FIFTY YEARS OF RULE IN INDIA.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXiX, Issue 7729, 24 February 1909, Page 4

FIFTY YEARS OF RULE IN INDIA.

A RETROSPECT.

(By Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Donald Kobortson, m London Daily Mail.) Throe centuries have gone by since an Envoy to India m Queen Elizabeth's reign was instrumental m laying the foundations of A colossal commercial enterprise which, after many viH^ii •; If-,lf-, v.a- 1; destined to become, under i: :i ::i::o t,i the East India Company, the civilising and conquer- 1 ing agency of a great country. Its poTiey was* eminently and persistently pacific, devoid of all notions of conquest, yet the irrestible force of events was such that, as one of the prominent rival and contending powers m Hindustan, the company was forced to engage m wars and to embark, m selfdefence, on conquests which m the course of time consolidated an Eastern Empire and gave to the entire continent the blessings of the "Pax Britannica." Ultimately the time arrived after the great Mutiny, during which the structure raised at so great an expenditure of blood and money tottered and was only saved from collapse by! the heroism of our European and Indian troops —when it was inevitable that the reins of authority should be taken up by the Crown, and November 2 marked the anniversary of tho ] supreme act of State rendering India n groat Dependency, m the conduct cf whose affairs the imperial idea was henceforth to prevail. QUEEN VICTORIA'S DESIItE. We know liow Queen Victoria earnestly desired that the Proclamation issued m 1358 should—to use her own words —"breathe feelings of generosity, benevolence, and religious toleration, and point out the privileges which the Indians will receive m being placed on an equality with the subjects of the British Crown." We also know how thoroughly Lord Derby gave effect to her Majesty's gracious sentiments; and that a keen controversy has unfortunately raged around the clause of the Proclamation which deals, m a somewhat guarded manner, with promises of employment "as far as may be" to "our subjects of whatever race or creed." Them were two courses open to us —cither to court popularity by admitting to office those m whom a capacity for public work has as yet imperfectly developed, or to be satisfied with nothing below the highest level of efficiency. We have deliberately—we believe for the advantage of India as represented by the many millions whose voices are never heard—adopted the latter course. The standard of our work continues high, and, so far as the rigidity of of the system allows, is questionably sympathetic; but the discontent of the Intellectuals is pronounced, and there is some prospect oi this feeling spreading among the masses —so that we must carefully estimate the position, make any reasonable concessions that will not exhibit weakness, and determine how far our machinery mnv become more elastic without unduly sacrificing efficiency. Fifty years'is not a long period m the history of a country, yet an exhaustive comparison between the India of to-day and its position immediately before the Mntinv would be a formidihlo task and of interest only to the student or statistician. RAILWAY DEVELOPMENT. Tn 1857 railways were represented by two or three short lines, the three Presidency towns could only be reached by sea or' by a tiresome land journey. There are now over 30,000 miles of railway. Similar remarks regarding imperfect communications apply, with the noted exception "of the "Grand Trunk." to internal roads. Law and order were imperfectly established, whereas now India is as safe to travel m as any European country. Education was then making faint progress, and though the spread of elementary instruction has been somewhat disappointing, no one can say that higher education has languished—some, indeed, think it would have been better lor the country had the flood-gates been let down occasionally. In irrigation, from one re-cently-made canal probably more land is now watered than was comprised m the whole irrigation schemes of India. Apart from projects which we have either encouraged or assisted with loans, twenty million acres of arid waste or dry cultivation have been turned into rich crop-bearing fields by direct Government measures. Regular famine protection and . the admirable system of dealing with these visitations which now exist were hardly attempted. The revenue system was not based on the moderation and simplicity which are now its prevailing characteristics. Our total realisations have certainly largely increased, but this is owing to the great extent of cultivation—not, as is sometimes asserted, to higher rates. As for trade, the aggregate of imports and exports has increased four-fold, and stands at a figure which would have staggered the Honourable Court of Directors. No impartial person who follows the course of Indian affairs can fail to recognise that the requirements of a progressive administration have been, so far as was practicable, carefully studied, and that we have succeeded m establishing a record out there which is at once the envy and admiration of the whole civilised world. It would, of jcourse, be unduly optimistic to claim that no mistakes have been made, or to deny that there is still much to be done m dealing with the affairs of a country which, it is said, advances so rapidly that an official, however experienced., after a few years' absence loses touch with the real position of events. But wo may confi- | dently assort that India, has m her service a thoroughly capable and devoted band of workers tinder whose direction —provided the initiative and conduct j of business are not unduly restricted by interference from England—the experience hitherto gained will be turned to the best possible account. THE NATIVE PRINCES. No mention has as yet been made of Ihe native chiefs—the pillars of the Empire. Forty-six years ago the perpetual succession of their dynasties was affirmed by a formal pronouncement which made it quite clear that.i we had for ever renounced any idea of annexation. Numerous incidents could be cited to prove that, conic what may, even if the rule of any chief should be indifferent or worse, though personally he might be called to account, his chief ship would still remain intact. The policy of the Indian Foreign Office now is to interfere as little as may be consistent with securing moderately good chief's —indeed, it may be saia that practically independence for the more important States has become general, since the powers vested m the chiefs—to whom Lord Curzon gracefully referred as his colleagues—are exercised with ever-increasing enlightenment and moderation. ! It would, be invidious to mention specially any ruler of native States who display conspicuous administrative talent; some there certainly are whose methods we could copy with advantage. As the hereditary leaders of the people they start not only with a more intimate knowledge of the inner working of the Oriental mind than we are privileged to obtain, but additionally have the social prestige which counts for so much m the East. The loyalty of the chiefs to the Crown is beyond question. Since the Proclamation of 1808 vari- ! ous events have tended to cement the feeling of loyalty to authority which is ingrained m the hearts of an Eastern people. The visit of the present King- ' Emperor to India, when Prince of Wales, m 137;"), the subsequent tour of his son, and the Indian service of the Duke of Connaught—all those have brought about personal relations between our Royal House and that country which had, m the minds of the bulk of the population, existed merely! m the abstract, while the assumption of the title of Envoress of India m 1877, combined with the admirably though-out and conducted ceremonial of the Coronation Durbar m 1903, gave ocular demonstration to the conception of a consolidated Empire whose ruler, even at a distance, rould bestow tangible proofs of imperial power and clemency. The readiness with which the Indians recently laid aside for Ihe moment all ' nolitical strife to pay homage, to tinl heir to the throne was both remarkable | and satisfactory, as showing that the feelings of heredity veneration to the ruler are still alive and capable of boing made to play their part m the field of good government. The brightest jewel m the Crown of England is as brilliant as ever, and only requires a slierht alteration m the setting.