CHAPTER XVI.

INDIA.

DUTY OF A GOVERNOR-GENERAL TO VISIT THE PROVINCES--PROGRESS TO THE NORTH-

WEST--BENARES--SPEECH ON THE OPENING OF THE RAILWAY--CAWNPORE--GRAND

DURBAR AT AGRA--DELHI--HURDWAR--ADDRESS TO THE SIKH CHIEFS AT UMBALLA--

KUSSOWLIE--SIMLA--LETTERS: SUPPLY OF LABOUR; SPECIAL LEGISLATION;

MISSIONARY GATHERING; FINANCE; SEAT OF GOVERNMENT; VALUE OF TRAINING AT

HEAD-QUARTERS; ARISTOCRACIES; AGAINST INTERMEDDLING--THE SITANA FANATICS--

HIMALAYAS--ROTUNG PASS--TWIG BRIDGE--ILLNESS--DEATH--CHARACTERISTICS--

BURIAL PLACE.

[Sidenote: Duty of a Governor-General to visit the Provinces.]

At a very early period of his stay in India, Lord Elgin formed the opinion,

which was indeed strongly impressed upon him by Lord Canning, that it was

'of the greatest importance to the public interest that the Governor-

General should see as much as possible of men and things, in all parts of

the vast empire under his control; and that a constant residence in the

narrow atmosphere of Calcutta had a tendency to impair his efficiency.'

Writing to Sir C. Wood on the 17th of September, 1862, he said:--

No man can govern India in ordinary times, such as those in which we

are living, if he is to be tied by the leg to Calcutta, and prevented

from visiting other parts of the Empire. Canning, although he lived in

times by no means ordinary, and although he was compelled by

circumstances to be more stationary than he would otherwise have been,

was as clear on this point as anyone. He urged me most strongly to

proceed northwards at the earliest moment at which I could contrive to

do so. When I referred to the difficulty which the assembling of the

Council for legislative purposes might occasion, he assured me that he

had never intended to make himself a slave of the Council; that he had

taken the chair at the commencement of the proceedings, but that he

should certainly have objected to the establishment of the principle

that his presence was indispensable to its deliberations. He was

especially anxious that I should tour, in order that I might satisfy

myself as to how his arrangements affecting natives, &c., worked,

before modifying them in any degree. And, apart from Canning's opinion

altogether, this is a point on which I have had some personal

experience. I have been now steadily in Calcutta for a whole hot

season. No man, I venture to affirm, in the situation I occupy, has

ever been more accessible to those who have anything to say, whether

they be civilians, soldiers, or interlopers. But there is a blot on my

escutcheon which can easily be hit by anyone dissatisfied with a

judgment pronounced in my name. It can always be said: "What does Lord

Elgin know of India? He has never been out of Calcutta. He is

acquainted only with Bengal civilians and other dwellers in (what is

irreverently styled) 'the ditch.'" Indeed, I fear that I am exposed to

the same reproach in your circle. I see no remedy for this evil, if I

am to remain constantly here.

[Sidenote: Projected tour.]

Starting from these premises he came to the conclusion, that 'it was better

to organise a tour on a comprehensive scale, even though it involved a long

absence from Calcutta, than to attempt to hurry to distant places and back

again during successive winters.' Accordingly, it was arranged that as soon

as the business of the Legislative Council was concluded, he should start

for the north, and travel by easy stages to Simla, visiting all the places

which he ought to see on his way. After spending the hot weather at the

Hills, he was to proceed early in the next winter to the Punjab, inspecting

it thoroughly, and returning before the summer heats either to Simla again,

or to Calcutta, as public business might determine. For the Session, if so

it might be called, of 1863-4, he was to summon his councillors to meet him

somewhere in the north-west, at some capital city, 'not a purely military

station, but where the Council might obtain some knowledge of local and

native feeling such as did not reach Calcutta.' The spot ultimately fixed

upon was Lahore, the capital of the large and loyal province of that name.

The earlier part of the tour was to be made chiefly by railway, with a

comparatively small retinue; but for the latter part of it he was to be

accompanied by a camp, furnished forth with all the pride, pomp, and

circumstance belonging to the progress of an Eastern Monarch, and necessary

therefore in order to produce the desired effect on the minds of the

natives.

[Sidenote: Railway to Benares.]

It was on the 5th of February, 1863, that the Vice-regal party left

Calcutta. They travelled by railway to Benares, which they reached on the

evening of the 6th. The first phenomenon which struck them, as Lord Elgin

afterwards wrote, was the 'very sensible change of climate which began to

make itself felt at some 250 miles from Calcutta.'

The general character (he said) of the country continued to be as

level as ever; but the air became more bracing, the surface of the

soil more arid, and the vegetation less rank. Hot mid-days, and cold

nights and mornings, are substituted for the moist and comparatively

uniform temperature of Lower Bengal, to a greater and greater degree

with every step that the traveller takes towards the north.

The railway, with the exception of a portion near Calcutta, is a

single line; but it is perfectly constructed, and with no great regard

to cost. The vagaries of the water-floods, which, during the rainy

season, sometimes pour down in unmanageable force from the Ganges and

sometimes rush towards it from the opposite side of the railway line,

have constituted the great engineering difficulty of the work. Some

very remarkable bridges and other constructions of this class, to

permit the free passage of water under the line, have been built. The

most critical point has been to obtain a secure foundation in the

sandy soil for these erections; and, strange to say, the principle

adopted by our engineers, under the name of the 'Sunken Well' system,

is the same as that followed by the great architects who built the

famous 'Taj' of Agra. It will, it is to be hoped, prove successful;

and these important works will remain an enduring monument of the

benefits conferred on India during the present reign. Nothing that has

been done by the British in India has affected the native mind so

powerfully, and produced so favourable an impression, as these railway

undertakings.

[Sidenote: Durbar.]

On the day after his arrival at Benares he held a Durbar--his first truly

Oriental Durbar--which, though not comprising any independent chiefs, was

attended by several native gentlemen of high consideration and large

possessions. In addressing them, he took the opportunity of dwelling upon

the improvement which recent measures had effected in their position, and

the consequent increase of their responsibilities:

'It is the desire (he said) of Her Majesty the Queen that the native

gentlemen of India should be represented in the Council of the

Governor-General, in order that when laws are made for India their

opinions, and wishes, and feelings may receive due consideration. It

is my intention and duty to do everything in my power to give effect

to Her Majesty's gracious intention in this respect. Among the rajahs

and gentlemen here to-day are many who have large estates in the

neighbourhood and along the line of railway which we travelled over

yesterday. The value of those estates will be greatly enhanced by the

completion of the important work of which we are about to-day to

celebrate the opening. I need hardly remind them that they will owe

this advantage to the introduction of British engineering skill and

British capital into this country. I trust that the consideration of

this fact, and of similar facts which are of daily occurrence, will

tend to produce a kindly feeling between the races, by showing them to

what an extent they may be mutually useful to each other. Meanwhile, I

hope that the gentlemen whom I am addressing will turn these

advantages to account by doing their utmost to improve their

properties, and to promote the happiness and welfare of their ryots

and dependents.'

