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 Kennedy, James. 
 Life and work in Benares an 
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 LIGHT IN LANDS OF DARKNESS: 
 
 A Record of Mission Work in Greenland, Labrador, 
 Egypt, South America, Syria, Armenia, Persia, &c, &c. 
 
 By ROBERT YOUNG, Author of "Modern Missions." 
 
 With an Introduction by the Right Hon. the EARL of 
 
 SHAFTESBURY. 
 
 Illustrated. Second Edition. Crozuu 8vo, cloth extra, 6s. 
 
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 prize — nothing less — because they are at once enthusiastic, impartial, and dis- 
 criminating."— British Quarterly Review. 
 
 "A general text-book it might be called, only the skeleton is clothed with 
 flesh, and the flesh thrills with life. The very simplicity of the narrative makes 
 it the more effective. And such as like a bone to pick can have it to their heart's 
 delight in statistical tables that condense information to the utmost." — Freeman. 
 
 " It is a noble book, the product of much loving care and large acquaintance 
 with the subject."— North British Daily Mail. 
 
 MODERN MISSIONS : 
 
 Their Trials and Triumphs. 
 
 By ROBERT YOUNG, Assistant Secretary to the Missions of 
 
 the Free Church of Scotland. 
 
 With many Illustrations and a Mission Map. 
 
 Third Edition. Crozun 8vo, cloth extra, 5s. 
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 supposed to have access." — Leeds Mercury. 
 
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 With Portraits and Illustrations. 
 
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 " An extremely interesting book. The reader need not be afraid of falling into 
 
 beaten tracks here."— The Guardian. 
 
 "A collection of sketches from the practised pen of Dr. Japp, of men who 
 have rendered good service to their race. All are graphic and very interesting." 
 — Nonconforniist. 
 
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LIFE AND WORK 
 
 IX 
 
 BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 1 839- 1 877 
 
 JAMES KENNEDY, M.A. 
 
 Late Missionary of the London Missionary Society, Author of " Christianity 
 and the Religions of India,''' &c. 
 
 WITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTE 
 
 BY 
 
 SIR WILLIAM MUIR, K.C.S.I, LL.D., D.C.L. 
 
 Late Lieutenant-Governor North-Western Provinces of India 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
 T FISHER UNWIN 
 
 26 PATERNOSTER SQUARE E.C. 
 
 1884 
 
PREFACE 
 
 THE history of this volume can be given in a few 
 words. Months ago I said to a beloved relative 
 that during the greater part of my life I had more to do 
 than I could well accomplish, and that now, with health 
 and strength in a measure restored, I sometimes thought 
 I had not enough to do. He said : " Why not write the 
 reminiscences of your Indian life ? " The counsel struck 
 me as good, and I have acted on it. 
 
 My theme has not the advantage of novelty : I cannot 
 tell of a new country explored, and a new people brought 
 within the knowledge of the world ; but it has the advan- 
 tage of greatness and variety. I am not aware that any 
 book on Indian Missions has achieved signal success. I 
 do not think, however, a single one has been written in 
 vain. That must have been a singularly poor book on 
 so great a subject which has not had something in it 
 fitted to interest and inform readers. That must have 
 been a very solitary, lonely missionary, who has had no 
 friends ready to listen to what he has had to say. These 
 books may have received little general attention ; but 
 here and there, as the result of their perusal, there has 
 been a more intelligent apprehension of our work, deeper 
 sympathy with us, and heartier support rendered to us. 
 I have ventured to add a volume to those already pub- 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 lished in the hope that it may do some good before it 
 passes into the oblivion which necessarily awaits most of 
 the productions of the press. 
 
 A glance at the contents of this volume will show it 
 takes up a number of subjects, some of which are merely 
 touched in most books on Missions, and others not at 
 all. Reminiscences, especially when they spread over 
 many years, and embrace great events, admit of very 
 discursive treatment. They leave the writer unfettered 
 to take up any subject within his wide scope which he 
 may deem fitted to interest his readers. I have allowed 
 myself the freedom thus afforded me. My aim has been 
 to take my readers with me to our Indian home, to see 
 us at our work, to hear us conversing with the people, to 
 accompany us on our journeys, to surround them in 
 thought with our surroundings, so that they may realize 
 our position, trials, difficulties, and joys. I have through- 
 out maintained the standpoint of one whose Indian life 
 has been devoted to Mission work. My two spheres of 
 labour — Benares during the greater part of my course, 
 and Ranee Khet, in the Hill Province of Kumaon, in 
 later years — have come in for extended remark. 
 
 My attention has not, however, been confined to 
 Missions. I have endeavoured to write as one interested 
 in everything which ought to interest a resident in the 
 land. I have given some account of the climate, aspect 
 of the country, condition and character of the people, 
 changes which have taken place, modes of travelling, 
 and the British Government. I have again and again 
 travelled in the North-West, and some account of these 
 journeys has been given. On one occasion I spent the 
 greater part of two months in Ceylon, and to that beau- 
 tiful island a chapter is devoted. 
 
PREFACE. ix 
 
 I have recorded at some length my experiences of the 
 Indian Mutiny of 1857. No one who was in that terrible 
 storm can ever forget it ; and the European inhabitants 
 of Benares at that time have special reason for thankful- 
 ness for their marvellous escape. 
 
 I have found it convenient to follow, as a rule, the 
 chronological order, but I have not kept closely to it. 
 When recording the more remote past, the nearer past 
 has been continually coming into view, and the contrast 
 has found expression. 
 
 Indian names are written as ordinary English readers 
 would pronounce them, in preference to using the 
 diacritical marks with which I have been long familiar in 
 the writing of Hindustanee in the Roman character. The 
 term " Hindu " is so established that I have used it in 
 preference to " Hindoo." 
 
 At the end of this book the reader will find statistics 
 fraught with interest to all who wish to understand the 
 great Indian problem in its many aspects. 
 
 It is impossible to keep one's self out of view in a work 
 like this ; but I hope the candid reader will give me 
 credit for saying as little of myself, family, and doings 
 as is compatible with the conditions under which I have 
 written. 
 
 I beg to dedicate this book to the friends of Christian 
 Missions, in the hope it may increase the interest of some 
 in that great Continent, with its teeming population, which 
 has in God's providence come under the rule of our land, 
 and has special claims on our prayers, sympathy, and 
 efforts. I cannot doubt that my Indian friends, both 
 those who have come back to England and those who 
 are still in India, will give a kindly reception to the 
 volume. They will, I believe, confirm the general accu- 
 
x PREFACE. 
 
 racy of my statements, and to a large extent acquiesce in 
 my views. With them so long as my heart beats it will 
 go forth in heartiest wishes and fervent prayer for the 
 land with which our past has so inseparably bound us. 
 
 J K. 
 
 Acton, August, 1884. 
 
/' 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 From 1838 to 1839. Voyage to India and the City of Palaces. 
 
 Voyage. First Impressions of Calcutta. Changes since 1839. 
 Messrs. Piffard and Lacroix. Schools. Visit to Seram- 
 pore ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Voyage to Benares — March, 1839. 
 
 Various Modes of Travelling. The Sunderbuns. Fellow- 
 passengers. Storm. Study of Hindustanee. Scenes 
 on the River and its Banks ... ... ... ... 9 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Arrival at Benares. 
 
 The Rev. William Smith. Congregation of Beggars. The 
 
 Rev. W. P. Lyon. Native Service. Settling down ... 15 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Missions in Benares from 1816 to 1839. 
 
 The Baptists first in the Field. Eurasian Agents. The 
 Church Mission. London Mission. Orphanage of the 
 Church Mission 20 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 1839 and 1840. First Year in Benares. 
 
 Views Enlarged and Modified. Study of Hindustanee. 
 Undue Complacency. Study of the Native Character. 
 Evangelistic Work ... ... ... •• • • • • • • • 2 7 
 
xii CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 First Year in Benares {continued). 
 
 Class-feeling among Europeans. Eurasians. Climate in the 
 North-west Provinces. Variety of Scenery and Climate 
 in India. Experience of Climate during First Year. 
 The Sufferings of Poor Natives in Winter. Home- 
 sickness ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 34 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 The City of Benares. 
 
 Sherring's "Sacred City of the Hindus." Residents and Visitors. 
 Commerce. Antiquity. Gautam's Ministry in the Sixth 
 Century B.C. The Success of Buddhism. Its Over- 
 throw. The Devotion of the City to Shiva. Muham- 
 madans. A Trip on the River. The Principal Temple. 
 Heathen Temples and Roman Worship. The Mosque 
 of Aurungzeb. The Present City Modern. Beggars. 
 Macaulay's Description of Benares 49 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Benares as a Jllission Sphere. 
 
 Hostility to the Gospel. Apostolic Labour in Great Cities. 
 Robert Haldane's Project. Benares brought under 
 British Rule in 1781. The Door opened for the Gospel. 
 Bishop Heber. Benares as a Centre of Mission Work... 77 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Second Year in Benares. 
 
 Marriage. The Vicissitudes of Indian Life. Celibate Mis- 
 sionaries. Different Departments of Work ... ... 88 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Religions Gatherings of the Hindus. 
 
 Their Saturnalia. The Play of Ram. The Eclipse of the 
 Moon. Mela at Allahabad. The Peculiarities of a 
 Hindu Gathering. Sanitary Precautions. Cholera. 
 Ascetics. Influence of Melas in strengthening Hinduism. 94. 
 
CONTENTS. xiii 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 The Object of Christian Missions. 
 
 Necessity for Different Modes of Action. Preaching. Ques- 
 tions, Objections, and Replies. Polytheism and Pan- 
 theism. Muhammadan Hearers ... ... ... ... 108 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Mission Schools. 
 
 Primary Schools. Secondary Schools. College Department. 
 Indian Universities. The Danger of Christian Instruc- 
 tion being, thrust aside. The Value of Higher Schools 
 in a Missionary Aspect. Conversion. Public Opinion. 124 
 
 CHAPTER XIII, 
 
 Orphanages. 
 
 Pressing Need in 1837 and 1838. Sanguine Hopes. Diffi- 
 culties. Advantages. Native Agents obtained. The 
 General Result ... ... ... ... ... ... 135 
 
 CHAPTER NIV. 
 
 Mission Tours. 
 
 Voyaging on the Ganges. Trust in Ganges Water. Serpents. 
 Journey to Agra at the end of 1842. Tents. The Ap- 
 pearance of the Country. Roads and Groves. Walled 
 Villages. Traffic. Immunity from Thieves. Kindness 
 from Missionaries. Agra. Evangelistic Work. Kunauj. 
 An Interesting Inquirer. New Mission Church in 
 Benares. Tour to Kumaon in 1847. Journeying 
 Troubles. Return by Meerut and Delhi 145 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 From 1847 to 1857. 
 
 Work at Benares. Voyage to England in 1850. Return to 
 India in 1853. Calcutta to Benares. From 1854 to 
 1857. Increase of Native Christian Congregation. 
 Mission Tours. Visit to the Fort of Rohtas in February, 
 1857. Biblical Examination. Missionary Conference... 168 
 
xiv CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 The Mutiny, 1857 and 1858. 
 
 Causes. Peculiarity of our Position. The Native Army. 
 Grievances alleged. Dissatisfaction outside the Army. 
 Threatenings of the Storm. The Cartridges. Outbreak 
 and Progress of the Mutiny. Berhampore and Barrack- 
 pore. Meerut ... ... ... ... ... ... 174 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 The Mutiny {continued). 
 
 The Christian Community at Benares. The Fanaticism of 
 the City. Precautions. The Fourth of June. Mutiny 
 of the Native Regiments. Flight to the Ganges. 
 Escorted to the Mint. Retribution. The Panic of 
 July 6. At the Mint on Sunday Night, July 5. Mar- 
 riage of a Native Couple. Alarm and Panic. Strange 
 Bed-fellows. After the Panic. Family left for Calcutta 
 and England. From July to December. Lucknow. 
 Mud Fort. The Steadfastness of Native Christians. 
 India in 1857 and Egypt in 1882. Visit to Allahabad. 
 Desolation. The Kindness of English Officials ... 185 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Visit to Ceylon— 1858 and 1859. 
 
 Galle, Colombo, and Kandy. The Cocoanut Palm. The 
 Cinnamon Gardens. Coffee Plantations. Perpetual 
 Summer. Visit to Newera Ellia. The Christian Zeal 
 of the Dutch. Great Outward Success. Collapse. 
 Missions. Buddhist Temples 205 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 From 1859 to 186S. 
 
 Work at Benares. Increased Attention to the European 
 Population. Visit to Cities in the North-West. Allaha- 
 bad. Cawnpore. Lucknow. Incident on the Ganges. 
 Visit to Delhi in 1861 on our Way to Kumaon. Visit to 
 England, Return to India, and Appointment to Kumaon 213 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 From 1868 to 1877. Kumaon. 
 
 Its Scenery and Products. A Sub- Himalayan Region. 
 Scenery, Climate, and Products. New Products. Tea. 
 
CONTENTS. xv 
 
 Inhabitants, Hindus and Doms. Gods and Temples. 
 Local Gods. Demons. The Character of the People. 
 Want of Cleanliness. The Plague. History. Native 
 Dynasties. The British Rule. Progress. Tea Planting. 
 The Irrigation of the Bhabhur. Wild Beasts. Treaty 
 with the Ghoorkhas. Modes of Travelling. Journey 
 to the Pindaree Glacier 232 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Almora Mission. 
 
 Schools. Female Education. The Leper Asylum. English 
 
 Preaching 252 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Ranee Khet. 
 
 Schools. Wooden House. Rain and Rats. Pioneer Work. 
 The Erection of Buildings. Work among the English. 
 Among Natives. Educated Young Men. Doms. 
 Night School. Itineracy. A Hill Mela. Bageswar ... 260 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Habits and Condition of the Hill People. 
 
 Sanitary Regulations. Yearly Visit to Nynee Tal. The 
 Missions of the American Episcopal Methodist Church. 
 Retirement from the Indian Mission-field. Helpful 
 Friends. Return to England ... ... ... ... 279 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 The Missionary in India. 
 
 Extent and Variety of the Indian Field. The Greatness of 
 the Missionary Office. The Contrast between Ministerial 
 and Missionary Work. The Relations of Missionaries 
 to each other, to their respective Societies, and to Mis- 
 sionaries of other Societies. Their Relation to Euro- 
 peans ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 289 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 The Missionary in India {continued). 
 
 The Mode of Living required by the Climate. Missionary 
 Theology. The Radical Opposition of the Gospel to 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Heathenism. The Example of our Lord and His 
 Apostles. Hindu and Buddhist Views of the Future. 
 The Doctrine by which Mission Success has been 
 achieved. The Necessity of Sin being considered in 
 the adjustment of Doctrine. In Memoriam 297 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Native Christians. 
 
 Syrian Christians. The Descendants of Xavier's Converts. 
 The Shanars in Travancore and Tinnevelly. The Hills 
 of Central and Eastern India. The Kols and Santhals. 
 Bengal. Krishnaghur and Backergunje. The Presidency 
 Cities. The Social and Educational Standing of the 
 Converts. Northern India. The Drummers in Native 
 Regiments. The Waifs of Society. Pride in the Chris- 
 tian Name. Orphans and their Descendants. Converts 
 of our Missions. Baptism sought from Wrong Motives. 307 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Native Christians {continued). 
 
 Unworthy Members. The Sacrifices made by Converts. 
 Difficulty in Forming a Right Estimate of a Community. 
 The General Character of our Native Christians. The 
 Ordeal of 1857. The Christian Constancy of our People. 
 Their Loyalty. Their Bearing in Joy and Sorrow. 
 "Everywhere spoken against." Most Europeans have 
 no Sympathy with us. Unfair to judge by Individuals. 
 The Support of Native Christians. Different Occupa- 
 tions. Native Christian Contributions. The Compound 
 System ... ... ... ... ... ... ••• 3 I 5 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 The People among whom we labour — Muhammadans. 
 
 A Large Muhammadan Population. Variety in Position, 
 Culture, and Character. The Quran and the Bible. 
 Licentiousness of Muhammadans, Hindus, and So- 
 called Christians. The Estimable Character of some 
 Muhammadans. Muhammadan Opposition to the 
 Gospel. Its Opposition to Idolatry. Proselytes to Islam. 
 The Relation of Muhammadans and Hindus to each 
 other. Hindu Home-life. Muhammadan Reformers 329 
 
CONTENTS. xvii 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Hindus. 
 
 Pantheism, Polytheism, and Idolatry, and their Demo- 
 ralizing Tendency. Counteracting Influences. Con- 
 tradictory Views of Hindu Character. Professor Max 
 Muller. Sir Thomas Munro. Sir Charles Trevelyan. 
 
 The Caste System. Its Ramifications and Effects. 
 Its Baneful Influence. Its Incidental Benefits. The 
 Patriarchal System. In the Presidency Cities Caste 
 greatly weakened. Weakening Tendencies all over 
 India. 
 
 The Brahmists. Brahmism and the Gospel. Brahm- 
 ist Divisions. Successive Hindu Reformers. 
 
 Girls' Schools and Female Missions. Access to Hindu 
 Families. Lady Physicians. Great Importance of 
 Zenana Missions. Behind the Curtain. The Freedom 
 of Women in Humble Life. The Influence of Women 
 in India. 
 
 Mission Prospects. Difficulty in gauging Success. 
 Hurtful Influence of English Infidel Literature. The 
 Strength of Family and Social Ties. Instance. The 
 Vast Extent of the Field. Pagaui, Villagers, synonymous 
 with Heathen. 
 
 Help given in India for the Solution of Great Qttestions. 
 I. The Immobility of the Eastern Mind. 2. The Genesis 
 and Evolution of Religion. 3. Comparative Religion. 
 4. The Migration of Nations ^28 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Europeans in India. 
 
 No Sphere in India for European Colonization. The Climate. 
 The Land occupied. India Presents a Wide Field for 
 European Agency. The Difference between Europeans 
 and Natives. India never called " Home " by Euro- 
 peans. Highly Educated Natives. Native Gentlemen. 
 Natives in Subordinate and Menial Positions. The 
 Position of Europeans changed. Advantages and Dis- 
 advantages. Improved Condition of European Society. 
 The Effect on Europeans of Home Literature. Increased 
 Effort for the Spiritual Good of Europeans and Eurasians 357 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 The Government of India. 
 
 Our Right to Govern India. We went as Traders, and were 
 led by Circumstances to fight. The Conduct of the 
 IA 
 
Li CONTENTS. 
 
 Native Powers. The Marquess of Hastings. Not al- 
 lowed to remain at Peace. Our Comparative Faithful- 
 ness to Engagements. The Condition in which we found 
 India. The Muhammadan Empire. Civil Wars. In- 
 vasions. The Dissohition of the Empire. Adventurers. 
 No Elements of Stable Government. The Effect of 
 British Rule. 
 
 The Greatness of the Work entrusted to us. Character 
 of our Administrators. Responsibility elicits Capacity. 
 District Officers. Strict Supervision exercised over 
 them. The Evils springing from the Institution of 
 Courts. Runjeet Singh's Plan. The Evils Incident to 
 Civilization. 
 
 Regulation and Non- Regulation Provinces. The 
 Taxation Heavy. Regular Payments. The Land-Tax 
 is the Land-Rent. The Native Army. The European 
 Army. Civil Officials in the Mutiny. Inadvisability 
 of Bengalees holding the Highest Offices. 
 
 In India we have Different Nations. Bengalees 
 Strangers in the North-West. The Preference given to 
 English as Rulers. Trust in our Justice. The Large 
 Pay of High Officials cannot be justly or wisely re- 
 duced. Opinion of Natives as Litigants. 
 
 The People Mainly Agricultural. Poverty. Increase 
 of Population. Sturdy Beggars. Lending and Borrow- 
 ing. Debt Hereditary. Marriage Expenses. 
 
 Incidence of Taxation. Municipal Institutions and 
 Local Government. Improvement of Cities during Late 
 Years. 
 
 Our Government no Unmixed Blessing. Unjust 
 Charges and Incorrect Statements. 
 
 From whom is Improvement to be hoped? From no 
 Class so much as from Indian Officials. The ' ' Gazetteer " 
 of India. Importance of Information being made Ac- 
 cessible to the English People. 
 
 The best Conceivable Government for India. The 
 best Practicable Government. 
 
 The Future of India. Antagonistic Elements. The 
 Order secured by the Army. The Greatness of our 
 Responsibility. Good Government Favourable to Evan- 
 gelization 365 
 
 Statistics 391 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 UNION CHURCH, ranee khet Frontispiece 
 
 BATHING GHAT, BENARES 48 
 
 A JEWELLER AT WORK 53 
 
 THE WELL AT CAWNPORE 219 
 
 RUINS OF THE RESIDENCY, LUCKNOW 223 
 
 THE LA MARTINIERE, LUCKNOW 227 
 
 TEMPLE IN THE HIMALAYAS 237 
 
 MISSION SCHOOL, ALMORA 253 
 
 LEPER ASYLUM, ALMORA ... 257 
 
 THE SNOWY RANGE FROM RANEE KHET 263 
 
 LANDSLIP AT NYNEE TAL 28l 
 
PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 NEITHER the author nor his book stands in need 
 of any introduction to the public. But having been 
 asked for such, I cheerfully respond. During his long 
 residence in the North-Western Provinces of India, where 
 I myself happened to reside, ample opportunities were 
 afforded me of knowing and observing the Rev. Jas. Ken- 
 nedy and his work. And I am therefore able, and glad, 
 to say that no man was ever better placed than he was 
 for gaining a thorough acquaintance with Hindustan and 
 the various races inhabiting it, during the four .decades 
 of which he treats. I have met with none whose calm 
 and sagacious judgment might more surely enable him to 
 form correct conclusions, nor whose high and scrupulous 
 principle should impart to the reader greater confidence 
 in the fair and truthful statement of them. 
 
 I regard this book as possessing a rare interest, not 
 only for the missionary student, but equally so for the 
 general reader. The amount of information it contains, 
 descriptive, social, evangelistic, and even political, is 
 astonishing; and the discursive and, in part, autobio- 
 graphical form in which it is written, renders it so easy, 
 that he who runs may read. The contrast is drawn 
 graphically, and with a light and lively pen, between the 
 
xxii PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 state of things fifty years ago and that which now prevails : 
 the exchange of slow and cumbrous means of conveyance 
 for those which enable you in these days to perform the 
 journey of weeks in, you might say, as many hours \ and 
 the not less marked advance in education and intelligence. 
 The retrospect, material as well as moral, social, and 
 religious, is useful in many ways. 
 
 But that which lends its chief value to this work is the 
 faithful picture of missionary labour — its trials and diffi- 
 culties, its results, rewards, and prospects. During the 
 considerable period brought under review, standing by,, 
 as I did, and looking carefully on, I can unhesitatingly 
 attest, as a whole, the correctness of my friend's state- 
 ments, and the reasonableness of the lessons he would 
 draw therefrom. This book should be read by every one. 
 who wishes to acquaint himself with the attitude of Chris- 
 tian agencies towards the people of India, and of these 
 towards the Gospel. There is here a fertile field of facts 
 and materials for thought. The author resorts to no 
 roseate colouring, nor any kind of varnish. Nothing is 
 unduly sanguine. All is tempered by sound judgment 
 and wise discretion. 
 
 If I may add a word from my own experience, it is 
 this — Let my fellow-countrymen and countrywomen in 
 India give their countenance to the Missionaries labouring 
 around them. They well deserve it, but too often are 
 allowed to stand alone. The loss is theirs who keep aloof, 
 and neglect the man and his work. While our people 
 are running to and fro in the busy whirl of Indian life — 
 some hasting to be rich, others engrossed in the labours of 
 administration — higher things are too frequently forgotten. 
 The spiritual life is prone to fade and droop. Many men 
 — and women as well as men — who would at home be 
 
PREFATORY NOTE. xxiii 
 
 cultivating some corner of the Master's vineyard, begin 
 to forget that similar obligations follow after them in their 
 private walk and life abroad. Against these deteriorating 
 tendencies, to mingle with the missionary band affords a 
 wholesome antidote. For myself, I can never be thankful 
 enough that in my early Indian life I found valued friends 
 in the missionary circle, not only of the highest mental 
 culture, but of a devoted Christian heart ; and was 
 privileged with their intimacy to the end. Among them 
 I cannot refrain from naming such noble Missionaries as 
 Perkins, Smith, and Leupolt, French, Stuart, Welland, and 
 Shackell, Owen, Humphrey, Budden and Watt, Hoernle, 
 and Pfander — that grand apologist to the Mahometans — 
 all of whose friendship I enjoyed, as well as that of the 
 Author himself. If some of these were men the like of 
 whom we may not soon look upon again — a galaxy of 
 rare appearance — yet, as we may learn from these pages, 
 the field is in the present day stocked even more plenti- 
 fully than ever it was before. Opportunities of cultivating 
 in this field Christian friendship — and may I not add 
 Christian work, and that for Ladies also — are happily mul- 
 tiplying all around ; and I can promise an ample reward 
 to such as make a faithful use of them. 
 
 In conclusion, I will only say that I am much mistaken 
 if this work fails to take its place as a standard book 
 of reference in every library of missionary labour and 
 Christian work abroad. 
 
 W. MUIR. 
 16th September, 1884. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 VOYAGE TO INDIA. 
 
 IN 1837 I was accepted by the London Missionary 
 Society as one of its agents. On September 15, 
 1838, I embarked at Portsmouth with thirty other pas- 
 sengers on the Duke of Bucdeugh, a vessel of 650 tons 
 burthen, and landed in Calcutta on January 19, 1839, 
 en route to Benares, to which I had been appointed. 
 The only land we sighted from Portsmouth to Saugar 
 Island was a rock in the Indian Ocean. The time we thus 
 spent at sea was four months and five days. Every now 
 and then speedier voyages were made, but a few years 
 previously this voyage would have been deemed rapid. 
 The Duke of Bucdeugh, on her next voyage to India, went 
 to pieces on a sandbank at the mouth of the Hoogly, but 
 happily the weather was moderate, and passengers and 
 crew were saved. 
 
 The route by the Cape of Good Hope has been 
 abandoned for passengers for many years, and now 
 Bombay is reached by the Straits of Gibraltar and the 
 Suez Canal in a month, sometimes in less, while another 
 week is required for the voyage to Calcutta. Those who 
 travel with the Indian mails across the Continent of 
 Europe can reach their port in less than three weeks, 
 and distant parts of India by rail in four weeks or less. 
 
2 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 All on board — officials returning to their posts, and 
 persons going out for the first time — were delighted to find 
 the voyage coming to an end; but new-comers like myself 
 were under the spell of novelty, which gave new interest 
 to everything we saw. At Kedgeree, near the mouth of 
 the Hoogly, the Post Office boat came to our ship with 
 welcome letters from friends, who were looking out for 
 our arrival. The level land on each side of the river, 
 with its rich tropical vegetation ; the numerous villages 
 on the banks, with their beehive-like huts ; the craft on 
 the river, large and small, many of them so heavily 
 laden as to bring them down almost to the water's edge ; 
 the little boats, with plantains and other fruits, which 
 tried to attach themselves to our ship in the hope of 
 getting purchasers ; the strange appearance of the people, 
 with their only covering of cloth round the middle — all 
 gave us a thrill of excitement which can be known only 
 in similar circumstances. Then, we were about to set 
 foot on the great land, of which we had read much, to 
 which we had looked with the deepest interest, and where 
 we purposed to spend our days in the service of Christ. 
 Though so many years have since elapsed, we can yet 
 vividly remember the peculiar feeling of that time. 
 
 The day before we landed, the Native agent of the 
 mercantile house to which our ship was consigned made 
 his appearance with letters and fresh supplies. To the 
 surprise of us new-comers, roast beef was on our dinner- 
 table that day. We thought it strange that in the land 
 where the cow was worshipped, beef should be one of the 
 first things brought to us. 
 
 Our missionary friends in Calcutta had heard of the 
 arrival of our ship, and arranged for our accommodation. 
 Some of them came on board when we anchored in the 
 
THE CITY OF PALACES. 3 
 
 Hoogly, off Fort William, and gave us a hearty welcome. 
 We were right glad to find ourselves on land again. 
 
 Calcutta is a hundred miles from the sea, but the 
 country is so level that the tide runs up in great strength 
 many miles beyond, and the tidal wave, which comes in 
 at certain times, is very dangerous to small craft, and 
 requires care on the part of large ships. The great trade 
 of the city is shown by the vast number of ships at 
 anchor in the river, many of them stately vessels of 
 large tonnage, of which in our day many are steamers. 
 
 On landing, a stranger gets the impression that Cal- 
 cutta is rightly called the city of palaces. On the great 
 plain adjoining the river, at some distance from each 
 other, are two notable objects — Fort William and Govern- 
 ment House. Beyond the plain lies Chovvringhee, a 
 range of lofty houses extending for more than a mile, 
 with balconies and flat roofs, giving one an impression 
 of grandeur, which is scarcely sustained when more nearly 
 seen, as that which looked at a distance like marble is found 
 to be stucco and plaster. Behind Chowringhee are a 
 number of wide streets with similar, but generally smaller 
 houses, each apart, with offices and servants' houses in 
 the enclosure. When entering the city one sees that 
 strange combination of meanness and dirt with grandeur 
 with which travellers in Eastern lands are so familiar. In 
 the neighbourhood of Government House there are a 
 number of shops in the European fashion, but a very 
 large proportion of the business of Calcutta, we suppose 
 the most of it, is carried on in bazaars, in which there 
 are no showy shops, but where there is abundance of 
 goods of every description. When we went to India, 
 and for many years afterwards, in front of these shops 
 were open sewers, over which customers had to pass on 
 
4 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 slabs of stone. Amidst houses for Europeans, even in 
 the most aristocratic part of the city, were native houses 
 of every description, many of them miserable grass huts. 
 
 Since the time of which I speak, some forty-five years 
 ago, Calcutta has been greatly improved. It has been 
 drained, supplied with good water, instead of being 
 dependent on great open tanks, to which all had access, 
 which no arrangement could keep tolerably pure, and is 
 lit with gas. Open sewers are no longer to be seen, and 
 from the best parts of the city many native houses have 
 disappeared. The changes effected must conduce im- 
 mensely to the health and comfort of the inhabitants. 
 There is no part of India, we suppose, free from the 
 plague of the musquito, but in all my Indian life I have 
 not been so much tormented in any place by it as I have 
 been in Calcutta. It adds insult to injury. If it would 
 only bite, sharp though its bite be, one could put up with 
 it ; but before it bites, and after, it goes on buzzing, as if 
 mocking you, and evades every attempt to catch it. The 
 last time we were there musquitoes were comparatively 
 few, and they seemed to have lost much of their former 
 mischievous vigour. We suppose the improved sanitary 
 arrangements have not agreed with them. 
 
 When in Calcutta everything reminded us that we had 
 left our own country behind, though not all our own 
 people. We saw them on every side, but they were a 
 mere handful in the midst of a strange people in a strange 
 land, where man and nature presented entirely new 
 aspects. The look of the people, the exceedingly scanty 
 dress of the labouring class, and the long flowing robes 
 of those in better circumstances, the marks on the fore- 
 heads and arms of the Hindus, showing the gods whose 
 worshippers they were, their processions with noisy, un- 
 
THE CITY OF PALACES. 5 
 
 musical music, the public buildings of the people, the 
 mosques of the Muhammadans, and the temples of the 
 Hindus, with a church here and there to show that 
 Christianity had also its shrines — all brought to our view 
 characteristics of the great land on winch we had entered. 
 Bombay, since the opening of the Suez Canal, has made 
 progress which somewhat affects the pre-eminence of 
 Calcutta among the cities of India, but it still remains 
 the capital of British India — I ought rather to say of 
 India — and its position will continue to make it, what it 
 has been in the past, a vast emporium of commerce, the 
 abode of a great population, and a place of most stirring 
 activity. It continues to be the resort of persons of 
 every civilized, and almost every semi civilized, nation on 
 the face of the earth. 
 
 My stay in Calcutta of six weeks was longer than I had 
 anticipated, but my time was very pleasantly and profit- 
 ably spent. A few days after arrival a united prayer- 
 meeting was held : missionaries of all societies were pre- 
 sent, the attendance was large, the spirit was earnest and 
 devout, and I then began to realize, what it was my 
 happiness to realize more fully afterwards, the uniting 
 power of the missionary enterprise. I had the happiness 
 of attending services with Native Christians, and of joining 
 them in spirit, though not with understanding. I was 
 especially interested in the noble Missionary Institution 
 of the Church of Scotland, and in the smaller, but pro- 
 mising, school of our own Society. I felt as if the sight 
 of such a number of boys and young men, many of them 
 with most pleasing and intelligent countenances, all 
 learning our language, and, what is vastly better, all 
 taught from the Word of God, was enough in itself to 
 repay one for the long voyage to India. I heard them 
 
6 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 examined, and was surprised at the knowledge of English 
 possessed by some of them, at the extent of their Biblical 
 knowledge, and at the Christian tone with which they 
 gave replies to questions. I asked a tall, slightly built 
 young man, with a most intelligent face, dressed in the 
 flowing white robe of his people, who had spoken with 
 what struck me as the accent of conviction, " Are you a 
 Christian ? " to which he replied, " Yes, in heart ; but I 
 fear persecution." To this subject of schools I shall 
 have often occasion to revert in the course of my 
 reminiscences. 
 
 During my stay in Calcutta I had much pleasant inter- 
 course with missionaries of different Societies. I was 
 the guest of Mr. Boaz, afterwards Dr. Boaz, of Union 
 Chapel, by whom I was treated with much kindness. 
 Mr. Gogerly had been my fellow-passenger to India. Mr. 
 Lacroix and Mr. Piffard were, at that time, the senior 
 missionaries of our Society in Calcutta. Both were 
 admirable men. Mr. Piffard was a gentleman of property, 
 who devoted himself to missionary work, and laboured 
 for many years most faithfully, without requiring to take, 
 and without taking, any salary from the Society. A 
 short time afterwards he was suddenly carried off by 
 cholera. Mr. Lacroix lived for many years. I had the 
 pleasure of meeting him in my visits to Calcutta, and in 
 his visits to the North-west, and also of frequent corre- 
 spondence with him. He was esteemed and loved as few 
 have been. He was a man with a commanding presence, 
 tall and well-built, and had a geniality of manner which 
 won all hearts. He spoke and wrote English remarkably 
 well, with a slight foreign accent and sprightliness, an 
 e/<m, as our French friends call it, which told of his 
 French birth and upbringing. He had a thorough 
 
SERAMPORE. 7 
 
 knowledge of the Bengalee language, and used it with a 
 commanding eloquence, to which his voice, look, and 
 gesture greatly contributed. His last illness, the result 
 of his long residence in the enervating climate of Bengal, 
 was borne with Christian patience, and drew forth the 
 sympathy and kindly inquiry of all classes. At his 
 funeral such tokens of respect and love were rendered 
 to him by every class of the community, Native and 
 European, as have been seldom witnessed in Calcutta. 
 
 Like all newly-arrived missionaries in Calcutta, I made 
 a pilgrimage to Serampore. The illustrious trio — Carey, 
 Marshman, and Ward — whose names are indissolubly 
 connected with that place, as first their refuge and, for 
 many years afterwards, the scene of their plans and 
 labours for the evangelization of India, had passed away 
 by that time (January, 1839), but the Rev. John Mack, 
 who had been long associated with them, and Mr. John 
 Marshman, Dr. Marshman's eldest son, remained. I was 
 taken by Mr. Mack to the college, the printing-office, the 
 type manufactory, the paper manufactory, the mission 
 chapel, the station church, Dr. Carey's garden, and the 
 native Christian village, indeed, to every object of 
 interest about the place. I remember seeing an elderly 
 man engaged in type-making, and observing a little image 
 in a niche above him. I was told this man had been 
 many years in this department of work, and had remained 
 so strict a Hindu that he would work only under the 
 protection of his god. The teaching of the missionaries 
 had had no effect in weaning him from his ancestral 
 idolatry. Yet many were won to Christ by the Scriptures 
 and books, for the preparation of which the work of this 
 man, and of others of his class, was indispensable. 
 
 When visiting Serampore, and hearing from Mr. Mack 
 
8 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KVMAON. 
 
 of the doings and achievements of the great men whose 
 residence at Serampore has given it a sacredness it will 
 ever retain in the annals of Indian Missions, I felt as a 
 young Greek would feel on being taken to Marathon and 
 Thermopylae. I felt I was entering on a war, where there 
 had been heroes before me, which demanded courage and 
 endurance of a far higher order than had ever been 
 enlisted in the cause of patriotism. 
 
VOYAGE TO BENARES. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 VOYAGE TO BENARES. 
 
 March, 1839. 
 
 I LEFT myself in the hands of friends in Calcutta as 
 to the best mode of proceeding to my destination. 
 There were at that time three modes of travelling to the 
 North- Western Provinces. One was being carried in a 
 palanquin on men's shoulders, arrangements being made 
 to have fresh bearers every few miles. For a long journey 
 of more than four hundred miles to Benares this was at 
 once a very tedious and fatiguing mode of travelling. 
 To one who knew not a word of the language of the 
 people in whose hands one was to be for days it was 
 additionally trying. Yet not a few persons newly arrived, 
 some of them delicate ladies, did travel in that mode to 
 far more distant places than Benares, and very seldom 
 any mishap befell them. In this mode little more could 
 be taken in the way of luggage than necessary clothing. 
 
 Another mode was by the river in a native boat, with 
 a crew engaged to take the party to their destination. 
 Not a few travelled in this way, even to Delhi. Weeks, 
 often months, were spent on the voyage; great incon- 
 veniences were endured, and not infrequently great perils 
 encountered from the sudden storms to which voyagers 
 on the Ganges are exposed, from the strong and eddying 
 currents in some parts of the river, and perhaps most of 
 
io LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 all from the treacherous character of the boatmen. In 
 1 84 1 and 1842 a severe storm fell on a large fleet of 
 boats taking a European regiment to the north-west. 
 Many of the boats were wrecked, and, if I remember 
 rightly, about three hundred men lost their lives. 
 
 There was a third mode of proceeding to the north- 
 west. A few years previously a River Steam Company 
 had been formed for the transmission of passengers and 
 goods. Passengers were accommodated in flats drawn by 
 steamers. As the Ganges enters Bengal it breaks into a 
 number of streams, by which it makes its way to the 
 ocean. The Hoogly, on which Calcutta stands, is one 
 of these streams. Some of them are so shallow at certain 
 seasons that native boats of considerable size cannot find 
 sufficient water, and they are at that time impassable 
 for steamers, though so constructed as to have the least 
 possible draught. The result is that the steamers for the 
 north-west (we believe none ply now) had to make a great 
 detour, to go down the Hoogly to Saugor Island, and 
 then to proceed by one of the channels there found to 
 the main stream. This greatly increased the distance to 
 the north-west. Except in the rainy season, steamers 
 for Benares had to go about eight hundred miles. 
 
 Of these three routes this one of the river steamers was 
 in many respects the most convenient and pleasant, espe- 
 cially for persons new in the country, and my Calcutta 
 friends kindly arranged that I should be sent on in this 
 way. I accordingly embarked for Benares on a flat, tugged 
 by a steamer, in the first week of March. After going 
 down the Hoogly to Saugor Island, we made our way 
 into the district called the Sunderbuns by one of the 
 channels of the Ganges. We got into a labyrinth ot 
 streams, every here and there opening up into a wide 
 
THE SUNDERBUNS. n 
 
 reach of water, giving one the impression we were enter- 
 ing a lake ; and shortly afterwards we found ourselves in 
 a channel so narrow that we almost touched the banks 
 on both sides, and which barely allowed a passage where 
 there was a sharp turn in the stream. We had native 
 pilots who knew the region thoroughly, and were in no 
 danger of going astray. The land down to the water's 
 edge was covered with the densest tropical vegetation, so 
 that the banks often bounded our view, except when 
 the trees on it were lower than those beyond. In the 
 waters and out, wild beasts abound. Alligators were 
 seen dropping from the banks into the stream on hearing 
 the approach of the steamer. We saw no tigers, but we 
 heard much about them as we were threading our way 
 through that region. The previous year, early one morn- 
 ing, the watch on the deck of the flat was startled by 
 a tiger leaping on board, and, evidently bewildered by 
 its new circumstances, leaping off on the other side. 
 Messrs. Lacroix and Gogerly, when on a native boat in 
 the Sunderbuns, were witnesses of a desperate fight 
 between a tiger and an alligator. The story has been 
 often told. 
 
 Less than two centuries ago there was a large popula- 
 tion in what may be called that amphibious region, the 
 soil when cleared being very rich; but owing to the 
 incursions of Mug pirates from the coast of Burmah, and 
 the oppression of Muhammadan rulers of Bengal, the 
 most of the inhabitants perished, others fled, and so 
 complete was the ruin that the exact site of once pros- 
 perous cities is unknown. In a region like the Sunderbuns, 
 when man's restraining and improving hand is withdrawn 
 every trace of his presence disappears under the rank 
 which speedily covers the sphere of his 
 
12 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 labours. The country, under British protection, was in 
 1839 beginning to be reoccupied. Patches of ground 
 were reclaimed from the jungle, and since that time 
 cultivation has been greatly extended. We occasionally 
 met native boats, and were thus reminded we were not 
 the only human begins in that district. Nearly a week 
 elapsed before we emerged from the Sunderbuns. 
 
 Our passengers were a motley band. Between twenty 
 and thirty were Europeans, two or three were Eurasians, 
 and there was a company of Sepoys under a native officer 
 in charge of treasure. Most of the Sepoys were Hindus, 
 and as they cannot cook on the water, which is forbidden 
 by caste-law, they were obliged to subsist as they best 
 could on dry grain. The Muhammadans had no con- 
 venience for cooking on the flat, but they were allowed 
 partial use of the steamer. All were delighted when 
 they got into the open country, and could get on shore at 
 night to prepare their meals. 
 
 The steamer and flat were brought to anchor at all the 
 important towns on the river, for lading and unlading 
 goods and for landing passengers, of whom very few left 
 us, as most were bound for Benares and Allahabad. 
 When evening came on we always anchored, wherever 
 we might be. We saw a little of Bhagulpore, Monghyr, 
 Dinapore, Patna, Ghazeepore, and some other places. 
 At Monghyr I spent a very pleasant evening with Mr. 
 Leslie of the Baptist Mission, even then of considerable 
 standing, and years afterwards a highly esteemed veteran 
 in the missionary host. 
 
 Our progress was slow. In some places the stream 
 was too strong for our steamer tugging the flat, and in 
 other places the water was too shallow. Sometimes we 
 got for hours, in one case for a whole day, on sandbanks, 
 
A STORM ON THE GANGES. 13 
 
 from which we got off with great difficulty. The most 
 memorable incident of the voyage was a storm, which 
 came on us one evening as we were nearing Dinapore. 
 There was so little warning of its approach that we, who 
 knew not the climate, were quite unprepared for its 
 coming. Before breaking on us we were brought to a 
 standstill, the flat was separated from the steamer, and 
 both flat and steamer were brought to anchor. The sky 
 suddenly became dark, we heard puffs of wind, and then 
 the storm burst on us in all its fury. The dust was so 
 raised that we could see only a few feet from the flat, and 
 the flat so rolled that every now and then a splash of 
 water came in at the windows. A scene of great con- 
 fusion ensued. Some Indo-Portuguese servants were on 
 their knees, imploring Mary — " Mariam, Mariam ! " — to 
 save them. The Hindus were loud in their appeals to 
 "Ram, Ram ! " while the Muhammadans shouted "Allah, 
 Allah ! " A newly arrived English lady almost fainted from 
 fright, and her husband tried to calm and assure her. Every 
 face indicated anxiety. In less than an hour all was over, 
 and we were thankful to find ourselves once more in 
 safety. 
 
 Before leaving England I had possessed myself of a 
 Hindustanee Grammar, and in Calcutta of a Hindustanee 
 Dictionary. On the voyage to India I did not make 
 much of the grammar, but on the way to Benares 1 gave 
 myself resolutely to learning the language. I found a 
 young native officer on the flat who knew a little English, 
 and who professed to be a good Hindustanee scholar. I 
 got the consent of the native officer in command to his 
 coming to my cabin when off duty, and I spent hours 
 daily with him, trying to get my tongue about the strange 
 sounds, with which I knew I must be familiar if I was to 
 
14 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 do the work for which I had come to India. I received 
 great help from this young Muhammadan, and felt as if 
 I was beginning to get my foot into the language before 
 reaching my destination. 
 
 On the three Sabbaths I was on the river I had the 
 pleasure of preaching to the Europeans on board. 
 
 A voyage on the Ganges does not enable one to see 
 much of the country. The banks are often very high ; in 
 many places there is a great extent of sand \ the country, 
 with the exception of the district where the main stream 
 is entered, is very level, and the country is therefore 
 very imperfectly seen. The native craft, so unlike the 
 vessels of our own country, with their lofty prows and 
 sterns, and great ragged square sails, many laden with 
 wood and grass, which made them like moving stacks, 
 were constant objects of interest. 
 
 At length, after more than three weeks on board, we 
 were delighted one Sunday forenoon to see in the dis- 
 tance the domes and minarets of Benares. 
 
ARRIVAL AT BENARES. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 ARRIVAL A T BENARES. 
 
 ON Sabbath, March 31, 1839, we came to anchor 
 at the northern end of Benares, at a place called 
 Raj Ghat, the ferry connecting the city on the left bank 
 of the river with the Trunk road on the right, leading 
 to Behar and Bengal. Near this place the most of the 
 native craft employed in the city traffic is moored. 
 Many of the vessels are of considerable size. 
 
 For hours Benares had been in sight, but owing to the 
 strength of the stream our progress had been slow. It 
 was early afternoon by the time of our arrival. In so 
 public a place as Raj Ghat there are always a number 
 of people, but the early afternoon is a time when 
 few bathe, and there is a lull in the stir of the com- 
 munity. As the afternoon comes on, and the evening 
 advances, there is fresh activity. We therefore, on land- 
 ing, saw little of the scene with which we were afterwards 
 to become familiar. 
 
 Word of the approach of our steamer and flat had 
 reached Secrole, the European suburb of Benares, three 
 miles inland, and no sooner had we come to anchor than 
 the agent of the Steam Company and the friends of 
 expected passengers came on board. Among these was 
 the Rev. William Smith of the Baptist Mission, whose 
 
1 6 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 house was on the high bank immediately above Raj 
 Ghat, and who had been requested by my brethren of 
 the London Missionary Society to be on the look-out 
 for me. This good man gave me a kindly welcome, and 
 took me with him to his house, built very much in the 
 native fashion, with flat roof, with small, low rooms enter- 
 ing from one into another, and a verandah extending 
 along its front, from which a commanding view was 
 obtained of the river and craft below, the country on the 
 other side of the river, and a part of the front of the city. 
 Immediately behind the house was the chapel, in which 
 daily worship was conducted. 
 
 The first thing I saw on getting to Mr. Smith's house 
 was the chapel crowded with very poor-looking people, 
 of whom a number were blind and lame. I was told 
 these were beggars, who came every Lord's-day to receive 
 a dole, either pice or dry grain, from the missionary and 
 his wife, and who listened very patiently to an address 
 before the dole was given. This service was kept up for 
 many years, and there was no falling off in the attendance. 
 Those who have read the life of Henry Martyn, and 
 others of the early missionary period in India, know that 
 they ministered to this class. Here were persons whose 
 destitution appealed directly to the Christian heart, and 
 who were content to be present when the gospel message 
 was delivered, while little access to others could be 
 obtained. How far these poor people heard it would 
 be difficult to say. I am afraid few heard with any 
 desire to understand and consider what was said, but 
 there is every reason to believe some did obtain lasting 
 spiritual good. We have heard of instances of genuine 
 conversion, though it must be admitted these were rare ; 
 and it must be also acknowledged there were instances 
 
PREACHING TO BEGGARS. 17 
 
 of pretended conversion, when the life soon proved that 
 the motive for seeking baptism was entirely sordid. Still 
 the work in itself was worthy of the followers of Christ, 
 and could not fail to make a favourable impression, not 
 only on the persons helped, but on the community 
 around. Almsgiving stands high among virtues in the 
 estimation of both Hindus and Muhammadans ; it is con- 
 sidered sufficient to atone for many sins, and it is prac- 
 tised so indiscriminately as to pauperize many who could 
 provide for themselves. It is unfit that Christianity 
 should seem less careful of those who are really poor and 
 helpless than Hinduism and Muhammadanism are. Work 
 such as I saw in Mr. Smith's chapel is carried on in some 
 places down to the present time. 
 
 A short time after our arrival at Raj Ghat my dear 
 friend the Rev. W. P. Lyon appeared, and took me in 
 his conveyance by a road skirting the city to the Mission 
 House in Secrole, which he then occupied. From Mr. 
 and Mrs. Lyon, both of whom I had known intimately 
 for years in our own land, I received a hearty welcome. 
 
 At the corner of the mission compound, facing the 
 public road, was the humble chapel, built of sun-dried 
 bricks, in which service was conducted in the native 
 language. I arrived half an hour before the time for the 
 afternoon service. Before its commencement I had the 
 pleasure of meeting Messrs. Buyers and Shurman, with 
 whom I was to be for years associated in mission work. 
 With them I went to the service, which was conducted 
 by Mr. Shurman. There were at that time only two or 
 three native Christians connected with the mission, and 
 these, with their families, the missionaries and their 
 wives, and a few orphan children, constituted the con- 
 gregation. I had just enough of the language to catch 
 
 3 
 
1 8 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 an expression here and there, and from my ignorance of 
 what was said my mind was left at greater freedom for 
 realizing my new and strange position. 
 
 I had just had a glance of the sacred city of the 
 Hindus. I had seen at a short distance the domes of 
 some of the principal temples, and the minarets of some 
 of the principal mosques, especially those of the mosque 
 built by Aurungzeb, soaring far above every other object 
 in the city. I had dimly seen the bathing-places of the 
 people stretching away for miles, and the houses on the 
 high bank of the river. As I landed I had seen a few 
 bathing, and a number moving about. 
 
 And now, in this poor chapel, with its low roof and 
 earthen floor, I found a few assembled for the worship 
 of the living God through the Lord Jesus Christ. I 
 realized, as I had not done before, that I had left my 
 native land behind, and had come among a people the 
 vast majority of whom were wholly given to idolatry, and 
 the rest followers of Muhammad, the bitter enemies of 
 my Lord and Saviour. The greatness and difficulty of 
 the missionary enterprise presented themselves to me 
 with a painful vividness, and but for the conviction that 
 the work was of God, and that my long-cherished desire 
 to enter on it and the gratification of my desire in my 
 appointment to Benares had come from Him, I should 
 have been ready to retrace my steps. Yet here I was, 
 worshipping with a few persons who had been idolaters, 
 and one of whom at least had made great sacrifices when 
 he had avowed his faith in Jesus. Why should we 
 despise the day of small things ? Forty-four years have 
 elapsed since that, to me, memorable 31st of March, 1839, 
 and I can now realize myself sittting with Messrs. Buyers 
 and Lyon in front of that humble pulpit, while Mr. 
 
RESIDENCE IN BENARES. 19 
 
 Shurman preached, and remember, as if it were yesterday, 
 the strange feelings that thrilled me that afternoon. 
 
 I had to make no arrangement for my accommodation 
 on reaching Benares. Previous to my arrival it had been 
 arranged that I was to take up my abode with my dear 
 friends, Mr. and Mrs. Lyon. I was at once at home 
 with them, for Mr. Lyon had been my fellow-student at 
 Glasgow, and Mrs. Lyon was the member of a family 
 with whom I had been intimately acquainted while study- 
 ing at Edinburgh. Within a few days of my arrival I 
 was introduced to the missionaries of the Church 
 Missionary Society, and to a few European residents 
 who took an interest in missionary work. 
 
20 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 CHRISTIAN MISSIONS IN BENARES. 
 FROM 1816 TO 1839. 
 
 IT may be well to give, before proceeding further, a 
 brief account of what had been done for the evan- 
 gelization of Benares up to that time. 
 
 Our Baptist brethren were first in the field. All who 
 have read the biography of the illustrious trio of Seram- 
 pore are aware that they formed, and with ardent zeal 
 and untiring energy prosecuted, great schemes for the 
 evangelization of the millions to whose spiritual good 
 they had consecrated their lives. The translation of the 
 Scriptures into the languages of India was their special 
 service, but it was far from standing alone. They were 
 fully alive to the importance of preparing and sending 
 out men of God to go among the people, and make 
 known to them Jesus as the Saviour of the world. They 
 gladly availed themselves of Europeans, Eurasians, and 
 natives, who seemed qualified for the work by Christian 
 character, zeal for the conversion of the people, and 
 aptness to teach, though, with few exceptions, destitute 
 of any considerable measure of mental culture. Some 
 of these agents had force of character and native talent, 
 and much good and useful work was accomplished by 
 them. One of their number was Mr. Bowley, who after- 
 
BAPTIST MISSION IN BENARES. 21 
 
 wards joined the Church Mission, and was for many 
 years located at Chunar. He translated the entire 
 Scriptures into Hindee, and did beside much excellent 
 literary work in the translation and composition of books 
 and tracts. As he had no knowledge of Greek and 
 Hebrew, his translation of the Bible has marked defects, 
 though from his knowledge of Hindee and his good 
 judgment it has also marked excellences. His transla- 
 tion of the New Testament is now largely superseded, 
 but his translation of the Old Testament is the only one 
 yet possessed. The style of his smaller works in Hindu- 
 stanee, or Urdu, as it is commonly called, is remarkably 
 idiomatic and pleasing. 
 
 Missionary work was commenced in Benares by Mr. 
 William Smith, who was sent to it by the Serampore 
 missionaries in 181 6. I have already mentioned him as 
 having welcomed me on my arrival. He secured a house 
 for himself at Raj Ghat, the northern boundary of the 
 city, with a crowded population around him, and there 
 till his death he lived with his family, during all the 
 period diligently prosecuting his missionary work. He 
 had been a drummer in the native army, spoke the 
 Hindustanee as his mother tongue, and belonged to the 
 large class who, having European blood in their veins, 
 are professing Christians, but as to their ordinary habits 
 of life are more native than European. Mr. Smith was 
 a man of limited education and of little talent, but of 
 sterling excellence, and secured the respect and love of 
 all classes of the native community by his kindly and 
 consistent life. For years before his death there was in 
 his house the strange spectacle of five generations, and 
 his great-great-grandmother was heard by a friend of mine 
 murmuring, " It looks as if God had forgotten to take 
 
22 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 me away." Mrs. Smith, who was, I believe, a pure 
 native, was a woman of remarkable energy, and exercised 
 a powerful influence for good on all connected with her. 
 Owing to the unhappy controversy between the Serampore 
 missionaries and the Baptist Missionary Society, and the 
 separation in which it ended, Mr. Smith was left for a 
 time without any salary ; but by the establishment of a 
 Eurasian boarding-school his wants were fully supplied. 
 On to old age he moved about among the people, con- 
 versing with them, going to their great religious gatherings 
 and distributing tracts and portions of the Scriptures in 
 a very quiet, unostentatious manner, and succeeded, by 
 God's blessing, in bringing a few into the fold of Christ. 
 
 Among the pioneers of modern missionary work in 
 India the late Bishop Corrie, of Madras, has a high and 
 honoured name. He was one of the small band of 
 Government chaplains who gave themselves heart and 
 soul to the work of diffusing the gospel among the native 
 population. Henry Martyn is the best known of this 
 band, and with him men like Brown, Thomason, and 
 Corrie deserve to be held in everlasting remembrance. 
 Mr. Corrie was, in 1817, the chaplain of the European 
 community in Benares. Previous to that time a rich 
 native, Rajah Jay Narayan, had established and endowed 
 a school in the part of the city inhabited chiefly by 
 Bengalees. This Rajah formed so high an opinion of 
 Mr. Corrie, and of his ability to carry on the school 
 efficiently, that he asked him to undertake its manage- 
 ment. Mr. Corrie accepted the offer in the name of 
 the Church Missionary Society, whose sanction to the 
 measure he had obtained, and to it the school was made 
 over by formal deed of gift in 1818. Under the name 
 of Jay Narayan's School, and afterwards of Jay Narayan's 
 
CHURCH MISSION IN BENARES. 23 
 
 College, it has continued down to our day ; and it has 
 done much for the education, on Christian principles, of 
 successive generations of Benares youth. A Mr. Adlington 
 was the first head-master, and a short time afterwards 
 a missionary was sent. He was succeeded by others, 
 but owing to their failure of health little was done on to 
 the fourth decade of the century, except the securing, of 
 suitable ground and the erection of mission -houses at 
 Segra, in the immediate suburbs of the city on its south- 
 western side. This place had formerly been noted for 
 the thieves and thugs that infested it. In 1839 the two 
 missionaries at Segra were the Rev. William Smith and 
 the Rev. C. B. Leupolt. Mr. Smith reached India in 
 1830, and after "spending fifteen months in Goruckpore, 
 on the borders of Nepal, was transferred to Benares in 
 1832. He was joined by Messrs. Knorpp and Leupolt 
 in 1833. The two Church missionaries in Benares in 
 1839, Messrs. Smith and Leupolt, laboured for many 
 years afterwards with singular devotedness for the spiritual 
 good of the people. As it is invidious to make com- 
 parisons, I will not say that they were foremost in the 
 first rank ; but all who knew them will bear me out in 
 saying they they attained a high place in the first rank of 
 the missionary band. 
 
 The Rev. Matthew Thomson Adam was appointed 
 by the London Missionary Society to Benares in October 
 1819, and reached his destination in August, 1820. He 
 remained at his post till 1830, when he returned to 
 England, and resigned his connection with the Society. 
 He afterwards went to the United States, where he 
 undertook a pastorate. Mr. Adam was a scholarly and 
 diligent man. He prepared and published a Hindee 
 Grammar, an English and Hindee Dictionary, and some 
 
24 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 tracts. He secured a site for a mission-house on the 
 border of cantonment towards the city, and erected on it 
 a commodious and substantial structure; and since his 
 day a church, a school-house for girls, and houses for 
 native Christians, have been erected in the mission 
 compound. He also secured a very central site in 
 cantonments for a place of worship for holding English 
 services, and by the liberal help of the English military 
 and civil residents erected on it a building which was 
 called Union Chapel. His services among our country- 
 men seem to have been greatly valued, but owing to a 
 change in the personnel of the station, a change which is 
 going on incessantly in India, the congregation fell off, 
 Union Chapel was sold, and the money realized by the 
 sale was spent on the erection of a chapel in the city, on 
 a site obtained with great difficulty. Mr. Adam left 
 Benares before this building, erected with a view to native 
 services, could be turned to account. In a brief record 
 of his labours drawn up by himself, he says that he 
 deemed it a high honour to live near such a city, and to 
 testify to his Master by pressing His claims on individuals 
 with whom he had an opportunity of conversing ; but he 
 did not think it advisable to attempt the preaching of the 
 gospel in places of public resort. He was at times 
 encouraged by the prospect of persons becoming the 
 followers of Christ, but in every case his hopes were 
 disappointed. No native was baptized by him. 
 
 The London Mission of Benares was reinforced in 
 1826 by the arrival of the Rev. James Robertson. He 
 was a man of linguistic talent, and was full of plans for 
 setting up the standard of the Cross and assailing the 
 idolatry around him. He opened a number of schools 
 in various parts of the city, and organized a system of 
 
L OND ON MISSION IN BEN A RES. 2 5 
 
 Bible-reading in the streets. Seven men, chosen from 
 among Hindus, whose sole qualification was ability to 
 read, were appointed to read daily in different parts of 
 the city our Scriptures without note or comment. We 
 have no doubt they took care to tell their hearers that 
 they did their work to please the sahib, and get his pay, 
 but had no intention of accepting the new teaching, and 
 had no wish that others should do so. No other mis- 
 sionary has followed this plan. Mr. Robertson left 
 behind him in MS. translations into Urdu of a part of 
 the Old Testament, which were carefully examined and 
 partly used by Mr. Shurman ; but the style was too 
 difficult for any except those who were well acquainted 
 with the Persian language. 
 
 The Rev. William Buyers joined the Mission at the 
 beginning of 1832, and Mr. Robertson was carried off by 
 cholera fifteen months afterwards, in his thirty-fourth year. 
 Mr. Buyers w r as thus left alone, but early in 1834 he was 
 joined by the Rev. J. A. Shurman and the Rev. Robert 
 C. Mather. In 1838 the Rev. W. P. Lyon arrived at 
 Benares, and that year Mr. Mather went to the great 
 commercial Mirzapore, where he established, and for 
 many years afterwards conducted with great efficiency, a 
 very important mission. When I reached Benares I was 
 thus the fourth on its staff, and the seventh from its 
 commencement. 
 
 Much good work had been done by the brethren with 
 whom I was to be associated. They had established 
 schools for primary education, but owing to the want of 
 funds all but one had been given up by 1839. They 
 had taken part in preparing tracts and revising the trans- 
 lation of the New Testament in Urdu. A place of 
 worship had been erected, and a few orphans had been 
 
26 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 gathered. Evangelistic work was being actively prose- 
 cuted in the city. 
 
 A short time previous to 1839 the Church Mission 
 had undertaken a very benevolent and a very difficult 
 work. In 1837 the North- Western Provinces were deso- 
 lated by famine. Many thousands perished, everywhere 
 miserable boys and girls were to be seen who had become 
 orphans, or who had been abandoned by their parents. 
 At this terrible crisis missions came forward with the 
 offer of adopting these forsaken children. Fifty were 
 made over to the Church Mission at Benares, and after- 
 wards many more were added to this number. Suitable 
 buildings were speedily erected for their accommodation, 
 and arrangements were made for their education and 
 support. These children were so emaciated that many 
 died within a few days of their being brought to the 
 mission. At the close of 1838 an excellent missionary 
 and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Knorpp, were carried off by 
 a low fever which attacked them while attending to their 
 charge. By the hot weather of 1839 the health of the 
 orphans had greatly improved, and everything was being 
 done which could be done for their temporal and 
 spiritual welfare. 
 
 By the time of my arrival, the missionaries of the 
 Church and London Missionary Societies — Mr. Lyon 
 excepted, who had arrived only the preceding year — had 
 fully entered on their work. They had been from seven 
 to five years at their posts, had acquired a good know- 
 ledge of the native languages, had all the vigour and 
 hopefulness of early middle life, and were giving them- 
 selves zealously to the prosecu'ion of the great work for 
 which they had gone to India. 
 
FIRST YEAR IN BENARES. 27 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 MY FIRST YEAR IN BENARES. 
 
 ASTBANGER passing hurriedly through a country 
 may carry away impressions about its climate, pro- 
 ducts, and people, which residence for a considerable 
 time would not merely modify but reverse. There are 
 some things of which he can speak with some confidence. 
 The great natural features of a country, its mountains 
 and plains and rivers, do not undergo any marked 
 change, and these may be truly described by the casual 
 visitor. The general aspect of a people, their houses, 
 dress, and look, remain much the same, and of these an 
 accurate observer may give a trustworthy account ; but if 
 from what he himself has seen and heard he attempts to 
 give a general estimate of the character of the people and 
 of the state of the country, he is almost sure to fall into 
 great mistakes. 
 
 Within the last few years India has become a favourite 
 field for travellers who can without inconvenience spend 
 a few hundred pounds, and be absent from home three or 
 four months. Swift steamers take them quickly to and from 
 Bombay, and railways carry them in a short time from 
 one end of India to the other. They travel at the season 
 when travelling is delightful, and thus see the different 
 countries of that great region in their most attractive 
 
28 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 form. If they infer what they do not see from what they 
 see, they are sure to make statements utterly discordant 
 with fact. Mr. Wilson, who was sent out to India to put 
 its finances into order after the Mutiny, travelled through 
 the North-Western Provinces in the cold weather, when 
 the country was covered with abundant crops, and was 
 delighted with all he saw. He declared it was the finest 
 country he had ever seen. He returned to Calcutta as 
 the hot weather was setting in, and died in the succeed- 
 ing rainy season. It is said that some time before his 
 death he pronounced the climate to be the most detest- 
 able on the face of the globe. Dr. Norman McLeod 
 was our guest for a very short time in Benares, as he was 
 prosecuting his Indian journey. When driving about on 
 a fine balmy morning, he said, in his genial fashion, 
 " You missionaries often complain of your climate ; I 
 only wish we in Scotland had a climate like this." To 
 which I replied, " Ah, doctor, kindly stop with us through 
 our coming seasons ; prolong your stay till next Novem- 
 ber, and then you will be able to speak with authority." 
 The worthy doctor did not take my counsel. His death 
 some time afterwards was attributed to his Indian tour ; 
 but if it left in him the seed of disease, the blame rests 
 not on the climate, but on the excessive fatigue caused 
 by overmuch travelling and work. 
 
 The case of a person who has lived through a whole 
 year in a country, and has during that period moved 
 among the people, is very different from that of the pass- 
 ing stranger. He knows the climate as a traveller for a 
 few weeks or even months cannot. The seasons during 
 that year may have been more or less abnormal, and yet 
 the resident cannot fail to have obtained that knowledge 
 which enables him to form a notion of what he has in 
 
THE EXPERIENCE OF THE FIRST YEAR. 29 
 
 the main to expect every year. He gets a glimpse into 
 the character and peculiarities of the different classes of 
 the population, both native and foreign. He may know 
 little of the language of the country ; but if he has an 
 observing mind, and moves freely about, he is constantly 
 receiving information about the people in a degree which 
 he himself does not always realize. If his residence be 
 prolonged for many years, as he looks back to his first 
 year, and remembers its experience, he finds that his views 
 have been greatly enlarged, on many points greatly modi- 
 fied ; he is sure that his knowledge is much more accu- 
 rate and mature; but there is scarcely any subject on 
 which he finds his views entirely reversed. 
 
 This, at least, has been my experience. I have a vivid 
 remembrance of my first year in Benares — a much more 
 vivid remembrance than I have of subsequent years, and 
 it would be strange if I did not find that my views on 
 many Indian subjects have been greatly modified, and 
 on all much enlarged ; but I do not discover that on any 
 subject there has been a complete reversal. 
 
 I have already mentioned that on my voyage from 
 Calcutta to Benares I spent much of my time in the 
 study of the Hindustanee language, commonly called 
 Urdu. Within a week of my arrival I gave myself to it 
 with all the application of which I was capable. I had 
 as my teacher a munshee, who had been long employed 
 by the missionaries of our Society, but who could not 
 speak a sentence in English, though he knew the Roman 
 character well. I was told that his ignorance of English 
 would prove an advantage, as I should on this account be 
 obliged to speak to him, in however broken and limping 
 a fashion, in the language which it was indispensable for 
 me to acquire. We had before us an English and 
 
30 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Hindustanee Dictionary, a Hindustanee and English 
 Dictionary, a Hindustanee Grammar, and a book of easy 
 sentences in both languages in the Roman character. 
 At first my teacher and myself had to put things into 
 many forms before reaching mutual intelligibility; but 
 gradually our work became easier, and when two or three 
 months had passed we fairly understood each other — I 
 trying to express myself in Hindustanee, and he perform- 
 ing the much-needed work of correcting my words and 
 idiom. I commenced with a portion of the New Testa- 
 ment, and soon got into some of the classics of the 
 language. The use of the Roman character in the writ- 
 ing of Indian languages had been strongly advocated by 
 Sir Charles Trevelyan, by Dr. Duff, and other men of 
 mark, and was accepted by the majority of the mission- 
 aries. Portions of the Scriptures and other books were 
 printed in it. Like all young missionaries, I learned the 
 Persian and Nagree characters, in which the languages 
 of Northern India had always previously been written ; 
 but the Roman character was very convenient, and I 
 regretted afterwards I used it so much. 
 
 This study of the language was felt to be a foremost 
 duty, and was prosecuted from day to day. This went 
 on for months with little interruption, except what was 
 caused by the serious and continued illness of Mrs. Lyon, 
 which, to the great regret of all their friends, led before 
 the end of the year to the departure of Mr. and Mrs. L, 
 for Europe. 
 
 In the seventh or eighth month of my residence at 
 Benares I wrote a short sermon in Hindustanee on John 
 i. 29, and read it at the native service. Within a year I 
 took my part regularly at that service, first using my 
 manuscript, and then extemporizing as I best could. 
 
STUD Y OF NATIVE LANGUAGE AND CHARACTER. 31 
 
 I must confess I regarded my new linguistic acquisition 
 with much more complacency at the end of my first year 
 than at the end of my fifth or sixth. On my way to 
 Benares, as I have already mentioned, I spent a few hours 
 very pleasantly with Mr. Leslie, the Baptist missionary at 
 Monghyr. I mentioned to him that my friend Mr. Lyon 
 had learned the language, and was preaching in it. Look- 
 ing me full in the face, he said, to my surprise and 
 chagrin, " Depend on it, Mr. Lyon may use the words of 
 the language, but no one can be said to acquire it in a 
 year." I thought this a hard saying, but years after- 
 wards I was forced to feel its truth. I had in a year got 
 such a glimpse into the Hindustanee and Hindee lan- 
 guages as to have some conceptions of their nature, to 
 know their tone, and to bring them into partial use ; but 
 I had a very limited notion of their nice distinctions, 
 their peculiar idioms, and their vast vocabulary. I can- 
 not say that the opinion on this subject I formed in my 
 first year was entirely reversed by my after experience, but 
 it was largely modified. 
 
 While studying the native language, I felt myself study- 
 ing the native character as well. My teacher was very 
 patient, correcting my mistakes — mistakes, I must con- 
 fess, often repeated — without allowing even the slightest 
 surprise to appear in his countenance. He did not smile 
 at blunders at which, when I knew better, I myself 
 heartily laughed. When I showed the slightest impatience 
 at being checked he at once allowed me to go on as I 
 liked, though, as I afterwards knew, I needed to be 
 corrected. He was loud in praise of my progress, 
 declaring that I would soon surpass all my predecessors. 
 In my intercourse with him I had illustrations of the 
 patience, the courtesy, and also the flattering, cozening 
 
32 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 character of the people, when dealing with those by whom 
 they think they can be benefited. The impressions of 
 native character thus obtained were amply affirmed by 
 the experience of after years. 
 
 This munshee was well acquainted with our Scriptures. 
 He belonged to the Writer caste, and had from his early 
 years been in contact with Europeans. He was ready 
 for conversation on religious subjects, and had much to 
 say in favour of the philosophical notions which underlie 
 Hinduism. Three or four years afterwards he seemed to 
 awake all at once to the claims of Christ as the Saviour 
 of the world, and under this impulse he openly appeared 
 in a native newspaper as the assailant of Hinduism and 
 the advocate of Christianity, which led to the hope that 
 he was to avow himself, by baptism, a follower of the 
 Lord. But he became alarmed at what he had done ; he 
 could not bear the reproaches of his friends, and he fell 
 back into the ranks of his people. Though he had ceased 
 to be my teacher I had opportunities of seeing him, and 
 I tried to speak to his conscience, to his conviction of the 
 Divine origin of the gospel. The last time I spoke to 
 him he said, with marked emphasis, " There is no use in 
 speaking to me. Let Hinduism be false or true, I am 
 determined to live and die in it as my fathers have done ! " 
 His case was that of many with whom every Indian 
 missionary is brought into contact. 
 
 During this year I was introduced into the methods in 
 which evangelistic work was conducted. In addition to 
 attending the services of the Lord's Day, I went now and 
 then with my brethren to the city. We had at that time 
 two little chapels in good positions, at the doors of which 
 the people were first addressed, and were then invited to 
 enter that they might hear the new teaching more fully 
 
THE LANGUAGES OF NORTHERN INDIA. 33 
 
 expounded. There was, of course, nothing of the staid- 
 ness or quietness of a Christian congregation. The 
 speaker was often interrupted ; questions, sometimes 
 very irrelevant questions, were asked ; and the people 
 came and went, so that those who were present at the 
 commencement were seldom present at the close. Dur- 
 ing the year I saw the principal places in Benares — its 
 main streets and markets, its temples and mosques; and 
 thus formed some idea of the great city, where for many 
 years afterwards it was my privilege to labour in the 
 gospel of Christ. 
 
