
Four Relief works under 5,990 2,966 |2.77%
Poona Public Works Agency (in 137
Seven Relief works under 79 ſºi)
Civil Agency
Nasik ...... Twelve Relief works | 13,953 7,OI7 II 2
under Public Works (in 5
Agency vil.)
Satara ...... Six Relief works under 21,209 4,404 I3 (in
Public Works Agency 8 vil.)
Seven Relief works under I 5,551 6,424 ---
Public Works Agency
Five Relief works under 4,786 I,774
Khandesh Civil Agency y
Three Ordinary works | 2,318 I, 525
used as Relief works 4
Two Relief works under 2,095 64I 351 (in
Public Works Agency 30 vil.)
One Test work under I24 7o ---
Belgaum Public Works Agency
Two Local Board and 37
Municipal works under
Civil Agency
* 6175 (in 677 willages), including I394 relieved by Municipalities.
* Including two Local Fund works.

308 AA’AºEAV/D/X A
The Police Force in the Bijapur, Sholapur, and
Belgaum districts has been further strengthened, and
an Assistant Superintendent of Police has been tem-
porarily appointed for duty in the Bijapur district.
Bombay.—Rain fell in the Upper Sindh frontier. The
standing crops have been slightly damaged by drought in
three talukas of Karachi, by locusts in two of Karachi, by
frost in two of Karachi and three of Hyderabad ; other-
wise they are thriving in Sindh and Gujerat, but indifferent
elsewhere. Crops recently sown have withered, or are
withering, in Nasik, Ratnagiri, Poona, Ahmednagar,
Sholapur, Belgaum, and Dharwar. Autumn harvesting
has been completed except in Khandesh. Reaping of
the late crops has commenced in Panch Mahals, Broach,
Surat, Thana, Khandesh, Nasik, Ahmednagar, Sholapur,
Satara, Bijapur, and Dharwar. Fodder is sufficient
except in the Deccan, Karnatak, Shikarpur, and parts
of Karachi and Baroda. The grain supply is generally
sufficient in the affected districts. Cotton-picking con-
tinues in Broach, Surat, and Rajkot. The condition of
the agricultural stock is deteriorating in Poona, Ahmed-
nagar, Sholapur, and Bijapur; but is healthy elsewhere,
except in parts of Sindh, Khandesh, Nasik, Ratnagiri,
and Kanara. Prices are rising in parts of Kolaba, Ratna-
giri, Poona, and Sholapur; falling in parts of Kolaba,
Poona, Sholapur, and Bijapur; stationary in Surat and
in parts of Poona and Bijapur. The prices of staple
food-grains in the affected districts are—Dharwar, 13% ;
Belgaum, I 13; Shôlapur, II; Bijapur, Io;; Ahmednagar,
Iok; Poona, IO; Nasik and Satara, 9%; Khandesh, 9% ;
Kolaba, 8; seers per rupee.
THE PUNJAUB.
Hissar.—Fodder stock exhausted; condition of cattle
very bad. Prices high. Gram, 9% seers; jowari, Io seers.
Canal crops in fair condition. Prospects average; stocks
of grain exhausted, grain being imported from Sindh.
Men. Women. Children.
Relief workers ... ... 12,678 12,445 9,053
Dependents ... --- 3O7 379 8,466
Relieved in poor-houses 38 29 5O
Other relief ... --- 830 967. 442


APPEND/x A 309
Rohtak.-Fodder getting scarce and dear. Prices
slightly rising. Wheat, 8 seers; jowari, 9% seers. Crops
on well and canal lands in good condition, except on
brackish wells of Jhajjar. Rain much wanted. Strong
westerly wind blew throughout the week. Canal irri-
gated crops likely to suffer therefrom. Stocks of food-
grains seem sufficient.
Gurgaon.—Fodder and condition of cattle fair. Wheat,
8 seers; bajra, 8% seers. Extra spring sowings continue
in parts. Late dry land crops suffering from high west
winds and want of rain.
Delhi.-Fodder scarce, condition of cattle poor. Crops
on irrigated area fair. Unirrigated suffering from want
of rain. Stocks are being exhausted, but imports are
meeting requirements.
A armal—Fodder scarce in parts. Wheat 7% seers;
gram,8#; maize, 9 seers. Prospects on irrigated land good,
but on dry land poor. Ploughings for extra spring crops.
Umbal/a,—Supply of fodder sufficient. Condition of
cattle good. Crops generally in good condition.
ſu//undur.—Supply of fodder scarce. Prices abnorm-
ally high, and still rising. Wheat, 8% seers; gram, IO
seers; maize, I I } seers. Prospects of the rabi crop
favourable. Standing crops fair. Stocks of grain re-
duced but not insufficient.
i Zudhiana.-About 150 employed upon test works.
Aerozepur.—Supply of fodder and condition of cattle
fair. Damage still reported to rape and gram crops by
caterpillar (sundi); stocks of food-grain sufficient.
Moo/tam.—Supply of fodder scarce in parts. Prices
high, condition of crops average.
Za/kore.—Scarce in parts, cattle getting lean. Prices
high. Ploughing and sowing going on. Condition of
crops average. Land is being prepared for kharif autumn
CrOpS.
Amritsar.—Supply of fodder scarce, but recent rains
will improve. Condition of cattle good. Prices high.
Wheat, 8% seers; maize, I I seers. Stocks of food-grain
insufficient with cultivators.
Sia/Aof.-Supply of green fodder improving. Con-
dition of cattle average. Prospects good, extra spring
crops being sown.

3 lo A/2/2/2AV/D/X A
-
Gujerat-Average number of relief workers, 31, 108;
dependents, I8,290 ; otherwise relieved, I,292. Maize-
flour, 8 seers.
Gºjranwal/a-Supply of fodder scarce, cattle getting
lean. Sowings of extra spring crops going on. Stand-
ing crops doing well. Stocks low with zemindars;
ploughings commenced.
S/a/pur.—Supply of fodder scarce, cattle out of con-
dition. Prices rising ; rain needed.
A’azvul Pindi-Supply of fodder insufficient, except in
Murree. Prices falling. Prospects good; stocks of grain
sufficient.
Peshawur-Supply of fodder sufficient ; condition of
cattle good. Prices rising. Prospects improved. Sowings
of extra spring crops are in progress. Stocks of food-
grain average.
Dera Ismail Khan.—Supply of fodder scarce; cattle
generally lean. Prices high. Conditions of standing
crops average. Rain wanted.
GENERAL REMARKs.
No rain. Prices are generally high, and are showing a
tendency to rise again in most districts; they remained
stationary in Mooltan, Lahore, Sialkot and Rawul Pindi
districts. Wheat is selling from 7% to Io seers, gram 8%
to Iok, bulrush millet 8% to II, great millet 9% to II,
and maize 9 to II; seers per rupee. Ploughings and
Sowings of extra spring crops in progress. Land is
being prepared for the next autumn. Irrigated crops
are generally reported in good condition, except in parts
of Rohtak, where well-water is brackish. Prospects are
said to be good to average. Crops on dry land are still
suffering from want of more rain in certain districts.
More rain is still wanted in the Delhi division as well
as in the Shahpur and Dera Ismail Khan districts.
The stock of grain has been exhausted in Hissar and
Delhi, where imports are meeting requirements. The
stock with the cultivators of Amritsar and Gujran-
walla is insufficient. Rape and gram crops are still
being damaged by caterpillars (sundi) in Ferozepur.
Westerly winds are blowing in the Rohtak and Gurgaon