[Sidenote: Railway dinner.]

In the afternoon of the same day he was present at a dinner given in

celebration of the opening of the railway from Jumalpore to Benares. In the

course of a speech which he made on that occasion, after referring to the

fact that both his predecessors had taken part in similar celebrations, he

said:--

In looking over the published report of these proceedings a few days

ago, my attention was arrested by an incident which brought forcibly

home to my mind one painful circumstance in which my position here to-

day contrasts sadly with that which Lord Canning then occupied. At a

stage in the proceedings of the evening, corresponding to that at

which we have now arrived, he departed from the routine prescribed by

the programme, and invited the company to join him in drinking the

health of his noble predecessor, the Marquis of Dalhousie, who had, as

he justly observed, nursed the East Indian Railway in its infancy, and

guided it through its first difficulties. It is not in my power to

make any similar proposal to you now. A mysterious dispensation of

Providence has removed from this world's stage, where they seemed

still destined to play so noble and useful a part, both the proposer

of this toast, and its object. The names of both are written in

brilliant characters on some of the most eventful pages of the history

of India, and both were removed at a time when expectation as to the

services which they might still render to India was at its height. I

shall not now dwell on the great national loss which we have all

sustained in this dispensation; but, perhaps, I may be permitted to

say that to me the loss is not only a public one, but a private and

personal calamity likewise. Both of these distinguished men were my

contemporaries, both, I believe I may without presumption say, my

intimate friends. It is a singular coincidence that three successive

Governors-General of India should have stood towards each other in

this relationship of age and intimacy. One consequence is that the

burden of governing India has devolved upon us respectively at

different periods of our lives. Lord Dalhousie when named to the

Government of India was, I believe, the youngest man who had ever been

appointed to a situation of such high responsibility and trust; Lord

Canning was in the prime of life; and I, if I am not already on the

decline, am at least nearer to the verge of it than either of my

contemporaries who have preceded me. Indeed, when I was leaving

England for India, Lord Ellenborough, who is now, alas! the only

surviving ex-Governor-General of India, said to me, 'You are not a

very old man, but depend upon it, you will find yourself by far the

oldest man in India.'

Passing from these personal topics, after noticing the good fortune which

had placed the formation of the railway system of India in the hands of a

man who had in a special manner made that subject his own, he proceeded to

speak of the future of Indian Railways, insisting especially on a point

about which he felt very strongly, the necessity of their ceasing to depend

on a Government guarantee, and adding some practical hints for their

development and extension:

[Sidenote: Future of Indian railways.]

But, Gentlemen, however interesting it may be to refer to the past and

to dwell upon the present, the most important questions which we have

to answer relate to the future, and the most important of all in my

opinion is this--to what agency are we henceforward to look if we

would desire to extend as widely as possible, to all parts of India,

the benefit of this potent instrument of modern civilisation? I have

no hesitation in affirming at once, in answer to this question, that

we must not look to an indefinite extension of a system of Government

guarantees for the accomplishment of this object. In the first place,

it would be wholly unjustifiable for any one object, however

important, to place such a strain upon our finances as this policy

would involve. In the second place, however justifiable and necessary

a system of Government guarantees may be in certain circumstances, it

is essentially an expensive one, because by securing to shareholders a

minimum rate of interest on their capital it weakens in them the

motives to economy, and because by dividing the responsibility for

expenditure between Government and Railway Officials, it diminishes in

the latter the sense of responsibility. Moreover, the indefinite

extension of a system of Government guarantees is wholly incompatible

with the endeavour to bring private enterprise largely into play for

the execution of these works; while there is an unlimited call for

capital for works enjoying the protection of a Government guarantee,

it is not to be expected that capital will be forthcoming to any

extent for similar works which have not that protection. For the

accomplishment, therefore, of the great object to which I am

referring, we must henceforward, I apprehend, look to private

enterprise; not perhaps to private enterprise wholly unaided by the

State, but at any rate, to private enterprise not protected by

Government guarantee. But if so, what are the conditions which will

entitle railway enterprises of this class to the countenance and

encouragement of the Government? I lay it down as a fundamental

principle, that we ought to look to the eventual establishment of one

uniform railway gauge for the whole of India. The experience of

England is conclusive as to the inconvenience of a double or

conflicting railway gauge. After the expenditure of an untold amount

of money in Parliamentary conflicts, the broad gauge of England has

been compelled to take the narrow gauge on its back, and the whole

capital expended upon the former may be said to have been thrown away.

But what does this resolution in favour of an uniform gauge imply? It

will, I think, be admitted that the main object of an uniform railway

gauge is to enable the several railway lines to exchange their plant

in order to avoid transhipment of freight. But if the plant of the

subsidiary line is to be transported along the main lines, it must be

sufficiently well finished to be fitted to travel in safety at high

speed; and if the plant of the main lines is to travel along the

subsidiary lines, the latter must have rails sufficiently heavy, and

works of construction sufficiently substantial, to support it.

Moreover, where streams or rivers are encountered they must be

bridged. In short, the subsidiary lines must be built in a manner

which would make them nearly as expensive as the main lines; in other

words, railways must not be introduced into any part of India where we

cannot afford to spend from 13,000_l_. to 15,000_l_. a mile upon them.

I am not prepared to accept this conclusion. I have been a good deal

in America, and I know that our practical cousins there do not refuse

to avail themselves of advantages within their reach, by grasping at

those which are beyond it. In 1854, I travelled by railway from New

York to Washington. We had several ferries to cross on the way, but we

found that the railway with the ferries was much better than no

Railway at all. In short, in America where they cannot get a _pucka_

railway, they take a _kutcha_ one instead. This, I think, is what we

must do in India. There are many districts where railways costing

3,000_l_. or 4,000_l_. a mile might be introduced with advantage,

although they would not justify an expenditure of from 10,000_l_. to

15,000_l_. a mile. We have only to be careful that _kutcha_ lines are

not mistaken for _pucka_ ones--that they are not allowed to set up a

rival system as against the main lines, or to occupy ground which

should be appropriated by the latter.