 The work of the missionary in Northern India would 
 be greatly simplified if he had to learn only one language. 
 He has to learn the two I have named, the Hindustanee 
 and the Hindee. The Hindustanee arose from intercourse 
 between the Muhammadan invaders and the people they 
 had subdued. It is written in the Persian or Arabic cha- 
 racter, and draws its vocabulary mainly from the Persian 
 and Arabic languages. It is the language of law, of com- 
 merce, and of ordinary life to many millions. The Hindee 
 in its various dialects, some of which almost rise to the 
 dignity of languages, is the vernacular of the vast Hindu 
 population of North- Western India. It rests mainly on the 
 Sanscrit, and is written in the Sanscrit or Deonagree cha- 
 racter. In some of the most popular books the languages 
 are so strangely combined that it is impossible to give any 
 definite name to the language used. An acquaintance 
 with these languages is indispensable to missionary 
 efficiency in Northern India, but it is very difficult to 
 attain marked excellence in both. 
 
34 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE FIRST YEAR— SOCIETY AND CLIMATE. 
 
 AVERY brief residence at Benares led me to see 
 the great difference between the society to which 
 I had come and that which I had left. The European 
 community formed a mere handful of the population, and 
 was almost exclusively formed of officials, with all the 
 peculiarities of a class privileged by office. We had some 
 two hundred European artillerymen with their officers, of 
 a regiment paid and controlled by the East India Com- 
 pany ; three native regiments officered by Europeans ; 
 three or four members of the Civil Service, charged with 
 the administration of the city and district ; one English 
 merchant, and two or three English shopkeepers. I now 
 learned for the first time the difference in rank between 
 Queen's and Company's military officers. The Queen's 
 officer regarded himself as of a higher grade. Members 
 of the Civil Service and Company's officers met on terms 
 of social equality ; but the Civilians looked on themselves 
 as of a higher order, as the aristocracy of the land, and 
 the assumed superiority put a strain to some degree on 
 social intercourse. The persons sent out from this coun- 
 try for the administration of India are called Covenanted 
 Civilians, as they bear a commission from the Queen ; 
 while those engaged for administrative work by the 
 
E UK OPEANS AND NA TI VES. 35 
 
 Indian Government are called Uncovenanted. The 
 former class continue to have a great official advantage 
 over the latter ; but forty years ago there was a great 
 social inequality which has in a measure ceased, where 
 these uncovenanted servants are English gentlemen, as 
 ■they often are. English merchants were regarded as in 
 society ; but shopkeepers, however large their establish- 
 ment, were deemed entirely outside the pale, except for 
 strictly business purposes. This was partly accounted 
 for by European shopkeepers having been previously 
 stewards of ships, or soldiers who had received their dis- 
 charge. Missionaries were looked on as sufficiently in 
 society to be admissible everywhere, and were treated 
 courteously by their European brethren when they met, 
 though only a few desired their intercourse. 
 
 As to the people of the land, both Hindu and Muham- 
 madan, I discerned at once, what I might have fully 
 anticipated, that between them and us there was a national, 
 social, and religious gulf. Some were in our houses as ser- 
 vants. We had to do with them in various ways; we could 
 not go out without seeing them on every side. There was on 
 the part of many a courteous bearing towards each other ; 
 there was in many cases a kindly feeling ; but the barriers 
 which separated us could not be for any length of time 
 forgotten. I speedily saw that some Europeans looked 
 with contempt on the natives, as essentially of a lower 
 order in creation \ but the better class of Europeans, the 
 higher in position and education, as a rule, regarded 
 them with respect, and treated them not only with justice 
 but with kindness. Native servants received as kind 
 treatment as servants do in well-conducted families in 
 our own country, and in many cases repaid this kindness 
 by devoted attachment and the efficient discharge of the 
 
36 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 work entrusted to them. When native gentlemen came 
 in contact with Europeans of the higher class, all the 
 honour was accorded to them to which by their position 
 they were entitled. Even in this case there were national 
 and religious differences, which effectually prevented the 
 intimacy which is often maintained where such differences 
 do not exist. 
 
 Within the first year I got an insight into a large and 
 growing class, who were connected with both Europeans 
 and natives, and yet did not belong to either. I refer 
 to persons of mixed blood ; some almost as dark, in 
 many cases altogether as dark, as ordinary natives — many 
 of these being descendants of Portuguese ; others, again, 
 so fair that their Indian blood is scarcely observed ; some 
 in the lowest grade of society, very poor and very igno- 
 rant ; and others, with many intermediate links, most 
 respectable members of the community in character,, 
 knowledge, position, and means. All these, whatever 
 may be their rank, are Christians by profession, and 
 they dress so far as they can after the European fashion ; 
 but the poorer class, in food and accommodation live 
 very much as natives do, and mainly speak the native 
 language. The people of mixed blood are called by 
 different names — Eurasians, East Indians, and not in- 
 frequently by a name to which they most rightly object, 
 Half-caste. 
 
 I was surprised and sorry to observe the feeling with 
 which many Europeans regarded this class. They were 
 looked down upon as of an inferior grade, who, whatever 
 might be their character or position, were not entitled to 
 rank with Europeans. In the dislike of natives shown 
 by some Europeans there was something to remind one 
 of the American feeling in regard to colour, though of a 
 
EURASIANS. 37 
 
 much milder type ; but I was not prepared for the degree 
 in which the feeling prevailed in reference to Eurasians, 
 though I might have been had I remembered that the 
 slightest tinge of African blood, a tinge to many eyes not 
 perceptible, had been considered in America a fatal taint. 
 I speedily observed the effect the feeling had on Eura- 
 sians in producing an unpleasant sensitiveness, and 
 impairing the confidence and respect indispensable to 
 social intercourse. 
 
 Since that time I have understood the causes of this 
 feeling much better than I could have then done. The 
 most candid and thoughtful of the class will allow that 
 as a community they labour under great disadvantages. 
 Though they have native blood in their veins they are 
 entirely separate from natives in those things to which 
 natives attach the highest value ; and though by the pro- 
 fession of Christianity, by the adoption of European 
 habits so far as circumstances allow, and by the use of 
 the English language, they draw to Europeans, yet they 
 are forced to feel they do not belong to them. They 
 occupy an awkward middle position, and the knowledge 
 that they do leads to unpleasant grating. Then they 
 have not had the bracing which comes from residence in 
 a Christian land. Though proud of their Christian name 
 and profession, they have been injuriously affected by 
 the moral atmosphere of their surroundings. The lower 
 their social position, the closer has been their connection 
 with the lower class of natives, and the more hurtful 
 have been the influences under which they have come. 
 Eurasians are noted for their excellent penmanship, and 
 a great number from generation to generation have found 
 employment in Government offices, the greater number 
 as mere copyists, but a few as confidential clerks and 
 
38 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 accountants, whose services have been highly appreciated 
 by their official superiors. A considerable number have 
 risen to important offices in the administration of the 
 country. An increasing number are able to take their 
 place in every respect abreast of their European brethren. 
 Individuals have gone to England, and have succeeded 
 in getting by competition into the Covenanted Civil 
 Service. The class has been steadily growing for years 
 in intelligence and character ; and as the members of 
 their families are enjoying educational advantages to a 
 greater extent than at any previous period, there is every 
 reason to hope progress in the future will be still more 
 rapid than in the past. The distinction between them 
 and persons of pure European blood will thus become 
 less and less a barrier to social intercourse ; they will be 
 delivered from the unpleasantness the barrier has often 
 caused, their character will grow in strength, and they 
 will become increasingly fitted for exerting a happy in- 
 fluence on the native community. In the case of indivi- 
 duals the distinction is now practically ignored. There 
 are no more honoured and honourable persons in India 
 than some who belong to this class. There have always 
 been devoted Christians among them, and of late years 
 an increasing number have come under the power of 
 Divine grace. 
 
 It has been often remarked that one of the most 
 pleasing traits of native society is reproduced among 
 Eurasians — the tie of kinship prompting those who are in 
 better circumstances to help their needy relatives, often 
 to the giving of large pecuniary aid, not unfrequently to 
 the taking of them into their houses. In the humbler 
 portions of the community there is often seen a patri- 
 archal household like that so often seen in native society. 
 
THE CLIMATE OF NORTHERN INDIA. 
 
 39 
 
 The new-comer's experience of climate prepares him 
 for what he has to expect during his future residence. 
 We have three marked seasons in the North-Western 
 Provinces, the one melting gradually into the other — the 
 hot season beginning in March and ending in June, the 
 rainy season beginning with July and ending in October, 
 and the cold weather beginning with November and 
 ending in February. The seasons may thus be described 
 in a general way, but in fact every year differs somewhat 
 from others, as they do in our own country. The hot 
 weather is sensibly felt before March begins, and the 
 heat of March is far less than that of the succeeding 
 months. The first burst of the rains is often before the 
 middle of June, but after that burst, called the " little 
 rainy season," it is not uncommon to have a spell of very 
 hot sunny weather. In some years, indeed, there is so 
 much weather of this kind during what is called the 
 rainy season, that the heat is most intense, and the crops 
 are burnt up. Towards the end of September there is 
 commonly the last great outpour of rain, and as October 
 advances there is the cooling freshness of the approaching 
 cold weather, with enough of heat in the day-time to tell 
 us it has not quite let go its grasp. December and 
 January are our coldest months. In England, after an 
 unpropitious summer, the remark is often made, " We have 
 had no summer!" and in the same manner in India, when 
 the temperature has been high in the cold season, and we 
 have not had the expected bracing, we say, "We have 
 had no winter!" Yet as in our own country, so in India ; 
 we have our marked seasons, though we cannot be sure 
 of the weather at any particular period. 
 
 As India is an immense region, a great continent, with 
 every variety of scenery, with plains extending hundreds 
 
40 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 of miles, and vast stretches of forests, with table-lands 
 and lofty mountains, with land of every description from 
 barren sand to the richest alluvial soil, the climate and 
 products of its different countries are so different, that 
 the statements made about one region, however correct, 
 when applied to the whole are utterly misleading. I have 
 been describing the seasons of the North-Western Provinces ; 
 and yet, as Benares is in the lower part of these provinces, 
 its climate is considerably different from that of the 
 country farther north and west. The farther north we 
 travel the longer and colder is the cold season, and as a 
 rule the hotter and briefer is the hot season. On one 
 occasion the heat was so great in Benares in March that 
 we found the night punkah pleasant; but on reaching 
 Delhi, nearly six hundred miles distant, a few days 
 afterwards, instead of seeking a night punkah we were 
 thankful to have blankets to keep ourselves warm. 
 
 I have a vivid recollection of my experiences of the 
 climate during my first year. During our voyage on the 
 Ganges the heat during the day was like that of a cloud- 
 less July in England, and at night it was pleasantly cool, 
 the wood of the flat speedily giving off the heat it had 
 taken in during the day, and the flow of the river contri- 
 buting to our comfort. Reaching Benares as April was 
 setting in, I speedily felt I was getting into the experience 
 of an Indian hot season. The doors were opened before 
 dawn to let in whatever coolness might come with the 
 morning, and before eight they were shut to keep out 
 the heat of the day. The lower part of the door was of 
 w r ood, and the upper part of glass. Outside the doors 
 were heavy wooden blinds, made after the fashion of 
 Venetian blinds, the upper part of which were opened to 
 let in from the verandah the degree of light absolutely 
 
THE HOT SEASON. 41 
 
 necessary with the least possible degree of heat. No 
 prisoner in his cell is more excluded from an outside 
 view than we were in our rooms during the day in the 
 hot season. There was a remarkable contrast between 
 the outside glare and the inside dimness, so that a person 
 •coming from without could not on entering see anything. 
 The prevailing wind is from the west. There is enough 
 in the morning to show the direction from which it is 
 coming. It rises as the day advances ; by two or three it 
 blows with great strength, raising clouds of dust, and lulls 
 towards evening. This wind is cool and bracing in the 
 •cold weather, but as the season advances it becomes 
 warm, and by May its heat resembles the blast of a 
 furnace. It every now and then gives place to the east 
 wind, which is not nearly so hot, but is so enervating that 
 the hot wind is greatly preferred. During the day we sit 
 under the punkah, a great wooden fan suspended from 
 the roof with great flapping fringes. This is pulled by a 
 coolie, sometimes in the adjoining room, but when it can 
 be arranged in the verandah outside, who has in his hand 
 a rope attached to the punkah, which is brought to him 
 by a small aperture in the wall, through which a piece of 
 thin bamboo is inserted to make the friction as little as 
 possible. When the west wind is blowing freshly, it is 
 brought with most pleasant coolness into the house 
 through platted screens of scented grass, on which water 
 is continually thrown outside. For years machines re- 
 sembling the fanners so much used by farmers in former 
 •days, with scented grass on each side and a hut of 
 scented grass over them, on which water is continually 
 thrown, with wheels turned round by hand labour, have 
 been brought largely into use. These machines are 
 appropriately called "Thermantidotes." 
 
42 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 The night in the hot season is much more trying than 
 the day. There is not a breath stirring, and the heat of 
 the day, taken in by the walls, is radiated all the night 
 long. I found the night punkah in almost universal use 
 but I thought I would get on without it, and used it very 
 seldom. When the next hot season came I was glad to 
 conform to the custom of the country, for I found when 
 I had not the punkah I got up in the morning so tired 
 and weary that I was unfit for the work of the day. 
 
 The aspect of the country at that season is very dreary. 
 Some trees retain their freshness in the hottest weather ; 
 but not a blade of green grass is to be seen, and the 
 ground is scorched, scarred, and baked, as if it had been 
 turned into a desert. 
 
 A marvellous change is produced by the first heavy 
 fall of rain. After stifling heat for some days, the rays of 
 the sun beating with a fierceness which threatens to burn 
 up all nature, and which drives the birds for shelter to 
 the thickest foliage of the trees, the clouds gather, the 
 thunder rolls, peal quickly succeeding peal, the lightning 
 flashes incessantly, and then, after some heavy showers, 
 there comes down for two or three days, with very little 
 intermission, such torrents that it looks as if we were to 
 be visited with a deluge. Within a week all nature is 
 transformed. The parched earth gives way to the richest 
 green. We in our country say in very propitious weather 
 that we see things grow ; but in India vegetation takes 
 such a bound as it never does in our temperate climate. 
 Immediately after the downpour of rain, the sun comes 
 out in all its strength ; and, under the action of heat and 
 moisture, vegetation progresses marvellously. The fields 
 are quickly ploughed, the seed, for which moisture and 
 great heat is required, is sown, and in the course of three 
 
THE RAINY SEASON. 43 
 
 or four weeks they are far above the ground. Within 
 three months the harvest of the rainy season, furnishing 
 the people with rice, maize, and other grains, which 
 furnish the principal food of the people, is gathered in. 
 
 The rainy season is productive in another and less 
 pleasant manner. It is as favourable to insect life as it is 
 to vegetable life. Flying white ants, flying bugs, and 
 other unwelcome visitors of the same order, come out in 
 thousands. At night, if the doors be open the white ants 
 make for the lamps in such numbers that they are ex- 
 tinguished by them, and the room is in the morning 
 found strewed with their dead. It requires a torpid 
 temperament to remain calm under this visitation. All 
 dislike it, and some find it a grievous trial. As the rainy 
 season advances, the trouble abates, and by the time the 
 cold weather sets in the ordinary house-fly by day and the 
 mosquito by night alone remain to buzz about us. The 
 mosquito has rightly got the first place among insect 
 tormentors. The house-fly is at all seasons, in some more 
 than in others, and gives not a little annoyance by its 
 pertinacity. 
 
 The change at the commencement of the rainy season 
 is delightful. The doors are thrown open, and the dry, 
 parching wind gives place to a refreshing coolness. When 
 the rain ceases, the heat returns; the weather is very 
 muggy, the skin is irritated by the excessive perspiration, 
 and many suffer more than during the hot season. When 
 the rain is abundant and frequent, the suffering is much 
 less than when there is little rain and much sun. There 
 is one comfort at that time : we know we are going on 
 to the cold weather, which will make amends for all that 
 went before. 
 
 I can hardly conceive any country to have a finer 
 
44 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 climate than that of the North-West Provinces of India 
 in the cold months. Rain does sometimes fall during 
 that season ; it may fall at any time of the year. I re- 
 member a heavy fall on the first of May, and about 
 Christmas and the New Year it is eagerly desired for 
 the crops, but ordinarily from week to week there is an 
 unclouded sky. There is a cool, pleasant breeze from 
 the west. In the house it is not only cool but cold, so 
 that a little sunning is pleasant, and at night in December 
 and January, especially far up the country, fires are 
 welcome. Then Europeans, so far as circumstances 
 permit, get into the open air and move freely about, with 
 everything in the climate to favour their travelling. 
 
 The beginning of the cold weather is a very busy 
 season with the agricultural class, to which the great body 
 of the people belong. If the rainy season has been 
 favourable, especially if heavy rain has fallen towards its 
 •close, the wells are full, and from these, after the land 
 has been ploughed, and the seed sown for the rabee crop, 
 the most valuable crop of the year, the fields are irrigated. 
 Whatever grows in our land in summer grows in North- 
 western India at that season : wheat, oats, barley, pota- 
 toes, carrots, are grown in abundance. About March the 
 harvest is reaped. 
 
 As I proceed with these reminiscences, I shall have fre- 
 quent occasion to refer to our North Indian winter, its 
 scenes, and employments, and I have thought it well to 
 enter at some length into a description of its peculiarities. 
 
 One thing I observed my first year which I had abundant 
 •opportunity to observe afterwards. The weather so wel- 
 comed by Europeans is very trying to most natives, espe- 
 cially to those of the humbler classes, whose clothing is 
 very scanty. They never try to get warm by taking exercise. 
 
THE COLD SEASON. 45 
 
 They cower in the morning and evening round a fire, which 
 has commonly for its fuel dried cow-manure, with a coarse 
 blanket over their head and shoulders. As the sun gets 
 above the horizon, they plant' themselves against a wall to 
 bask in its rays, and if they can, do not stir till they are 
 well heated. As might be expected, many of them suffer 
 from chronic rheumatism. The extreme heat is not 
 liked by them, but from it they suffer far less than from 
 cold. 
 
 While most Europeans get new life in the cold weather, 
 the little ones showing by their rosy cheeks how much 
 they are benefited, a few are in better health when 
 the weather is warm, as then they are less subject to 
 aguish attacks. The remark is often made by those who 
 have much sedentary work that they like the cold season 
 for enjoyment, but find it unfavourable for work, as they 
 cannot keep so steadily at it as they can when the heat 
 keeps them within doors. 
 
 While giving the reminiscences of my first year, my mind 
 has been continually carried forward to the experience of 
 after-years in reference to the vernacular languages, the 
 various classes with whom residence in India brings one 
 into contact, and the seasons of the country. In giving 
 partial expression to this experience under the heading of 
 my first year, I have gone far beyond it. Those who 
 favour me with the perusal of my narrative may perhaps- 
 find it more intelligible by my having anticipated myself. 
 
 I must confess months of the first year passed before I 
 ceased to feel myself an exile. The scenes around were so- 
 unlike those of my own country, the prevailing idolatry so 
 repulsive, the society, associations, and climate so different, 
 that I turned from them to my native land with many a 
 fond longing look. This feeling of exile was no doubt 
 
46 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 deepened by the illness in the family with whom I was 
 residing. We had an English service every Thursday 
 evening, conducted by the missionaries in the hall of the 
 mission-house, but I greatly missed the services on the 
 Lord's-day to which I had been accustomed. 
 
•fey 
 
THE CITY OF BENARES. 49 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 7 HE CITY OF BENARES. 
 
 MY greatly beloved and much esteemed friend, the 
 late Rev. M. A. Sherring, years ago published a 
 handsome volume under the title of The Sacred City of 
 the Hindus, in which he gave ample information about its 
 history, temples, castes, festivals, commerce, and religious 
 pre-eminence in Hindu estimation. To that work I must 
 refer readers who are desirous to be furnished with 
 details. My aim is to describe as concisely and vividly 
 as I can the marked peculiarities of the place. 
 
 Benares is the largest city in the North- Western Fro- 
 vinces, though it is approached in population by some 
 others, as Delhi, Agra, and Allahabad. It is among the 
 largest purely native cities in India, but it is greatly sur- 
 passed in population and wealth by Calcutta, Bombay, 
 and Madras, the great seats of British rule, and the great 
 emporia of Indian as well as of European commerce in 
 the East. These cities under our rule have risen to be 
 among the greatest in Eastern Asia. For many a day 
 the population of Benares was said to be above 500,000, 
 but this has turned out a very exaggerated conjecture. 1 
 
 1 Bishop Heber visited Benares in 1824. He says in his journal, 
 " The population, according to a census made in 1803, amounted to 
 above 582,000 — an enormous amount, and which one should think 
 must have been exaggerated." The census which gives such a return 
 must have been taken in a very singular manner. 
 
 5 
 
50 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 When the first careful census was taken, the resident 
 population was found to be under 200,000, and every 
 succeeding census has confirmed its substantial accuracy. 
 In the last census the number given is 207,570. When 
 the first census was taken great surprise was expressed at 
 the result, and some asserted no dependence could be 
 placed on it. The ground of this assertion was that in 
 the houses of some of the wealthier classes there are many 
 females, who live, in native phrase, behind the curtain, who 
 are never seen by outsiders, to whom the officials of the 
 Government have no access ; and on this account the 
 accuracy of the return made to the enumerators entirely 
 depends on the faithfulness of the head of the household. 
 It has been said that when the first census was taken the 
 general impression was a capitation tax was to be imposed, 
 and that in consequence the inmates reported were far 
 below the actual number. If there was error on this ac- 
 count it was to a very limited extent, as every subsequent 
 census has agreed with the first, although the notion of a 
 capitation tax has entirely died out. One going through 
 Benares, from street to street, from one end of it to the 
 other, does not get the impression its resident population 
 exceeds the estimate found in official statements. The 
 city has a great floating population, as it is the resort of 
 strangers from all parts of India. It is reckoned that on 
 the occasion of the great festivals there may be 100,000 
 visitors, some say 200,000, but we are not aware any 
 attempt has been made to number them. 
 
 In commerce, as in population, Benares holds a high, 
 but not the highest, place among Indian cities. The 
 district of Benares is not so large as some others in the 
 North-West ; but it is very productive, is densely peopled, 
 and the city has on this account a large local business. 
 
TRADE AND COMMERCE. 5r 
 
 Besides, the merchants and bankers of Benares have deal- 
 ings with the other districts of the province, and indeed 
 with all parts of India. The city has many artificers. It 
 has workers in stone, wood, iron, brass, silver and gold. 
 They produce articles which command a large and profit- 
 able sale. God-making and toy-making are among the 
 staple businesses of the place. The making of idols in 
 different materials to suit the taste and means of pur- 
 chasers, gives employment to many. The images while 
 being made are only stone, brass, or gold, as it may be, 
 and no reverence is then due to them. It is when certain 
 sacred words are uttered over them, and the god is sup- 
 posed to take possession of them, they become objects ot 
 worship. Benares is well known for its toys made of 
 very light wood, and lacquered over. Of late years the 
 enchased brass vessels made in Benares have been much 
 admired, and have secured a large and profitable sale. 
 Perhaps the most important manufacture of the place is 
 kimkhwdb — kinkob as it is called by Europeans — cloth 
 made of silver and gold tissue, in which the princes and 
 grandees of India array themselves on state occasions. 
 I believe this business has fallen off, as with the incoming 
 of European influence the love of barbaric pearl and gold 
 has declined, if not among the rajahs of the land, among 
 a class beneath them, who formerly thought they could 
 not retain their rank in society if they did not appear on 
 special occasions in gorgeous robes. 
 
 While in population and commerce there are cities in 
 India which surpass Benares, in Hindu estimation it 
 stands above them all in religious pre-eminence. Per- 
 haps at the present time more eyes are turned reverently 
 towards it than to any city on the face of the earth. 
 
 I must attempt a brief sketch of the history of Benares, 
 
52 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 We are sure it was not among the first cities erected by 
 the Aryans after leaving their home in Central Asia and 
 crossing the Indus. They first took possession of the 
 land in the far north-west of the great country they had 
 entered, and gradually made their way to the south and 
 east. Wonderfully acute and painstaking though the 
 Pundit mind be, it has so dwelt in the regions of specu- 
 lation and imagination that it has paid no attention to 
 historical research. Its laborious productions have left 
 us ignorant of recent times, and we need not therefore 
 wonder that, except by incidental allusions, it throws no 
 light on the early settlements of the Aryans in India. 
 We know that they brought with them a considerable 
 measure of civilization, and soon erected cities. Indra- 
 prastha, built near the site of the present city of Delhi, 
 and Hastinapore, some thirty miles from it, figure largely 
 in the Mahabharut, the giant Hindu epic. Kunauj, lying 
 east and south of Delhi, became some time afterwards the 
 capital of a widely extended empire, which lasted, with 
 vicissitudes, down to Muhammadan times. Benares is 
 seen in the dim light of antiquity as a favourite abode of 
 Brahmans, and as sacred on that account, but it does 
 not appear that it ever was the seat of extended rule. 
 For many a day it was subject to Kunauj, and it after- 
 wards came under the sway of the Muhammadans, to 
 whom it was subject for six hundred years. 
 
 A clear proof of the influential position of Benares 
 centuries before the Christian era, is furnished by the 
 fact that Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, deemed it 
 well to commence his public ministry there in the sixth 
 century B.C. 1 The spot where he first unfolded his 
 
 1 The names and titles of this famous teacher are perplexing to 
 those who do not know the meaning. His father was chief or king 
 
<A\ T^ 
 
BUDDHISM. 55 
 
 doctrine was a grove at a place now called Sarnath, about 
 four miles from the present city. At this place there is a 
 large Buddhist tower, which is seen from a great distance, 
 and around it are extensive remains, which have been 
 excavated under the direction of Major-General Cunning- 
 ham, and have been found to be of Buddhist origin. The 
 success which Buddhism had achieved and maintained 
 for centuries in the country where it arose, is strikingly 
 confirmed by the testimony of two Chinese Buddhists 
 who went on pilgrimage to India, the one in the fifth 
 century a.d., and the other towards the middle of the 
 seventh. Their narratives have been preserved, and 
 furnish us with most interesting details. From them we 
 learn that down to the time of their visits Buddhism had 
 temples, monasteries, and thousands of adherents ; but 
 it had not the field to itself, for these strangers tell us, 
 especially the later of the two, that a large and increasing 
 number of the people were warmly attached to Hinduism. 
 We have no historical account of the overthrow of Budd- 
 hism, but we have reason to believe that towards the close 
 of the eleventh century, or earlier, the devotees of Hinduism 
 rose against it, and so stamped it out that not a temple 
 was left standing and not a monastery remained. Major- 
 General Cunningham says that about that period "the 
 last votaries of Buddha were expelled from the continent 
 of India. Numbers of images, concealed by the de- 
 parting monks, are found buried near Sarnath ; and heaps 
 of ashes still lie scattered amidst the ruins, to show that 
 the monasteries were destroyed by fire." This is con- 
 
 of a tribe called Sakyas, and therefore Gautama received the name 
 of Sakya-Muni, or Sakya-Saint. When he announced himself as the 
 inspired teacher of the nations he took the name of Buddha — the 
 wise man, the enlightener, the inspired prophet. 
 
56 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 firmed by excavations made at a later period by Major 
 Kittoe, who says, "All has been sacked and burned — 
 priests, temples, idols, all together; for, in some places, 
 bones, iron, wood and stone, are found in huge masses : 
 and this has happened more than once." From Benares 
 having been the scene of Gautama's early ministry, and 
 the place where his first disciples were called, it stands 
 high in the reverence of the millions who compose his 
 followers, although their only living representatives there 
 now are a few Jains, whom orthodox Buddhists regard as 
 heretics. 
 
 Long before the time of Gautama Hinduism pre- 
 vailed at Benares, and we have observed its rites were 
 practised side by side with those of Buddhism when the 
 city was visited by two Chinese pilgrims. Some time 
 afterwards it obtained full sway under the form of 
 fanatical devotion to Shiva the Destroyer, and that sway 
 it has maintained down to our day. What Jerusalem is 
 to the Jews ; what Mecca is to the Muhammadans ; what 
 Rome is to the Roman Catholics — that, and more than 
 that, Benares is to the Hindus. They form by far the 
 largest portion of the population of India, and to them 
 Benares — or as they delight to call it, Kasee the Splendid, 
 the Glorious City — is the most sacred spot en earth. They 
 say, indeed, it is not built on the earth, but on a point 
 of Shiva's trident. They assert that at one time it was 
 of gold, but in this degenerate age it has been turned 
 into stone and clay. In their belief the Ganges is sacred 
 through its entire course, but as it flows past the sacred 
 city its cleansing efficacy is supposed to be vastly in- 
 creased. The rites performed at Kasee have double 
 merit, and its very soil and air are so fraught with 
 blessing that all who die there go to heaven, whatever their 
 
THE SACREDNESS OF KASEE. 57 
 
 character may be. With this belief diffused among the 
 millions who, differing widely from each other in nation- 
 ality and language, are devoted to Hinduism, it may be 
 supposed how many eyes are reverently turned towards 
 Kasee, and with what eager steps and high expectations 
 vast numbers resort to it. I have frequently seen persons 
 entering the city, not on foot — that they did not deem 
 sufficiently respectful — but prostrating themselves on the 
 ground, measuring the ground with their bodies, and 
 approaching the sacred shrines. And then, especially on 
 the occasion of great festivals, bands may be seen entering 
 the city, often composed of women — hand-in-hand lest 
 they should lose each other in the crowd — singing the 
 praises of Shiva and the glories of his city. Many aged 
 people come from distant parts of India — the greater 
 number, I believe, from Bengal — to reside and end their 
 days in it, that by becoming Kasseebas (dwellers in Kasee) 
 they may when they die become Baikuntbas (dwellers 
 in heaven). 
 
 Though Benares be par excelleiice the sacred city of 
 the Hindus, strange to. say .they are proportionately 
 fewer than in ten cities of the North-West. According to 
 the census of 1872, there were 133,549 Hindus and 
 44,374 Mussulmans : that is, a little more than three 
 Hindus to one Mussulman. In the great commercial 
 city of Mirzapore, about thirty miles distant from Benares, 
 there were five Hindus to one Mussulman. The fact thus 
 certified is entirely at variance with the conjecture made 
 by those who look at the crowds bathing at the riverside, 
 and frequenting the temples, and contrast them with the 
 small number seen in the mosques, even on Friday, the 
 Muhammadan weekly day of worship. In the district 
 the Hindus vastly out-number the Muhammadans. 
 
5S LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Benares is built on the left bank of the Ganges, and 
 extends in a crescent shape three miles and a half along 
 the bank, and a little more than a mile inward. The 
 most imposing view is from a boat slowly dropping down 
 the stream in the early morning — the earlier the better, 
 especially if it be the hot season, as then the people 
 betake themselves to the river in greater numbers than at 
 any other time. Travellers in many lands who have seen 
 this view, have declared it to be one of the most remark- 
 able sights of the kind which the world presents. 
 
 Photographic and pencil pictures of Benares have 
 appeared in illustrated newspapers, in periodicals and 
 books, and give a more vivid and correct impression than 
 can be conveyed by a verbal description. These pictures 
 can, however, be better understood when those who look 
 at them are furnished with information which no picture 
 can afford. 
 
 The right bank of the Ganges at Benares is very low, 
 and is always flooded when the river rises ; but the left 
 bank, on which the city stands, is in many parts more 
 than a hundred feet high. The river sweeps round this 
 high bank. The city is connected with the river by flights 
 of stone steps, called " ghats." This word ghat often meets 
 the reader of books on India. It has various meanings. 
 It means a mountain-pass, a ferry, a place on the river- 
 side where people meet, and, as is the case at Benares, 
 the steps which lead down to the river. Two small 
 streams enter the Ganges at Benares — on the southern 
 side the Assi, on the northern side the Burna. Some 
 have supposed that the city has received its name from 
 lying between these two rivulets — Burna, Assi, making 
 the word Burunassi, Benares ; but this derivation is more 
 than doubtful. Others maintain the word comes from a 
 
A TRIP ON THE RIVER. 59 
 
 famous rajah called Bunar ; but this, too, is a mere 
 conjecture. 
 
 Let me take my readers with me on a trip down the 
 river. We embark at early dawn on a native boat at 
 Assi Sungam, which means the confluence of the Assi 
 with the Ganges, at the southern extremity. Towards 
 that end of the city some of the houses seen on the high 
 bank are poor, some are falling into decay ; but as you 
 advance, lofty buildings, some of them of a size and 
 grandeur which entitle them to the name of palaces, 
 come into view. Their numerous small windows, their 
 rich and varied carving, their balconies and flat roofs, 
 give them a very Eastern look. Perhaps the most notable 
 of the buildings are an observatory, built by a famous 
 Rajput prince, Jae Singh, and a massy and extensive 
 structure, with its buttresses and high walls looking as if 
 recently erected, which was built in the last half of the 
 eighteenth century by Cheit-Singh, the Rajah of Benares 
 at that time, who was deposed by Warren Hastings on 
 account of his refusal to comply with the demands of 
 the British Government. In Macaulay's famous Essay on 
 Warren Hastings there is a long narrative of this contest, 
 which is amusingly at variance with the narrative given 
 by Warren Hastings himself. This building is still called 
 Cheit-Singh's Palace, but since his day it has been the 
 property of the British Government, and has been for 
 many years the residence of princes of the old imperial 
 family of Delhi, who on account of family troubles had 
 come to reside in Benares, and were, happily for them- 
 selves, far from Delhi during the mutiny of 1857. Some 
 of the mansions facing the river belong to Indian princes, 
 who occupy them on the rare occasion of visits to the 
 city, and leave them in charge of servants, of whom a 
 
-6d LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 number are Brahmans performing sacred rites on their 
 behalf. 
 
 There is one spot on the riverside from which most 
 visitors avert their eyes with horror — the place where the 
 dead of Benares and the surrounding country are being 
 burnt, and the ashes thrown into the stream. The fire at 
 that place never goes out. Cremation, not burial, it is 
 well known, is the Indian mode of disposing of the dead. 
 
 The peculiarity of Benares as the sacred city of the 
 country is strikingly attested by the temples, which crowd 
 the high bank of the river, and arrest the special attention 
 ,of the visitor. Some of these are much larger and more 
 expensive than others, but there is little variety in their 
 form; and all of them, even the largest and most fre- 
 quented, are small compared with Christian and Muham- 
 madan places of worship. They are circular, with heavy 
 domes narrowing towards the top, and, as a rule, with a 
 narrow doorway alone admitting light and air. Some 
 domes are of respectable height, but none approach that 
 of many of our church towers and steeples. Most of 
 the temples are sacred to Shiva, Mahadeo, the Great God, 
 as his devotees delight to call him, and are surmounted 
 by his trident. Many have a pole at their side with a 
 flag attached to it. One sees at a glance they must, 
 though small, have cost large sums, as they are most 
 solidly built of hewn stone, and have all more or less of 
 ornamentation. A few temples are built close to the 
 water's edge. One has got off its equilibrium, and looks 
 as if it were about to fall into the stream ; but for many 
 years it has remained in this tottering position. 
 
 While the houses and temples on the riverside are 
 viewed with interest, the visitor, as he looks from his 
 boat, is still more interested in the living mass before 
 
BATHING IN THE SACRED STREAM. 61 
 
 him. It is the early morning. The sun has just ri^en 
 above the horizon, and is shedding its bright rays on the 
 river and the city. It looks as if all the inhabitants were 
 astir and had made their way to the river. Crowds are 
 seen on the steps, some even then making their way back 
 after having bathed, and others going down to the stream. 
 Thousands are in the water. Men and women, boys and 
 girls, are there — the men and women at a short distance 
 from each other. Immediately above the water are plat- 
 forms with huge stationary umbrellas over them, and on 
 these men are squatted, whose portly appearance betokens 
 ease and plenty. These are Gungaputrs — sons of the 
 Ganges — a class of Brahmans, whose duty it is to take 
 care of the clothes of the people as they bathe, to put a 
 mark on their forehead to show they have bathed, and 
 who receive a small offering from them as they retire. 
 All bring with them their bathing-dress, and they most 
 deftly take off and put on their scanty clothing. When 
 the bathing is over they wring out the clothes in which 
 they have bathed, fill with Ganges water a small brazen 
 vessel, which each person carries with him, and make 
 their way into the city to pay their homage to their 
 favourite gods before proceeding to their homes. I have 
 been told that the very devout among them visit some 
 thirty temples of a morning. 
 
 You watch the people as they bathe. It is evident 
 they are not engaged in mere ablution, so important for 
 health and comfort in that hot climate. They are engaged 
 in worship. You see them taking up the water of the 
 Ganges in the palm of their hands, and offering it up to 
 the sun as they mutter certain prescribed words. You 
 observe them making a circular motion, and if sufficiently 
 near you see them breathing heavily, which you are told 
 
62 LIFE AND WORK W BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 is their way of driving away demons, who even in that 
 sacred spot are said to haunt them. There is no united 
 worship : each worshipper apart performs his and her 
 devotion. There is incessant movement among the 
 crowd. As the words of worship — I might rather say 
 the spells— they have been instructed to use are not 
 whispered but uttered, and by many with a loud voice, a 
 stream of sound falls on the ear. If, at some spot where 
 bathers are not inconvenienced, the boat be moored, and 
 the visitor ascends the steps, he may find on certain days, 
 in two or three places, pundits reading and explaining 
 the Ramayan, or the Mahabharut, the great Hindu Epic 
 Poems, to a crowd of people, mainly composed of women. 
 Sentence by sentence is read from poetical translations 
 made long ago, which require to be re-translated into the 
 ordinary language of the people to be generally intelligible. 
 We have occasionally stopped to hear these pundits, and, 
 judging by what we heard, we concluded they satisfied 
 themselves with a loose paraphrase of what they were 
 reading. These men are rewarded with a respectful and 
 attentive hearing, and with something more substantial 
 when the work is over. 
 
 If the visitor is bent on obtaining a full impression of 
 the work continually carried on in Benares, he will make 
 his way into the city from one of the principal bathing- 
 places. He will speedily find himself in long narrow 
 streets, with lofty stone houses on either side. The 
 buildings are of hewn stone, and of the most substantial 
 description. They have for the most part a narrow 
 doorway, opening into a quadrangle, around which are 
 the apartments of the inmates. The streets are so 
 narrow that through some of them a vehicle cannot be 
 taken, and in others conveyances pass each other with 
 
WORSHIP IN THE TEMPLES. 63 
 
 difficulty. There are parts of the narrower streets and 
 lanes on which the sun never shines. In the few cases 
 where houses on both sides of the street opposite each 
 other belong to one proprietor, there is at the top a 
 bridge by which the inmates pass from one to the 
 other. 
 
 Not the houses, however, but the temples, secure the 
 chief attention of the visitor. They are seen on every 
 side. Numerous though they be, they are not sufficient 
 to meet the demands of the people. At every few steps 
 objects of worship meet your view. In niches of the 
 walls are little images, so worn by the weather and by 
 the water poured on them by worshippers that it is diffi- 
 cult to determine what they are intended to represent. 
 At your feet, close to the walls, you see misshapen stones 
 which are regarded as sacred. As you proceed you find 
 yourself accompanied by a crowd who have bathed, and 
 who are going to complete their morning worship by acts 
 of obeisance to their gods. They are seen, as they walk, 
 bowing their heads and folding their hands before the 
 sacred objects that line their way. Every now and then 
 one of a party will raise the shout " Mahadeojee keejae /" 
 — ("Victory to the Great God "), that is to Shiva, to whom 
 this title is given ; and the shout is taken up and repeated 
 by others till the street resounds. It has occurred to me 
 that this is done with peculiar force when Europeans are 
 within hearing. 
 
 You speedily find yourself at the principal temple 
 of Benares — the temple of Bisheshwar, sacred to Shiva 
 under this name, which means Lord of All. This temple 
 is in the midst of a quadrangle, covered in with a roof; 
 over it are a tower, a dome, and a spire. The tower and 
 dome glitter in the sun like masses of burnished gold, 
 
64 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 and on this account it is called the Golden Temple. 
 Natives will tell you that it is covered with plates of solid 
 gold, but in fact it is merely gilded with gold leaf, spread 
 over plates of copper overlaying the stones beneath. 
 Under the dome is a belfry in which nine bells are 
 suspended, and these are so low that they can be tolled 
 by the hand of those who frequent the temple. We are 
 told that the temple, including the tower, is fifty-one feet 
 in height. " Outside the enclosure is a large collection 
 of deities, raised upon a platform, called by the natives 
 ' The Court of Mahadeo.'" Though the gods in the Hindu 
 books are represented as continually quarrelling with 
 each other, and their devotees take up their quarrels, not 
 only at the temple of Bisheshwar, but throughout the city 
 which is regarded as Shiva's own, they are seen side by 
 side, as in perfect amity, and there is not a single god 
 who does not secure the special devotion of some 
 worshippers. It is, however, required of all who dwell in 
 Kasee, or frequent it, to acknowledge that Mahadeo is 
 entitled to supreme homage, and that to him in the first 
 instance obeisance must be made. The symbol of Shiva, 
 or Mahadeo, which is found wherever he is worshipped, 
 is the Zz'nga, a conical stone, which does not in itself 
 suggest any impure notion, but which is intended to be a 
 vile representation. In this famous temple this conical 
 stone receives special honour. There, too, are figures of 
 Shiva himself in all his hideousness, with his three eyes, 
 covered with ashes, and his eyes inflamed with intoxica- 
 ting herbs. Outside the temple there is a figure cut in 
 stone of a bull seven feet high, sacred to the god, as 
 this is his favourite animal for riding. Within the quad- 
 rangle there is a well called Gyan Bapee, the well of 
 knowledge, to which it is said the god betook himself 
 
THE TEMPLE OF BISHESHWAK. 65 
 
 when he was expelled from his former temple by the 
 bigot Emperor Aurungzeb. On this account the well is 
 deemed specially sacred. It is surmounted by a hand- 
 some low-roofed colonnade with forty pillars. It is 
 covered with an iron grating, in which there is an 
 aperture for small vessels to be let down into it, which 
 when full are drawn up, and the water thus drawn is 
 highly prized. As from day to day a large quantity of 
 flowers are thrown into it, it may be supposed how 
 horrible its water and how offensive its smell ; it is a 
 wonder the people are not poisoned by it. 
 
 We must not proceed further with this description of 
 Bisheshwar's temple. Those who wish for more infor- 
 mation can find it in the ample details given by Mr. 
 Sherring. 
 
 To this temple thousands resort every day. It is open, 
 and priests are present, we are told, twenty hours in the 
 twenty-four. It is only shut from midnight till four in 
 the morning. The temple itself holds a very small 
 number, and the entire quadrangle would be crowded by 
 one of our large congregations. The people press into it 
 in one continuous stream, toll a bell to draw the atten- 
 tion of the god, make their obeisance, pour on the object 
 of their worship a little of the Ganges water from the 
 small brazen vessel they have in their hand, throw on it 
 some flowers, give a present to the attendant priests, go 
 round the building with their right hand towards it, and 
 pass away to give place to others. 
 
 How does the visitor regard this scene ? Apart from 
 the consideration of the dishonour done to the ever- 
 blessed God by worship rendered to images representing 
 gods that are no gods — by which, if a Christian, he must 
 be painfully affected — there is much in the scene before 
 
 6 
 
66 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 him to impress him with the sottish folly into which man 
 can sink in his religious views and practices ; and there is 
 nothing to draw forth his regard and sympathy, except it 
 be the fervour, the deep though mistaken fervour, of some 
 of the worshippers, especially of the women, who may 
 sometimes be seen with children in their arms teaching 
 them to make obeisance to the idol. In Roman 
 Catholic worship there is much which, as Protestants 
 ruled by the Bible, we rightly condemn ; but in the 
 gorgeous vestments of its priests, in the magnificence of 
 many of the places in which they minister, in the grand 
 strains of their music and in their processions, there is 
 much to impress the senses and awe the mind ; but in 
 the worship carried on in the temple of Bisheshwar it is 
 difficult to find a redeeming quality. The whole scene 
 is repulsive. The place is sloppy with the water poured 
 out by the worshippers, and is littered by the flowers 
 they present. The ear is assailed with harsh sounds. The 
 ministering priests — Pundas as they are called — are, as 
 a rule, coarse-looking men, with shaven head, save with 
 .a long pendent tuft from the crown, with the mark of 
 their god on their forehead, and are very scantily attired. 
 They clamour for a present when a European appears, 
 and if given it is declared to be an offering to the god of 
 the place. Among the crowd you see men with matted 
 hair and body bedaubed with ashes, who have broken 
 away from all domestic and social duties, and devote 
 themselves to what is called a religious life. Some of 
 these ascetics are no doubt impelled to follow the life 
 they lead by a superstitious feeling, but many are idle 
 vagabonds ready for the practice of every villainy, who 
 find it more pleasant to roam about the land and live on 
 others than support themselves by honest labour. The 
 
THE MOSQUE OF AURVNGZEB. 67 
 
 people dread their curse, but many give them neither 
 respect nor love. At a place like Bisheshwar's temple 
 there is always a host of ordinary beggars, who clamour 
 for alms, and receive from some two or three shells, 
 called cowries, sixty of which go to make up a halfpenny, 
 from others a little grain, and from the more liberal or 
 more wealthy a small coin. 
 
 From this stirring scene you have only a few steps 
 to go to find yourself in the large mosque built by the 
 Emperor Aurungzeb on the site of the old temple of 
 Bisheshwar, which was thrown down to give place to it. 
 The contrast is very striking. You have left the bust- 
 ling, noisy crowd, and see only a few individuals in the 
 attitude of devotion — now standing with folded hands, 
 then on their knees, then with forehead, touching the 
 floor, engaged in supplicating the Invisible One. Instead 
 of grotesque and repulsive images meeting your view, 
 you see very little ornament of any kind, and are im- 
 pressed with the severe simplicity of the lofty building. 
 The more one knows of Muhammadanism, the more 
 grievous are its defects and errors seen to be ; but in the 
 simplicity of its mosques, which has nothing in common 
 with the sordid barn-like bareness too characteristic at 
 one time of many places of worship in our own land, 
 there is much from which Christians might learn a useful 
 lesson. 
 
 Within a stone's throw of Bisheshwar's temple there is 
 a host of temples, none of them very large, some of 
 them small, but most covered with carving, to some 
 extent for mere ornamentation, but chiefly for the pur- 
 pose of illustrating the objects of Hindu worship. If 
 you visit them you will see everything is accordant with 
 the great shrine you have left. You will see Shiva, 
 
6S LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 sometimes seated on a bull, sometimes on a dog; his 
 hideous partner Durga, with her eight arms and her 
 ferocious look, indicating her delight in blood ; Hanuman, 
 the monkey-god, with his huge tail ; Krishna engaged in 
 his gambols ; Ganesh, the god of wisdom, with his 
 elephant head and protuberant belly ; and many others 
 beside. Everything you see is wild, grotesque, un- 
 natural, forbidding, utterly wanting in verisimilitude and 
 refinement, with nothing to purify and raise the people, 
 with everything fitted to pervert their taste and lower 
 their character ; and yet, I must add, with everything to 
 give a faithful representation of the mythology prepared 
 by their religious leaders. The pundits who wrote the 
 sacred books of the Hindus were men of great talent, 
 of abundant leisure ; and it is a marvel to me, of which I 
 can give no explanation, how they spent their days in 
 spinning the wildest legends, and in setting forth their 
 gods as performing the most fantastic, capricious, foolish, 
 and wicked deeds, when they had a clear canvas before 
 them, and might have filled it with something worthy of 
 our nature, and worthy of objects to be worshipped. 
 
 Aurungzeb's mosque has two lofty minarets, rising 
 about a hundred and fifty feet above its floor, and thus 
 having from the river an elevation of two hundred and 
 fifty feet. From a boat on the river the visitor has the 
 nearest and most impressive view of the city, with its 
 peculiarities as the high place of Hindu worship. If he 
 proceed to the top of one of the minarets, which is 
 reached by a steep, dark spiral stair, he will have a most 
 commanding and extensive view of the city, the river, 
 and the country for many miles around. He will see 
 that while the streets in the centre of the city are long 
 and narrow, and have very lofty houses, beyond these the 
 
RETURN TO THE EUROPEAN STATION 69 
 
 roads widen, and many of the houses are poor and mean. 
 As his eye falls on the part beyond the most crowded 
 portion, he will observe here and there fine mansions 
 with gardens around them, evidently belonging to the 
 wealthy portion of the community, but surrounded by 
 poor streets. 
 
 After seeing what I have endeavoured to describe, the 
 traveller is well pleased to get back to his boat, and to 
 drop down the river to Raj Ghat, the northern end of the 
 city, where, after his fatigue, he is happy to find a con- 
 veyance to convey him to the European station more 
 than three miles distant. 
 
 During my residence in Benares I often made this 
 trip from Assi-Sungam to Raj Ghat, generally in company 
 with strangers. The last time I made it I was accom- 
 panied by the late Dr. Norman McLeod of Glasgow, 
 and the late Dr. Watson of Dundee. They were greatly 
 interested in what they saw, and repeatedly said the 
 reality exceeded their expectation. Dr. McLeod was 
 specially eager to see everything that could be seen, and 
 in his own strong genial way expressed the feelings 
 excited by the strange scenes before him. 
 
 I must press into the concluding part of this chapter, 
 as concisely as I can, some additional facts which call 
 for special notice. 
 
 The city as it now stands is quite modern. Though 
 foundations dug up, and pieces of masonry seen in 
 existing buildings, testify to its antiquity, we are told by 
 those who are best qualified to judge that there is not a 
 single house or temple the erection of which can be rele- 
 gated to a more remote period than the reign of Akbar, 
 who was a contemporary of our Queen Elizabeth. 
 
 Various estimates have been given of the number of 
 
70 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 temples. According to the census of 1872 the number 
 is 1,454. This does not include smaller shrines in 
 niches in the walls, which may be reckoned by thousands. 
 The temples are constantly increasing in number; at 
 no previous period were there so many as at present. 
 Traders and bankers have prospered greatly under our 
 rule, and, if devout Hindus, they deem themselves 
 bound to devote a part of their wealth to the erection of 
 a temple. A regard to their honour as well as to their 
 gods prompts them to this spending of their money. 
 
 So far as I have been able to ascertain, the temples of 
 Benares have very little of either funded or landed 
 property. The vast sum required for the support of 
 the priesthood comes mainly from the offerings of the 
 people. 
 
 The " Imperial Gazetteer" of India gives no account in 
 its last census of the castes of Benares, but we are sure 
 that many thousands of the inhabitants are Brahmans. 
 They are greatly subdivided, and are so different in rank 
 and occupation that they keep as separate from each 
 other as if they had no caste in common. The Pundas 
 officiate in the temples ; the Gangaputrs, the sons of the 
 Ganges, minister at the waterside; the Purohits are the 
 family priests ; and the Pundits, the most esteemed of all, 
 are the learned men who study the Shastres, and ex- 
 pound them to the people as occasion requires. Hindus 
 generally have their Gurus, religious guides, who per- 
 form to them very much the work done for Roman 
 Catholics by father confessors. These may be family 
 priests, learned men ; or, in the case of the lower castes, 
 the lower orders of Brahmans. A vast number of the 
 sacred caste have nothing to do with religious services. 
 They are engaged in various businesses. A considerable 
 
FES TIVALS A T BENARES. 7 1 
 
 number are cooks in the houses of the wealth}', as from 
 their hand all can eat, while they in many cases would 
 consider it an intolerable insult to be asked to eat with 
 their masters. Not a few are beggars. 
 
 There are places in Benares to which people resort 
 almost as much as to the temple of Bisheshwar. Among 
 these I may mention the tank of Pishachmochan, a word 
 meaning deliverance from demons, as bathing in it is 
 considered very efficacious in securing this end, and the 
 temple and tank of Durga at a place called Durgakund. 
 At this latter place there are many hundreds of monkeys — 
 some say thousands, though this is doubtless an exaggera- 
 tion — which scamper about in all directions, and fare well 
 at the hands of Durga's worshippers. These animals are 
 deemed gods and goddesses, and woe to the person who 
 does them any harm. 
 
 The monkeys are not the only animals deemed sacred 
 at Benares. All who have heard anything about the city 
 have heard about the well-fed lazy bulls prowling about 
 the streets, and insisting on making free with the goods 
 of the vegetable and grain sellers. These are no longer 
 to be seen going about in their former fashion. I shall 
 have something to say afterwards about them. 
 
 Mr. Sherring gives an account of forty melas, or 
 religious festivals, in the course of the year in Benares. 
 The principal of these are the Holee, the Saturnalia of 
 the Hindus, the Ram Leela (the dramatic representa- 
 tion of the life of Ram as given in the epic poem, " The 
 Ramayan"), and the Pilgrimage of the Panch Kosee, 
 when the people make the circuit of the city, and halt 
 for the night at certain assigned stations. On the occa- 
 sion of eclipses vast numbers resort to Benares from all 
 parts of India. 
 
72 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 Benares has long been considered the Oxford of India. 
 Its learned men have from ancient times been famed for 
 their learning, and the aspirants for Hindu lore — all 
 members of the same caste with themselves — have from 
 generation to generation sat at their feet. They have 
 had no grand academic halls in which to give their pre- 
 lections ; they have taken no fees from their pupils ; they 
 have met in very humble rooms, or in the open air in a 
 garden under trees ; but both teachers and students have 
 been characterized by an assiduity and a perseverance 
 which the most laborious of German scholars rarely 
 attain. The very modest requirements of these learned 
 men have as a rule .been met unasked by the princes and 
 wealthy of the land. 
 
 In 1 791, a very short time after Benares was brought 
 directly under British rule, a Sanscrit college was founded 
 by the payment of certain pundits, who were left to carry 
 on their work unchecked by any authority, or even sugges- 
 tion, from without. It is said that pundits of the highest 
 repute refused to have anything to do with the foreigner. 
 In 1853 a very fine Gothic structure, said to be the most 
 imposing building erected by the British in India, was 
 opened under the name of the Queen's College, for the 
 accommodation of students in both Western and Eastern 
 learning. Here both English and Sanscrit are studied, 
 and under the first Principal, the late Dr. Ballantyne, 
 vigorous, and I hope to some degree successful, effort 
 was put forth to infuse Western literature, philosophy, 
 and science into the pundit mind. 
 
 I have mentioned the number of Muhammadans re- 
 siding at Benares. It is officially stated they have 272 
 mosques, of which that of Aurungzeb, with its lofty 
 minarets, is the largest. Hindus must have looked with 
 
CENSUS RETURNS. 73 
 
 horror on the sacrilegious deed by which this mosque was 
 erected on the site of the demolished temple of Bishe- 
 shwar ; but the power of the bigot emperor was so great 
 that they could do nothing more than invocate curses on 
 his head. The close neighbourhood of this mosque to the 
 most frequented temple, and the remembrance of the 
 building which formerly occupied its site, have produced 
 a bitter feeling towards the followers of Muhammad. 
 Early in this century there was a furious contest between 
 the two classes of religionists, which lasted for some days, 
 and was at last quelled by the military. During the fight 
 every conceivable insult was offered to each other's feel- 
 ings, and lives were lost. The Muhammadans suffered 
 most, and since that time they seem to have been cowed, 
 so that there has been much less fighting between them 
 and their Hindu neighbours than in some other cities in 
 the North-West. 
 
 The city has two great squares, occupied as market- 
 places, in which goods of every description are exhibited 
 and sold in the Eastern fashion. They present a stirring 
 scene of an afternoon, which is the principal time of 
 business. 
 
 In the census of 1872 the occupations of all males 
 above fifteen years of age are noted. I give some of the 
 items — 
 
 Alms-takers ... 
 
 184 
 
 Beggars 
 
 3,490 
 
 Barbers 
 
 979 
 
 Pundits 
 
 96 
 
 Priests (temple or ghat) 
 
 2,809 
 
 Purohits (family priests) 
 
 1,273 
 
 Servants 
 
 14,309 
 
 suppose the distinction between 
 
 alms- takers 
 
 and 
 
74 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAOX. 
 
 beggars is that the former class deem it beneath them to 
 ask, but have no objection to take alms, while the latter 
 class both ask and take. Among the latter, beside the 
 blind and helpless, many able-bodied men make beggary 
 their profession. On one occasion, in the neighbourhood 
 of Benares, I met a man in the prime of life who said he 
 had just returned from a long journey. On referring to 
 his business he frankly said that he had never had any 
 other occupation than that of a beggar. This was his 
 hereditary profession. We have no Poor Law in India. 
 The people, from varied motives, are ever ready to give 
 aid to those who cannot support themselves, and in 
 addition exercise an indiscriminate charity, which has a 
 demoralizing effect. 
 
 The census informs us there are in Benares 16,023 
 masonry houses, and 21,551 mud houses — that is, houses 
 many of which are of mud moistened and dried as the 
 walls rise — and others of sun-dried bricks. I do not 
 wonder at the disappointment felt by some who have 
 been much impressed with the front view of the city, and 
 have then traversed its streets. 
 
 Till recently, from the commencement of our rule, our 
 Government has never been at peace with all the native 
 rulers of India. In various ways we have come into 
 collision with them, and the final result in every case has 
 been their overthrow. The deposed rajahs have as a 
 rule been sent to Benares, as if our Government wished 
 to compensate them for the loss of their dominion by 
 conferring on them special religious advantages. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Ganges, a little above the 
 southern end of the city, is the town of Ramnuggur, with 
 a population of 10,000. It is the residence of the Rajah 
 of Benares, who is simply a large landowner, and has no 
 
MA CA ULA Y'S DESCRIPTION OF BENARES. 75 
 
 authority beyond that which wealth confers. His palace, 
 or rather fort, is close to the river. Behind the town, 
 close to the Rajah's garden, there is a large tank, and a 
 temple facing it which is remarkable for the exquisite 
 carving on its walls illustrative of Hindu mythology. 
 
 I end this account of Benares by an extract from 
 Macaulay's Essay on Warren Hastings, in which, in his 
 own high rhetorical fashion, which so readily yields itself 
 to exaggeration, he describes the city. If I remember 
 rightly, there is no mention in his biography of his having 
 visited the North-West, and his description is therefore 
 not that of an eye-witness. 
 
 " The first design of Warren Hastings was on Benares, 
 a city which in wealth, population, dignity, and sanctity 
 was among the foremost in Asia. It was commonly 
 believed that half a million of human beings was crowded 
 into that labyrinth of lofty alleys, rich with shrines, and 
 minarets, and balconies, and carved oriels, to which the 
 sacred apes clung by hundreds. The traveller could 
 scarcely make his way through the press of holy mendi- 
 cants and not less holy bulls. The broad and stately 
 flights of steps which descended from these swarming 
 haunts to the bathing places along the Ganges were worn 
 every day by the footsteps of an innumerable multitude 
 of worshippers. The schools and temples drew crowds 
 of pious Hindus from every province where the Brah- 
 manical faith was known. Hundreds of devotees came 
 thither every month to die, for it was believed that a 
 peculiarly happy fate awaited the man who should pass 
 from the sacred city into the sacred river. Nor was 
 superstition the only motive which allured strangers to 
 that great metropolis. Commerce had as many pilgrims 
 as religion. All along the shores of the venerable stream 
 
76 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 lay great fleets of vessels laden with rich merchandise. 
 From the looms of Benares went forth the most delicate 
 silks that adorned the balls of St. James's and of Ver- 
 sailles ; and in the bazars the muslins of Bengal and the 
 sabres of Oude were mingled with the jewels of Golconda 
 and the shawls of Cashmere." 
 
BENARES AS A MISSION SPHERE. 77 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 BENARES AS A MISSION SPHERE. 
 
 HINDUISM, like all other religions, has its points 
 of contact, we may say of agreement, with Chris- 
 tianity; but in its main features and tendencies it is 
 intensely antagonistic, and this antagonism may be con- 
 ceived to have its keenest edge and greatest force in the 
 city from which it has for ages maintained its sway over 
 the millions of India. If any religion could be con- 
 sidered entrenched by local advantages beyond the 
 possibility of overthrow, Hinduism might be declared 
 secure at Benares, if not against assault, at least against 
 defeat. 
 
 People in all ages, all the world over, cling with 
 varying degrees of tenacity to the views and practices 
 which have come to them from their fathers. Jeremiah 
 said, " Pass over the isles of Chittim, and see ; and send 
 unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be 
 such a thing. Hath a nation changed their gods, which 
 are yet no gods ? " Hinduism in its present form is 
 comparatively modern ; but the people generally know 
 nothing of its history, and they regard it as an inheri- 
 tance from the most ancient times. It comes to them 
 as the gifts of gods and sages, which it would be sacrilege 
 to reject. There is much in the religion itself to bind 
 
78 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 the people to it. Its numerous ceremonies, sustained 
 by the largest promises, give the assurance of a great 
 reward. In discharging their religious duties they have 
 often to endure toil, undergo privation, and make sacri- 
 fices ; but the more they do and suffer, the greater is 
 the complacency with which they regard their religious 
 position. There is one thing Hinduism does not demand 
 of its devotees. It does not demand a radical change of 
 character or of life. Its every requirement may be met 
 without abandoning evil dispositions and practices. It 
 can be easily supposed how strong a hold a religion like 
 this has on its votaries, and how especially strong its 
 hold must be in the city where it has been enthroned 
 for ages. 
 
 In our day much is said about heredity. Facts illus- 
 trative of its power over the features, character, and 
 life, not only of individuals but of communities, are 
 patent to all. Whatever heredity can do it does in 
 infusing the spirit of Hinduism into the very blood of 
 the people of Benares, who have been so long domi- 
 nated by it. The mastery it has obtained over them is 
 shown by the whole tone of their minds and the whole 
 bearing of their life. If sincerity and enthusiasm be the 
 essential requisites in religion, the inhabitants of this 
 city have all they need, for these qualities are possessed 
 by them in a high degree. Then, in such a city there is 
 felt the almost overpowering influence of thousands from 
 day to day, and of vast multitudes on occasion of high 
 festival, performing the same rites, worshipping the same 
 gods, and animated by the same spirit. The peculiar 
 thrill of pleasure given by a great assembled eager host 
 to every individual composing it : the sense of importance 
 it gives to each, as if on him rested the concentrated 
 
SECULAR AND SACRED INFLUENCES. 79 
 
 honour of the gathering, does much to bind people to a 
 religion which receives such services from millions. If 
 for a single year these daily services and periodical 
 gatherings were intermitted, Hinduism would be greatly 
 weakened. 
 
 In addition to the domestic, social, and public in- 
 fluences which guard and uphold the existing state of 
 things, there is the tremendous power of personal gain 
 and honour. The honour, the wealth, the very sub- 
 sistence of large influential classes, are bound up with 
 the maintenance of idolatry. The Pundits, the guard- 
 ians and expositors of their sacred books ; the Pundas 
 who minister in the temples ; the Gungaputrs who 
 serve at the river side ; the Purohits, the family priests ; 
 the Gurus, the father confessors and guides of the 
 people; and the Jyotishees, the astrologers, with their 
 families and relations, would be stripped of their honour 
 and gain, of their very means of living, if Hinduism was 
 at once abandoned. Benares is a great commercial as 
 well as religious city. If it ceased to be Hindu, we 
 cannot suppose its commerce would be paralyzed ; but 
 as a considerable part of its ordinary trade is dependent 
 on the thousands of pilgrims who resort to it, on the money 
 they expend on food, on gifts to the priests, and on the 
 purchase of articles exposed for sale, great loss would be 
 in the first place incurred. The many artisans now em- 
 ployed in making images of stone and brass, would find 
 no purchasers for their goods. In addition to the 
 pecuniary loss which directly and indirectly would fail 
 on all classes, the whole community would feel the glory 
 of Kasee, the Splendid City, had departed, when, 
 stripped of its sacredness, crowds of pilgrims no longer 
 filled its streets, frequented its temples, or bathed at 
 
So LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 its ghats. They would feel as the Jews did in their 
 dark and disastrous days, when the ways to Zion were 
 untrodden, and there was the silence of desolation within 
 its gates. 
 
 When the peculiarities of Benares are in any degree 
 realized, the work of making known the gospel to its 
 inhabitants may appear formidable to the extent of hope- 
 lessness. 
 
 It is formidable, very formidable, but it can appear 
 hopeless only when we forget the command of our 
 Saviour to preach the Gospel to every creature, when we 
 forget the power of the truth, the adaptation of the 
 Gospel to the human heart, its past triumphs, and the 
 promised aid of the Holy Spirit. The very strength of 
 this fortress of idolatry should call forth the courage of 
 Christ's soldiers by directing their eyes to Him as their 
 great and glorious Leader. Such was the courage of the 
 Apostles and their immediate successors, when instead 
 of going to small towns and villages, and working from 
 them towards the cities where the Gospel might be ex- 
 pected to meet with the most determined opposition, 
 they assailed at once with their spiritual weapons the 
 high places of idolatry, of power which claimed worship 
 as well as homage, and of learning which aimed in 
 its own strength, and aimed unsuccessfully, at the 
 solution of the deepest questions which affect mankind. 
 They went to Ephesus, to Rome, and to Athens, and 
 secured in them a measure of success, which prepared 
 the way for a mighty revolution throughout the Roman 
 Empire. 
 
 Towards the end of the last century, when there 
 was a great awakening of the missionary spirit, devoted 
 Christians, animated by apostolic example, formed the 
 
HINDUISM AND CHRISTIANITY. 81 
 
 purpose of going with the Gospel to Benares. Robert 
 Haldane sold a fine estate, that with a band of chosen 
 companions he might preach the Gospel to its inhabi- 
 tants. He was obliged to abandon the enterprise by the 
 prohibition of the East India Company ; and then, in 
 company with his brother and others similarly minded, 
 he turned to home mission work, which for a time was 
 prosecuted by them with ardent zeal and great success. 
 
 In 1 781 the city and district of Benares, which had 
 for some time paid tribute to our Government, were 
 brought directly under our rule. We are sure no Chris- 
 tian missionary would have been previously tolerated in 
 Benares for a day. He could not speak of Jesus Christ 
 as the Lord of all and the Saviour of the world without 
 implying that Mahadeo and the other gods of Benares 
 were no God. His teaching would be speedily discerned 
 in its antagonism to the genius of the place, and would 
 ensure his speedy expulsion, if not his death. To the 
 present hour no missionary is allowed to plant his foot 
 in Mecca, or Medina, the sacred cities of the Muham- 
 madans. Till a very recent period, when the Pope's 
 political power came to an end, no Protestant minister 
 was allowed to open his mouth in proclaiming the Gospel 
 in Rome. The mild Hindu can be as fanatical as the 
 Muhammadan and the Roman Catholic in resenting an 
 attack on his religion, and in persecuting its opponents. 
 
 We have no historical records from which we can 
 learn how Buddhism was overthrown in India ; but, as 
 we have already observed, we have reason to conclude 
 it was not overthrown by argument and persuasion, but 
 by fire and sword. The intense hatred shown to the 
 Gospel by those who are imbued by the spirit of Hinduism 
 will not allow us to doubt that, if they had the power, 
 
 7 
 
82 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KlTMAON. 
 
 they would forbid all Christian effort, and especially such 
 effort- in their sacred city. They were long under the 
 rule of the Muhammadans, and were subjected by them 
 to grievous indignities, which they were helpless to avert 
 or resent ; but their attachment to Hinduism, instead of 
 being diminished, was inflamed by the treatment they 
 received, and during the semi-independent position they 
 held previous to coming under our sway they had both 
 the power and the will effectually to prevent the entrance 
 of a new antagonistic religion. The superior strength 
 and daring of the English were so signally shown in the 
 overthrow of Rajah Cheit-Singh by Warren Hastings, 
 that opposition to the new regime was seen to be hope- 
 less, and the people quietly submitted to their new rulers. 
 So far as they knew the temper and policy of the English, 
 they might conclude their religion would at their hands 
 not only be safe from violence, but protected from every 
 attempt at proselytism. The policy which would have 
 left Hinduism undisturbed was successfully opposed by 
 the Christian feeling of England, and the way was opened 
 for the Christian missionary into the very fortress of 
 Hindu idolatry. For this entrance we are not in any 
 way indebted to the mildness of Hindu religionists, but 
 to the resolute, persevering, courageous effort of men 
 of God, who contended successfully against the worldly 
 selfishness which would have doomed the millions of 
 India to perpetual night. 
 
 We have observed that mission operations were tenta- 
 tively begun in Benares in the second decade, of this 
 century. The work was carried on in a very quiet unos- 
 tentatious manner. Some time elapsed before any open 
 aggressive effort was put forth. If Bishop Heber's 
 counsel had been followed there would have been no 
 
STREE T PRE A CHING. S3 
 
 departure from the first timid mode of action. He says 
 in his journal, " The custom of street preaching, of which 
 the Baptist and other Dissenting missionaries in Bengal 
 are very fond, has never been resorted to by those 
 employed by the Church Missionary Society, and never 
 shall be so long as I have any influence or authority over 
 them. I plainly see it is not necessary, and I see no less 
 plainly that though it may be safe among the timid 
 Bengalees, it would be very likely to produce mischief 
 here. All which the missionaries do is to teach schools, 
 read prayers, and preach in their churches, and to visit 
 the houses of such persons as wish for information on 
 religious subjects." If the good man had lived a few 
 years longer he would have seen ministers of his own 
 Church forward in modes of action which he disapproved, 
 and would doubtless have wished them God-speed, as 
 his successors in the diocese of Calcutta have done. 
 The Bishop of Lahore, Dr. French, took a prominent 
 part for years in outdoor preaching. 
 
 The missionary has of course met with opposition in 
 many forms ; the opposition has often been keen and 
 bitter, but it has not taken the form of violence to 
 person or injury to property. The Gospel has been for 
 many years proclaimed in the most public places in 
 Benares, crowds have heard it, and no hand has been 
 raised against the preacher. In the memoirs of the 
 Rev. William Smith, of the Church Mission, who was- 
 indefatigable in evangelistic labour, than whom none was 
 better known in Benares, it is mentioned that on a few 
 occasions mud was thrown at him, but it did him no 
 harm. On one occasion, after a very keen discussion, 
 when my Hindu opponents had been extremely angry, 
 on coming out from the place a native Christian by my 
 
84 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 side was struck on the head by a stone, which was evi- 
 dently intended for me. Happily the young man speedily 
 recovered from the blow. The night was dark, and the 
 act was not brought home to any one. The people 
 present expressed indignation at the deed. On another 
 occasion a man drew his sword half-way out of the 
 scabbard (it was the fashion of the time to go about 
 armed), and said he would gladly cut off my head, 
 because I was trying to turn away his people from their 
 religion ; but he knew if he did he would be hanged, and 
 as he wished to live a little longer he restrained himself. 
 He gave me a scowl, which showed how ready he was 
 for the crime if he could commit it with impunity. On 
 another occasion most vigorous drumming was carried 
 on above our heads, which made speaking and hearing 
 impossible. As after many years spent in Benares I 
 cannot recollect any more violent acts than those I have 
 mentioned, the reader may infer how little reason we 
 have to complain of danger to life or limb. 
 
 Nothing approaching the treatment of Dr. Kalley by 
 the Popish priests of Madeira has been ever experienced 
 by any missionary in Benares at the hand of Hindu 
 priests. The perfect security, with which in ordinary 
 times we went about our work, is in marked contrast to 
 the experience of many a labourer in the home mission- 
 field, not only in the early days of Methodism, but down 
 to our own time, to say nothing of the violence to which 
 the Salvation Army has been exposed. The fact that 
 we belong to the ruling race, and that it is understood 
 by all an attack on us will be promptly and severely 
 punished, has had, no doubt, much to do in enabling us 
 to carry on our operations so quietly and safely. There 
 has been an ebullition at times on the occasion of 
 
POSITION OF THE MISS TON AR Y IN BENARES. 85 
 
 baptisms, but it has soon subsided. Gradually the 
 people have come to understand us sufficiently to be 
 convinced we are bent on promoting their good, and 
 they regard us in consequence with a friendly feeling. 
 Most pleasant proof has been given that many of the 
 inhabitants of Benares have come to look on missionaries 
 not only with respect but affection. I well remember 
 gratifying acts of courtesy and kindness, which could 
 not have been prompted by sinister motives. 
 
 I must not omit to say that while missionaries have 
 carried on their work openly and boldly, they have felt 
 themselves bound to treat the people courteously, and 
 to abstain from the use of violent and abusive words. 
 There are places where they do not deem themselves 
 entitled to declare their message— such as sacred places 
 where worship is being carried on. Mr. Smith, of the 
 Church Mission, once mentioned to me that he had for 
 a short time taken his stand close to one of the bathing 
 places, but the priests and people were greatly excited 
 by his presence, and he deemed it proper to retire. 
 