A/2/PAEAV/D/X A 3II
districts, and are likely to damage the crops. Cattle
are generally reported in poor condition. They are
said to be good to fair in Gurgaon, Umballa, Ferozepur,
Amritsar, and Sialkot. Six cattle died of starvation in
Rohtak. Fodder is sufficient in Umballa, and scarce
elsewhere. The average daily number of relief workers
and dependents are as follows:—
Men. Women. Children.
Relief workers ... ... I 8,452 18,028 12,212
Dependents --- --- 325 416 9,426
Relieved in poor-houses 348 349 247
Otherwise relieved ... 2,037 2,448 I, IOI
Test workers ... --- 266 I 52 I2O
In addition to the above, the number for which the
details are given by the District Officer is as follows:—
Relief workers, 3 I, Io8; dependents, 18,290; and other-
wise relieved, 1292. The total number of workers,
dependents, etc., in this province was I 16,000, against
I IO,OOO last week.
Prices of staple food-grain on which famine is reckoned.
—Rohtak, gram IO and great millet II Seers; Gurgaon,
bulrush millet 8%, and Delhi 8; ; Karnal, gram 8%, maize
9 ; Umballa, maize IO; Ferozepur, great millet I2 ;
Mooltan, wheat 9% ; Lahore, wheat IO and maize IO; ;
Gujerat, maize flour 8 seers per rupee.
THE FAMINE IN THE NORTH-WEST
PROVINCES
MEERUT DIVISION.
De/ºra D2/72. There is sufficient demand for labour in
Dehra tahsil; agriculturists in the Southern khatts of
Jaunsar-Bawar have benefited by the rainfall during the
month. The general outlook has much improved during
the month. -
Sa/earanpur.—The condition of the agricultural and
labouring population is fairly good, and there is at present
sufficient work for labourers in cutting and pressing
Sugar-Cane.


3I2 AAA’EAV/D/X A
Muzaffarnagar.—The condition of the labouring and
agricultural classes is fair.
Meerut.—Labour is abundant. Irrigation of rabi and
Sugar-cane pressing are causing great demand for labour.
Buſandshahr—The condition of the labouring and
agricultural population is fair. High prices of staples
are generally complained of.
A/igarh.-The condition of the labouring and agri-
cultural population is fair.
AGRA DIVISION.
Muttra-There is very little work to be had, and the
number of labourers on relief works is increasing very
much. So far many cultivators have not been driven
on to the works. Pressure of scarcity is distinctly on
the increase.
Agra.-Landlords and agricultural tenants are fairly
well off. Small artisans and hired labourers are for the
most part in want of employment, and have begun flock-
ing to the relief works. -
Aarukhabad—The condition of the poorer classes is not
satisfactory. Labourers are provided with work on test
relief and intermediate relief works. The condition of
the agricultural population is satisfactory.
Mainpuri.-Agriculturists are busy in field work, and
the recent rainfall has put them in heart. The pro-
duction of carrots and potatoes has also been a relief to
them. The small number of labourers at work on the
Batesar-Shikohabad road shows that no pressing want is
felt yet. Poor-houses have been opened at Mainpuri
and Shikohabad for the relief of paupers, and gratuitous
relief is being distributed under the Famine Code.
These forms of relief are considered sufficient for the
present.
Etawa/.—The condition of agriculturists, where means
of irrigation are available, is excellent. Elsewhere they
suffer in general with the other population from the
pressure of scarcity. Labourers are getting labour at
ordinary or at a little lower rate of wages according to
demand, but the demand is not ample everywhere.
People have come in large numbers to the relief work,
Etawah-Kalpi road.


AA/P/E/V/O/X A 3I.3
Etah.-The condition of the agricultural and labour-
ing population is fair at present except in Aliganj tahsil.
The labouring classes find plenty of employment in fields
throughout Kasganj tahsil, but there is some want of
employment in Etah tahsil, and considerable want in
Aliganj and part of Jalesar. Test relief works are supply-
ing the necessary employment.
ROHILKHAND DIVISION.
Bareilly.—The late fall of rain has thrown a consider-
able number of labourers out of employment. Four
test works and two poor-houses are open in the district.
A fifth test work will probably be started by the middle
of this month. The number of labourers on test works
on January 31, 1897, was 5238, and the number of
inmates in poor-houses was 230. Relief was also afforded
to purda/; mash in women in the city and district from
private subscriptions. The condition of the people is
generally fair.
Aºnor—Cultivators and labourers are engaged in cane
pressing. At the end of January there was a great rush
on poor-houses and test works, probably due to slackness
of time and the poorness of the cane crop.
Budazºn.—The fall of rain has rendered irrigation less
necessary, and thrown a number of agricultural labourers
out of employ who are now working on the test works.
So far cultivators have not come to these works. Some
of the crops will be ripening in about five weeks, after
which the present scarcity will largely disappear.
Moradačad–Cane pressing affords employment to
labourers and agriculturists. At the end of the month
there were 2428 persons on test works and 394 persons
in poor-houses. The numbers will probably increase as
work on sugar-cane cutting and pressing ceases.
S/a/ſa/ampur.—The numbers on test works are
increasing, and the four existing test works are about
to be converted into intermediate works. Relief in
other forms is also being distributed.
Piſió/it.-Four test relief works are open with an
attendance of some 8000 persons, and the numbers

3I4 AA’AºA2AV/D/X A
employed are rising as cane pressing nears its con-
clusion. Cultivators are not moving from their villages,
and the people generally are in good heart, though the
high prices of food-grains are severely felt.
ALLAHABAD IDIVISION.
Cazempore.—The condition of the labouring population
has become worse, owing to the recent rainfall having
checked irrigation and thrown them out of employment.
Pate/pur.—Condition of people is not satisfactory
owing to unfavourable season. The agricultural popu-
lation and labouring classes are generally provided with
work on canal and ºntermediate works. There are
three poor-houses open in the district. The high prices
of staples form the chief and only cause of general
complaint.
Banda.-There is no improvement in the condition
of the people. The labouring classes are the greatest
sufferers, and the agricultural classes are not much
better off than the labouring classes. The high prices
are generally felt throughout the district.
Aſamirpur.—The labouring population is suffering
from high prices and from lack of employment. Six
relief works are in progress, and the number employed
on them is rapidly increasing. There were 38,400
persons, with I I,219 dependents, on these works on
January 30, 1897. Numbers in five poor-houses
amounted to 4462, and those relieved under other
provisions of the Famine Code to 592O.
A//a/abad.—Numbers in need of relief are increasing.
On the 3oth of the month there were on works under
the Public Works Department IO 3,650 workers with
26,888 dependents. On village works there were 5502
persons. Poor-houses contained 7.923 paupers, while
about I 2,500 persons were relieved under other provi-
Sions of the Famine Code.
ſ/ans?--The condition of the labouring class is piti-
able, but that of the agricultural population is somewhat
better. The district is in a most critical state.
ſa/aun.—The failure of successive crops and high
-