[Sidenote: Carriage dâk to Allahabad.]

As the railway from Benares to Allahabad was not yet complete, Lord Elgin

and his suite performed this part of the journey by carriage dâk. They

travelled by night; 'each individual of the party occupying his own

separate carriage, and being conveyed along at a hand gallop by a

succession of single ponies, relayed at stages of four to five miles in

length.' In the letter which describes this, he adds the characteristic

remark:

'These ponies do not lead very happy lives, and, here as elsewhere, a

diminution in the sufferings of the brute creation will be one of the

blessings attending the introduction of a railway system.'

At Allahabad he inspected, among other things, the works which were in

progress for making a railway bridge across the Jumna.

This is (he wrote) in some respects the most interesting of that class

of engineering operations which has been already mentioned: because

whereas in other cases clay has been found beneath the sand, and the

foundation wells have been sunk into it, no bottom has been discovered

to the sand which constitutes the bed of the Jumna; and the wells in

question are required to stand firm in this most unstable of all

foundations.

[Sidenote: Cawnpore.]

From Allahabad Lord Elgin proceeded by railway to Cawnpore; where, on the

11th of February, he took part in the impressive ceremony of the

consecration of the Well, and other spots in its vicinity, containing the

remains of the victims of the dreadful massacres which occurred at that

place in 1857.[1]

He had intended from this point to visit Lucknow: but finding that time

would allow of his doing this only in a very hasty manner, which he thought

objectionable, he invited some of the principal Talookdars to come over to

see him; which they accordingly did, under the guidance of Mr. Wingfield,

the Chief Commissioner of Oude.

[Sidenote: Agra.]

From Cawnpore Lord Elgin journeyed, again by rail, to Agra, the 'key of

Hindostan.' The following description of his arrival there is borrowed from

his private secretary, Mr. Thurlow:[2]--

'Arrived at the railway station, Lord Elgin met with a reception

worthy of the East. The road, thickly lined with native troops,

crossed the Jumna by a bridge of boats, and wound along the river's

bank beneath those lofty sandstone walls; then, mounting a steep hill

and leaving the main entry into Agra Fort upon the right, the Taj

remaining to the left, it led, through miles of garden ground, thickly

studded with suburban villas, to the Viceroy's camp, that occupied

the centre of an extensive plain, where tents were pitched for the

accommodation of the Government of India, and an escort of ten

thousand men. Beyond these were ranked, according to priority of

arrival, the far-spreading noisy camps of those rajas the number of

whose followers was within some bounds; and beyond them again

stretched miles and miles of tents containing thousands upon thousands

of ill-conditioned-looking men from Central India, and the wildest

part of Rajpootana, the followers of such maharajas as Jeypoor, who

marched to meet the Viceroy with an army of thirty thousand strong,

found in horse and foot and guns, ready for the field.'

The six days spent at Agra Lord Elgin was 'disposed to rank among the most

interesting of his life.'

Perhaps (he wrote) months of the monotony of a Calcutta existence may

render the mind more sensitive to novelty and beauty; at any rate, the

impressions experienced on visiting Agra at this time have been

singularly vivid and keen. The surpassing beauty of the buildings,

among which the Taj stands pre-eminent; the vast concourse of chiefs

and retainers, combining so many of the attributes of feudal and

chivalrous times with the picturesqueness in attire and gorgeousness

in colouring, which only the East can supply; produced an effect of

fairyland, of which it was difficult to divest oneself in order to

come down to the sterner realities of the present. These realities

consisted mainly in receiving the chiefs at private and public

Durbars, exchanging presents and civilities with them, and returning

their visits. The great Durbar was attended by a larger number of

chiefs than ever before assembled on a similar occasion.'

[Sidenote: Grand Durbar.]

The Grand Durbar, or 'Royal Court,' was held on the morning of the 17th of

February: a grander gathering, it was said, than even the great one held by

Lord Canning in 1859. The scene was one of remarkable splendour--a

splendour alien to the simple and unostentatious tastes and habits of the

chief actor in it, but which he knew how to use with effect when taking his

place as Suzerain in an Assembly of Princes. To aid us in conceiving it, we

must have recourse to the picture sketched at the time in one of the Indian

Newspapers.

'It is difficult to describe--without seeing it it is impossible to

conceive,--a scene like that presented at a grand Durbar of this kind.

One may imagine any amount of display of jewels, gold and glitter,

gorgeous dresses, splendid uniforms, and handsome faces. You may see

far more beautiful sights in the shape of court grandeur at our

European palaces, at Versailles and St. James's; but nothing that will

give you an idea of an Indian Durbar. The exhibition of costly jewels,

the display of wealth in priceless ornaments and splendid dresses, the

strange mixture of wealth and poverty, the means of accomplishing

magnificence and splendour enjoyed to such profusion, yet rendered

almost void to this end from want of taste! "Barbaric wealth," indeed,

you behold; barbaric from its extent and profusion, and barbaric in

the hideous use made of it. The host of chiefs, who sat on the right

side of the huge Durbar tent, close packed in a semi-circle, and who

rose as one man when the band outside began "God save the Queen," and

the artillery thundered forth the royal salute, were a blaze of

jewels. From underneath head-dresses of every conceivable form and

structure--the golden crown studded with rubies and emeralds, the

queer butterfly-spreading Mahratta cap, the close-fitting Rajpoot

turban, the common _pagree_ of the Mohammedan Chief, ordinary in shape

but made of the richest material--from under each and all there are

peering dark faces, and bright glancing eyes, eager to catch the first

view of the great Lord Paramount of Hindostan. What a multitude of

different expressions one notices while scanning that strange group of

princes of royal descent, whose ancestors held the very thrones they

now hold far back beyond the range of history. The scheming

politician, the low debauchee, the debased sensualist, the chivalrous

soldier, the daring ambitious descendant of a line of royal robbers,

the crafty intriguer, the religious enthusiast, the fanatic and the

sceptic side by side, you can trace in each swarthy face the character

written on its features by the working of the brain within.'

'In the midst of such a scene, seated on a massive gold throne, with

crimson velvet cushion, two lions of the same precious metal forming the

arms; the whole standing on a square platform raised about ten inches from

the ground, covered with a carpet of gold,' Lord Elgin addressed his

princely audience; his voice 'clear and distinct, so that he could be heard

easily at the further corner of the tent; every word seeming to be weighed

and uttered as if he meant what he said:'

[Sidenote: Vice-Regal speech.]