 While at Benares the Gospel has to encounter peculiar 
 opposition, it has some marked advantages as a mission- 
 field. The missionary, as he moves about, meets with 
 people from all parts of India. While these speak dif- 
 ferent languages, many know enough of the languages 
 spoken at Benares to admit of a measure of intelligent 
 intercourse with them. Vast multitudes come from the 
 widely extended region over which the Hindustanee 
 and Hindee prevail. While many go to Benares, we may 
 suppose the great majority, urged by the gregarious 
 feeling so powerful all the world over, happy to find 
 themselves among the multitude, hoping to get some 
 religious benefit, and sure at any rate, as they acknow- 
 
S6 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMA ON. 
 
 ledge, of amusement, we cannot doubt there are among 
 them earnest souls — how many it is impossible to say — 
 who are ill at ease, and have a craving for rest and 
 satisfaction. These persons are in the state of mind to 
 which the Gospel is specially adapted, and it is very 
 desirous for the missionary to come into contact with 
 them. Missionaries have fallen in with persons of this 
 class, and among them there have been pleasing instances 
 of conversion. There are individuals now in distant 
 parts of India living Christian lives, who were led to 
 embrace Christ as their Saviour by what they heard at 
 Benares. Many Christian books have been circulated 
 among pilgrims to the sacred city. These are taken 
 to their homes, we may hope sooner or later to be read 
 by them to their spiritual benefit. Again and again bread 
 cast on the waters has been found after many days. 
 
 The greed of the Pundas and Gungaputrs of Benares 
 is notorious. Many a poor pilgrim has suffered from 
 their exactions, and we may suppose that reverence for 
 the sacred city has received a shock under such treat- 
 ment similar to that which Luther experienced on his 
 visit to Rome. While Hinduism is no doubt greatly 
 strengthened by the resort of the people to Benares, 
 much done and endured there is well fitted to alienate 
 the more thoughtful of the visitors ; and so far as they 
 are alienated from the prevailing superstition, the more 
 likely they are to listen patiently and candidly to the 
 Christian preacher. 
 
 I conclude these remarks on Benares as a mission 
 sphere by observing that marked success there would 
 have a marvellous effect on the evangelization of India. 
 The news would soon spread that Hinduism was drying 
 up at its fountain, and that its power could not be much 
 
PROSPECT OF SUCCESS. $7 
 
 longer maintained. We know that Hinduism itself has 
 undergone great, we may say radical, changes, since 
 Kasee became one of its principal seats, if not its head- 
 quarters. There Buddhism was first preached, and from 
 it Buddhism went forth to all Eastern Asia. There it 
 was for a time predominant, but Hinduism again obtained 
 supremacy, and drove its rival from the field. For 
 centuries, Hinduism under the form of devotion to Shiva 
 Mahadeo, the Great God, as they delight to call him, 
 has had full sway. Is his dominion to last for ever ? 
 Are the people to be for ever in the slough of idolatry 
 and superstition? We cannot believe that they are, 
 until we abandon all trust in Him who rightly claims 
 all human hearts, and whose grace is sufficient to enforce 
 these claims. We know not when, we know not how, 
 but we do know that even in Benares, as all the world 
 over, our blessed Saviour will take to Himself His great 
 power and reign. Even now entrance has been gained 
 for the truth of God, hearts have been won by it, and 
 Christian churches have been formed. The first-fruits 
 have been gathered, and the harvest will come. Are we 
 allowing imagination to take the reins at the expense of 
 judgment, when we indulge the hope, that as in former 
 days Buddhist preachers went forth from Benares to the 
 millions of Eastern Asia with the lessons of Gautama, 
 the Brahmans of Benares, accepting Jesus as their 
 Saviour, will go forth with His Gospel to diffuse it far 
 and wide among the nations of India, and then, with 
 their converts, make their way to the remotest East? 
 Let us not say, " If the Lord would make windows in 
 heaven, might this thing be ? " but rather, " Who hath 
 despised the day of small things ? " The Messiah " shall 
 build the temple, and He shall bear the glory." 
 
SS LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 MY SECOND YEAR IN BENARES. 
 
 IN beginning this chapter it is fitting I should mention 
 that shortly after entering on my second year an 
 event occurred of transcendent importance to me, which 
 has contributed to my personal comfort and missionary 
 usefulness as nothing else could have done — my marriage 
 with the object of my choice, who has been, through 
 God's great goodness, spared to me through all the inter- 
 vening years. 
 
 Before the close of my first year I had a striking 
 illustration of the vicissitudes of Indian life, and of 
 consequent difficulty in prosecuting the missionary enter- 
 prise. On reaching Benares at the end of March, 1839, 
 I found three missionaries of our society, Messrs. Buyers, 
 Shurman, and Lyon. Within a month of my arrival we 
 were joined by a German missionary and his wife, Dr. 
 and Mrs. Sommers. Towards the end of autumn Mr. 
 and Mrs. Lyon left, owing to the failure of Mrs. Lyon's 
 health. They were followed three months afterwards 
 by Dr. and Mrs. Sommers, owing to Mrs. Sommers' 
 illness. My second year was advanced only a few 
 months, when Mr. and Mrs. Buyers, after a residence of 
 nearly ten years, departed for Europe. Dr. Sommers 
 had remained too short a time to render any service. 
 
THE FAILURE OF HEALTH. 89 
 
 Mr. Lyon had made excellent progress in the language, 
 and promised to be a very efficient missionary; but, to 
 our great regret, he was obliged to leave. Mr. Buyers 
 was in his prime, and was well equipped for service. 
 Thus within eighteen months the staff of the mission 
 was reduced from five to two, and one of these too 
 young and inexperienced to do anything more than help 
 his senior brother. In June, 1841, we were joined by 
 the Rev. D. G. Watt, and early in 1842 by the Rev. J. H. 
 Budden. These much-esteemed brethren still survive, 
 and have done excellent service in the cause of Christ; 
 but both suffered much from the climate, and their stay 
 at Benares was too short to admit of their doing there 
 what their hearts were bent on doing. 
 
 I have not the means of comparing our Indian missions 
 with missions in other parts of the world, but I believe 
 our losses by the failure of health have greatly exceeded 
 theirs. The climate of the South Sea Islands, of South 
 Africa, and of the West Indian Islands, is far more 
 favourable to European health than that of the parts of 
 India in which most of our missions are. The longevity 
 of many of the South African missionaries bears remark- 
 able testimony to the salubrity of their climate. 
 
 This failure of health and consequent abandonment of 
 the work is one of the greatest trials missions in India 
 have had to encounter, and is a formidable obstacle to 
 success. Instances have not been rare when, after great 
 expense has been incurred, the missionary or his wife has 
 suddenly broken down— the wife perhaps more frequently 
 than the husband— and a speedy return to England has 
 been the result. The name appears in the Report as an 
 agent, but no work has been, or could have been, ac 
 complished. In other cases the stay has been too brief 
 
90 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 to have admitted of efficient service. A considerable 
 time must elapse before the missionary, however zealous 
 and able, can acquire such an acquaintance with the 
 language and people as will enable him to do his work 
 in a satisfactory manner. When one has fully entered 
 on the work, there is frequent interruption from illness 
 and weakness induced by the severity of the climate. 
 When I transfer myself in thought to my first two years 
 in Benares, and from my vivid remembrance of the 
 vicissitudes of our mission during these years look 
 down through all the succeeding years not only of our 
 mission, but of other missions in Northern India with 
 which I am well acquainted, I am painfully struck with 
 the bitter disappointments of missionary Societies in the 
 prosecution of their work. They have responded to the 
 urgent appeal for reinforcement, and in not a few cases 
 no sooner has the reinforcement been gained than it has 
 been lost. The Societies formed of late years for Zenana 
 work have suffered from this cause more than even the 
 older Societies. They have suffered in a degree which 
 must have been very discouraging to their managers and 
 supporters. Happily a considerable number of all 
 Societies have been able to remain at their post, and 
 some have remained so long as to give an average length 
 of missionary service, which hides the fact of the ex- 
 treme brevity of the period spent by many in the foreign 
 field. 
 
 The question here suggests itself, Has this speedy 
 abandonment of the work been always necessary ? Has 
 there been the endurance demanded of those who have 
 professed themselves consecrated to a missionary life? 
 Has the return to England been accepted only when the 
 compulsion of circumstances left no alternative, and then 
 
CELIBATE OR MARRIED MISSIONARIES? 91 
 
 accepted most reluctantly? With every desire to think 
 of others as favourably as possible, without any breach 
 of charity, it must be acknowledged there have been 
 cases of departure, where I think a more resolute spirit 
 would have kept persons at their post. This I trust 
 holds true of only a few. 1 know some who soon left to 
 whom the abandonment of the work was a bitter trial. 
 Nothing but the thought that to remain would have been 
 to fight against Providence took them away. To go 
 back to the cases of failure during my early period at 
 Benares, I may mention that the departure of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Lyon was absolutely necessary; and those who 
 know the subsequent career of my friends, Messrs. Watt 
 and Budden, need not be told that if health had per- 
 mitted Benares would have been for many years the 
 sphere of their labours. 
 
 As the withdrawal of missionaries has often been caused 
 by the failure of the health of their wives, some have 
 thought it would be well to have celibate missionaries in 
 a country which has so severe a climate. To this there 
 is the obvious reply that missionaries, like others, are 
 human beings, and a restriction on them which wars 
 with human nature would be found very pernicious, as it 
 has ever been. Then, the wives of missionaries, when 
 they are what they ought to be, are very efficient and, 
 indeed, necessary missionary workers, and in many cases 
 their labours are as useful as those of their husbands. 
 In well-ordered missionary families the people see what 
 a happy Christian home is, and they are assured of a 
 sympathy in their trials and cares which they could not 
 expect from unmarried missionaries. Some Societies, 
 our own among the number, have accepted as mission- 
 aries to India persons engaged to be married, but they 
 
92 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON, 
 
 have required them to remain for a year or two un- 
 married after going out to test their fitness for the climate ; 
 and, in the event of the test being successfully stood, 
 to give them an experience which will enable the newly 
 married wife to enter with less strain on her Indian life. 
 This may be a wise arrangement, and yet there is often 
 a restlessness till the marriage takes place, and time 
 spent in going to the port of debarkation, which carries 
 with it some disadvantages. 
 
 We dare not retreat from this great work of evan- 
 gelizing India on account of the vicissitudes of which I 
 have been speaking, or on account of other very for- 
 midable obstacles which oppose us. To do so would 
 be to act a craven part. Agents must be found for the 
 prosecution of the work, and we must hope with the 
 improved advantages of an Indian career the failures will 
 be fewer than in the past • but whatever they may be, 
 the Christian Church must go forward. One obvious 
 inference from the facts I have stated, is the extreme 
 desirableness of a native agency. The natives of the 
 land, when found fit for the work, have always been 
 highly prized. Many of this class are now labouring in 
 different parts of India, and there is every reason to 
 hope that in coming years the native agency will grow 
 largely in extent and efficiency. 
 
 During my second year in Benares I entered on every 
 department of mission work, and had many opportunities 
 for intercourse with the people. In my turn I preached 
 to the native Christian congregation, went with the 
 missionaries and catechists to the city, and engaged in 
 teaching the boys attending our primary schools. I saw 
 the great gatherings of the people at their religious 
 festivals, and realized their character, and the nature of 
 
IMPRESSION OF THE SECOND YEAR. 
 
 93 
 
 the work to which I had devoted my life, more than I 
 had previously done. Instead of following chronological 
 order, my object in these reminiscences will be best 
 attained by endeavouring to present to my readers those 
 aspects of Indian and mission life which, during my 
 second year, made a deep impression on my mind, an 
 impression which was deepened by subsequent experience. 
 
94 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMA ON. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE RELIGIOUS GATHERINGS OF THE HINDUS. 
 
 CROWDS pass through the temples of Benares every 
 day, pay obeisance, and present offerings ; but on 
 ordinary occasions there is no combined act of worship 
 conducted by a leader, as is common in Christian assem- 
 blies. On occasions of special urgency — the failure of 
 rain, its unseasonable fall, the fear of famine, or the 
 dread of a great calamity coming on the community in 
 some other form — sacrifices are offered up by priests in 
 the presence of great multitudes, in which all present 
 unite. These are very special and occasional services, 
 for, as a rule, all over India persons and families act 
 apart. 
 
 Hindus are, however, eminently social, and in their 
 religious services full play is given to the social feeling. 
 This is shown by their melas, or religious gatherings, 
 which are held all over the country, and are extremely 
 popular. Some of these melas are local, and have only 
 a local attendance. Those to which crowds from places 
 far and near resort are held in so-called sacred spots. 
 Many are periodical, and are held at fixed periods of the 
 year in honour of their gods, and in celebration of their 
 exploits. Others, again, are held on special occasions, 
 and of these eclipses are the most attractive. 
 
THE SATURNALIA OF THE HINDUS. 95 
 
 In the course of my second year I saw a good deal of 
 these festivals. I have a vivid and very unpleasant 
 recollection of the Holee of that year, the Saturnalia of 
 the Hindus, which is held at the setting in of the hot 
 weather. It lasts for several days, during which the 
 people act as if freed from every moral restraint. There 
 is a general cessation of labour ; the people wander about, 
 indulge in the wildest freaks, address to women who 
 venture out the vilest words, leap and dance as if pos- 
 sessed of the spirit of licence, and throw red colouring- 
 matter on those they meet, without respect of persons ; 
 till all seen in the streets, with their besmeared faces 
 and soiled clothes, have a most disreputable appearance. 
 The night is rendered hideous, and sleep well-nigh 
 impossible, by the drumming, fifing, and shouting of 
 the revellers, kept up till break of day. During this 
 period many think themselves at liberty to do what at 
 another time they would deem very culpable. Not a 
 few partake of intoxicating drink, and if native statements 
 be true they give themselves over to the grossest licen- 
 tiousness. Europeans, as a rule, except it be necessary 
 for them to go' abroad, remain quietly in their homes 
 while the Holee lasts, and mission work is for the time 
 well-nigh suspended. When, however, Europeans have 
 occasion to go out they have little reason to fear insult, 
 as even in the Holee season they are regarded, if not 
 with respect, at least with a dread which restrains the 
 revellers. The hurtful influence of this season of licence 
 can be conceived. I have always observed that for 
 some time afterwards the boys in our schools were sleepy 
 and listless. 
 
 On the night of the Diwalee mela, held in honour of 
 Lakshmee, the goddess of wealth, the whole city is illu- 
 
95 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 ruinated, tiny lamps are seen everywhere, friends give 
 presents to each other, sweetmeats and parched grain 
 are distributed among the poor. High and low give 
 the night to gambling. The belief is entertained that 
 if they fail to spend the night in this manner they will 
 in their next birth be turned into frogs, or some vile 
 reptile. 
 
 The most popular festival of the year at Benares and 
 over the North-Western Provinces is the Ram Leela, the 
 Play of Ram, when the life of Ram, a very popular 
 incarnation of Vishnu, is dramatized. This drama is 
 acted in the open air in different parts of the city, in the 
 presence of admiring thousands. The people see Ram 
 and his faithful spouse Seeta forced to leave their royal 
 home by the intrigue of his mother-in-law ; they see them 
 in the forest, where Ram leads the life of a hunter ; they 
 see Seeta carried off by Rawan, the Demon King of 
 Lunka (Ceylon) ; they hear Ram's cries of bitter distress 
 on finding his beloved Ssetagone; they see him informed 
 that Rawan is the ravisher ; they see him setting out with 
 the divine monkey Hanuman, and his army of monkeys 
 for the rescue ; and they rejoice with him in the taking 
 of Lunka, the destruction of Rawan, and the rescue of 
 Seeta. The story furnishes abundant material for a 
 drama, and the people enter with the greatest zest into 
 the different scenes. A huge figure of Rawan is made 
 of wood and paper ; it is set on fire, and the crowds, 
 looking on, make the air resound with their shouts. 
 During this mela two things are united which in Hindu 
 estimation well agree — amusement and devotion. They 
 regard the Ram Leela as a religious service, which they 
 are bound to render to the conqueror of Rawan, and 
 while rendering it they are at once performing duty and 
 
ECLIPSE OF THE MOON. 97 
 
 receiving pleasure. They continually call such a service 
 tumasha, show,fun y and they regard its life and sprightli- 
 ness a pleasing contrast to the sombre and staid services 
 of the Christian Church. 
 
 Before the conclusion of my second year an eclipse 
 of the moon occurred, which drew to the city the greatest 
 assemblage of human beings I had ever seen. The 
 Hindus place high among their deities the sun and 
 moon, and render to them daily worship. Between 
 the gods and the demons there is perpetual war, and 
 victory inclines at one time to one side, at another time 
 to another. In Hindu mythological annals many in- 
 stances are recorded of the gods having been reduced' 
 to the utmost extremity. We are told that eclipses are- 
 caused by the demons endeavouring to swallow the sun 
 and moon ; and religious services on these occasions have 
 a double benefit — the worshipper secures a high degree 
 of merit, of which he will reap the reward one day ; and 
 the demons are driven off from their prey by the drum- 
 ming, the shouts, and the merit of the assembled people, 
 to the great relief of the endangered gods. The most 
 extravagant promises are held out to those who bathe 
 in the Ganges, at any time in any part of it ; but bathing 
 on the occasion of an eclipse, and especially in so sacred 
 a place as Benares, is meritorious in a degree which is 
 incalculable. The Pundits, the religious leaders of the 
 people, have, it appears, access to the council of the 
 demons, for the exact time of the coming attack is known 
 by them so long before hand that the people far and 
 near are prepared for its approach. In fact, if it did not 
 come on, if the demons withdrew from their intention, 
 there would be great disappointment. Brahman mission- 
 aries go great distances to inform the people the eclipse 
 
98 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 is to take place, and to press on them the benefit they 
 will receive by bathing at Benares on that occasion. On 
 their return they are accompanied by those whom they 
 have succeeded in persuading. Leaving the mythological 
 for the scientific platform, we had better mention that the 
 Hindu astronomers have for ages been able to calculate 
 eclipses ; and now they need not trouble themselves to 
 make calculations, as European almanacks are in their 
 hands to give the requisite information. 
 
 For a few days previous to the eclipse of which I am 
 ■now to speak, the unusual number of strangers in the 
 city made it evident some great event was about to occur. 
 From the morning of the appointed day the people 
 poured into the city in a constant stream. As evening 
 came on I made my way into the city on foot, but before 
 reaching its centre I found the streets so blocked that 
 I despaired of getting to the riverside. I retraced my 
 steps, and by a road skirting the city made my way to 
 Raj Ghat at the northern end. There I remained till 
 the eclipse commenced. Many were near, but they were 
 few compared with the crowds pressing towards the chief 
 bathing places. When I arrived at Raj Ghat the con- 
 fused sound of a great multitude fell on my ear, but no 
 sooner did the eclipse begin than the thousands on the 
 river's brink and crowded on the ghats, as with one 
 voice raised a shout so loud and prolonged, that I should 
 think it must have been heard for miles. I was on a 
 high bank of the river, and could see distinctly the people 
 below rushing into the stream. I could not but think 
 of what must be occurring where the crowd was so dense 
 that individual motion was well-nigh impossible. It was 
 reported next morning that three or four hundred persons 
 had been trampled to death or drowned in the rush to 
 
MELA AT ALLAHABAD. 99 
 
 the river when the eclipse began. This was afterwards 
 declared to be an exaggerated statement, but it is certain 
 many lives were lost, though how many was not ascer- 
 tained, as a number were carried away by the stream. 
 Special care was afterwards taken by the authorities to 
 prevent such catastrophes. After stopping some time 
 at Raj Ghat I returned to my home, musing on what 
 I had seen, and longing for the time when the. millions 
 of India will seek cleansing and life, where alone they 
 can be found. 
 
 Towards the end of 1840 I went to Allahabad, seventy 
 miles north-west of Benares, to take part in evangelistic 
 work at a great mela held there annually, as I thought I 
 might be able to render some help to my brethren. 
 Allahabad, called Pryag by the Hindus, is at the con- 
 fluence of the Ganges and the Jumna, and all such places 
 are deemed sacred. It is said there is a third river, the 
 Suruswatee, once visible but now underground, and the 
 place is therefore called Tribeni — the threefold stream. 
 Pryag has been for many years a famous place of pil- 
 grimage, and every year a mela is held, which is at its 
 height for some seven days, but is kept on for weeks. It 
 is held in the cold weather, December or January ; and, 
 next to Hurdwar, where the Ganges issues from the 
 mountains, draws a greater crowd than any other mela in 
 Northern India. Bathing at Tribeni is peculiarly meri- 
 torious in some years, and in these there is a vastly 
 increased attendance. Except on the occasion of eclipses 
 there is no such gathering even at Benares ; but very many 
 who go to Allahabad, before returning to their home, often 
 a distant home, pay a visit to the sacred city. 
 
 At one time the Government imposed a tax on pilgrims 
 to this mela, but it was taken off in 1838 or 1839. 
 
ioo LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUAIAON. 
 
 The mela is held below the fort, on the land lying 
 between the Ganges and the Jumna at their point of 
 meeting, on a great stretch of sand, which is covered in 
 the rainy season. In December and January the west 
 wind blows freshly over the place, and as there is incessant 
 movement, soon all present are so covered with dust that 
 they look like millers. 
 
 A gathering like this at Allahabad is always embraced 
 for evangelistic purposes. Missionaries and native brethren 
 are thankful for the opportunity afforded them of preaching 
 the Gospel to many who have come from places to which 
 no missionary has ever gone. The missionaries at 
 Allahabad gladly welcome and hospitably entertain the 
 brethren of other missions who join them at these annual 
 gatherings. Large tents are put up, with the front open 
 towards the road, and there the preachers from morning 
 till evening, preacher succeeding preacher, address the 
 people, while hearers succeed hearers. A few individuals 
 stop a long time, as if rapt up in what they hear, as if they 
 were drinking in every word ; others stop a considerable 
 time ; while many, after looking on and gaping for a few 
 minutes, hold on their way. Every now and then ques- 
 tions are asked, objections are started, and a discussion 
 ensues. When the questions are in any measure serious 
 and reasonable, much benefit results from such discussion. 
 The interest of the people is quickened, and opportunity 
 is afforded for explaining, defending, and enforcing the 
 truth as it is in Jesus. Sometimes the questioner is 
 neither serious nor reasonable, and then the danger is of 
 the discussion turning into a wrangle, which does more 
 harm than good. Prominent transgressors in this line are 
 the Pundas, specially interested in the mela, who do all 
 in their power to set the people against us. At this first 
 
EVANGELISTIC SERVICES. 101 
 
 great gathering which I attended — I found it was the case 
 afterwards on similar occasions — there was less mere idle 
 discussion than there is where the missionary carries on 
 his work from day to day. In addition to preaching- 
 stations, there were bookstalls where portions of the 
 Scriptures and Christian tracts and books were disposed 
 of. On to the time of this mela there was a large 
 gratuitous distribution among persons who from their look 
 and manner were deemed suitable recipients; but for many 
 years it has been found best to charge a small price, with- 
 out adopting a hard and fast line against giving away. 
 
 It is very difficult, rather impossible, to estimate the 
 effect produced by evangelistic services on such occasions. 
 They have not been fruitless as to conversion, but if we 
 look simply at results of this kind it must be acknowledged 
 they are very limited. Instances have occurred of persons 
 having been so impressed that they have followed mis- 
 sionaries to places far away from Allahabad; but their 
 courage has failed them, and they have after a short time 
 disappeared. One advantage is secured — the Gospel is 
 kept before the minds of the people, and some knowledge 
 of it is carried to the remotest parts of the land. Books 
 and tracts are taken to places which missionaries have 
 never visited. It cannot be doubted that such services 
 have their part in preparing the people for the new and 
 better state of things which every Christian longs for and 
 expects. 
 
 At Allahabad I had an opportunity of observing the 
 peculiarities of a great Hindu mela. The morning was 
 devoted to bathing and the performance of religious rites. 
 As the forenoon came on, the merchants of every class set 
 out their wares in tents erected on sites appointed for 
 them, with their opening, so far as possible, away from the 
 
102 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 side exposed to the wind. Goods of every description, 
 useful and ornamental, cloth, grain, cooking vessels, 
 trinkets, and sweetmeats, were exhibited to tempt pur- 
 chasers, and buying and selling went on as vigorously 
 as if the people had come together solely for that end. 
 Crowds were in constant motion, going from place to 
 place to see what could be seen, and stopping where there 
 was any special attraction, or, as happens in our own 
 crowded streets, stopping where a few were incidentally 
 collected. By the afternoon, singers, experts in tricks, 
 and show-people of every description, commenced their 
 operations, and were sure of admiring crowds. The 
 merry-go-rounds were largely patronized. Hour after 
 hour was thus spent. 
 
 A few cooked food early in the day, but the vast 
 majority staved off hunger — in some cases by partaking of 
 cakes reserved from the previous evening meal ; the greater 
 number, I believe, by partaking of sweetmeats made with 
 flour, sugar, and melted butter, of which an enormous 
 quantity was offered for sale. As evening came on they 
 scattered themselves over the ground lying between the 
 Ganges and the Jumna, and set to the preparation of 
 their one proper meal for the twenty-four hours. The 
 plain was alight with their fires. Nothing can be simpler 
 than their cooking. They make what they call a choola, 
 an elevation in the shape of a horseshoe of a half-foot or 
 a little more of moistened mud, or stone if they can get 
 it. If the traveller be of a respectable caste, he takes 
 care to make no use of the choolas which former travellers 
 have left. They may have been set up by impure hands, 
 and so he makes one for himself. It is convenient to 
 have two such choolas, that they may put on the one a 
 small pot with rice or dal, a kind of pea, in it, and on the 
 
COOKING AND MERRYMAKING. 103 
 
 other a girdle for bannocks of unleavened dough. Cook- 
 ing is, of course, largely women's work, but men are as 
 expert at it as women, and are continually seen preparing 
 their meal. I have never travelled with a native who 
 seemed to think he was called to an unusual or unpleasant 
 work, when required to cook his food. All he needs is a 
 couple of small cooking vessels, which he carries with him, 
 a little fuel, good water, meal, and a spot on which he 
 may set up his humble hearth. I have seen this work 
 done by pundits, learned men, who showed no indication 
 of shrinking from it as if it trenched on their dignity. 
 Indeed the pundit in a party that has few facilities for 
 cooking has, as I remember well in one instance, this 
 honour conferred on him on account of his caste being 
 higher than that of those who are with him. All of every 
 caste can eat what he has prepared, but he helps himself 
 first, and eats apart. 
 
 To return to the mela. The evening is well advanced 
 before the repast is over. We might suppose that after 
 the stir of the day all would be ready for sleep, and no 
 doubt many lie down and sleep soundly ; but quite a 
 number are too eager for the enjoyment of the fair to give 
 themselves to rest. Singing, drumming, and boisterous 
 mirth go on till the small hours of the morning, as I have 
 known to my unpleasant experience — not at Allahabad, 
 but elsewhere when I have been in their close neighbour- 
 hood. 
 
 How do the vast multitudes who attend a mela, such 
 as that of Allahabad, dispose of themselves at night ? 
 Their arrangements are of the simplest kind. Many 
 wrap themselves in their sheet or blanket, if they have 
 one, and lie down on the ground without any idea they 
 are enduring hardship. Others rig out a temporary tent 
 
104 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 with sticks and a blanket over it, creep under this, 
 and deem themselves luxuriously accommodated. This 
 gathering at Allahabad is in the cold weather, and if the 
 nights be very cold, as they sometimes are at that season, 
 no doubt many suffer severely. Every now and then 
 heavy rain falls, and then, as may be supposed, the suffer- 
 ing is extreme. Sanitary precautions are of the utmost 
 importance where such vast crowds meet and remain 
 together for days, and these are taken by the authorities. 
 They cannot, however, provide against suffering caused 
 by bad weather. Occasionally cholera breaks out, and 
 then the scenes witnessed are appalling. At the mela of 
 1840 the weather was good, and there was no indication 
 of disease among the people. Some years afterwards we 
 were travelling towards Allahabad at an early period of 
 the mela, and met crowds fleeing from it on account of 
 the outbreak of cholera. Here and there we saw corpses 
 at the side of the road, occasionally without one person 
 near, at other times with a weeping group around, who 
 were preparing to carry off the body to some rivulet to 
 have it burnt, or, as it often happens, to have it scorched, 
 and then left to be devoured by jackals and vultures. 
 Some had held on their way with weary limbs till the fell 
 disease seized them, and then they succumbed, lay down, 
 and died. We remember stopping where a young man 
 was dying, with two or three sorrowful ones around him. 
 We spoke to him, but got no reply. His glazed eye told 
 he was beyond all human help. 
 
 One of the first things I saw at this Allahabad mela 
 was a quantity of human hair, and was told that it had 
 been cut off after the fulfilment of vows, reminding one of 
 a custom to which we find frequent reference in both the 
 Old and New Testaments. I also saw a very disgusting 
 
HINDU SOCIAL FEELING. 105 
 
 sight— men in stark nudity, sitting in a very composed 
 dignified fashion, and women approaching them with 
 folded hands, and paying them profound homage. These 
 were deemed men of great sanctity, whose blessing 
 brought signal benefit, while their curse entailed 
 terrible calamities. At an early period of our residence 
 at Benares we sometimes met these naked creatures in 
 the streets ; but for many years they have disappeared, as 
 there is a magisterial order that they be flogged for their 
 indecency, however loud may be their pretension of 
 sanctity. At Allahabad there were many devotees with 
 their tangled hair, besmeared bodies, and very scanty 
 clothing — if what they had on could be called clothing. 
 These are yet seen all over the country. The time has 
 not yet come for stringent orders in these cases. 
 
 On the occasion of a gathering such as that of 
 Allahabad a stranger sees no sign of the separating 
 influence of caste. The people move about and mix 
 with each other as freely as people do in Europe when 
 assembled in large numbers. There is nothing in caste 
 to prevent people conversing with each other and being 
 on friendly terms ; but the friendliness must not go the 
 length of eating together or of intermarriage. There are 
 indeed large classes deemed so low, so outside the pure 
 Hindu castes, that, so far as is possible, their touch is 
 shunned, and they are not allowed to enter temples ; but 
 even these may be spoken to and caste purity retained. 
 We have not in Northern India a class so low that they 
 must hide themselves when a Brahman appears, as Pariahs 
 have to do in some parts of Southern India. In fact, at 
 Hindu melas one receives a pleasing impression of the 
 social character of the people, when he observes their 
 good humour and friendly intercourse. 
 
106 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 We do not wonder at the popularity of these gatherings. 
 The social feeling is as strong among the Hindus as 
 among any people on the face of the earth. The vast 
 majority lead lives of monotonous toil in places where 
 there is no excitement greater than that of ordinary village 
 and hamlet life, and to them it must be a great pleasure 
 to resort to the gatherings of their people, where religion, 
 business, and amusement are very happily combined, and 
 where there is so much to interest, exhilarate, and gratify 
 them. These times are to them the red-letter days of the 
 year, without which life would be intolerably dull. Resort 
 to these gatherings no doubt involves them in toil, in 
 expense, and sometimes in great suffering ; but they do 
 not shrink from the cost, as they anticipate the expected 
 benefit. 
 
 There cannot be a doubt that Hinduism is greatly 
 strengthened by these melas. Judaism was greatly 
 strengthened by the people according to the Divine com- 
 mand going up thrice every year, at appointed times, 
 to the place where the name of the Lord was, and by 
 their repairing in vast numbers once a year to their sacred 
 capital after they had become widely scattered among 
 the nations. Muhammadans, by long journeys and 
 perilous voyages, make their way to Mecca and Medina, 
 their sacred cities, and make it a point to be present 
 at the most sacred season, when many thousands are 
 assembled. These pilgrims return to their homes more 
 devoted than ever to Islam. It would be strange if 
 Christianity, which above every other religion aims at 
 producing and sustaining the feeling of universal brother- 
 hood, did not avail itself of this social feeling, to which so 
 much scope is given in human religions, and which is so 
 potent in confirming the devotion of their adherents. 
 
CHRISTIAN SOCIAL FEELING. 107 
 
 Our blessed Saviour, the Head of the Church, has by the 
 institution of Churches, and the instruction given to them 
 through His Apostles, provided for the fellowship of His 
 people ; and the occasional gathering of the members of 
 different Churches, to which the principles of the Gospel 
 point, and to which it gives the fullest sanction, presents 
 precious opportunities for the manifestation and exercise 
 of the brotherliness so characteristic of the kingdom of 
 heaven which our Lord came to set up on the earth. 
 
io8 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE OBJECT OF MISSIONS, AND VARIOUS MODES 
 OF OFF RATION. 
 
 There is no difference of opinion among missionaries 
 as to the object for which they have gone to the heathen. 
 They are all agreed their object is to make known the 
 Gospel, the message of salvation, to all to whom they 
 obtain access, to explain its nature, and press its claims 
 on their acceptance. To this nothing can be held 
 superior; to this everything must be deemed subordinate. 
 To place anything above it, or even beside it, would be 
 to lose sight of the very raison d'etre of their missionary 
 calling. 
 
 There may be, however, and there often is, a difference 
 of opinion as to the line of operation best fitted to secure 
 success. Missionaries find themselves in presence of 
 widely-separated classes, who must be approached in 
 different ways, and it is the part of wisdom to find out 
 the most direct path to their understanding, conscience, 
 and heart. About these modes of operation there has 
 often been marked diversity of opinion, some pleading 
 for one mode, and others for another. It cannot be 
 denied that in the discussion thus carried on there has 
 often been one-sidedness, resulting in some cases from 
 natural liking, in some from special fitness, in others from 
 
VARIETY OF EFFORT NEEDED, 109 
 
 the peculiarities of the sphere into which missionaries find 
 themselves introduced so that they fail to realize the pecu- 
 liarities in the qualifications, likings, and spheres of their 
 brethren, who are as eager as themselves to bring the 
 people to the feet of the Lord Jesus. Hinduism is a 
 strong fortress, and those who assail it by hurling at it — if 
 I may so speak — the red-hot shot of exposure of its errors, 
 and the fire of the truth as it is in Jesus, act very unwisely 
 in depreciating those who are quietly preparing the ammu- 
 nition required for carrying on the siege, or are under- 
 mining the foundations, and thus preparing for entering 
 the breach. The erection of the Christian Church in 
 India is a most arduous, and at the same time a most 
 glorious, enterprise, and a variety of workmen is required. 
 Those who handle the trowel and the hammer act very un- 
 wisely in depreciating those who plan the structure, clear 
 away the rubbish, and lay the foundation, or who in other 
 ways help on the building. These illustrations require no 
 enlargement. They indicate the views which every suc- 
 ceeding period of my missionary career has led me to 
 entertain with increasing firmness. The translation and 
 revision of the Scriptures, the preparation of Christian 
 tracts and books, teaching in schools and colleges, taking 
 charge of orphanages, the going among the people in city, 
 town, and hamlet, wherever they can be reached, to speak 
 to them about the Saviour of mankind ; attending to 
 secular work, such as the erection of buildings, keeping 
 accounts, and gathering money — all are legitimate depart- 
 ments of missionary work, and the choice of them by 
 missionaries ought to be determined by the exigencies of 
 missions, by personal fitness, and by providential indica- 
 tions of the course which should be pursued. I would go 
 further, and say that the preparation of grammars and die- 
 
no LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 tionaries, the giving of time and strength to literary work, 
 may in certain circumstances, in the case of men of 
 peculiar qualifications, be deemed work worthy of a 
 missionary, as thereby he may do much to further the 
 cause to which he has devoted his life. Readers will 
 readily recall names of illustrious men, who were deeply 
 imbued with the missionary spirit and did eminent 
 service, who were also remarkable for their literary 
 achievements. It would, however, be very undesirable 
 that literary ability and industry should be the most pro- 
 minent characteristics of a large portion of the missionary 
 band. Devotion to literary work is, with rare exceptions, 
 incompatible with the active life which must be led by 
 those who would come into close contact with the people, 
 and by personal intercourse strive to bring them to the 
 Saviour. 
 
 Some individuals have gone to the mission-field with 
 the firm resolve to do the work in only one way. Such a 
 resolve has ever seemed to me most unwise, savouring 
 more of wilfulness than of holy steady purpose to do the 
 Master's work. The missionary ought to go out ready to 
 part with every preconceived notion at the call of provi- 
 dential direction and the Spirit's guidance, prepared to 
 do with all his might whatever he may have the opportu- 
 nity of doing for the advancement of Christ's kingdom, 
 however little may be his natural liking or supposed 
 fitness for the work. 
 
 Like most missionaries, I went to India with my liking 
 for certain forms of work ; but like nearly all who have 
 been long in the field, there is scarcely any department 
 in which I have not some time or other been engaged, 
 though for some departments I have had little aptitude 
 and, I may say, no liking, and from which I would have 
 
BAZAR PREACHING. in 
 
 escaped if I could. To have held back would have been 
 dereliction of duty, and this conviction overcame my 
 reluctance. 
 
 PREACHING TO THE HEATHEN. 
 
 Without any depreciation of other departments, preach- 
 ing to the heathen — what is commonly called in India 
 Bazar preaching — ought ever to hold a prominent place. 
 
 Evangelistic work is carried on wherever access to the 
 people can be obtained. In Benares, our primary schools, 
 of which I shall speak presently, were taught in verandahs 
 open to the streets. These were utilized as preaching- 
 stations. The boys were first examined and taught ; a few 
 invariably gathered around, and we turned from the boys 
 to the bystanders, and spoke to them so long as they were 
 willing to hear, or we were able to speak. In addition to 
 these verandahs we had humble buildings erected on the 
 most available spots, for the double purpose of schools 
 and preaching-stations. To these little chapels we could 
 retire from the noise of the streets. In them we had 
 morning and evening service ; but as the hot weather ad- 
 vanced the heat was well-nigh intolerable in the city in 
 the evening, and evening work was suspended till we got 
 cooling by the first burst of rain. 
 
 We every now and then betook ourselves to the shade 
 of a house or a tree, where we spoke to the passers-by. 
 On the occasion of great gatherings we took our stand at 
 the roads by which the people were pouring into the city, 
 or making their way out of it. Every place was deemed 
 suitable where we could get hearers, and could hope for 
 any degree of attention. At some spots the crowd was 
 so large and noisy that there was no use in trying to 
 make ourselves heard. As we went about we spoke to 
 
ii2 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 individuals and little groups as opportunity was presented 
 to us. 
 
 Some missionaries who laid themselves out for this 
 department made it a point to go every year, with their 
 native assistants, considerable distances to the great melas, 
 and spend days, sometimes weeks, in setting before the 
 assembled crowd the great truths of God's Word. Others, 
 again, made it a point to travel during the cold weather, 
 so far as home duty allowed, to preach the Gospel 
 through the country ■ some within a limited area, confin- 
 ing themselves to certain towns and villages, and visiting 
 them again and again, while others made very extended 
 tours. It was my privilege for years to take part in these 
 intineracies, and I remember with peculiar pleasure the 
 opportunities they afforded for intercourse with the 
 people. 
 
 What in India is called Bazar preaching is very dif- 
 ferent from the ordinary preaching of ministers in this 
 country, both in its mode and in the circumstances in 
 which it is conducted. When accompanied by a few 
 native Christians, we begin by singing a hymn and offer- 
 ing a short prayer. Then those present are addressed. 
 Often one of our Lord's parables, or some striking fact 
 or passage from the Scriptures is taken as a text. Some- 
 times a remark by one of our hearers, or something of 
 general interest which has just occurred, gives the key- 
 note to the address. The great doctrines and facts of 
 Scripture are mainly dwelt on, and the more simply and 
 directly they are set forth, the more are we satisfied 
 our duty is efficiently discharged. In our preaching the 
 first place is assigned to the life and character, the words 
 and deeds, the death, resurrection, and reign of our 
 blessed Saviour. Suitableness is a valuable characteristic 
 
DIFFERENT MODES OF PRE A CUING. 1 1 3 
 
 of preaching everywhere, and among no people is it more 
 important than in speaking to the Hindus. They are 
 very fond of figures, of illustrative instances, and when 
 these are happily applied they produce a marked effect. 
 In the character of the gods and goddesses, and in 
 Hindu notions and practices, there is much which is open 
 to attack, and some avail themselves largely of this 
 opening to assail the cherished belief of the people ; but 
 as a rule it is far better to assert and enforce truth than 
 to confute error, though truth does at times require error 
 to be directly exposed. The native brethren are much 
 more inclined to aggressive speech than the missionaries. 
 They know their own countrymen well ; they are familiar 
 with their modes of thinking and of acting, they are well 
 acquainted with the doings attributed to their gods, and 
 they are ready to attack them with unsparing severity. On 
 one occasion a catechist, more zealous than wise, began 
 his address with the words, " Your religion is altogether 
 false," which so provoked his hearers that they did not 
 hear another word, and went away in indignation. 
 Afterwards I sharply reproved him for his indiscretion, as 
 I had at times to do to him and others. 
 
 Occasionally a missionary is quietly heard, and if 
 heard attentively as well as quietly he is gratified with the 
 reception he gets, and hopes that good is being done. 
 It is seldom, however, in a city like Benares that a 
 preacher is allowed to go on long without interruption. 
 If a considerable number assemble we are almost sure 
 to find, before we conclude, some among them ready 
 to speak, and the object of those who thus come for- 
 ward becomes speedily apparent. Some are eager to 
 interrupt the preacher. He has scarcely announced his- 
 subject, and has had no opportunity of explaining and 
 
 9 
 
ii4 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 illustrating it, when he is interrupted by the words, " You 
 have spoken a long time " (the long time has perhaps not 
 been five minutes) ; " let me speak a little while." As a 
 rule, in this case the missionary appeals to the fairness of 
 his audience to give him a patient hearing, that they may 
 really know his views, and may be in a position for com- 
 ing to a right judgment regarding them. Often the 
 appeal is successful, and our eager disputant is compelled 
 to remain silent. When the address is over discussion is 
 welcomed ; and, as I have observed about preaching at 
 the religious gatherings of the people, if conducted with 
 reasonableness and good humour it is fitted to do good. 
 We are thankful when there is the appearance of candour, 
 even though there be not earnestness, when those who 
 speak seemingly desire to know exactly what we do hold, 
 as thereby an opportunity is given for the clearer and 
 fuller statement of the Gospel. I have a pleasing recol- 
 lection of many instances when persons were evidently 
 impressed with what had been told them of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ, and of the claims He has on man's love 
 and trust. 
 
 It must be acknowledged that this has not been the 
 mood of most of our hearers where we are well known. 
 Many are eager to defend their own position as Hindus, 
 and to attack Christianity because it wages war with their 
 religion. Heathenism in ancient times, heathenism now 
 as we see it in India, was and is very liberal. It is ready 
 to let Christianity alone, if Christianity will let it alone. 
 It is the exclusiveness of Christianity which is so offen- 
 sive. We are continually told that Christianity is excel- 
 lent for us ; we are most welcome to maintain our 
 adherence to it; and it is surely fair to let them alone in 
 the enjoyment of their religion. Because they are not 
 
THE STRENGTH OF TRADITIONAL RELIGION. 115 
 
 let alone, because we contend that their religion is dis- 
 honouring to the living God and hurtful to themselves, 
 because we affirm that Christ is the one Saviour and the 
 rightful Lord, they are eager to find something in our 
 books and views which they can assail, and by which they 
 can show our position to be untenable. 
 
 There is nothing we hear more frequently than that all 
 religions lead to the same goal, as all the roads of a 
 country lead to its capital. To this we reply that those 
 who wish to go to Calcutta in the east are not likely to 
 reach it soon if they set out on the road to Lahore in the 
 west. The east and west are opposite, and yet they are 
 not opposed ; but good and evil, righteousness and un- 
 righteousness, are essentially opposed, their fruits are 
 opposed, and those who practise them are sure to find 
 themselves at last in places as distinct from each other as 
 light is from darkness, as happiness is from misery. 
 
 Traditional religion is strong, except in peculiar 
 seasons when the tide of public opinion runs in the 
 channel of religious revolt. From the lips of Hindus 
 we hear continually, " We must walk in the ways of our 
 fathers. What our fathers believed we believe. What 
 our fathers practised we practise. No good son leaves 
 his father and mother. No good wife leaves her husband 
 for another." To this objection we have various replies. 
 We tell them they do not walk in the ways of their 
 ancient fathers, for they did many things, such as eating 
 the flesh of cows, which they abhor, knew nothing of the 
 gods they worship, and were not fettered by caste as they 
 are. What we say about these Hindu ancestors gets 
 little credit, as the people generally know nothing about 
 them. We remind them that among themselves there 
 have been tribes that have from generation to generation 
 
u6 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 lived by thuggery and dacoity (murder and robbery). 
 Ought the children of these murderers and robbers to 
 walk in the ways of their fathers ? 
 
 I have often referred to the Khonds in the hills of 
 Orissa, who, till the horrid practice was stopped by 
 British interference, enticed children from the plains, fed 
 them well, treated them kindly, and then on a fixed day 
 murdered them, tore limb from limb, and scattered the 
 bleeding fragments over the fields as an offering to the 
 Land Goddess to secure an abundant harvest. I have 
 asked, " Ought these people to walk in the ways of their 
 fathers ? " To this question I have never received an 
 affirmative reply. 
 
 We have reminded the people their fathers were as 
 prone to err as we are ; that we ought to weigh in the 
 scales of truth and justice what they did, in order to the 
 imitation of them when right and the forsaking of them 
 when wrong. If they were with us, provided they were - 
 really wise, they would wish us to embrace the good of 
 which they knew nothing, but which was now presented 
 for their acceptance. With all their regard for their 
 fathers, there were things unknown to them — as, for in- 
 stance, the potato for food, and the railway carriage for 
 travelling. If the potato was good for the body, as many of 
 them showed they thought by partaking of it, might not 
 our religion be good for the soul ? If they resorted in 
 crowds to the railway carriages even when going on pil- 
 grimage to their sacred places, if in their earthly travels 
 they found these carriages so serviceable, might they not 
 find the religion of Christ, if candidly considered, the best 
 vehicle for carrying them to heaven ? We have much 
 sympathy with the feeling of reverence for ancestors, but 
 they are not entitled to tyrannize over their descendants. 
 
WORSHIP OF GOD UNDER MATERIAL FORMS. 117 
 
 We tell them we do not wish them to leave their father's 
 house, but to return to it ; not to leave the husband, but 
 to return to the true husband. 
 
 At first sight the worship carried on at Benares seems 
 so absurd that one wonders how a reasonable being can 
 say anything in its defence. Many years ago I had a 
 visit from an English gentleman who was travelling 
 through India, and he expressed his surprise we had such 
 limited success in turning the people from worshipping 
 such ugly misshapen stones. He evidently thought that 
 by quoting some of the passages of Scripture in which the 
 wickedness and folly of idol-worship are exposed, he could 
 silence idol-worshippers, and secure their speedy conver- 
 sion to the living God. If he had come into contact 
 with the people he would not have found their conversion 
 such an easy matter. I have never met a Hindu who 
 would allow he worshipped the material objects before 
 which he bowed down. However illiterate he may be, 
 he is ready to maintain that he worships the god repre- 
 sented by the image, and who is actually dwelling in it in 
 a mysterious manner, after some sacred words have been 
 uttered over it. 
 
 We are often told in defence of Hinduism that it is a 
 symbolical representative religion, and that as God is 
 vastly beyond our comprehension, we cannot, except by 
 symbols, attain any conception of Him. We have often 
 to say in reply, that as we cannot see our own spirit, and 
 yet know how real, how dominant it is, so far less do we 
 know the Supreme Being, and yet we have abundant evi- 
 ence of His existence, character, and government. Of Him 
 no fitting image can be made, and every such attempt is 
 unworthy of Him, and degrading and demoralizing to us. 
 The representations of God in Scripture under sensible 
 
u8 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 forms are of high value to us in our weakness ; but when 
 reproduced in material substances, such as wood and 
 stone, they have been ever found to foster low, material- 
 istic views of the Most High. If we must betake our- 
 selves to such symbols, let us have those which inspire 
 lofty thoughts. What is there in these grotesque idols to 
 help us in rising to the living God ? Hindus who know 
 English have quoted Cowper's address to his mother on 
 getting her picture, " Oh that those lips bad language," 
 and we have been asked, " Was not Cowper helped in 
 realizing his mother when looking at her picture ? " To 
 which there is the obvious reply, " Cowper's mother was 
 truly represented. Is God truly and fittingly represented 
 by the idols you worship ? " 
 
 The gods are continually represented as mediators 
 through whom we approach the Supreme. " When we 
 seek the favour of a king we approach him through his 
 ministers; when we wish to propitiate a judge we try to 
 secure a friend who will plead for us : and thus by the 
 gods we get access to the Most High." To this we reply 
 that as creatures we may each one go directly to God, 
 for He is always near us, and we can never be far from 
 Him ; but as sinners we need a mediator. As the neces- 
 sity for a mediator is acknowledged, we have an excellent 
 opportunity of showing how worthy Christ is of being 
 trusted as the Mediator, related as He is by His essential 
 nature to the Most High, and to man by the nature He 
 has assumed. A favourite figure with the Hindus is that 
 the gods are a ladder by which they ascend to the 
 Supreme ; and we could not have a figure more adapted 
 to our purpose, as it leads us to show that Christ is the 
 very ladder we need — He by His Divine nature reaching 
 heaven, and by His human nature being set upon the 
 
PUNDIT DEFECT IN HISTORIC INSTINCT. 1 19 
 
 earth. His infinite excellence and His propitiatory 
 sacrifice assure us that this ladder is so strong that it can 
 bear the weight of the whole of the human family in their 
 ascent to God. 
 
 Few things have been a greater stumbling-block to the 
 Hindus than the crucifixion of Christ, and we have to 
 dwell continually on the fact that it was not by the failure 
 of His power, but by the ardour of His love, He endured 
 this death. Some of the gods, Shiva and Kalee in par- 
 ticular, are propitiated by animal sacrifices, as blood is 
 specially pleasing to them. The need of sacrifice to 
 deliver from the consequences of sin is dimly discerned 
 by the people, but they have such distorted views on the 
 subject that it is difficult to convey to them the Christian 
 idea of propitiation. 
 
 The learned men of India have been singularly wanting 
 in what may be called the historic instinct, and we need 
 not wonder at finding the people generally destitute of it. 
 The evidence for Christianity drawn from its history 
 makes no impression on them. Historical facts and the 
 wildest legends are received by them with equal readiness. 
 When speaking of the miracles of our Lord, and enlarging 
 on their peculiar features of power and goodness, I have 
 been pleased to witness an attention which led me to 
 hope that a favourable impression was being made ; but 
 more than once my hope has been dashed to the ground 
 by one of my most attentive hearers saying, " You have 
 been telling us of your God. He did excellent things, 
 and you do well to worship Him ; but listen to me, and I 
 will tell you what my gods have done." And then my 
 hearer has become the speaker, and has dilated on the 
 wonderful feats of his gods, such as Krishna lifting up a 
 mountain and holding it on his hand above his worship- 
 
120 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 pers to shelter them from the angry bolts of Indra ; and 
 has triumphantly asked, " Is there anything similar to 
 that in your Bible ? " To which we have readily replied, 
 " There is not, but there is what is more worthy of God." 
 The most illiterate of the people are very familiar with 
 mythological stories, and if listened to will go on to relate 
 them with the greatest gusto, and at the greatest length. 
 
 Our doctrine of salvation by grace alone, and not in 
 any degree by man's merit, is often declared to be fatal 
 to morality. This is often said in our own country, and 
 we need not say what we advance in its confutation. 
 
 The doctrine of previous births has taken full posses- 
 sion of the Hindu mind, as accounting for the character 
 and events of the present birth. This belief in trans- 
 migration has a very hurtful effect on the people, as it 
 leads them, when suffering for their conduct, to attribute 
 their sufferings to births of which they do not profess to 
 have any remembrance, instead of blaming themselves 
 for the course they had pursued. We have to show the 
 baselessness, the unreasonableness, and the injurious 
 tendency of this notion. The doctrine of a blind fate 
 determining everything is widely held. The greatest 
 criminals coolly assert it has been their fate to have done 
 what they have done, and, of course, to suffer as they 
 suffer. The moral nature of the people, though be- 
 numbed, is happily not destroyed, and to it we appeal 
 against a notion which levels all moral distinctions. 
 
 Pantheism, it is well known, lies at the foundation of 
 Hindu Polytheism. It may be indeed doubted if there 
 has ever been a Polytheistic system apart from a Pan- 
 theistic element. The Hindus generally cannot work out 
 the Pantheistic theory, as the Pundits do, but the most 
 illiterate are familiar with its commonplaces, and are 
 
PANTHEISM AND HIND U PHIL SO PHY. 1 2 1 
 
 ready with their avowal. We often hear, " Is not God 
 everywhere? Does He not pervade all? Is He not 
 all? Is not all evolved from Him, as the spider's web is 
 evolved from its body ? Does not all emanate from Him, 
 as the stream flows from the fountain and rays from the 
 sun ? Are we not all portions of Him ? We may wor- 
 ship anything and everything if only we see God in it. 
 There are differences in the sparks from the central fire, 
 some far brighter than others. . The gods are the brightest 
 sparks, and therefore they are specially worthy of worship." 
 In reply we have to insist on the difference between the 
 Creator and the creature, between the Ruler and His 
 subject. We are often told it is God that makes us speak 
 and act, and we are puppets dancing as He draws the 
 strings. In protest against this doctrine we appeal to 
 the acknowledgment they themselves make of the essential 
 distinction between right and wrong, the one to be done, 
 the other to be shunned, and show that if their Pantheistic 
 notion be accepted the distinction is obliterated, and the 
 floodgate is open to the commission of all wickedness. 
 
 The most advanced thought of Hindu philosophy is 
 that all is Maya, illusion, the play, the amusement of the 
 Supreme, who leads us to believe that we are, that we 
 have a separate existence, which we have not ; but at last 
 the illusion -will come to an end, all will be absorbed in 
 Brahm, as the water in the clouds falls into the sea; there 
 will be no conscious existence in the universe. Brahm 
 himself will glide into a profound slumber from which he 
 will aw r ake after a vast season of repose. A rope lying 
 on the road is taken for a serpent, but it is only a rope. 
 There are hundreds of suns glancing on the waters, but 
 there is only one sun. In reply we contend that illusion 
 implies reality ; that if there was no reality illusion would 
 
122 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 be impossible. If there was no serpent a rope would not 
 be taken for it. If there was no sun there would be no 
 suns glancing in the waters. 
 
 The question has been often discussed, Have the 
 Hindus any idea of a living, personal God ? It is un- 
 questionable they often speak as if they had. They 
 often say, " Does not God see ? Does He not know ? 
 Will He not punish us if we do what is wrong?" It is 
 difficult to say to what degree this notion has been 
 formed and cherished from intercourse for ages with 
 Muhammadans, and how far it comes from the demand 
 of the human spirit for the living God. Some eminent 
 Sanscrit scholars tell us that the Vedas teach Pantheism, 
 while others assert that in their most ancient teaching 
 they assert the doctrine of a living, personal God. From 
 this divided opinion it is plain that the teaching of the 
 Vedas on this vital subject is ambiguous. At any rate 
 there cannot be a doubt that the modern Hindus have 
 some notion of God as a living, conscious One apart 
 from His creatures, although it is held with Pantheistic 
 and Polytheistic notions, which are antagonistic to it, 
 and greatly weaken its influence. Its being held at all 
 is very serviceable to a missionary in the prosecution of 
 his work. 
 
 In a city like Benares many have acquired a consider- 
 able acquaintance with the Bible, and these endeavour to 
 find flaws in it to show that our religion is as assailable 
 as theirs. 
 
 I must not go further into these details of evangelistic 
 work. As I am giving them my past life comes vividly 
 to my remembrance. I remember its pleasures, and also 
 its difficulties and trials. I feel as if I was engaged in 
 preaching to the Hindus among whom I have spent a 
 
MUHAMMAD AN OPPOSITION TO THE GOSPEL. 123 
 
 great part of my life, and discussing with them the great 
 questions which affect God and man. I am conse- 
 quently in danger of saying more than can be interesting 
 to my readers. 
 
 In Benares it is rare to have only Hindus for our 
 hearers. We very often have Muhammadans also, and 
 they are our most eager and bitter opponents. All I can 
 now say about them is that they are bent on entrapping 
 us with questions about the Sonship of Christ, the Trinity 
 in the Godhead, the authenticity of the Scriptures as we 
 now have them, the alleged incompleteness of Christ's 
 prophetic office, as proved, they think, by the promise 
 of the Paraclete as well as by the predictions in both the 
 Old and New Testaments. Among Muhammadans we 
 have met individuals who seemed sincere inquirers after 
 truth, who seemed bent on ascertaining what is true and 
 discovering what is false. We have been gratified with 
 their apparent candour, humility, and reasonableness. 
 We must acknowledge these have been a small minority 
 compared with the many whose pride and bigotry have 
 shut up their mind against everything we had to advance, 
 and whose sole aim has been to assail Christianity and 
 Christians. 
 
 In the prosecution of the evangelistic work, which I 
 have endeavoured to describe, missionaries come into 
 contact with all classes. The seed of the word thus sown 
 far and wide may remain for a time hidden, but we have 
 every reason to hope it will some time spring up and 
 bring forth abundant fruit. 
 
24 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 FROM the commencement of Missions, schools have 
 received much attention, and have absorbed a large 
 part of mission agency. These schools have been of dif- 
 ferent orders, many primary, a number secondary, and a 
 few educating the pupils up to the University mark for 
 degrees. I have had a great deal of experience in teaching 
 and superintending primary and secondary schools, and 
 I have seen something of the institutions of the highest 
 class. I now speak of schools for boys and young men. 
 Girls' schools will receive attention in a subsequent 
 chapter. 
 
 I do not know any mission in Northern India where 
 elementary education has been entirely neglected. Some 
 have done much more in this department than others, 
 but all have devoted to it a measure of attention and 
 effort. We had at one time ten schools of this class 
 in different parts of Benares. In these humble schools 
 many have learned to read, write, and keep accounts, and 
 have thus been fitted for discharging efficiently their 
 secular work. Their minds have been furnished and their 
 character improved by useful information communicated 
 to them. Above all, Christian instruction has been im- 
 parted. The schools have been frequently visited by the 
 
PRIMARY SCHOOLS. 125 
 
 missionary and his native assistants for the special object 
 of reading with the pupils portions of the Scriptures, and 
 inculcating the lessons they contain. Thus readers for 
 our Scriptures and Christian books have been prepared, 
 who we may hope come to their perusal with weakened 
 prejudice from the kindly feeling with which we are re- 
 garded. A favourable impression has thus been made on 
 the minds of parents as well as of pupils. 
 
 I have already mentioned that these schools have 
 been utilized for preaching-stations, and have been well 
 adapted for this purpose. They have been carried on 
 at small expense. The great drawback has been that 
 with few exceptions the teachers have been Hindus. They 
 have been of the Kaisth, the writer caste, who are as a 
 caste less imbued perhaps with Hinduism than any other. 
 When Christians have been available their services have 
 of course been thankfully secured. For some years the 
 Hindu element has been gradually withdrawn from the 
 teaching staff. Two of the early teachers in our time 
 became Christians, one having been baptized in our 
 Mission, and the other in the Church Mission at Benares. 
 
 The whole state of primary education in the North- 
 West, I may say in India, is on a very different footing 
 from what it was in 1840. Great progress in every de- 
 partment of education has been made since that time. 
 Considering the vast importance of primary education, 
 the advancement has not been so great as might have 
 been expected, but there is every prospect of its being 
 largely extended in the immediate future. It is hoped 
 that one outcome of the Education Commission which is 
 now sitting will be the gathering into schools of many 
 thousands of the young who have been hitherto neg- 
 lected. 
 
126 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 In most Missions of any standing, even where the 
 chief attention has been given to direct evangelistic work, 
 some provision has been made for secondary education. 
 A school with this object was established in our Mission 
 in 1845. It was taught in a well-sized native house, 
 and was afterwards transferred to a larger, building. It 
 had successive superintendents, the late Mr. Sherring, 
 Mr. Blake, and myself. It was a longer time under Mr. 
 Sherring than under any other, and in it he laboured 
 very diligently and efficiently. It received the name of 
 the Central School, as our idea was to transfer to it the 
 best boys from what we called the Bazar schools. It was 
 intended to allow none to enter who had not made some 
 progress in reading their own language, but we found this 
 exclusion impracticable, and we were obliged to form an 
 elementary department. English was taught, and the 
 higher classes were introduced to geometry, algebra, 
 history, especially Indian history, and other similar 
 branches of a liberal education. Almost all when they 
 entered were ignorant of English. Those who remained 
 a considerable time made fair progress, a few made remark- 
 able progress; and we were happy to find that many on 
 leaving us obtained responsible situations, which they 
 continued to hold to the satisfaction of their superiors. 
 
 For years under successive superintendents the Head 
 Master was a Christian, Babu Ram Chunder Basu, who 
 is now most usefully employed as a lecturer to educated 
 natives. His great attainments, his diligence and teach 
 ing power, did much to promote the prosperity of the 
 school. 
 
 In our Central school a very prominent place was given 
 to Christian instruction. Every day Scripture lessons 
 were given by Christian teachers ; on Saturday, for years, 
 
THE UNIVERSITY STANDARD. 127 
 
 a lecture was delivered to the assembled school ; and on 
 Sunday morning a service was held, at which there was a 
 good voluntary attendance. The effect of the promi- 
 nence thus given to Christian teaching was shown early 
 in 1857, when on a plan arranged by the zealous public- 
 spirited Commissioner of the Benares Province, Mr. 
 Henry Carre Tucker, there was a gathering in the city of 
 the pupils from all the schools in the province who 
 choose to attend to submit to an examination in Scrip- 
 ture knowledge. Prizes in money and books were given 
 to those who proved themselves most proficient. A 
 great number of lads and boys made their appearance, 
 and the high place taken by the pupils of our Central 
 school showed how well they had been taught. 
 
 Some missions provide for taking their pupils on to 
 the University standard. Among these the missions in 
 the Presidency cities have held, and from their peculiar 
 sphere must continue to hold, the first rank. I have 
 already observed nothing interested me more, nothing 
 delighted me more on reaching Calcutta early in 1839, 
 than the sight of many young men and boys taught in the 
 institutions of the Church of Scotland and of our own 
 Mission. It was most exhilarating to see so many bright 
 youths studying our language, introduced to Western 
 knowledge, and, above all, led to the fountain of truth in 
 the Word of God. Dr. Duff was not the first in estab- 
 lishing in Calcutta an institution for the teaching of 
 English ; he was not the first in establishing a Christian 
 school ; many were before him in this good work : but he 
 was the first in setting up an institution on a large scale 
 on a thoroughly Christian basis, in which English was to 
 have the first place, and in which provision was made 
 for carrying the students on to the University standard 
 
128 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 of Europe. In 1843 tne missionaries, on account of 
 their adherence to the Free Church, were obliged to give 
 up their buildings in Cornwallis Square, and to seek accom- 
 modation in another part of Calcutta, where they have 
 continued their scholastic work with great zeal and effi- 
 ciency. The institution in Cornwallis Square has been 
 conducted for many years with remarkable success by the 
 missionaries of the Established Church of Scotland. All 
 the missions in Calcutta have taken part in this work, 
 and have sent forth bands of well-educated young men, 
 who have acquired a large acquaintance with the Word 
 of God. 
 
 Similar institutions have been formed throughout the 
 country. As may be supposed, these vary greatly in 
 resources and efficiency. Years ago our Central school 
 was transferred from a rented house in the city to a 
 large purchased house in the suburbs, where, under the 
 name of the High School, it has continued to flourish. 
 Many of its students have successfully passed the En- 
 trance examination of the Calcutta University, and a 
 considerable number have passed the First Arts exami- 
 nation. It has always stood high in native estimation, 
 has had a large attendance of pupils, and is reckoned 
 one of the best institutions of the kind in the North- 
 West. The change from the Central school, with its 
 secondary education, to the High school, with its arrange- 
 ment to carry on the pupils further, was made by the late 
 Mr. Sherring, and to his assiduous care and efficient 
 management its success is largely due. It maintains its 
 character under the superintendence of our friend Mr. 
 Hewlett, who has arranged for the opening of a B.A. 
 class. 
 
 I have mentioned the University standard. For many 
 
AMBITION FOR UNIVERSITY HONOURS. 129 
 
 years after our going to India there was no University in 
 the land. The establishment of Universities in Calcutta, 
 Madras, and Bombay, and the introduction of the grant- 
 in-aid system, have effected in the educational department 
 a change so great that it may be called a revolution. The 
 studies in mission schools are to a large extent what they 
 were, but they have come under new conditions, which 
 greatly alter the proportionate attention given to them, 
 and the degree of zeal with which they are prosecuted. 
 Under the grant-in-aid system missionaries are allowed 
 full liberty in giving Christian instruction to their pupils. 
 The only thing required by the Government Inspector is 
 that the secular education be such as will entitle the 
 school to a grant. If formerly a mission school egre- 
 giously failed in fitting the pupils for the positions in life 
 to which they were looking forward, it rightly lost favour, 
 and was soon deserted. Now there is a new urgent 
 necessity for efficiency, and the healthy stimulus thus 
 given is in itself a marked benefit ; but if care be not 
 taken the opportunity for imparting Christian instruction 
 is impaired, which formed the main inducement for 
 missionaries taking part in the work. 
 
 The effect of the change is most marked in our higher 
 schools. There is a widely spread and intense ambition 
 for University honours. Not only in the Presidency 
 cities, but in the great cities of the country, a crowd of 
 boys and young men are eager for admission to the 
 University circle. This eagerness springs from the desire 
 for honourable distinction, which is as strong in the 
 minds of Indian youth as in any youth on the face of 
 the earth. It springs, perhaps, still more from the fact 
 that the University stamp, attesting educational pro- 
 ficiency, is a high recommendation in favour of appli- 
 
 10 
 
130 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 cants for well-paid situations. It would be hard to say 
 how far a love of knowledge contributes to this eagerness 
 for study. It would be uncharitable to affirm it is alto- 
 gether absent, but it would be shutting one's eyes to 
 potent facts to suppose it furnishes the greater part of the 
 motive power. Owing to various causes, such as the 
 want of opportunity, of capacity, and diligence, the great 
 majority of students do not aspire higher than the En- 
 trance examination ; but even to pass this successfully is 
 considered a great feat, and many are proud of achieving 
 it. The Calcutta University has a high standard for 
 degrees, and those who acquire them are entitled to be 
 considered well-educated men. 
 
 The effect of this eagerness, we may say this rage for 
 University distinction, on mission schools can be easily 
 conceived. The great question with the student is, 
 "How can I get to the University goal? What are the 
 studies which promise the quickest and largest success ? " 
 The studies which do not lead to this goal have little 
 attraction ; while those that lead to it, and just in pro- 
 portion as they lead to it, are eagerly pursued. Our 
 Scriptures have no place in the University curriculum. 
 The consequence is that the student, whose supreme aim 
 is to acquit himself well when he goes up for degrees, and 
 estimates studies by their bearing on his success, gives to 
 the Bible only the attention required by the rule of the 
 institution he attends, and he often gives that attention 
 reluctantly ; so that even the knowledge he cannot fail 
 to acquire can scarcely be expected to tell on his heart 
 and conscience. Every hour given to the Bible he is apt 
 to regard as taken away from the studies which he most 
 highly values, and in which, with all his application, he 
 finds it difficult to attain proficiency. 
 
THE POPULARITY OF MISSION SCHOOLS. 131 
 
 It is undeniable that mission schools have been, and 
 are, popular with the people of India. From the Report 
 just published of our Benares Mission it appears that at 
 present there are 1,265 pupils in its schools, boys and 
 girls. Various things have conduced to this popularity. 
 Missionaries as a class have acquired a firmly established 
 character for attention to their pupils and kindly treat- 
 ment of them. They are credited with good motives by 
 many who have no drawing to Christianity. Then, for a 
 considerable time no charge for tuition was made, the 
 pupils being simply required to pay for their school 
 books. Since fees have been taken they are, I believe, 
 generally lower than in Government institutions ; though, 
 on the other hand, these have scholarships and prizes which 
 are far beyond any pecuniary advantage mission schools 
 can offer. There is, of course, in our schools the possi- 
 bility of the pupils' ancestral religion being weakened, or 
 even abandoned, but the hope is entertained both by them 
 and their parents that the danger will be escaped. While 
 the main motive for resorting to our schools is secular 
 advancement — undoubtedly a right motive, if kept within 
 due limits — the missionaries, while earnestly desiring the 
 temporal welfare of their pupils, are actuated by a still 
 higher motive, which they constantly avow. • Till the 
 establishment of the University, boys and young men, 
 while prosecuting the special object for which they had 
 put themselves under tuition, with few exceptions showed 
 no disinclination to Christian instruction. A portion of 
 the school-time was allotted for it, and to the work of 
 that time many cheerfully applied themselves. Some 
 became deeply interested, and a few were led in conse- 
 quence to avow their faith in Jesus. With the new 
 University system a new order of things has come in, 
 
132 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 which has placed Christian instruction under great dis- 
 advantages. 
 
 In consequence of this change some have advocated 
 the entire withdrawal of mission agency from the schools 
 where the higher education is imparted. It has been 
 said, " Why should missionaries from day to day be doing 
 the work of mere secular teachers, in hope that during 
 the short time allotted for Christian instruction to young 
 men, indisposed to receive it, they can secure their 
 spiritual good ? " If they withdraw, what then ? The 
 alternative is the loss of influence over a class that may 
 be expected to take the lead in all movements of their 
 people, and their transfer to teachers who are, in many 
 cases, the avowed and bitter foes of Christianity, and 
 whose object will be to imbue them with their own sen- 
 timents. There is abundant testimony to the fact that 
 the pupils of mission schools regard missionaries with a 
 friendly feeling, and diffuse that feeling in their respec- 
 tive circles, and also show respect for the Gospel even when 
 they argue against it to justify their adherence to their 
 ancestral religion. May it not be hoped, too, that in 
 many minds a conviction is left that Christianity is the 
 religion of heaven, although there are formidable ob- 
 stacles to that conviction obtaining sway over the heart 
 and life ? There have been instances where the convic- 
 tion has broken through every obstacle, and has been 
 avowed by open profession of faith in Christ. Our 
 Missionary Societies may well shrink from the abandon- 
 ment of a sphere which furnishes the opportunity for 
 favourable influence over so many minds— and minds, too, 
 which are sure to be very influential in the community. 
 
 The preferable plan has been adopted. It appears 
 from the latest statistics that the number of students in 
 
SABBA Til SCHO OLS. 1 3 3 
 
 mission schools is greater, and the course of study more 
 advanced, than at any previous period. I am not aware 
 that any of the missionaries in the higher institutions 
 have proposed to abandon them on account of the new 
 state of things. While giving themselves cheerfully to 
 the imparting of the education which their pupils are 
 eager to acquire, they put forth resolute steady effort to 
 counteract the secularizing tendency of their studies. 
 The assembled school is opened with prayer, Scripture 
 lessons are given, and, taught as they are by Christians, 
 the pupils are under Christian influence during all their 
 school hours. It is common in the North-West, and I 
 suppose in other parts of India, to have services in the 
 schools on Sabbath morning, at which the attendance is 
 voluntary ; and at Benares, at least, the attendance has 
 been very encouraging. Of late Sabbath schools, apart 
 from day schools, have been established in many mis- 
 sions, with every prospect of success. The attendance 
 is large, and in some places a number of parents are pre- 
 sent. These schools are carried on largely on the English 
 and American model. The international lessons are 
 used, pictures and books are given as prizes to attentive 
 scholars; and they have a yearly treat, in conducting 
 which care is taken against the violation of caste. The 
 American Episcopal missionaries have taken the lead in 
 this new departure. 
 