AA’AAEAV/D/X A 3 I5
prices of food-grains have reduced the agricultural and
labouring population to great straits. The distress is
rapidly extending, and the numbers on relief works are
increasing. There are seven relief works open in the
district, and relief is also largely given in other forms.
BENARES DIVISION.
Benares.—Agricultural and labouring population find
work, and their condition is satisfactory. Paupers are
immigrating from neighbouring districts. Four test
relief works have been opened, and they are attracting
labourers.
Ghazipur.—Field work and the railway are providing
for labourers. -
AEa//ia.—The condition of the agricultural class is
fair. Labour is sufficient. -
GORAKHPUR IDIVISION.
Goraž/pur.—Tahsils Gorakhpur, Bansgaon and Hata
in whole, and pargana Haveli of Maharajganj tahsil
have already been declared distressed. The remaining
two parganas of Maharajganj tahsil and the whole
tahsils of Deoria and Padrauna are under observation.
Relief works are open in the distressed area, and
intermediate works are in progress in the area under
observation.
AEast.—Work is generally available, and the con-
dition of labourers and agriculturists is not very bad.
There are eight ordinary works with 1977 men as
average, and four poor-houses with II 81 inmates.
A gamgarh.-Report not received.
IKUMAUN DIVISION.
A/mora.-The condition of the labouring and agri-
cultural population is good.
Gar/wa/–The condition of the labouring and agri-
cultural population is generally good. There is no
apprehension of scarcity owing to the good rains. The




316 AAEA/EAV/D/X A
people from the south where the kharif was scanty will
probably purchase from the northern parganas where it
was good.
AWainz Ta/–There is plenty of employment for the
labouring and agricultural classes, who, though they feel
the high prices of food-grains, yet are not by any means
in a bad way.
LUCKNOW DIVISION.
Zucknow.—Distress among the agricultural popula-
tion was acute. Ten relief works under the control of
the Public Works Department are in progress: three
in the city and seven in the district. More works will
shortly be started. Gratuitous relief under chapters v.
and x. Of the Famine Code has been distributed in the
city and district. Three poor-houses are open. State
kitchens are attached to them. The number of inmates
in these poor-houses on February I, I897, was 2 IOG.
Unao.—The condition of the labouring and agri-
cultural population is not good.
Sitapur.—The condition of the labouring class, as
judged from the men coming to relief works, is fair on
the whole. Seven relief works were open during the
month, and more are about to be opened, as almost all
the seven works are full.
Hardoz.-The labouring classes and agriculturists are
generally very badly off. No improvement is expected
in the current month.
A her.—The condition of the labouring classes is not
satisfactory. Five works are open in tahsil Mohamdi
and two in Lakhimpur tahsil. The total number of
persons on them during the month was 28,982.
FYZABAD DIVISION.
Fyzabad.—The condition of the labouring classes
necessitates help being afforded to them till the harvest
is ripe. Six intermediate works, one District Board
test relief work, and a number of village works are
open. Numbers on all these works are steadily in-
creasing, as was expected. Numbers in poor-houses




AAA’AºAV/D/X A 3I 7
have also increased, but suitable inmates are being
drafted to their villages, and relief given to them at
their houses.
Gonda.-The pressure brought by the high prices and
bad times on the labouring population is greatly relieved
by the employment which the people can get on the
railway and on intermediate and village works.
Bahraich.-No complaints have been heard regarding
the state of the labouring and agricultural population.
Labour is available on railway and on roads in all
tahsils.
Sultanpur.—There is a continually increasing demand
for employment everywhere, met by public and other
works. The labouring classes are feeling the pinch and
often look pulled down, but there is plenty of employ-
ment supplied for them, and there is not much longer to
wait now before the rabi harvest is reaped. It is un-
usually forward everywhere.
Partabgarh.-The condition of the labouring and
agricultural population is not very satisfactory. Labour-
ing classes are receiving relief from test works, etc.
There are three poor-houses, and three test and four
famine relief works open in the district.
Bara Ban/é.-The agricultural population is hopeful
owing to the bright prospects of the rabi crops. Relief
works and small village works open all over the district
are giving employment to the poorer classes. Numbers
employed on relief work during the month were 24,220,
and those relieved on small village works were 9366;
I 130 persons were relieved in poor-houses, and 1939
persons were in receipt of gratuitous relief.
BENGAL.
Good and general rain fell in Bihar and Chota
Nagpur, and showers in North and South-west Bengal.
The rain has benefited the standing crops, but has
slightly injured the pulses, which are ripe or being
harvested. It has also facilitated the ploughing for
aus (autumn rice) and jute, which is in progress in
several districts of Bengal Proper. In Palamau there
was a severe storm with hail on the IIth, and some



3.18 AA’/2/EAV/D/X A
damage to the spring crops is reported. The pressing
of sugar-cane is going on. In the distressed districts the
price of the food-grains on which the relief wages are
based are—Nadia (common rice) 9 seers, Khulna (com-
mon rice) IO seers, Rajshahi (common rice) 94 seers,
Patna (common rice) IO, seers, Shahabad IO; seers,
Saran (Indian-corn) 9 seers, I4 chittaks, Champaran
(Indian-corn) IO; seers, Muzaffarpur (Indian-corn) Io
seers, Darbhanga (common rice) 9 seers and (Indian-
corn) IO Seers, Bhagulpur (common rice) IO Seers per
rupee. These figures show a slight rise in Saran,
Muzaffarpur, and Darbhanga, and a slight fall in
Champaran.
MADRAS.
There was no rain except a few trivial showers
in parts: but since the close of the week rain has
been general over portions of the Presidency south
of Madras, but amounts are not yet fully known.
The water-supply continues to decrease and is very
deficient in parts of the Circars and Deccan, and it is
growing scanty for drinking even in parts; elsewhere
the supply is generally fair. Some cultivation is still
proceeding under large irrigation works, channels, and
wells. The standing crop in the Carnatic, Central,
Southern, and West Coast districts is generally in fair
condition, and the recent rain should benefit the cotton
crop where it is grown in them. The standing crop in
the Deccan is drying up. Harvests are proceeding with
fair to moderate yield over the southern half of the
Presidency, elsewhere they are generally poor or bad.
Pasturage is decreasing, but may revive somewhat where
rain has fallen. Fodder is generally available, though
dear in many places and very scarce in parts of the
Deccan. In the latter cattle are suffering ; elsewhere
they are generally in good condition. Prices have risen
in the Circars and in parts of the Deccan, Central, and
West Coast districts; elsewhere they are almost station-
ary or fluctuating irregularly. Prices by which wages
are regulated are—Kurnool I 3% ; Bellary and Ananta-
pur I4; Cuddapah I 7; and Ganjam I2; seers per
rupee.
º -
:





A/2/2/EAV/D/X A 319
THE FAMINE RELIEF WORKS.
The following was the total number of persons re-
ceiving relief in India at the end of February:-
Preceding Week. Present Week. -
§. of
rovince. - Gra- - Gra-
Relief - Relief - Total.
§: º " || W: ºf
Madras ...... 37,389. Io,774. 48, 163|| 43,508 II,595. 55, IO3
Bombay ... 348,572. 13,126 361,698|| 342,036 16,402. 358,438
Bengal ...... 265,347 Io 1,220 366,567|| 300,763. I34,270 435,033
North-West-
ern Pro-
vinces and
Oudh ...... I, 126,289 278,247|1,404,536 I,250,258. 279,673 I, 529,931
Punjaub ... 79,664 26,575 IO6,239 78,712. 30,892 io9,604
C e nºt r a 1
Provinces. 251,796 64,817 316,613|| 238,299| 68,749 307,048
Burmah...... 27,225 5,857. 33,082|| 23,915 5,463. 29,378
Berar......... 2, I52 ... 2, I52 5,883 ... 5,883
Central In-
dia ......... 69,321| 4,344. 73,665|| 90,930. 4,897| 95,827
Rajputana...] 24,327 2,819, 27, 146 I9,492 2,348 21,840
Grand Total 2,232,082 507,7792,739,861||2,393,796|| 554,2892,948,085

APPENDIX B
NOTE BY THE HONOURABLE THE LIEUTENANT-
GOVERNOR ON THE GHAGGAR CANALS RELIEF WORKS
I. I. VISITED the Ghaggar Canals Relief Works on
Saturday in company with the Commissioner, the
Deputy-Commissioner, Colonel Jacob, Superintendent
Engineer, and the officers of the Public Works Depart-
ment employed on the works, and Dr. Roe, Sanitary
Commissioner. We rode down the alignment of the
southern canal, seeing the people of two of the camps
on that canal at work, and then crossing the Ghaggar
came up the alignment of the northern canal and saw
the work of two camps there.
2. The workers have come in in numbers, and with a
rapidity beyond what was anticipated, and the Public
Works Department officers who have charge of all the
arrangements, the Commissioner and Deputy-Commis-
sioner exercising only the Supervision contemplated by
the code, have had a very difficult task in settling such
vast numbers down, but in spite of their being very
short-handed have succeeded in doing it far better than
could have been expected, and everything seems to me
to be now on a satisfactory footing, except as regards
two important matters, to which I shall presently refer,
and which I hope, by giving the Public Works Depart-
ment officers more assistance, it will be possible to get
right.
The arrangements for taking on the new arrivals and
setting them to work seem to be good, and no one
appears to be kept waiting. The Sanitary Commissioner
remained behind when I left, and is to submit a report
on the matters with which he is concerned; but so far
32O º
-




A/2/2/EAV/D/X /3 32 I
as he and I could see as we rode through the works, the
people seemed to be in excellent health and good con-
dition, and there was no sickness to speak of except five
or six small-pox cases—one a very bad one, in a hospital
we visited in the first camp. Dr. Roe is now about to
arrange for vaccination. I learned that the people of
the neighbouring villages, unlike those round the works
in Gujerat, were unwilling to give shelter to the famine
1abourers, but shelter has been provided for them (and I
was told for all of them) under särk; thatches, of which
each family has one to itself. These thatches are similar
to those under which Nuths and other similar wander-
ing tribes ordinarily live, and, though they do not look
so well as the regulation huts, a certain number of which
have been erected here as in Gujerat, seem to afford
sufficient shelter for people of this sort, and are preferred
by them.
The supply of food is ample at present, and no
difficulty is anticipated on that score.
3. Before I left Lahore the Chief Engineer represented
to me that the Public Works Department establishments,
which, as already stated, have charge of all the arrange-
ments, could not cope with the work thrown on them,
and he suggested that it might be well to confine them
to their proper professional work, arranging to have
everything else done by district officers and their
establishments somewhat as proposed in the note on
the Gugera Branch Famine Relief Work, written by
Colonel Hutchinson in communication with him. I
was inclined to agree with him in this ; but when I
came to discuss the matter with the Commissioner and
Deputy-Commissioner and Colonel Jacob, I found that
they were unanimously in favour of continuing the
present system, and keeping the actual making of all
arrangements in one hand, namely, that of the Public
Works Department, and I eventually came to the con-
clusion that they were right. The fact is, that such
things as the classification of labourers, the direction
and supervision of the actual performance of the work,
and the determination of the question as to how far
short work shall be excused, and how far it shall be
punished by a reduction of the wage, are matters that are
º Y


322 AAAEEAV/D/X /3
---
in practice most difficult to separate from the matters
left to the Public Works Department by the Gugera
Branch note, and are, moreover, in certain ways more fit
to be dealt with by a Public Works Department official
than by a district official. I have to-day had an oppor-
tunity of discussing the matter further with Colonel
Hutchinson and Mr. Beresford, and they now accept
this view, and I learn from Mr. Beresford that it is also
the view of Colonel Marshall. I would therefore make
no change on the Ghaggar Works in this respect. We
shall no doubt have to strengthen the hands of the
Public Works Department officers very much, and many
of the additional staff to be taken on will be men of the
class that ordinarily work under district officers; but I
agree that they should be all put under the orders of the
canal officers.
4. Now as to the two important points in which I
found that the arrangements were not satisfactory.
They are—
First, that the payment of the labourers is not suffi-
ciently closely supervised; and
Second/y, that the out-turn of work is ridiculously
short. -
5. As regards the former point, I understand that the
Public Works Department officers have been supervising
the payment of wages as closely as it was possible for
them to do, with the immense amount of other work
thrown on them, but it is of course impossible for them
to look into the account of every labourer and see that
he gets what is due to him. What we want is a number
of native officials, who I think, whether they are Public
Works Department or Civil Department officials, should
be of not lower rank than that of a Tahsildar or superior
Náib Tahsildar, who would sit down on a section of the
work with the muster rolls and reports of work done
before them, who would call up the labourers one by
one, tell each individual, or the members of each gang,
what was due to him or them, and if there were any
deductions, why they were made, and then see the
money actually handed over. Whether the men who
are employed for this work should be a few men specially
employed solely on it, and doing it on one section of the
^
-




A/2/2/EAV/D/X A 323
work one day and on another another day, or whether they
should be men also employed in supervising work and
should discharge this duty only on the particular section
of the work which they supervise, I must leave to others
to determine. All I insist on is, that wages should be
paid in the way I describe in presence of an official of
the rank I have mentioned. It is vain to hope that the
labourers will get their wages right if the matter of
actual payment is left in the hands of a small under-
strapper subject to appeal and inquiry if he is accused
of malpractices.
6. Then as to the second matter—the low out-turn of
work—things are not as bad here as they seem to have
been in the North-Western Provinces, where the out-turn
amounted to only 4 to 6 cubic feet of earth-work per head
per diem, but the out-turn of work is, as I say, ridiculously
low. I was told on Saturday that the earth-work done
up to this, instead of costing Rs. 2-8-O per IOOO cubic
feet, had cost something like Rs. 15. Now, of course, we
all expect to have to pay a good deal more for work
done on the famine relief system than for work done by
petty contract, and moreover, large allowances must be
made for the facts that it takes a certain time to get
everything in proper train, that the work here has been
going only a short time, and that the labourers have
been coming in in larger numbers and with a rapidity
which no one expected; but still the result is deplorably
bad. I don’t mean for one moment to blame the Public
Works Department officers for this. I have heard
nothing but praise of the energy of Mr. Petter and Mr.
Wakefield, who went round the works with us, and Mr.
Floyd, under whom they are working, is a man well
known and well thought of in the Department.
7. The main cause, so far as I can judge, that has
hitherto led to the failure in getting anything like a
reasonable task done, is the utterly inadequate provision
made for Supervision. Any one going over the works can
see this. No doubt, as Colonel Jacob pointed out more
than once, the majority of the diggers are men unaccus-
tomed to such work, and who could never be expected to
do anything approaching a full task; but, as he also
observed, they were not setting about the work in the