Princes and Chiefs.--In inviting you to meet me here, it was my wish

in the first place to become acquainted with you personally, and also

to convey to you, in obedience to the gracious command which I

received from Her Majesty the Queen, upon my departure from England,

the assurance of the deep interest which Her Majesty takes in the

welfare of the Chiefs of India. I have now to thank you for the

alacrity with which, in compliance with my request, you have, many of

you from considerable distances, assembled at this place.

Having received, during the course of the last few days, many of the

principal personages among you in private Durbar, where I have had the

opportunity of communicating my views on matters of interest and

importance, I need not detain you on this occasion by many words.

Before taking leave of you, however, I desire to address to you

collectively a few general remarks upon the present state of affairs

in India, and upon the duties which that state of affairs imposes upon

us all.

Peace, I need hardly remind you of the fact, now happily prevails

throughout the whole extent of this vast empire; domestic treason has

been crushed; and foreign enemies have been taught to respect the

power of the arms of England.

The British Government is desirous to take advantage of this

favourable opportunity, not to extend the bounds of its dominions, but

to develop the resources and draw forth the natural wealth of India,

and thus to promote the well-being and happiness both of rulers and of

the people.

With this view many measures of improvement and progress have already

been introduced, and among them, I may name, as most conspicuous, the

railway and electric telegraph, those great discoveries of this age

which have so largely increased the wealth and power of the mightiest

nations of the West.

By diffusing education among your vassals and dependents, establishing

schools, promoting the construction of good roads, and suppressing,

with the whole weight of your authority and influence, barbarous

usages and crimes, such as infanticide, suttee, thuggee, and dacoitee,

you may, Princes and Chiefs, effectually second these endeavours of

the British Government, and secure for yourselves and your people a

full share of the benefits which the measures to which I have alluded

are calculated to confer upon you. I have observed with satisfaction

the steps which many of you have already taken in this direction, and

more especially the enlightened policy which has induced some of you

to remove transit and other duties which obstructed the free course of

commerce through your States.

As representing the Paramount power, it is my duty to keep the peace

in India. For this purpose Her Majesty the Queen has placed at my

disposal a large and gallant army, which, if the necessity should

arise, I shall not hesitate to employ for the repression of disorder

and the punishment of any who may be rash enough to disturb the

general tranquillity. But it is also my duty to extend the hand of

encouragement and friendship to all who labour for the good of India,

and to assure you that the chiefs who make their own dependents

contented and prosperous, establish thereby the strongest claim on the

favour and protection of the British Government.

I bid you now, Princes and Chiefs, farewell for a time, with the

expression of my earnest hope that, on your return to your homes,

health and happiness may attend you.

[Sidenote: Muttra.]

Proceeding northwards from Agra, up the valley of the Jumna, they arrived,

after three days' march, at Muttra.

The mornings (he wrote) are cool, almost cold; and were it not for

clouds of dust, the marching would be pleasant, although the country

traversed is flat, and not very interesting.... Muttra itself is

interesting from the sanctity which the Hindoos attach to it. Special

blessings are earned by those who bathe in the river here; and the

town is consequently largely resorted to by pilgrims. A great many

fairs are held at Muttra during the year, which enables the Hindoos

who resort thither to combine devotion and business. To ride through

the narrow streets of the sacred town on an elephant, and find oneself

on a level either with the upper stories of the houses which are

frequently decorated with elaborately carved oriel windows, or with

the roofs on which holy monkeys in great numbers are disporting

themselves, is a very curious spectacle.

[Sidenote: Delhi.]

On the 23rd of February the camp left Muttra; on the 3rd of March it was

pitched under the walls of Delhi--'unquestionably the place of greatest

interest' visited in this part of the tour.

The approach to it through ten miles of a desolate-looking campagna,

thickly strewn with funereal monuments reared in honour of the

sovereigns and mighty men of former dynasties, reminded me of Rome.

The city itself bears traces of more recent calamities. The Palace has

been a good deal maltreated, and the Jumma Musjid (Great Mosque), a

magnificent building, has only just been restored to the worshippers.

Beyond the town, and over the place where the camp was pitched, lay

the heights which were occupied by the British troops, and signalised

by so many deeds of valour, during the eventful struggles of 1857.

[Sidenote: Hurdwar.]

After resting for two days at Delhi, he pursued his course north-eastward,

through Meerut to Hurdwar, on the Ganges--

a sacred place, near the point at which the great Ganges Canal leaves

the river; resorted to by pilgrims, in vast crowds, from the Punjâb,

Rajpootana, and other extensive districts in India. The Sikhs, who are

a reformed Hindoo sect, hold Hurdwar in especial reverence. To this

spot was conveyed, in order that it might here be cast into the sacred

water of the Ganges, what remained, after its cremation, of the body

of the great Sikh Chief, the Maharaja of Puttialla, whom Lord Canning

placed in the Council of the Governor-General.

In another letter, written from the immediate neighbourhood of this place,

he took a more practical and utilitarian view of its capabilities and

prospects:

Hurdwar, where I have been spending two days, is a most interesting

place. It is curious to see the old Faith, washing itself in the

sacred waters of the Ganges, and the new Faith, symbolised in the

magnificent works of the Ganges Canal. One regrets that these canals

should be so little used for navigation purposes, or as sources of

mechanical power; but there is some difficulty in combining navigation

with irrigation works. Moreover, in passing through districts which

are dependent on irrigation, one cannot help being deeply impressed

with a sense of the danger which will ensue if canals are entrusted to

private companies, unless they are bound by the most stringent

conditions to keep their works in good order, and to supply water at

reasonable rates. In the absence of such precautions, the population

of whole districts might be, especially in famine years, entirely at

the mercy of those companies.

[Sidenote: Umballa.]

From this point the vast camp took a north-westerly direction towards the

military station of Umballa, which was reached on the 27th of March. On the

following day Lord Elgin received in private Durbar a large number of

influential Sikh chiefs, at the head of whom was the young Maharaja of the

neighbouring state of Puttialla, the son and heir of the prince above

mentioned. In addressing these chiefs, he showed his usual tact in adapting

his words to the character and disposition of his hearers:--

The Sikhs (he afterwards wrote) are a warlike race, and the knowledge

of this fact gave a colour to the advice tendered to them. It was my

wish to recognise with all due honour their martial qualities, while

seeking to impart a more pacific direction to their energies. The

capture of half the capitals of Europe would not have been, in the

eyes of the Sikh, so great an event, or so signal a proof of British

power, as the capture of Pekin. They are proud of the thought that

some of their race took a part in it; and more inclined than

ever--which is an important matter--to follow the British standard

into foreign lands, if they should be invited to do so.