 It has been often remarked that our higher schools 
 can show very few converts. The conversions have not 
 been many, and yet they have not been so inconsiderable 
 in number as they have been represented. When we 
 look at our mission agents we find that a large proportion 
 of our most efficient men, the men that have done the 
 best service, have come from these schools. At the great 
 
134 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Missionary Conference at Allahabad in 1874, at which I 
 was present, they acquitted themselves in a manner which 
 attested their mental power and Christian earnestness, 
 and gave one a high opinion of their fitness for evan- 
 gelistic work among their countrymen. At the late 
 Decennial Missionary Conference in Calcutta they took 
 a prominent and effective part. It is, indeed, a matter 
 for deep regret that of late our accessions from this 
 quarter have been few ; but when hope has been at the 
 lowest ebb one has appeared here and there to strengthen 
 it by avowing himself a follower of Christ. 1 
 
 In reference to our schools, in reference to our work 
 generally, it is important to keep before our minds the 
 great power of public opinion. Many are the things 
 which go to form it; it is very subtle in its working; the 
 most acute and observant mind cannot estimate its 
 force : but when once widely formed its effects are 
 remarkable. In India public opinion is formed much 
 more slowly than in a land like ours ; the constitution of 
 society presents a stronger front to its action. But there 
 too it works, and when it works on till it has obtained 
 overmastering power we may expect to see a mar- 
 vellous change. We cannot doubt that missions have a 
 high place in forming this opinion ; and among mission 
 agencies I believe there is no one which has told and 
 is telling more beneficially on the people than our 
 mission schools. 
 
 1 At the Calcutta Conference there was much discussion about 
 schools, especially of the higher order. Experienced educa- 
 tionalists gave expression to their views, some stating in strong 
 terms the aversion to Bible lessons shown by many of the pupils ; 
 while others, among whom Mr. Miller of Madras was prominent, 
 represented the pupils as generally willing to receive Christian 
 instruction. 
 
FAMINE IN THE LAND. 135 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ORPHANAGES. 
 
 ALL over India missions have had orphans under 
 their charge, but from personal knowledge I can 
 only speak of the North-West. 
 
 The need for these institutions was most pressing in 
 1838 and 1839. I remember hearing, on my arrival at 
 Benares, the most harrowing account of the fearful 
 sufferings of the people over a great extent of country. 
 The famine had been sore in the land. People fled 
 from their towns and villages, hoping to reach a more 
 favoured region ; but travelling through districts as destitute 
 of food as those they left, they received no help, and 
 perished miserably. The weak and the very young were 
 the first to succumb. Many struggled on, eating grass 
 or anything that could allay the pangs of hunger, in the 
 hope of reaching the cities where they could expect 
 relief from their own people, and still more from their 
 English rulers. At that time Agra was the seat of 
 government for the North-West, and as the famine was 
 specially severe in that district, so great a multitude poured 
 into it that, notwithstanding the strenuous effort put 
 forth by Europeans, official and non-official, helped by 
 wealthy and benevolent natives, only partial relief could 
 be afforded. The means of communication between one 
 
136 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 part of India and another were, even at that time, far 
 better than they had been in the days of native rule ; 
 much had been done to improve the roads, but owing to 
 the distance of places where food was comparatively 
 abundant, and the length of time and the expense in- 
 curred in conveying it to the afflicted districts, timely 
 help was not obtained. Many children were abandoned, 
 and the authorities sent out orders to their subordinates 
 to rescue these waifs and feed them till arrangements 
 could be made for their support. 
 
 Missionaries felt themselves called on to offer their 
 services in this dreadful emergency, and the offer was 
 readily accepted. The large expenditure for which they 
 thus became responsible was met by a small allowance 
 made by Government for each child, by a grant from a 
 Famine Fund which had been raised, and by contribu- 
 tions received by missionaries from friends to help them 
 in this new undertaking. 
 
 The institutions then established have become per- 
 manent. The places left vacant by the death of many 
 of the first inmates, and the entrance into active life of 
 those who survived, were soon filled by others who had 
 equal claims on Christian compassion. On the occasion of 
 great melas children are often lost, and in not a few cases 
 their parents are never found. In the great cities, by the 
 death of parents, and by the abandonment of children — 
 sometimes through extreme destitution, at other times by 
 unnatural indifference— helpless little ones are cast on the 
 pity of the public. From country places forsaken children 
 are sent to the head-quarters of districts. In seasons of 
 scarcity, which frequently occur, and especially in famine 
 years such as 1861, large additions are made to the number 
 of orphans. With these causes operating to produce the 
 
SANGUINE HOPES. 137 
 
 class from which orphanages are recruited, there is no 
 likelihood of the time coming when they will not be 
 needed. The people, as a rule, are undoubtedly kind to 
 children ; but when we consider the great poverty of many, 
 the extreme difficulty with which they obtain the neces- 
 saries of life, there is no reason to wonder at the cases of 
 destitution which are continually presenting themselves. 
 In our own country, with all its advantages, we have 
 numerous orphanages, where many are sheltered and 
 trained for useful life, who would otherwise be thrown as 
 waifs on the surface of society. 
 
 When orphanages were first formed in Northern India, 
 great hope was entertained they would not merely 
 relieve present and pressing distress, and do good to a 
 large number of destitute young persons, but would tell 
 powerfully on native society, and lead to the formation of 
 a large, strong Christian community. The sufferings of 
 the people afflicted by famine were deplored, they were 
 regarded with deep pity ; everything was done which 
 could be done to relieve them, but it was hoped that 
 out of this calamitous state of affairs would be evolved, 
 through the overruling of Providence, a signal moral and 
 spiritual benefit to the people generally. Here was a 
 large band of boys and girls taken out of native society, 
 cut off from idolatrous training and associations, and 
 made over in the most plastic season of their lives to 
 be moulded by those whose supreme aim would be to 
 strengthen and elevate their character, and prepare them 
 for a happy, useful, and honourable career. It was hoped 
 that when these children thus trained grew to manhood 
 and womanhood, they would go out among their country- 
 men striking examples of moral and spiritual excellence, 
 and would by their manifest superiority make a greater 
 
138 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 impression on the minds of the people than could be 
 made by the preaching and efforts of missionaries. A 
 worthy chaplain sent out a pamphlet advocating the 
 gathering by Government of all the orphan children in 
 the country, and, if I remember rightly, of all the children 
 with whom parents were willing to part, and the 
 placing of them in institutions where they should be 
 brought up as Christians, and as members of the Church 
 of England. He maintained that if this was done, in the 
 course of a few years a great number would go out to 
 native society to leaven it with Christian sentiment, and 
 with loyalty to the British Government. He drew a 
 glowing picture of the good that would be accomplished 
 if this policy were adopted and vigorously carried out. 
 Few were so hopeful as my friend, but many did 
 anticipate great results. 
 
 It cannot be doubted that orphan institutions have 
 done much good; but I think none will maintain that the 
 sanguine hopes with which they were begun have been 
 realized. There have been obstacles in the way of 
 success which might have been partly foreseen, but which 
 could not have been fully anticipated. Many of the 
 children brought to the missionaries were so sickly and 
 emaciated, that they soon died in spite of ail the attention 
 bestowed on them. The mortality has been at times 
 most depressing. There was no vitality to resist disease. 
 The effort to preserve life was in many cases frustrated 
 by the vitiated taste of the children, which led them to 
 eat lime, earth, garbage of any kind on which they could 
 lay their hands, in preference to good food. They were 
 closely watched, but it was impossible to watch them so 
 closely as to prevent them from doing that which hurried 
 them to the grave. 
 
THE DIFFICULTIES IN ORPHAN MANAGEMENT. 139 
 
 The orphans were of different ages, from very early 
 youth to fourteen or fifteen. The elder ones were 
 steeped in the spirit of the class from which they came 
 — as a rule the lowest class of the community ; and the 
 younger ones had in their very blood hereditary 
 qualities which put obstacles in the way of successful 
 training. We do not believe there is in blood the over- 
 powering efficacy which some have attributed to it ; if it 
 had, responsibility would cease, and the effort to raise 
 certain tribes and classes would be hopeless; but we 
 believe it has a strong influence, and we think we have 
 seen clear evidence of its hurtful effect on Indian orphans. 
 There were these difficulties to begin with. And then it 
 was impossible to bring these children under the happy 
 influence of an orderly living family. In our own country 
 it has been found highly conducive to the right bringing- 
 up of orphans, to the repressing of evil tendencies, and 
 the drawing forth of the finer elements of character, 
 to secure for them domestic training to the utmost 
 extent circumstances will permit. The keeping of many 
 together, not merely taught together, which is very 
 desirable, but eating together, sleeping together, con- 
 stantly acting and reacting on each other, is found very 
 unfavourable to the formation of the right character, 
 however careful, wise, and kindly the superintendence 
 may be. In India, where hundreds of orphans were 
 brought at once to mission premises, this gregarious life 
 was unavoidable. Besides, it is impossible to separate 
 orphans from the community around so completely as to 
 leave them unaffected by its moral atmosphere. 
 
 There was of course a difference in the qualifications 
 of those who undertook this great charge, some being 
 more fitted for it than others \ but this we say with the 
 
Uo LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 utmost confidence, after an intimate acquaintance with 
 the working of some of the larger orphanages, and a 
 general knowledge of others, that they have been managed 
 with a laboriousness, a patience, a wisdom, and a kind- 
 ness, deserving of the highest praise. Those in charge 
 acted as parents, so far as that was possible, but in the 
 nature of things there could not be the close attention 
 and the fond personal affection to each of ordinary 
 domestic life. We remember cases where children were 
 committed to well-ordered Christian families with happy 
 results, but for many years after orphanages were founded 
 there were no such families to receive them. 
 
 With the exception of orphans sent to Baptist Missions, 
 they were as a rule baptized at once, and were thus brought 
 within the pale of the Christian Church to be trained for 
 the love and service of Christ. The first place was given 
 to Christian instruction and training. All were taught 
 reading, writing, and arithmetic. Those who proved 
 themselves capable of receiving a higher education were 
 continued at school, in the hope of their becoming quali- 
 fied for offices such as those of teacher and preacher, for 
 which mental and moral fitness was indispensable. The 
 great majority were early taught a trade. In the larger 
 orphanages a variety of trades was introduced — tailoring, 
 carpentry, baking, dyeing, carpet-making, printing, book- 
 binding, and farming. Some of these trades, after much 
 labour had been bestowed upon them, were given up, as 
 it was found the orphans could not compete with native 
 workmen. They had not the energy and aptitude 
 possessed by those who followed their ancestral occupa- 
 tions, and who had been from their earliest years familiar 
 with the conditions of native trade. Hopes were enter- 
 tained many would betake themselves to farming. These 
 
THE OCCUPATIONS OF ORPHANS. 141 
 
 hopes have been only partially realized. On land 
 secured by the Church Mission of Benares, at a short 
 distance from the city, orphans when they grew up were 
 settled ; but few took kindly to the work, and most soon 
 abandoned it. There are now a few Christian families 
 on the ground, but the larger part of the land is let to 
 ordinary native agriculturists. In some places, such as 
 Goruckpore and Shahjehanpore, the experiment has been 
 successful. A greater number have continued at printing 
 and bookbinding than at other trades. Co-operative 
 associations of native Christians have been formed at 
 Allahabad for printing, and at Futtygurh for tent-making, 
 which I believe continue to prosper. These associations 
 are under unfettered native management. A consider- 
 able number who have come out of orphan institutions 
 have followed the trades they were taught, and have 
 succeeded in getting employment in different places. 
 Many were trained as servants, and in that capacity they 
 are scattered over all Northern India. These have been 
 joined by not a few who were taught trades, but did not 
 continue in them, as they deemed service easier and 
 more profitable. This is much to be regretted as native 
 Christians in service are exposed to many disadvantages 
 and temptations from their fellow- servants, and too often 
 from their European masters and mistresses. The posi- 
 tion of a capable artisan is far superior. 
 
 It must be acknowledged by those who have the 
 kindest feeling towards the orphans, and who wish to 
 entertain the most favourable opinion of them, which 
 truth will permit, that they have often been wanting in 
 energy and self-reliance. There has been a tendency to 
 lean unduly on those to whom they have been indebted 
 for the preservation of their lives, and for everything 
 
142 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 which makes life desirable. They have been accustomed 
 to call them, in the language of the country, ma, bap — 
 mother, father — and to expect everything to be done for 
 them as if they were still helpless children. This can 
 not be said of all, but it must be acknowledged this 
 unduly dependent spirit has been often shown. A 
 greater wrong could not be done to orphans, when grown 
 to maturity, than to treat them as children, unable to 
 make their own way in the world. This would be to 
 destroy all strength of character, and turn them into 
 abject, and at the same time discontented, paupers. 
 Few have been so destitute of common sense as to have 
 supposed that in this way they were to be supported, but 
 there has been a tendency to expect the missionaries to 
 set them out on a career of self-support, and remove all 
 obstacles in their way without any special effort on their 
 part, and when difficulties have arisen to fall back on 
 their missionary friends to set them out afresh. When 
 these expectations have not been realized, they have 
 been disposed to view their guardians as having failed in 
 parental duty and affection. We have known cases 
 where the rough experience of life has taught self-depen- 
 dence, and thankfulness also for the treatment, which at 
 the time was regarded as unkind, but had led to lasting 
 benefit. So far as we have been able to ascertain, the 
 ordinary feeling among those who had been inmates of 
 orphan institutions, and of their descendants, has been 
 one of affection and gratitude to those who have watched 
 over them and provided for them in their days of help- 
 lessness, and who have toiled and in many cases suffered 
 to promote their temporal and spiritual good. When 
 travelling we have met many of this class, and have been 
 much gratified by the spirit they have shown. 
 
ORPHANS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS. 143 
 
 Some have come out of orphanages well equipped for 
 the highest work by character and attainments. As 
 teachers, catechists, and native preachers, these occupy 
 honourable and useful positions, and have been a great 
 blessing to the Church and the world. In the course of 
 our residence in India we have seen many of the missions 
 in the North- West, but our acquaintance with them is too 
 slight to enable us to mention the number given by 
 orphanages to the higher class of native agents. We 
 have known several who are worthy of all respect, confi- 
 dence, and affection. 
 
 To the question, " What is the general character of 
 the large community of native Christians formed of 
 orphans and their descendants?" it is difficult to give 
 a satisfactory reply, though easy enough to give one's 
 impression. A characterization of communities is one 
 of the most common and at the same time most unsatis- 
 factory of operations, as the data for its being done well 
 are so wide, recondite, and difficult to grasp. As I 
 proceed I shall have occasion to give my views of native 
 Christians generally. All I can now say about orphans 
 and their descendants is, that considering what human 
 beings are, as shown from age to age, considering the 
 circumstances and surroundings of those of whom we 
 are speaking, the moral and spiritual results are what 
 might have been expected, though not all that had been 
 wished for and hoped for. Sanguine spirits had hoped 
 that they would have had a striking superiority to their 
 fellow-countrymen, which would have drawn forth their 
 wonder and led them to inquire whence the superiority 
 had come ; but no one will maintain this has been the 
 case. A few, I believe very few, have turned out utterly 
 reprobate. The character of some who have not lapsed 
 
144 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 into gross wickedness has been very unsatisfactory. 
 Many are respectable members of society, and make the 
 profession of religion implied in attending public worship 
 and calling themselves Christians. A considerable num- 
 ber show in different ways spiritual character. What more 
 can be said of congregations composed of those whose 
 advantages have been immeasurably greater? It would 
 have been a most pleasing, but at the same time a most 
 remarkable and unparalleled result, if orphans brought 
 up under the charge of missionaries had gone forth a 
 united band, with no defaulters, to maintain the cause of 
 God among their countrymen, by a life so adorned with 
 excellence that its testimony to Christ could not be 
 resisted. The result actually attained, though chequered, 
 is sufficient to show that orphan institutions have by the 
 Divine blessing done much good, and that the faithful 
 labour bestowed on them has borne gratifying fruit. 
 
MISSION TOURS. 145 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 MISSION TOURS. 
 
 IN our own country, under the pressure of life, many 
 hail the release from toil and the refreshment of 
 spirit promised by the annual summer trip. So in India 
 missionaries avail themselves of the cold season to 
 sally out for the prosecution of their work. Their main 
 object is to make known the gospel to the many whom 
 they are sure to meet wherever their tent may be pitched, 
 who have never heard the name of Jesus, except perhaps- 
 amidst the bustle and noise of a mela, and who but for 
 itineracies would remain in total ignorance of the Saviour 
 of mankind. The missionary who does not keep this before 
 his mind as his chief aim is unworthy of the name. 
 While this object is pursued, another is sought which 
 missionaries deem very legitimate. Health is indis- 
 pensable for the efficient discharge of their duties, and 
 travelling is found very beneficial to the health of their 
 families as well as to their own. Touring in the cold 
 weather, by the new strength it gives to the body and the 
 refreshment it gives to the spirit, has been found to pre- 
 pare them for a new campaign at home as nothing else 
 could have done. 
 
 Some missionaries have kept themselves within a 
 limited sphere not far from their homes, visiting the 
 
146 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 same places again and again, obtaining a personal ac- 
 quaintance with many of the people, and endeavouring 
 to deepen any impressions which may have been made. 
 Others have travelled for weeks, sometimes for months, 
 over hundreds of miles, visiting the towns and villages on 
 their route, and speaking about the things of God to all 
 whom they have met. 
 
 During my long residence in India it was my privilege 
 to undertake tours of both descriptions. I never stopped 
 at home during the cold weather — we are not in India 
 in the habit of saying " summer and winter," but " hot 
 weather and cold weather " — except when justice to my 
 colleagues, or the necessities of the mission, compelled 
 me to stay. There were seasons when my colleague 
 was, either from inexperience or ill-health, unable to do 
 the home work ; or, as happened more than once, I had 
 no colleague at all, and in these circumstances it was 
 obvious duty to remain at my post. Even then I com- 
 monly managed to get out a little into the surrounding 
 country. On some of our tours we were put to no small 
 inconvenience, and we were not strangers to hardship ; 
 but we look back to them with much pleasure, and think 
 how much we would like to set out on them again if cir- 
 cumstances permitted. 
 
 At an early stage of our residence at Benares voyaging 
 on the Ganges was a favourite mode of enjoying the cold 
 season. There were budgerows, vessels with two toler- 
 ably sized rooms, available for hire at a moderate charge. 
 It was indispensable to have with the budgerow a small 
 boat for the accommodation of servants and for the cook- 
 ing of food. On a few occasions I took a trip on a 
 vessel of this description with my family, moving up and 
 down the river, and halting towards evening near a town 
 
VOYAGING ON THE GANGES. 147 
 
 or village, which I could visit for the purpose of speaking 
 to the people about the Saviour. The country is so 
 populous that there was no difficulty in mooring our little 
 craft in the evening near some place where hearers could 
 be collected. It was seldom on any tour in the North- 
 West we were allowed to forget that we were in the region 
 of the sacred river, which receives from the people divine 
 honours, and which in their belief confers inestimable 
 benefit on all who bathe in its waters. When on the 
 bank of the river, its alleged virtues formed a frequent 
 subject of remark and discussion. There, as elsewhere, 
 we had to tell them that Ganges water, however good for 
 refreshing and cleansing the body, cannot wash away one 
 spot from the soul. We had to tell them frequently, that 
 as the washerman who puts clothes into a box and care- 
 fully washes it with the expectation of their coming out 
 clean and white will be acting a very foolish part, so they 
 were acting an equally futile part if they supposed that 
 the water of the Ganges, so useful for the body, had any 
 effect on the spirit. In answer to the remark that Ganges 
 water could not do what other water could not, as it had 
 nothmg peculiar in its composition, I have been gravely 
 told that two things exactly the same to the senses may 
 be essentially different ; and the proof given was that the 
 river Kurumnasa, which means the destroyer of merit, 
 takes away all merit from those who bathe in it, while 
 bathing in the Ganges secures an untold degree of merit, 
 extending not only to one's own past and future, but to 
 an untold number of ancestors and descendants ! 
 
 When on the Ganges or its banks one continually sees 
 proof of the implicit trust placed in it. We remember 
 being awakened very early one morning long before dawn 
 by a person bathing close to our boat, in a quivering voice 
 
148 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 which showed he was chilled by the water, long and 
 earnestly imploring the favour of Gunga Ma — Mother 
 Ganges. 
 
 There is no part of India, mountain or plain, where 
 serpents may not be encountered. One evening, when 
 returning to our boat from a village on the banks of the 
 river, I was walking warily on a narrow path half-covered 
 with grass from both sides, when I saw before me what I 
 first supposed to be a rope. I halted, and immediately a 
 serpent glided away. That evening, before reaching the 
 boat, I saw at least a dozen of serpents at their evening 
 gambols over the ruins of a house. I walked quietly on, 
 deeming it the best part of valour to leave them undis- 
 turbed. If they observed me they showed no inclination 
 to approach me. 
 
 For many years voyaging on the Ganges has gone out 
 of fashion. Native boats laden with produce and wood 
 continue to ply, but the budgerows and pinnaces, which 
 Europeans could hire, have almost entirely disappeared. 
 There are various reasons for this change. The current 
 of the river is very rapid in some places, which makes the 
 work of dragging against it very slow and tiresome ; there 
 is sometimes the danger of collision with other boats. 
 The high banks of the river here and there prevent the 
 country from being seen, and at other places there is a 
 dreary stretch of sand. Though the weather of the cold 
 season is very steady, a storm might come on, and if it 
 did neither boat nor boatmen could be trusted ; for the 
 boat, never of the best material, was often sadly out of 
 repair, and the boatmen were ready, when danger ap- 
 peared, to throw themselves into the water and make for 
 the shore, leaving the passengers to shift for themselves. 
 There was, indeed, the pleasantness of sailing on a broad 
 
SHORT AND LONG TOURS. 149 
 
 river ; the air was very fresh ; there was no leaving of the 
 temporary abode from day to day ; the trouble of a shifting 
 camp was escaped, though occasionally there was incon- 
 venience from the indispensable cook-boat not keeping 
 sufficiently near. Opposed to these advantages were the 
 disadvantages I have mentioned, which were always felt 
 to be serious drawbacks ; and when the roads had been 
 improved, and journeying facilities increased, travelling 
 by land obtained so decided a preference, that the river 
 has been well-nigh abandoned by Europeans. 
 
 Some seasons our touring was confined to a narrow 
 range, not extending beyond thirty or forty miles. We 
 every now and then spent a few days within a few miles 
 of the city. Our first journey of any considerable length 
 was, at the end of 1840, to the mela at Allahabad, some 
 seventy miles north-west of Benares, which I have 
 already mentioned. At the end of 1842 I made a tour 
 along with my wife and child to Agra, more than four 
 hundred miles from Benares, which occupied us about 
 three months. On this tour we passed through Allahabad, 
 Cawnpore, Futtygurh, Mynpoorie, and other well-known 
 places. Early in 1847, accompanied by a brother mis- 
 sionary, we went to Almora, nearly six hundred miles 
 distant, travelling with our tents to the foot of the hills, 
 and spending six or seven weeks on our way. We left 
 Almora for Benares in October, and reached it early in 
 December, having taken Meerut, Delhi, and Allygurh, 
 as well as Cawnpore and Allahabad, in our return route. 
 Our long journeys many years afterwards were performed 
 with few exceptions under new conditions, and with much 
 greater expedition. 
 
 If my readers are in thought to accompany us on those 
 journeys, it may be well to state the circumstances in 
 
150 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 which we travelled, the weather we had and could 
 generally expect, our travelling arrangements, the state 
 of the roads, and the aspects of the country through which 
 we passed. 
 
 As to the weather, it was generally delightful. We had 
 from day to day an unclouded sky, with the sun rather 
 strong as the day advanced, but with a refreshing breeze, 
 which made it thoroughly cool in the shade, even cold 
 sometimes, so that one was inclined to go out into the 
 sunshine to get warmth. In the daytime warm cloth- 
 ing was pleasant, and at night, especially in tents, our 
 blankets and wraps came into full requisition. There 
 was a steadiness in the weather exceeding anything 
 known in our climate. We have known weeks without 
 any shading of the sky. There were, however, occa- 
 sional breaks. Now and then clouds gathered from day 
 to day, and at length came down in heavy rain, which 
 was most welcome to the farmers, especially when it 
 came as it often did, about Christmas. Thunder storms 
 might be sometimes looked for, accompanied by sudden 
 and severe gusts of wind. These days of atmospheric 
 disturbance were sufficient to make us, as travellers, 
 appreciate more highly the weather with which we were 
 ordinarily favoured. 
 
 The greater part of the country through which we 
 travelled is very level. Beyond Chunar, indeed, which 
 is sixteen miles from Benares, and Mirzapore, which is 
 thirty miles distant, there is a great extent of low hill- 
 country. These districts we visited several times. The 
 most of our journeys were in the wide open plains of 
 the North-West. The country, though level, is by no 
 means uninteresting. You receive as you travel a very 
 favourable impression of the productiveness of the land 
 
APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY. 151 
 
 and the industry of the people. In the cold weather 
 you see, as far as the eye can reach, a sweep of growing 
 corn, wheat and other grains, which give the hope of an 
 early and abundant harvest. Towns and villages meet 
 your view on every side. If you get to a slightly elevated 
 spot you are struck with the number of wells you see in 
 the fields, dug for the purpose of irrigation. In the great 
 region lying between the Ganges and the Jumna, called 
 the Doab — the country of the two rivers, the Mesopotamia 
 of Northern India, over a great part of which we travelled 
 for the first time at the end of 1842 and the beginning 
 of 1843, and which we have often traversed since — there 
 is no extensive forest near the Trunk Road. In all 
 directions, however, you see clumps of lofty and shady 
 trees, and occasionally groves of considerable extent. 
 Trees have been largely planted along the road, and 
 within every few miles there are groves, where travellers 
 get their tents pitched, and where they are thoroughly 
 protected from the glare and heat of the sun. Even in 
 the coldest part of the cold weather tents pitched in the 
 open become quickly too heated for comfort. In the 
 groves the deep shade cast by the widely-spread branches 
 and the thick foliage sometimes darkens the tent too 
 much for reading and writing ; but outside, on a chair 
 before a small table, if that be required, one can spend 
 hours very pleasantly reading or writing, as it may be, 
 and listening if inclined to the cawing of the crows, the 
 cooing of the doves, and the notes of other birds, while 
 the gentle breeze rustles through the trees, and the 
 children, if any, play with their toys under them. 
 
 Natives, when they travel, as I have already mentioned, 
 manage things in a fashion which we are not able to 
 imitate, but which I have often been inclined to envy. 
 
152 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Let them have flour, water, a little wood for fuel, if not 
 in its stead dried cow-dung, and they partake with relish 
 of the meal their own hands have cooked, conscious of 
 no want and complaining of no hardship. The relish is 
 increased if they can get some of the ordinary vegetables 
 of the country. With the meal over, after chatting a 
 while over the Hookah, the "hubble-bubble" as English 
 people call it, the pipe which sends tobacco smoke 
 through water, they wrap themselves in the blanket 
 which they carry with them, and sleep soundly under a 
 tree, when, as is often the case, no Sura, a native resting- 
 place, is at hand. If rain comes on they creep into a 
 place where the rain cannot reach them, if such a place 
 be available. A few Europeans have at different times 
 tried to follow the habit of native travellers, and in very 
 exceptional cases it has been successful. The ordinary 
 result has been the speedy ruin of health. 
 
 Our habits compel us to travel in a different way. 
 When a missionary is alone, though he cannot travel as 
 a native does, he can put up, and does put up, with incon- 
 veniences to which a family cannot be exposed. The 
 family, however, requires a change as well as himself; and 
 when wife and children are with him, as they often are, 
 the house is shut up at home, home servants are taken, 
 and travelling requires only a slight addition to the 
 domestic staff. An additional horse is needed for the 
 conveyance (in India a conveyance is not a luxury but 
 a necessity) ; two tents are required, one to be sent on 
 over-night, while the other is kept behind for occupation ; 
 along with the tents, slight portable beds, bedding, small 
 folding-table, cane chairs, and cooking-vessels. These 
 goods of the moving household are laden and forwarded 
 on carts called Hackeries, drawn by oxen. Highly'paid 
 
PLEASANT TO URING. 1 53 
 
 officials manage as they travel to have with them many 
 of the luxuries and even some of the elegancies of life, 
 but missionaries are satisfied if they get necessaries. As 
 we travel we manage, though not always, to get milk, 
 fowls, and eggs, and occasionally a kid. Whatever beside 
 we need must be taken with us. 
 
 When the weather is fine, the roads good, the horses 
 and bullocks strong and manageable, and the attendants 
 efficient, touring in the North-West in the cold weather 
 is very pleasant. If travelling be prosecuted from day 
 to day, the custom is to rise very early in the morning at 
 the earliest dawn, or before dawn, when the morning- 
 star appears, and to rouse the camp. This was my part 
 when travelling with my household. The watchman 
 wakened me, and I wakened all around. We got quickly 
 ready, and set out on our journey of twelve or fourteen 
 miles. The mornings were not only cool, but often 
 sharply cold. On arriving at the end of our stage, it 
 might be as early as eight or half- past eight o'clock, we 
 should find, and often did find, the tent pitched, which 
 had been sent on over-night, the table spread commonly 
 under a shady tree, the water boiling, food prepared ; and 
 then with a keen appetite we sat down to breakfast. 
 When the afternoon was a little advanced, the cart 
 arrived with the tent and other things left behind, and 
 was soon pitched for our night occupancy. Towards 
 evening the day-tent was taken down, and was sent on 
 over-night with everything requisite for the next day. 
 When all the circumstances were favourable, everything 
 went on with an ease and regularity which made us feel 
 at home while away from home, and gave us at the same 
 time the constant variety of new scenes. 
 
 The circumstances were not, however, always favour- 
 
154 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 able. They were sometimes the reverse. The new horse 
 was unmanageable, the bullocks were weak and could not 
 draw the carts, the servants were remiss or incapable, 
 the roads were in some places shockingly bad, we were 
 left for hours without tent and food, and, as I have said, 
 the weather now and then was wet and stormy. We 
 had sometimes an amount of trouble which made us 
 half regret we had left home. Ladies are generally very 
 patient in such circumstances, but children are sorely 
 tried. The difficulties we encountered in some of our 
 early journeys were such that we now wonder how we 
 got out of them, and succeeded in getting on at all. 
 The touring in favourable circumstances, which I have 
 described, is not however a mere ideal. Happily it was 
 often with us a reality. On setting out things required 
 to be adjusted. Time was required for getting things 
 into their places, and for each person learning to do the 
 work assigned him. When once we got into travelling 
 trim, and our people were what they ought to be, things 
 went on with the regularity of clockwork. 
 
 I have mentioned our long tours in 1842 and 1847. 
 On these journeys we had a good deal of pleasant smooth 
 travelling, and we also encountered some of the difficul- 
 ties of which I have spoken. The Trunk Road from 
 Allahabad to the North-West was in excellent condition 
 in 1842-43 ; but from Benares to Allahabad it had been 
 allowed to get out of repair, and the roads diverging 
 from the Trunk Road on one side to Futtygurh and on 
 the other side to Agra we found very bad. The story 
 of our difficulties is well remembered by us, but it must 
 be given very concisely. At one place a wheel of our 
 conveyance broke in the middle of a stage, and after 
 some delay we succeeded in getting an P^kka, a small 
 
WALLED VLLLAGES. 155 
 
 native conveyance drawn by a pony, on the narrow 
 platform of which the members of our party who could 
 not walk were squatted as they best could ; while the 
 rest of us walked. We sent on word of our trouble to 
 our missionary friends at Futtygurh, who kindly arranged 
 to get us on to their hospitable abode, and to get our 
 conveyance repaired. Three days after leaving Futty- 
 gurh our best horse died, from sheer fatigue in drawing 
 our conveyance through the sand. This threw us on 
 having it drawn by bullocks at the rate of a mile and a 
 half, or at the utmost two miles, an hour, over a very 
 bad road, which jolted us frightfully. 
 
 As we travelled we saw many things which drew our 
 attention and excited our interest. Most of the villages 
 along our route were surrounded by high mud walls, 
 and had only one entrance by a great strong gate, which 
 was shut at night, reminding us of the insecurity from 
 which this part of India had emerged when it came 
 under British rule within the memory of men then living. 
 Villages thus fortified, if sufficient watch was kept, were 
 quite secure against the sudden raids of Mahratta horse- 
 men, or the attacks of robbers, to whose unwelcome 
 visits they were always exposed. The former state of 
 insecurity was also suggested by the number we met 
 armed to the teeth, by shield on the breast, sword at the 
 side, and matchlock on the shoulder. The insecurity 
 had to a great extent come to an end, but the habit of 
 going armed continued. 
 
 Along the road at convenient distances there were 
 Suras for the convenience of travellers, which people in 
 England, when speaking of Eastern lands, call Caravan- 
 serais. These are generally open spaces, surrounded 
 by mud walls, with sheds at their sides for people who 
 
156 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 are willing to pay a very trifling sum for the luxury of 
 sleeping under cover, and, if they like, for having their 
 horses near them. Carts and oxen are always in the 
 open. Sellers of grain and wood are always there with 
 everything native travellers require. If a bedstead — a 
 low four-footed article with rope for its bottom and 
 mattress — be preferred to the bare ground, it can com- 
 monly be procured for three-halfpence for the night. 
 When in the evening we were near these places we went 
 to them, and saw the poor weary travellers setting to the 
 preparation of their simple meal — with most the only 
 cooked meal of the day — with apparently as great con- 
 tentedness as we have when after a fatiguing day we 
 reach an hotel, and, having given our orders, know that 
 speedily we shall sit down to an ample repast. Many 
 of these Suras have been built at the expense of well-to-, 
 do natives impelled by different motives, for love of name 
 — nam ke liye, as the natives say, a motive for which their 
 countrymen continually give them credit — for the acqui- 
 sition of religious merit, and from benevolent feeling. 
 These places are called Dhurmsalas, places erected by 
 righteous, good men. 
 
 On this our .first long journey in the country, we were 
 impressed by the amount of traffic we saw on the road ; 
 and this impression was deepened on future occasions. 
 We seldom travelled a few miles without seeing carts 
 drawn by bullocks and laden with goods. We saw rows 
 of camels, walking in single file, each attached to the 
 one before and the one behind by a string. These 
 belonged chiefly, though not exclusively, to Afghans, and 
 were laden to a large extent with the products of their 
 country. Every now and then we came across elephants, 
 sometimes with a stack of tender branches on their back, 
 
" WELLS OF salvatlon:' 157 
 
 which form a large part of their food, and at other times 
 with persons seated sometimes on a howdah, sometimes 
 on a pad. There were many foot-passengers, not a few 
 with heavy loads on their heads. When these came in 
 sight of a well, how quickly did they step up to it, throw 
 off their burden, drop into it their brass vessel attached 
 to a string, draw it up, and take a long, deep draught of the 
 precious water ! As I have observed them I have thought 
 of the words, " With joy shall ye draw water out of the 
 wells of salvation." To these poor toiling people the 
 wells did appear wells of salvation. On some days we 
 met bands of persons — chiefly men, with a woman here 
 and there among them — with bamboo rods across their 
 shoulders with a basket at each end, their travelling gear 
 in and on one basket, and a vessel with Ganges water in 
 the other. Thousands of these pilgrims travel every year 
 over Northern India, going from one shrine to another, 
 and pouring on certain images the water of the sacred 
 river. 
 
 In our journeyings we had a singular immunity from 
 thieves, a greater immunity than we had in our house at 
 Benares, which was several times visited by these un- 
 welcome intruders, though we always kept a watchman. 
 All over the North- West, I suppose all over India, thieves 
 abound. Whole tribes have for generations followed 
 theft as a profession, and have betaken themselves to 
 honest work only when compelled by finding their 
 occupation perilous. They have had as their associates 
 the idle and dissolute of other castes. Tents, as I have 
 observed, are commonly pitched in shady groves, and in 
 consequence admit of being approached unobserved, and 
 a sharp knife in a skilful hand can easily secure an 
 entrance on any side. Travellers have piquant stories to 
 
158 LlfE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 tell of the cleverness and impudence with which their 
 property has been taken away. A missionary friend of 
 ours awoke one morning to find that during the night 
 everything in his tent had disappeared on which thieves 
 could lay their hand. We had a large experience of tent 
 life, but we have happily no story to tell about any 
 similar loss. I do not remember our having had even a 
 night alarm, though I well remember the difficulty we 
 often had in preventing our guardians from sending forth 
 unearthly cries, which made sleep impossible. My habit 
 was, wherever we halted, to make my way to the headman 
 of the adjoining village or town, and to place our en- 
 campment under his care. We were generally told there 
 were thieves in the neighbourhood ; we were sometimes 
 told they were numerous and daring. We always stated 
 our readiness to pay for watchmen, and we told the 
 headman that if he did not send trustworthy men we 
 should hold him responsible. We thus paid a sort of 
 black-mail, but we thought the small sum paid well 
 expended as insurance for the safety of our property. 
 Some travellers take watchmen with them. This we 
 never did, as we thought ourselves safer in the hands of 
 men on the spot. Many a time as we lay down in our 
 tent did we think how strange it was that, far away from 
 our European brethren, in a strange land among a strange 
 people, we could compose ourselves to sleep with as 
 little fear, and with as strong a feeling of security, as if 
 within locks and bars in our own country. We thought, 
 with thankfulness, that we were under the segis of our 
 own government, even when we were in places where 
 Englishmen were seldom seen, but where, notwith- 
 standing, our prestige was fully recognized. 
 
 At all the places through which we passed on our first 
 
THE B UILDINGS OF A GRA . 159 
 
 long tour, Allahabad, Cawnpore, Futtygurh, Mynpoorie, 
 and Agra, we were treated with the utmost kindness by 
 the American and English missionaries, and by other 
 Christian brethren, some of whom have been life-long 
 friends ever since. 
 
 We were interested in all the places we saw on this 
 tour; but Agra — Akbarabad, as natives always call it, the 
 capital of Akbar, the most remarkable emperor who ever 
 ruled over India — had for us, as for all who have visited 
 it, peculiar attractions. When at some distance from the 
 city we saw glistening in the sun the lofty dome and the 
 still loftier four minarets or towers of the Taj Muhal, that 
 wondrous mausoleum of the purest marble, built by the 
 Emperor Shah Jehan for a favourite queen. On our 
 arrival we lost no time in going to it. On subsequent 
 visits to Agra we renewed our acquaintance with it, and 
 on every new occasion its exquisite beauty and lofty 
 grandeur enhanced our admiration. We also saw the 
 Motee Musjid, the Pearl Mosque as it is called, built of 
 marble, and called the Pearl Mosque, as I suppose, on 
 account of its beauty and symmetry ; the grand tomb of 
 Akbar at Secundra, six miles from Agra ; and other 
 objects of interest. I am not to attempt a description of 
 these world-famed buildings of Agra. They have been 
 often described, and by none perhaps better than by Bishop 
 Heber in his journal, which is now little read, but which 
 gives a more graphic and accurate account of the parts of 
 India he visited in 1825 than any I have seen elsewhere. 
 Of the Taj and other grand structures of the Muham- 
 madan emperors, he says they look as if "built by a 
 giant and furnished by a jeweller." 
 
 While deeply interested in much we saw in this tour of 
 1842-43, on it, as well as on all subsequent tours, our 
 
160 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMA ON 
 
 great evangelistic object was kept steadily in view. On 
 this occasion I was accompanied by a catechist. In the 
 early afternoon, when we might hope to meet people 
 released from the work of the day, we repaired to the 
 neighbouring village. Often we found a large tree at the 
 entrance to the village, with a stone seat close to its 
 trunk, and on it we sat down. If there was no such seat 
 a small native bedstead was often brought — such a thing 
 as a chair was unknown — and we were asked to sit, while 
 the people politely stood, till at oar request they sat, which 
 they can well do on their haunches. We entered into 
 conversation with those who gathered around us. We 
 asked if there was any pundit, any learned man in the 
 village ; and if there was we were happy to see him come, 
 as we knew the people would look on us with less 
 suspicion if he was present. In many places they were 
 so unaccustomed to the sight of Europeans that they 
 looked on us with a mingled feeling of curiosity and fear. 
 We tried to put them at ease by speaking about some- 
 thing in which we knew they were deeply interested, such 
 as their fields and crops, and as soon as we well could 
 we made our way to the subject of religion. We read 
 those passages from our Scriptures which we thought 
 most fitted to arrest their attention. We aimed at setting 
 forth the great facts and truths of revelation with all the 
 simplicity, conciseness, and earnestness we could com- 
 mand. We repeated what was not understood, or was 
 misunderstood, and endeavoured to make it plain by 
 familiar illustrations. 
 
 We met with varied reception. In some places the 
 people were so stolid, that even the catechist, one of 
 their own people, seemed to make no impression. On 
 many occasions we were heard most patiently, and were 
 
AN ANCIENT CAPITAL. 161 
 
 treated most courteously. Now and then, especially in 
 the larger places, and where markets were being held — 
 these are held weekly in central places, sometimes twice 
 a week, and are well attended — there was much noise and 
 great interruption. At times we encountered strong, 
 bitter, and captious opposition. On the whole we met with 
 far less opposition, and with a much more patient and 
 respectful hearing, than at our stated work in a city like 
 Benares. Often we were thanked for our visit, and were 
 told our teaching well deserved consideration. Not in- 
 frequently the remark was made, "What you say is very 
 good, but we never heard it before ; we understand it very 
 imperfectly, you will be leaving to-morrow, and we shall 
 forget it all." We parted with such persons with a heavy 
 heart. We always halted on the Lord's Day, and often 
 on other days, when we met with encouragement and 
 circumstances permitted. 
 
 Kunauj, now a poor, decayed town, composed chiefly 
 of low mud-built houses, with not one fine building in it 
 so far as I remember, was, as I have already mentioned, 
 for ages the most famous city in Northern India, the 
 capital of sovereigns ruling over extensive regions. The 
 Brahmans of Kunauj continue to hold the highest rank 
 in the Brahmanical hierarchy, but I believe only a few 
 reside in Kunauj and its neighbourhood. As we learned 
 it was only a few miles off the Trunk Road, we determined 
 to halt a day for the purpose of visiting it. We ac- 
 cordingly went to it one morning, and remained in it 
 some time, looking at the mounds which cover the ruins 
 of its palaces, and which is all that remains to tell of its 
 former greatness. A number gathered around us, with 
 whom we conversed. They seemed so much interested 
 in what we said about the Saviour, that we promised to 
 
 12 
 
1 62 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 visit them on our return. We accordingly arranged to 
 remain a Sabbath at the part of the Trunk Road nearest 
 to Kunauj. Reaching it on a Saturday we sent on a 
 small tent, and early next day, accompanied by the 
 catechist, I made my way to the town. There we 
 remained the entire day, and I have seldom had such a 
 day of pleasant toil. The people came in crowds, and 
 talk on the highest subjects was kept up from hour to 
 hour. The catechist, after a time, left me to visit some 
 persons he knew in the neighbourhood, and I was left 
 alone to unfold the doctrines of Christianity, and to 
 answer the questions put to me. I more than once said, 
 " I must have rest." All went out, and I lay down on a 
 piece of carpet on the floor of the tent. Some one soon 
 peeped in; "Have you not had rest now, sir?" and 
 so I had to get up and resume my work, not over 
 well-pleased the catechist had left it all to me. Since 
 that time Kunauj has had visits from missionaries, and 
 they have had many hearers, but I have not heard 
 of any fruit gathered from these visits in the form of 
 converts. 
 
 I was greatly impressed with one visit I received on 
 this tour. We had got over our morning journey. I was, 
 I suppose, more tired than usual, for in the forenoon I 
 lay down on our travelling bedstead to rest. I heard a 
 voice at the tent door, "Sahib, sahib!" — " Sir, sir!" — and 
 I said, "Come in." In came a native well dressed, and 
 looking as if tired with a long walk. I told him to sit 
 down on the carpet, which he did, and he then proceeded 
 to tell me the object of his visit. He said in substance : 
 " Last night you were in a village twelve miles from this 
 place, and you there spoke much of an incarnation, an 
 1 cottar] which had for its object the deliverance of man 
 
AN EARNEST INQ UIRER. 1 63 
 
 from the power and punishment of sin. One who heard 
 you last night told me something of what you had said. 
 I have long been a worshipper of the gods of my fathers, 
 but I have got no rest, no satisfaction. I have heard 
 much of incarnations, but I know of no sinless one. Not 
 one of them has done me any good. Have you certain 
 information of one that can deliver me and satisfy me ? " 
 I need not say what I said in reply to this great inquiry. 
 We talked long and earnestly. I found he could read, 
 and I gave him a Gospel and some tracts. He professed 
 to be much interested. I begged him to give me his 
 address that I might communicate with him. He did 
 not pointedly refuse, but no address was given to me, 
 apparently from the fear, so common among the people, 
 of the reproach and suffering which will come upon 
 them if they be suspected of an intention to abandon 
 their ancestral religion. I parted with the man praying, 
 that he might be led to the Saviour. Often, often have I 
 thought of him ; often have I hoped that what was said 
 that forenoon had sunk into his heart ; but I have never 
 seen him, never heard of him, since that time. 
 
 I have mentioned that early in 1847 we went to 
 Almora, in the Hill Province of Kumaon, and towards 
 the end of the year returned to Benares. Before our de- 
 parture we had the pleasure of seeing the completion of 
 a work which had made a great demand on our time 
 and attention, and had caused us no small anxiety — the 
 erection of a new place of worship in the Grecian style, 
 in the place of the small mud building in which we had 
 hitherto met. This was our first essay in building, and our 
 inexperience led us into many mistakes, which we tried 
 to avoid in future work of the kind. The building cost 
 above ,£1,200, fully twice the sum we had calculated. 
 
1 64 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Through the liberality of friends its entire cost was met 
 within six months of its opening, and it has proved of 
 great service to the Mission. The opening services were 
 conducted in Hindustanee and English. The late Rev. 
 J. A. Shurman preached with great power in Hindustanee 
 to a crowded congregation composed of Christians, 
 Hindus, and Muhammadans, and I preached in English 
 to a large European congregation. We were greatly 
 encouraged by the liberal collections made at these 
 services. 
 
 I must defer to a later period of this work what I have 
 to say about Kumaon, to which we paid several visits, 
 and where we spent the last years of our Indian life. Our 
 journeying to and from Kumaon in 1847 was partly over 
 the ground traversed on our trip to Agra in 1842-43, and 
 partly over new ground, as one may see by looking at 
 the map of Northern India. The conditions of the 
 journey were to a large extent those I have already 
 described; but we suffered from bad roads, from our 
 camp equipage falling behind, and I may add from 
 inefficient service, much more than we had formerly 
 done. On reaching Almora we mentioned to a friend 
 the route we had taken, and he said, " Surely you have 
 not come in a wheeled conveyance, for I am told that 
 road is impassable." I told him the road was passable, 
 for we had passed it, but if we had previously known 
 what it was we should not have attempted it. Amidst 
 the tracks we saw, we often had difficulty in deciding 
 which was the road. Between unbridged streams with 
 high banks, ditches, and deep ruts which caught our 
 wheels and would not let them go, our progress was 
 much impeded; but we toiled on. At one place we were 
 happily helped by a company of Sepoys, whose medical 
 
SL W TRA VELLING. 165 
 
 officer was a dear Christian friend. In other places we 
 were extricated by the help of villagers. 
 
 As we journeyed in these circumstances we were not 
 in a mood to be amused, but I was amused one day by 
 the contrast between a romantic lady and an unromantic 
 "sais" {anglice, groom). The Hills had come grandly 
 into view, but unhappily we were fast in a ditch. The 
 lady looking to the " sais " said, " Sais, do you not see 
 the hills ? " To which he most dolefully replied, not lifting 
 his eyes as he spoke, " Madam, what can I see? We are 
 stuck in the mud." 
 
 One day we took full ten hours to go twelve miles. 
 When we came to the end of our stage we found we had 
 to encamp for the night in the low scrub of the forest, 
 with stagnant water all around us. There was a hut at 
 the place with two native policemen to help travellers, 
 and we were told by them that there had been for some 
 days in the neighbourhood what is called " a rogue 
 elephant " — an elephant which, for some reason known 
 only in elephant councils has been driven out of the herd, 
 and is so enraged by his expulsion that he is ready to run 
 amuck at every person and animal he sees. This was not 
 pleasant intelligence. We found native carts at the place, 
 ready to proceed in the morning to a market to be held 
 at the foot of the hills ; and after a very uncomfortable 
 night, much disturbed by the cries of the beasts of the 
 wilderness, we set out, the people shouting to scare the 
 elephant, which, though ready for mischief, is frightened 
 by noise. We saw no trace of him. When the day was 
 well advanced we reached a rest-house close to the hills, 
 with a brawling stream behind it, with which our children 
 as well as ourselves were delighted, one of them clap- 
 ping his hands and saying, " Water clear and bright ! " 
 
1 66 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 We had our first and rather perilous hill journey the next 
 day, but my account of it and subsequent journeys in the 
 mountains must be reserved for another time. 
 
 We went to Kumaon by the most direct route through 
 Futtygurh and Bareilly. We returned by a longer route 
 via Meerut and Delhi. Our difficulties on our way back 
 were somewhat different, but they were quite as great as 
 on our upward journey. Some of the streams we had to 
 cross were not fordable, and we had great difficulty in 
 getting ourselves ferried over. A few nights were spent 
 in exceeding discomfort, our carts not having come up 
 with our tents, and we were shelterless and supperless — 
 rather, if I may coin such a word, dinnerless. One night 
 cover was got for my wife and children, but a missionary 
 brother and myself remained out all night, with no possi- 
 bility of obtaining rest, as a pack of jackals were gorging 
 themselves on the carcase of a bullock, and making the 
 most hideous noises. As the night was cold, and we had 
 no bedding, it was perhaps well the jackals were there, as 
 otherwise we might have been tempted to lie down on the 
 bare ground, which we could not have done with safety 
 to our health. When once we got to the Trunk Road, 
 which we had from Delhi to Benares, our travelling diffi- 
 culties were at an end, and we got on most comfortably. 
 
 At Delhi our tents were pitched in an open space near 
 the house of Mr. Thompson, for many years the Baptist 
 missionary in that city, whose widow and daughters were 
 afterwards so barbarously murdered by the mutineers in 
 1857. With him and his family, and with some other 
 Christian friends there, we had much pleasant intercourse 
 during the few days we remained. We of course saw the 
 sights of the grand old imperial city — the Juma Musjid 
 said to be the largest mosque in Asia, a most command- 
 
CHRISTIAN HOSPITALITY. 167 
 
 ing building on a small rocky elevation, to which you 
 ascend by a lofty flight of steps, and which has a most 
 magnificent court paved with granite inlaid with marble ; 
 the palace, so far as it was open to visitors ; the Chandnee 
 Chauk, the great open street and market-place with a 
 fine stream of water flowing through it ; and, at the dis- 
 tance of a few miles from the city, the remarkable tower, 
 the Kootub Minar, 240 feet high, erected by the Muham- 
 madan conquerors who first made Delhi their capital. For 
 miles around there are ruins of mosques, mausoleums, 
 palaces, and splendid mansions. For a description of 
 Delhi, as for the description of Agra, I must refer my 
 readers to Bishop Heber's Journal. 
 
 During this journey to and from Kumaon we carried 
 on, so far as circumstances permitted, the missionary 
 work I have already mentioned. Oar experience while 
 prosecuting this tour so closely resembled that of which 
 I have already given an account, that it is unnecessary to 
 enter into details. 
 
 As on our visit to Agra in 1842-43, so on these 
 journeys of 1847 we met with the greatest kindness from 
 our missionary brethren, some of whom we had afterwards 
 the privilege of entertaining at Benares. It mattered not 
 whether they were Episcopalian, Presbyterian, or Baptist, 
 English, Continental, or American (at that time there 
 were no Methodist missions in Northern India), we 
 received a cordial welcome, and though formerly un- 
 known to each other we at once felt at home. We 
 sometimes felt in much need of help, and it was most 
 readily afforded. To some other Christian friends we 
 met our grateful acknowledgments are due. 
 
:68 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 RETURN TO BENARES. 
 
 VOYAGE TO ENGLAND AND RETURN TO INDIA, 
 A.D. 1847 — 1857. 
 
 WHEN two more years had passed, during which 
 we were enabled to carry on our work with few 
 interruptions, we found that, beneficial though our visit 
 to the hills had been, we stood in need of a still greater 
 change, and of a more thorough bracing of both body 
 and mind. Health again began to fail, and we felt 
 unequal to the work devolving on us. We accordingly 
 left Benares for Calcutta towards the end of 1849. As 
 our children were young, and travelling by land was both 
 fatiguing and expensive, we hired a budgerow and sailed 
 down the Ganges. Our voyage lasted over four weeks. 
 It gave us the opportunity of touching at a number of 
 places, Ghazeepore, Buxar, Monghyr, Dinapore, Patna, 
 and Berhampore, in most of which we had the pleasure 
 of meeting missionary brethren. Towards the end of 
 January we embarked on the ship Monarch, and after a 
 prosperous, though not a rapid, voyage we arrived in 
 England in May, 1850. The only place at which we 
 touched was St. Helena. We lay off it the greater part 
 of a day, but none were allowed to land as we had 
 measles on board. 
 
VOYAGE TO INDIA. 169 
 
 I will dismiss our stay in England in a few sentences, 
 as it is no part of my plan to give English reminiscences. 
 Like other missionaries on leave, I visited many places in 
 England and Scotland on behalf of the Society of which 
 I was an agent. At the expiration of our leave in the 
 autumn of 1852 medical opinion forbade our departure. 
 By the autumn of 1853 health was so improved that the 
 way was open for our return to India. 
 
 After a season of severe domestic trial, which delayed 
 our departure, my partner, myself, and two children 
 embarked on board the Indiana^ one of a new magnificent 
 line of steamers plying to India round the Cape of Good 
 Hope, in November. The voyage extended to eleven 
 weeks. The weather throughout was remarkably favour- 
 able. We touched at the Islands of St. Vincent, Ascen- 
 sion, the Cape of Good Hope, the Mauritius, Point 
 de Galle, and Madras. We landed at most of these 
 places, and this took away in a great measure the weari- 
 ness of a long voyage, which I must say we felt increas- 
 ingly on every successive occasion. We were detained 
 at the Cape for three or four days, which gave us an 
 opportunity of getting to the top of Table Mountain, and 
 of visiting the vineyards a few miles out of Cape Town. 
 We were hospitably entertained by Mr. Thompson, and 
 attended his services on the Lord's Day. Mr. Ellis, who 
 was at the time at the Mauritius, kindly came on board 
 as soon as the Indiafia came to anchor, and took us on 
 shore to the house of our missionary, Mr. Le Brun. We 
 attended his service — it was the Lord's Day — and were 
 delighted to see so many present, several of whom we 
 were told were refugees from Madagascar. The congre- 
 gation was well-nigh entirely composed of people of 
 colour, varying from the brown of the mixed race to the 
 
170 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 jet black of the negro. The white dresses formed a 
 striking contrast to the dusky faces, many of which, dark 
 though they were, were lit up with an expression indica- 
 tive of intelligence and contentment. The service was 
 conducted in French, which continues to be the language 
 of the island, although many years have elapsed since it 
 became a British possession. After the service we were 
 taken to the house of the Secretary to Government, who 
 hospitably entertained us. We embarked the next day. 
 As we were proceeding to the shore we were struck with 
 the familiar sounds of the Hindustanee language from 
 the lips of Indian coolies. We were sorry we could 
 exchange with them only a few passing words. During 
 the few hours we were off Madras we had the pleasure of 
 landing and seeing some of the missionaries there. 
 
 After a short stay in Calcutta, we set out for Benares. 
 The journey was performed in a new fashion. We 
 purchased a conveyance, and arranged to have it drawn 
 by relays of coolies all the way. Arrangements were 
 made by an agent in Calcutta to have word sent on in 
 advance, so that at every sixth or eighth mile coolies 
 might be in readiness for us. Before 1839 the great 
 Trunk Road from Calcutta to Delhi had been made, but 
 the streams and ravines were for the most part unbridged, 
 and consequently travelling by a wheeled conveyance 
 was very slow and difficult. By 1854 the road had been 
 greatly improved, many bridges had been made, and 
 thus the facilities for travelling were much increased. 
 At every twelve or fourteen miles there were rest-houses 
 for European travellers, called " staging bungalows," all 
 built on the same plan at the expense of two wealthy 
 natives, each with two rooms and a bath-room attached, 
 a bedstead in each room, a table, and two or three chairs, 
 
JO URNE Y TO BEN A RES. 1 7 1 
 
 with a man in charge to take a small sum from each 
 traveller for accommodation, and ready to furnish him 
 with a good Indian meal at a very moderate rate. At 
 some of these we stopped for rest and food. Our party 
 consisted of our family, and a lady friend who wished 
 to travel with us. Desirous to get on quickly, we were 
 sometimes in our conveyance twenty hours out of the 
 twenty-four, and dosed as we proceeded the best way we 
 could. We met with no adventure worth relating, and 
 were glad after ten days' journeying to find ourselves 
 once more in our old dear abode. We had a most 
 hearty and gratifying welcome from our brethren, both 
 European and native. We reached it on a Saturday. I 
 told the brethren that after my long absence, and entire 
 disuse of the native language during that period, I must 
 be a hearer the next day. They said that could not 
 be, as the people were expecting me to officiate. Thus 
 urged I ventured to conduct the service, and I was 
 agreeably surprised to find that old scenes seemed to 
 revive my knowledge of the language, and to bear me 
 through with unexpected ease. 
 
 We resumed work at Benares recruited in health, and 
 refreshed in spirit, and prepared by the experience of 
 previous years to prosecute it with new effectiveness. We 
 had a sense of the difficulties of the work, its trials and 
 discouragements, and of the absolute necessity of Divine 
 help in order to its being rightly prosecuted, which we 
 could not have had at an earlier period; and we had 
 at the same time a deeper realization of its greatness, 
 blessedness, and final certain triumph. The missionary 
 has little of the spirit of his office, and little fitnesss for it, 
 who at every successive stage of his course is not increas- 
 ingly bent on honouring his Master and promoting the 
 
172 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 good of the people among whom he labours, and who 
 is not at the same time increasingly thankful for having 
 been called to so high an office, while deeply humbled at 
 his own unworthiness and his many shortcomings. 
 
 During the three years under review, our native Chris- 
 tian congregation was larger than it had been at any 
 previous period, and, I am sorry to say, larger than it 
 has been in later years. There were at that time about 
 twenty Christian households in the mission compound, 
 and several Christian families came from a little distance. 
 There was a printing-press in our neighbourhood, which 
 gave employment to a number of our people, and others 
 succeeded in getting situations which gave them com- 
 fortable support. It was a gladdening sight, when the 
 gong was struck for worship, to see them making their 
 way to the chapel, and to find them, when assembled 
 there, well-nigh filling the place, all cleanly clad, and 
 devoutly engaged in the service of God. Many a time 
 was my heart full of joy and hope when ministering to 
 them. We had, indeed, our difficulties and trials. These 
 are never long or far from us wherever we may be. There 
 were inconsistencies and lapses among the native Chris- 
 tians which grieved us ; but their general conduct was 
 good, they were at peace with each other, and in some 
 there were marked indications of growing piety. 
 
 Our tours during the cold weather of these years were 
 mainly confined to the country within thirty or forty 
 miles of Benares. Our only tour of any length was in 
 January and February of 1857, when we went on the Cal- 
 cutta road as far as Susseram, more than a hundred miles 
 distant ; and, leaving the Trunk Road, made our way to 
 the rock of Rohtas, overlooking the Soane, where there 
 are extensive remains of an imperial fort. We lodged 
 
TWO GATHERINGS AT BENARES. 173 
 
 one night in one of the deserted halls, of which there 
 were several in a fair state of preservation, and we were 
 told that to these the tigers of the surrounding forest 
 occasionally resorted. During the Mutiny this fort was 
 for some time the headquarters of a rebel chief. With 
 the exception of this tour to the east of Benares, to 
 which I shall afterwards refer, our experience in these 
 itineracies closely accorded with that of former years. 
 During this period the school and preaching work of the 
 mission was steadily prosecuted by the catechists and 
 missionaries. 
 
 Towards the close of 1856, and at the beginning of 
 1857, there were two interesting gatherings at Benares. 
 The one was the meeting of boys and lads from all parts 
 of the province for a Biblical Examination — of which I 
 have already given some account. The other was a 
 Missionary Conference, which was largely attended and 
 efficiently conducted. The facilities for travelling were 
 not so great as they are now, but they were such as ad- 
 mitted the presence of a number of missionaries from 
 distant places. We parted deeply thankful for the 
 pleasant and profitable intercourse we had had with each 
 other. Little did we think of the terrible storm which 
 was so soon to break over us, in which several of our 
 number were to lose their lives. 
 
74 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE MUTINY OF 1857-58. 
 
 NO one who was within the range of the hurricane 
 of 1857, no one who was even on its edge, can 
 ever forget it. When we now look back, we marvel that 
 a single European in that part of India was spared to 
 tell of its fierce struggle, its sad sights, and its fearful 
 perils. The annals of the Mutiny are furnished in 
 volumes filled with ample details. Its causes and con- 
 sequences have been largely discussed. My narrower 
 and humbler aim is to describe that terrible outbreak so 
 far, and only so far, as it came within my own experience 
 and observation. My narrative will, however, be better 
 understood by stating briefly the causes, which, in my 
 opinion, led to this great rising against us, and by giving 
 an outline of its progress before reaching Benares, where 
 we then resided. 
 
 CAUSES OF THE MUTINY. 
 
 Our position in India is very peculiar. The history of 
 the world presents no parallel. A great continent, con- 
 taining a number of nations, possessed of an ancient 
 civilization, some of them composed of races given to 
 war and noted for their prowess, with a population 
 amounting at present to 253 millions, has been brought 
 under the dominion of a country of limited extent and 
 
INDIA CONQ UERED B Y INDIAN S0ID1ERS. 1 7 5 
 
 limited population like ours, separated from it by many 
 intervening countries, and accessible only by thousands 
 of miles of ocean. That continent has not been sub- 
 jected to tribute, and then left to its native rulers. Over 
 by far the greater part of India these rulers have been 
 displaced, and British rule has been established. Where 
 native rulers remain, they are bound to administer their 
 affairs in accordance with the views of the Sovereign 
 Power. Over a part of the Indian continent the rule com- 
 menced more than a hundred years ago, and from decade 
 to decade it has extended till it now embraces its present 
 vast proportions. It extends beyond India. In the 
 North-West we have entered into what properly belongs 
 to Afghanistan, and from Burma a large extent of terri- 
 tory has been taken ; so that the east as well as the west 
 coast of the Bay of Bengal has come under our rule. To 
 all appearance the rule is as firmly established as if it had 
 come down from ancient times. 
 
 It would be a great mistake to suppose that India had 
 been conquered for England by its own people. If they 
 had been left to themselves, no part of it would now 
 belong to us. The small European force has always 
 been the backbone of our armies ; but in every battle 
 native soldiers have formed the great majority. The 
 French gave us the example of employing native soldiers 
 to place their country under European rule. In the 
 dissolution of the Mogul Empire, thousands of warriors 
 were ready to fight the battles of any one, European or 
 native, who would pay them well. The example of the 
 French was followed by the English, till India, from 
 Cape Comorin to the mountains of the north and the 
 north-west, came under their sway, to an extent and with 
 a completeness and firmness of grasp never reached by 
 
176 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 the Muhammadan power in its palmiest days. Each Pre- 
 sidency — Bengal, Madras, and Bombay — has had its own 
 native army, in 1857 amounting altogether to 240,000 
 men. In the Bengal army, by far the largest of the three, 
 there has never been a single native of Bengal Proper. 
 It has been entirely composed of north countrymen, to 
 a large extent of Brahmans, and Chhatrees the old fight- 
 ing caste of India, who have entered our service on 
 account of its good pay and good treatment, though alien 
 from us in everything by which one people can be alien 
 from another. Many of the native soldiers have been 
 Muhammadans, who are intensely averse to us on both 
 religious and political grounds. Under the influence of 
 friendly intercourse and good offices performed to each 
 other, a kindly feeling often sprung up between officers 
 and men; but as a body they were mercenary troops 
 fighting for strangers, and the history of the world fur- 
 nishes abundant instances of such an army being as 
 formidable to their employers as to those against whom 
 they have been employed. In the course of time our 
 native soldiers were more and more trusted ; important 
 places were garrisoned by them, military stores were 
 entrusted to them ; and nothing was more natural than 
 that in the more ambitious of their number the thought 
 should spring up that the time had arrived for expelling 
 the stranger, and seizing the power within their grasp. 
 In thus acting they could make themselves sure of the 
 sympathy of their countrymen. 
 
 The Sepoys have been treated in the matter of pay, 
 clothing, and food, as they never were under native 
 rulers ; but they have been subjected to strict discipline, 
 and they have been cut off from the much-prized privi- 
 lege of foraging, or rather plundering. They have at 
 
CA USES OF DISS A TISFA CT10N. 1 77 
 
 different times complained loudly of unjust treatment. 
 Alleged breach of promises of pay, and their being sent 
 to fight our battles in foreign countries such as Burmah, 
 China, Persia, and Afghanistan, and to parts of India 
 foreign to them, have been prominent among their causes 
 of complaint. They have not confined themselves to 
 complaint and remonstrance ; they have again and again 
 broken out into mutiny, which has led to some regiments 
 being disbanded, and the mutineer leaders being severely 
 punished. Years before 1857 it was asserted by persons- 
 eminently qualified to judge, like Sir Henry Lawrence,- 
 that grievous mistakes had been committed in the ad- 
 ministration of the native army, and that our safety 
 demanded great changes in its treatment and distribu- 
 tion. When one reads the statements they made, and 
 the warnings they gave, the wonder is the mutiny did 
 not sooner occur. Lord Ellenborough, before leaving 
 India, declared the Sepoys were our one peril in India, 
 and characteristically proposed we should keep them in 
 humour by keeping them always fighting. 
 
 All other causes of revolt were light compared with 
 the charge often advanced and believed that we were 
 bent on the destruction of their religion. From the out- 
 break at Vellore in 1806, on to the great mutiny of 1857, 
 this charge was persistently made. The Sepoys were 
 allowed all the religious liberty compatible with military 
 obedience ; they had every facility for following their 
 religious customs \ they were fenced off from Christian 
 influences as no other part of the community was ; they 
 were solemnly assured again and again their religion 
 would be scrupulously respected ; they had full evidence 
 before their eyes that with few exceptions their officers 
 had no Christian zeal. Whence, then, this charge of 
 
 13 
 
178 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 tampering with their religion ? The explanation is to be 
 found in the character of Hinduism. It is intensely 
 outward. It is a matter of rite and ceremony, of meat 
 and drink, of clothing and posture. It may be niched 
 from a man without any act of his own by the act of an- 
 other, and he may not be aware till informed that the 
 fatal loss has been incurred. Something may be intro- 
 duced into his food which will deprive him of his reli- 
 gion, and make him an outcast all his days. What more 
 easy than to introduce a defiling element, such as the 
 blood or fat of the cow or bullock, of which the Brah- 
 man or Rajpoot might unaware partake ? To this 
 intensely outward religion people of these castes are 
 passionately attached from custom, from superstition, 
 and still more, I think, from the consideration among 
 themselves and others which caste purity secures. 
 Their honour, izzat, as they call it, is their most valuable 
 possession. An attack on it is bitterly resented. This 
 honour is quite consistent with licentiousness, robbery, 
 plunder, and even murder ; but to violate caste by drink- 
 ing from the vessel of a low-caste man, or eating with 
 him, would bring with it indelible disgrace. To par- 
 take of the cow, the sacred animal, is the greatest crime 
 which can be committed, and, if done unconsciously, the 
 greatest calamity. 
 
 Notwithstanding the fact that the English as a people 
 had little zeal for their religion, the Sepoys thought they 
 saw reasons for our wishing to effect their conversion. 
 If Christians, they would be fitter instruments for carry- 
 ing out the designs of their English conquerors. They 
 would in that case be no longer hampered by class dis- 
 tinctions, commissariat arrangements could be more 
 easily made, they would have no objection to serving in 
 
CO- OPERA TING CA USES FOR RE VOL T. 1 79 
 
 foreign lands, and they would become identified with us. 
 What was more easy than to effect the change by the 
 manipulation of their food ? Their imagination led 
 them to interpret facts as justifying suspicion, and the 
 supposition was enough to drive them to revolt. 
 
 The Muhammadans in India have become Hinduized 
 to a large extent ; they continually speak of themselves as 
 a caste, and Muhammadan soldiers have shared with their 
 Hindu comrades in the fear that the English were bent on 
 destroying their religion. They took the most prominent 
 part in the mutiny at Vellore in 1806. They were inju- 
 diciously required there to put on the English military 
 hat, to shave their beards, and put on leather belts, 
 which they maintained were made of pigs' skins ; and all 
 this was done, they said, to turn them into Topeewalas, 
 Hatmen — in other words, into Englishmen and Christians. 
 
 Outside the army there have been causes, co-opera- 
 ting with those within, in prompting the soldiers to rise 
 against us. Our government is a very foreign one. 
 There is a national gulf between the rulers and the 
 ruled, and consequent absence of the sympathy which 
 would draw them to each other, if they were of the same 
 people. Our government is at once expensive and strong, 
 requiring a large amount of taxation considering the 
 resources of the country, and able to enforce its pay- 
 ment. India has been greatly favoured by high-minded 
 and able rulers ; but often, with the best intentions, from 
 want of thorough acquaintance with the native character 
 and customs, injustice has at times been done by the 
 decisions of our courts. Though giving security for 
 person and property, such as India had never previously 
 enjoyed, our government has borne hardly on some 
 classes, such as the officials of the native states we have 
 
180 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 annexed, the numerous dependents of the abolished 
 native courts, and the able and enterprising members of 
 the community, for whom no suitable sphere has been 
 open, as the main prizes in both the military and civil 
 services are reserved for the English stranger. Then 
 deposed princes have now and then intrigued with the 
 army to draw it away from its allegiance. 
 
 In the spring of 1856 Lord Dalhousie laid down his 
 office, after his long and memorable Proconsulship. So 
 little did he anticipate the events of the coming year, 
 that in the elaborate Minute he wrote on his retirement 
 he satisfied himself with saying, regarding the native 
 army, that the condition of the Sepoy could not be im- 
 proved. Till the closing months of the year there was 
 no fear of the coming storm. Profound peace reigned 
 throughout India. War had been declared against Persia, 
 but hopes were entertained that victory would soon crown 
 our arms, and these hopes were fulfilled. 
 
 THREATENINGS OF THE STORM. 
 
 Towards the end of 1856 and early in 1857 there 
 were mutterings of the storm. A number of men were 
 selected from each regiment to be taught the use of the 
 Enfield rifle, and for this purpose a new cartridge was 
 required, which required to be bitten with the teeth. 
 The report spread like wild-fire, and was firmly believed, 
 that the cartridge was smeared with bullock's fat to 
 destroy the caste of the Hindus, and with pig's fat to 
 destroy the caste of the Muhammadans. The Adjutant- 
 General of the army declared there was not the slightest 
 ground for the statement ; but the more strongly our 
 innocence of design on their religion was asserted, the 
 more firmly did the Sepoys believe our guilt. Paper 
 
CIRCUMSTANCES FAVOURABLE TO REVOLT. 181 
 
 was offered to them, and they were told to prepare cart- 
 ridges for themselves ; but they said the paper was danger- 
 ously glazed, and they would not accept it. Among other 
 things causing disquietude was an order that in future all 
 enlisting must engage to go wherever they might be sent 
 in India or beyond. Hitherto some regiments had been 
 enlisted only for service in India, and could not be sent 
 out of it except by their own consent. On every side 
 there were signs of a new era setting in, which forbode 
 no good to the ancient customs and institutions of the 
 land. The more aspiring spirits among the Sepoys had 
 evidently formed the project of uniting the whole army 
 in the attempt to drive the English into the sea, and 
 secure power and emolument for themselves. 
 
 Various things favoured the project. It was well 
 known that many throughout India hated the English, 
 and were ready to join in their expulsion. Forts and 
 arsenals were left in their keeping, unchecked by the 
 presence of European soldiers. The mass of the 
 European force was in the far North-West, in the 
 Punjab, and towards the border of Afghanistan, as if 
 there the danger lay. The Sepoys saw that if they could 
 combine and act in concert they could with ease strike 
 us to the ground. Then the prophecy was widely spread 
 that our rule was speedily to come to an end. It had 
 commenced with our victory at Plassey on June 23, 
 1757; and when the sun of June 23, 1857, should set, 
 not one English face would be seen in India. Mysteri- 
 ous cakes, resembling our bannocks, were sent on from 
 village to village, like the fiery cross in Scotland in 
 former days, to prepare the people for great and start- 
 ling events. Early in 1857 the ferment among the 
 soldiers was spreading among large classes of the people. 
 