324 A/2/2/2AVZ) ZX Ax
º
way they should. I think his impression was that they
should be working “against a face,” as it would be easy
to teach them to do if we had better provision for super-
vision. Again, we many times observed carriers going
off with their baskets not half full. Of course, when the
work is measured up and found short, it is possible to
reduce the wage if it is not already at the minimum, but
it is in the case of a large proportion of the labourers
already at the minimum, and even where it is not, the
margin for reduction is so small that, especially where a
number of the same family are working together, most
of them at the lower rates, and earning perhaps ten or
eleven annas a day among them, it is scarcely felt.
What is needed is to have the work of every gang
watched from hour to hour as it proceeds by some
responsible man, who would be unencumbered by any
clerical work, who would have a short length of the
works assigned to him, over which he would be walking
back and forward throughout the working hours, and
who would show the diggers how to do their work and
keep them up to it, who would see that the carriers went
away with full baskets, and so on. We all, of course,
knew that it would be a very difficult thing to get work
done by people like those we have here to deal with on
a system which requires us to take on every one who
applies for work, and to give him enough to keep him in
health, no matter how little work he does; but I don't
think any of us realized before ſºozy difficult a thing it is,
and what a very close degree of Supervision it would
require to get it done.
8. I should feel much obliged if Mr. Beresford and
Colonel Marshall would visit the Ghaggar Works together,
and devise in concert with Colonel Jacob a proper
system of supervision. I have above referred chiefly to
the szlóordinate supervision, which struck me as so much
wanting, but I may add, that even as it is—and the
works are still extending—the two Assistant-Engineers
have too heavy a task thrown on them, and it is a
question whether there ought not to be four of them
instead of two ; but I leave all details in the hands of
Mr. Beresford, Colonel Marshall and Colonel Jacob.
I am anxious that Colonel Marshall and Mr. Beresford
r
4



AAAEEAV/O/X A 325
º
should go down to aid in the settlement of this matter,
partly because we have up to this been somewhat un-
settled as to the system on which we should work, and
partly because the difficulty of getting a reasonable
task done has turned out to be much greater than I
anticipated, and I accordingly think it is well that the
thing should be more fully considered than it has
hitherto been.
9. I am aware that it has been suggested that we
can never get such work done at anything less than an
extravagant cost until we alter our relief work system,
so as to attract professional diggers, and that may
be true ; but I am not prepared to accept it until
we have given the relief works system a trial under
really effective supervision. Meantime, however, I
think that the suggestions made with a view to get-
ting professional diggers on to the works should be
considered.
Two such suggestions have been put forward. The
first is, that we should let the diggers do as much work
as they choose, and be paid for it at a certain rate ; but
it must be remembered that, though we should un-
doubtedly get a great deal more work done for the
same amount of money by employing professional
diggers in this way, each of these professional diggers
would have to be paid the wages of about three of the
diggers we now employ, and hence we should not by
expending that amount of money be keeping so many
men alive, and as we are bound to find work to keep
alive every one who comes and asks for work, the sum
total of our expenditure on famine relief would be
largely increased. It may no doubt be that this
system would be on the whole more economical. I
mean, that under it the difference between the total
amount expended on famine relief works, and the
total value of the work turned out, would be greater
than under the present system, however much im-
proved ; but still the fact would remain, that we should
have to find a great deal more money, and I do
not know what the Government of India might say to
that. -
In order to enable me to form a clearer idea of how


326 AAEAEEAVZ)/X /3
the matter stands, I should be glad to have, if it is
possible to devise a way of making such a calculation,
a calculation showing how we should stand after the
proposed change as compared with the way we should
stand under the existing system if we failed by extra
supervision to bring the cost per IOoo cubic feet
down below Rs. 15, if we succeeded in bringing it
down to Rs. Io, and if we succeeded in bringing
it down to Rs. 5. In making any such calculation,
it must be borne in mind that the result of sub-
stituting skilled diggers for the present diggers is not
unlikely to be, that we should have to put most of these
latter on some work that would be absolutely useless,
for there probably would not be work for them as
carriers on the canal, and so far as that would be the
case, the wages paid to them on that work would have
to be charged to the account of the proposed system in
making the comparison.
The other suggestion made is, that we should not go
so far as above proposed, but should simply offer a
digger four annas per diem if he dug 150 cubic feet.
This would be a course intermediate between our present
system and the other system just referred to, and the
observations above made apply to it also, though to a
less extent.
Both suggestions, I may observe, seem to proceed
upon the supposition that under the existing system the
diggers do not supply sufficient earth to keep the
carriers employed, and it is a question how far that is
really the case. I cannot venture to offer any opinion
after a hurried visit of the sort I made, but I must
say, it seemed to me that very commonly it was not the
diggers but the carriers who were behindhand.
IO. It has been proposed to try the two alternatives
suggested on lengths say of IOOO feet of the work, and
I will take upon myself to sanction such an experiment
without referring to the Government of India'; but I
trust that it will be remembered that, as I said to the
Public Works Department officers on the spot yesterday,
the way to get Audos over this business is to make the
system prescribed by the Government of India work,
and yield something like a reasonable out-turn of work
^