He was careful also to make as much as he could of some feeble indications

of a disposition to educate their sons, and even their daughters, which had

been exhibited by the Sirdars in some parts of the Punjab; thinking that

'if an impulse in this direction could be imparted to the ruling classes

among the natives, great results might be anticipated.'

The text of this address--the last address which he delivered--is as

follows:--

[Sidenote: Address to the Sikh chiefs.]

Colonel Durand,--I beg that you will express to the native gentlemen

who are assembled here my regret that I am unable to address them in

their own language, and inform them that I am charged by Her Majesty

the Queen to convey to them the assurance of Her Majesty's high

appreciation of the loyalty and devotion to Her Majesty's person and

Government which has been exhibited on various occasions by the Sikh

rulers and people. Not many days ago it was my pleasing duty to

determine that the medal granted to Her Majesty's troops who were

engaged at Delhi in 1857, should be conferred on the followers of the

Sikh chiefs who took part in the noble achievements of that period;

and I can personally bear testimony to the good services of the

officers and men of the Sikh regiments who, in 1860, co-operated with

the British troops in placing the British flag on the walls of Pekin,

the capital of the vast empire of China.

But, in order to be truly great, it is necessary that nations should

excel in the arts of peace as well as in those of war.

Look to the history of the British nation for an example. Most

assuredly the British people are powerful in war, but their might and

renown are in a great measure due to their proficiency in the works

which make a time of peace fruitful and glorious.

By their skill in agriculture, they have converted their country into

a garden; by their genius as traders, they have attracted to it a

large share of the wealth of other lands.

Let us take advantage of this season of tranquillity to confer similar

benefits on the Punjâb.

The waters which fall on your mountain heights and unite at their base

to form mighty rivers, are a treasure which, duly distributed, will

fertilise your plains and largely augment their productive powers.

With electric telegraphs to facilitate communication, and railways and

canals to render access to the seaports easy and expeditious, we shall

be able to convey the surplus produce of this great country to others

where it is required, and to receive from them their riches in return.

I rejoice to learn that some of the chiefs in this part of India are

taking an interest in these matters, which are of such vital

importance to the welfare of this country and the prosperity of the

people. It affords me, moreover, sincere gratification to find that,

under the able guidance of the Lieutenant-Governor, the Sikh Sirdars

in certain districts of the Punjâb are giving proof of their

appreciation of the value of education by making provision for the

education of their sons and daughters.

Be assured that in so doing you are adopting a judicious policy. The

experience of all nations proves that where rulers are well informed

and sagacious, the people are contented and willingly submissive to

authority. Moreover, it is generally found that where mothers are

enlightened, sons are valiant and wise.

I earnestly exhort you, therefore, to persevere in the course on which

you have entered; and I promise you while you continue in it the

sympathy and support of the British Government.

At Umballa Lord Elgin left the camp with which he had been travelling, and

struck up, nearly due northwards, into the Hills. The 1st of April found

him at Kussowlie, from which point he visited two places which greatly

interested him--the 'Lawrence Asylum' and the Military Sanitarium at

Dugshai.

[Sidenote: Lawrence Asylum.]

The 'Lawrence Asylum' (he wrote) is an institution originally

established and endowed by the late Sir Henry Lawrence, but now

transferred to Government, and maintained on an enlarged scale. It

receives and educates the children of European soldiers, both male and

female; and, considering what they are exposed to while they remain

with the regiments, or are left as orphans, it is an immense boon to

them, physically and morally. I found about 600 children at the

institution; and, so far as I could judge on a transient inspection,

the condition of things generally seemed satisfactory. Looking to the

returns, however, it did not appear that the sanitary state of the

school was quite as good as it might be, considering the fineness of

the climate; and I desired that some inquiries might be made on this

head. It is probable that the children may in many cases bring bad

constitutions with them; but it also appeared that the dormitories

were somewhat crowded, and that the uneven character of the surface

rendered it difficult to provide playgrounds--both of which

circumstances may be unfavourable to the health of the children.

[Sidenote: Dugshai station.]

The Military Station of Dugshai is situated on the pinnacle of a

mountain about 7,000 feet high. It looks bare and bleak, from the

total absence of trees; but the 42nd Regiment, now quartered there,

had all the appearance of health, and there were few men in the

hospital. The bad cases were those of men who had contracted at Agra,

when they were stationed in the plains, dysentery and fever of a

serious type, which were constantly recurring. The troops quartered on

these hills not only enjoy a congenial climate, but are also kept out

of the way of much mischief which they encounter on the lowlands. On

the other hand, it appears that they suffer a little from want of

occupation. It is curious to hear that hunting for butterflies is a

favourite pastime of the British soldier at Dugshai. The colonel,

however, informed me that the library and reading-room were much

frequented by the men; he observed also that many of the patches of

flat ground which lie scattered among the precipitous crags on which

the station is perched, had been converted by them into gardens.

[Sidenote: Simla.]

On the 4th of April,--Easter Eve--he reached Simla, which was to be his

home for the next five months. His impressions of this 'paradise of Anglo-

Indians' were given shortly afterwards in the following words:--

The houses which form the settlement are situated on three or four

heights, which are the crest of a mountain that lies among other

mountains of about the same elevation, scattered around it in groups

and rows, intersected by valleys, and closed in on the north by a

range covered with everlasting snow, and glittering from morning to

evening in the rays of a tropical sun. The hills on which Simla stands

are well clothed by trees, not of great stature generally, though of

much beauty; ilexes of a peculiar kind, deodars, and rhododendrons

being conspicuous among them; but there is little wood on the

surrounding mountains. No doubt the special charms of Simla are

enhanced by this contrast: and perhaps also by the character of the

scenery which the traveller meets on the whole route from Calcutta.

Nothing can he well imagined more uninteresting. On leaving Lower

Bengal, even the luxuriant tropical vegetation which distinguishes

that part of India disappears,--and the rest of the journey is

performed through a country perfectly flat, and apparently barren; for

notwithstanding occasional groups of trees, and good crops here and

there, the wide-spreading dusty plains give but faint indications of

the fertility which cultivation and irrigation can no doubt evolve

from them. Even when the mountains are approached, and the ascent

commences, the same character of barrenness attaches to the scene, for

their sides are almost bare of trees, and there is little to relieve

them, except the patches of vegetation which lie snugly in the

valleys, or creep in terraces up the slopes.