1 82 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 During the cold weather of 1856-57 I spent some 
 weeks in travelling with my family in the country to the 
 east of Benares, on the Calcutta road. We left the high- 
 road and made our way, as I have already mentioned, to 
 Rohtas Gurh, a famous abandoned fortress on the top of 
 a hill. In some of the villages to which I went to preach 
 the Gospel the bitterest feeling was shown, especially by 
 young men, towards our rule and religion. In one place 
 the feeling manifested was so bitter that I thought they 
 were prepared to lay violent hands on me. I remember 
 remarking more than once, as I returned to the tent 
 weary and worn out in body and mind, that a strange 
 feeling was coming over the people, which I had never 
 previously observed, and that I feared dark days were 
 approaching. 
 
 THE OUTBREAK AND PROGRESS OF THE MUTINY. 
 
 At Berhampore, more than a hundred miles above 
 Calcutta, and Barrackpore, a few miles from it, the Sepoys 
 broke into open mutiny, which led to the leaders being 
 executed and their regiments disbanded. The outbreak 
 at these places made a painful impression on the entire 
 English community, and created deep anxiety. That 
 anxiety was increased by the reports received from day 
 to day of the mutinous spirit shown by the Sepoys all 
 over the country. We were told of midnight meetings, 
 insolent conduct, and incendiary fires. The most san- 
 guine could not but fear that we were entering a calami- 
 tous period. The most hopeful were those officers who 
 had been long with native regiments, and were sure 
 that whatever others might do, their men would remain 
 staunch. 
 
 At length, on May 10th, the storm burst out at Meerut 
 
THE RISING AT MEERUT 183 
 
 in all its fury. I cannot enter on a detailed account of 
 the events of that sad, memorable day. I can only in a 
 few words mention what took place. On the previous 
 day 87 men of a native cavalry regiment had, before 
 the whole garrison of the place, been put in irons for 
 repeated persistent disobedience. Though there was a 
 large European force a native guard was put over the 
 prisoners, who were confined in a place close to their 
 comrades. No precaution was taken against their 
 rescue. On the evening of the next day, Sunday, as 
 the Europeans were gathering for Church, the Sepoys 
 rose, murdered their officers, hastened to the parade 
 ground, liberated their imprisoned comrades, opened the 
 jails, raised all the villainy of the native town, massacred 
 the Christians whom they met, men, women, and chil- 
 dren, set houses on fire, and then set out for Delhi, the 
 great old imperial city. There they were welcomed by 
 the titular king and his family, and there, as at Meerut, 
 they murdered all the Christians on whom they could lay 
 hold. By the mismanagement of the large European 
 force at Meerut, a small portion of which was well able 
 to cope with the Sepoys, they did not arrive on the scene 
 of revolt till the Sepoys had done all the mischief on 
 which they were bent, and had set out for Delhi. 
 
 That 10th of May we remember vividly. We had had 
 our usual afternoon service with the native Christians. 
 In the evening we walked out in the garden. The 
 moon was shining in an unclouded sky. Hot though 
 the weather was we enjoyed our quiet walk, talked of 
 the services of the day, and the threatening appearance 
 of affairs. Little did we think of the terrible scenes 
 which were then being enacted at Meerut. 
 
 The outbreak at Meerut awoke as with a peal of the 
 
1 84 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 loudest thunder the entire English community in India, 
 and especially in Northern India, to a sense of imminent 
 peril. We had hitherto lived in the enjoyment of pro- 
 found security. There had been uneasiness on different 
 occasions, when our power seemed imperilled by the 
 disasters which overtook us in Afghanistan in 1841-42, 
 and by the life and death struggle we had afterwards with 
 the Sikhs. Our enemies were then watching for our 
 fall, and the reasons for uneasiness at those times were 
 stronger than the community generally were aware of. 
 There had been also at different times uneasiness in 
 reference to the Sepoys, but they came to be regarded 
 as wilful children, who might be troublesome, but who 
 would do us no harm. In our own country, among our 
 own people, we could not have felt safer than we ordi- 
 narily did. At the travelling season we went about, 
 pitched our tents in solitary spots, for weeks together 
 perhaps did not see a white face, and were treated not 
 only with courtesy, but generally with profound deference, 
 as if we belonged to a superior race. The people in their 
 obsequious fashion, and with their idolatrous views, would 
 almost have given us divine honours. All at once we 
 realized ourselves as living in the midst of a dense alien 
 population. Our own trusted soldiers, serving under our 
 banners, receiving our pay, and sworn to defend us, had 
 risen against us ; and with them as declared enemies, in 
 whom could we confide ? Our obsequious servants of 
 yesterday might become our murderers to-day. We felt 
 ourselves at bay, surrounded by a host who might any 
 moment fall on us and destroy us. 
 
THE UTBREAK A T BENARES. 1 85 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 THE OUTBREAK AT BENARES. 
 
 AT no place was the shock felt more severely than at 
 Benares, where I was residing with my family. In 
 no place was the danger greater. We w T ere living in the 
 suburbs of the most superstitious and fanatical city in 
 the land. Again and again during the eighty years of 
 our rule there had been riots in the city, professedly to 
 avenge religious wrongs — riots so formidable, that they 
 were quelled by military force. A very few years pre- 
 vious to 1857 the city was thrown into violent commo- 
 tion, in consequence of new messing regulations in the 
 jail, by which it was alleged, though without reason, the 
 caste of the prisoners w T ould be affected. The rowdy 
 element, composed of those emphatically called bud- 
 mash " evil-doers," persons ready for every mischief, was 
 very strong. The Sepoys put in the forefront of their 
 quarrel the plea that they were fighting for their religion, 
 and where could they expect so much sympathy and 
 help as in Kasee ? Sir Henry Lawrence, writing some 
 time previously about the mistakes committed in the 
 management of the native army, named Benares as a 
 place where fearful scenes would be witnessed in the 
 event of a Sepoy rising. Intensely Hindu, though 
 Benares be, it has, as we have already observed, a large 
 
1 86 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Muhammadan population, and in attacking us the 
 Hindus could fully depend on their help. 
 
 Our danger was greatly increased by the vast dispro- 
 portion between the native and European force — a dis- 
 proportion so great, that apart from the danger of our 
 neighbourhood to a great city, from which we might 
 expect a host to pour out to attack us, it looked as if 
 we were doomed to destruction. We had in Benares 
 a Native Infantry regiment, which was believed to be 
 tainted ; a Sikh regiment, the temper of which was little 
 known ; and, a few miles off, an Irregular Cavalry regi- 
 ment, composed, it was said, of a superior class of men, 
 all, I believe, Muhammadans, but whom few could trust 
 in the event of a rising. Our European force consisted 
 of thirty artillery-men in charge of a battery of three guns. 
 At the fort of Chunar, sixteen miles distant, there was a 
 number of European soldier pensioners, of whom per- 
 haps sixty or seventy might be effective. So unbounded 
 had been the confidence in the Sepoys, that the artillery- 
 men in Benares and the pensioners in Chunar were the 
 only European force in the entire province of Benares 
 under the Benares Commissioner, with a population of 
 over ten millions ; while in seven stations in the province 
 there were native soldiers, chiefly infantry, but partly 
 cavalry and artillery. Besides the English officers of 
 the native regiments, and some half-dozen English 
 civil officials, the only English people were missionaries 
 of the Church, Baptist, and London Societies, and a few 
 traders, while a few indigo planters were scattered in the 
 country. 
 
 On the news of the Meerut mutiny reaching Benares, 
 the civil and military authorities lost no time in consult- 
 ing what should be done. The proposal that we should 
 
T REPARATION FOR THE STORM. 187 
 
 leave in a body for the Fort of Chunar was most wisely 
 rejected. It was impossible to disarm the distrusted 
 Native Infantry regiment in the absence of a European 
 force. There was a large building in cantonments, 
 which had been erected for a mint for the North-Western 
 Provinces, and had been used for this purpose till the 
 provincial mints were removed to Calcutta. It always 
 afterwards bore the name of " The Mint." This building 
 is in a wide enclosure, surrounded by a high wall, and 
 it was hinted all round that in the event of a rising we 
 should, if possible, make our way to this place. The 
 Irregular Cavalry regiment was called in to patrol the 
 roads leading to the station and city, and report the 
 presence of suspicious persons. The resolution was 
 formed to maintain a bold front, and pursue our usual 
 course, as if we knew that succour was at hand. On 
 every side the hope was expressed that none would give 
 way to panic. The men at the head of affairs had the 
 general confidence of the community. 
 
 Most happily for us and for many others there was 
 a lull in the storm after the mutiny at Meerut and the 
 possession of Delhi by the mutineers. There was alarm 
 everywhere, here and there there was commotion, but 
 there were no extensive and concerted risings. If there 
 had been we could not have been saved. Our soldiers 
 were returning from Persia, regiments proceeding to 
 China were stopped on the way and brought to India, 
 and an available force was thus placed at the disposal 
 of the authorities. English soldiers were hastened up 
 from Calcutta. From day to day we with joy saw them 
 pass our gate in carriages on their way to cantonments. 
 Great though our danger was they were not detained. 
 A small number was kept for our defence, and the rest 
 
1 88 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 were sent on to relieve our sorely-pressed people farther 
 north. Some began to hope the dark cloud over us 
 was about to be dispersed, while others looked on our 
 position with dismay approaching despair. As our 
 house was in a very exposed position, a friend had at an 
 early period invited us to take up our abode with him ; 
 but we resolved to remain for the present in our own 
 home. 
 
 THE FOURTH OF JUNE, 1 85 7, AT BENARES. 
 
 At length the storm burst over us. By attempts at 
 incendiary fires and in other ways the Native Infantry 
 regiment had shown a mutinous spirit. The necessity 
 for disarming it was obvious to all except its own 
 officers, but the difficulty of the measure was great. On 
 June 4th Colonel Neil, one of those men whose high 
 qualities were elicited by the terrible struggle on which 
 we had entered, arrived at Benares. On the previous 
 day a native regiment had mutinied at Azimghur, sixty 
 miles distant. A council was held, and as there were 
 one hundred and twenty English soldiers it was resolved 
 to disarm the Native Infantry regiment next morning. 
 The question was asked, " Why not now ? We may be 
 all killed before morning." Immediate disarmament was 
 determined on. Well was it for us this was the decision, 
 as it was afterwards found that very night had been 
 fixed for the rising of the regiment, and the massacre of 
 us all. The whole military force of the place was called 
 out, the English soldiers being placed near the guns, and 
 the Sepoys were ordered to pile their arms. The order 
 instead of being obeyed was met by our officers and men 
 being fired on, and the fight commenced. 
 
 We had just finished dinner when our night watchman 
 
THE RISING AT BENARES. 189 
 
 rushed into the room with the startling words, Pultun 
 bigar guya, and lin men ag luga ! — "The regiment has 
 mutinied, and the cantonments are on fire." Scarcely 
 had he uttered the words, when we heard the sharp 
 rattle of the musketry and the crash of the guns. Our 
 little conveyance was made quickly ready, and, with all 
 others in that part of the suburbs, we drove as quickly 
 as we could to the only place of temporary safety avail- 
 able for us, on the banks of the Ganges at the northern 
 end of the city. The English were in different parts of 
 the suburbs, and betook themselves to the places nearest 
 to them which promised immediate shelter. Sir John 
 Kaye, the historian of the Sepoy War, says that the 
 missionaries left the city for Chunar, with the exception 
 of one he names, Mr. Leupolt. In fact, only the Church 
 missionaries went in that direction, and they could go 
 in no other. 
 
 As we were hastening to the Ganges we knew from 
 the noise of the musketry and cannon that the battle 
 was going on, and from the cloud of smoke rising from 
 cantonments we feared that all the houses were on fire. 
 We went with others to the house of an English merchant 
 whom we knew well, and then as the natives were gather- 
 ing around we betook ourselves to boats on the river, and 
 got out into the stream. In a short time a messenger 
 from cantonments reached us with the good news that 
 our men were victorious, and that the mutineers were 
 in flight. We returned to the house of our merchant 
 friend with the intention of remaining there for the night. 
 With our party were a number of children, some of them 
 infants, and they, poor things, were put to rest in any 
 corner which could be found. Between eight and nine 
 the Brigade-Major, who had been slightly wounded, and 
 
190 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 had been saved from certain death by the faithfulness 
 of a trooper, rode into the compound accompanied by 
 men of the Irregular Cavalry regiment. We all ran out, 
 and were told by him that a number of English soldiers, 
 who had just arrived from Calcutta, were on the other 
 side of the Ganges ready to be ferried over, and that 
 they would form our escort to the Mint, which was 
 between three and four miles distant. In the meantime 
 we learned all that had occurred — how the Native Infantry 
 regiment had mutinied, how they had been joined by the 
 Sikhs, some said by panic, by others I believe more 
 truly, from sympathy with their Hindustanee brethren, 
 as was shown by their after conduct ; and how all had 
 been put to flight by our band of soldiers, aided by 
 the guns. On our side four were killed and nineteen 
 wounded, of whom the greater number afterwards died. 
 How many of the Sepoys were killed was not ascertained, 
 as, with the exception of a few, the dead and wounded 
 were carried off by their comrades. 
 
 When all was ready we set out, a long cavalcade, with 
 English soldiers in front and behind, and native troopers 
 on each side, our guardians then, but before the morning 
 dawned in flight to join the mutineers. It was a calm, 
 beautiful moonlight night, forming a strange contrast 
 to the turmoil of the preceding hours. The road took 
 us by our house, and as we passed the gate a servant, 
 who had been watching for us, came out with artificially 
 cooled water, which was very welcome. We reached 
 the Mint about midnight, and there the whole European 
 community was assembled. On every side there was 
 eager talk about our position and prospects, but there 
 was no appearance of panic or fright. The mothers 
 soon succeeded in finding spots in the spacious rooms 
 
LIFE AT THE MINT. 191 
 
 of the Mint — which had not been swept, and were covered 
 with half an inch of mud — for their precious charge, and 
 there they remained to watch over them ; while the men 
 sauntered about, or tried to sit where anything like 
 sitting was practicable. Stray shots were heard, and 
 from the city went up rockets, which were regarded as 
 signals to the Sepoys outside. Most were awake as if 
 it were full day. Between three and four in the morning, 
 as I was sitting with two or three others on a native 
 bedstead, a person came and said, "Where is the magis- 
 trate? The city is up." It was a false alarm; the 
 city remained strangely quiet. As the morning broke 
 we were all in safety, and no enemy was to be seen. 
 Many of the English soldiers were so overcome by fatigue 
 that they lay on the gravel fast asleep, with their muskets 
 by their side. 
 
 In the Mint we all remained for more than a week 
 in the greatest possible discomfort, unable to change our 
 clothes except by going to some house outside, which 
 some of us ventured to do. We once ventured to our 
 house for some very necessary articles, and daily visits 
 were paid to a barrack a short way off, where the sick 
 and wounded were. During the day, with the blazing 
 sun above us, and the wind blowing through the Mint 
 with the heat of a furnace, we were obliged to confine 
 ourselves to its large crowded rooms. The exposure was 
 trying, but was patiently borne, and did no seeming 
 injury to our health. At night we slept outside, most 
 of us on the flat roof of the Mint, on bedding which our 
 servants brought us. Our food was cooked at our homes, 
 and brought to us by our servants, and very thankful 
 were we to get it, though we had neither tables to sit at 
 nor chairs to sit on. Had not our servants been faithful 
 
192 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 we should have starved, as the authorities, to prevent 
 panic and to show a bold front, had laid in no provisions. 
 This seems very unwise, and yet there is no doubt the 
 bold front did much under God to effect our deliverance. 
 
 In the morning of the Sunday after the mutiny the 
 Rev. C. B. Leupolt, of the Church Mission, preached on 
 the parade ground. In the afternoon I was requested to 
 preach. The soldiers, with their rifles in their hands, 
 and the European inhabitants were my audience. I took 
 for my text words which at once suggested themselves 
 to my mind, " If God be for us, who can be against us ? " 
 These words of the Apostle Paul, I was afterwards told, 
 came fraught with strength to the hearts of some present. 
 
 On Sunday evening it began to be whispered that 
 mutiny had broken out at Allahabad. On Monday we 
 knew all. The 6th N. I. Regiment, after professing in 
 the afternoon their readiness to march to Delhi and fight 
 the rebels, in the evening rose, murdered sixteen officers, 
 six of them young lads who had just arrived, and all 
 Europeans who came their way. Happily families were 
 in the Fort, to which they had betaken themselves in 
 opposition to the affectionate remonstrances of the native 
 officers, who said it was a slur on their fidelity ! The 
 Sepoys plundered the Treasury ; and it is said many of 
 them were afterwards murdered by the villagers on 
 account of the money with which they were laden. 
 
 As the Sepoys entirely disappeared, and the city of 
 Benares was quiet, though the country around was much 
 disturbed, most of us after a time returned to our homes. 
 In our own case we found that not one of our servants 
 had decamped, and not a pin's worth had been stolen. 
 The very night of the mutiny a servant picked up the few 
 silver spoons we had left on the table, and at considerable 
 
INCIDENT AT THE MINT. 193 
 
 risk made his way to us to place them in his mistress's 
 hands. Indeed, all about us acted with a faithfulness 
 which elicited our warm gratitude. 
 
 While we were at the Mint a little incident occurred, 
 which suggested how, in the excited state of affairs, a 
 spark might have caused a great conflagration. Seeing 
 a crowd of natives, almost all servants, at the gate, I 
 went to it, and there the sentry, a little peppery Irishman, 
 was threatening to stab with his bayonet a native servant 
 with a note in his hand. I asked what was the matter. 
 The sentry said, "That black fellow is mocking me, and 
 I'll send this through him." The servant appealed to 
 me. He said he had a note for a gentleman in the Mint, 
 and entreated that " gora," " white man," to let him 
 in, but instead of doing so he threatened to kill him. 
 The mocking was, it turned out, the native folding his 
 hands in the attitude of supplication. I explained the 
 matter, and the man got in. The native servants were 
 so roughly treated by some of our people, especially by 
 the newly-arrived soldiers, simply because they were 
 natives, that I was afraid they might leave us in a body; 
 and if they had done so we should have been in a sad 
 plight. One of my own servants, a native Christian, 
 complained bitterly to me of the treatment he had 
 received. 
 
 The quiet of Benares during this period was remark- 
 able — I might almost say preternatural. When the fight 
 of the 4th of June commenced, numbers were seen with 
 drawn sw T ords rushing towards cantonments, but when 
 they saw Sepoys falling, and others running away, they 
 shrank back into the city. A great dread fell on the 
 entire population. I was told by natives the report had 
 gone out that the English soldiers had been commanded 
 
 14 
 
194 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 to enter the city, and slay every man, woman, and child 
 they met; and that in consequence, to adopt their 
 exaggerated words, they sat trembling all night, no one 
 daring to sleep. 
 
 In the meantime the terrible work of retribution 
 commenced. Martial law was proclaimed, and many 
 poor miserable creatures, charged with plundering, were 
 hanged. Some of the Sepoys caught were blown from 
 guns. I will not harrow my readers with details. I 
 shunned as much as I could these bloody scenes, but on 
 several occasions I came suddenly on them. To the 
 present day I shudder as I think of what I saw. 
 
 THE PANIC OF JULY 6TH. 
 
 I must now come to our day of panic, July 6th. July 
 5 th was a Sunday. We had our usual services with the 
 native Christians. Some two hours after the evening 
 service, a nephew of ours, then at Benares, drove into 
 the compound, and told us we must go at once to the 
 Mint, as a large force of Sepoys and country people were 
 four miles off, prepared to attack the jail. This was 
 startling news, as our house lay in the direct line between 
 the jail and the city, and, in the event of the attack being 
 successful, we should be the first victims. Still, we were 
 very unwilling to stir, but our nephew was so urgent that 
 we at last complied with his entreaty. A refugee family 
 was in our house, and with us all crowded into a small 
 conveyance we made our way to the rendezvous. What a 
 scene was there ! Most had arrived before us. Rain was 
 falling, and we could not remain out. The rooms were 
 so crowded that we could not get into them, and we had 
 to lie for the night as we could in a dirty passage, with 
 our back to the wall. The night passed off without an 
 
OUR DAY OF PANIC. 195 
 
 alarm, and in the morning we returned to our home, 
 somewhat annoyed at having been taken from it, as 
 we supposed, without sufficient reason. 
 
 On the morning of the 6th I had a strange duty to 
 discharge for such a time — the marriage of a couple. 
 One of our native Christians had arranged for his 
 marriage taking place at that date. I told him that this 
 was no time for marrying ; that we who were married 
 must abide with our families, but that those who were 
 intending marriage should defer it to a more propitious 
 season. He said all was arranged, and he begged me to 
 officiate, which I did, I must say, with a bad grace. No 
 sooner was the marriage over than I went home. After 
 breakfast and family worship, we each betook ourselves, 
 thoroughly worn out, to our rooms to obtain some rest. 
 Scarcely had I lain down on my couch, when our faithful 
 watchman came to my door and exclaimed, " If you do 
 not go at once to the Mint you will all be killed." I 
 asked him what was the matter. He could not tell me. 
 He could only say, " Fly, fly." The refugee lady who, 
 with her family, was with us, hearing the watchman's 
 words, exclaimed, " Oh, Mr. Kennedy, do not leave us I" 
 to which I replied, " Depend on it, I will not. Rather 
 than that, I myself will remain behind." Our conveyance 
 was speedily made ready, and off we started, with such a 
 crowded coach as has been seldom seen, I, as driver, 
 urging the poor overladen horse to his utmost speed. 
 Natives as well as Europeans were seized with panic. 
 There was a stream, then in full flood, close to our house, 
 and I saw several natives throw themselves into it to 
 swim across, at the imminent risk of their lives. As we 
 crossed one of the great roads leading to the city, the 
 natives were running as if pursued by demons. Right 
 
196 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 before us we saw an English lady running towards the 
 Mint, with her bare head in the sun, which had now 
 come out in its strength. A gentleman in a buggy drove 
 past us, pulled in reins, the lady leaped into it, and they 
 dashed on to the place of refuge. On reaching the 
 Mint we found most of the Europeans there before us. 
 I accosted a friend and said, " What does this mean ? " 
 He told us how the impression had gone out that the 
 enemy were on us, and how the panic might have been 
 prevented if information of the state of affairs had been 
 given. There was danger. The host coming against us 
 had, with characteristic procrastination, put off the attack 
 till the morning. To prevent their approach to the 
 city, every man and gun that could be spared were sent 
 out to meet them. 
 
 When we reached the Mint we heard the rumour that 
 Cawnpore had fallen. The report was not generally 
 believed, but it was true. We were only two hundred 
 miles from Cawnpore, and yet nine days had passed 
 before our hearing of its fall, and we then heard of 
 it only as a rumour. 
 
 The feeling of panic soon subsided, and as some in 
 their haste had taken something with them, it soon 
 looked as if we were a large improvised picnic party. 
 For a few hours all was quiet ; but in the afternoon the 
 rattle of the musketry and the boom of the cannon told 
 us the battle had commenced. Soon the news reached 
 us that the rebels were in flight, and that we were again 
 safe. Till the news reached there was anxiety, but 
 there was little manifestation of it, except by the wives of 
 some of the soldiers, who were wringing their hands and 
 weeping bitterly. The night was spent by us in the 
 greatest discomfort, huddled together, lying in our day 
 
THE ADVENTURES OF A MARRIAGE DAY. 197 
 
 clothes on the floor, in an atmosphere so close that I 
 wonder we were not stifled. That 6th of July, 1857, 
 at Benares can never be obliterated from the memory of 
 any one who was there. It makes us understand, as 
 nothing else could do, how much more dreadful a panic 
 is than the most furious combat. 
 
 I must recall my readers for a little to the couple 
 whom I had married on the morning of that memorable 
 day. We had not been above a few minutes in the Mint 
 when whom did I see rushing in at the gate, out of 
 breath, but my friends whom I had united in wedlock a 
 few hours previously, the bridegroom a few steps in 
 advance of the bride, who was doing her best, with little 
 success, to save her bridal dress from being soiled by the 
 muddy road. Grave though our position was, I could 
 not but smile when I saw them. I went to meet them 
 and looking sternly at the bridegroom I said, " Chhotkan,' 
 did I not tell you this was no time to marry ?" He looked 
 at me sheepishly, and said, "Well, sir, it is now over 
 and I cannot help it." I had better add that the mar- 
 riage has been a happy one. The husband has main- 
 tained a Christian character, and has had a prosperous 
 career, and they both survive to the present time. 
 
 THE DAYS SUCCEEDING THE DAY OF PANIC. 
 
 On the day aft.er the panic we all returned to our 
 respective homes. The immediate danger was past, but 
 the country around was in a very disturbed state. The 
 officer commanding the station sent round a circular 
 strongly recommending the immediate departure for 
 Calcutta of European families, and, indeed, of all 
 Europeans who were not able and willing to bear arms. 
 Like many of my countrymen, I was thrown by this cir- 
 
198 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 cular into great perplexity. Our house was out of canton- 
 ments, in a very exposed situation. We had four children 
 with us at the time, the eldest six years of age, and the 
 youngest a little more than three months. Their departure 
 was indispensable. Was I to go with them, or send them 
 away and remain behind ? Some advised me to go, but 
 we soon saw this was not the course which ought to be 
 pursued. Officers were sending away their families, and 
 they themselves were remaining behind. For me to 
 desert my post at such a time, was seen by us both, 
 would be to undo the work of my life, and it was evident 
 my duty was to remain. Armed steamers were going 
 up and down the Ganges, and I hoped to secure a 
 passage to Calcutta in one of them for my family. 
 Hearing a steamer was expected from Allahabad, we 
 went down to Raj Ghat ; and as soon as the steamer 
 came to anchor I went on board. It was full to over- 
 flowing of refugees from the North-West. The captain 
 told me he could not give my family even a deck passage, 
 so crowded was the vessel. There was nothing for us but 
 to go back to a friend's house, where we had been living 
 for a few days. Through the kindness of a friend at 
 Allahabad, to whom I had written, I succeeded in se- 
 curing a small cabin for my family in the next steamer, 
 and in it they made their way to Calcutta, after a deten- 
 tion of some days at Dinapore in great discomfort and 
 danger, owing to the mutiny having broken out there. 
 At Calcutta they embarked, in September, in a cargo 
 ship for England, which they reached after a long and 
 stormy passage. During the whole of July and August 
 the communication between Bengal and the Upper 
 Provinces was so interrupted, that sometimes for weeks 
 together no certain information was received of what 
 
EXPOSURE TO ATTACK. m 
 
 was transpiring. At Benares the only mails reaching 
 were from places near us. At Calcutta the rumour went 
 out that Benares had fallen, and that all the English 
 people in it had been massacred, causing the deepest dis- 
 tress to the many there who had left loved ones behind. 
 
 BENARES FROM JULY TO DECEMBER. 
 
 From July till October the position of the English at 
 Benares was one of great danger. We had no fighting, 
 but we were continually threatened. We had twice or 
 thrice an alarm, the most serious being from an emeute 
 in the jail, which was soon suppressed and the leaders 
 executed. Delhi was not taken till September, and till 
 that was done, all who desired our overthrow were sure 
 it was about to be accomplished. Our great peril was 
 from Lucknow. Our small force there was besieged, 
 it was reckoned, by 50,000 men. They were not relieved 
 till towards the end of September. While the siege was 
 being carried on, information reached the authorities of 
 Benares that a plan had been formed to detach from the 
 besieging army five or six thousand men to attack us. The 
 plan was most feasible. The distance by the direct route 
 was under two hundred miles. The river Goomtee, which 
 flows by Lucknow, enters the Ganges a few miles from 
 Benares. It was at that time in full flood, and a flotilla 
 might be easily gathered by which, in a few days, a large 
 body of armed men with the munitions of war could 
 have reached us. Some of the Barons of Oude sent 
 offers of aid, but these offers were by many considered 
 lures to draw us into their net, that they might the more 
 easily destroy us. Jung Buhadur, the famous ruler of 
 Nepal, proposed to come with his brave Ghoorkas to 
 defend us, but their presence was more feared than de- 
 
200 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 sired. Then in the great city near us we knew there 
 were many plotting our destruction, and ready to rise at 
 the first signal of an approaching foe. 
 
 So great was the danger considered, that thouands 
 were set to the erection of a great earth fort close to the 
 Ganges, on the site of an old Muhammadan fortress. 
 Owing to the disturbed state of the country the com- 
 merce of the place was paralyzed ; the stock of grain in 
 the market was very low, and food was selling at famine 
 prices. The erection of the fort gave most welcome 
 employment to the poorer portion of the community. 
 So great was the danger, that, acting under the advice 
 of those best acquainted with the state of affairs, I sent 
 to this fort books, documents, and other things which I 
 deemed it most important to preserve. We were in- 
 structed how we were to act in the event of a sudden 
 outbreak, the rendezvous to which we should instantly 
 resort, and from which we might make our way together 
 to the fort, which was being erected. It often occurred to 
 me that our position at that time was like that of persons 
 sitting on a barrel of gunpowder in a house on fire. So 
 alarming were the accounts received in the daytime, that 
 I often lay down at night uncertain what might occur 
 before morning. Often I got up, looked towards the 
 cantonments, and listened. Thankful that all was quiet, 
 I returned to my bed. 
 
 During these anxious months I had abundant reason 
 to be thankful for the decision at which we had arrived, 
 that I should remain behind when my family left for 
 England. In the discharge of the work devolving on 
 me from day to day, I felt I should have been recreant 
 to duty, and missed many opportunities of usefulness, 
 had I gone away. Early in September, to the great grief 
 
CONSTANCY OF THE NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 201 
 
 of us all, a much-loved member of the Mission, my sister- 
 in-law, the wife of my senior colleague, Mr. Buyers, was 
 removed by death. She had remained behind when 
 other ladies, who had children, left. Mr. Buyers was 
 prostrated by the blow, and for a considerable time was 
 unable to resume work. The charge of the Mission thus 
 came largely into my hands. Before the end of July we 
 re-opened our principal school in the heart of the city, 
 of which I was superintendent, and which I visited 
 constantly. At Benares a Depot Hospital was opened, 
 to which the sick and wounded Europeans were brought 
 from the surrounding country, and there a part of every 
 day was spent. My principal work, however, was among 
 the native Christians, with whom I met constantly to 
 speak about the state of affairs, to consult what should 
 be done, to commit ourselves to God, and ask from Him 
 guidance and protection. The firmness and courage of 
 these Christians were worthy of the highest praise. As 
 natives, they could elude observation far more easily than 
 Europeans ; but even where they were unknown, so 
 entwined is idolatry with the whole life of the people, 
 they could not be any time among their countrymen 
 without being discovered if faithful to their Lord ; and, 
 as recreants from their ancestral religion, they were sure 
 to be cruelly treated. They had only to declare them- 
 selves Muhammadans, and safety would be at once se- 
 cured. Not one of our native Christian community 
 thought of seeking safety by such means. They seemed 
 resolved to brave every hazard rather than deny their 
 Lord. At length, by the capture of Delhi in the first 
 half of September, and the relief of the Lucknow garrison 
 some twelve days afterwards, the dark, threatening clouds 
 over us began to break. 
 
202 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 From October onward the tension was loosened ; but 
 the danger was not over. Though the garrison at Luck- 
 now had been relieved, we were forced to evacuate it, 
 and for months afterwards the whole country of Oude 
 remained in the hands of those who had risen against us. 
 Over a large portion of the North-West, and in Central 
 India, our government remained prostrate. We had 
 been so long in danger we had become blunted to 
 the sense of it, and remained unmoved in circumstances 
 which at an early period would have greatly excited us. 
 
 During the recent outbreak in Egypt, the position of 
 Europeans in that country in many respects resembled 
 that of Europeans in Northern India in 1857. Very 
 similar was their danger, very similar their sufferings, and 
 very similar was the deliverance of the greater number. 
 But for providential interposition, not one would have 
 in either case escaped. When I look back and consider 
 what our position was, I marvel that any of us survived 
 to tell what we endured ; and our hearts are hard and 
 cold indeed if we are not fervently thankful for our 
 preservation. While my narrative shows that the resi- 
 dents at Benares in 1857 had to pass through a season 
 of severe trial and great danger, all acquainted with the 
 history of that period are aware that our countrymen in 
 other places had vastly more to suffer. In many places 
 the rising was temporarily successful. With us, the 
 authorities all through kept the upper hand. The 
 result was that we were kept from the extremity of 
 suffering to which many were subjected. The entire 
 loss of property was the least of the trials they had to 
 bear. Many, among whom were delicate women and 
 helpless children, were cruelly murdered. Others saw 
 the objects of their warmest love killed before their eyes, 
 
THE DESOLATION OF ALLAHABAD. 203 
 
 had to endure the most fearful privations, and had to 
 pass through untold horrors before reaching a place of 
 safety. Not a few sank into the grave, the victims of 
 toil, suffering, and sorrow. At no place was the danger 
 greater than at Benares, and at no place did the general 
 community suffer so little. 
 
 VISIT TO ALLAHABAD. 
 
 Learning that there was no missionary at Allahabad, 
 about seventy miles north-west of Benares, which is now 
 the seat of Government for the North-West, I wrote in 
 December to a native Christian there whom I knew, 
 proposing to visit him and his brethren, and in due 
 course I got his reply, expressing the pleasure my visit 
 would give them. I accordingly went, taking Mirzapore 
 on my way, where I spent two or three days very happily 
 with the mission family. I found a tent erected for my 
 accommodation by the native Christian brethren close to 
 the ruins of the mission premises. What a scene of 
 desolation the whole place presented ! The houses of the 
 European residents had been set on fire, and there they 
 were as the mutineers had left them. There were no Euro- 
 pean families. One large house had been put in order by 
 the magistrate, and in the wide surrounding enclosure 
 what may be called a canvas town had arisen. Civil and 
 military officers were continually passing up and down, 
 and for their accommodation tents had been pitched. 
 All took their meals together in the restored mansion, 
 and they kindly asked me to join them during my stay. 
 My tent was pitched close to the abode of the native 
 Christians. I had thus the opportunity, during the week 
 I remained, of holding constant intercourse with my 
 own countrymen and with native brethren. From the 
 
2o 4 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 natives I heard much of what they had seen and suffered. 
 I was shown the scenes of the terrible events which had 
 occurred, and as retributive measures were still carried 
 on, I saw, in spite of myself, scenes which made me 
 shudder. On the other side of the Ganges there were 
 frequent skirmishes between parties sent out and bands 
 there who were resisting our authority ; the firing was 
 distinctly heard. On Sunday I preached twice to the 
 native Christians. In the forenoon the service was con- 
 ducted in a small chapel, which had not been burnt 
 down, because it was so close to native houses that, if 
 burnt, the flames would have certainly spread to them. 
 In the evening I re-opened for worship the principal 
 mission chapel. An attempt had been made to set it on 
 fire, but as it had not been at once successful, owing to 
 its being very strongly built, the insurgents satisfied 
 themselves with breaking the doors, windows, seats, 
 pulpit, and everything which could be easily destroyed. 
 The wreck had been cleared away, and there I preached 
 to a goodly company, one of them a man whose arm had 
 been cut off because he was a Christian, and who had 
 been left as dead. His recovery was marvellous. That 
 was a memorable Sunday to me and to those to whom I 
 ministered. My morning subject was, " In the day of 
 adversity consider " (Eccles. vii. 14) ; and in the even- 
 ing, Christ stilling the storm (Matt. viii. 23-28). 
 
VOYAGE TO CALCUTTA. 205 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 VISIT TO CEYLON AND RETURN TO BENARES. 
 1858-1859. 
 
 DURING the hot season and rains of 1858 I suffered 
 greatly from boils and feverishness. After apply- 
 ing in vain the usual means of cure prescribed, I was 
 advised to try a sea voyage. I accordingly arranged to 
 go down the Bay of Bengal to Point de Galle in Ceylon, 
 and to await there the arrival of my wife from England, 
 so as to return with her to India. 
 
 The rebellion still flickered in Bahar. A part of the 
 road to Calcutta was in the hand of Kower Singh, a rebel 
 chief; and travellers like myself to the capital from the 
 North- West were on that account happy to avail them- 
 selves of the river steamers. We had the clear sky and 
 the gentle breeze of that delightful season in Northern 
 India. From morning to night we sat under a thick 
 awning, reading or talking, as we were inclined, re- 
 freshed by the breeze, and interested in the various 
 objects presented to our view on the river and its banks. 
 The fortnight of the voyage passed most pleasantly, and 
 I arrived in Calcutta half cured of my ailments. I was 
 happy to find myself in time for the outgoing steamer of 
 the P. and O. Company, on which I took passage to 
 Point de Galle. On landing I saw the last newspaper 
 
206 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. A 
 
 received from England with the list of passengers for 
 successive steamers, and from it I learned that my wife 
 was to come a month later than I had anticipated. This 
 left me with five or six weeks in Ceylon to dispose of 
 myself as I best could. I made up my mind to travel 
 through the island. I accordingly left Galle by coach 
 the next day for Colombo, the capital. After staying 
 there a few days I set out for Kandy, the old capital ; 
 held on to Newera Ellia, the sanatorium of the island, 
 lying under Pedro Talla Galla, its highest mountain; 
 ascended the mountain, made my way back by another 
 route to Kandy, and then proceeded to Galle, where I 
 was happy to meet my wife and child, with whom I went 
 on to Calcutta. 
 
 When I landed at Galle I was not aware that I knew 
 a single individual in the island, but I was not an hour 
 at the hotel to which I went before I found myself in 
 company with a medical gentleman, a native of Perth- 
 shire, who knew my friends ; and on my arrival at 
 Colombo I was recognized on the street, by my resem- 
 blance to my father, by a person who had never seen me 
 previously, but who knew him. It struck me it would 
 be dangerous for me to attempt an incognito, which, 
 happily, I had no temptation to do. During my travels 
 in Ceylon I met several from the North of Scotland whom 
 I had known intimately, and among them one who had 
 been for years my schoolfellow. My countrymen were 
 there, as elsewhere, prominent members of the com- 
 munity. 
 
 I was much interested in all I saw during my travels 
 in Ceylon. I was prepared to see fine scenery and rich 
 foliage, but the reality greatly exceeded my expectation. 
 On the coast between Galle and Colombo there is a con- 
 
THE SCENERY OF CEYLON. 207 
 
 siderable extent of level land, covered by the cocoanut 
 palm, which forms much of the wealth of the people. 
 Every part of the tree is turned to account. The wood 
 is used for rafters, and the leaves for thatching. The 
 kernel is an article of food, but its principal value comes 
 from the oil made from it after it has been dried. The 
 nut contains a liquid, which is deemed by the natives 
 very refreshing. The fibrous husk round the cocoanut, 
 called coir, is manufactured into ropes, matting, brushes, 
 and other useful articles. It is largely and profitably 
 exported. The trees are tapped for a juice, which, 
 boiled when fresh, gives what is called palm-sugar ; but 
 when kept, becomes intoxicating. The name of the tree 
 in the native language is " Tar " • this intoxicating juice is 
 called " Taree," and by a well-known custom of linguistic 
 transposition it is called by English people "Toddy." 
 We have at Benares palm-trees which furnish this toddy, 
 and I am sorry to say it is by far too largely used. This 
 cocoanut palm abounds on the coast, and is always bent 
 towards the sea, as if to welcome its breezes, or to 
 strengthen itself against them. Away from the coast it 
 well-nigh disappears, and trees of a very different order 
 are seen on every side, many of them rising to a great 
 height and covered with beautiful foliage. 
 
 The scenery in the interior is very striking. When 
 travelling on the top of the coach from Colombo to 
 Kandy, I might have thought myself in my own High- 
 lands, as mountain after mountain came into view, and 
 our road in its descents and ascents skirted precipices, 
 where safety demanded the most careful driving. Long, 
 winding valleys, through which rivers flowed, with falls 
 and cascades here and there, reminded me of our finest 
 straths. I saw no large bodies of water like our lochs. 
 
208 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 There were two points of marked dissimilarity. The 
 month was December ; I required no great-coat, and the 
 rays of the sun were stronger than was pleasant. Instead 
 of the leafless trees, and the white covering of the snow 
 of the Scottish winter, there were trees in their richest 
 dress, and all around a verdure of the freshest green, 
 telling me I was in a tropical land, and in a land where 
 heat and moisture by their abundance gave extraordinary 
 force to vegetation. As I travelled from Kandy to 
 Newera Ellia, and back again to Kandy by a different 
 route, my impression of the picturesqueness and pro- 
 ductiveness of the country was confirmed. There was 
 one thing I did not see — the blooming heather of my 
 own Highlands. 
 
 There is, I suppose, no country where all that is 
 desirable can be obtained. It must be acknowledged 
 Ceylon has its disadvantages. Its climate is that of per- 
 petual summer, warmer indeed at some times than at 
 others, but never approaching our heat in Northern 
 India in May and June. It is only six degrees from the 
 equator, and it owes its moderate temperature to its sea 
 breezes and abundant rain. I missed the bracing cool- 
 ness of Northern India in December and January. Per- 
 petual summer is good for neither soul nor body. For 
 bodily health and enjoyment the alternation of cold and 
 heat is far better, as in the moral world prosperity and 
 adversity are required for the maturing of character. 
 
 There is one evil — I do not know whether I should 
 call it a minor or a major evil — to which both man and 
 beast are exposed in Ceylon. We have all heard of 
 snakes in the grass. In the fine grass of Ceylon leeches 
 abound, and are ever ready to take their unwelcome 
 contribution from all that come their way. They leap 
 
PRODUCTS OF CEYLON. 209 
 
 up on passers by, and try to exact from them their 
 favourite food. I was often reminded by unpleasant 
 nips that they had got hold of me. For months after 
 leaving Ceylon I had on my limbs marks of their doings. 
 
 When travelling between Kandy and Newera Ellia, I 
 was the guest of coffee-planters, all of them, so far as I 
 remember, my own countrymen ; and saw coffee in all 
 its stages, from the berry on the coffee- bush on to the 
 manufactured article ready for the market. The plant is 
 indigenous in the island, but it was turned to little account 
 till taken up by Europeans. The pioneers in its culture, 
 as so often happens in such cases, are said to have lost 
 heavily ; but at the time of my visit plantations were 
 paying well, and a large tract of land was under cultiva- 
 tion. I believe it afterwards ceased to be profitable, 
 and now tea cultivation is taking its place. 
 
 At one time cinnamon was the most valuable export of 
 the island, but by 1858 it had so decreased in value by 
 its being produced abundantly in lands still farther east, 
 that comparatively little attention was given to it. I was 
 taken to the public garden in Colombo, and saw the 
 work-people with their sharp knives peeling off the 
 fragrant bark from the cinnamon-tree, and preparing it 
 for the market. 
 
 Colombo, the capital, is a large, stirring, rising town. 
 Galle is a much smaller place, and owes its importance 
 to its being a place of call for steamers on account of its 
 sheltered bay. It is noted for its pedlars, men who, with 
 combs in their long hair, and clad in jacket and petticoat, 
 might be taken for women. Their wares of jewellery 
 and precious stones have not a high character for genuine- 
 ness. Kandy, the old capital in the interior, is a small 
 place, lying very low, and is surrounded by hills. It has 
 
 15 
 
210 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 a beautiful little artificial lake, and is famous for its 
 temple, with a tooth of Buddha as its great treasure. 
 
 During the few weeks I was in Ceylon I was most 
 hospitably entertained wherever I went by missionaries, 
 chaplains, coffee-planters, and others. I shall always 
 retain a grateful recollection of the kindness I experienced. 
 From these friends I heard much about the spiritual 
 state of Ceylon. It is well known the Dutch were the 
 first Europeans who obtained a footing in the island. 
 They determined to stamp out heathenism and establish 
 Christianity, not by violent persecution, but by reserving 
 offices of every description for those who embraced the 
 Christian faith, by treating them in every possible way as 
 a privileged class, and by showing official disfavour to 
 the unbaptized. An agency composed of chaplains, 
 catechists, and schoolmasters was appointed to bring the 
 community within the Christian fold. The work went on 
 with great apparent success. Tens of thousands avowed 
 themselves Christians. It looked as if heathenism was 
 to disappear under Dutch rule. If the Dutch had 
 retained possession of the island, and had persevered in 
 their policy, in all likelihood by this time Ceylon would 
 have been a professedly Christian country, with a strong 
 underlying element of heathen notion and practice. 
 
 No sooner was the policy of neutrality adopted with 
 the installation of English rule, than this large Christian 
 community melted away, and flowed into the old channel 
 of Buddhism, which had been for ages the religion of the 
 Cingalese. The thousands of Christians were reduced 
 to hundreds and tens. The London Missionary Society 
 early entered the field, but withdrew. In the parts of 
 Ceylon where I travelled I met with Methodist, Baptist, 
 and Church of England missionaries, and in other dis- 
 
BUDDHIST WORSHIPPERS. 211 
 
 tricts there were American missionaries. The descendants 
 of those who once were professed Christians retain some 
 Christian notions, and adhere to some Christian practices. 
 Baptism is still in favour with them, but it is never ad- 
 ministered by Protestant missionaries except to those 
 deemed fitting recipients. If Buddhists were consistent, 
 caste in a mild form and to a limited extent might be 
 tolerated, but could not be approved. They are not, 
 however, consistent, and caste is much more regarded by 
 them than Gautam would have sanctioned, though it has 
 not among them the rigidity it has among the Hindus. 
 I was told regarding one boarding institution for young 
 men, all ate together ; but on returning to their . homes 
 they performed certain ceremonies which removed the 
 defilement they had contracted. As to the general cha- 
 racter of the native Christians, I inferred it was much the 
 same as in India, with similar excellences and similar 
 defects. 
 
 I went into some of the Buddhist temples. On the 
 walls were sculptured the terrible sufferings of the 
 wicked in the different hells into which, according to 
 Buddhism, they are cast. The worshippers appeared to 
 me remarkably stolid and listless, as if engaged in a work 
 which could not be too mechanically performed. There 
 was nothing of the animation of the Hindus when they 
 are worshipping their gods. 
 
 I went into a large Roman Catholic church, and saw 
 all the usual furniture of Roman Catholic worship. On 
 the wall, the worship of demons by the faithful and their 
 attendance at demon feasts was strongly denounced, and 
 threatened with severe punishment ; from which it would 
 appear this was no uncommon offence. 
 
 I was struck with the massy churches built by the 
 
212 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 Dutch in Galle and Colombo. They testify to the zeal 
 of the first colonists, as if they were taking possession of 
 the land for Christ, and were determined to maintain His 
 worship, though far distant from the land of their fathers. 
 Dutch descendants and Scotch colonists now form the 
 most of the worshippers in these places. The Dutch 
 language still survives, and in 1858 some of the Dutch 
 people understood no other. For them a service is held 
 in their own language. I preached in both of these 
 churches at the request of the chaplains. In one of 
 them the Lord's Supper was administered, and the com- 
 municants were addressed first in English and then in 
 Dutch. 
 
 Towards the end of December I left Galle with my 
 wife and child for Calcutta, taking away with me pleas- 
 ing recollections of the scenes I had witnessed, the infor- 
 mation I had received, and the kindness I had experi- 
 enced during my six weeks' travels in the island. 
 
 After a brief stay in Calcutta we made our way to 
 Benares — the first part of the journey by the recently 
 constructed railway, and the rest, the greater part of it, 
 by a four-wheeled conveyance, drawn by a horse, called 
 a Dawk Garry, arrangement for a fresh horse every sixth 
 or seventh mile being made by the Dawk Garry Corn- 
 pan)-. Instead of spending three weeks on the way, as 
 we had done in 1839 when proceeding to Benares on a 
 steamer, and twelve days in 1853 in a conveyance drawn 
 by coolies, we now completed our journey in five days. 
 We were glad to rejoin our brethren, and to resume our 
 work in Benares. 
 
ENGLISH SER VICES. 2 1 3 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 VISIT TO CITIES IN THE NORTHWEST AND TO 
 KUMAON— VISIT TO ENGLAND AND RETURN 
 TO INDIA. 
 
 FROM 1859 TO 1866. 
 
 FROM the time of our arrival at Benares in Janu- 
 ary, 1859, on to our departure for the hills in 
 March, 1861, the work of the Mission was carried on in 
 the usual way. There were interruptions from failure of 
 health, but during the most of the period the operations 
 of the Mission were vigorously carried on with tokens of 
 the Divine blessing. 
 
 The principal change during this period was the 
 greater attention given to the European population. 
 Before 1857 the English-speaking population of Benares 
 was very small, and as there was always an English chap- 
 lain at the place, and our Baptist brethren kept up an 
 English service, our Mission did very little in this depart- 
 ment. For a time we had an English service one even- 
 ing in the week, but owing to the weakness of the 
 Mission, and the pressing demands of native work, this 
 had been given up. After the Mutiny the English- 
 speaking population was largely increased by English 
 soldiers, and persons connected with the Public Works. 
 It was deemed incumbent on us to do something for our 
 own countrymen, whose spiritual need was manifest to 
 
214 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 all. On this account English services on the Lord's 
 Day were commenced. For a time two such services 
 were held, one in the Mission chapel, and another in the 
 schoolroom of the cavalry barracks. On the withdrawal 
 of the cavalry this second service was discontinued. The 
 service on the Lord's Day morning or forenoon in the 
 Mission chapel has been steadily kept on till this time, 
 has been generally well attended, and has been, I 
 believe, productive of much good. 
 
 As the Rev. William Moody Blake, who joined the 
 Mission in 1858, took the superintendence of the Central 
 School, and with occasional assistance conducted the 
 English services, the work among the native women and 
 girls was left to be carried on by my wife, to which she 
 had given her heart and strength from the time she 
 became a member of the Mission in 1839, while I had 
 the principal charge of evangelistic work among the 
 heathen, and of ministering to the native Christians. 
 
 The most memorable episode of this period was a 
 visit we paid to Allahabad, Cawnpore, and Luck now, in 
 the winter of 1859-60. We saw much on this tour which 
 deeply and painfully interested us. I have already men- 
 tioned the desolation I saw on my visit to Allahabad at 
 the end of 1857. During the two succeeding years the 
 houses which had been burnt had been rebuilt, new 
 houses had been erected, and new roads had been 
 made. Traces of the desolation caused by the Mutiny 
 remained, but there were on every side signs of great 
 prosperity. Allahabad, from its position at the conflu- 
 ence of the Ganges and the Jumna, had always been 
 deemed a place of great importance in both a military 
 and civil aspect. It rose to new importance by being 
 made the seat of government for the North-AVest instead 
 
MUTINY AT CA WNPORE. 2 1 5 
 
 of Agra, and also by becoming the central railway-station, 
 from which it was arranged railways should ramify to 
 Lahore and Peshawur in the north-west, to Calcutta in 
 the east and south, to Jubbulpore and Bombay in the 
 west, forming in Central India a connection with the' 
 railways in Southern India. This arrangement has been 
 carried out, and now there is no city in the interior of the 
 country which bears so close a resemblance as Allahabad 
 to the great Presidency cities, in its churches, European 
 shops, hotels, and roads so lined with houses that they 
 may be called streets. As might be expected, the native 
 population has greatly increased. 
 
 From Allahabad we went by train to Cawnpore, one 
 hundred and thirty miles to the north-west. This place 
 was for many years a large military station, as the king- 
 dom of Oude lay on the other side of the Ganges. It 
 may be well to give a very brief narrative of the terrible 
 events which occurred there, that readers may the better 
 understand what we saw. 
 
 On the breaking out of the Mutiny, the English sol- 
 diers and residents entrenched themselves in an open 
 plain, which had the solitary advantage of accommoda- 
 tion in barracks, while they left the arsenal in the hands 
 of the insurgents. The siege commenced on June 6th, 
 directed by Dundhoo Punt, the Nana Sahib as he was 
 called, the adopted son of Bajee Rao, the ex-Peshwa of 
 the Mahrattas, whose castle was ten miles distant. On 
 June 27th, after enduring terrible hardships and priva- 
 tions, our people surrendered on promise of being sent 
 safely to Allahabad. They accordingly made their way 
 to the promised boats; but no sooner had they been 
 reached than they were set on fire, and the Nana in 
 person directed a fusillade on the party. Only four sue- 
 
216 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 ceeded in escaping, and they did this by swimming. 
 The men were murdered, the women and children, to 
 the number of two hundred, were taken back, were 
 huddled together in crowded rooms, scantily fed on the 
 coarsest food, and subjected to every indignity. The 
 Nana's army was defeated in several engagements, and 
 was at last utterly overthrown by the army led by General 
 Havelock, in a battle fought at the entrance to Cawnpore. 
 By an order of the Nana, issued by him when fleeing 
 from the place, the women and children were murdered, 
 and their bodies were thrown into a well. Our soldiers 
 arrived to see to their horror the well choked with the 
 victims of Nana's satanic cruelty. Unknown to those 
 whom he was besieging, he had previously, on June 4th, 
 ordered the massacre of one hundred and thirty men, 
 women, and children, who had come from Futtyghur. 
 
 At Cawnpore we saw much to sadden us to the very 
 core. The thrilling accounts we had read of the atro- 
 cious deeds there committed came to our remembrance 
 with a painful reality. All along the river-side, houses, 
 once occupied by officers, lay in ruins as the mutineers 
 had left them. We observed flowers blooming here and 
 there in the gardens, planted by those who had been so 
 ruthlessly cut down. We visited all the places made 
 memorable by the sad events of 1857. We went to the 
 Sabadha Kothee, as it was called, the house on a slight 
 elevation from which the Nana directed the siege of the 
 entrenched camp. It was well remembered by us as 
 the abode, in 1842, on our first visit to Cawnpore, of a 
 missionary of the Propagation Society, with whom we had 
 much pleasant intercourse. Within less than half a mile 
 of this house lay the entrenched camp of the English — if 
 a trench three or four feet deep, with a breastwork of 
 
GALLANT DEFENCE AND TERRIBLE DEFEAT. 217 
 
 earth behind it four or five feet high, deserves the name 
 of an entrenchment. The spot was chosen on account 
 of the barracks, in which our people could shelter them- 
 selves against what they expected to be a mere tempo- 
 rary assault, if an assault at all was made, as they 
 supposed the mutinous soldiery would leave at once for 
 Delhi, which they would have done had not the Nana 
 stopped them by large pay and larger promises. The 
 barracks speedily became well-nigh uninhabitable under 
 the fire of the enemy. At last they were burnt down, 
 and no shelter remained from the fierce rays of the sun. 
 One could not look on the spot, and consider the weak- 
 ness of the defenders compared with the strength of the 
 enemy, supplied as they were with the guns and ammu- 
 nition of our arsenal, without wondering the defence 
 could have been maintained for a day. The defence 
 was most heroic ; extraordinary feats of valour were per- 
 formed, but at last the besieged were obliged to succumb 
 from the failure of food and ammunition. 
 
 We walked from the entrenchment, which was rapidly 
 disappearing under the rains and heat of the climate, by 
 the route taken by our people to the promised boats, 
 which were set on fire as soon as they reached them. It 
 was truly a via dolorosa, and we walked on it with 
 saddened hearts, musing on the awful sufferings our 
 countrymen had endured. On a little temple close to 
 the ferry at which the boats lay, and on some houses 
 near it, we saw marks of the bullets on the walls. 
 
 Since that period — the winter of 1858-59 — we have 
 been on several occasions at Cawnpore. The desolation 
 has disappeared. Ruined houses are no longer to be 
 seen. A stranger might pass through the place without 
 observing anything to remind him of the events of 1857. 
 
218 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 He would be a very preoccupied or a very stolid person 
 who could pass through Cawnpore without making it a 
 point to see the monuments erected to commemorate our 
 fallen countrymen. On the site of the entrenched camp a 
 memorial church has been raised, with stained windows and 
 varied devices bearing the names of those who had fought 
 and suffered there. A very handsome monument of mar- 
 ble, surmounted by a statue of the Angel of Peace, with a 
 suitable inscription, has been erected over the well into 
 which the bodies of the women and children were thrown. 
 The ground round it is kept in beautiful order. For 
 many a day visitors to India will look with tearful eyes 
 and sad hearts on these spots sacred to their fallen 
 countrymen. 
 
 Leaving Cawnpore, we crossed the Ganges and travelled 
 forty miles to Lucknow, the capital of the country of 
 Oude, which was ruled by a feudatory of the Mogul 
 Empire, who had become a feudatory of the British 
 Crown. To him our Government gave the title of King. 
 In 1856, by an order from home, the country was taken 
 under our direct rule on account of gross misgovern- 
 ment, by flagrant and persistent violation of the engage- 
 ment made with us. The Chief Commissioner in March, 
 1857, was Sir Henry Lawrence. After staving off the 
 Mutiny successfully for a time, he was obliged in the end 
 of June to concentrate his force in a half-fortified place 
 on a slight elevation, called the Residency, as there the 
 British representative, under the title of Resident, and 
 his official subordinates, had their abode and offices. 
 There the English were besieged by a vast body of 
 Sepoys, and by the Talookdars, the Barons of Oude, 
 and their retainers. Sir Henry Lawrence was mortally 
 wounded on July 4th. The siege was maintained till 
 
THE WELL AT CAWNPORE. 
 
THE CAMPAIGN IN OUDE. 221 
 
 September 25th, when, after a fierce struggle, it was relieved 
 by Havelock and Outram. They in their turn were 
 besieged, but they were able to maintain their footing 
 till November 19th, when they were finally relieved by Sir 
 Colin Campbell. Outram remained with a force of obser- 
 vation at Alum Bagh, a large garden with a very high wall, 
 outside Lucknow on the Cawnpore road ; while the rest 
 held on to Cawnpore. Sir Colin Campbell returned with 
 his army, and took the city on March 6th, 1858. We are 
 told that in the interval it had been fortified in a way 
 which would have done credit to a European power. My 
 narrative will be better understood by these facts being 
 remembered. 
 
 As we travelled from Cawnpore to Lucknow we passed 
 houses close to the road which still retained the loop- 
 holes through which the enemy had fired on our troops. 
 The earthworks hastily raised for temporary shelter still 
 remained. We were reminded at every mile of the fierce 
 resistance our soldiers had to encounter. At Lucknow 
 we remained for a week, and went over all the scenes 
 made memorable by recent events. We paid several 
 visits to the Residency, where our people defended them- 
 selves so long and valiantly against thousands of armed 
 men well supplied with ammunition. At every step 
 proofs presented themselves of the desperate struggle 
 maintained with the foe. The houses in the Residency 
 had been so battered and torn by shells and balls that 
 scarcely one was habitable before its evacuation, and the 
 ruin was completed when the city was finally taken by 
 Sir Colin Campbell. At the beginning of 1859 the whole 
 place was a mass of ruin, with here and there a piece of 
 tottering wall, shaken or perforated by heavy shot and 
 ready to come down. The walls still stood, though in 
 
222 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 a very broken state, of the house in which Sir Henry- 
 Lawrence died, and the spot was pointed out to us where 
 he had received his death-wound. A large body of la- 
 bourers was employed in taking down the ruined walls 
 and levelling the ground. We observed bones which 
 had been dug up by them as they pursued their work. 
 
 From the entrance into Lucknow on the Cawnpore 
 road there is a street, two miles in length, leading straight 
 to the Residency. The enemy expected our army to 
 advance by this street, and made provision for its de- 
 struction by digging trenches, and lining the houses on 
 both sides with musketeers ready to pour on our soldiers 
 a killing fire. The relieving army, guided by a person 
 who knew Lucknow well, and had at great risk made his 
 way to them at night from the Residency, made a sudden 
 detour to the right, and advanced by a comparatively 
 open route, stoutly but unsuccessfully opposed at almost 
 every step. I had the promise of a guide to take me on 
 foot by this route to the Residency, but on reaching 
 Alum Bagh, the appointed place of meeting, I found no 
 one there. I made my way, however, with very little 
 difficulty by observing the marks of the bullets on the 
 houses along the line traversed. I sometimes lost the 
 trace, but soon recovered it, musing as I went along on 
 the very different circumstances in which our countrymen 
 a short time previously had gone over that road. 
 
 We saw other places of interest, such as the Muchee 
 Bhawan, the fort in which our soldiers were previous to 
 the siege ; the Kaisar Bagh, an extensive garden, filled 
 with showy, lofty houses, where the King of Oude and 
 his numerous retinue had resided ; the Chuttar Manzil, 
 a handsome building where public entertainments were 
 given ; the gateway at which the gallant Colonel Neil 
 
RUINS OF THE RESIDENCY, LUCKNOW, 
 
GENERAL LA MARTINETS LNSTLTUTLON. 225 
 
 fell — now called Neil Gate; the Secunder Bagh, a garden 
 with a high wall, where a large body of the enemy was 
 posted, and which was stormed by the 78th Highlanders, 
 who shut up every exit and killed every soul, many 
 ■of the Sepoys fighting desperately to the last. Two 
 thousand bodies were taken out of the place and 
 buried in the adjoining ground. We observed on the 
 walls the marks of the bullets, and even the indents 
 made by the swords and bayonets, while this carnage 
 was going on. 
 
 A French adventurer of the 18th century, General 
 La Martine, had risen to great power and wealth in the 
 service of the Kings of Oude. He erected a splendid 
 mansion in Lucknow for the support and education of 
 boys of every creed — Christian boys to be brought up in 
 the Christian Government's religion — and richly endowed 
 it. Similar institutions were established in Calcutta and 
 in Lyons, La Martine's native place. This institution 
 has proved a signal blessing to European and Eurasian 
 families. On the outbreak of the Mutiny the teachers 
 and pupils betook themselves to the Residency, and 
 under the leading of their Principal took an active part 
 in the defence. La Martine had so little confidence in 
 the kings whom he had served for years, that he ordered 
 his body to be buried in a vault under the building, 
 which he knew would prevent a Muhammadan from 
 making it his dwelling-house. This was accordingly 
 done. 
 
 While we were at Lucknow we were most hospitably 
 entertained by a missionary of the Church Missionary 
 Society, to whom a large native mansion had been made 
 over by the authorities on account of the owner having 
 taken an active part in the rebellion. On Sabbath I 
 
 16 
 
226 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 preached in Hindustanee to the native Christians, and 
 we attended the English service held in a building which 
 had been an Imambara, the name given to a building 
 where Muhammadans of the Shiah sect worship. 
 
 When going from Cawnpore to Lucknow we travelled 
 by day. We returned by night, when the moon was full. 
 It was one of those calm, clear nights of which we have 
 many at that season. We reached the Ganges about four 
 in the morning. While waiting for a boat to take us 
 across, there fell on our ears, coming from a cluster of 
 huts close by, the voice of a singer at that early hour ; 
 and what was our delight and surprise, as we listened, to 
 hear the words distinctly uttered of a well-known hymn 
 in praise of the Redeemer of mankind ! A short time 
 previously the mention of that name with honour in that 
 place would have exposed him who uttered it to a violent 
 death. The incident was very cheering as an omen of 
 the dawn to benighted India, when, through the tender 
 mercy of our God, Jesus the light of the world shall shine 
 into the hearts of its teeming population, and raise them 
 into the sunshine of heaven. 
 
 Lucknow, as well as Cawnpore, has undergone a great 
 change since 1859. We saw it last in 1877, when 
 traces of the fierce conflict which had been there carried 
 on had well-nigh disappeared ; while on every side, in 
 new roads opened up, in miserable tenements thrown 
 down, in new houses erected, and in rubbish removed, 
 evidence was given that the effete government of the 
 Kings of Oude had given place to the vigorous government 
 of their Western conquerors. Nothing is now to be seen 
 of the ruins and desolation of the Residency. The 
 ground has been levelled, trees planted, paths made, and 
 the whole place is kept in beautiful order. On the 
 
VJSI1 TO DELHI. 229 
 
 highest spot there is a memorial cross. All out from 
 Lucknow for miles, at the instance of friends, monuments 
 have been raised, some of them with very touching in- 
 scriptions, in memory of the fallen, so far as the spots 
 where they fell could be identified. 
 
 We returned to Benares with a very vivid impression 
 of what we had seen, with a new realization of the 
 sufferings our countrymen had endured, with deepened 
 admiration of the heroism they had shown, and with 
 thankfulness at once for our rescue as a people from 
 destruction-, and for the restoration of our rule. 
 
 We continued at our post at Benares till March, 186 1, 
 when the state of the Mission admitted of our obtaining 
 a much-needed retreat to the Hills for a few months. 
 We accordingly left Benares for Almora, and took Delhi 
 by the way, where we remained a few days. This was 
 our second visit to the grand old imperial city. On 
 this occasion we visited the scene of the memorable 
 events of the Mutiny year, as we had previously done at 
 Cawnpore and Lucknow. We went to the heights com- 
 manding the city, where our army was encamped for 
 months, at once the besiegers .and the besieged, and 
 from which at last they took the city, after a contest so 
 desperate and bloody that for days the issue was doubtful. 
 The palace, with its magnificent halls of audience and 
 entertainment, where the Emperors of India had for ages 
 kept their court, we found turned into barracks and an 
 arsenal. English soldiers trod those rooms where Indian 
 magnates had bowed before imperial majesty — giving 
 us an impressive illustration of the transitory nature 
 of earthly glory. 
 
 For some time after going to Almora our health 
 improved ; but as the season advanced it gave way so 
 
230 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 entirely, that our medical attendant came to the conclu- 
 sion a visit to England was indispensable to its restora- 
 tion. The Directors of the Society gave their kind and 
 prompt consent to our return. We accordingly em- 
 barked from Calcutta for England, via the Cape of Good 
 Hope, in January, 1862, and reached our destination in 
 April. 
 
 All I have to say about the interval between 1862 and 
 1865 is that I visited many places in England and Scot- 
 land on behalf of the Society, did a good deal of minis- 
 terial work besides, and was kept in uncertainty about my 
 future course by medical opposition to my going back to 
 India. In 1864 I feared I could not return; but my 
 health improved so much in 1865, that the medical men 
 I consulted, to my great joy, consented to our going 
 back. We accordingly embarked for Calcutta via the 
 Cape, accompanied by two young missionaries appointed 
 to Benares, in September, 1865, and reached our desti- 
 nation, after a prosperous voyage, towards the end of the 
 year. We were very pleased with the thought that our 
 traversing the Atlantic and Indian Oceans had come to 
 an end. 
 
 The railway had some time previously been completed 
 to the North- West, and so instead of days and weeks 
 spent on the journey from Calcutta to Benares, it was 
 now made in twenty-six hours. 
 
 The hot weather and rains of 1866 were spent in 
 Benares. We felt the heat that year more than we had 
 ever previously done, and were to a great extent inca- 
 pacitated by it for the prosecution of mission work. We 
 came to the conclusion that continued work in the plains 
 was beyond our strength, and as we much wished to con- 
 tinue in the mission field, we hoped a hill sphere might 
 
APPOINTMENT TO RANEE KHET. 231 
 
 be opened up. In March, 1867, we left for Almora, 
 where, with our colleague Mr. Budden, we engaged in 
 different departments of mission labour. Early in the 
 cold weather we returned to Benares, and resumed our 
 work there. As the hot weather of 1868 came on, we 
 were again privileged to return to Almora. Towards the 
 end of that year it was arranged that our connection with 
 Benares should cease, and that we should begin a new 
 mission at Ranee Khet, about twenty miles north-west 
 from Almora. 
 
532 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 KUMAON. 
 
 (i) ITS SCENERY AND PRODUCTS. 
 
 KUMAON is a sub-Himalayan region, with Nepal 
 to the east, the snowy range, separating it from 
 Tibet, to the north, Gurhwal and Dehra Doon to the 
 west, and Rohilkund to the south. Including the hill 
 country of Gurhwal, and the belt of forest and swamp 
 lying immediately under it, of which only a small part 
 has been reclaimed, Kumaon is about half the size of 
 Scotland. 
 
 The province presents a remarkable contrast to the 
 great level country beneath. Over it you travel in some 
 directions hundreds of miles, and scarcely any elevation 
 or depression in the land can be discerned. As you 
 travel northward, and approach the limit of the plains, 
 you see hills rising before you, tier after tier; and behind 
 them, on a clear day, the higher Himalaya, with their 
 snowy peaks, as if touching the heavens. 
 
 Kumaon is very mountainous, with as great irregularity 
 as if the land had been fluid, had in the midst of a storm 
 been suddenly solidified, and had then received its per- 
 manent shape. Here and there are valleys of some 
 extent, table-lands and open fields are occasionally seen ; 
 but over a great part of the province hill is separated 
 
THE SCENERY OF KUMAON. 233 
 
 from hill by a space so narrow that it can only be called 
 a ravine. The consequence is that cultivation is carried 
 on mainly in terraces. Where the slope is gradual, and 
 the soil fit for cultivation, these terraces, some very 
 narrow and others of considerable width, rise one above 
 the other to the distance of miles, with the hamlets of the 
 cultivators scattered over the hill-side, presenting to the 
 eye of the traveller an aspect of scenery which is not to 
 be seen in Europe, so far as I am aware. At any rate, 
 we saw nothing resembling it on the vine-clad hills rising 
 from the Rhine, or in the mountains of Switzerland. 
 
 The country is well watered. It has innumerable 
 streams, varying from tiny rills to large rivers. In 
 travelling, we have been for days within the constant 
 sound of running water. It has a few lakelets, but it 
 has no large bodies of water, like the lakes which con- 
 tribute so largely to the beauty and picturesqueness of 
 Switzerland and Scotland. It looks as if the deep hol- 
 lows, of which so many are to be seen, had been unable 
 to retain the water poured into them, and had let it all 
 flow away. A large part of the province is so steep and 
 rocky that it cannot be turned to any agricultural pur- 
 pose ; and even for grazing purposes a large portion is of 
 little use, as the grass is coarse and poor. There is a 
 great extent of forest and brushwood. As the land 
 slopes towards the Bhabhur, the forest is very dense and 
 varied. The timber is of considerable value, but as 
 there is neither road nor water carriage it must be car- 
 ried on men's shoulders, and this involves an expense 
 more than it can bear. 
 
 From what I have said about the peculiarities of 
 Kumaon scenery, its mountains, valleys, and ravines, my 
 readers are prepared to hear it has a great variety of 
 
234 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 climate and produce. Of hills, of which there are many 
 from 5000 to 9000 feet above the level of the sea, the 
 climate is delightful — warm, but not oppressively warm, 
 a little warmer than it is in our country in summer : and 
 cold, though not so severely cold as it is with us in 
 winter. The rains are very heavy, but to compensate 
 for this there is, during the greater part of the year, a 
 steadiness of climate which forms a striking contrast to 
 the fickle climate of England. Down in the valleys the 
 heat is very great. Even in winter the sun is unplea- 
 santly strong, and in summer in the deep ravines the 
 temperature is almost as trying as in the plains. When 
 the season has been somewhat advanced, I have been 
 very thankful to escape from the heat of these low places 
 to the bracing air of the hills. The English Sanatoria 
 are of course on elevated sites. 
 
 As Kumaon has within its borders a cold, a temperate, 
 and a tropical climate, it has a great variety of produce, 
 and when its capabilities are more fully turned to 
 account this variety will be greatly increased. Most of 
 the grains found in the plains are grown in the hills. The 
 warmer parts of the country produce superior oranges 
 in abundance, and there is also a good supply of walnuts. 
 Of late years apples and pears have been grown with 
 great success, and if the farmers paid attention to this 
 branch of horticulture they might reap a large profit. 
 Attempts have been made on a small scale to cultivate 
 the grape, gooseberry, and currant, but the excessive 
 rainfall of the rainy season has been found unfavourable 
 to them. Tea has become the most valuable product of 
 the province. Tea-planting was commenced at the 
 instance of Government, under its direction and at its 
 expense, more than forty years ago ; and now tea-gardens 
 
THE INHABITANTS OF KUMAON 235 
 
 are found all over the province, owned almost entirely by 
 our fellow-countrymen, and, with few exceptions, managed 
 by them. At first Chinamen were employed, but they 
 have been dispensed with, and the entire work is now 
 done by hill people under English superintendence. 
 
 (2) THE NATIVE INHABITANTS OF KUMAON. 
 