A/2/2/2AV/D/X /3 327
by proper supervision. Any one of course can get full
value for money spent on digging if he employs profes-
sional diggers and let them earn a full wage.
GHAGGAR CANALS FAMINE RELIEF WORKS
AVoſe by the Chief Engineers, General and /rrigation Branches,
Puff/ic Works Dežartment.
I. IN accordance with paragraph 8 of his Honour the
Lieutenant-Governor's note of January 18, we visited the
Ghaggar Canals Famine Relief Works on January 23,
in company with Colonel Jacob, R.E., Superintending
Engineer. We reached Sirsa with Colonel Jacob by
the early morning train of the 23rd, and devoted the
greater part of the day to a minute inspection of the
works in the two first camps on the southern and
northern canal. The 24th, Sunday, was devoted to
the discussion with Colonel Jacob and the officers in
immediate charge of the works, of various matters
connected with the works, and with our observations of
the previous day.
2. Two important points are brought to notice in his
Honour's note, quoted, viz. –
First, that the payment of the labourers is not
sufficiently closely supervised ;
Secondly, that the out-turn of work is ridiculously
short.
We propose dealing with the second point first, and
beginning with an explanation of the system on which
the work is being carried out at present and the tasks
estimated.
3. The people are divided into gangs of from 80 to
120 under a gangsman, who has a list of the people in
his gang entered on the ordinary muster-roll form.
The gang is divided into parties of 12 to 18, for each
of which there is a representative man that may be
called a working mate. This man is one of the diggers
328 AA/2ZAV/D/X B
selected by the rest of the party. A party of I2 would
have 4 diggers and 8 carriers; in addition there would
be the dependents of his party, but these are to be
looked on as quite separate. A task of from 85 to IOO
cubic feet is laid out as the daily task for each digger,
but in the majority of cases it is found that the full task
is not performed, that only 50 to 60 cubic feet is ex-
cavated, so the party generally receive only the minimum
wage. The shortcoming is not so often in lateral
dimension as in vertical depth dug, an item which is
not so easily checked. In many cases the depth of
pit was from 6 to Io inches only, instead of I2 inches.
Sticks 12 inches long are to be given to the working
mates to show clearly the depth required.
4. In order to distribute the work in a form that will
afford sufficient room and facilitate measurements, the
excavation is carried out in strata one foot thick, the
irregular surface portion being first removed.
The sub-overseer records the work done by each
party in his measurement book, noting the particular
IOO feet peg in which the work is situated. A new
system of measurement book is being started, in which
all the measurements in the same chain or peg will be
on one page. In this way it will be easy to compare the
total of daily measurements with the final measurement
when work is done. At present it is a long process to
carry out this check, as the daily measurements are
scattered over many different pages of the book. But
in three chains tested the result was very satisfactory, as
shown below:
SOUTHERN CANAT,
Final Total of DIFFERENCE.
- daily
Chain. measure- 1measure-
ment. + -
ments.
37–38 I4,875 I4,862 I3 ---
41–42 I 3,002 13,406 --- 4O4
IO,2OO IO,2II
º-








A/2/2/2AV/D/X AP 329
The new arrangement of measurement book will be a
powerful check on the sub-overseer's daily measurements.
5. The soil is hard to dig in most places, and the
difficulty of digging is further increased by the necessary
plan of working in thin layers instead of deep faces, as
would be done in ordinary contract work. At present
only phaorés are employed ; an order has been given to
try pickaxes, but the people will probably prefer
to work with the tool to which they are most accus-
tomed. Experiments made by Mr. Wakefield show
that an able-bodied professional digger can excavate
230 cubic feet of the hard soil near the head of southern
canal. Mr. Floyd has been asked to repeat the experi-
ment. There seems to be no reason why the general
digger should not do the task of IOo cubic feet. The
people at present on the work are on the whole in good
condition, and show no signs of emaciation. The
women and weaker men are able to carry full baskets
weighing 25 seers. A small basketful weighed on the
spot gave I2; seers of earth, and we estimate that the
baskets of earth carried average 15 seers or over, to one-
fourth of a cubic foot of solid earth.
6. In considering the proper task per head that may
be expected, it is necessary to ascertain the task that
would be done under ordinary circumstances. The rate
allowed for the Ghaggar Canals earth-work, excluding
contingencies, is Rs. 2-12-0, 44 annas per IOOO cubic
feet. If done by professional diggers and carriers work-
ing very hard, the average earnings would probably not
be less than 3 annas a day ; and allowing the contractor
a profit of IO to I2 per cent, or say 5 annas per IOOO
cubic feet, 39 annas would be paid for actual labour.
The work would thus have to be done by I 3 labourers
giving a duty of 140–77 cubic feet. If instead of
professional diggers and carriers only ordinary able-
bodied villagers, men and women, are employed, the
earnings would not exceed 2 annas a head ; * = Say
19 to 20 hands would have to be employed on every
IOOO cubic feet, giving a duty of 50 cubic feet a head.
This may therefore, we think, be looked upon as a full
day’s out-turn under ordinary circumstances on contract
work where the soil is hard. The average of 75 cubic
ºn



33O AAP/2/EAV/D/X A
feet laid down in Form B of the Famine Code is there-
fore obviously too high. The foot-note regarding column
IO is misleading throughout, and should be revised at
once. The estimate of one digger and two carriers per-
forming a task of IOO cubic feet, or 33 per head, is a much
more practical estimate. This is given as a task in
paragraph II, page 80, Appendix B, Punjaub Famine
Code. The present out-turn of work on the Ghaggar
Canals per head of people actually employed on digging
and carrying is from 15 to 20 cubic feet, and it is
expected to increase up to 30 cubic feet.
7. It is found that whatever is dug by one man is
carried by two people. It is the digger that fails, and it
is now proposed to give the working mate a bonus of
6 pies if he and his small party of diggers perform the
task of IOO cubic feet each. At present most of the
diggers are strong men of B class. The bonus would
mean promoting the working mate to a higher class, and
giving him the usual allowance of 3 pies extra for his
interested Supervision. All the party have an interest in
getting the full wage of their class instead of the minimum
as at present. It is feared the gangsman is not influential
enough to exact a full task out of all the people in the
gang. In one case the gangsman was beaten by some
of his gang for exacting what they considered too much
work. It is hoped that increasing the pay of the work-
ing mate in a small party will be the most effective
means of increasing the out-turn round. The plan is
being tried.
On the Ghaggar Works there appears to us to be no
great difficulty in getting diggers in sufficient numbers
capable of excavating 85 to IOO cubic feet each, and
from our observation two average carriers are able to
dispose of the 85 to IOO cubic feet excavated by one
digger. It means 50 cubic feet equivalent to a weight
of cubic feet 50 × 55 = 2750 seers, filling 183 baskets
with 15 seers of earth in each on an average. [Strong
women and men carry 25 seers, and the smallest child
over seven years of age carries 5 seers. The majority can
carry 20 seers.] This would mean 30 baskets an hour,
or one every two minutes, during a working day of six
hours, which is a moderate task.
-

AA’/2EAV/D/X /> 33 I
8. For purposes of comparison and checking work
it is necessary to classify the workers as dºggers and
carriers only. At present some small children are
supposed to be employed on breaking clods. The work
is never done by them in practice. These children
should be made to carry, or if unable to do this should
be classed as dependents. It complicates the case
counting them as workers, for they do no useful work,
and merely play at clod-breaking, and draw a pay of one
anna instead of half-an-anna as dependents.
C. J. FLOYD,
Zzz Charge Ghaggar Cazza/s.
Jazzteazy 24, 1897.
DETAIL OF WAGES PAID ON RELIEF WORKS, GHAGGAR
CANALS
Situation of work–Northern Ghaggar Canal, mile 2.
V7//age—Babbhar.
7 ańsſ/–Sirsa.
Džs#27cſ—Hissar.
Distance from Æelief Work—Said to be about 12 miles.
Casſe—Sweeper.
Al/?/22/22//z.
RS. A. P. R.S. A. P.
I. Laloo (father of family)... O I 9 o I 6
2. Jeeo (mother of family ... o I 6 O I 3
3. Sundar (son) --- O I 9 o I 6
4. Sabo (daughter) ... O I 3 O I O
5. Farríd (son --- O I 3 O In O
6. Bhanu children o o 6 O O 6
7. Lakmera { under 7 o o 6 O O 6
8. Monia years o o 6 o o 6
Total wages per day ... O 9 O O 7 9
-
Second ſa/ti/y from same village, same casfe, etc.—
Rs. A. P.
T. Lucknow . O I 9
2. Nathow ... o I 6
3. Sáhib Zádi o I 6
4. Asow - O T 6
5. Bakhtāwar O I O
6. Chanden ... --- O I O
7. Bhaini } under 7 } O O 6
8. Najun & years O O 6
Total wages per day ... O 9 3