No doubt the greater luxuriance in foliage and vegetation which adorns

Simla is in some measure due to the presence of the European visitors

who prevent the trees from being cut, and protect in other ways the

amenity of the place.

But the climate and soil have also, it may be presumed, a good deal to

do with it. For the trees at Simla are not only more abundant, but

also different from those which are met with on the mountains nearer

to the plains. This probably accounts for what otherwise seems

strange,--namely, that Europeans, wishing to escape from the heat of

the lowlands, should have fixed on a spot among the Hills so distant

from the plains. It is not as inaccessible now as it was in former

days, because a road has been made which is practicable for carts. But

by this road the distance from the foot of the Hills to Simla is

fifty-six miles, and the journey for most people occupies three or

four days; whereas we ascended from the foot of the Hills to

Kussowlie, which is at an elevation nearly as great as that of Simla,

in a little more than two hours. It used to be supposed that mountains

overhanging the lowlands were less healthy than those farther removed

from them, but whether this be the case or not may be doubtful.

However, whatever may have been the reasons for the original selection

of Simla, it certainly has now greater attractions as a residence than

any spot lying between it and the plains.

In this pleasant retreat, with its 'dry climate, and temperature from 60°

to 70° in the shade,' he resumed with fresh vigour his ordinary official

work; corresponding constantly with the Secretary of State, with the

subordinate Governments, and with the members of his Council, gathering

ever fresh stores of information, and forming ever clearer views of the

problems that lay before him; looking forward to the great meeting to be

held next spring at Lahore, not only as an important experiment, but also

as in a manner the real commencement of his reign. Some extracts from his

letters of this period are subjoined.

_To Sir Charles Trevelyan._

Camp, Jeyt: February 23, 1863.

[Sidenote: Supply of labour.]

No doubt there is a deficiency of labour in some parts of India, and

an excess in others. Moreover, there are moral and physical obstacles

which put difficulties in the way of the transfer of labour from

places where it is redundant to those where it is wanting. But to

affirm generally of a country where labour-saving machines are, in

consequence of the cheapness of labour, as little used as in India,

that there is a 'want of labour' seems to me to be a paradox.

I will give an example:--If, in America, the climate made it necessary

that every private white soldier should have a punkah pulled over him

day and night, do you think that no agency but that of the human hand,

in its rudest and most direct application, would be employed in this

task? And why is it otherwise in India? Because labour is so cheap

that necessity, the mother of invention, does not stimulate the

ingenuity of man here as it does there.

Far from deprecating the introduction of capital, I should be

delighted to hear that the amount to be spent in India this year was

to be three times what it promises to be. I do not say to be spent by

Government, for to this there are objections, altogether irrespective

of the question of the amount of labour available.

The first effect of this enlarged expenditure would no doubt be to

raise the wages of labour. This would be in itself a blessing, for

which I should thank God.

But its second and more permanent effect would be to increase the

number of the class of skilled labourers, which the patient, sober,

and ingenious population of India is fitted to supply in so great

abundance, if due encouragement be given; and further, to drive

capitalists to the substitution of machinery for brute human labour to

a greater extent than is the practice now.

The ultimate result would, therefore, be to render the existing

stock of labour doubly productive; the fruits of this increased

productiveness being divided in proportions more or less equitable

between the labourers and capitalists.

I believe that the Railway expenditure is already exercising a

sensible influence of this salutary character. Bodies of navvies are

becoming attached to the companies, who follow them from place to

place, and render them comparatively independent of the local supply

of labour; and above all, by calling forth native talent in the form

of skilled labour, they are imparting that kind of education which

will, I believe, do more for the elevation of the masses than any

other which we can provide in India.

* * * * *

_To H. S. Maine, Esq._

Camp, Hodul: February 25, 1863.

[Sidenote: Special legislation.]

While I entirely concur in the opinion that the _onus probandi_ rests,

and rests heavily too, on the proposers of exceptional or particular

legislation, an assumption runs through ------'s letter to you which I

am by no means prepared to admit. He assumes that in such matters as

those with which we are now dealing, this _particular legislation_

must be in the exclusive interest of the landlord, and calculated to

increase in his hand powers which may be abused, and the abuse of

which is restrained by moral influences which operate less strongly

where landlords and tenants are of different races than where they are

homogeneous. He cites, strangely enough, Ireland, where these moral

influences, which are of themselves generally sufficient in England

and Scotland, are supplemented by wholesale evictions on one side and

murders on the other. But the law of landlord and tenant is, I

believe, the same in Ireland as in England, and it is quite possible

that a little _particular_ legislation, which would have given either

of the parties the protection of positive law against injuries which

can now be redressed only by a rude process of reprisals (one outrage

balancing another until the account is squared), might have proved

ultimately a benefit even to the party against which this particular

legislation seemed to be, in the first instance, directed.

The planters say, we have a grievance attributable to special

circumstances arising out of our relations with our ryots; unless you

give us a special remedy to meet our special grievance, we fall back

on our general powers as landlords. Are we quite sure that in refusing

the special remedy, we are consulting the interest of the weaker

party, viz. the ryot?

Of course, this is all general. There will remain the questions: Is

there a grievance at all? Is it one which has any claim to a special

remedy? I quite agree that the _onus_ of answering these questions

satisfactorily rests on the advocate of special legislation.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Roorkee: March 19, 1863.

[Sidenote: Duty of officials in missionary matters.]

The religious question is, no doubt, a very difficult one; and I am

glad that you approved of the course which I took with reference to

the great missionary gathering at Lahore. I spoke to Sir R. M---- on

the subject when I met him at Delhi. He seemed to think that it had

done more harm than good to the missionary cause, as the presence of

high officials was sure to raise suspicions in the minds of the

natives. I told him that as regarded the acts of officials in such

matters, my opinion was this:--If an official says to me, 'I think

that I may, with perfect propriety, in my character of official, do so

and so, or take such or such a part in furtherance of an object which

I believe to be right,' I am quite ready to meet him on this ground,

and to join issue with him if I differ from him on the particular

point raised. But if he says to me, 'I know that it would be wrong in

me to do this as an official, but I do it in my private character,' I

can have no discussion with him; because I deny that it is possible to

establish any such distinction in the East, and I am inclined to

distrust either the honesty or the intelligence of the man who

proposes to act upon it.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Simla: March 19, 1863.

[Sidenote: Financial credit.]