 The hill people of Central and Southern India, the 
 Kols, the Santhals, the Bheels, and others, as is well 
 known, widely differ in race, language, customs, and reli- 
 gion, from the Hindus and Mussulmans of the plains. In 
 Kumaon, on the other hand, the great majority are strict 
 Hindus, worshippers of the Hindu gods, and scrupulous 
 observers of caste rules. It would appear that when the 
 ancestors of the Hindus, coming from Central Asia, 
 crossed the Indus, and took possession of the country 
 now called the Punjab, they made raids into the lower 
 range of the Himalayas, killing their inhabitants, or 
 turning them into slaves. The descendants of the abo- 
 rigines are at present found in a class called Doms, who 
 form the artisan portion of the population, and are also 
 largely employed in agriculture. The Muhammadans 
 form a very small part of the population, and are almost 
 entirely emigrants from the plains. 
 
 The character of the hill Hindus, in its essential ele- 
 ments, closely accords with that of their brethren else- 
 where. They worship the Hindu gods, practise Hindu 
 rites, and are imbued with the Hindu spirit. The Brah- 
 mans and Rajpoots are proud of their position, firm in 
 maintaining it, and shrink from everything which would 
 invalidate it. Under native rule the high- caste spirit had 
 full scope, for we are told that for murder a Brahman 
 was banished, and a Rajpoot heavily mulcted ; while 
 
236 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 other murderers were put to death. Such offences against 
 the Hindu religion as killing a cow, or a Dom making 
 use of a hnqqa (the pipe for smoking), or a utensil be- 
 longing to a Brahman or Rajpoot, were capital offences. 
 The power obtained by the Brahmans was shown by the 
 fact that, when the province came under British rule, 
 one-fifteenth of its arable land belonged to the religious 
 establishments. 
 
 All the Hindu gods and goddesses are worshipped in 
 the hills, but the hideous goddess Kalee is the favourite 
 object of worship. Small temples to her honour are 
 found all over the province, many of them in solitary 
 places on the tops of hills, to which it is meritorious to 
 make pilgrimages, and around which at certain seasons 
 melas are held. We have in our wanderings fallen in 
 with several of these temples in spots from which, for 
 many miles around, no human habitation is seen. By 
 far the most famous shrines are those of Badrinath and 
 Kedarnath, in the upper part of Gurhwal, within the 
 snowy range, where Vishnu is the object of worship, and 
 the officiating priests are Brahmans from Southern India. 
 Pilgrimage to these places is very meritorious, as it can 
 only be accomplished at the cost of great toil and suffer- 
 ing, and at the imminent risk of life. 
 
 In addition to the gods worshipped all over India, the 
 hill people have local gods unknown elsewhere. Bhoots, 
 evil spirits, commonly supposed to be the spirits of 
 those who have during their earthly life been noted for 
 their wickedness, and have acquired the demon character, 
 are believed to haunt the mountains and forests, and are 
 the objects of special dread. Homage is paid to them to 
 secure their goodwill and avert their vengeance. The 
 people greatly dislike travelling at night, as that is the 
 
TEMPLE IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
THE CHARACTER OF THE KUMAONEES. 239 
 
 season when the Bhoots roam about and fall on their 
 prey. When they must move about they break off the 
 branches of the pine-tree, and turn them into torches to 
 frighten off both the wild beasts and the evil spirits. In 
 the imagination which peoples hills and forests with 
 beings outside the circle of humanity, that make their 
 presence especially felt at night, the people of Kumaon 
 closely resemble the mountaineers of other lands, among 
 others those of our own Scotch Highlands, as they were 
 till a recent period. In my early days I heard so many 
 stories in my native Highland village of ghosts and fairies, 
 that I was afraid to move about after sunset except when 
 guarded by others, lest these supernatural beings should 
 lay hold of me and carry me away. 
 
 The people have a character for industry. When one 
 sees the difficulties under which cultivation is carried on, 
 he is inclined to consider it deserved. They have periods 
 of lounging, but also of very hard work. The women, in 
 addition to household work, cut and carry wood and 
 grass, and do much farm work — I have thought at times 
 more than their share ; but after all, the heaviest work, the 
 carrying of great loads on head and shoulders, up hill 
 and down hill, and the farm work requiring most strength, 
 is done by the men. Much of the work done by them — 
 work done by draught animals elsewhere — must tend to 
 break down their health and shorten their days. 
 
 The Kumaonees have been described as untruthful 
 but honest. I must say our experience has verified the 
 unfavourable part of this description more than the 
 favourable. So far as veracity is concerned we have not 
 been impressed with any difference between them and 
 other natives of India. We think their honesty has 
 received more credit than it deserves. This is, at any 
 
2 4 o LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 rate, the opinion of the tea-planters with whom we have 
 conversed, and who have had superior opportunities for 
 judging. They have told us of the strict watch they 
 have to set to guard their tea and fruit. We found that 
 some hill servants, whom we had greatly trusted, had 
 systematically robbed us. The character for honesty was, 
 I believe, given to them because when they set out on 
 their periodical migration to the plains they left their 
 villages unguarded, and found their property safe on 
 their return. I suppose this resulted partly from an 
 unwritten — may I say ? — honourable understanding, that 
 as in their sparse and widely-scattered population it was 
 well-nigh impossible to guard their goods, the rights of 
 property should be respected; and partly from the cir- 
 cumstance that there was little left behind in the villages 
 which could be carried away. So far as others, especially 
 Europeans, are concerned, this understanding to practise 
 honesty does not hold. 
 
 We incidentally heard of no small degree of immorality 
 among the people, but our information is too limited to 
 justify one in comparing them with others in this respect. 
 There is much that is likable among them, but the general 
 moral tone is undoubtedly low. Polyandry, which prevails 
 in some districts in the Western Himalayan range, is I 
 believe unknown, but polygamy is not uncommon among 
 those who can afford it. 
 
 Cleanliness has never been considered a virtue of 
 Highlanders. It is not— or perhaps I should say it has 
 not been — a characteristic of the Highlanders of our own 
 land. Among the Kumaonees it is notably wanting. 
 The loathsome disease of leprosy has long prevailed in 
 the province, owing to a large extent to the filthy habits 
 of the people. To the same cause there is every reason 
 
C ONQ VEST OF KUMA ON. 241 
 
 to believe, we have to trace the outbreak now and then 
 of the plague — muha muree, the great plague, as it is 
 called — which has proved very destructive. It resembles 
 the plague which at different times prevailed in Europe 
 and swept away thousands. So great is the dread of this 
 terrible malady, that on the report of its approach people 
 flee from their villages. Cholera has been at times fatal 
 to many, but its ravages are not to be compared to those 
 of the plague. 
 
 (3) HISTORY OF KUMAON UNDER GHOORKHA AND 
 BRITISH RULE. 
 
 Kumaon had been long under the rule of a native 
 dynasty, but intestine feuds laid the country open to the 
 attacks of ambitious neighbours. In the latter end of the 
 eighteenth century the Ghoorkhas, a military tribe, rose 
 to power in Nepal, the hill- country to the east, and early 
 in this century they extended their conquests over the 
 hill-country to the west, till they were checked by Runjeet 
 Singh, the famous ruler of the Punjab. Their rule over 
 Kumaon was said to be very oppressive. By raids into 
 British territory they came into collision with the English. 
 After a severe struggle, carried on through two campaigns, 
 they were defeated, and forced to give up the country 
 they had conquered to the west of Nepal, which they 
 had held for about twelve years. Kumaon and the ad- 
 joining hill-country of Gurhwal were placed under the 
 jurisdiction of a British Commissioner, and the arrange- 
 ment made in 181 6 has been maintained to the present 
 time. 
 
 The country has made immense progress since the 
 English took possession. The people are now under a 
 government which aims at protecting life and property, 
 
 17 
 
242 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 and at treating all, high and low, with equal justice. 
 No longer are Dom offenders against caste laws executed 
 while Brahman and Rajpoot murderers escape. Atrocious 
 customs have been suppressed, such as the burial of 
 lepers alive, which was formerly largely practised. Sani- 
 tary regulations have been issued, and penalties imposed 
 on those convicted of violating them. Fights between 
 villages, ending in robbery and murder, are no longer 
 permitted, though sham-fights are still allowed. I was 
 once a witness of such a fight, when a vast number of 
 hill people were collected, as if for a great field-day, and 
 stones were thrown from slings in a way I thought 
 perilous to the combatants. Roads have been made, 
 and rivers bridged. The new roads are too narrow and 
 steep to admit of wheeled conveyances ; often they are 
 only three or four feet in width, and are at a gradient 
 which makes them trying for horses and for persons on 
 foot ; but they are an immense improvement on the foot- 
 paths with which the natives were satisfied till they came 
 under British rule, and with which they are still satisfied 
 when left to themselves. I have not had much ex- 
 perience of the by-paths of the country, but quite enough 
 to have made me thankful for the new order of things. 
 Very recently a road for carts and conveyances has been 
 made from the plains to Nynee Tal, Ranee Khet, and 
 Almora; but the route is so circuitous that the roads 
 hitherto traversed will continue the chief means of com- 
 munication. 
 
 No sooner was the British rule established than the 
 effect was seen in the increase of cultivation. Mr. Traill, 
 the first Commissioner, states that from the time of the 
 occupation, 1816 to 1822-23, the date of his retirement, 
 cultivation had increased fully one-third, and since that 
 
PROGRESS OF THE PROVINCE. 243 
 
 time there has been a steady advance. The population 
 has more than doubled, for we are told that in 1823 
 there were 27 inhabitants to the square mile, while in 
 1872 there were 65. At the same time there were 797 
 to the square mile in the Benares district, and there 
 was no district in the North-West Provinces where the 
 population was under 185, while the average was 378. 
 An immense disparity must continue between countries 
 with such different capabilities, but the progress made in 
 Kumaon under British rule is proportionably as great as 
 that made in the most favoured parts of India. 
 
 Wealth has been brought into the country as well as 
 drawn out of it. I have already referred to tea-planting 
 as a new department of agricultural industry. Many 
 thousands have been spent on tea-gardens — much more, 
 I suspect, than has yet been got out of them. A tea- 
 planter once pointed to a cluster of well-built villages, 
 and said, " These houses have all been built within the 
 last few years by the proceeds of wages made in the 
 tea-garden under my charge." Then the great influx of 
 European travellers and residents has done not a little 
 to enrich the people in various ways, though at times the 
 labour thus required has been very grudgingly given, as 
 it has withdrawn them from their homes when their own 
 work was urgent. 
 
 Of late years a new source of income has been opened 
 up to the people by the enterprise of Sir Henry Ramsay, 
 who has been for many years the Commissioner of the 
 Province, and has done more for it than any of his pre- 
 decessors. The hill people of some districts have been 
 for ages in the habit of moving down en masse with their 
 cattle at the beginning of the cold weather for grazing, 
 and have returned to their mountain homes when the 
 
244 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 hot weather had set in. The country immediately under 
 the hills is called the Bhabhur, and is quite distinct from 
 the Turai which lies beyond. This Bhabhur is a for- 
 mation of sand and shingle filled with boulders, largely 
 covered over with soil, which produces abundant herbage 
 in the rainy season, and is thus good grazing ground in 
 the succeeding months. It has a large extent of forest, 
 composed of trees of great girth and magnificent height. 
 The innumerable streams which come down from the 
 hills flow under the Bhabhur, and make their way into 
 the Turai beyond, where the land becomes water-logged, 
 and the main product is long, rank grass, growing to the 
 height of ten or twelve feet. By a system of canals, 
 devised and carried out by Sir Henry Ramsay, the water 
 as it comes down from the hills is made to irrigate a 
 large part of the Bhabhur, rendering it fit for agricultural 
 purposes. The result is that the people now cultivate 
 the land, beside grazing their cattle over it. They sow 
 toward the end of the rainy season, and reap at the 
 beginning of the hot weather, when they retreat to the 
 hills, and are ready for the cultivation of their fields 
 there. This addition to the arable land has been a great 
 boon to the people. I cannot say, however, judging by 
 those with whom I have conversed, that they are satisfied. 
 They grumble at the new tax imposed for the construction 
 and maintenance of the canals, and also at the tax they 
 have to pay for their holdings in the hills, though I 
 believe it to be very light. They would gladly have all 
 the benefits of a firm and improving government without 
 paying anything for its support. 
 
 Notwithstanding the extension of cultivation and the 
 increase of population in Kumaon, we may travel for 
 many miles over hill and forest and not see a trace of 
 
WILD BEASTS. 245 
 
 man's presence. Cover for wild beasts has been some- 
 what abridged, but it is still sufficient to shelter them, 
 and to make it unlikely they can be exterminated. Both 
 in the hills and in the country beneath, hunters of wild 
 beasts, European and native, still find abundant employ- 
 ment. Not a year passes without persons, sheep, and 
 cattle being killed by tigers, leopards, and hyenas. They 
 live so much in the gorges of the mountains, and in the 
 depths of the forests, ready to pounce on their prey when 
 opportunity presents itself, that the destruction caused by 
 them is seen, while they themselves disappear. The 
 first thing we saw on our first approach to Almora was a 
 horse which had been killed by a leopard the preceding 
 night. A woman, who had been cutting grass before the 
 door of a house we occupied for a few days, was killed 
 an hour afterwards by a tiger in the adjoining forest. 
 One afternoon we heard the cry of a herd, and running 
 out we saw a goat with its throat cut, but the leopard 
 that had killed it had disappeared in the jungle beneath. 
 On another occasion my pony, picketed near my tent, 
 had a narrow escape from a leopard. I have often heard 
 huntsmen relate the encounters they have had with these 
 terrible brutes. On one occasion I saw four dead tigers 
 brought in by a party that had killed them a few miles 
 from the place where my tent was pitched. Tigers are 
 very migratory. They live in the cold weather down in 
 the Bhabhur and the Turai, and as the hot weather 
 advances they follow the herd up the hills on to the 
 verge of the snow. The bears of the hills feed on fruit 
 and vegetables, and usually make away when human 
 beings are seen, but they are very formidable to those 
 who attack them, or come suddenly across their path. 
 In some places wolves abound, and children and animals 
 
246 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 require to be guarded against them ; but they never hunt 
 in packs as in Russia, and they are not feared by grown- 
 up people. In the lower hills and the Bhabhur there 
 are herds of wild elephants, which do much injury to the 
 crops of the people, and cannot be safely approached. I 
 have been again and again in their track. There are 
 also serpents, but they are not so numerous or venomous 
 as in the plains. The dangers to which the inhabitants 
 are exposed is shown by the annual statistics of casualties, 
 in which the first place is given to the ravages of wild 
 beasts, the second to landslips, and the third to serpents. 
 I may end this account of Kumaon, its scenery, pro- 
 ducts, history, and people, by mentioning two stipulations 
 in the treaty with the Ghoorkhas, when the British took 
 possession of the land, which are strikingly illustrative 
 at once of British policy and of Hindu feeling. One 
 stipulation was that certain sums should be paid annually 
 to the priests of certain temples. A second stipulation 
 was that the slaughter of bullocks and cows should be 
 strictly prohibited. Not a vestige of power over the 
 country was left to the Ghoorkhas j the entire rule was 
 transferred to the British. But our authorities, influenced 
 at once by religious liberalism or indifference, and by 
 deference to Hindu feeling, accepted these conditions. 
 The first stipulation caused no trouble, but the force of 
 circumstances has led to the violation of the second. 
 When there were no European troops in the Province, 
 and the only Englishmen were civil officials, officers of 
 native regiments, and a few casual travellers, the pro- 
 hibition of beef caused little inconvenience; but a large 
 influx of English people, soldiers and others, made the 
 observance of the stipulation impracticable. For a time 
 it was violated, and the authorities professed to know 
 
INCONVENIENT STIPULA T10N. 247 
 
 nothing about it; but when Nynee Tal became a great 
 summer resort, and English soldiers were located at it, 
 beef became a well-nigh indispensable article of food, 
 cows and bullocks were killed, and the breach in the 
 treaty by which the country was ceded to us became 
 manifest to all. It is said that when the high-caste 
 officials protested against this outrage on the Hindu 
 religion, an English official quietly said that such good 
 Hindus were not in their proper place, that they should 
 be transferred to their holy city, Benares. This speedily 
 silenced the complaint, as hill people intensely dislike 
 leaving their mountains for the plains. 
 
 The treaty with the Ghoorkhas is not the only one in 
 which the stipulation against beef has been made when 
 territory has been ceded. To a treaty-keeping people 
 like the English the stipulation has been very embarrass- 
 ing, so embarrassing that for a time resolute effort has 
 been made to observe it, but it has at length broken 
 down under what has been deemed the compulsion of 
 circumstances. We have heard of a high-caste official 
 consoling his brethren for the outrage by reminding them 
 it is the nature of tigers to eat cows and bullocks, and by 
 telling them that the English were tigers, had a similar 
 love for such food, and as it was their nature it must be 
 borne with. Though so shocked with the shedding of 
 the blood of cows and bullocks, the ruling class in Nepal 
 have shown no aversion to the shedding of human blood, 
 as is well known by all acquainted with the history of the 
 country. During the mutiny a friend of mine, travelling 
 with a regiment of Ghoorkhas that had come down from 
 Nepal to help us, saw them kill a party of mutineers who 
 had surrendered under an oath of their lives being spared, 
 with a savage ferocity which shocked him beyond measure. 
 
24S LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 (4) TRAVELLING IN KUMAON. 
 
 The greater part of our time in the Province was spent 
 in the capital, Almora, and in the newly-formed Sanatarium 
 Ranee Khet, but we frequently travelled through many 
 of its districts. I have mentioned the improved means 
 of communication, but vastly better though the roads be 
 than they were in the days of native rule, travelling con- 
 tinues to be very expensive, fatiguing, and in some modes 
 not a little dangerous. Travellers must either walk, ride, 
 or be carried on men's shoulders. The first mode can be 
 adopted only by those who have abundant strength and 
 leisure. It was my mode during our first visit, as I was 
 not pressed for time, and notwithstanding our residence of 
 eight years in the plains I retained a good deal of my 
 youthful vigour. The mountain scenery and the moun- 
 tain air gave us new life. I travelled on foot some three 
 hundred miles. On the occasion of future visits I was 
 happy to avail myself of a hill pony. Most gentlemen 
 and many young ladies perform their hill journeys on 
 horseback. Happily, hill ponies are, as a rule, quiet and 
 sure-footed; and they require to be, as the roads are 
 narrow 7 , in some places very narrow, and overhang pre- 
 cipices, down which the rider would be dashed if the 
 pony slipped or was scared. At first, riding appears very 
 dangerous, but after a time there is a feeling of security. 
 I remember riding with confidence over places where at 
 first I deemed it prudent to dismount. Scarcely a year, 
 however, passes without riders being killed, and all who 
 have travelled much over the country have to tell of 
 providential escapes. The third mode, the mode adopted 
 by most ladies, and by gentlemen who have not nerve to 
 
TRA VELLING. 249 
 
 ride, is to be carried on men's shoulders. The palankeen 
 and dolie of the plains are by far too heavy and cum- 
 brous for the hills. The favourite vehicle is the dandee — 
 a pole, with a piece of carpet attached, on which the 
 traveller sits sideway, and which has belts for the back 
 and feet. Two men, one at each end of the pole, are 
 able to carry the dandee a short distance, but in journeys 
 four are commonly employed. During the last few years 
 a very light sedan-chair has come into favour, which is 
 far more convenient for ladies, but the dandee is lighter 
 and will continue to be largely used. 
 
 We have seen a good deal of both the eastern and 
 western portions of the Province. In 1847 we travelled 
 to Lahoo Ghat and Petorah Gurh in the east. On this 
 occasion I went on to Nepal, and was told by the Nepalese 
 sentry on the frontier bridge that without special per- 
 mission from Khatmandoo, the Capital, I could not pro- 
 ceed farther. In 1869, in company with my much- 
 esteemed friend the late Dr. Mather, I travelled in the 
 same direction, and saw much of the country, as we went 
 by one route and returned by another. During the later 
 years of our residence we saw a good deal of the western 
 districts, to which I shall refer when giving an account of 
 missionary operations. 
 
 Along some of the main roads, at the distance of twelve 
 or fourteen miles, are small rough Rest-houses, with a 
 table, two chairs, and a bedstead, often in very bad con- 
 dition. These houses are in charge of a watchman, who 
 is often long in making his appearance, and then brings 
 wood and water, and sometimes a little milk. For every- 
 thing else you are dependent on people with you carrying 
 supplies. Where there is much traffic there is good 
 accommodation. 
 
250 LIFE AND WCRK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 Our most memorable journey, perhaps, was one made 
 in 1 86 1 to the Pindaree glacier. The journey was a 
 very fatiguing one, as the roads were so bad, and the 
 ascents and descents so steep, that before we got half 
 way I was obliged to leave my pony behind, and to make 
 my way on foot, helped to ascend and descend in some 
 places by strong hill-men, who drew me up or helped me 
 down by a belt round my middle, while my wife and little 
 boy were carried in dandies. Many of the bridges were 
 rough wooden structures, with no parapets. As we 
 approached the snow we suffered much at night from 
 cold in our little tent. The hill people of the higher 
 region we found much stronger and more unsophisticated 
 than those we had left behind. The women seemed never 
 to have seen an English woman or child. They were 
 first afraid to come near us, but my wife made her way 
 to little groups, and they seemed delighted with her, and 
 still more with her little boy. Fatiguing and trying though 
 the journey was, health was improved by it, and we were 
 well rewarded for any toil and inconvenience we endured 
 by the magnificent scenery we saw. Down the Pindaree 
 valley came a roaring torrent, showing by its yellow tinge 
 it came from the melted snow. We were awed as 
 we looked up at the tremendous cliffs on either side. 
 Pursuing our way in silence, I heard a servant from the 
 plains, who was walking behind me, muttering to himself, 
 " Such a wicked place I never saw in my life." We 
 breakfasted on the glacier, and after looking at some of 
 the crevasses we were glad to make our way back to our 
 tent a few miles below. Next morning we retraced our 
 steps, and it was well we did so, for as we were rapidly 
 descending we had heavy rain, and could see snow falling- 
 where we had been. The next day the whole region 
 
TIMEL Y ESCAPE. 
 
 251 
 
 behind was covered with snow, and we were thankful 
 for our timely escape. 
 
 The details of travelling I have now given, and the 
 previous details about the country and people may perhaps 
 enable the reader the better to understand and realize 
 missionary work in the Province. 
 
252 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 THE ALMORA MISSION. 
 
 STATED mission work was commenced in Kumaon 
 in 1850. Previous to that time a few of its people 
 had heard the Gospel from missionaries travelling through 
 it, or residing for a few months in it. In that year the 
 Rev. J. H. Budden, of the London Missionary Society, 
 after labouring for a time in Benares and Mirzapore, was 
 obliged by the failure of health to abandon all hope of 
 continuing in the plains, and took up his abode at Almora, 
 the capital of the Province. The society declined to 
 enter on mission work in Kumaon ; but Captain Ramsay, 
 Senior Assistant to the Commissioner, with other friends, 
 came forward with most liberal offers of support, and 
 consent was given to Mr. Budden's entering into an 
 engagement to carry on the Mission as the agent of its 
 local supporters. For some time his entire salary and all 
 expenses were met by these friends. Afterwards a part 
 of the salary was paid by the Society, and for years the 
 whole, but the friends who founded the Mission have on 
 to the present time supported it with princely munificence. 
 At the head of these is Sir Henry Ramsay, the Captain 
 Ramsay of 1850, who has been for many years the Com- 
 missioner of the Province, and who continues the warm 
 and liberal supporter of everything by which the spiritual 
 
WORK OF THE ALMORA MISSION. 255 
 
 as well as the temporal good of the people may be 
 promoted. 
 
 As the Mission at Almora was the first, so it continues 
 to be the most important in the Province. Organized 
 and administered by Mr. Budden, and heartily supported 
 by friends on the spot, it has done a work which has 
 told powerfully and happily on the entire country. From 
 the beginning much attention has been paid to the 
 education of the young. For a long time the school of 
 the Mission was the only one in the Province where a 
 superior education, at once native and European, was 
 imparted ; and still, both in the number of its pupils and 
 in the extent of its course of study, it stands highest. 
 From it have gone out for many years bands of young 
 men who now fill varied positions under Government, 
 and it is believed they are discharging their duties with 
 greater intelligence and a higher character than those 
 they have succeeded. In remote parts of the Province 
 I have met persons who have spoken in strong terms of 
 gratitude of the benefit they had received from attending 
 the Almora Mission School. A few years ago a large, 
 handsome structure was erected for its accommodation 
 at great expense, towards which the natives contributed 
 very liberally. In addition to this school-house, the 
 Mission has valuable property in mission-houses for 
 native Christians, an orphanage, and a book-room. 
 
 In other departments excellent work has been done. 
 Female education has been zealously prosecuted under 
 the direction of Mr. Budden's daughters. For many 
 years there has been an orphanage in which destitute 
 children have been brought up and educated. The 
 authorities made over to the Mission a Leper Asylum 
 they had established, and for years it has been under its 
 
256 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 exclusive charge. Much has been done for the inmates 
 of this asylum at the cost of personal labour, great 
 anxiety, and a heavy expenditure. Suitable buildings 
 have been erected, the wants of the lepers have been 
 supplied, everything has been done which could be done 
 to mitigate their sufferings, and to secure order and 
 cleanliness. The efforts put forth to draw them to the 
 Great Physician to secure their spiritual cure have by 
 the Divine blessing borne abundant fruit. When the 
 Rev. John Hewlett was in charge in 1864-65 there was 
 a movement towards Christianity, which resulted in the 
 baptism of several. Since that time the work has gone 
 on. Christian worship has been regularly maintained 
 among them, and much labour has been bestowed on their 
 instruction. Many have been baptized, after giving all 
 the evidence of sincerity which could be expected, and 
 at certain times the Lord's Supper has been dispensed. 
 Among the lepers there have been persons of very 
 debased character, but the conduct of most has been 
 good, and, so far as we can judge, a number have become 
 the true followers of the Saviour. If the Mission had 
 done nothing more than sustain this Leper Asylum, it 
 would have done a most Christ-like work, deserving the 
 warm approbation and liberal support of Christ's people. 
 
 From the commencement of the Mission a service has 
 been conducted every Sabbath in English for the benefit 
 of our countrymen residing in Almora. Services have 
 been held, in the native language for the native Christians 
 and natives generally. 
 
 In addition to the work of organizing and conducting 
 the various departments of the Mission, Mr. Budden has 
 made large and valuable contributions to native Christian 
 literature. 
 
THE LEPER ASYLUM. 259 
 
 I have seen much of the Almora Mission, and have 
 had the privilege of taking part in conducting its opera- 
 tions. Among other duties which I endeavoured to 
 discharge during two seasons was to go, along with my 
 wife, every Sabbath morning to conduct worship with 
 the lepers, and to instruct them. Mrs. Kennedy went 
 besides once every week. There is no work on which I 
 look back with deeper interest than I do on this. We 
 first conducted a brief service of singing, prayer, and 
 preaching. Mrs. Kennedy then took the women and I 
 took the men to see how much of the sermon they under- 
 stood, and to inculcate the great lessons of God's Word 
 in the way of question and answer. The work was at 
 first very trying, but gradually we became more than re- 
 conciled to it. Our heart was drawn forth in deep pity 
 to these poor people, and we left them deeply thankful 
 for the privilege we had of speaking to them of the 
 Saviour, and of telling them of His compassion for the 
 suffering and the lost. 
 
260 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 RANEE KHET MISSION. 
 
 IN accordance with instructions from the Directors of 
 the London Missionary Society, Mrs. Kennedy and 
 myself went at the beginning of May, 1869, to Ranee 
 Khet, a new station twenty miles north-west of Almora, 
 to enter on mission work there. Some time previously it 
 had been resolved to open a new mission in the Province, 
 and I had been appointed to commence it. After much 
 consideration Ranee Khet was deemed the most eligible 
 place for the extension of our work. The name means 
 " The Field of the Queen," and was probably given to it 
 in honour of Kalee, as it has on its higher part a small 
 t emple sacred to her, round which the hill people hold a 
 yearly mela. The place may be described as a rough 
 table-land, with an elevation of from 6,200 to 7,000 feet 
 above the level of the sea. With the exception of a 
 little land cleared on one side, the country for miles 
 around was covered with forests of pine, oak, and rhodo- 
 dendron, over which the people of the valleys pastured 
 their cattle at some seasons of the year. The attention 
 of the Government was drawn to the place as suitable for 
 a military Sanitarium, and engineers were sent to open 
 up roads and investigate its capabilities. The report 
 made by them was so favourable that a considerable 
 
VISITS TO RANEE KHET. 261 
 
 outlay was sanctioned for turning it into a retreat for 
 English soldiers from the heat of the plains. 
 
 The prospect of Ranee Khet as a European station, 
 where soon a large population was sure to gather, was 
 one reason for regarding it as a good sphere for a new 
 mission. The chief reason, however, for the choice was 
 the fact that within twelve miles around, on the sides of 
 the hills and in the valleys beneath, there was a large ac- 
 cessible population, furnishing a much wider field than 
 one missionary could well occupy. 
 
 Previous to taking up our abode at Ranee Khet I paid 
 several visits to it, with a view to making myself acquainted 
 with the neighbourhood and to holding intercourse with 
 the people, many of whom I met in their villages. They 
 looked on me with fear, as if I had come to lay a new 
 tax on them, and seemed utterly unable to comprehend 
 me when I told them I was no Government official, but 
 a servant of God, who came to them with good tidings 
 from Him. The only school of which I heard was 
 twelve miles distant, and I came to the conclusion that 
 the establishment of primary schools would be very bene- 
 ficial to the people, and highly favourable to my object. 
 Though so illiterate that in well-sized villages I did not 
 hear of a person who could read, a number expressed 
 approval of my object. Some were forward with the 
 promise to erect school-sheds, and to send their children, 
 but the performance did not come up to the promise. 
 
 When we went to Ranee Khet there was not a single 
 house at the place. The only Europeans were two 
 Engineers and a sergeant, and they were living in their 
 cook-houses, preparatory to building houses for them- 
 selves. I had arranged with a friend to have a wooden 
 house erected, but when we went the work had only been 
 
262 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 commenced, and the first six weeks we lived in a tent. 
 It was midsummer, and the tent was in the daytime 
 intolerably hot. The trees around gave little shelter, 
 they were chiefly pine ; but we soon succeeded in putting 
 up booths, and in them, except when storms came on, 
 we were very comfortable during the heat of the day. 
 
 We were thankful when we exchanged our tent and 
 booths for our rough wooden house. In it we remained 
 two years and a half in tolerable comfort. There were 
 two serious drawbacks. In the heavy rains the house 
 leaked in such a degree that there was scarcely a dry 
 spot in it; and, what was worse, the rats got into the open 
 roof, and by their active movements, especially at night, 
 were a great annoyance. Latterly the leakage was stopped, 
 but the rats were too strong for us, and could not be 
 dislodged. Notwithstanding these inconveniences, when 
 we remembered the heat of the plains, during six months 
 of the year, which we had endured, and our brethren 
 were continuing to endure, and contrasted the climate 
 there with the climate we were enjoying, we were never 
 tempted to murmur. We felt deeply thankful for the 
 Providence which had given us an abode in a country 
 where summer heat was only a little greater than in our 
 own, where there were no hot winds, where with windows 
 open we could be always comfortable in the hottest 
 weather, and where all around us was magnificent 
 scenery. 
 
 I have mentioned rats. In their division of common 
 rat and musk-rat, they are troublesome enough in the 
 plains, but they are a plague in the hills. They abound 
 in the fields, and are very hurtful to the crops. Not a 
 house is erected into which they do not manage to make 
 their way; but where a house is well built, and due care 
 
MISSION BUILDINGS. 265 
 
 is taken, they find little shelter. They go into a rough 
 wooden house as if they were entitled to full possession. 
 These unwelcome intruders may be kept in check, but 
 there is no hope of entire deliverance from them. 
 
 During our eight years in Ranee Khet we had to dis- 
 charge the varied duties devolving on missionary pioneers. 
 To one department, to which I knew much attention 
 must be given, I looked forward with dismay — the 
 erection of buildings. Remembering our experience in 
 the plains we would gladly have shrunk from this work, 
 but we knew it must be faced. Through the great kind- 
 ness and efficient help of friends we succeeded in getting 
 suitable buildings erected. The first building we put up 
 was a place of worship. After considerable delay we 
 succeeded in getting a suitable site for a mission-house 
 on a knoll within a short distance of the native bazar. 
 The servants' houses and the cook-house were first up, 
 and leaving our hut we took up our abode in the cook- 
 house, that we might be at hand to superintend the 
 erection of the mission-house. Before its completion we 
 got, close at hand, a site for a school-house, which, with 
 its handsome hall and four side-rooms, furnishes more 
 accommodation than has yet been required. To this 
 building natives contributed liberally. As the stone and 
 wood required had to be carried on men's heads and 
 shoulders, every additional yard increased the expense, 
 and we were obliged to use the wood and stone nearest, 
 though at some distance better might have been pro- 
 cured. Our masons and carpenters were not of a superior 
 order, and required to be constantly watched and directed. 
 The buildings were not all we could wish, but they were 
 suitable for the climate and for our purpose. Our house 
 was commodious, was in the best position for mission 
 
266 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 work, had a magnificent view of the snowy range, and we 
 would not have exchanged it for the finest house we had 
 seen in the plains. 
 
 From the commencement of our residence in Ranee 
 Khet, village schools received much of my attention. 
 For a time I had nine under my charge, at distances of 
 from six to fifteen miles. For the accommodation of 
 three schools stone houses were erected, and for other 
 schools sheds of grass and wood were put up. The 
 attendance at these schools varied greatly at different 
 seasons of the year : many came too short a time to get 
 any benefit, the attendance of others was too irregular to 
 admit of much progress ; but a considerable number 
 remained till they received a good primary education. 
 On my visits I taught the pupils, and conversed with their 
 parents and friends who gathered round. When the 
 weather permitted I had my tent pitched for days near 
 the school, and visited the adjoining villages. On these 
 occasions I tried to sit down where or how I could, with 
 the people around me, and entered into familiar conver- 
 sation with them. The language was a great difficulty, 
 as the dialect of Kuraaon differs widely from the Hindee 
 of the plains ; but by dint of repetition, and putting what 
 I had to say in different forms in the simplest fashion, 
 I was often happy to find myself getting into the under- 
 standing of my hearers. Every second Saturday the 
 teachers, often accompanied by senior pupils, came to 
 my house to report what they had done, and to receive 
 instruction. 
 
 I had reason to be thankful for having entered into 
 this department of work. A large amount of Christian 
 instruction was imparted ; many of the boys showed 
 remarkable aptitude in committing to memory portions 
 
CONTRASTED VIEWS OF SIN. 267 
 
 of Scripture, such as the ten commandments and the 
 parables of our Lord. Much general knowledge was 
 acquired, a number of the pupils became better fitted for 
 their secular calling, and the goodwill of the people was 
 secured. Once, when thirty miles away from Ranee 
 Khet, I met a lad whom I recognized as an old pupil. 
 I asked him if he remembered what he had been taught. 
 He said he did. He went to a house close at hand, 
 brought a copy of St. Luke's Gospel, read at my request 
 the fifteenth chapter, and explained its meaning with an 
 accuracy which surprised me. At the same place I 
 met a man of a different order. He told me he was 
 going to a mela, to which I was also proceeding. I asked 
 him what he was to do there. He said he was to bathe, 
 to wash away his sins. I asked him what was the sin 
 which oppressed him. He said, " I am a husbandman. 
 In ploughing my fields I destroy much life, which is a 
 great sin. This is the worst thing with which I am 
 chargeable. 1 ' The lad taught in the school knew some- 
 thing of what sin was, as the poor man did not. I can 
 say nothing about the spiritual results of these school 
 efforts. I can only hope that by God's blessing good 
 has been done. The Government has now entered 
 largerly on primary education in the Province, and with 
 its resources and prestige will, I trust, secure a large 
 school attendance. 
 
 All through my residence at Ranee Khet I en- 
 deavoured to embrace the opportunities given to me of 
 promoting the spiritual good of our own countrymen. 
 A service was at once commenced with the few residents 
 and visitors at the station. Towards the end of 1869 
 two companies of English soldiers were sent, and as 
 soon as tolerable accommodation was provided a regi- 
 
268 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 ment was stationed at Ranee Khet. As for nearly three 
 years I was the only resident Christian minister, I held 
 two services every Lord's Day — one for Presbyterians, 
 including all non- Episcopalian adherents, and the other 
 for the Episcopalians, the Prayer-book being used at this 
 latter service. I also visited the sick in hospital, and when 
 at home conducted a weekday meeting. We first met in 
 the open air, or verandah of our hut ; afterwards in the 
 hut used as a temporary canteen; for some time in the 
 recreation-room ; and during our later years in our place 
 of worship, which we called Union Church. An effort 
 was made to get up a girls' school, but it was un- 
 successful, as the attendance of the few native girls 
 in the Bazar could not be secured. So far as native 
 women were concerned, all Mrs. Kennedy could do was 
 to instruct the few living in the Mission compound. She 
 found, however, an interesting sphere among the wives 
 and children of the soldiers. The Sabbath school, com- 
 menced and carried on by her, assisted by others, was 
 attended by all the children, Roman Catholic as well as 
 Protestant; but no sooner was a Roman Catholic chaplain 
 appointed than the order went forth for the withdrawal 
 of the children of his Church, which was obeyed with 
 manifest reluctance. We had much pleasure in these 
 services with our own people, and had every reason to 
 believe lasting good was done. Some of the boys of the 
 Ranee Khet school expressed a desire to be taught 
 English, and these came every second day to our house 
 to be taught by Mrs. Kennedy. 
 
 While thankfully availing myself of the opportunities 
 presented of preaching the Gospel to our own country- 
 men, such opportunities as I never had at any previous 
 period of my Indian career, my chief attention was given 
 
MISSION WORK A T RANEE KHE T. 269 
 
 to the work for which I had been sent to Ranee Khet. 
 I have already mentioned missionary work done on 
 visits to the schools. At Ranee Khet opportunities 
 were found for conversation with shopkeepers and 
 their customers. Thousands of work-people were em- 
 ployed on the buildings which were being erected, and 
 these, when the work of the day was over, flocked to 
 the Bazar to buy food. After the toil of the day, when 
 eagerly anticipating their only cooked meal in the twenty- 
 four hours, they were not inclined to listen to a stranger 
 telling them of his strange religion. Occasionally I did 
 succeed in getting for a time the attention of some not 
 so eager as others to get their evening meal. Most heard 
 quietly, but sometimes individuals replied with bitter 
 words. Many of the work-people had come from a great 
 distance. The most prominent of these was a band of 
 Cashmeeree Mussulmans, who spoke against Christianity 
 with a fierceness which showed what they would do if 
 they had the power. From one of them I got a retort, 
 which it was difficult to repel. I tried to put the party 
 into good humour by asking them about their country, 
 and I smilingly said, " Is there no food in your country, 
 that you have come all this way for it ? " To which I got 
 the reply : " You, sir, have come much farther than we 
 have done. Had you no food to eat in your country ?" 
 I must acknowledge I felt myself shut up under this 
 rebuff. 
 
 During my residence at Ranee Khet I had much 
 intercourse with two classes widely separated from each 
 other — educated young men, and Doms. 
 
 I have mentioned that from the Almora Mission School 
 a number of young men had gone into all parts of the 
 Province. Several got situations in the public offices of 
 
270 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Ranee Khet, and to them in the course of time persons of 
 the same class were added from Bengal. I visited these 
 at their quarters, and did all in my power to maintain 
 friendly intercourse with them. A room in the school- 
 house, supplied, partly at their own expense and partly 
 by the liberality of friends, with newspapers, periodicals, 
 and books, was turned into a reading-room, which was 
 always open in the evening. One evening in the week 
 they met me in class, when we had as our text-book the 
 Advanced Reader of the Christian Vernacular Education 
 Society, which furnished full opportunity for conversation 
 on the most useful and important subjects. The attend- 
 ance was not so steady as could be desired. All were 
 friendly in their bearing, and some seemed much in- 
 terested in our study and talk. A few professed Brahmist 
 views, but none were inclined to join the Brahmist 
 community and break with their own people. There 
 was no indication of the spiritual concern which compels 
 the soul to earnest investigation, with a view to following 
 truth wherever it may lead. 
 
 The other class with whom I had much to do at Ranee 
 Khet were the Doms, to whom reference has already 
 been made as in all probability the descendants of the 
 aborigines of the country previous to the Hindu invasion. 
 They are a most useful part of the community. As the 
 artisans of the country, the people of every caste have much 
 to do with them. They are largely engaged in agriculture. 
 They do things by which the caste people would be 
 defiled, such as carrying away the carcases of animals. 
 In a high-caste village it is not uncommon to see, a little 
 aside from it — if the ground permits, below it — a number 
 of houses occupied by Doms. The pigs and fowls 
 around the meaner dwellings, and the poorer looks of 
 
MISSION WORK AMONG THE DO MS. 271 
 
 the inhabitants, tell what they are. As artisan work is 
 now in great demand the circumstances of the Doms are 
 much improved, and there is every prospect of their 
 rising into a higher position. They bear, and for many 
 a year they may be expected to bear, indubitable marks 
 of having been for ages a servile, despised, downtrodden 
 class, having no respect from others, and entertaining 
 little respect for themselves. Their improved circum- 
 stances will do something towards raising them in the 
 social scale, but we cannot look for high moral ex- 
 cellence and real manhood till they come under the 
 power of the Gospel. 
 
 On account of the abundance of work which the 
 formation of an English station was sure to afford, a 
 colony of these people erected a village for themselves 
 on the side of the Ranee Khet hill below the Bazar. I 
 had when in Almora conversed frequently with Doms. 
 At Ranee Khet I saw much of them, and had more 
 encouragement among them than among any other class. 
 To some who expressed regret they could neither read 
 nor write, I said it was not too late ; that I would take 
 care that they be taught if they were willing to learn. 
 To test them I opened a night-school, and a number 
 availed themselves of it. It was a gratifying sight to see 
 them, at ages varying from fifteen to thirty-five, conning 
 their spelling-books at the door of the school-house as 
 evening was coming on, or trying to form letters on their 
 slates. A few became soon discouraged, but a number 
 held on, night after night for two or three hours, with 
 the greatest eagerness, till they could read, write, and 
 count very fairly. One result of the school was that 
 they began to attend, with great regularity, a service held 
 every Sabbath afternoon in the hall of the school-house. 
 
272 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 During the last year of our residence in Ranee Khet, the 
 attendance at this service was larger than at any previous 
 period, and it was mainly composed of Doms. Nothing 
 could exceed the quietness and apparent interest with 
 which they heard the simple addresses given. I cannot 
 say I saw any evidence of spiritual awakening, but the 
 torpor of their previous life was shaken in a way which 
 inspired the hope of their being brought into the fold of 
 Christ. 
 
 I have mentioned the fierceness of the Cashmeeree 
 Mussulmans. This charge cannot be brought against 
 them all. One of their number, a young lad, came to 
 the school, and was in every respect one of the best 
 pupils in it. With another, one so trusted by the rest 
 that he was the go-between in the arrangements for 
 work with the English engineer, I had much intercourse. 
 Though the head of the party, and himself doing no 
 manual work, he could neither read nor write, and was 
 entirely dependent on accounts being kept by another. 
 To my surprise he came to the night-school, and applied 
 himself so diligently that he acquired a fair measure of 
 elementary education, though his knowledge of the Hindee 
 language was very imperfect. He regularly attended the 
 Sabbath evening service, and seemed to listen most eagerly. 
 One day he came to our house. I at once saw that he 
 was greatly excited. He shut the door behind him, as 
 if afraid of being seen, came close to me, got down on 
 his knees, and said: "Sir, what am I to do? Last 
 night Huzrut Isa " (the name given by Muhammadans 
 to our Lord, which may be translated " His Honour," or 
 "His Excellence Jesus") "appeared to me in a dream, 
 and said, ' Follow me ; follow me.' But how can I follow 
 Him ? My people will kill me, they will kill me ! " I 
 
ITINERACY. 273 
 
 have seldom been more touched than when I looked on 
 the anguish in the face of that poor man, and the tears 
 coursing down his cheeks, as he uttered these words. 
 I need not tell the Christian reader what I endeavoured 
 to say. Shortly afterwards the Cashmeerees left Ranee 
 Khet, and this man with them. I could not find out 
 where they went, and I have lost all trace of my friend. 
 
 A considerable part, sometimes the greater part, of the 
 cold weather was given to itineracy. Some winters we 
 went down to the foot of the hills to prosecute mission 
 work among the large population found there at that 
 season. We moved from place to place, erecting our 
 tent in central spots, from which within a radius of two 
 or three miles we could visit populous villages, some 
 built of rough stones, but most composed of grass sheds. 
 I was generally accompanied by a catechist. We had 
 many opportunities of speaking to the people on the 
 highest subjects. Not infrequently we met persons 
 whom we had met in the hills, and then we were sure of 
 a special welcome. Once I came on a party of Doms, 
 tailors, whom I had seen a short time previously, and I 
 said to them : " As you have no cattle, and do not 
 cultivate the ground, what has brought you down ? " To 
 which I got the reply : " We have come in search of the 
 sun." This gave me an opportunity of speaking of that 
 Sun in whose warmth and light their spirits might dwell 
 at all times, in all places. I endeavoured to set up 
 schools in the Bhabhur, but had not any encouraging 
 measure of success. 
 
 There was much which was pleasant and exhilarating 
 in this movement from place to place, and in camping 
 under the trees : but it was at times very fatiguing, and 
 in bad weather very unpleasant. More than once we 
 
 19 
 
274 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 were overtaken by severe storms, but happily the worst 
 of these storms came on us in favoured places, where we 
 could find shelter on escaping from our tent. 
 
 Hill ponies feel themselves strange when in what a 
 friend used to call the "roomy plains." The pony I had 
 for years was quiet enough in the hills, but I had to 
 watch it narrowly in the plains, as it seemed to have 
 always the sense of danger, and was ready to start in a 
 fashion which more than once almost dismounted me. 
 
 Some winters were spent in itinerating in hill districts 
 from which the people did not go to the Bhabhur. In these 
 winters I had the opportunity of going to a mela held at 
 Bagesvvur, about thirty-five miles from Ranee Khet, at the 
 confluence of the Surjoo and the Kalee. This mela is 
 the greatest held in the Province. To many it is the 
 grand event of the year. The people from all parts flock 
 to it for religious, commercial, and social purposes. In 
 the motley crowd may be seen hill-men from all the dis- 
 tricts of the Himalaya, natives from the plains, Tibetans 
 from the other side of the snowy range, and Englishmen. 
 
 This mela is held in a low valley not far from one of 
 the passes into Tibet. It is attended by many Tibetans, 
 who succeed in bringing their ponies through the tremen- 
 dous defiles which separate their country from Kumaon. 
 These ponies bring high prices. They also bring sheep 
 laden with salt and borax. These Mongolians are great 
 stalwart men, with broad faces, clad in homespun woollen 
 cloth of many folds, which is seldom taken off till it is 
 worn off. They are accompanied by a few women and 
 children. They take their religion with them in their 
 praying-wheels, which they keep going. They are an in- 
 tensely religious people, as Mr. Gilmour tells us, but it is 
 in the most mechanical fashion which can be conceived. 
 
GREA T FAIR AT BA GES WUR. 275 
 
 If they were mere machines, wound up like their praying- 
 wheels, they could not to all appearance be more devoid 
 of thought, feeling, and conscience in the exercise of 
 their religion. I marked their countenances, and could 
 only wonder at their stolid look. Much that is absurd is 
 found in man's religion, but the Tibetan form of it 
 seemed to me the very ne plus ultra of irrationality. 
 Some of these Mongolians are inveterate beggars, but it 
 would not be fair to judge the people generally by these 
 stragglers into India. There was more life in their 
 dances than in their religion, though not much grace. 
 It seemed to me that if elephants could dance, they 
 would do it somewhat in that style. 
 
 In the town of Bageswur there are substantial houses 
 belonging to the merchants of the Province, and these 
 are occupied by themselves or their agents during the 
 greater part of the cold weather. During the rest of the 
 year it is deserted, as the valley is very hot and feverish. 
 During the colder weeks of the year it is a very stirring 
 place, but it is on the occasion of the melas, two of which 
 are held within three months, that there is a large gather- 
 ing. At the principal mela many thousands must be 
 present. As in all Hindu gatherings, religion, business, 
 and pleasure are eagerly prosecuted. A town of booths 
 rises suddenly in the valley and on the sides of the hills. 
 Whenever I have gone, I have for miles before reaching 
 the place seen many carrying or trailing branches of 
 trees, with which they were to erect their temporary 
 abode. These answer well in good weather, but when 
 rain or snow falls they give no shelter. The morning is 
 given to bathing. One morning is peculiarly propitious, 
 and then from the earliest dawn the people are in the 
 stream, many of them, I suppose, getting well-nigh the 
 
276 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 only ablution they have in the course of the year. During 
 the day selling and buying go on vigorously. As even- 
 ing approaches the merry-go-rounds are patronized, and 
 crowds gather round singing and dancing parties. The 
 dancers are young men linked hand in hand, who move 
 about in circles, shuffle their feet, and sing in a very mono- 
 tonous fashion. Many set to the preparation of the 
 evening meal, and the valley and the hill-sides are aglow 
 with fires and lights. Amusement, however, has not 
 come to an end. Singing is kept up till the small hours 
 of the morning, to the no small disturbance of those 
 who cannot sleep except when there is a measure of 
 quiet. Between the singing of the people and the bark- 
 ing — rather the howling — of the Tibetan dogs, such bark- 
 ing as I have never heard in our own country, wearied 
 though I have been by the work of the day I have for 
 hours found sleep to be impossible. 
 
 Englishmen attending the mela find a temporary abode 
 in tents, and in a staging bungalow erected for the accom- 
 modation of European travellers. They dine together in 
 the hall of this house, and occupy their tents at night. 
 Officials deputed by the Commissioner of the Province 
 are present, for the double purpose of keeping order and 
 of paying rewards to those who have killed wild beasts. 
 The skins of the tigers, bears, and leopards, for the destruc- 
 tion of which rewards have been paid, are sold by auction 
 under the direction of the officials. The heaps of skins 
 exposed for sale give one a striking impression of the 
 number of wild beasts in the country. There are many 
 keen hunters, both native and European, and there is 
 no likelihood of their occupation coming to an end for 
 want of game. Tea-planters attend this mela to buy 
 mats, which are made by the people in large quantities, 
 
PREACHING AT THE FAIR. 277 
 
 and are required in the preparation of tea for the market. 
 Military officers on leave and travellers from the plains 
 are present from the double motive of seeing this strange 
 gathering and of purchasing ponies. 
 
 For many years Mr. Budden, accompanied by native 
 Christians, has been in the habit of going to this mela, 
 and I have been happy to help him and his brethren 
 when opportunity has been given to me. A colporteur 
 has been present with his wares, and succeeds in selling 
 at a small price portions of the Scriptures and tracts. 
 An amusing instance of indecision occurred at the book- 
 stall the last time I was present. A man had purchased 
 a Gospel. He came back saying he was told by his 
 people that he would certainly become a Christian if he 
 took that book to his village, and he laid down the book 
 on the stall and asked for his money. The colporteur 
 refused to cancel the sale, and the man was sorely per- 
 plexed, reluctant to lose both his money and that for 
 which the money was paid. At last he walked away 
 with the book, the colporteur assuring him it would do 
 him only good. 
 
 We took our stand at different parts of the mela, and 
 spoke to all willing to hear. Many speedily passed on, 
 but a number remained for some time, as if desirous to 
 know what this new religion was. Now and then we 
 encountered pundits, and if they were at all reasonable 
 we were pleased with their presence and opposition, as a 
 colloquy with them greatly quickened the interest of the 
 people. On one occasion, after skirmishing with some 
 pundits, it was arranged they were to meet us at a fixed 
 hour for discussion. Our Christian party were present 
 at the appointed place and hour, but our pundit friends 
 did not put in an appearance. Our going, however, was 
 
278 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 not in vain, as we succeeded in getting hearers who 
 listened patiently to what we had to say about the Saviour 
 of mankind. One of our number was a converted pundit 
 of Almora, who spoke to the people in a way I thought 
 eminently fitted to make a favourable impression. 
 
HABITS AND CONDITION OF THE KUMAONEES. 279 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 HABITS AND CONDITION OF THE PEOPLE. 
 MISSION WORK AND RETIREMENT. 
 
 DURING our residence in Kumaon we had many 
 opportunities of observing the condition and 
 habits of the people. I have mentioned the new re 
 sources opened up to them, and yet it must be acknow 
 ledged that many are poor. The population is probably 
 much larger than it has been at any previous period. 
 The holdings are small, and by the division made on the 
 occasion of the death of the head of the household they 
 ever tend to become smaller. There are a number in 
 theProvince who own no land, and are poorly remune- 
 rated for their labour by their countrymen. I have men- 
 tioned the new source of wealth opened up to the people 
 by the canals and cultivation of the Bhabhur. Reference 
 has also been made to the tea-gardens and public works, 
 on which large sums of money have been spent, of which 
 much has reached the people in the form of wages. 
 Thus all classes, both those who have land and those 
 who have not, have been benefited. Indeed, apart from 
 income thus obtained it is difficult to conceive how the 
 people could have been supported. If they do not make 
 progress in material comfort the fault must lie in their 
 want of energy. 
 
28o LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Like their brethren in the plains, the people in the 
 hills live chiefly on cereals — the cheaper cereals — and 
 vegetables ; but, like most below, including even many 
 Brahmans and Rajpoots, they have no objection to 
 animal food when they get it of the kind they approve, 
 and prepared in the way caste rules require. As to 
 Doms, nothing that is at all eatable comes amiss to them. 
 They have no objection, indeed, to much we should deem 
 uneatable. The Hindus eat the flesh of goats and kids 
 offered in sacrifice. They also eat the flesh of short- 
 tailed sheep, but long-tailed sheep are an abomination to 
 them, as they regard them as a kind of dog. We saw 
 once an amusing instance of the notion of uncleanness 
 attached to this species of sheep. A few sheep were 
 being chosen by a purchaser from a flock. The animals 
 were scampering about, showing, according to their 
 nature, their unwillingness to be caught. Three or four 
 men were engaged in catching them, but one every now 
 and then started back when about to lay his hand on a 
 sheep, exclaiming, " Wuh doomwala /mi!" — "It is a 
 tailed one ! it is a tailed one ! " — as if he would be hope- 
 lessly defiled by touching it, while his less scrupulous 
 companions of the same caste said, " You fool ! what does 
 it matter? It will do you no harm." They would not 
 have eaten its flesh, but their caste spirit was sufficiently 
 relaxed to allow them to touch it. 
 
 I have referred to sanitary regulations issued by the 
 authorities to guard the people against epidemics caused 
 by want of cleanliness. One of these regulations forbids 
 the dwelling together of animals and human beings. 
 On our first visit to the hills in 1847 I came unplea- 
 santly into contact with this dual occupation of the 
 same house. As night was setting in I came to the 
 
NYNEE TAL. 283 
 
 top of a hill, and from it I could see a few straggling 
 houses at a short distance. I had with me two or three 
 men, who proposed to put up a booth for the night. 
 Unhappily for my comfort, a thunderstorm came on with 
 heavy rain, and the booth was no protection. I was 
 taken to a house a short way off, but on entering it the 
 smell from the animals occupying it with their owners 
 was so strong that it drove me out. I preferred to face 
 the storm to bearing the effluvia of that highland abode. 
 I was told of a little unoccupied grass-shed a mile down 
 the hill. I found the grass so thick and well tied that the 
 rain did not get through, and the entrance was on the lee 
 side. Into this I crept, and slept soundly till the morning, 
 for I was very tired with the long walk of the day. 
 
 The new sanitary orders have no doubt done good, 
 but it is difficult to secure compliance with them, though 
 fines are imposed on persons convicted of disobedience. 
 If there had been a reward for informers I could have 
 more than once won it by telling what I had seen. 
 
 A very pleasant break during our life at Ranee Khet 
 was a yearly visit paid to Nynee Tal, about thirty miles 
 distant, which had become the seat of Government for 
 the North-West for half the year, and a place of great 
 resort from the plains during the hot and wet months. 
 It has many advantages as a Sanitarium. It is within 
 sixteen miles of the Bhabhur, and has an elevation of 
 from 6,300 to 8,000 feet above the level of the sea. 
 There is a small, beautiful mountain lake, from one end 
 of which one looks down on the plains over the inter- 
 vening hills ; while at the other end, beyond a piece of 
 uneven ground, rises a lofty mountain. There are rather 
 steep hills on either side, but hills with a gradient which 
 admits of houses being built on them. Though so near 
 
284 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 the plains, this lakelet was till 1842 unknown, except 
 to natives and a few English officials. In that year 
 travellers with difficulty made their way to it, and drew 
 attention to its attractions. We first saw it in 1847, and 
 then it had very few houses. An old General, one of its 
 first residents, told us that one day the preceding year 
 he saw a tiger walking leisurely above his house, and 
 looking down, as if wondering at the change which was 
 coming over the place. Some of the first residents were 
 startled by meeting bears in their walks. Since that time 
 houses have been built on every side, and during the 
 season there is a great population of both Europeans and 
 natives. Four years ago there was a fearful landslip, 
 which carried down a number of houses with it, and 
 buried many under the falling mass. 
 
 At the beginning of 1857, the American Episcopal 
 Methodist Church entered on mission work in Rohil- 
 kund. When the mutiny of that year broke out, the 
 agents of this church in Rohilkund escaped to Nynee 
 Tal, and from that time they continued to occupy it 
 as a mission station, and also as a sanitarium for their 
 brethren in the plains. The Mission has been efficiently 
 conducted. English services have been maintained 
 during the season. They have been well attended by 
 all classes, and have done much good. Between native 
 servants and shopkeepers from the plains, and natives of 
 the hills, who flock into the place for service and work, 
 there is a large sphere for mission work, and much 
 has been done in the way of both preaching and schools. 
 The Mission has been extended to other parts of the 
 Province, to Gurhwal in the north, to Petorah in the 
 east, and to other places, with manifest tokens of the 
 Divine blessing. 
 
ANNUAL MEETINGS AT NYNEE TAL. 285 
 
 With these American brethren we have been on the 
 most friendly terms, and have co-operated with them in 
 every way open to us. We formed an association with 
 them for mutual counsel and help. One result of this 
 association has been the holding of annual meetings in 
 Nynee Tal in autumn, for the benefit of Europeans and 
 natives, and conducted in both the English and native 
 languages, ending with the celebration of the Lord's 
 Supper. These meetings were largely attended, excited 
 much interest, did, I believe, much good, and were very 
 enjoyable.. On these annual visits to Nynee Tal we 
 commonly remained a week or ten days, and had much 
 pleasant intercourse with the missionaries and other 
 friends. During several years Sir William Muir, as 
 Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West, was resident for 
 half the year at Nynee Tal, and our special thanks are 
 due to him and Lady Muir for hospitable entertainment. 
 
 While, during our residence in the hills, time and 
 strength were mainly given to effort for the spiritual good 
 of our own countrymen and the native population, there 
 were times, especially during the rainy season, when I 
 was much at home ; and I was glad to avail myself of the 
 leisure afforded of writing for the press what I hoped 
 might prove, and what I trust has proved, of spiritual 
 benefit to natives and others. During our stay in the 
 hills, in addition to articles for the " Indian Evangelical 
 Review " and other periodicals, I wrote a Commentary 
 on the Epistle to the Romans in Hindustanee, and 
 Essays in English, which were published in book form 
 under the title of "Christianity and the Religions of 
 India." At an early period of my missionary career, at 
 the request of my colleague Mr. Shurman, to whom the 
 work of revising and in part translating the Bible into 
 
286 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Hindustanee was entrusted, I transferred the Pentateuch 
 from the Persian into the Roman character, and trans- 
 lated the book of the Prophet Jeremiah, which, revised 
 by Mr. Shurman and Dr. Mather, now forms part of the 
 version. Before leaving India I did a little, at the 
 request of the North India Bible Society, towards the 
 revision of the Hindee translation of the New Testament. 
 On this work a large and very able Committee is now 
 engaged. During my Indian career I have written a 
 good deal for the press — I must acknowledge in a very 
 desultory manner. 
 
 Thus engaged in prosecuting our work, years passed 
 on till the end of 1876, when we felt the time had 
 arrived for retiring from the Indian Mission-field. In 
 July of that year I had a severe illness, which laid me 
 aside, and incapacitated me for carrying on mission 
 work with any measure of efficiency. I might have con- 
 tinued at Ranee Khet, and done the work within my 
 reach there, but by doing so the most important part of 
 the work, the work in the district, would have remained 
 undone ; and I deemed it best to retire to make way for 
 one who could fitly occupy the sphere. Medical men 
 whom I consulted strongly advised my departure, and 
 the Directors of the Society gave their prompt and kind 
 sanction to our return to England. 
 
 I cannot end this account of our life in Kumaon with- 
 out giving expression to our gratitude for the kind aid 
 afforded us by friends in the prosecution of our work. 
 Among these friends, one of the steadiest and kindest 
 was the cantonment magistrate, Colonel, afterwards 
 Major-General, Chamberlain, who identified himself with 
 the Mission, and was ever ready to do all he could to 
 promote its prosperity. During our lengthened absences 
 
FRIENDL V HELP. 287 
 
 from the station in the cold weather, and whenever I 
 could not officiate, he conducted service with the English 
 soldiers, and he was ready in every way within his power 
 to render help. In addition to aid in carrying on the 
 Mission, we received great personal kindness from him 
 and his partner, of which we shall always retain a grateful 
 recollection. He retired to England a short time after 
 us, and within a little more than a year he was suddenly 
 called away — to his own gain, we are sure, but to the grief 
 of all his friends. It gives me a melancholy pleasure to 
 render this tribute to his memory. For steady friendship 
 and most valuable aid our best thanks are also due to 
 Captain, now Lieut.-Colonel, Birney, R.E., the resident 
 Chief Engineer; Robert Troup, Esq., a tea-planter in the 
 neighbourhood; and Mr. Ashhurst, engineer. Among 
 the friends not resident at Ranee Khet, to whom the 
 Mission is largely indebted, are Sir Henry Ramsay and 
 Sir William Muir. Besides the friends I have mentioned, 
 many others contributed liberally to the Mission, without 
 whose aid much which was done must have remained un- 
 accomplished. By the liberal contributions received the 
 operations of the Mission were carried on, and valuable 
 property was created at very little expense to the Society. 
 We left Ranee Khet at the close of 1876. As we were 
 leaving India with no prospect of returning, we spent two 
 months in visiting different stations, seeing their Missions, 
 and holding intercourse with friends and brethren. In 
 the course of these months we visited Bareilly, Shahje- 
 hanpore, Agra, from which we went to see that wonderful 
 deserted city, Futtypore Sikree, with its magnificent tombs, 
 Jeypore, Lucknow, Cawnpore, Allahabad, Mirzapore, 
 Benares, Jubbulpore, and Bombay. At Agra we attended 
 the native service of the Church Mission. The minister 
 
288 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 who preached was a native who had been educated in 
 our central school at Benares when I was superintendent, 
 and was there led to the knowledge of Christ, though he 
 was not baptized till his return to his native city, Agra. 
 On this tour we saw and heard much which interested 
 us greatly, as it showed the work of evangelization was 
 being vigorously prosecuted with tokens of God's blessing 
 resting on it. We embarked at Bombay in February, 
 and arrived in England at the end of March. 
 
 We left India, where we had spent the greater and, I 
 may say, the better part of our life, with feelings I will 
 not attempt to describe. I can only say when we review 
 our Indian life, that while deeply humbled at the recol- 
 lection of many errors and defects, defects in wisdom, 
 zeal, and love, we are deeply grateful for having been 
 privileged to labour for so many years in the service of 
 our adorable Redeemer, not, we trust, without proof that 
 good was accomplished through our instrumentality; and 
 so long as we breathe, our hearts will steadily turn 
 towards India with ardent love, and with fervent prayer 
 for the spiritual and temporal welfare of its inhabitants. 
 
 
THE MISSION A R Y IN INDIA. 280 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 THE MISSIONARY IN INDIA. 
 
 ON reviewing these reminiscences I find there are 
 several subjects of interest to which I have only 
 casually alluded, and others on which I have made no 
 remark. My readers will, I hope, bear with me while I 
 detain them by stating facts and expressing views which 
 will make the narrative more complete. 
 
 It is unnecessary to describe the office of missionary 
 to the heathen. No one has rightly entered on the office 
 without being deeply impressed by its greatness, arduous- 
 ness, and responsibility. It is equally unnecessary to 
 describe the qualifications required. No one can con- 
 template the demands the office makes on intellect, heart, 
 and conscience, on love to the Lord Jesus Christ and 
 love to souls, on wisdom, perseverance, and courage, 
 without exclaiming with the great missionary Paul, "Who 
 is sufficient for these things ? " The idea that one un- 
 qualified for work at home would do for a missionary 
 abroad is so preposterous that it is strange it should have 
 ever been entertained by the most heedless. 
 
 There is, however, a great difference between an office 
 and those who serve in an office. Because an office is 
 great and honourable it does not follow that those who 
 hold it have always the high character it demands. The 
 
 20 
 
290 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 question may, then, be fairly asked, Are missionaries 
 worthy of their office ? I, of course, use the word "worthy " 
 in a relative sense, and I remember our limited acquaint- 
 ance with the human heart. It must be acknowledged 
 there have been a few, happily a vety few, who have shown 
 themselves utterly unworthy of the office, some by lack 
 of intellectual fitness, and others by want of spiritual 
 character and by indisposition to the work. There have 
 been cases of the utter failure of character, but these 
 have been extremely rare. Of missionaries generally it 
 may be confidently affirmed they have been true men. 
 I have a wide acquaintance with the missionaries of 
 Northern India. During our long residence in Benares 
 we saw many of all Societies, of all Churches, as they 
 travelled up and down. Benares is one of the great 
 halting-places between Bengal and the Upper Provinces, 
 and residence there gives many opportunities for acquaint- 
 ance with brethren. We have the most pleasing recol- 
 lection of many we have met, and we have followed their 
 course with deep interest. 
 
 I should be acting in opposition to my settled convic- 
 tion if I were to speak of missionaries as more devoted 
 to Christ's service, more self-denied, more ready to 
 endure privation than home ministers. This glorification 
 of missionaries, as missionaries, was much in vogue at 
 one time, and is still sometimes heard. Our Master, the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, gives to every one his work, and our 
 devotedness is shown, not by our office, but by the way 
 in which we do the work assigned us. Predilection to 
 a certain sphere, supposed fitness for it, temperament 
 and circumstances, have much to do in indicating to us 
 the sphere our Lord would have us to occupy. Tried by 
 the test of devotedness, as shown in daily life, I have 
 
MINISTERS AND MISSIONARIES. 291 
 
 never seen any reason for placing one class of Christ's 
 servants above the other. Among ministers there is, as 
 we all know, a great difference, not only in talent and 
 attainment, but also in love, zeal, wisdom, and endurance 
 — in every quality which their work demands. Similar 
 is the variety among missionaries. There are many 
 degrees of efficiency and, it must be acknowledged, of 
 inefficiency. They, as well as their brethren at home, can 
 go through the routine of their work in a very perfunctory 
 and unsatisfactory manner ; while they, too, can con- 
 secrate all their powers to the service of their Lord. It 
 would be easy to select from the home field ministers 
 who, in unwearied labour, self-denial, and privation for 
 Christ's sake, greatly excel the ordinary run of mission- 
 aries ; and it would be equally easy to select from the 
 foreign field missionaries who greatly excel most of their 
 home brethren. 
 
 In several respects there is a marked contrast in the 
 position of ministers and missionaries. Ministers labour 
 in their own language, among their own people, amidst 
 home surroundings and associations ; while missionaries 
 have to part with loved relatives and to betake themselves 
 to a foreign land, where they have to learn a foreign 
 language, often languages, at the cost of much time and of 
 wearying application, have for years, as in the greater part 
 of India, to bear a severe climate, are called to prosecute 
 their work among a strange, an unsympathetic, and some- 
 times a hostile people, and, what is felt by family people 
 to be the greatest trial of all, they have to send their 
 children to England, and to live separate from them for 
 years. Some of these trials missionaries share with their 
 fellow-countrymen, who fiom secular motives go to foreign 
 lands, but others are peculiar to their vocation. 
 
292 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 While I mention the trials of a missionary career I 
 cannot forget the trials of ministerial life at home. We 
 should require to shut our eyes to patent facts if we were 
 to ignore the privations many excellent men are called 
 to endure, and the varied difficulties they have to en- 
 counter from the character and circumstances of the 
 people among whom they labour, from the peculiarities 
 of our times, and from the abiding qualities of human 
 nature, as it is now constituted. Missionaries are not 
 rich, but they have adequate support, for good or evil 
 are not dependent for it on the goodwill of those to 
 whom they minister, and receive it as regularly as if it 
 came from an endowment. With children sent home for 
 education they have times of great pressure, but much 
 has been done to aid them in meeting this additional 
 expense. Viewed merely as to the comfort of living, 
 and ease of mind as to support, the advantages are not 
 all on the side of the home minister. To counteract the 
 advantages of the missionary's position to which I have 
 referred, it must be remembered the average career of 
 service in India is short — some returning very soon, and 
 others after a few years. Those who return after years 
 spent abroad, and yet in the prime of life, are rightly 
 expected to enter the list of the home ministry ; but the 
 work they have left and that on which they are entering 
 are so different, that the mental habits acquired in the 
 one are felt to be a poor preparation for, and often even 
 an obstacle to, efficiency in the other. 
 
 In their duties, joys, and trials, ministers and mission- 
 aries have much in common. We have to deal with the 
 same human nature, manifesting the same characteristics, 
 though in different forms. We have the same message 
 to deliver. We have the same great end in view, the 
 
SPIRITUAL CHARACTER INDISPENSABLE. 293 
 
 salvation of those to whom we minister, their restoration 
 to the character and joys of God's children. Whether 
 we labour at home or abroad, we are required to endure 
 hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. If we have 
 not entered on our work from love to Christ and love to 
 souls, with an intense desire to spend and be spent in 
 Christ's service, with a belief that He has called us to it, 
 and given us a measure of fitness for it; if we are conscious 
 of being dominated by inferior motives ; if we have not 
 delight in our work, even when there is great pressure 
 on both mind and body ; if we do not long for the success 
 of our work, it is obvious we have missed our vocation, 
 and it would be better for us to sweep the street, I would 
 say it would be better to walk the treadmill than occupy 
 our position for an hour. This I must say for myself, I 
 am deeply thankful for having been privileged to labour 
 in the foreign field, and consider it the highest honour 
 which could have been conferred on me. With my 
 brethren I have had many trials to endure, some priva- 
 tions to bear, some perils to encounter, but I have never 
 for an hour regretted my early decision to give myself to 
 Christ's work among the heathen. I am sure I here 
 speak the feeling of my missionary brethren. 
 
 I have endeavoured in my reminiscences to give such 
 a representation of a missionary's position and work in 
 Northern India, that home ministers who may read my 
 narrative can have no difficulty in comparing and con- 
 trasting ministerial and missionary spheres. It will be 
 seen how varied are the duties devolving on the mis- 
 sionary, and how great are the demands on thought and 
 effort for their proper discharge. They have, in many 
 cases, to attend to harassing and perplexing secular work. 
 A number give their time and strength to teaching, and 
 
294 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 I know enough of this department to testify that those 
 who give themselves to it in a climate like that of India 
 lead very laborious lives. I have said little of the trans- 
 lation of the Scriptures, and the preparation of Christian 
 books and tracts. This is a department in which there 
 has been much exhausting effort of both body and mind, 
 as all know well who have done even a little in it. In 
 the prosecution of direct evangelistic work the missionary 
 finds much to interest and encourage him, but also much 
 to grieve and depress him, especially if he has a sensitive 
 nature, and has no natural love for debate. Even to 
 those who do not shrink from discussion there is often 
 not a little which is very trying. I have a vivid recol- 
 lection of times when I have returned from Benares to 
 my home in the suburbs, so wearied in body and grieved 
 in spirit by the opposition I had encountered and the 
 blasphemies I had heard, that I have felt as if I could 
 never enter the city again. But I went again, and 
 perhaps the next time was much encouraged. 
 