332 A/2/PEAV/D/X /3
The number of dependents on the work is now
estimated at 22 per cent. of the whole, and we think
that if the children were properly classed the proportion
under dependents would be increased.
In one large gang of sweepers numbering I 26, two
families of eight persons were picked out. The details
are given on the previous page.
In one case the father, mother, and three children
were workers earning from I anna 3 pies to I anna
9 pies with three small children receiving 6 pies each as
dependents, the total daily wage being 9 annas against
a possible minimum of 7 annas 9 pies.
In the case of the other family there were only two
small children. The daily wage earned was 9 annas
3 pies against a possible minimum of 7 annas 9 pies.
In both cases the members of the family were in
good condition and very well clad. Each family is
now earning about Rs. 17 to Rs. 18 a month, including
pay on Sundays, and might earn more if they worked
harder.
These people are from a village some twelve miles
from the works. Whole families migrate to our works,
and it is impossible under present rules to limit their
income. However much we may reduce the pay of
the two families referred to above, each will receive 7
annas 9 pies a day. Our only plan is to make the
task as hard and to get as much work as we can for
the money.
9. Turning now to the cost of the work on which
the deduction as to poor out-turn was to some extent
based, an analysis of the conditions will show what
rate we may reasonably hope to work to, and why the
cost is high.
The cost, which, as noted by his Honour, had
amounted to something like Rs. 15 per IOOO cubic feet,
included preliminary expenditure on hutting, laying
out camps, jungle clearance (a heavy item), marking
out and levelling roads, etc., etc., which of course swells
the rates largely at commencement, but less and less
as more earth-work is done. Calculating roughly while
we were there, Mr. Floyd estimated that the rate had
already fallen to something over Rs. 8 per IOOO.






A/2/2/2/V/D/X A 333
We have not got the actual figures, and it would be
well to get them put down at stated periods to test
progreSS.
The rate by contract as an ordinary work would,
as shown in paragraph 6 above, be Rs. 2-12-O for
the work now going on at the Ghaggar, and would
employ thirteen labourers with an average out-turn
of +}}0 = 77 cubic feet each, and they would earn 3
annas each. But the out-turn which the standard task
exacts is in present conditions only 33'3 cubic feet, and
the average wage of workers at the Ghaggar is I-83
annas for a full task. Therefore the cost of actual
labour when all do their full task must be 1,999 - 30
labourers at I-83 annas = 54.9 annas. To this must
be added one-sixth, or 16:25 per cent. for Sunday wages,
when no work is done, and also work charges (at present
about 3.75 per cent.), making the total 66 annas, or
Rs. 4-2-O per IOOO. The preliminary expenses will
raise this again, and we do not think that a lower rate
than Rs. 5 can be attained in existing conditions of
wage and standard task if the soil is classed as hard,
and under the conditions existing we think it must be
so classed.
The present position therefore is that, judging from
measurements, our out-turn of work is I 5 to 20 cubic
feet, instead of 30, as it ought to be, and the cost is
a little over Rs. 8 per IOOO instead of Rs. 5, which
we might hope to attain to for earth-work alone. The
position is not really so serious as the figures previously
given led his Honour to conclude.
IO. But we have all the same to try and improve
matters. We have only two ways open to us for
endeavouring to exact a full task—
(1) By making the minimum wage a real hardship,
so as to induce the labourers to work well and
so avoid being subjected to it;
(2) To increase supervision to an extent which would
make it impossible for any labourer to shirk his
work.
We do not propose to enter into detail as regards (I)
just now, though we think that as now arranged the
minimum wage has no deterrent effect on shirkers, and

334 AA’AEAV/D/X AP
that it is probable that a more effective use of this
deterrent might be made. We will confine our remarks
here to the question of supervision.
At present supervision is carried on by the following
officers and subordinates :—
Assistant Engineer. -
P. W. D. Subordinate (Upper or Lower).
Mistri.
Muharrir.
Gangsman. -
Working Mate.
The Working Mate has about a dozen to eighteen
labourers (excluding dependents) with him, and gets
nothing beyond his famine wage.
The Gangsman has about eight working parties, say
IOO to I2O labourers, and gets Rs. 6 to Rs. 8 a month.
The Mu/arrir has about three gangs, say 300 to 360
labourers, and gets Rs. IO to Rs. I5 a month.
The Mistri has from 500 to IOOO labourers to look
after.
The Public Works Department Suffordinate has a
whole camp of from IOOO to 3000 labourers.
The Assistant Engineer has four or five camps to look
after, and as work expands will have seven or eight
CampS.
As regards the Working Mate, his duties are apparently
easy. We propose as an experiment classing him higher
and giving him the usual “mate's '' allowance (3 pies) if
the task of his party is completed—this to give him a
personal interest in keeping them up to the mark.
The Gangsman has custody of the muster-roll and
is responsible for tools. He can assist to some extent
in enforcing tasks, but his influence is not very great.
The Muharrir is a writer merely, and has enough to do
in taking musters and checking rolls.
The Mistri cannot combine much supervision over
individual workers or gangs with his proper duties of
seeing to levels, correct slopes, lines, etc., but he can
assist to some extent.
The Sub-Overseer has to lay out and measure up the
work. This he can do for 2000 labourers, and they
have about 2000 each to look after, but he can only go
-
AAE/2EAV/D/X AP 335
over the ground two or perhaps three times a day, and
he cannot be made responsible for seeing that every
man works.
To obtain supervision so close as to ensure that no
one shall shirk, the responsibility of doing this should
rest on a single official, who will remain all day long
with the workers. He will have largely to rely on
personal influence for effecting his purpose. Fines are
already inflicted as far as the minimum wage permits.
He cannot beat the labourers; he cannot turn them off;
and if they are recalcitrant he must use the powers given
under Sections 135 and I 38. The best plan would
probably be to put on an additional official (Náib
Tahsildar by preference) over each thousand labourers,
whose sole duty shall be to stir up the idle and see that
full baskets are carried. If this official were paid Rs. 60
a month it would amount to less than 2 per cent. On the
pay of the workers. The experiment might be tried.
II. We now come to the other point which his Honour
noticed, namely, that the payment of labour is not
sufficiently supervised.
The payments at present are made by cashiers, who
get from Rs. 35 to Rs. 40 a month, and furnish a security
of Rs. IOOO." They pay on the nominal rolls as pre-
pared by the Muharrirs the amounts which are certified
to by the Sub-Overseer, who checks them by his measure-
ments, and notes fines for short work.
The Sub-Overseer has nothing to do with payment,
and the cashier has nothing to do with fixing the amount.
We received no complaints of short payment from the
work-people, but it is of course possible for collusion to
occur, and if we could obtain the services of Tahsildars
in sufficient numbers,” no doubt it would be a good
guarantee against malpractices.
But perhaps this may not be found possible, and if
So, we would suggest as the next best practical way of
gaining our object, that if the official (Náib Tahsildar)
1 In the North-Western Provinces and Central Provinces it seems
that the payments are made by Gang Muharrirs on Rs. 15 to Rs. 20
a month with no special supervision.
* One cashier or disburser is required for every 2000 or 3000
people. - º -