I am as desirous as you can be, perhaps even more desirous, to give no

excuse for the charge of cooking accounts, or making things look

pleasanter than they ought, because I am quite confident, that if we

can keep the peace and show an unimpeachable balance-sheet, we shall

soon have more capital sent to India than we know what to do with. I

could not help giving, a few days ago, a hint concerning my Canadian

experience on this point. When I was appointed to Canada, the first

Canadian official to whom I was introduced was the Finance Minister,

who was walking about the streets of London with £60,000 of Canadian 6

per cent. debentures in his pocket, which nobody would take. In 1849,

two years later, the Montreal merchants drew up an elaborate address

recommending annexation to the United States, alleging as one of their

principal reasons that so long as they remained colonists, they could

obtain no credit in England for public objects, and citing, in proof

of this allegation, the fact that in the United States several

thousand miles of railway had been constructed, in Canada only thirty

miles. Within three years from the date of this address, we had 2,000

miles of railway in Canada in course of construction, and our

Government debentures (6 per cent.) were selling in London at 119,

higher than those of the United States Government; in fact, we had

more credit than we could always employ properly. Now, how was this

change effected? Simply by showing a good balance-sheet, an improving

country, and a contented people, and leaving capitalists to draw their

own inferences from these phenomena. I do not despair of seeing a

similar state of things in India; and it was with the view of giving

an impulse in this direction that I stated publicly, at Benares the

other day, that we must look for the further development of our

railway system to _bonâ fide_ private enterprise, aided, perhaps,

where circumstances required it, by Government, but not to the

extension of Government guarantees. Unguaranteed companies cannot get

money while guaranteed companies are competing with them as borrowers.

Therefore, if we intend to encourage the former, we must let

capitalists know that a limit will be put on the operations of the

latter.

[Sidenote: Seat of Government.]

As to the seat of Government question, I am strongly of opinion that

the proper thing to do at present is to give practical effect to the

provision in the Indian Councils Act, which authorises the Governor-

General to call his Council together in other parts of India besides

Calcutta. This would give to the Supreme Government a more catholic

character than it now possesses, and perhaps in some degree diminish

the jealousy of Calcutta influence which obtains so extensively.

I do not see my way towards recommending the entire abandonment of

Calcutta. It is an important place, and has certain traditional claims

which it is not quite easy to set aside. Moreover, although the

Calcutta community may have its faults and wayward tendencies, it is

an influential element in our body corporate and politic, and a

Government which knows its duty may effect a great deal of good, and

derive no little benefit, by coming into contact with it For the

present, therefore, I think that Calcutta should continue to be the

headquarters of Government; but that we should meet from time to time

at other places for Legislative purposes, so as to qualify Calcutta

local associations with other local associations. This plan will be

attended of course with some trouble and expense. I intend to make

some inquiries to ascertain what the latter is likely to be. I do not

see why we should not legislate in camp, if there be difficulty in

providing house accommodation.... I should like, if possible, to hit

upon a plan which would give us a sufficient range in choosing and

varying our places of meeting. More on all this hereafter.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Roorkee: March 19, 1863.

[Sidenote: Value of training at headquarters.]

I confess I think it very important that the heads of the local

Governments should have had some training at headquarters. It is much

easier for an intelligent officer who has been so trained, to supply a

lack of local knowledge, than for one who has been constantly employed

in a particular province to grasp in a sufficiently comprehensive

spirit the general interests of the Empire, and duly to appreciate the

relative claims of its component parts. Already, among the high

officers in the Provinces, there is a considerable disinclination to

face the climate and labour of Calcutta. Situations in the Provinces,

where the work is lighter, where the summers can be spent on the

Hills, and where the holders are in a much greater degree monarchs of

all they survey, are naturally preferred to the sweltering metropolis.

This preference would be strengthened if it were supposed that this

provincial career was the road to the Lieutenant-Governorship.

Moreover, it is to be remembered that the patronage exercised by these

Lieutenant-Governors is very great indeed. It is important that it

should not fall too absolutely into the hands of the same local

cliques. So much on the abstract question of general _versus_ local

experience.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Simla: May 6, 1863.

In a general way, I must say that I am inclined to give a preference,

in disposing of these high offices, to persons who have served in the

offices of the Supreme Government or in the Governor-General's

Legislative Council. I would not, of course, exclude men of proved and

eminent qualities because they had been employed only in the Provinces

or minor Presidencies; but my impression is that the work is lighter,

and that reputations are more easily won, in the service of the minor

than in that of the Supreme Government. Moreover, I think it desirable

that the best men should be attracted to the latter service; and I

observe a growing disinclination to abandon good opportunities under

local governments for those which the Supreme Government has to offer.

A local Government, with plenty of hill stations, &c., has many

attractions for persons who can contrive to be on good terms with the

Lieutenant-Governor. I think that something is due to those who face

the climate and the competition of Calcutta; not to mention the fact,

that they have opportunities of becoming conversant with the general

business of the country, beyond those which are enjoyed by persons

whose service has been confined to any one locality.

I think that the Legislative branch of the Governor-General's Council

should be a channel through which officers of the other Presidencies

may be introduced into the Secretariat and Council at Calcutta.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Simla: May 21, 1863.

[Sidenote: Aristocracies.]

I have no objection _primâ facie_ to an aristocracy, and I am quite

ready to admit that conflicting claims of proprietorship in the same

lands are an evil; but I also know that, even in our old Christian

Europe, there are not many aristocracies that have had salt enough in

them to prevent them from rotting. And when I consider what Oriental

society is; when I reflect on the frightful corruption, both of mind

and body, to which the inheritors of wealth and station are

exposed--the general absence of motives to call forth good instincts,

or of restraints to keep bad in check--I own that I do not feel quite

sure that, even if we could sweep away all rights of sub-proprietors

or tenants, and substitute for the complications incident to the

present system an uniform land-tenure of great proprietors and tenants

at will, we should be much nearer the millennium than we are now....

[Sidenote: Against intermeddling in foreign politics.]

I am wholly opposed to that prurient intermeddling policy which finds

so much favour with certain classes of Indian officials. It is

constantly thrusting us into equivocal situations, in which our acts

and our professions of respect for the independence of other nations

are in contradiction, and in which our proceedings become tainted with

the double reproach of inconsistency and selfishness. Nothing, in my

opinion, can be more fatal to our prestige and legitimate influence.

My modest ambition for England is, that she should in this Eastern

world establish the reputation of being all-just and all-powerful;

but, to achieve this object, we must cease to attempt to play a great

part in small intrigues, or to dictate in cases where we have not

positive interests which we can avow, or convictions sufficiently

distinct to enable us to speak plainly. We must interfere only where

we can put forward an unimpeachable plea of right or duty; and when we

announce a resolution, our neighbours must understand that it is the

decree of fate.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Trevelyan._

Simla: June 17, 1863.