 Missionaries at the same station are much more closely 
 associated than ministers at the same place at home. 
 The management of the mission, the policy to be 
 adopted, and the respective places to be filled, are under 
 common arrangement and control, subject to the district 
 committee, and through them to the home directors. 
 Many perplexing questions come before missionaries 
 thus associated, and human nature in them must have 
 parted with its usual infirmities, and put on peculiar 
 excellence, if difference of judgment and consequent 
 variance of feeling had never appeared. We cannot 
 plead exemption from human imperfection. It cannot 
 be denied that at times there has been strong diversity 
 of judgment and painful alienation of feeling, when 
 
INTERCOURSE AND CO-OPERATION 295 
 
 missionaries have too closely resembled Paul and Barnabas 
 in their sharp dispute at Antioch ; but it can at the same 
 time be most truly affirmed that with very rare exceptions 
 discord has soon come to an end, and those who have 
 differed widely have become attached friends, as we know 
 Paul and Barnabas did. The normal state of things is 
 that of mutual love, respect, and helpfulness. 
 
 Missionaries have also had their differences with the 
 Societies that have sent them out and supported them. 
 The respective position of home committees and foreign 
 missionaries are so different, that a difference of judgment 
 is in some cases unavoidable; but confiding as they have 
 done in the goodness of each other's motives, full har- 
 mony has been soon restored. I must be allowed to say 
 of the London Missionary Society, whose agent I was for 
 so many years in India, that my warmest acknowledgments 
 are due to it for all the kindness and consideration shown 
 to me and mine. If I were now to begin my career with 
 my knowledge of the past, there is no Society with which 
 I could so confidently connect myself. 
 
 All have heard of the friendly intercourse among 
 missionaries of different churches. They, too, when near 
 each other have had occasional differences ; but with rare 
 exceptions they have been on terms not only of courteous 
 bearing, but of affectionate intimacy. There is nothing 
 in our Indian life to which we look back with greater 
 pleasure than our intercourse with Presbyterian, Baptist, 
 Methodist, and Episcopalian brethren. With the Epis- 
 copalian and Baptist missionaries at Benares we were on 
 as warm terms of friendship as if they had been members 
 of our own Mission. For many years we were in the 
 habit of meeting weekly with them for the study of the 
 Scriptures, prayer, and Christian communion. 
 
296 LIFE AND WORK W BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Most Europeans take no interest in missions, look on 
 missionaries as good men engaged in a Quixotic enterprise, 
 and know almost nothing about their work, but still they 
 treat them with courtesy. There are, however, some of 
 our own countrymen who take a deep interest in our 
 work, visit our schools, occasionally attend our native 
 services, and contribute liberally to our mission schemes. 
 These do much to cheer our hearts and promote our 
 success. Again and again my work would have been at 
 a standstill but for the help given me by European 
 Christians, and our intercourse with some has resulted in 
 close and enduring friendship. If persons have a tem- 
 perament preparing them for friendship, I cannot con- 
 ceive any position more favourable to its formation and 
 strength than that of a missionary in many of our Indian 
 stations. 
 
THE MISSIONARY IN INDIA. 297 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 THE MISSIONARY IN INDIA (Continued). 
 
 IT has been already stated that missionaries have an 
 income, which enables them to live in a way con- 
 ducive to the health of themselves and families. Things 
 which would be luxuries at home are necessaries in India, 
 and all they can do is to alleviate the suffering caused by 
 the climate. As missionaries are often more stationary 
 than European officials, both military and civil, and 
 spend much less than they do on horses, establishments, 
 and entertainments, their houses have an air of comfort 
 which is surprising to those who know their income, and 
 has led to much misrepresentation on the part of those 
 who know not and do not care to know what it is. 
 
 Not infrequently young men have gone out to India as 
 missionaries with the firm resolve to live to a large extent 
 in the native fashion, and to eschew what they conceive 
 the undue indulgence of those who had preceded them, 
 but the experience of one hot season has generally brought 
 them to another mind. Individuals have adhered to 
 their resolution, and the result in one case I know was 
 insanity, in other cases utter failure of health, and in 
 others speedy death. A band of Germans determined 
 to live, if not in the native style, at least in the simple 
 style of the Fatherland, as to habitation, food, and 
 service, and with scarcely an exception the plan was 
 
298 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 soon abandoned. The only successful case I have heard 
 of in our day has been that of Mr. Bowen, a devoted 
 American missionary in Bombay. We have had no 
 William Burns, in Northern India at least. I can say for 
 myself, that so far as the mere comfort of living is con- 
 cerned I should greatly prefer a humble abode and 
 simple fare in England, to the finest house and the most 
 sumptuous fare in the plains of Northern India. It has 
 been maintained by some that our only hope of success 
 lies in our becoming ascetics, and outstripping by our 
 austerities the Hindu saints. In other words, by acting 
 as if we accepted Hindu principles of religion we are to 
 overthrow Hinduism, and win the people to Christ. The 
 proposal calls for no consideration. 
 
 Of late a good deal has been said about the substance 
 of missionary teaching. Missionaries as a class maintain 
 and teach the doctrinal views of the Churches whose 
 messengers and agents they are. In these Churches a 
 sifting process has been going on for a considerable time, 
 which has led in some cases to a reversal of belief in 
 matters of great moment, and in a greater number to the 
 modification and softening of views hitherto entertained. 
 Every one must decide for himself how far the sifting 
 has been wisely done, how far chaff and only chaff has 
 been given to the wind, and precious grain gathered into 
 the garner. Missionaries have unquestionably been 
 affected by doctrinal discussion, in a few instances, I 
 believe a very few, to the reversal of some of their former 
 views, in all, perhaps, though in different degrees, to a 
 readjustment of their doctrinal position, to giving more 
 prominence to some aspects of truth and less prominence 
 to others, under the conviction that such is their relative 
 position in the Word of God. 
 
MISSIONAR Y PRE A CHING. 299 
 
 However much imbued missionaries have been with 
 the views of their respective Churches, their position 
 among the heathen has always led them to the constant 
 and simple presentation of the great facts and doctrines 
 of the Bible. These have been set forth in the manner 
 deemed best fitted to commend them to the under- 
 standing, conscience, and heart of the people. Familiar 
 illustrations have been largely used, and elaborate 
 doctrinal discussion shunned. While the missionary finds 
 much in the narratives and teachings of the Old Testa- 
 ment which is helpful to his object, he dwells chiefly on 
 the life of Christ, His deeds, words, living, and holy 
 example ; death to redeem men ; man's urgent need of 
 such a Saviour, because guilty and depraved ; the claims 
 of Christ on His love, trust, and service ; the blessedness 
 of compliance with these claims on character and state ; 
 the misery and doom incurred by their persistent rejection. 
 How often have I seen the heathen greatly moved by the 
 parable of the Prodigal Son ! 
 
 The missionary, like the home minister, has to guard 
 against one-sidedness, if he would keep to the Book which 
 he professes to be his standard. The many-sidedness of 
 the Bible, its appeal to man's whole nature, is one of the 
 most marked proofs of its superhuman origin. While it 
 addresses itself continually to man's moral nature, to his 
 sense of right and wrong, while it appeals to his intellect 
 and heart, it also speaks to his fears and hopes. These 
 appeals are made to all, whatever may be their diversity 
 in character and condition. If we were to follow the 
 course of many in our day who condemn appeals to fear, 
 we should be ignoring a large part of Scripture, including 
 many of our Lord's utterances, and at the same time 
 ignoring that fear of hurtful consequences which the 
 
300 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Author of our nature has implanted in us as a great means 
 of self-preservation. To hope as well as to fear much 
 is addressed in the Bible, and the missionary who would 
 approve himself to his Master is bound to appeal to both 
 principles, while, like his Master, he makes his constant 
 and main appeal to the higher part of man's nature. 
 
 While the missionary ought to strive to understand the 
 people among whom he labours, and to discover the most 
 promising avenue to their minds, while he ought to com- 
 mend himself to every man's conscience as in the sight 
 of God, he is not to seek acceptance for his message by 
 accommodating it to the views of his hearers. He knows 
 that between their views and his message there is not 
 only a marked discrepancy, but on many points radical 
 opposition, and the one must be displaced if the other is 
 to be accepted. We have here for our guidance the 
 example of our Lord and His apostles. 
 
 I have endeavoured to give a faithful description of 
 the tenor of missionary teaching. It appears many are 
 dissatisfied with it. We are told we must part with our 
 narrow traditional views of doctrine, and become imbued 
 with the larger and more liberal views of our times, if 
 we are to hope for success. In the late Dr. Norman 
 McLeod's "Life" we find him saying, "The chief diffi- 
 culty in the way of advancing Christianity in India is 
 unquestionably that almost all the missionaries represent 
 a narrow one-sided Christianity." I cannot conceive what 
 could have been his ground for this astounding statement, 
 except his impression — it could not have been anything 
 beyond an impression— that missionaries adhered to the 
 doctrines of the Churches that had sent them out, his own 
 among the rest, and had not followed him in his changes. 
 Every one who comes out with new views, or modification 
 
MISSIONARIES COUNSELLED. 301 
 
 of old views, assures us that success will speedily follow the 
 acceptance and preaching of his phase of doctrine. Some 
 tell us we must preach the moral aspect of the atonement, 
 and part with what has been called the forensic aspect ; 
 we must only speak of the love it shows to man, and say 
 nothing of its bearing on the Divine law and government; 
 and then the great cause of so-called failure will be re- 
 moved. So far as I know missionaries, they accept both 
 aspects of the atonement ; they believe both aspects are 
 taught in Scripture, and they are convinced that instead 
 of enfeebling they strengthen each other, while the 
 doctrine thus presented meets man's deepest wants. 
 Others, again, tell us we must preach what is called Life 
 in Christ — the utter extinction of impenitent sinners, 
 while others say this is a shocking doctrine, and we must 
 preach universal restoration. This is no place for dis- 
 cussing the teaching of the Bible regarding the great 
 Beyond, which is at present exercising so many minds. 
 All I will say is that neither in the old views nor in the 
 new is there anything which a Hindu or a Buddhist will 
 accept, while he remains a Hindu or Buddhist. So far 
 as I am aware, all students of Hinduism and Buddhism 
 are agreed that eternal conscious existence, with identity 
 of being firmly maintained, is alien from both systems. 
 They do not hold the doctrine of either eternal happiness 
 or eternal misery. To be extinguished, in the sense of 
 being absorbed into Brahm and losing all conscious per- 
 sonality, is the reward of high virtue, while the wicked 
 have to pass many miserable births before they reach this 
 longed-for goal. With them salvation, liberation, is not 
 deliverance from sin, but from conscious existence. They 
 have both heavens and hells — heavens supernatural in 
 their surroundings but intensely earthly in their character, 
 
302 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 doings, and strifes, and hells full of everything which 
 is repulsive and painful ; but both, after vast lapses of 
 time, will be emptied into the great ocean of being, into 
 the One without a Second. Cessation of conscious ex- 
 istence is not with them the punishment of wickedness, 
 but the eagerly desired consummation of their being, 
 the goal which is quickly reached by the eminently good. 
 
 Let missionaries by all means listen to what is said in 
 favour of new views, let them modify or change their views 
 if they think they see scriptural authority for the change, 
 but I am profoundly convinced no shifting of our doctrinal 
 position will secure success. Looking over the whole 
 field of foreign missions since the end of last century, it is 
 undeniable that God has done great things by them, for 
 which we have abundant reason to be glad; and we know 
 the teaching by which the desert has in many places 
 blossomed as the rose. New phases of doctrine have yet 
 to win their triumph. We must look in another direction 
 for a greater degree of success — to more unreserved de- 
 votedness to Christ on the part of both missionaries and 
 those who send them out; closer communion with Him; 
 a higher degree of attainment in the mind which is in 
 Him ; a more persuasive deliverance of our message, and 
 a larger effusion of God's Spirit. 
 
 The great obstruction at home and abroad to the 
 acceptance of Christ as the Saviour is moral obtuseness, 
 a dormant conscience. Our Lord's words throw a steady 
 light on man's neglect of the great salvation, " They that 
 are whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." 
 Till men know they are sick, and recognize the deadly 
 nature of their sickness, there will be no application to 
 the Great Physician. In addition to the indurating effects 
 of sin everywhere, the people of India have been for ages 
 
THE HEARTS OPPOSITION TO THE GOSPEL. 303 
 
 so drugged, I may say, with pantheistic and polytheistic 
 teaching, that if man's moral nature had been destructible 
 it must have been destroyed ages ago. Happily it can 
 not be destroyed. Perverted, stupefied, dormant, though 
 it is, it still exists, and to it we can therefore address the 
 message of Heaven, while we look up to God to make 
 it effectual by the teaching of His Spirit. When man 
 knows himself to be a sinner, when he knows what sin is, 
 then, and only then, whether in India or in England, 
 he casts himself with joy into the arms of the Saviour. 
 
 I am surprised when Christians speak as if only a 
 modification or a new statement of doctrine was required 
 in order to full and immediate success, as if they had 
 never read such passages as " The carnal mind is eiimity 
 against God;''' "The natural man receiveth not the things of 
 the Spirit of God;" as if they were ignorant of the facts by 
 which these statements are so amply and mournfully 
 attested; as if they had never heard of One who appeared, 
 as ancient sages longed to see, clothed with perfect virtue 
 and dwelt among men, and was yet rejected and crucified 
 by them ; as if they knew nothing of His apostles, who 
 spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, and yet 
 had to lament over many hearers to whom their message 
 was the savour of death unto death. Musing over the 
 controversies of the day, the wish has often arisen in my 
 mind : Would that the nature of sin was not kept so 
 much in the background ! Would that it was seen in 
 its offensiveness to God and injuriousness to man — per- 
 sistently daring high Heaven, while corrupting, degrading, 
 disquieting, and ruining man ! Would that the scriptural 
 view of sin and sinfulness, which receives such ample 
 confirmation from human experience and history, was 
 more considered in the adjustment of doctrine ! All 
 
304 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 readjustment in which the nature and effect of sin is 
 not kept steadily in view must lead to serious error — 
 error which misrepresents God's character and govern- 
 ment, is inconsistent with facts meeting us on every side, 
 and must prove most hurtful to man. I am convinced 
 that while on some points there has been progress, and 
 wise modification of doctrine, on the subject of sin the 
 theology of former days was truer to Scripture and fact 
 than the theology of our time. 
 
 I cannot conclude these remarks about the Indian 
 missionary without mentioning — and I can do little more 
 than mention — the names of loved fellow-labourers who 
 rest from the toils of earth, and have entered into the 
 joy of their Lord above. A feeling of sadness and yet 
 of thankfulness comes over me, as I see before my 
 mind's eye brethren of our own Mission with whom I 
 was associated — Buyers, with his intimate acquaintance 
 with the native languages, his large knowledge, and his 
 kindly disposition ; Shurman, the keen, impetuous, plod- 
 ding German scholar, whose great monument is his 
 translation of the Old Testament into Hindustanee ; 
 Mather, first of Benares and afterwards of Mirzapore, 
 one of the most enterprising and devoted missionaries 
 ever sent to India, whose peculiarity of temper and 
 urgency with new plans led in his early years to un- 
 pleasantness, but who, when well known, was one of the 
 truest and kindest of men, with whom for many years we 
 had an intimate friendship, and whose memory and that 
 of his excellent wife we shall always revere; and Sherring, 
 one of the most amiable of men and most pleasant of 
 colleagues, a man of marked attainments, and an inde- 
 fatigable worker. The agents of other missions at 
 Benares call for affectionate mention. I have in an 
 
in memoriam: 
 
 305 
 
 early part of my reminiscences spoken of Smith, the 
 founder and for many years the sole agent of the Baptist 
 Mission at Benares, a quiet, diligent, Nathaniel-like man. 
 This mission had for years George Parsons, a man of 
 large linguistic attainments, of most amiable, meek, and 
 devout character, than whom it would be difficult to find 
 a more conscientious labourer. The Church Missionary 
 Society was highly favoured in having had for a long 
 period at Benares two men, Smith and Leupolt, who, in 
 their respective departments, had, I believe, no superiors 
 in India. For many years Smith, with resolute perseve- 
 rance and great efficiency, often with severe strain on 
 both body and mind, prosecuted evangelistic work in 
 the city and the surrounding neighbourhood. No man 
 was better known and more highly esteemed by the 
 entire community. He had success to cheer him in the 
 form of persons avowing themselves the followers of 
 Christ, but the number was so small that he was often 
 greatly depressed. I cannot doubt that by his ministry 
 seed was sown in many minds which will yet bear fruit. 
 During our later years in Benares, Fuchs was one of the 
 agents of this Mission, an excellent biblical scholar, a 
 diligent labourer, who required only to be known to be 
 loved and esteemed, with whom we had much pleasant 
 and profitable intercourse. He was suddenly called 
 away in the midst of his usefulness, and in the prime of 
 life. I have been confining my remarks to the departed; 
 but I must mention two who survive — warm-hearted 
 Heinig, of the Baptist Mission, now set aside by age and 
 infirmity, after a long life of great toil in the service 
 of Christ, and our greatly-loved friend Leupolt, of the 
 Church Mission, who his still doing good service now in 
 England, and was for many years the fellow-labourer of 
 
 21 
 
;o6 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 his friend Smith. His name and work at Benares will 
 last for many a day. 
 
 Our departed brethren had their imperfections; who of 
 us are without them ? But I can truly say that in their 
 general character, work, and bearing they were the mes- 
 sengers of the Churches to the Gentiles and the glory 
 of Christ. 
 
 Looking beyound our Benares missions we remember 
 a number of faithful labourers, whom we knew and loved, 
 who have joined the majority, such as the learned and 
 kindly Owen, the venerable Morrison, the apostolic 
 Ziemann, and many others besides. I do not use these 
 terms in a conventional sense, but as justly applicable to 
 the men. Those I have named laboured, and others 
 have entered into their labours, men worthy of all esteem, 
 love, sympathy, and help. 
 
NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 307 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 
 
 NATIVE Christians form so large and varied a com- 
 munity that right views of them can be obtained 
 only by those who consider its component parts. 
 
 In Southern India there are thousands calling them- 
 selves Syrian Christians, still more frequently Christians 
 of St. Thomas. Either the Apostle Thomas or some 
 of his spiritual children went to India, and founded a 
 Christian Church. Down through the ages the descen- 
 dants of these first converts have clung to the profession 
 of Christianity, and have kept up their connexion with 
 their fellow Christians in Western Asia. They have the 
 peculiarities of hereditary Christians exposed to a cor- 
 rupting moral atmosphere, and possessing limited means 
 of spiritual improvement. We are told that they have 
 made great progress through their intercourse with 
 European missionaries. 
 
 In Southern India and Ceylon there is a large body of 
 native Christians, the descendants of the many baptized 
 by Xavier and his companions. Every one who has read 
 the life of Xavier knows how widely he opened the door 
 of the Church; with what facility, to use his own favourite 
 expression, he " made Christians." Many speedily re- 
 lapsed into heathenism, but a sufficient number remained 
 
3o8 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAOK. 
 
 steadfast to form a large community, and their descen- 
 dants are reckoned by tens, rather hundreds, of thousands. 
 There is not — at least there was not a short time ago — 
 any reliable census of their number. Protestant opinion 
 of these native Christians is very unfavourable. It may 
 be prejudiced, and yet it has been expressed by persons 
 who have come into contact with them, who know them 
 well, and who would shrink from doing injustice. Many 
 facts have been stated in support of an unfavourable 
 estimate. The Abbe Dubois condemned them as a 
 scandal to the Christian name, and other Romanists 
 have joined him in confirming the testimony of Protes- 
 tants. 
 
 In Travancore and Tinnevelly, in the far south, there 
 are large native churches, in connexion with the Propa- 
 gation, Church, and London Missionary Societies, com- 
 posed of Shanars, a people outside the Hindu pale and 
 greatly despised by them, with a sprinkling of caste 
 people. When whole villages come over to the profes- 
 sion of Christianity, we generally find a few who may be 
 regarded as true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, with 
 limited knowledge but genuine faith, while the many, 
 though favourably impressed, simply assent to the action 
 of their friends and neighbours, and are little changed 
 except in name. They are on the way to a happy change 
 by having come under new and elevating influences. 
 
 All over Southern India there are native Christian 
 churches, the work of conversion having proceeded in 
 some cases gradually, individual by individual, while in 
 other cases numbers have been admitted at the same time. 
 
 Among the non-Aryan tribes, the Kols and the San- 
 thals, occupying the hills and forests of Central and 
 Eastern India, a great work has been done during the 
 
THE CONVERSION OF NONAR VAN TRIBES. 309 
 
 last thirty years. Thousands have been brought into the 
 fold of the Christian Church. In habits, character, and 
 condition, these tribes bear a considerable resemblance 
 to our rude Teutonic ancestors, and they have been 
 brought to the profession of Christianity in a somewhat 
 similar manner ; with this difference, that they have not 
 been headed by chiefs in the reception of baptism, and 
 in many cases commanding it. The first converts were 
 the direct fruit of mission labour; their number increased, 
 inspired by zeal they told their countrymen the treasure 
 they had found, and called on them to share it with 
 them. Many listened to their words and accepted their 
 message. The work thus spread from village to village, 
 and from hamlet to hamlet, till it extended to parts of 
 the country never visited by a missionary, and included 
 many who had never seen a missionary's face, in some 
 cases who had never seen a white face. A very dear 
 friend and enterprising missionary, the late Rev. William 
 Jones of Singrovvlee, made his way through a wild road- 
 less country to the border of the Kol region, and came 
 to a hamlet where the people were startled by the 
 appearance of a European, as they had never been 
 visited by one before. Though from difference in 
 language their intercourse was limited, they understood 
 each other sufficiently to discover, to their mutual delight, 
 that they had a common faith. The general character 
 of a community formed of a rude people, emerging from 
 fetish and demon worship, can be readily supposed. I 
 suspect the converts made by the monk Augustine and 
 his companions had not a little in their character and 
 conduct to show the pit from which they had been 
 taken; and yet that was the dawning of a day for the 
 Anglian and Saxon race in our country for which we 
 
310 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 have abundant reason to be thankful. There is no 
 doubt much imperfection in Kol and Santhal converts, 
 but we may well anticipate for them a far less clouded 
 day than that which dawned on our forefathers when 
 Augustine went to them. 
 
 In Bengal there are two large native Christian com- 
 munities, one in Krishnagurh in connexion with the 
 Church Missionary Society, and the other in Backergunje 
 connected with the Baptists. In both cases the con- 
 version of individuals has led to numbers avowing them- 
 selves the followers of Christ. Where conversion is thus 
 what may be called collective rather than individual, 
 there may be in some a high degree of spiritual life, 
 but the majority simply go with the stream. It will be 
 observed that in the statistics of some missions so many 
 are represented as baptized, so many members of the 
 church, so many adherents, the last class often out- 
 numbering the other two. These adherents openly 
 declare their abandonment of idolatry, attend public 
 worship with more or less regularity, call themselves 
 Christians, and are called Christians by others. They 
 may be described as in the outer court of the temple, 
 from which not a few from time to time enter the inner. 
 
 In the great Presidency cities, Calcutta, Bombay, and 
 Madras, and their immediate neighbourhood, the native 
 churches connected with Protestant Missions are com- 
 paratively small. The members of these churches differ 
 more widely in social position, mental culture, and I 
 think I may add spiritual character, than any other 
 native churches in India. Some of the members are 
 highly educated, have acute and disciplined minds, and 
 have an intimate acquaintance with our language and 
 literature. Individuals among them have made sacrifices 
 
by becoming the followers of Christ, of which the only 
 adequate explanation is that they have come under the 
 power of an all-controlling faith, of the faith which gives 
 the victory over self, the world, and the devil. Persons 
 more established in the faith of Christ than some of 
 these are, more thoroughly assured that He is the Son of 
 God and the Saviour of the world, I have never met. 
 In these churches there are degrees of culture and social 
 standing, till we come to unlettered persons in the 
 humblest rank of life, some of whom are, I doubt not, 
 as genuine Christians and as devoted to the Saviour 
 as their brethren of higher social standing and larger 
 mental attainment. 
 
 I now proceed to speak of the native Christians of 
 Northern India, with whom for many years I have been 
 closely associated, and of whom I can speak with a 
 measure of confidence. 
 
 In the North-Western Provinces, as in other parts of 
 India, we have different classes that go under the name 
 of native Christians. Most drummers of native regi- 
 ments have been Christians, in the sense that they 
 have been baptized persons. Many are descendants of 
 Portuguese, who have gradually become mixed with the 
 lower classes of natives, and cannot, except by dress, 
 be distinguished from' them, their hue being often darker 
 than that of the people. These Portuguese descendants 
 are numerous all over India, in the South very numerous, 
 and hold very different positions in society, but those I 
 have known in the North have been mainly of the 
 drummer class. To these have been added a considerable 
 number of natives, the waifs of native society, who 
 have attached themselves to European regiments as 
 camp-followers, not a few of whom have so separated 
 
312 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 themselves from their own people that they have found 
 it convenient to profess the Christian faith. I have 
 known individuals of this class who bore a good character, 
 and were regular in their attendance on public worship. 
 We had a number of them in our native Christian con- 
 gregation at Benares, and we had for years a weekly 
 meeting in their quarters. I cannot, however, speak 
 highly of them as a class, either as to intelligence or 
 goodness. Not a few went to a place of Christian 
 worship only on Christmas Day, or on the occasion of 
 a marriage or baptism, and their general conduct was no 
 honour to the Christian name. Yet these people are 
 proud of being ranked as Christians. We had a striking 
 illustration of this at Benares. A person died, the son 
 of an English colonel by a Muhammadan wife. I knew 
 the man well. He often called on me, and was eager 
 for discussion. He continually avowed himself a follower 
 of Muhammad. He was never seen in a place of 
 Christian worship, and was often seen in the mosque. 
 When he died, the relatives of his mother made arrange- 
 ments for the funeral ; but the drummers and Christian 
 camp-followers gathered in numbers, went to the magis- 
 trate, and claimed the body on the ground that the man 
 had been baptized in infancy. As the result of inquiry 
 it was found that at the father's instance he had been 
 baptized, and on this account the body was made over 
 to the Christians, who carried it to the grave in triumph, 
 as if they had achieved a great victory for their faith, the 
 chaplain of the station reading the funeral service. The 
 native Christians connected with' the different missions 
 in Benares for the most part kept aloof. 
 
 I have already spoken of orphans and their descendants, 
 and need say nothing more about their character. They 
 
UNWOR THY ADHEREN TS. 3 1 3 
 
 form a considerable portion of the native Christian 
 community in the North-West. 
 
 All our missions have had accessions from both Hindus 
 and Muhammadans, but chiefly from Hindus. I heartily 
 wish I could say all have joined us from right motives. 
 This I cannot say. It is undeniable that persons have 
 joined us from unworthy motives, some because they 
 have broken with their brethren, others who are pressed 
 by want in hope of support, and others again in antici- 
 pation of a life of less toil if they can get under the 
 wing of a missionary. There have even been individuals 
 who have made it a trade to be baptized, who have told 
 most plausible stones, have hung on missionaries for a 
 time, and have then set out in quest of new pasture. 
 They remind us of the wild Saxons, who submitted to 
 baptism again and again that they might obtain the white 
 dress given on each occasion to the baptized. Some 
 missionaries have been far more ready than others to 
 administer baptism, but as a rule they have examined 
 candidates closely, have made all possible inquiry, and 
 have baptized them only on obtaining what appeared 
 satisfactory evidence of sincerity. Some who proved 
 most unworthy manifested the greatest apparent earnest- 
 ness, possessed a considerable degree of knowledge, and 
 were hailed by us as a valuable accession. I narrowly 
 escaped baptizing a man who turned out the leader of a 
 band of thieves. He came to me professing an ardent 
 desire for baptism, paid frequent visits, made marked 
 progress in knowledge, and was well spoken of by 
 persons who said they knew him ; but circumstances 
 occurred to bring suspicion over him, and he suddenly 
 disappeared. Long afterwards we found out that he was 
 a leader of an infamous following. 
 
314 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 To give one of many illustrations of the way in which 
 persons try to connect themselves with us, I may mention 
 that one day a well-dressed native, mounted on a good 
 horse, rode up to my door. On coming to my room he 
 told me he had come to be baptized, as he was con- 
 vinced Christ was the Saviour of the world. He was 
 urgent for immediate baptism. Life was uncertain, he 
 might die at any hour, and how could he know he was 
 safe if he did not come under the wing of Christ ? I 
 told him if he believed in the Lord Jesus Christ it would 
 be well with him, whether baptized or not, and that I 
 could not baptize him till I should make inquiry and 
 know more about him. It occured to me that he had a 
 motive for such urgency which I could not discover. I 
 sent for one of the most judicious of our native Christians, 
 and begged him to find out what the object of the man 
 was. He took him away, and soon returned to tell me 
 he had got it all out — that the man had had a violent 
 quarrel with his relatives, and had vowed to bring dis- 
 grace on the family by becoming a Kristan — a Christian. 
 I recalled the man, and told him he must come to me 
 from another motive and in another temper, if I were to 
 baptize him. He rode away, and I never saw him after- 
 wards. 
 
 M^-<3n»*». 
 
NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 315 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 NATIVE CHRISTIANS (Continued). 
 
 I SUPPOSE there is no community of any extent that 
 has not unworthy members, persons that may be 
 called its excrescence and blots, who have increased its 
 size, as a tumour increases the size of the body, but are 
 actually its weakness and disgrace. Such were the un- 
 worthy persons of whom I have been speaking. Very 
 different is the general character of the native Christians 
 connected with the various missions in Northern India. 
 Some of our converts have made sacrifices, by avowing 
 themselves the followers of Christ, to which persons in 
 our country are never called. They have literally left 
 father and mother, houses and lands, wife and children, 
 for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whatever may 
 have been the position of our converts, they have, as a 
 rule, parted with much which is highly valued by their 
 people. Caste standing, even when the caste is not 
 considered high, secures many advantages, and is greatly 
 prized. Its loss is deemed a dire calamity, and this loss 
 our converts are called to endure. They join a despised 
 and hated community, are called vile apostates, and are 
 charged with the most sordid motives. I have heard 
 the charge advanced against converts who, to my know- 
 ledge, had left their place in native society under the power 
 
of the profound conviction that Christ was entitled to 
 their hearts and lives, though the conviction required of 
 them the most painful sacrifices, and exposed them to the 
 bitterest reproach. During my first years at Benares, one 
 of the catechists of our Mission was a Brahman, who 
 had been baptized by Mr. Ward of Serampore. He was 
 stripped of the property to which he was the heir, of 
 which the annual rental, according to an official docu- 
 ment, was 5,000 rupees (^500), because he could not 
 perform the funeral rites of his father. His income as 
 catechist was small, but I often heard him charged 
 with the lowest mercenary motives by those who knew 
 not, and did not wish to know, anything about his ante- 
 cedents. He bore the charge patiently, deeming it an 
 honour to be reproached for his Master. He was far 
 from being a perfect character, but no cloud ever seemed 
 to come over his belief that Jesus was the Saviour of the 
 world. When he was on his death-bed I asked him if 
 he regretted the life of comparative poverty and of great 
 reproach he had led because he had become a Christian. 
 He tried to raise himself on his pillow, and said with an 
 energy that startled me, " If I had a thousand lives, I 
 would give them for Him who died for me." In reference 
 to him and others, the remark was often made by our 
 hearers, " We are willing to listen to you — you are a 
 good man and have kept to your religion ; but we do not 
 wish to hear these, for they are apostates." 
 
 In all communities there are so many varieties, that the 
 most successful attempt at characterization on the part of 
 those who know them well can only claim an approach 
 to correctness, and must be received with deductions. 
 Those who look at a community from a distance, who 
 know only a few individuals, perhaps know none at all, 
 
THE CHARACTER OF NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 317 
 
 but judge from what they hear from others, and these 
 deeply prejudiced, are sure to form a very false estimate. 
 When speaking of our native Christians, I have the ad- 
 vantage of long and intimate acquaintance not only with 
 those of our own Mission, but with those of other missions 
 in Northern India, and I think I should understand 
 them better than many who have the most superficial 
 and partial knowledge of them, perhaps do not know 
 them at all, and yet speak of them in depreciating terms. 
 I cannot speak of our native Christians, even of those 
 who have made great sacrifices, as possessing a lofty 
 character, as marked by signal excellence. We learn 
 from the Epistles of the Apostle Paul he found much 
 which was faulty in his converts, and we need not wonder 
 at the faults which are too manifest in ours. Is there 
 any home minister who is not tried by the conduct of 
 some of his people ? Is there any minister or missionary 
 who has not frequent reason to be dissatisfied with him- 
 self? Indian missionaries are sometimes sorely tried by 
 their converts. All around is a low moral tone. Slight, 
 inadequate views of sin prevail. Truthfulness is praised, 
 but little practised. Our people breathe a tainted atmo- 
 sphere, and by becoming Christians they do not escape 
 its deleterious effects. While these defects are frankly 
 acknowledged, truth enables me to state, without any 
 misgiving, there is much in our people which is very 
 estimable. Observe their daily life, go with them to their 
 respective businesses, and you will find them with few 
 exceptions diligently pursuing their vocation, and honour- 
 ably supporting their families. See them at their homes ; 
 you will be gladly welcomed, and you will generally find 
 them striving to have everything clean and tidy, and as 
 comfortable as their means permit. You will find the 
 
3iS LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Bible and a few Christian books on their shelves, and 
 you will learn that family worship is largely observed. 
 When conversing with them you are often impressed 
 with their manifest sincerity, with their gratitude for 
 having been brought into the fold of Christ, with the 
 honour conferred on them by bearing His name, much 
 reproached as they are on account of it, and with their 
 desire to walk worthy of their profession. See them in 
 the house of God, cleanly clad, and as they engage in the 
 different parts of the service you are struck with their 
 devout appearance. Observe them in. their intercourse 
 with each other, and you will find much of mutual kind- 
 ness and helpfulness. Observe them in their intercourse 
 with Hindus and Muhammadans, and you will find that 
 instead of hiding their Christian profession, and being 
 ashamed of it, they glory in it. I have said that mis- 
 sionaries are tried by their converts. I ought in candour 
 to add that converts are sometimes tried by missionaries. 
 Their training has been so different from ours, their 
 position is so different from ours, that it is very difficult 
 for us to understand them thoroughly ; and so far as we 
 fail to understand them, we fail in sympathy and in right 
 action towards them. 
 
 The native churches passed through a fiery ordeal in 
 the Mutiny of 1857, and came out of it in a way which 
 reflected great honour on their Christian constancy. 
 Even those who had the most favourable opinion were 
 not prepared for the readiness shown by them to part 
 with all, to part with life itself, rather than part with their 
 Lord. I cannot say how many were put to death, but 
 we know that thirty-four were killed on the Parade-ground 
 of Furruckabad by order of the Nawab, and seven or 
 eight perished at Cawnpore. In Foxe's " Book of Martyrs " 
 
FAITHFULNESS TO THE DEATH. 3 X 9 
 
 there is not a more striking instance of witnessing to the 
 death for the Lord Jesus than was manifested by Vilayat 
 Ali, in the Chandnee Chauk of Delhi, when, surrounded 
 by infuriated Muhammadans calling on him to recant or 
 die, he declared Christ to be his Saviour and Lord, and 
 when falling under the swords of his enemies uttered 
 with his last breath the prayer of Stephen, " Lord Jesus, 
 receive my spirit." The account is furnished by a witness 
 of the scene. There were defections, but if our view be 
 confined to Christians connected with the different mis- 
 sions they were remarkably few, fewer, it is affirmed, than 
 those of Europeans and East Indians. One whom I 
 knew well, though he was not of our Mission, apostatized 
 to save his life, and died most miserably, abandoned by 
 his new fellow-religionists, and tenderly watched by those 
 whom he had left. Full details of the conduct of the 
 native Christians in that terrible crisis are given by Mr. 
 Sherring in his book, " The Indian Church during the Great 
 Rebellion." This book had, I believe, a considerable cir- 
 culation when it was published, but like many other good 
 books it has passed into oblivion. The information it 
 contains was furnished by persons intimately acquainted 
 with the facts, and is very valuable as proving the genuine- 
 ness and constancy of native Christian piety. It gives 
 more insight into the real character of the native Christian 
 community than can be obtained by perusal of large 
 volumes full of ordinary mission details. The friends 
 of missions would do good service by seeking its re- 
 publication. 
 
 The loyalty of the native Christians to the British 
 Government, as well as the constancy of their Christian 
 faith, was strikingly shown throughout the Mutiny. This 
 loyalty was maintained amidst much fitted to discourage 
 
320 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 it in the conduct towards them of Europeans, both official 
 and non-official. 
 
 We have seen native Christians in joy and sorrow, in 
 trial and temptation. We have been present at their 
 death-bed, and have heard their words of hope and trust 
 when entering the dark valley. We have had abundant 
 reason to regard them with esteem and love. With 
 many we have had pleasant intercourse, and from our 
 intercourse with some we have received intellectual and 
 spiritual profit. At one time there was a small band of 
 highly-educated native Christians at Benares connected 
 with the different missions. It gave us great pleasure to 
 have them now and then spending an evening with us. 
 They were always ready to start some important subject, 
 and their remarks were stimulating and instructive. I 
 remember more than once our remarking, when they went 
 away, Could we have had a more pleasant and profitable 
 evening if our European brethren had been with us ? At 
 the great Missionary Conferences which have been held in 
 recent years the native Christian brethren have taken a 
 prominent part, and both intellectually and spiritually 
 they have been found worthy of standing abreast of their 
 brethren from Europe and America. It must be acknow- 
 ledged there has been a difficulty at times in adjusting 
 the exact relationship of these highly-educated native 
 brethren to their missionary friends, and there has been 
 in consequence unpleasant jarring \ but amidst differences 
 Christian principle has asserted its uniting power, and 
 their ordinary bearing is that of mutual esteem and love. 
 
 It may be said, "If native Christians as a community 
 deserve the character you have given them, how is it that 
 people from India speak so much against them ? " The 
 explanation can be easily given. 
 
ALLEGED FAILURE OF CHRISTIANITY, 321 
 
 There is no part of the mission-field, the South Seas, 
 Africa, the West Indies, China, as well as India, from 
 which persons have not come affirming that the so-called 
 converts are changed in name only ; that they are no 
 better than they were, and in many cases worse. Do we 
 not find analogous cases nearer home ? It is often said 
 of professors of religion — very truly of individuals, very 
 untruly of the class — that they are less worthy of trust than 
 avowedly worldly persons. Large communities remark- 
 able for religious zeal, like the people of Wales, are 
 condemned in the face of favourable evidence which 
 seems well authenticated. Persons have even stoutly 
 maintained that Christianity itself has been a failure in its 
 moral influence on the nations. Want of sympathy and 
 antipathy blind the mind to facts, and lead to most 
 erroneous judgments. The great majority of Europeans 
 in heathen countries have no sympathy with missions, 
 and have neither the knowledge nor the spirit indispensable 
 to the formation of a correct judgment. They hear a 
 loose report of converts from persons who in turn have 
 been told by others what they say, and the report is at 
 once believed and circulated. They have, perhaps, met 
 an unworthy native bearing the Christian name, and he is 
 regarded as a fit representative of the entire community. 
 
 It is a common opinion among many of our country- 
 men in India that Hinduism is as good for Hindus as 
 Christianity is for us, and they cannot conceive why a 
 person should leave the one for the other except from 
 sinister motives. When speaking on one occasion with 
 a lady who regularly attended church, and no doubt 
 deemed herself an excellent Christian, about a native 
 gentleman of high rank, whose kindly temper and 
 courteous demeanour we were both praising, I said, 
 
 22 
 
322 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 " Would that he were a follower of our Saviour ! " She 
 looked surprised, and said, " Do you think so ? He is, 
 I think, a better man by remaining as he is." So strong 
 is this feeling with some English people, that a native who 
 calls himself a Christian is regarded by them as on that 
 account a suspicious character. I know a well-educated 
 native Christian who applied for a Government situation. 
 He had good certificates ; they were sent in, and when 
 the official to whom he applied came to know he was a 
 Christian — he knew nothing more about him — he threw 
 them aside with the word " namunzoor" " not accepted " 
 — the technical term for "rejected." One result of this 
 English dislike to native Christians is that natives have 
 told me that none but missionaries and a few associated 
 with them wished them to become Christians; that English 
 people generally wished them to remain Hindus. It can 
 be conceived how great is the stumbling-block thus put 
 in our way. A Church of England missionary of great 
 experience once said to me, " Would that there were no 
 Europeans near us ! We might then hope for progress." 
 I am not to vindicate the remark. I mention it to show 
 the effect on the mind of a devoted missionary by English 
 hostility to the conversion of natives. On every side, 
 from European as well as from native society, there is 
 every worldly obstacle to their embracing the Gospel. 
 
 At one time there were obstacles to the profession of 
 Christianity which do not now exist. When India was 
 being brought under the sway of England, our rulers 
 regarded the Gospel as a disturbing and threatening 
 element, which ought to be carefully excluded. Long 
 after the Christian feeling at home had forced open the 
 door, the Gospel was treated as an intruder to be in every 
 possible way thwarted and disgraced. In illustration of 
 
GOVERNMENT OPPOSITION TO THE GOSPEL. 323 
 
 the opposition the Gospel had to encounter, I quote a few 
 sentences from a recently-published volume, "Asiatic 
 Studies, Religious and Social," by Sir Alfred C Lyall, 
 K.C.B., the present Lieutenant-Governor of the North- 
 West Provinces : — " We disbursed impartially to Hindus, 
 Mussulmans, and Parsees, to heterodox and orthodox, to 
 Juggarnath's Car, and to the shrine of a Muhammadan 
 who had died fighting against infidels, perhaps against 
 ourselves." " The chief officers of the Company in India 
 were so cautious to disown any political connexion with 
 Christianity that they were occasionally reported to have 
 no religion at all." "Up to the year 1831 native 
 Christians had been placed under the strongest civil dis- 
 abilities by our regulations . . . Converts were liable to 
 be deprived not only of property, but of their wives and 
 children ; and they seem to have been generally treated 
 as unlucky outcasts, with whom no one need be at any 
 trouble of using any sort of consideration." We are told 
 that they were even forced by Government order to pull 
 the car of Juggarnaut, and severely punished if they 
 refused. According to a parliamentary paper of 1832, 
 " our interference extended over every detail of manage- 
 ment : we regulated funds, repaired buildings, kept in 
 order cars and images, appointed servants, and purveyed 
 the various commodities required for use of the pagodas." 
 Under home pressure this state of things has gradually 
 given place to neutrality, which, if impartially maintained, 
 is I suppose the only policy open to us in the peculiar 
 circumstances of India. 
 
 I have already said there are very unworthy persons 
 bearing the name of native Christians. To judge our 
 Indian churches by these is as unfair as to judge English 
 Christians in India by Englishmen, of whom, alas ! there 
 
324 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 are many, soldiers and others, who are notorious for 
 drunkenness and licentiousness. We have even English 
 beggars in India, wretched men, who have drifted out of 
 the army, railway, or other department, and who disgrace 
 our name. Strong men have come whimpering to my 
 door, to whom I have given help, and I have seen them a 
 few hours afterwards — I remember one case well — rolling 
 in the bazaar in beastly drunkenness. It would be as 
 fair to take these men as a specimen of English Christians, 
 as to judge native Christians by persons bearing the 
 name while they disgrace it. 
 
 The very acknowledgment of missionaries about the 
 imperfections of their communities, about the utter 
 hollowness of some individuals, lias been turned into 
 adverse testimony. In the recent meeting at Exeter 
 Hall to welcome the Madagascar missionaries, Messrs. 
 Cousin and Shaw, Mr. Cousin, in the course of his very 
 interesting address, said that much of the Christianity of 
 the Malagash was " purely nominal and utterly worth- 
 less." I should not at all wonder if some day I found 
 this brought forward as a missionary's acknowledgment 
 that the Christianity of the Malagash is purely nominal 
 and utterly worthless, and that missions in Madagascar, 
 as elsewhere, had been a failure. 
 
 The support of native Christians has sorely tried and 
 perplexed missionaries. They have been desirous, on 
 the one hand, of holding out no inducement to persons 
 to join them from unworthy motives ; and on the other 
 they have felt that persons thrust out of their caste and 
 employment, and not infrequently from their family, had 
 claims on help, with which every Christian feeling bound 
 them to comply. Persons able to work have never been 
 allowed to live in idleness, but the difficulty has been to 
 
THE SUPPORT OF NATIVE CHRISTIANS. 325 
 
 find suitable work. In some missions, when persons 
 have shown an aptness for domestic service they have 
 been trained to it. In a number of missions trades have 
 been started, and have been carried on for a longer or 
 shorter period, with more or less success ; but, as a rule, 
 the relation of employer and employed does not accord 
 well with the relation of pastor and people. The diffi- 
 culty continues, and will no doubt continue, but it is 
 decreasing every year. When travelling down through 
 Northern India in 1877 we found Christians in every 
 place at which we stopped, and we learned they were 
 supporting themselves in various modes, in printing 
 offices, bookbinding establishments, railways, and public 
 offices. A number were in domestic service. I wish 
 fewer were thus employed. When anything goes wrong 
 in a house the Hindu and Muhammadan servants are 
 sure to blame the Christians; masters and mistresses 
 look for more from them than can be reasonably 
 expected, and they no doubt are apt to fall into the 
 well-known and objectionable habits of the class. The 
 more capable of the native Christians, the higher in 
 character and education, are for the most part employed 
 as teachers, catechists, and native preachers. A few 
 have risen to responsible and lucrative positions in civil 
 life. A native Christian from Bengal held for some 
 years, to the great satisfaction of both Europeans and 
 natives, the office of Postmaster of Benares. He and 
 his wife were members of our native church. Another 
 member of our church for a time was the Inspector of 
 Post-offices in the Benares district. 
 
 I believe in every mission in the North-West native 
 Christians contribute regularly to the support and diffu- 
 sion of the Gospel, and, considering their means, their 
 
326 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 contributions are liberal. I remember hearing years 
 ago of a native church in Calcutta agreeing, without a 
 dissentient voice, to give a month's salary for the erection 
 of their new church building — an act of liberality which 
 has been seldom equalled in our country. 
 
 Much has been said about the compound system, as it 
 has been called — Christians living together apart from 
 the heathen, and in most cases in the immediate neigh- 
 bourhood of the missionary's residence. Much has been 
 said, I think unjustly, in condemnation of this arrange- 
 ment. It is not the hot-bed, which it has been called, 
 in which robust Christian character cannot be produced. 
 Native Christians, thus living together, hold constant 
 intercourse with the heathen in the business of life, and 
 are at the same time saved from the peculiar trials and 
 temptations incident to living among Hindus and 
 Muhammadans. So far as native Christians make their 
 light to shine, it will be well seen by the heathen though 
 their dwellings be apart. One great advantage of living 
 in a mission compound, near the place of worship and 
 the missionary's residence, is that wives and children can 
 regularly attend public worship, and can come under the 
 teaching of the missionary, and especially the missionary's 
 wife, as otherwise they could not have come. For a 
 time we had quite a number of native Christians in our 
 compound at Benares, who paid a small rent for their 
 houses, and went out every day to attend to their respec- 
 tive callings. If they had lived in the city I cannot 
 conceive how mothers and children could have attended 
 worship as they did, or how my wife could have taught 
 the children and held constant intercourse with the 
 women. Because living in the compound, it does not 
 follow that they are dependent on the mission for 
 
PROGRESS. 327 
 
 support. There is nothing more desired by mission- 
 aries than that their people should maintain themselves 
 by their own exertions. Living among the heathen is 
 often indispensable — it is so increasingly with our native 
 Christians ; but where circumstances admit, I think great 
 advantages result from Christians living near each other 
 and near the mission church. In our own country, are 
 not favourable surroundings sought for the young and 
 the inexperienced ? 
 
 When I look back to the beginning of 1839, when I 
 landed in Calcutta, and compare the native Christian 
 community of that day with what it is now, I am struck 
 with the great change which has taken place. If we 
 confine the term to those connected with missions, they 
 were then a mere handful. Now they are considerable 
 in number, and they have become a recognized and 
 appreciable portion of native society. They are increas- 
 ing in number, though not so rapidly in the North as in 
 the South, and are becoming rooted in the land. The 
 largest native Christian community in the North- West is, 
 I suppose, that connected with the missions of the 
 American Episcopal Methodist Church in Rohilkund 
 and Oude. It is largely composed of Muzbee Sikhs, a 
 people much despised by both Muhammadans and 
 Hindus. Of late the Salvation Army has entered on 
 the campaign against Hinduism and Muhammadanism. 
 Its organ boasts largely of success, but its statements 
 have been strongly questioned by persons acquainted 
 with the facts, on whose warm attachment to the cause 
 of Christ full dependence can be placed. A well-known 
 missionary of the Episcopal Methodist Church in Oude 
 has been lately pursuing the tactics of the Salvation 
 Army. Accompanied by a band of native Christians, 
 
328 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 he has been entering villages and towns with song and 
 drum and tambourine. The people in crowds have 
 gathered round him. He and his brethren have 
 preached Christ to them, have urged them to accept 
 Him as their Saviour, and have given on the spot 
 baptism, chin — the mark of the Christian Church, to any 
 avowing their readiness to become Christ's disciples. 
 Time will show how far the work is genuine. Perhaps 
 we old missionaries have been too slow in administering 
 baptism. Of this I am sure, that nothing is more falla- 
 cious as the test of success than the number of persons 
 baptized — so different is the opinion held by missionaries 
 regarding the qualifications required in order to baptize. 
 Native Christians are more self-dependent than they 
 were, and are receiving a healthy impulse from feeling 
 that they must push out for themselves. They have to 
 contend against much which is adverse and hurtful, but 
 without indulging too sanguine hopes we may firmly 
 anticipate for them a brighter and better future than 
 their past has been. 
 
MUHAMMADANS. 3 2 9 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 THE PEOPLE AMONG WHOM WE LABOUR. 
 MUHAMMADANS. 
 
 ALL over Northern India — I may say all over India 
 — we find the followers of Muhammad. They are 
 very unequally distributed. In some districts they form 
 the majority, in others their number is very small, while in 
 the cities they abound. There is among them all 
 the variety of station which might be expected in a 
 community composed of millions, ranging from princes, 
 wealthy landholders, and great merchants, down to 
 labourers and beggars. There is among them all variety 
 of culture, from profound learning in a narrower or wider 
 groove, down to utter illiteracy and gross ignorance. 
 There is also variety of character, many leading notori- 
 ously wicked lives, while others are noted for goodness, 
 and are honourable and useful members of society. 
 
 Looking at the Quran and the Bible, one might 
 suppose there is a close accord between them, as both 
 assert the unity and sovereignty of God, both condemn 
 idolatry, and in both the same names continually meet 
 us, such as Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, David, Solomon, 
 and our Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, however, in India, 
 as elsewhere, Muhammadanism has shown itself intensely 
 
330 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 hostile to the Gospel. The reason is apparent. I think 
 it is difficult for any one to read with candour the Quran 
 on the one hand, and the Bible, especially the New 
 Testament, on the other, without perceiving the marked 
 contrariety between them, notwithstanding their agree- 
 ment on some points. 
 
 A true follower of Jesus Christ, one imbued with the 
 spirit of His teaching and bent on the imitation of His 
 example, cannot fail to cultivate holiness of heart and life, 
 to cherish a humble, lowly temper, to look on all with love, 
 however unworthy of love their character and conduct may 
 be, and to promote their good in every way within his 
 power. A follower of Muhammad, so far as he is imbued 
 with his teaching, regards God with profound reverence 
 as the Sovereign of the universe, deems homage to Him 
 most due, looks with indignation on the worship of idols, 
 attaches immense importance to outward rites and ser- 
 vices, glories in Islam, pays comparatively little atten- 
 tion to inward excellence, and sees no need for a change 
 of heart. As a worshipper and servant of Allah, follow- 
 ing the precepts of the Prophet of the later age, he 
 deems himself the spiritual aristocrat of the race, and 
 looks down with scorn on all outside the pale of his com- 
 munity, whom he is in some cases bound to put to death, 
 and in all cases to subject to degrading conditions, so far 
 as he has the power. However wicked his conduct may 
 be, as a worshipper of Allah he is sure of more tender 
 treatment in another world than that which awaits 
 Christians and idolaters. Thus the typical Muham- 
 madan is one who scrupulously observes the laws of 
 Islam, goes through his devotions with all the regularity 
 of a soldier on drill, fasts at the appointed season, gives 
 alms to the poor, attends to all prescribed rites, and at 
 
THE LICENTIOUSNESS OF MUHAMMAD A NS. 331 
 
 least once in his life goes on pilgrimage to Mecca and 
 Medina. Outward religiousness, pride and self-righteous- 
 ness, are his distinguishing characteristics. 
 
 Much has been said about the sensuality of Muham- 
 madans. The sanction given by Muhammad to poly- 
 gamy and extreme facility of divorce has borne bitter 
 fruit. His own example has had a depraving influence. 
 He alleged, indeed, a special Divine sanction for the 
 dissoluteness of his later life, but this has not deterred 
 his followers from thinking they could not go far wrong 
 in imitating him. In addition to these facilities for a life 
 of sensual enjoyment, the teaching of the Prophet in 
 reference to female slaves has had a most depraving 
 effect on family life. The Hindustanee expression for 
 libertine, profligate— luchcha—\%\ think, more frequently 
 applied to Muhammadans in Northern India than to any 
 other class of the community. It must be confessed, 
 however, there is so much licentiousness among other 
 classes — not only among Hindus, but I am grieved to 
 say among many from our own land, soldiers and others 
 — that I can scarcely join in declaring Muhammadans 
 sinners in this respect above all others. There is this 
 difference between the licentiousness of so-called Chris- 
 tians and Muhammadans, that in the teachings of the 
 Gospel, while no unnatural restraint is laid on those who 
 accept it, the strongest motives are brought to bear on 
 them in favour of purity of heart and in opposition to 
 licentiousness of life ; while in the teachings of the Quran, 
 amidst severe condemnation of the gratification of un- 
 lawful desire in some forms, there is much, if not to 
 encourage, at least to give every facility for a life fatal to 
 personal and domestic purity, a facility of which the 
 adherents of Islam have largely availed themselves. 
 
332 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 While agreeing with the views generally held by 
 Christians regarding the teaching of the Quran and its 
 influence in the formation of character, I cannot join in 
 the sweeping condemnation of the Muhammadans which 
 I have sometimes heard, as if they were one mass of 
 corruption. In the middle and lower classes in Northern 
 India we are told, by those whose testimony can be 
 trusted, monogamy is the rule. Many lead a quiet, 
 orderly life, with the domestic affections in full play 
 which beautify and gladden the home. A Muhammadan 
 writer, who may be supposed to know his own people, 
 tells us that polygamy is getting out of favour, and that a 
 strong feeling has set in in favour of a man having only 
 one woman to wife. Among them there are undoubtedly 
 persons of high character, whose bearing would do 
 honour to the adherents of a far higher creed. I have 
 conversed with some who seemed to me set on knowing 
 and doing the will of God, who showed, so far as I could 
 obtain an insight into their character, a reverent, earnest, 
 humble temper, as if they had come under the power of 
 the few passages, occurring here and there in the Quran, 
 which inculcate spirituality of mind and love to all men, 
 and as if they had in a measure escaped from the ex- 
 ternalism so prominent in that book, and from its hard, 
 fierce, bitter tone towards all who refuse to receive it as 
 a revelation from heaven. With two Muhammadans I 
 was for years on as friendly terms as I could be with 
 any whose belief and practice differed so widely from 
 my own. As to courteous, kindly demeanour, they were 
 all that could be desired. I had many an earnest talk 
 with them on the highest subjects, and I was struck with 
 the apparent candour with which they listened to all I 
 had to say. They read with evident interest books I 
 
MUHAMMAD AN OPPOSITION TO THE GOSPEL 333 
 
 gave them, and in the case of one such an impression 
 was made that I hoped he was coming to the acknow- 
 ledgment of Christ as his Lord and Saviour ; but after 
 going to his Moulvies he kept to Muhammad, though 
 with manifest misgiving. 
 
 While I cannot join in the sweeping condemnation of 
 Muhammadans, I must acknowledge my experience 
 accords with that of my missionary brethren regarding 
 those with whom I have come ordinarily into contact. 
 When I have been speaking to a company of Hindus, 
 and have apparently secured their attention, I have been 
 sorry to see a Mussulman coming up, as past experience 
 had prepared me for the immediate introduction of such 
 questions as the Trinity, the Sonship of Christ, His pro- 
 pitiatory sacrifice, and not infrequently the eating of pork. 
 I have done my best to stave off such untimely dis- 
 cussion, and to keep to the subject I was teaching, but 
 in not a few instances my audience has been broken up 
 by the new-comer insisting on being heard. During my 
 long missionary career I have had many discussions with 
 Muhammadans in public and in private, in some cases 
 conducted with a calmness and fairness which promised 
 good results ; but in still more numerous cases with a 
 readiness on their part to resort to the veriest sophistry, 
 and fly from one point to another, and with a love of 
 disputation which led to wrangling, and could accom- 
 plish no good. The controversy between Christianity 
 and Muhammadanism has been carried on by the press 
 as well as by oral discussion. In this department the 
 late Dr. Pffander, Sir William Muir, and Mr. Hughes of 
 Peshawur, have done excellent service. 
 
 It might be supposed that as Muhammadanism is so 
 near to Christianity that it may almost be called a 
 
334 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 Christian heresy, and as we have in consequence much 
 common ground, we might expect to find its adherents 
 more accessible than Hindus to the Christian missionary. 
 The opposite is the case, furnishing another illustration 
 of the fact that no religionists are so antagonistic to each 
 other as those who most nearly approximate. At the 
 present time all over the world, Popery, under the con- 
 duct of the Jesuits, is far more hostile to Protestant 
 missions than any form of heathenism. 
 
 It ought to be mentioned to the credit of Muham- 
 madanism that it arose as a protest against polytheism 
 and the worship of idols. This protest it has maintained 
 down to our day. Not even a religious symbol is allowed 
 to appear in their places of worship, and hence the 
 marked contrast mosques present not only to Hindu 
 temples, but to Christian churches. 
 
 Muhammadanism is a proselytizing religion as well as 
 Christianity. During my Indian career I have heard of 
 a convert now and then from Hinduism in the North- 
 west, and very occasionally one from Christianity ; but 
 these accessions have been very few. In Bengal, on the 
 other hand, it appears that during the last thirty or forty 
 years a great number of low-caste people have been 
 drawn into the Muhammadan ranks, many of them 
 small farmers, who think that by belonging to a large and 
 influential community they can the better contend with 
 the landlords. It is said that the change is simply one 
 of name and ritual. 
 
 The accessions from Muhammadanism to Christianity 
 have been very few ; but some of the best converts in the 
 North-West belong to this class. 
 
 For centuries Hindus and Muhammadans have been 
 near neighbours in India. In the ordinary course of life 
 
HINDUS AND MUHAMMADANS IN CONTACT. 335 
 
 they have had much intercourse with each other, and 
 have exerted a strong mutual influence, the Muhamma- 
 dans, especially of the lower class, having become in a 
 measure Hinduized, while the Hindus of the lower class 
 have become, if I may use such a word, in some degree 
 Muhammadanized. I believe the stricter Muhammadans 
 are of pure Mogul and Pathan descent, while the more 
 lax are the many who at different times have been drawn 
 or forced into Islam. Our Muhammadan servants speak 
 continually of their caste, have many Hindu notions, and 
 follow many Hindu practices. Low-caste Hindus, on the 
 other hand, are prominent in some Muhammadan pro- 
 cessions. Both Muhammadans and Hindus, as a rule, 
 are satisfied with their respective position, as assigned to 
 them by Allah or Fate, have no repugnance to each other, 
 and no wish to disturb each other. 
 
 So far, however, as Muhammadans and Hindus are 
 imbued with their respective systems they must be anta- 
 gonistic ; and their antagonism, though generally latent, 
 every now and then breaks out into fierce strife, which 
 but for the interposition of Government would lead to 
 civil war. Early in this century there was in Benares a 
 pitched battle between them, when they assailed each 
 other with the utmost fury, and were separated by 
 military force. All have heard of a recent conflict in 
 Southern India, where blood was shed and property 
 destroyed. About thirty years ago Oude was threatened 
 with the outbreak of a war between the parties. There 
 have been recently conflicts in Rohilkund on the occa- 
 sion of processions, which but for prompt interference 
 would have led to disastrous results. 
 
 Of late years a reforming party has arisen among the 
 Muhammadans with both political and religious ends in 
 
336 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 view. This party painfully realizes the loss incurred by 
 their fellow-religionists on account of their neglect of the 
 English language, and their failure to accommodate 
 themselves to their new masters, thus allowing the 
 Hindus to get in advance of them. They consequently 
 discourage exclusive attention to Arabic and Persian 
 literature, and advocate the cultivation of English. A 
 few of this class have come to England to prosecute 
 their studies, but for the many who must remain in their 
 own land an institution has been opened at Allygurh, in 
 the North- West, in which provision is made for imparting 
 a liberal education. It cannot be expected that Indian 
 Muhammadans can have a strong liking to the English 
 Government, but this reforming party wishes to reconcile 
 itself to the new order of things, and to identify itself 
 with our rule so far as the Quran permits. In religious 
 belief these reformers range from strict orthodoxy to rank 
 rationalism. Their leader is an able and ardent advocate 
 of Islam, though he has thrown off what he deems un- 
 authorized and hurtful accretions, and many of his 
 followers no doubt agree with him. A Bengalee Mu- 
 hammadan, a graduate of Cambridge, has published a 
 book entitled " The Life of Muhammad," which is 
 saturated with rationalistic views. I cannot suppose he 
 stands alone in his rationalism, but I have no means of 
 knowing to what extent his views are shared by others. 
 The whole party is the antipodes to the Wahabees, the 
 extreme Puritans of Islam, who aim at following strictly 
 the instructions of the Quran and the Traditions, and 
 w r age war to the knife against Christians and idolaters. 
 Between the Wahabees and the reformers there is a very 
 numerous party — it is supposed the great majority of 
 Muhammadans— who have little sympathy with the strict- 
 
MUHAMMAD AN REFORMERS. 
 
 337 
 
 ness of the former, but as little with the looseness of the 
 latter, who in their opinion are sacrificing Islam to their 
 ambitious and selfish views. Between the reformers and 
 those who cannot advance with them there has been sharp 
 controversy, and there is no prospect of its coming to an 
 end. 
 
 23 
 
33§ LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE PEOFLE AMONG WHOM WE LABOUR (Continued). 
 HINDUS. 
 
 I HAVE endeavoured in my account of Benares to 
 describe the Hindu idolatry there practised, and in 
 my account of our missionary preaching I have stated the 
 arguments by which that idolatry is defended. The 
 Hindu system, it is well known, is at once pantheistic 
 and polytheistic. The universe, we are told, is God 
 expanded. Brahm — he alone is the Existent One; but 
 there are several persons and objects in which he is 
 more manifest than in others, and as owing to Maya 
 (illusion) we believe in our separate existence, it is fitting 
 that to these objects special honour should be paid. I 
 have mentioned the hideous aspect of the images wor- 
 shipped at Benares, and their hideous aspect well accords 
 with the character attributed to the gods worshipped 
 under these forms. 
 
 We are all familiar with the maxim, Like priest, like 
 people. May we say, Like God, like worshipper ? If so, 
 we must regard the Hindus as in the very mire of moral 
 debasement. Just think of a whole people acting like 
 Shiva, Doorga, and Krishna ! I think it cannot be 
 doubted by any one who looks at the nature of the 
 human mind, and the power exercised over it by its 
 
THE 1NFL UENCE OF HIND UISM ON CHAR A C TER. 3 39 
 
 belief, that the worship of these and similar gods, along 
 with the prevalent pantheistic and fatalistic views, which 
 •strike at the very root of moral distinctions, have done 
 much to deprave the Hindu mind. The people, indeed, 
 often assert "to the powerful there is no fault." The gods 
 had the power and the opportunity to do what they did, 
 ■and therefore no fault attached to their conduct; but 
 ordinary persons have neither the one nor the other, and 
 for them it would be very culpable to pursue the same 
 •course. Can a people fail to occupy a low place on the 
 plane of morals to whom the maxim I have quoted would 
 be tolerable ? I believe they do as a people occupy a 
 low place, and yet not nearly so low as might have been 
 anticipated. 
 
 There is much to counteract the influence exerted on 
 the Hindus by the evil example of their gods, by their 
 excessive trust in outward rites apart from all mental 
 working, and by the pantheistic teaching of their philo- 
 sophers. They retain a moral nature, and acknowledge 
 the distinction between right and wrong as readily as we 
 •do, though the distinction be inconsistent with the views 
 they often express. The requirements of society and of 
 daily life exert a powerful and salutary restraint by the 
 •obstacle which they present to a vicious career. The 
 family constitution has conferred immense benefit on the 
 Hindus, as on other nations. 
 
 It must be acknowledged that however long we may 
 reside in India, our knowledge of the inner life of the 
 people is very limited. We may be for years on the 
 best terms with them; we may meet them frequently, and 
 converse with them freely on all subjects; there may be 
 not only acquaintance, but to all appearance friendship: 
 and yet we have no entrance into the family circle, we 
 
340 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 cannot join them in the family meal, we can scarcely get 
 a glimpse into their home life. If they be of the poorer 
 class they would be shocked at our entering their houses, 
 and conversing with their women and children. If of a 
 higher class, they visit us and we visit them. They 
 have a room of audience in which they welcome us. On 
 occasions they prepare sumptuous feasts for Europeans, 
 of which they themselves do not partake. However 
 friendly we may be with natives of rank in Northern 
 India, it is difficult, often impossible, to secure an inter- 
 view between our wives and the female members of their 
 families. As to English gentlemen, they never see the 
 face of a native lady. Still, notwithstanding our being 
 kept so far outside Hindu family life, we know enough 
 about it to be sure there is often strong family affection. 
 We have many proofs that parents regard their children 
 with the most tender love; and we know that in the 
 lower classes, at least, children often requite this love by 
 sending a large portion of their wages to their aged 
 parents. I myself have often been the channel of com- 
 munication. It cannot be doubted that this family 
 affection is widely extended, and has a very happy 
 influence on the character and life of the people. 
 
 Professor Max Muller, in his recently-published book,, 
 " India, what can it teach us?" discusses at length the 
 character of the Hindus. He quotes the views enter- 
 tained by persons of large Indian experience, who had 
 mixed freely with all classes, and yet differ widely in 
 their testimony, showing that in forming an estimate of 
 the character of a community we are greatly influenced 
 by our temperament and by the standard we employ.. 
 Sir Thomas Munro, the famous Governor of Madras, 
 speaks of the character and attainments of the Hindus. 
 
THE CHARACTER OF THE HINDUS. 341 
 
 in the most laudatory terms. He says, " If civilization 
 is to become an article of trade between England and 
 India, I am convinced that England will gain by the 
 import cargo." Sir Charles Trevelyan, on the other 
 hand, speaks of them as a morally depraved people, to 
 whom "the phenomenon is truly ' astonishing " "of a 
 race of men on whose word perfect confidence may be 
 placed." " The natives require to be taught rectitude of 
 conduct much more than literature and science." 
 
 The Professor is evidently inclined to take the favour- 
 able view. He thinks the ordinary view of their falsehood 
 and dishonesty is applicable only to the rabble of the 
 cities and the frequenters of our courts, but is most 
 unjust to the unsophisticated people of the country, 
 whose truthfulness he extols. After the laudation of 
 these honest and truthful people, I must say I was 
 amused with the naivete of the learned Professor, when 
 he goes on to show that the excellence of his proteges 
 is not sufficiently strong to be maintained in the face of 
 temptation. He says, "A man out of his village com- 
 munity is out of his element and under temptation. 
 What would be called theft or robbery at home, is called 
 a raid or conquest if directed against distant villages ; 
 and what would be falsehood or trickery in private life, 
 is honoured by the name of policy and diplomacy if 
 successful against strangers." The lauded truthfulness 
 and honesty are so delicate that they cannot stand the 
 breath of the nipping cold which has to be encountered 
 when they leave their sheltered enclosure. The excel- 
 lence is, according to the Professor, though he does not 
 say so in words, merely conventional, as it rests on the 
 principle of mutual insurance among those who form a 
 closely-knitted community, bound together by common 
 
342 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAOIu 
 
 interests and associations. Even then excellence needs 
 to be guarded by an oath, which is viewed with super- 
 stitious awe. I do not think the Professor's friends will 
 thank him for this defence of the morality of their 
 countrymen. 
 
 When I think of the wickedness rampant among large 
 classes in a country like our own, notwithstanding our 
 great privileges, I shrink from applying to the Hindus 
 the strong terms of condemnation which I have often 
 heard. There is among them, as I have already said, 
 much family affection; they are, in ordinary circumstances, 
 very courteous ; they often manifest a kindly disposition ; 
 almsgiving is reckoned a high virtue ; many lead quiet, 
 orderly, industrious lives ; and, as Max Muller tells us, 
 from the earliest age satya, "truth," in its widest sense, 
 has been represented by them as the very pillar on which 
 goodness rests, though it must be allowed it has been 
 much more praised than practised. 
 
 Am I then to say, as many have done, that Hinduism 
 has done its adherents no harm, and that Christianity 
 has done its adherents no good — that the Hindus as a 
 people stand as high morally as we do ? With every 
 desire to speak of them as favourably as I can, with a 
 pleasing recollection of many acts of kindness and 
 courtesy, and with every desire to rid myself of pre- 
 judice, I must dissent strongly from this view. I cannot 
 forget the lurid light cast on the native character during 
 the Mutiny; the treachery, ingratitude, falsehood, and 
 cruelty shown by many who gloried in their caste purity — 
 relieved, however, it is only right to acknowledge, by 
 notable instances of faithfulness and kindness. I can- 
 not but remember the impression often made on my- 
 mind of their low standard of character, the absence of 
 
THE HINDU AND CHRISTIAN STANDARDS. 
 
 343 
 
 high motive, even when full expression has been given 
 to the distinction between right and wrong. Happily, in 
 our land there are many, in every class of society, who, 
 as the result of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, hate sin 
 in every form, and strive after excellence, an excellence 
 springing from supreme love to God, and prompting to 
 sustained effort for the good of man, for which we look 
 in vain among the be£t of Hindus, though among them 
 we discern the workings of conscience and the desire 
 to do what is right. The standard of character is un- 
 doubtedly far higher among us than it is among Hindus, 
 and this standard, protesting as it does against wickedness, 
 and calling us to aspire after goodness, is in itself an 
 incalculable benefit to a community. For many a day 
 it has been my settled conviction that Hindus are vastly 
 better than, looking at their religion, we could expect to 
 find them, and that we on the other hand fail far below 
 the excellence to which our religion summons us. If 
 Hinduism was allowed full sway over its adherents 
 society would go to pieces, while we should rise to the 
 excellence of angels if we were to come under the full 
 sway of the Gospel. 
 
 All have heard of the caste system of India, but only 
 those who have lived among the people can understand 
 its innumerable ramifications and its remarkable effects. 
 Every caste, down to the lowest, is endlessly sub-divided. 
 There are Brahmans who would as soon eat, drink, and 
 intermarry with people of low caste, as with many who 
 like themselves boast of Brahmanical blood. In books 
 the Sudras are described as the fourth, the low, servile 
 caste ; but in fact a vast number in Northern India, who 
 are loosely reckoned Hindus, are far below the Sudras, 
 and thus the Sudras acquire a relatively high place. 
 
344 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAOX. 
 
 These low-caste people, on whom the people above them 
 look down with contempt, are in their own fashion as 
 tenacious of caste as their superiors, and they, too, 
 multiply their divisions, one class maintaining its superi- 
 ority to others. We have a large community called 
 Chumars, ''leather-people" as the word means, though 
 many of them have nothing to do with leather. One of 
 them once told me there were twelve divisions in their 
 caste. We had near us at Ranee Khet a little colony of 
 Dhobees, washermen, whom I visited now and then. I 
 observed some huts were built separate from the rest, 
 and I asked the reason. The man to whom I was 
 speaking, for his class an intelligent man, expressed his 
 surprise I did not know the reason. He said, with an air 
 of dignity, " These are of an inferior order, and it is 
 requisite their huts should be built apart." 
 
 It has been often shown that this caste system is 
 most baleful. It narrows the sympathies of the people, 
 keeps them in the same groove, fetters their minds, 
 represses individuality, and is a bar to progress. It 
 would be unfair, however, to say that all its conse- 
 quences are pernicious. It so far benefits those bound 
 by it that it restrains them from some forms of evil, and 
 secures mutual helpfulness, just as the close trade guilds 
 of our own country did, of which we have happily got rid. 
 When the clan system was in full force among the Scotch 
 Highlanders, there were broken men, men who had left 
 the clan or were expelled from it, and these were 
 notorious for their crimes. In like manner there are 
 persons who break away from caste, and are the worst 
 members of the community. 
 