336 APPENDIX A
suggested above is entertained he should undertake
supervision of payments also. He must not, however,
be made responsible for accounts, but merely for watching
the payments made. This he could do supposing pay-
ments were made once a week (paying one-sixth, or 166
labourers each day), without unduly interfering with his
duty of looking after idlers.
On the basis proposed the cost of subordinate
supervision would be for IOOO labourers—
Rs.
I Naíb Tahsildar, say --- --- --- --- 6o
º, Cashier --- --- --- --- --- 2O
3 Muharrirs ... --- --- --- --- --- 4O
IO Gangsmen ... --- --- --- --- --- 7o
I Mistri --- --- --- --- --- --- I2
| Sub-Overseer --- --- --- --- --- 3O
Total ... 232
or 4.3 per cent, on the wages; but in addition to this
there would be horse allowance to the Cashier and Sub-
Overseer, and share of medical, sanitary, and other
miscellaneous establishment, and also of all the superior
staff. -
J. S. BERESFORD.
G. F. L. MARSHALL.
To His Hoſzowſ the /Zez//e72&72?-Governor.
P.S.—Regarding the apparent inefficiency of the
present minimum wage as a deterrent to labourers
shirking their task, we think that the power conferred
by the last clause of Sections I 35 and I 38 of the Famine
Code might be applied more generally than is the case
at present. It is believed that the power is seldom
exercised, owing perhaps to a doubt as to the meaning
of the word “temporarily,” and as to the extent to which
the reduction of wage may be carried ; but these are
matters which must necessarily be left to the discretion
of the officers on the spot, who will doubtless remember
the necessity for caution when approaching the limit of
what is needed to keep the labourer in health and
condition.
J. S. BERESFORD.
G. F. L. MARSHALL.
-



AAE/2EAVZ)/X P 337
-
Second P.S. by Mr. Beresford—Regarding the extent --- -
of the reduction, I think the reduction may be in the pro-
portion which the penal ration of Section 17O bears to -
the minimum ration given in Section 167.' Omitting
ghi, condiments and vegetables, these rations are as
follows—
Mirzāmzz//z Raſzom-
Mań. Wo/zazz. , º
Flour --- --- --- I6 oz. I4 OZ.
Pulse --- --- --- 2 3, 2 3,
Total ... I8 oz. I6 oz.
Pema/A’afºon—
Flour --- --- --- I4 OZ. I2 OZ.
Pulse --- --- --- I ; I 33
Total ... 15 oz. 13 oz.
In round numbers, I think we may safely say the ſema!
is one-sixth less than the minimum ration. The average
pay earned at present on the Ghaggar Works is I-83
annas. But a great many receive I'5, or I anna 6 pies,
and in their case 3 pies would be the correct reduction
to make, reducing their pay to I anna 3 pies. In fact,
the “penal wage,” as I may call it, might be taken all
round as 3 pies less than the minimum wage laid down.
There is no time to treat each case fully on its own
merits in practice, and a rough-and-ready rule is necessary
—one that is not too oppressive.
The definition of “temporarily’ and “for a time * -
might be limited to a period of not more than say three
days in a week, or some such limit. º
J. S. B.
* Section 138 states that payment may be made for a time in
proportion to work done. I don’t think this is acted on in practice.
in sº
** -º - Cº. /
S `
º
-
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GLOSSARY OF INDIAN TERMS
A/rit.
Aaſra -
Aakshees/ .
Aarzdoffusſ.
Aarzizzas
Ahºga
Ahoosa
Az/a/Z 7% of
Aſſoãach?
Aoſac/.2%/azza.
Azggſa
Ay/e ,
Chazºoy
Chaff/2.
Choſjaaz-
Choſa /hagy-Z
C/22/da/a/.
Chatfffat? .
Chºrassie
Z)2//ia72//ia72&
Z)2.7%az" -
Gadż -
Garriſ Zogite Ae-Khazza
Garrió logite
Ghazzº
G/.2/26/2
Goffra.
Guff .
Gzzzzzz
Aſa/#72
Aſaſh?
Aſoo/izzyz
Huzoor
ſhi/s .
self-esteem, honour
native clerk -
gratuity, tip -
plan, arrangement -
native shop-keepers, grain-sellers, a distinctive
Caste
an Indian Square measure, about ; acre
bran
English bread
cook
cook-room
a native coasting craft
bullock
native bedstead
native earthen pot
Gold or Silver-Stick-in-Waiting
little breakfast, or early roll and coffee
shawl or blanket -
a wheaten cake
attendant, to go messages, etc.
eating-place
a state meeting of the officials
throne
poor folks' place, poor-house
poor people, lit. quiet or tame folk
lit. a step, then pass over hills
large copper or brass vessel
silly, distracted
gossip
ascetic, anchorite
doctor
elephant
orders
Lord protector of the poor, a title of respect
employed by natives in addressing a sahib
tanks, or Swampy marshes

.
34o G/OSSAAC V. O/P ſy/)/AAW TEAC/S
Azāz- - - ... unbeliever .
A arãoozz . - ... clerk
A hazóðar . . . news, information
A haza/ - * * * slope, declivity, precipice \
Aïss . - . . . land revenue, assessment
Aozz/ºazz . - , the lowlands opposed to the high table-lands
Zac . - - . IOO,OOO
Moof . - - ... the proceeds of robbery, the spoil
AZahoztá . - ... elephant driver -
Manda/ . - ... shed
Mazzyaz’,”z . - ... money-lender -
AVºz//a/. . - ... a ravine -
Aazzch - - ... a council of five
Aarz-suftarø - ... betel-leaf which the natives chew; always handed
º round at native state ceremonies -
Aazzwarz . . . ... head-man of village |
Aucca . - ... lit. cooked opposed to raw ; solid as opposed to -
cutcha ; a pucca house means a stone or ma-
sonry house; a pucca road, a metalled road
Puggaree . - ... turban
A'esaz. - - . . a wadded quilt
Sazz- . - - . commission, or toll
Seraz . - - ... a rest-house for native travellers; cf. caravansera.
Shzāazz - - ... hunt
S/.2%azz . - ... hunter
Sz7-car - - ... ruler *
7ahsildar . - . native head officer of a tahsil or circle
7%zāazyż . - ... money advance to peasants by Government for
land improvements -
ſa/ºt/#a . - ... sub-district or circle
Tayza sha . - a spectacle, exhibition - - -
Zºccagharry - ... a hired vehicle, used in Bombay for the victorias
plying for hire
Zºffºrz - - luncheon
Zoo/au/z . - oppression, tyranny
Zuböerdustie . ... high-handedness
-






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