 The patriarchal system, the system so prevalent in 
 India, by which the people, instead of forming separate 
 
THE DISINTEGRA TION OF CASTE. 345 
 
 families in their separate dwellings, all form one house- 
 hold, to a large extent with a common purse and under 
 a common rule, is perhaps still more fitted to fetter the 
 mind and to obstruct progress than even caste itself. 
 Those who have embraced Christ as their Saviour have 
 often suffered more from their own kindred, dwelling 
 together, than from their caste brethren. 
 
 Many things tend to the disintegration of caste, such 
 as education, the subjection of all to the same laws, the 
 growing demands of commerce, and travelling together 
 in railway-carriages. The attractions of the railway, 
 notwithstanding its disregard of class distinctions, are 
 irresistible. Thousands of pilgrims thus make their way 
 to distant shrines, though by travelling in this easy 
 fashion they lose the merit which suffering would bring. 
 When railways were constructed, a proposal was made 
 by leading Hindus to have separate carriages for separate 
 castes, but compliance with the proposal was of course 
 out of the question ; and now high Brahmans and low 
 Chumars — who are never seen in the same temple even 
 though they worship the same gods, as the presence of a 
 Chumar there would be deemed a profanation — may be 
 seen packed in the same carriage in as close contact as 
 two human beings can be. When they separate the 
 Brahmans have recourse to lustrations, and satisfy them- 
 selves the impurity has been washed away. 
 
 In the great Presidency cities caste is no doubt greatly 
 weakened. Many openly violate its rules, and are never 
 called to account, but these very persons take care to 
 maintain their caste position for certain domestic and 
 social purposes. Leaving these cities and a small class 
 scattered over the country, the mass of the people seem 
 as much bound by caste as they ever were, so far as its 
 
346 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 outward requirements are concerned, though, as I have 
 said, there are no doubt influences widely spread which 
 tend to its relaxation. This is the case in Northern 
 India, at any rate. 
 
 Much has been said about the Brahmist movement. 
 The number of its professed adherents is very small, but 
 many of the educated class are imbued with its spirit. 
 Years ago branches of the Brahmist Sumaj were formed 
 in the great cities of the North-West by young Bengalees 
 employed in the public offices. For a time their services 
 were kept up zealously, but soon they declined. The 
 lasttimel heard about these communities most had ceased 
 to exist, and only two or three had any sign of vitality. 
 So far as I have learned, the Brahmists have had very 
 few adherents from the Hindus of the North- West. At 
 first sight Brahmism seems an advance towards the 
 Gospel, and a preparation for its reception, but the best 
 of our native Christians in Calcutta look on it as fur- 
 nishing a welcome abode to those who cannot remain 
 Hindus, and yet for various reasons refuse to embrace 
 Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Its avowed hostility 
 to definite doctrine, to what is denounced as dogma, the 
 dreamy sentimentalism characteristic of the system, the 
 ignoring to a great extent of the terrible facts of man's 
 depravity and guilt, and the coquetting with Vedism, do 
 little towards bringing its adherents to the feet of Jesus. 
 The Brahmists used at one time to taunt us with our 
 divisions, but for a long time they have had two separate 
 Sumajes, composed respectively of Conservatives and 
 Liberals. In consequence of Chunder Sen's Hindu 
 proclivities in his later years, the Liberals became 
 divided among themselves, the majority having seceded, 
 while a few remained his devoted followers, who are 
 
HINDU REFORMERS. 2A7 
 
 likely to settle down into a Hindu sect, tinged with 
 Christian thought and feeling. 
 
 From time to time reformers have appeared among 
 the Hindus. Gautam, the Sakya Saint, was one of the 
 earliest and greatest of the class. Successive reformers 
 have had a great following, but the stream has not risen 
 above its source. From Gautam downward some funda- 
 mental principles of Hinduism have been retained, and 
 in the end these principles have asserted much of their 
 former sway. This threatens to be the case with 
 Brahmism. Notwithstanding its assertion of the Divine 
 Unity, it has a strong pantheistic tinge, and already we 
 see its effect. As it has arisen in a measure as the 
 result of Christian teaching, and among a people to 
 whom the Gospel is made known, it may be hoped that 
 many, influenced by it, may travel upward to the light, 
 instead of turning to the darkness from which they have 
 emerged. 
 
 Increasing effort has been put forth in late years for 
 the mental and spiritual improvement of the female 
 portion of the population. From the commencement of 
 missions, the wives of missionaries have bestowed much 
 labour on the women and girls to whom they could find 
 access. These have been well-nigh exclusively either 
 Christians, or of the lower class of society. Very oc- 
 casionally individuals of a higher class come under 
 Christian teaching. A daughter of the late Rajah of 
 Coorg, a state prisoner at Benares, was for a time under 
 the tuition of Mrs. Kennedy. She was brought daily to 
 our house, sat with us at table, and was taught with our 
 children. The Rajah wished her to be brought up as a 
 Christian and an English lady, in the hope that he might 
 thus be helped in getting back his kingdom. Eventually 
 
348 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 she was brought to England, was baptized by the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, the Queen standing sponsor, and 
 was married to an English officer. She survived her 
 marriage a very short time. This was altogether an 
 exceptional case. It has been most difficult for the wives 
 of missionaries to obtain even an occasional interview 
 with native ladies, as I have already intimated, though 
 their husbands have been our frequent and friendly 
 visitors. From the Reports of Zenana Missions we 
 learn that of late years access has been obtained to many 
 native families which had till recently been excluded 
 from all Christian, and, indeed, from all European 
 influence. The lady physician is often welcome where 
 the ordinary teacher can find no entrance. In a city 
 like Benares — and I suppose it is the same elsewhere — 
 except for the lady physician in her professional 
 capacity, and only rarely even in that capacity, the door 
 of the Zenanas in the houses of the great magnates 
 continues shut against all who would seek to awake and 
 guide the dormant minds there. 
 
 Nothing can be conceived more deplorable than the 
 condition of the ladies of India, living, as the phrase is, 
 behind the curtain. They are, as a rule, utterly un- 
 educated, know nothing of books, are shut out from the 
 world, and have no refuge from ennui in such employ- 
 ments as needlework, knitting, and embroidery, for 
 which the nimble fingers of the sisterhood are so well 
 adapted. They have no society beyond the women of 
 the household, their husbands and their children. An 
 occasional glimpse has been got by our ladies into their 
 state, and, as might have been expected, their minds 
 have been found utterly childish and dwarfed. Happily 
 for themselves the vast majority of the women of the 
 
THE POSITION OF WOMAN AMONG THE HINDUS. 349 
 
 country are under no such bondage. Their husbands 
 cannot afford to curtain them. They move about freely 
 as they do in our country, only with the hood ready to 
 come down over the face. They are seen in the streets 
 of Benares as they are seen in the streets of our own 
 towns. 
 
 All have heard of the low view of woman entertained 
 in India, and of the humiliating customs to which she 
 is subjected; but nature asserts itself there as elsewhere, 
 and notwithstanding all the inferiority with which she is 
 charged, she exercises a profound influence on the male 
 portion of the community. This is recognized by the 
 people always saying, Ma, Bap — Mother, Father — not 
 Father and Mother, as we say. It is well known that 
 in the large households of which I have spoken the 
 dowager lady is the supreme ruler, often the tyrant — not 
 the less a tyrant because in her youth she had been 
 treated as a slave. The state of widows, many of them 
 mere children, is sad indeed. 
 
 Shut out though we be to a large extent from native 
 families, we have many proofs presented to us of the power 
 of female influence, a power often most perniciously 
 exerted, as it is the power of ignorance and superstition, 
 a power opposed to all intellectual and spiritual progress. 
 The devout women of India are often our most formidable 
 enemies, as they were of Paul in Antioch in Pisidia, 
 and no doubt in other places. Some of our converts 
 have known from painful experience what their op- 
 position to the Gospel is, and it cannot be doubted that 
 many have been prevented from joining us by the pressure 
 brought to bear on them by their mothers, wives, and 
 sisters. Well may every friend of India pray earnestlv 
 that Zenana Missions may be crowned with success. 
 
350 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 A returned missionary is often asked what are the 
 prospects of missions. From careful and trustworthy- 
 statistics we learn the number of Christians is increasing 
 rapidly. It is right to observe that this increase has 
 come mainly from the non-x\ryan tribes, and people of 
 low caste. We have valuable converts from the higher 
 castes, but they are few. When we leave statistics we 
 have recourse to impression, and that impression depends 
 greatly on circumstances, and still more, perhaps, on the 
 temperament of the observer. It is very difficult to 
 gauge public opinion. When we think of all the in- 
 fluences at work, such as education, both primary and 
 more advanced, Christian literature, missionary effort in 
 many forms, railway travelling, commerce, and a Govern- 
 ment bent on doing justice, we look forward with hope 
 to an awaking of the Hindu mind, under which it will 
 seek and embrace the highest good. 
 
 The obstacles to success are most formidable, so 
 formidable that, notwithstanding promising appearances, 
 we should despair if we were not assured that the work 
 is of God. The literature of our own country is 
 strengthening the opposition to us. The unbelief of 
 many educated natives, an unbelief springing both from 
 repugnance to the Gospel and from dread of the sacrifices 
 to which its acceptance would subject them, is fortified 
 by the perusal of sceptical books and periodicals. Years 
 ago I met a Bengalee far up in the mountains, who told 
 me I need not speak to him about Christianity, for all 
 reasonable people in England were abandoning it. In 
 proof he put into my hands a letter from Professor 
 Newman in answer to a letter he had sent to him. The 
 Professor counselled his correspondent to worship God as 
 his conscience and reason directed him, and to keep 
 apart from the Christian Church. 
 
OBSTACLES TO CONVERSION. 351 
 
 Notwithstanding these obstacles to the reception of 
 the Gospel, there are persons to whom it has come with 
 a Divine sanction, but who are so bound by family and 
 social ties that they do not avow their faith. Striking 
 instances of this failure to act in accordance with con- 
 viction have come under my observation. I mention 
 only one. I once had an interview with a dying young 
 Hindu, who had been taught in a mission school and was 
 well acquainted with the Gospel. With tears in his eyes 
 he said all his trust for salvation was in the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, and that he knew it was his duty to avow his 
 faith, but he could not, for if he did his relatives would 
 one and all abandon him. He seemed to dread any one 
 but myself hearing the confession of his faith. I have 
 known others who have had a strong drawing to the 
 Saviour, but they have stifled their convictions, and have 
 become, as I remember with sadness, bitter foes of the 
 truth. Let only the tide set in in favour of Christianity, 
 and many, I doubt not, will be ready to flow with it. 
 
 It ought ever to be remembered that in India we have 
 a vast population. In the North -Western Provinces and 
 Punjab alone there is a population twice as large as that 
 of Great Britain and Ireland. Those of this population 
 who may be said to be educated in a high degree are the 
 merest handful. You travel hundreds of miles through 
 regions full of towns, villages, and hamlets, where you 
 find that the partially educated are very few compared 
 with the wholly uneducated many. Even most of the 
 shopkeepers who can keep accounts well are unable to 
 read a book with ease, as the written and printed 
 characters are very different. All know that their 
 English rulers are called Christians ; those who live near 
 the great lines of road hear an occasional address from a 
 
352 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 passing missionary, many frequenters of melas have come 
 under the sound of the Gospel, but the vast majority 
 have not the slightest conception of its meaning. When 
 Christianity had spread to a considerable extent in the 
 Roman Empire, country districts were so little affected by 
 it that pagani (villagers) became soon synonymous with 
 "heathen," the only meaning which attaches to the word as 
 it is now used by us. A vast work has to be done before 
 the villagers of Northern India cease to be pagans in 
 our sense of the word. The work of evangelization is 
 only in its initial stage. It is yet with us the day of 
 small things — but it is the day, not the night. The morn- 
 ing has dawned ; over a great part of Northern India we 
 can only see the faint streaks of the coming day, but 
 the light will spread, the darkness will vanish, and the 
 millions of that great country will yet be gladdened by 
 the beams of the Sun of Righteousness. 
 
 I mention, and merely mention, help which India 
 gives for the solution of some great questions : — 
 
 (i) The immobility of the Eastern mind. In manner of 
 life, in salutations, in offerings of inferiors to superiors, 
 in many customs, the far East, like the nearer East, con- 
 tinually reminds us of the East as presented in the records 
 of antiquity — above all as presented to us in the Bible. 
 He must be a very careless observer who has not been 
 struck with the resemblance. The restless changing 
 West furnishes in this respect a striking contrast to the 
 staid, unchanging East. There has been no such im- 
 mobility as to religious opinion and practice. There, as 
 elsewhere, it holds true that man's mind never remains 
 in one stay. The Hindus of the present day speak of 
 their Vedic ancestors with profound reverence, but if 
 they were to rise from their graves and act as they 
 
RETROGRESSION. 353 
 
 did when denizens of earth— kill cows, disregard caste, 
 drink largely of the intoxicating juice of the som plant,' 
 and worship in an entirely different manner— their 
 reverence would turn into horror and detestation. We 
 cannot say that the modern Puranas do not rest in any 
 degree on the Vedas; some Vedic principles are 
 manifest in them : but in the gods they set forth for 
 worship and in the practices they enjoin, there is between 
 them and the Vedas a marked diversity. The numerous 
 sects which have arisen from time to time among the 
 Hindus show that they too have had that measure of 
 mental activity which has led to new forms of thought 
 and practice. 
 
 (2) The genesis and evolution of religion. In the dim 
 remote past to which the Vedas introduce us, we find the 
 Hindus a religious, a very religious, people. There is 
 no indication of any period when they could be called 
 secularists. Their religious views and practices have 
 changed, there has been an evolving process j the con- 
 nection may be traced, and we see the result in the 
 Puranic system of our day. Has this movement been 
 forward, or backward ? Has the fittest survived and the 
 weak and useless perished ? The Vedic system little 
 deserves the praise often lavished on it, but surely it is 
 preferable to that which has taken its place. There has 
 been deterioration, not improvement. Has not this ever 
 been^ the case in reference to religion, so far as the 
 working of the human mind is concerned? Is not 
 modern Buddhism a falling off from ancient Buddhism? 
 Does not Rabbinical Judaism belittle and dwarf Old 
 Testament Judaism? Does not Roman Catholic 
 Christianity materialize New Testament Christianity? 
 The facts of man's religious history prove incontestably 
 
 24 
 
354 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 that his constant tendency is towards retrogression, not 
 towards advancement. 
 
 (3) Comparative religion. On this subject elaborate 
 treatises have been written with the object of proving 
 that all religions have had their origin in the human 
 mind, and have been evolved under purely human con- 
 ditions. Some of the writers, prompted, we may hope, 
 by a devout feeling, allow in vague terms an influence 
 exerted on the evolution by Providential arrangements. 
 Still, in the result we are not to see in any case the effect 
 of a supernatural revelation, but in all cases an approxima- 
 tion in different degrees to truth, secured by the unaided 
 working of the human mind. Does a comparison between 
 the sacred books of the Hindus and the Bible support 
 this view ? Listen to a Sanscrit specialist like Professor 
 Max Miiller, who has spent years in the study of the 
 Veda, and who has every conceivable motive to say 
 everything he can on its behalf : " That the Veda is full 
 of childish, silly, even to our mind monstrous concep- 
 tions, who would deny ? But even these monstrosities 
 are interesting and instructive. I could not even answer 
 the question, if you were to ask it, whether the religion 
 of the Veda was polytheistic or monotheistic. Mono- 
 theistic in the usual sense of the word it is decidedly not." 
 The dreamy, vague teaching of the Veda has hardened 
 into the unmistakable polytheism and pantheism of 
 modern Hinduism. In no country in the world has 
 mind been more active than in India ; in no country have 
 the learned had such abundant leisure, such full oppor- 
 tunity for quiet, sustained thought — and you see the 
 result. We follow with deep interest and sympathy the 
 straining of these minds to understand themselves and 
 the world around \ as they grope after God we find they 
 
THE BIBLE AND THE HINDU SCRIPTURES. 355 
 
 occasionally obtain a glimpse of the highest truth, but 
 the darkness, though for the moment relieved, is not 
 dispelled. The truth has continued to elude them. 
 They have not arrived at the knowledge of even the 
 first principles of a theology worthy of God, and fitted 
 to direct, purify, and guide man. Excellent, high-toned 
 sentiments are no doubt found in Hindu writings, but 
 these do not alter their general character. The Bible, 
 b>y its teaching regarding God and man, above all by its 
 record of the peerless excellence of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, and of the provision made through Him for the 
 supply of man's deepest wants, presents a marvellous 
 contrast to the Veda, to the great epic poems of the 
 Hindus, to their philosophical treatises and their 
 Puranas. I know a good deal of what has been said 
 to show that the characteristics of the Bible may be 
 accounted for on merely human principles, but the cer- 
 tain facts of the case refute, to my mind, the arguments 
 adduced. Max Miiller says in one of his writings — I can- 
 not quote his exact words — that we are not to look in the 
 songs of the Veda for anything so advanced as we find 
 in the Psalter. Why not? Had not the Pundits of 
 India far more cultured minds than David and the 
 hymnists of Israel ? Their works are different, for their 
 teaching came from different sources. One benefit I 
 have got from my residence in India, a conviction 
 deepened by every successive glimpse into Hindu teach- 
 ing and practice : that in the Bible we have a supernatural 
 revelation of God's will, and that in building on it we are 
 building on a rock which cannot be shaken. 
 
 (4) The migration of nations. Few things in the history 
 -of the world are more surprising to us than whole nations 
 making their way to new and remote countries. I have 
 
356 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 thought I have got a little help towards understanding 
 these movements when I have observed large bands 
 of people — men, women, and children — pursuing their 
 journey, carrying with them all they deemed necessary, 
 and lying out at night on the bare ground, with a 
 blanket, which they had carried over their shoulder, 
 as their only covering. They took food with them when 
 they knew that at their halting-place it could not be pro- 
 cured. Very differently do our native regiments travel. 
 They are attended by a host of camp-followers, and have 
 a formidable amount of baggage. I once saw a party of 
 woodmen in the hills sleeping under a tree when there 
 was frost on the ground; and on the remark being made 
 it was a wonder they could live, a hillman remarked, 
 " Has not each got his blanket ? What hardship is there?" 
 When nations migrated they no doubt sent out scouring, 
 parties, who seized all the food on which they could lay 
 their hands. When travelling alone in the hills I had com- 
 monly with me a tent so small that a man carried it on 
 his head, but I must acknowledge I could not approach 
 the simplicity of the native traveller's arrangements. 
 
E UR OPEANS IN INDIA. 357 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 EUROPEANS IN INDIA. 
 
 THE climate of India precludes the possibility of its 
 being a sphere for European colonization. With 
 the exception of the hill districts, the intense heat during 
 the greater part of the year makes out-door occupation 
 trying even to the native, and well-nigh unendurable for 
 Europeans — a heat uncompensated by the coolness of 
 the night, for in the North-West, at least, the stifling 
 closeness of the night is more trying than the heat of 
 the day. If this heat lasted for only a few days, as in 
 Southern Australia, it might be borne, though a hindrance 
 to work ; but in India it lasts for months, and it is suc- 
 ceeded by months of drenching rain, during a great part 
 of which the moisture and mugginess are as unpleasant 
 as the previous dry heat had been. 
 
 Apart from climate, there is no room for us as colo- 
 nists. In India we have not to do with rude tribes, as 
 in America, New Zealand, and Australia, and in a 
 measure in Southern Africa, that cannot be said to 
 possess the land over which they and their fathers have 
 long roamed, or of which they have cultivated a very 
 small part. We have to do with ancient nations that 
 have taken full possession of the land by cultivation of 
 the soil, and by pursuit of the arts of civilized life. We 
 
358 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMA ON 
 
 find in India no tribes wasting away before the white 
 stranger, but a people growing in number under the 
 security of our government. '1 here are districts in the 
 North- West more densely peopled than any districts in 
 Europe occupied by an agricultural population. The 
 emigration of coolies to the Mauritius, to Bourbon, to 
 the coast of South America, and to the West Indian 
 Islands, has done little to relieve the pressure. Migra- 
 tion to unoccupied parts of Central India and Assam has 
 been carried out to a small extent, and it is very desirable 
 this migration should increase. Non-Aryan tribes occupy 
 a large part of the mountains and forests of Central and 
 Eastern India. They have no wish for accession from 
 the people of the plains, and still less do they wish for 
 the entrance of Europeans. I can say nothing about 
 the mountains of the South, but so far as I have travelled 
 over the sub-Himalayan range in the North there is no 
 place for Europeans in it, except for officials or employers 
 and managers of native labour, such as tea-planters. 
 
 While India presents no sphere for European coloni- 
 zation, it presents an increasingly wide field for European 
 agency in the civil and military services, in the depart- 
 ments of education, commerce, manufacture — for instance, 
 of cotton goods, railways, indigo, and tea. In these dif- 
 ferent departments Europeans are in constant intercourse 
 with natives of every class from the highest to the lowest. 
 There is often much pleasant and courteous intercourse 
 between them ; but in language, habits, religion, in almost 
 everything in which human beings can be separated from 
 their fellows, they are so different that they remain to a 
 great degree strangers to each other, however kindly may 
 be their mutual feeling. English people never call India 
 " home," though they may have lived in it the greater 
 
E UR OPE AN AND NA TI VE INTERCO URSE. 359 
 
 part of their life. This name is always reserved for our 
 fatherland. (I had better say that the term English, as used 
 in India, includes all from Great Britain and Ireland, 
 and to them also the term European is mainly, though 
 not exclusively, applied.) I have heard persons of pure 
 English descent, who had never been out of India, speak 
 of England as "home." The reservation of the word to 
 the land from which we have gone, indicates the fact 
 that in India we are strangers, and cannot cease to be 
 strangers. Colonists in America and other lands may make 
 a similar reservation ; but living as they do among their 
 own people, in a country which they expect to be the 
 home of their descendants, the term as applied to Eng- 
 land is deprived of much of its endearing force. 
 
 In the great Presidency cities, and in a less degree in 
 other cities throughout the country, we have a large 
 educated class of natives, who are w r ell acquainted with 
 our language and literature. They have pursued their 
 studies in the hope of securing good situations, and this 
 hope is in a large measure realized. They are found all 
 over Northern India occupying responsible and well-paid 
 positions. Many persons of this class come daily into 
 close intercourse with Europeans in the discharge of 
 their duties, and have means of knowing them which 
 no other class possesses. The intercourse is generally 
 courteous, in not a few cases friendly, and they talk freely 
 with each other on a great variety of subjects. There is, 
 however, not infrequently an underfeeling with educated 
 natives that they are not sufficiently appreciated— that 
 they do not get the place due to them — that they are 
 treated as an inferior race ; and there is consequently a 
 suspiciousness fatal to cordiality. I am far from think- 
 ing that Europeans always treat educated natives with the 
 
360 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 courtesy due to them. I have known instances of marked 
 discourtesy ; but I am sure many of our people are bent 
 on treating them with all justice and kindness, and some- 
 times, at least, this friendly feeling has not been recipro- 
 cated. Human nature being what it is, however much 
 we may regret, we need not wonder at the grating be- 
 tween parties that have so much in common, and yet 
 owing to that very circumstance have clashing feelings 
 and interests. 
 
 Many native gentlemen, some of the highest rank, cul- 
 tivate European society, and every European who has 
 anything of the gentleman in him treats them with the 
 courtesy due to their position. Natives of this class 
 are, as a rule, most gentlemanly in their demeanour, and 
 intercourse with them is very pleasant. 
 
 Between Europeans and most natives with whom they 
 have to do, there is such a difference of station there is 
 no room for jealousy. To some Europeans they stand 
 in the relation of agents, clerks, and labourers; to a 
 greater number in the relation of servants. In India, 
 as in our own country, there is a great variety in the 
 character of both masters and servants. There, as here, 
 there are hard, selfish, unreasonable masters and mis- 
 tresses, and there are undoubtedly bad, false, dishonest 
 servants ; but I have no hesitation in giving my impres- 
 sion — I may say stating my belief — that native servants 
 are generally well treated, and that this treatment draws 
 forth no small degree of gratitude and attachment. This 
 was strikingly shown in the Mutiny period. Servants 
 often remain for years with the same masters, render 
 most useful and faithful service ; their wages are con- 
 tinued in whole or in part during the temporary absence 
 of their masters from India; on their return they are 
 
THE FAITHFULNESS OF SERVANTS. 361 
 
 found waiting for them at the port of debarkation, and 
 on final departure for Europe it is not unusual for old 
 Indians to pension those who have been faithful to them. 
 When I speak of faithfulness, I do not mean that, with 
 the exception of very rare cases, full dependence can be 
 placed on their truthfulness, or even on their honesty in 
 the strict sense of the term. It is very difficult for them 
 to resist the temptation to tell a lie, when a fault is to be 
 screened or benefit to be obtained, and there are certain 
 understood perquisites of which they are inclined to 
 avail themselves in too liberal a degree ; but they are at 
 the same time very careful to guard the property of their 
 master against all others, and are deeply concerned for 
 the honour of his name. As a rule natives, both ser- 
 vants and others, are treated with less justice and kind- 
 ness by the lower class of Europeans than by persons 
 better educated and of a higher position. There are 
 indeed soldiers and others who look on " niggers," as 
 they call all natives, with contempt, and are inclined 
 to abuse them, so far as they are permitted, to the full 
 bent of their rude nature. The term " nigger " is used 
 by some who call themselves gentlemen. All I can say 
 of such gentlemen is that I wish they would speak in a 
 manner worthy of the name. 
 
 Of late years the position of Englishmen in India has 
 greatly changed. By the overland route, and by the 
 weekly postal communication, England and India are 
 brought near to each other in a degree which could not 
 have been deemed possible in former days. Persons on 
 leave for three months can now spend a month or five 
 weeks with their friends in England, and at the end of 
 their leave be ready to resume their duties. Every week 
 a stream of literature, in the shape of newspapers, peri- 
 
362 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 odicals, and books, is poured over every part of India,, 
 reaching the European in the most remote part of the 
 land. Hill stations have become very accessible by rail, 
 and to these Europeans betake themselves in great num- 
 bers for the hot months. All these things give greater 
 force than ever to the home feeling, by strengthening 
 home sympathies and ties. The result is our people in 
 India are birds of passage as they never were before, 
 ready to return to their own land as soon as circum- 
 stances will allow them. 
 
 There are some advantages from this altered state of 
 things. Many of the early residents became, to their 
 own deep injury, too intimate with the people of the 
 land. They learned their ways, and became like them 
 in character. It was often said, when the Mutiny broke 
 out, that the officers of native regiments had in former 
 days maintained friendly intercourse with the Sepoys, 
 and thus secured their attachment, and that the cessa- 
 tion, or at least the lessening, of this intercourse was one 
 great cause of the outbreak. If good resulted from it 
 in the weakening of national antipathy, in many cases evil 
 resulted from it in the deterioration of character. Many 
 of our countrymen at an early period formed native con- 
 nections, and by doing so brought themselves down to 
 the level of their new friends. Some became so en- 
 tangled that they gave up all thought of returning to 
 their own country. It must not be supposed that all 
 who settled down in India for life were of this character. 
 Some who had kept themselves aloof from all improper 
 connection with natives became so attached to India 
 and to the mode of living there, that they made it their 
 permanent abode. A few of this class remain, but their 
 number is rapidly decreasing, and none are taking their 
 
IMPROVEMENT OF EUROPEAN SOCIETY. 363 
 
 place. The persons who have thus made India their 
 home have often had a large circle of attached native 
 friends. 
 
 The constant communication of Englishmen with their 
 native land, frequent visits to it, and the anticipation of 
 getting away from India at the earliest possible period, 
 tends to lessen their interest in Indian affairs, and weaken 
 their sympathy with the native population. The closer 
 connexion with England is, however, attended with 
 some advantages. It can be confidently affirmed that 
 many of our countrymen in India are bent on promoting 
 the good of the people with whom they come into con- 
 tact, and strive to perform their duties faithfully. We 
 may hope that home influence may strengthen them for 
 the more efficient discharge of their work, and may thus 
 prove a benefit to the people. 
 
 In many respects there has been a marked improve- 
 ment in European society. The small house near the 
 large one, significantly called the Zenana, is never seen 
 near the houses of recent erection. Even in the smaller 
 stations there are places for Christian worship, where 
 Europeans meet on the Lord's Day, when some official 
 reads the prayers of the Church of England, and, if he be 
 a zealous man, a sermon. A chaplain pays occasional 
 visits to these places. The attendance on public worship 
 is far from being what it ought to be, and we have much 
 reason to fear it is often very formal ; but it furnishes 
 a pleasing contrast to the neglect which formerly pre- 
 vailed. Along with this church-going there is, no doubt, 
 a great deal of unbelief in India. I have already said 
 we have in India Christians who are earnest for the 
 honour of their Lord, and do all they can to promote 
 His cause ; but the greater number of our people are not, 
 
364 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 and have never been, friendly to the propagation of the 
 Gospel. I am afraid the unfriendliness has been in- 
 creased by the sceptical tone of much of the literature of 
 the day. I have known gentlemen giving to their native 
 subordinates for perusal periodicals and books which 
 could only lead them to the conclusion that Christianity 
 was dying out in England. 
 
 There are, happily, counteracting influences. Christian 
 as well as sceptical literature makes its way to India, and 
 is telling on many minds. And then, at our larger sta- 
 tions, where Europeans and Eurasians are in the greatest 
 number, more is done for their spiritual benefit than at 
 any previous period. Well may every Christian heartily 
 desire success to all such effort, for nothing would do 
 more to bring the people of the land to the feet of Jesus 
 than the prevalence of living godliness among our own 
 countrymen. 
 
THE GOVERNMENT OB INDIA. 365 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA. 
 
 THE first question which comes before us when 
 considering the government of India is, What 
 right have we to govern it ? For an answer to this ques- 
 tion we must betake ourselves to the history of our con- 
 nexion with India. This history cannot have for us 
 the interest and fascination of the history of our own 
 country ; but it has strong claims on us as the subjects 
 of the British Crown, contains much that deserves and 
 repays perusal, and must be known by us in order to the 
 right understanding of the position we have obtained. 
 
 My reading of Indian history leads me to the con- 
 clusion that in all likelihood we should never have been 
 rulers in India had we not been grievously injured as 
 traders, in violation of rights accorded to us by the 
 native powers. All know the story of the black hole of 
 Calcutta, which led to our waging war on the Nawab. 
 We had previously fought with the French and French 
 allies in the south, we had contended with other 
 European rivals, but our rule began with the victory of 
 Plassey. After that victory our only alternative was 
 either to leave the country altogether, or to go on con- 
 quering till we should become the supreme power over 
 the whole of the continent. If we had retired from the 
 
366 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 land we had conquered, and had sought to remain as 
 traders, our retirement would have been attributed to 
 weakness, and demands would have been made on us 
 which would have made trading impossible. If we had 
 determined not to advance, but simply to retain what we 
 had acquired, and had satisfied ourselves with repelling 
 attacks, these attacks would have been continued till 
 we had either gone forward, or resigned our conquest 
 altogether 
 
 We can understand the course pursued by the founders 
 of the British Empire in India only when we look on 
 them as placed between the alternative mentioned. The 
 Directors of the East India Company did not seek the 
 government of India. They deprecated it. By it com- 
 merce was disorganized and dividends lowered. Some 
 of their servants in India made enormous fortunes by 
 the new state of things, but this was no comfort to them. 
 Order after order was sent out against the extension of 
 territory. Governor after governor was commissioned to 
 carry out the peaceful views of the home authorities, but 
 still conquest went on under the direction of these very 
 governors. 
 
 I am far from vindicating all that was done ; deeds 
 were committed which deserve severe condemnation ; 
 but it would be a travesty of history to say that the 
 governors, who set out with peaceful intentions, suc- 
 cumbed to the lust of conquest. They were often forced 
 to adopt war measures. Many instances might be 
 adduced. I give only one. The Marquess of Hastings 
 had denounced the conquering career of the Marquess 
 of Wellesley. He was selected for the very purpose of 
 reversing his policy, so far as it could be reversed. If 
 any person could be trusted for giving peace to India 
 
POLICY OF THE MARQUESS OF HASTINGS. 367 
 
 he was the man. Shortly after his arrival our connexion 
 with the Ghoorkhas, the ruling body in Nepal, became 
 strained. They made raids into our territory beneath 
 the hills, and murdered and robbed our subjects. The 
 Marquess was extremely desirous to avoid a rupture with 
 them. Remonstrances were addressed to them, and pro- 
 posals made to settle differences by the better denning 
 of the boundaries between their country and ours. These 
 proposals were regarded as a proof of weakness, and the 
 bold demand was made we should give up to them the 
 great fertile region north of the Ganges. There was no 
 further hesitation. To yield to this demand, for which 
 there was not the pretext of right, would have been to 
 announce to all the potentates of India that we were 
 unable to defend ourselves, and would have led them to 
 assail us. War was declared, which, after two campaigns 
 and a severe struggle, ended in the discomfiture of the 
 Ghoorkhas, and in their cession to us of the large terri- 
 tory they had conquered a few years previously. Ought 
 the Governor-General to have yielded to the Ghoorkha 
 demand ? Yes, if we were prepared to leave the country 
 altogether, but otherwise not. 
 
 No sooner had the Marquess of Hastings landed in 
 India than he began to doubt the policy he had formerly 
 advocated, and events soon compelled him to abandon 
 it. The policy on which he acted was declared by him 
 in unmistakable terms : " Our object in India ought to 
 be to render the British Government paramount in effect, 
 if not declaredly so . . . and to oblige the other states to 
 perform the two great feudal duties of supporting our 
 rule with all their forces, and submitting their mutual 
 differences to our arbitration." 
 
 Till we became confessedly supreme we were not for 
 
368 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 any length of time allowed to remain at peace. There 
 were two main reasons for the unrest, which prepared the 
 way for war. One reason was that the native powers 
 hated and dreaded us, and were eager for our overthrow 
 even when they professed the greatest friendliness. When 
 we were involved in difficulties they were ready to rise 
 against us. Every indication of our desire to avoid 
 hostilities was interpreted as a sign of weakness, and thus 
 became an incentive to the renewal of the struggle. 
 Another reason for the fresh outbreak of war was the 
 treachery of the native princes. I cannot say that in the 
 matter of treaty keeping we had clean hands. The gross 
 deceit played on Omichund, as described by Macaulay in 
 his Essay on Lord Clive, stands nearly alone in our public 
 conduct in India, but other transactions have been un- 
 worthy of our character for high-minded integrity. It 
 may, however, be confidently affirmed, that looking at our 
 governing conduct as a whole, it presents by its faith- 
 fulness to engagements a marked contrast to the conduct 
 of those who had entered into treaty with us. Many of 
 our Indian wars would have been prevented had there 
 not been on their part the violation of engagements in 
 a manner which showed they never intended to keep 
 them an hour longer than they were compelled by 
 circumstances. 
 
 If a review of the course pursued by our people in 
 India shows how we became the governing power, and 
 indicates the ground on which our rule rests, a review of 
 the history of India for ages previous to our advent, and 
 of the condition in which we found it, will help us greatly 
 in answering the question — Has India been benefited or 
 injured by our having seized the sceptre ? 
 
 For centuries Muhammadans were the rulers of India. 
 
MUHAMMADAN RULE. 369 
 
 They entered, not to avenge wrongs done to them, but 
 as the servants of Allah, called to put down idolatry, and 
 entitled to rule over the nations they subdued. Centuries 
 elapsed before the extension of their rule beyond the 
 North-West region. Gradually it extended to other parts 
 of India. The seventeenth century was well advanced 
 before the greater part of Southern India came under the 
 rule of the Emperor of Delhi — the Shah-un-shah, King 
 of kings, as he was called. His suzerainty was generally 
 acknowledged in those lands which continued under 
 Hindu rulers. 
 
 As we turn over page after page of the Muhammadan 
 rule in India, what scenes of strife, of bloody war, of 
 treachery, of desolated countries, continually meet our 
 view ! No sooner did an emperor die than the struggle 
 commenced for the vacant throne between his many 
 sons, brother fighting with brother till one became the 
 victor, and then woe to the vanquished ! The governors 
 of Provinces, as soon as they thought they had sufficient 
 power, rebelled against the sovereign, and struggled — not 
 infrequently with success— to secure an independent 
 throne. In the course of these civil wars countries were 
 overrun, towns and villages levelled with the ground, their 
 inhabitants massacred, and their property pillaged. We 
 read of rival dynasties which contended with each other 
 for empire. We are told of terrible invasions like those 
 of Timour and Nadir Shah. There were no doubt great 
 emperors, such as the illustrious Akbar, during whose 
 rule India suffered comparatively little from war, and 
 enjoyed great prosperity. Governors were now and then 
 firm and just rulers. Looking at the whole period of 
 Muhammadan rule, during no part of which India was 
 free from the scourge of war, and during a great part of 
 
 25 
 
370 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 which war on a large scale was carried on, untold misery 
 must have been endured by many of its inhabitants, 
 and there was little security for life and property. The 
 aristocracy of the emperors' courts was mainly that of 
 office, and only to a limited degree that of blood and 
 ancient possession. We find persons of mean birth 
 rising to greatness, and persons on the very pinnacle of 
 honour cast down to the ground. There was a suc- 
 cession of emperors called Slave Emperors, as they had 
 originally been slaves in the court, whence they rose to 
 supreme power. When we consider the teaching of the 
 Quran respecting those who do not submit to Islam, we 
 may suppose what the condition of the Hindus was 
 under Muhammadan rulers, so far as they acted out their 
 principles. Happily during this period, though constantly 
 exposed to terrible disasters, the people in their villages 
 were often left to manage their own affairs. 
 
 When our nation commenced its conquering career in 
 the middle of the eighteenth century, the Muhammadan 
 Empire was in a state of collapse. Within thirteen years 
 of Aurungzeb's death, in 1706, six sovereigns were seated 
 on the imperial throne. Shah Alum was nominal 
 emperor from 1759 to 1806, and all the time he was a 
 wanderer, a prisoner, or a pensioner of the Mahrattas, 
 the Rohillas, or the English. He was as melancholy an 
 example of fallen greatness as can well be conceived, a 
 greatness which retained its title while its bearer was 
 subjected to every indignity. He had been for some 
 time in the hands of the Mahrattas, who used his seal 
 freely, and at the same time treated him with the utmost 
 cruelty. The food supplied was so insufficient that he 
 and his household were almost starved. When Lord 
 Lake took Delhi from the Mahrattas in 1803 he found 
 
THE REIGN OF ADVENTURERS. 371 
 
 the poor old blind emperor under a tattered canopy, 
 trembling at what might now befall him. Some years 
 previously his eyes had been gouged out by one of his 
 Rohilla keepers. At once he was treated by us with the 
 highest consideration. Power was not given, but a hand- 
 some pension was assigned, and he was personally treated 
 with all the honour due to a reigning sovereign. When 
 these facts are remembered, it is strange we should be 
 charged with overthrowing the Muhammadan Empire in 
 India. Whoever was injured by our conquest, Shah 
 Alum and his family were assuredly benefited. 
 
 Our contention was with those whose only claim to rule 
 rested on the sword. Bold adventurers had risen every- 
 where, and were snatching at the fallen sceptre. There 
 were still emperors, as we have mentioned, and their 
 prestige gave value to documents bearing their seal, but 
 they did not retain a shred of power. Daring Europeans, 
 helped by native allies, had set to carving out princi- 
 palities for themselves. The viziers and nawabs that 
 ruled in the name of the emperors rendered them neither 
 obedience nor tribute. Our first great battle was fought 
 with Suraj ud Dowla, the Nawab of Bengal, the grandson 
 tDf Aliverdi Khan, an Afghan adventurer, who had ac- 
 quired the government of the country. In the South we 
 fought with Hyder Ali, a trooper who gathered under 
 him a marauding band, and by courage and craft rose to 
 being a sovereign, and with his son Tippoo Sahib. Our 
 longest and most severe contests were with the Mahrattas, 
 a warlike tribe of Hindus in Western India, who came 
 first into prominence in the seventeenth century under 
 Sivajee, a petty chieftain, and gradually advanced under 
 various leaders till they became for a time the paramount 
 power. Their hordes of horsemen scoured the country in 
 
372 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 all directions, north and south, east and west, demanding 
 the chauth) the fourth part of the revenue, and returning 
 to their capitals laden with spoil. The leaders with whom 
 we had most to do, sometimes in the way of friend- 
 ship, far more frequently in the way of warfare, were 
 the Peshwa, the head of the Mahratta confederacy, the 
 heir of Sivajee; Ranojee Bhonsla, a private horseman, who 
 became Prince of Nagpore; Pilajee Gaikwar, a cowherd, 
 who ruled in Baroda; Ranojee Scindia, a menial servant 
 of the Peshwa, who made Gwalior his capital; and 
 Mulhar Rao Holkar, a shepherd, who became Maharajah 
 of Indore. Not one of their number professed to belong 
 to the ancient ruling families of India. 
 
 As we glance at India as it was under Muhammadan 
 rule, and consider its state when our conquering career 
 began, we find there were no elements of stable govern- 
 ment : the Imperial power had become a shadow; 
 ambitious leaders were everywhere striving for the mas- 
 tery, ready to beat down all opposition within their own 
 immediate sphere, and then prepared to wrest power 
 from neighbouring chiefs. India had at that time a very 
 dark prospect before it. 
 
 This review of the past history of India may seem an 
 unduly long introduction to a brief statement regarding 
 its condition under our rule, but it is only by looking to 
 the past a right answer can be given to the questions : 
 What right have we to govern India? From what evils has 
 our government delivered it? What benefits have we con- 
 ferred on its population ? Inattention to the past has led 
 many to give in some cases an utterly wrong, in other 
 cases a very inadequate, answer to these questions. It is 
 clear that India has been brought under our rule by what 
 may be rightly called aggressive war only to a very limited 
 
THE ADVANTAGES OF BRITISH RULE. 373 
 
 extent. It is also clear that the hostile forces we en- 
 countered were not those of the ancient princes of the 
 land, but of adventurers who were struggling to rise on 
 the ruins of the disorganized empire. At the present 
 time, on the mere ground of the length of possession, our 
 rule has a stronger claim than that of the potentates 
 whom we overthrew. 
 
 A review of the past prepares us to see some of the 
 advantages our rule has conferred. No longer are armies 
 marching over India, supplying their wants by the plun- 
 der of its people, and leaving ruin in their track. No 
 longer has the husbandman, when he sees at a distance 
 the dust raised by the tramp of the Mahratta cavalry, 
 to flee to his walled village, if he has one to flee to, or 
 to his hamlet if he cannot do better, leaving his field, 
 perhaps ready for the sickle, to be trodden down by the 
 unwelcome stranger. No longer are hosts of marauders 
 like the Pindarees, who scarcely professed to be anything 
 else than marauders, allowed to roam over fertile and 
 populous regions in their robbing and murdering expe- 
 ditions. No longer are professional robbers called 
 Dacoits allowed to set out on excursions, and make their 
 way under various disguises to towns, to rise at an 
 arranged signal, attack the houses of the rich, and force 
 them, often under torture, to reveal their treasures. No 
 longer are Thugs, professional murderers, left to arrange 
 their plans for insinuating themselves into the goodwill 
 of travellers, with a view, when the opportunity came, to 
 throttling their victims, robbing them, and then burying 
 them, that all mark of their deeds might be effaced. From 
 Dacoity and Thuggery Europeans had nothing to fear, 
 but natives suffered frightfully ; and special departments 
 were formed for their suppression. In Northern India, 
 
374 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 at least, these bands of robbers and murderers have been 
 broken up. No longer are the lives and property of the 
 people at the disposal of their rulers, as was to a large 
 extent the case previous to the British era. They are 
 now under the aegis of law. 
 
 If any one think that the advantages thus conferred 
 by the establishment of a stable government are of little 
 value, all we can say is they have no conception of the 
 misery brought on thousands from generation to gene- 
 ration, when these advantages were unknown. 
 
 Never was a comparatively small nation entrusted with 
 so vast a work as that committed to us by our under- 
 taking to administer the government of a continent 
 thousands of miles from our shores, inhabited by two 
 hundred and fifty-four millions, who differ widely from 
 us in language, religion, habits, history, associations — in 
 almost everything in which one nation can differ from 
 another. Two hundred millions are under our direct 
 rule, and the rest are under native rulers who acknow- 
 ledge our Queen as suzerain. It would have been a 
 miracle had we not in the course of our government, 
 during more than a hundred years, done many unwise, 
 many wrong, even many cruel things. He would be a 
 bold man who would stand forth and maintain we had 
 done good, and only good, to the nations of India. We 
 take no such optimist position. You can adduce many 
 things in our dealings with the people which the best of 
 the officials have themselves condemned, and you can 
 mention evils which have followed our rule for which we 
 can scarcely be said to be responsible. This, however, 
 we say with the fullest conviction, as the result of long 
 residence in India and of extensive observation: that 
 considering our position as Western strangers, and the 
 
BRITISH ADMINISTRA TORS. 375 
 
 difficulties with which we have had to contend, our 
 Government has had a success far greater than could 
 have been anticipated, and has conferred vast advantages 
 on the country. 
 
 It would be difficult to find in the history of the 
 world a more remarkable class of men than those who 
 have been engaged in the administration of India. There 
 have been inefficient, selfish, idle, unprincipled men 
 among them. In former years we used to hear of John 
 Company's bad bargains; and now that India has come 
 directly under the rule of Queen Victoria we now and 
 then hear of John Bull's bad bargains. These have been 
 the exception, not the rule. There has been in succes- 
 sion a band of men who have earnestly sought the good 
 of the people, and have shown a capacity for administra- 
 tion which I have no doubt surprised themselves, as it 
 has those who have watched their progress. Sir John 
 Kaye has given interesting sketches of some Indian 
 worthies, but it would require a series of volumes to 
 record the deeds of the many who have taken a warm in- 
 terest in the people, have toiled for their good, and have 
 been trusted, and in some instances literally adored, by 
 them. 1 have had a considerable acquaintance with the 
 personnel of the Government of the North- West Provinces, 
 from some occupying the highest position down to assis- 
 tant magistrates. I cannot say I admired all, but I can 
 say that I have been surprised at the number who did 
 their duty faithfully, were thoroughly interested in their 
 work, and rejoiced when they had achieved any measure 
 of success. 
 
 With a few exceptions the Governor-General has been 
 an English nobleman who has filled some important 
 office at home; but Lieutenant-Governors, and not in- 
 
376 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 frequently Governors, have been persons of large Indian 
 experience, who have passed with honour through all 
 the grades of the Civil Service. These, assisted by the 
 Commissioners of Provinces, exercise a strict supervision 
 over the entire administration. Officials have continually 
 to report their doings, and irregularities are quickly dis- 
 covered. We know of no class who have more onerous 
 duties to discharge than magistrates of districts and 
 their subordinates. They have long hours in crowded 
 courts in an exhausting climate, decide many intricate 
 cases, maintain order within the bounds of their juris- 
 diction, receive reports of what is being done and give 
 directions, prepare reports for the Government, and they 
 are expected to give a courteous reception to native 
 gentlemen when they call, however long these gentlemen 
 may be inclined to prolong their visit. We have been 
 at times in a position to see the daily life of some of 
 these men, and have been struck with the amount of 
 work devolving on them, and the patience they have 
 shown where there was strong temptation to impatience. 
 As strangers, it is difficult for us to understand the 
 people, and the result is that with the best intentions we 
 have at times adopted measures utterly unsuited to them. 
 Our very attempt to secure the rights of all classes by the 
 careful drawing up of civil and criminal codes, and by the 
 institution of courts where they are administered, has 
 fostered the litigiousness of the people, and has led to a 
 fearful amount of perjury. Litigiousness got no play 
 where courts did not exist, and perjury could not show 
 itself where witnesses were not examined. It is said that 
 in one of our most recent acquisitions, the Punjab, the 
 people have deteriorated under our rule. Runjeet Singh 
 had no prisons. Thieves caught in the act were maimed 
 
INCIDENTAL EVILS OF OUR RULE. 377 
 
 and allowed to go their way. Murderers and other great 
 offenders were at once put to death. We can scarcely 
 adopt this primitive mode of maintaining order, and by 
 our codes, courts, judges, and witnesses we have no doubt 
 opened the door to evils of which the Punjab knew 
 nothing in Runjeet Singh's time. If the early colonists 
 of New York and Boston had retained their primitive 
 simplicity, those cities would not now be disgraced by 
 the slums, with their vice, crime, and misery, which make 
 them too closely resemble the cities of the old continent. 
 When society makes progress, new, social, and political, 
 arrangements are indispensable, the countervailing good 
 being much greater than the incidental evils which come 
 in their train. 
 
 In India there are Regulation and Non-Regulation 
 Provinces, the Regulation Provinces being those which 
 have been long under our rule, and are subject to all 
 our laws ; and the Non-Regulation Provinces being those 
 to which our codes are only partially applied, and where 
 much is left to the discretion of the administrator. In 
 the former the chief offices belong to the regular Civil 
 Service, while in the latter military men as well as civi- 
 lians are employed. Both classes have furnished most 
 able and capable men. 
 
 Considering the resources of India its taxation is 
 heavy. Our Government pays its servants of every de- 
 scription, high and low, civil and military, with a regularity 
 utterly unknown under native rule, and the income must 
 in regularity keep pace with the outlay. When we read of 
 seventy millions as the expenditure, it must be remem- 
 bered that what is called the land-tax is really rent, 
 for in India the land has always been considered the 
 property of the state. This is kept before the mind of 
 
378 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 the people of Madras by the yearly assessment of the 
 tenants, and before the people of the North-Western 
 Provinces by the new assessment made every thirtieth 
 year. By the perpetual settlement of Bengal, the tax- 
 collectors were at once raised to the position of land- 
 holders, of which they have often taken undue advan- 
 tage. It must also be remembered that a considerable 
 sum is expended on remunerative works, such as canals 
 and railways. The expenditure on the army is great. 
 I cannot conceive why our Government keeps up so 
 large a native army. It would appear to those who 
 are outside the Government circle, that its reduction 
 would conduce to safety as well as to economy. The 
 European part of the army is comparatively very small, 
 and it would be most perilous to lessen it. Years be- 
 fore the Mutiny, Sir Henry Lawrence said it was the 
 backbone of our strength, and events proved how true his 
 remark was. Yet it is, and must continue to be, very 
 expensive, like every other form of European agency. 
 The Mutiny among its other results left behind it heavy 
 pecuniary responsibilities, which have added to the debt 
 and led to increased taxation. Many are of opinion 
 that the amalgamation of the Royal and Indian armies 
 was an unwise measure, and has caused much unneces- 
 sary expense. Often complaints have been made that 
 successive home Governments, from their unchallenged 
 control over the affairs of India, have imposed an unjust 
 burden on its resources by keeping at home too large a 
 force at its expense, and by undue charges for stores 
 sent out, as well as by making it pay sums which were 
 more properly due by the imperial exchequer. 
 
 " The net land revenue has risen in the ten years begin- 
 ning 1870-71 from £2 0,3 3 5, 6 7 8, or nearly half the total net 
 
TAXATION. 379 
 
 revenue of ,£42,780.417, by about two millions sterling, 
 to ^22,125,807, with a total net revenue of ^49,801,664. 
 The gross revenue of the latter year, 1879-80, was 
 ^68,484,666, the difference being derived from sources 
 other than taxation, such as the opium monopoly. The 
 revenue of 1880-81 was ^72,920,000, and the gross 
 expenditure ^71,259,000. Including the land revenue 
 as land-tax, the 200 millions in the twelve Provinces of 
 British India pay about 4s. a head of imperial taxation, 
 besides municipal or local and provincial cesses, which 
 purchase such local advantages as roads, schools, police, 
 and sanitary appliances. This incidence of taxation 
 varies from 5s. 6d. per head of the land-owning classes 
 to 3s. 3d. for traders, 2s. for artisans, and is. 6d. for 
 agricultural labourers. The fiscal policy of the Govern- 
 ment has of late been to reduce the burden of the 
 salt monopoly, which is a poll-tax, and to abolish 
 import duties. The 54^ millions in the Native States 
 pay only to their own chiefs, who enjoy a net annual 
 revenue of fourteen millions sterling, and pay ^700,000 
 as tribute, or less than the cost of the military and 
 political establishments maintained on their account" 
 (Dr. George Smith's "Geography of British India"). 
 Deducting land-tax, opium, railways, irrigations, post- 
 office, and suchlike remunerative services, the taxation is 
 reduced to 2s. per head of population. 
 
 If the European army in India be the backbone of 
 our military sway, European administrators are, I believe, 
 the backbone of our government. During the terrible 
 years 1857 and 1858, the services rendered by those 
 who were engaged in civil employment were of the 
 highest value in restoring peace to the distracted country, 
 and in re-establishing our government. European 
 
3 So LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 officials of every grade showed equal zeal and deter- 
 mination. There were many native officials in these 
 Provinces, some of them highly paid and greatly trusted. 
 A few remained faithful and did good service, though 
 the help rendered, when summed up, cannot be reckoned 
 great. Many proved unfaithful, and some became our 
 bitter enemies. If instead of Englishmen as judges, 
 magistrates, and collectors, we had had at that time 
 highly educated natives of Bengal holding these offices, 
 the men who receive for themselves the best hearing 
 in England, can we suppose that, however well in- 
 clined, they could have borne the brunt of the contest, 
 and aided largely in securing the victory ? It would ill 
 become me to speak against these men. I know some 
 of the class for whom I have not only a high esteem but 
 warm affection. Among them there are not a (q\v who 
 are great in attainment, keen in intellect, and strong in 
 purpose to do the right. Still I do not think they them- 
 selves would maintain they have the physical courage, 
 the firm mental calibre, the moral strength, and the 
 high place in the confidence of the community, which 
 would qualify any of their number to occupy the posi- 
 tion of Governor-General, Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, 
 and Chief Commissioner, or would make it desirable they 
 should form the leading body of the administrative staff. 
 The successful candidates for the Civil Service have 
 come, we believe, exclusively from the highly-educated 
 youth of the Presidency cities, between whom and the 
 millions of their own Provinces there is no such bond 
 as unites the so-called leaders of the Irish with the 
 majority of their countrymen. In the other countries 
 of India they are little known, and are regarded with no 
 special interest. 
 
HINDUSTANEES AND BENGALEES. 3S1 
 
 Many mistakes would be prevented if English people 
 would remember that we have in India nations differing 
 widely from each other. We have a striking illustration 
 of this fact in the part of India in which we have lived. 
 Bengalees abound in the public offices in the North-West 
 Provinces and in the Punjab. They are deemed sharper 
 in intellect, and are better educated, than the Hindus- 
 tanees, and on account of their superior education they 
 have got situations which would have been filled by 
 natives of the country, had their educational acquire- 
 ments been equal. These Bengalees are not strangers 
 in these Provinces to the same extent as Englishmen, 
 but they are strangers, and are looked upon as such by 
 the people. Where they are numerous they keep mainly 
 to themselves, and however friendly they may be with 
 Hindustanees they are regarded as belonging to another 
 country. When you meet them you know them at once 
 by their look, dress, language, and habits. A part of 
 Benares, called Bengalee Tola — Bengalee district — is in- 
 habited almost wholly by Bengalees, and when you 
 enter it you feel you have come among another people, 
 who speak a different language and present a different 
 appearance. During the Mutiny they were regarded in 
 the North-West with suspicion, as half-English, and many 
 were happy to seek shelter where we were able to keep 
 our footing. If the question was put in Hindustan 
 Proper to any large body of people — Would you have 
 Bengalees or Englishmen for your magistrates and 
 judges ? I think in most places the well-nigh unanimous 
 response would be, The Englishman. 
 
 If my opinion is to rest on my own observation, I 
 would confidently say that notwithstanding the injustice 
 and unkindness charged against some English officials, 
 
382 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 the people generally have profound trust in our justice — 
 in our insaf— and as a rule, except when they think the 
 native partial to themselves, they prefer to have their 
 cases tried where an Englishman presides. When on a 
 journey I once came up to two men engaged in eager 
 talk. I heard them use frequently the words, Ungrez 
 and Insaf— Englishmen and Justice — and on stopping I 
 heard the one telling the other of the bribes taken by 
 native officials in a case he had, and of the justice done 
 when the Englishman took it up. He ended with the 
 words, " What a wonderful people for insaf these 
 English are ! " to which remark the other man assented. 
 I thanked them for their good opinion, and held on 
 my way. 
 
 If the administration of India in its present state must, 
 in its chief offices, remain in the hands of Europeans, 
 it must be expensive. The great officers of state, con- 
 sidering the dignity they have to maintain and the 
 establishments they have to keep, must he highly paid. 
 When we think of the qualifications required by those 
 who are charged with the ordinary administration, the 
 great expense to which they are put, the years they spend 
 in laborious work in an exhausting climate, and their 
 unfitness as a rule for work in England on their retire- 
 ment, I do not think their income or pension can be 
 to any large extent safely or justly reduced. The era 
 of nabobs, returning with vast wealth to astonish the 
 English people, has long since passed away. These men 
 had small pay, but great perquisites. The pay has been 
 greatly increased, but the perquisites are gone, and India 
 has benefited vastly by the change. 
 
 Indian magistrates have much to tell of the litigious- 
 ness of the people, their constant attempts to over- 
 
THE POVERTY OF THE PEOPLE. 383 
 
 reach each other, the carefully woven lies which 
 they have daily to unravel, the trust put in bribes to 
 influence decisions, and the deeply ingrained notion 
 in the minds of native officials that they should get 
 more for their services to the public than the bare pay, 
 the sookha tulub — dry wages — as it is contemptuously 
 called. 
 
 The people of Northern India are mainly agricultural, 
 and they are unquestionably poor. Our very success 
 has in one aspect tended to their impoverishment. With 
 very few exceptions they marry young, and during the 
 many years of peace which have passed over them, 
 with the exception of the short sharp crisis of the 
 Mutiny, the population has greatly increased. When- 
 ever an epidemic breaks out, means are at once employed 
 to check it. There is a vaccination department for the 
 purpose of preventing the ravages of small-pox. Female 
 infanticide, which had prevailed to a frightful extent 
 among certain castes, has been diminished, though not, 
 it is feared, wholly suppressed. It is well known that 
 famines have been sadly destructive of life, but there is 
 evidence that previous to our rule, when there were few 
 roads and little communication between one part of 
 India and another, famines were still more so. Among 
 so vast a population directly dependent on the soil, in 
 a country where rain is so indispensable, and is now and 
 then a failure, we have too much reason to fear famines 
 may yet recur ; but such provision is now made against 
 their ravages, that it is hoped the catastrophes of the 
 past will be escaped. 
 
 It is believed that, as the result of the new order of 
 things, India at the present time has by many millions 
 a larger population than it ever had previously. Mention 
 
384 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 has been made of the improvement effected in the Pro- 
 vince of Kumaon ; and other parts of India present in- 
 stances of equally successful administration, but the area 
 of new cultivation has not kept pace with the increase 
 of population. It is sad that so many of the people 
 should be underfed. In our own country and in Ireland 
 this question of sufficient food for the entire population 
 is one of the pressing difficulties of the day. Much is 
 within the power of people themselves to improve their 
 condition. We know it is so at home, and it is so in 
 India. There, there is a vast body of sturdy beggars, 
 under the guise of religious devotees, who feed on the 
 people. Lending and borrowing go on at a most hurt- 
 ful rate. If a person finds himself possessed of some 
 twenty or thirty rupees, he either puts it into jewels for 
 the female members of his family, or lends it at an 
 exorbitant rate of interest. It has sometimes seemed as 
 if creditors and debtors included the entire population. 
 Debt, not by law but by custom, is hereditary, and a 
 man is expected to pay the debts of his grand-parents. 
 Marriage expenses are so heavy, that very often a debt 
 settles down on a man on his marriage day under which 
 he lies till the day of his death. Government has done 
 much to induce leading men to bind themselves to a 
 moderate expenditure on the occasion of marriages, in 
 the hope that the example might prevent the unreason- 
 able and pernicious profusion of the marriage season. 
 If the habits of the people were changed the pressure 
 of poverty would be greatly lightened. 
 
 There is much room for improvement in the incidence 
 of taxation. The land-tax, we may say the land-rent, is 
 the main source of revenue, but it is alarming to think of 
 dependence on the opium monopoly for the millions it 
 
IMPR VEMENT. 385 
 
 contributes. Intoxicating drugs are largely used in India, 
 and among them opium holds the favourite place. Per- 
 mission to the people to grow and manufacture opium 
 for themselves would be as hurtful as permission to distil 
 whiskey and gin would be to our country. It is devoutly 
 to be wished the present system may come to an end, and 
 that in its place a fiscal system be adopted similar to that 
 of England in reference to alcoholic drinks. In refer- 
 ence to spirits, every effort should be made to discourage 
 their sale, however much the revenue may suffer in con- 
 sequence. The salt-tax has been so productive that it 
 has been kept up in a manner which has borne heavily on 
 the people. It has been reduced, and it is hoped that it 
 will be reduced still further. 
 
 Regarding some of the questions at present much dis- 
 cussed, I can only say that every friend of India, I may 
 say every friend of justice, must desire that the people be 
 largely entrusted with the management of their own 
 affairs, that local government be encouraged, and every 
 facility given to the admission of natives, so far as they 
 are qualified, into the rank of administrators. Much is 
 being done in this direction, and still more will be done 
 in the future. The police has been improved, but it 
 stands much in need of further improvement. 
 
 Happy changes were expected from the assumption by 
 the Queen of the direct government of India. Progress 
 has been made since that time, but I do not think it is 
 in any large measure owing to the change. For some 
 time previously increased attention was given to the 
 sanitation of towns, the improvement of roads, the laying 
 out of market-places, the planting of public gardens, the 
 building of hospitals, dispensaries, and town houses. Many 
 wealthy natives, stirred up by magistrates, have contri- 
 
 26 
 
buted liberally to these improvements. Of late years 
 these works have been carried on with increasing zeal. 
 In 1877 we saw some of the principal towns in Northern 
 India, and were struck with the contrast they presented 
 to their condition during the early years of our residence. 
 The filthiest place in Benaies, which almost sickened me 
 every time I came near it, is now a beautiful garden, with 
 a fine town-house attached to it. The very bulls of 
 Benares have been got rid of. No longer are these brutes 
 encountered in the streets. 
 
 My readers will observe that I am far from agreeing with 
 those who describe our rule in India as an unmixed bless- 
 ing to its inhabitants. It is undeniable that our rule, 
 because foreign, lies under great disadvantages. I am 
 still farther removed from agreement with the extremely 
 pessimist views which are sometimes advanced. The 
 history of India rebuts the assertion that we have ac- 
 quired our sovereignty mainly by fraud ; and whatever may 
 be said of other parts of India, no one acquainted with 
 Bengal and the North-Western Provinces can say that he 
 has there seen " the awful spectacle of a country inhabited 
 only by officials and peasants." When one thinks of the 
 atrocious crimes, upheld by religious sanctions, such as 
 suttee and infanticide, which we have put down in the 
 face of determined opposition and even threats of rebel- 
 lion from the most honoured classes of the community, 
 it is strange to be told that " before we went the people 
 were religious, chaste, sober, compassionate towards the 
 helpless, and patient under suffering," and that we have 
 corrupted them. We are told that "while we have con- 
 ferred considerable advantages, the balance is wofully 
 against us." As the result of long residence in India, 
 and of reading about India, I have come to the conclu- 
 sion the balance is immensely in our favour. 
 
WHENCE IS IMPROVEMENT TO COME? 3§7 
 
 All friends of India desire the improvement of its 
 government, and the increasing welfare of its people. 
 Whence is the improvement to come? We are told 
 " nothing is to be hoped for from the Indian official class." 
 From whom is anything to be hoped for? From the 
 Home Government ? The leaders of our political parties 
 have passed measures beneficial to India, but they have 
 again and again taken advantage of its helplessness to im- 
 pose on it burdens to which it ought not to have been 
 subjected. Are we to look to the people at home for 
 relief? How difficult is it to secure attention to the sub- 
 ject, or to make them understand it when their attention 
 is gained ! Are we to look to the non-official class in 
 India ? I have nothing to say about the Ilbert Juris- 
 diction Bill, except that while officials have been divided 
 about it, many of the most eminent being in its favour, 
 non-officials almost to a man have been bitterly opposed 
 to it. Where I have spent the greater part of my life, 
 nothing has been more common than complaints by 
 Europeans of injustice done to them by partiality shown 
 to natives at their expense. Are we to look to the great 
 landholders, bankers, merchants, shopkeepers, and well- 
 to-do classes in the cities of Bengal and the North-West, 
 who have benefited most by our rule ? What may be ex- 
 pected from them is illustrated by the fact that when the 
 finances were thrown by the Mutiny into confusion, many 
 protested against an income tax, and some of high posi- 
 tion proposed that the finances should be rectified by an 
 increase of the salt-tax ! In these influential classes there 
 are high-minded and benevolent individuals, but if we 
 look at them in their collective capacity we shall be dis- 
 appointed. When we look at the long roll of distinguished 
 Indian officials, mark their achievements, hear their pro- 
 
388 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON. 
 
 tests against what they deemed hurtful measures, and their 
 advocacy of beneficial changes, I think we find in them 
 India's warmest friends, who have done it the most signal 
 service, and from whom more can be expected than from 
 any other class. 
 
 There are ample materials for arriving at correct views 
 regarding the condition of India and the way in which it is 
 governed. No Parliamentary Committee, no Royal Com- 
 mission, is required to elicit the facts. The recently com- 
 pleted " Gazeteer " of India, in which Dr. Hunter and his 
 assistants had been engaged for years, furnishes full and 
 reliable information. The state of India is described in 
 that imperial work with a frankness and fulness which leave 
 nothing to be desired. If one of our great writers, who 
 has secured the ears of our country, would set to the 
 drawing up of a volume of moderate size, founded on the 
 "Gazeteer," showingina readable interesting form whathas 
 been done and what has been left undone, what has been 
 done well and what has been done ill, and if the intelli- 
 gent people of our country could be induced to give it a 
 careful perusal, untold good would be done both to 
 England and to India. Nothing would please Indian 
 officials more than the eye of England being thus fixed 
 on their doings and misdoings, that the whole truth might 
 be known, and praise and censure be justly distributed, 
 and still more that the changes most beneficial to the 
 people might be effected. 
 
 It is undeniable, as already said, that our rule because 
 foreign lies under great disadvantages. When the ancestors 
 of the present Hindus crossed the Indus and gradually 
 made their way into the Continent before them, they sub- 
 dued and to a great degree enslaved its inhabitants. For 
 many a day their rule was foreign. This was also the 
 
THE BEST GOVERNORS FOR INDIA. 3^9 
 
 case with the successive Muhammadan conquerors. Rule 
 founded on the suffrages of the people remains to the 
 present day unknown. There is, however, this difference 
 between the previous rulers of India and the English, that 
 they remained in the country, and gradually became 
 amalgamated with its inhabitants, while we show no dis- 
 position to make India our home. As we do not, it would 
 be far better if Hindustanees were the rulers of Hindu- 
 stan, Bengalees of Bengal, the members of other Indian 
 nations of their respective nations, provided they were 
 qualified by character, attainments, and the estimate 
 entertained of them by the ruled, with a strong central 
 power to secure order throughout the Continent, while 
 leaving unfettered the general administration. Towards 
 this ideal strenuous efforts should be directed ; but when 
 we look at India as it is now, with its divergent and an- 
 tagonistic elements, with the weakness induced by ages 
 of superstition and despotism, what a long road has it to 
 travel before it can reach this goal ! The question, then, 
 is not what is absolutely best, but what is practicable. 
 Thus regarded, we are shut up to the continuance of our 
 rule. Every friend of India must desire that it may be 
 improved in every possible way, so that it may be in an 
 increasing degree a blessing to its teeming population. 
 
 No one can predict the future of India. Within its 
 borders there are many who for various reasons would be 
 delighted with our overthrow, while I believe the vast 
 majority in the parts of India I know best would deprecate 
 our departure as a dire calamity. It is a notable fact that 
 when our own native soldiers, sworn to uphold our rule, rose 
 fiercely against us, and rebellion in many districts followed 
 in the wake of mutiny, not a single native prince of the 
 highest rank availed himself of the opportunity to throw 
 
390 LIFE AND WORK IN BENARES AND KUMAON 
 
 off the suzerainty of our Queen. The army of the Prince 
 of Gvvalior rose against us, but by doing so they rebelled 
 against their own sovereign. When in 1877 we were in 
 a native state in Rajputana, a gentleman, who knew well 
 the temper of the people, said that if our control was 
 withdrawn the Rajputs and Mahrattas would be at each 
 other's throats in a month. Our army has something 
 better to do than to uphold an alien government. It has 
 to prevent the outbreak of war which would desolate 
 India from one end to the other. Happily its prestige is 
 sufficient to avert this terrible evil, but the prestige can 
 only continue while the army exists. By the suppression 
 of the Mutiny our prowess was shown in a manner which 
 has made an indelible impression. It is scarcely con- 
 ceivable we can again have to encounter a similar out- 
 break, though trouble may come from unanticipated 
 quarters. Our immensely improved means of com- 
 munication contribute largely to our security. Good 
 government, the conferring of manifest benefits on the 
 people, will do more to establish our rule than all other 
 things combined. It is obvious to all who have any just 
 conception of our position in India, that never was a 
 nation charged with greater responsibilities, never was 
 such a tremendous task committed to a people, and never 
 was there a more urgent call for the highest qualities, if 
 the duties devolving on us are to be worthily discharged. 
 Our Government cannot, and ought not, to undertake its 
 evangelization, but if the work of government be rightly 
 done, it will indirectly, but very effectually, help the 
 Christian Church in giving the Gospel to the millions of 
 India, which, when accepted by them, will purify and 
 elevate their character, improve their condition, and fit 
 them for true, healthy, national life, while securing their 
 spiritual and eternal good. 
 
STATISTICS. 
 
 Area of India and British Burma, 1,495,574 sq. miles. 
 Population in 1881, 254,899,516. 
 
 Under British rule 
 
 ] 
 
 [97,815,508 
 
 Under Native rule 
 
 
 57,084,008 
 
 Hindus 
 
 ] 
 
 ^87,931,45° 
 
 Muhammadans 
 
 
 50,127,585 
 
 Buddhists — almost entirely 
 
 in British 
 
 
 Burma ... 
 
 
 3,418,884 
 
 Sikhs 
 
 
 853>426 
 
 Aborigines — mainly Demon 1 
 
 worshippers 
 
 6,426,511 
 
 Christians — 
 
 
 
 Europeans * 
 
 142,000 
 
 
 Eurasians 
 
 62,000 
 
 
 Protestant Native Christians 2 
 
 492,882 
 
 
 Roman Catholics 
 
 865,643 
 
 
 Syrians — about ... 
 
 300,000 
 
 - 1,862,525 
 
 
 
 Other Creeds not specified 
 
 
 4,479» I 35 
 
 The increase of the Native Christian community con- 
 nected with Protestant Missions from 1851 to 186 1 was 
 53 per cent.; from 1861 to 1871, 61 per cent.; and 
 
 1 Including 65,000 British soldiers. 
 
 2 Including 75,510 in British Burma, but not the 35,708 in 
 Ceylon. 
 
392 
 
 STATISTICS. 
 
 from 187 1 to 1 88 1, 86 per cent. The number of com- 
 municants rose from 14,000 in 1851 to 113,000 in 1881. 
 Within the last decade the number of native ordained 
 agents has risen from 225 to 461 ; of native lay preachers 
 from 1,900 to 2,400 ; of native Christian teachers from 
 1,900 to 3,400 ; of native Christian female agents from 
 800 to 1,600. The number of male pupils in Mission 
 schools in 1851 was 50,000; in 1881, 129,000. The 
 female pupils increased within that period from 11,000 
 to 56,000. The increase in Zenana pupils was from 
 1,900 in 1871 to 9,100 in 1881. 
 
 UNWIN BROTHERS, THE GRESHAM PRESS, CHILWORTH AND LONDON. 
 
 
YJ>-'M. 
 
 DATE DUE 
 
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