[Sidenote: Council to meet at Lahore.]

On the first occasion of transferring the Council from Calcutta to

another place, we ought to select some considerable town--the capital

of a Province or local Government, if possible. What we wish to do is

to give effect to the scheme embodied in the ninth clause of the

Councils Act, and we should do so in such a manner as to carry public

opinion with us. If the plan answers, we may exercise a greater

liberty of choice on future occasions.

I adhere to the opinion which I first expressed, that, on the whole,

Lahore is the place which unites the greatest number of advantages. It

is the capital of a province which is loyal, which is under the

Government of India, and which, moreover, has a good many special

characteristics of its own, with which it may be well that the Supreme

Legislature should acquaint themselves on the spot. Against these

recommendations is to be set the greater distance from Calcutta, which

does not affect communication by telegraph, and, for more bulky

communications, as compared with Delhi, is only a question of a few

hours.

I have no wish to legislate at a purely military station; my object is

to select a place of meeting where we may obtain some knowledge of

local and native feeling, which does not reach Calcutta.

* * * * *

_To Sir Charles Wood._

Simla: August 30, 1863.

After reaching this place, I soon came to the conclusion that the

reasons for meeting at Lahore were much more forcible than those which

could be advanced in favour of any other place; and circumstances

which have occurred since then have tended strongly to confirm me in

this opinion. Independently of the prestige which attaches to the

province of which it is the capital, and to the Sikh population which

inhabit it, the state of affairs in Afghanistan, and on our frontier,

would render a demonstration which would at once afford evidence of

our military strength and gratify the pride and self-importance of the

Sikh chiefs, at this moment especially opportune.

I have arranged with the Commander-in-chief to hold his camp of

exercise there; the Lieutenant-Governor is to have a great

Agricultural Exhibition, which I am to open; and if we mean to

establish ourselves for a couple of months there in our legislative

capacity while all this is going on, I think that it will have an

excellent effect both on our own people and on our neighbours.

[Sidenote: Sitana fanatics.]

Late in the month of September, during the last days of Lord Elgin's stay

at Simla, occurred the only break in the otherwise peaceful tenor of his

government, in the shape of an outburst of certain Wahabee fanatics

inhabiting a frontier district in the Upper Valley of the Indus. The

outburst is not without historical interest, as connected with similar

disturbances which have assumed more serious proportions; but it is noticed

here chiefly as illustrating the view which Lord Elgin took of the policy

and duty of the British Government in such cases.

It was not without the greatest reluctance that he was induced to take up

the quarrel at all: for he had the strongest aversion for warlike

operations in the existing state of India, and particularly on the

frontiers of Afghanistan; and he had no small distrust of those military

tendencies and that thirst for opportunities of distinction which are apt

to characterise the ablest Governors of frontier provinces. But he had

prevented a Sitana expedition in the previous year; he was assured that the

recent inroads of the fanatics were the direct consequence of his last

year's supineness; and he was told that if he again held back, the

disturbances would be renewed another year with usury. Moreover, he was

assured that the projected expedition would secure the peace of the

frontier for a long period; and that the operation would be little more

than a military promenade, and would be over before his camp reached

Peshawur.

It was scarcely possible for a civil Governor to resist such a pressure of

professional opinion; and he consented to take measures of repression.

Writing to Sir Charles Wood on the subject, he said:--

The overt acts charged consist in the return of the fanatics to

Sitana, whence they were driven out by us some years ago; and the

frontier tribes in question are held to be guilty because they have

allowed them to return to this place, although bound by treaty with us

to refuse to admit them.... On a review of all the circumstances, and

looking to the well-known character and designs of the Sitana

fanatics, I came to the conclusion that the interests both of prudence

and humanity would be best consulted by levelling a speedy and

decisive blow at this embryo conspiracy.

Accordingly it was arranged that the Punjâb Government should at once take

the necessary measures for expelling the fanatics from Judoon, where they

had congregated, and then, if circumstances permitted, proceed to destroy

their place of refuge at Mulka.

But it is well known that in India, to use Lord Elgin's own expression,

'rising officials are instinctively in favour of a good row.' Some of those

around him were urgent that the expedition should be deferred until the

spring, and should then be organised on a larger scale, and with more

comprehensive objects. Lord Elgin set his face decidedly against this.

I wish (he wrote) by a sudden and vigorous blow to check this trouble

on our frontier while it is in a nascent condition. The other plan

would give it several months to fester and to extend itself; and, if

there be among the Mohammedan populations in these regions the

disposition to combine against us which is alleged, and which is

indeed the justification of the measure proposed, how far might not

the roots of the conspiracy stretch themselves in that time? The

Afghans in their distracted state might furnish sympathisers; we

should be invited to interfere in their internal affairs, in order to

oppose those among them who were abetting our Mohammedan adversaries;

in short, there is no end to the complications in which this

postponement of active operations might involve us. Everything is more

or less uncertain in such affairs; but in the absence of any very

palpable blunder, what we actually propose to do would appear to be a

pretty safe proceeding. The main purpose is to expel the fanatics from

Judoon; and it is hardly possible that we should fail in this, as they

are within easy reach of us there. The further objects--of punishing

other tribes, and destroying the refuge of the fanatics at Mulka--may

be abandoned if it be deemed advisable, without any loss of prestige,

though of course with some abatement of the completeness of the

movement. I therefore thought it necessary to adhere to my original

resolution.

[Sidenote: The Himalayas.]

On the 26th of September Lord Elgin left Simla _en route_ for Sealkote,

where he was to rejoin his camp and proceed with it to Peshawur, the most

distant station on the North-West frontier, before making his way to the

great _rendezvous_ at Lahore. On the way to Sealkote he was to traverse the

upper valleys of the Beas, the Ravee, and the Chenab, and the mountains

that divide them; his main object being to inspect the great tea

plantations, public and private, recently set on foot in those parts, and

to ascertain for himself what facilities or possibilities the country

afforded for commercial intercourse with Ladâk and China.

For the first week his route lay nearly northwards, through scenes very

similar to those which he had left at Simla. 'We are going through a

beautiful country,' he wrote on the 4th of October, 'and the people seem

cheerful and well-to-do.' Shortly afterwards, having passed over the Sutlej

at Komharsen, he crossed a considerable range of mountains by the Jalouri

Pass, and found himself in the fertile basin of the Beas. Directing his

course still northwards, he followed this river up to its source among the

hills; and thence crossed by the steep and high Rotung Pass from the valley

of the Beas into that of the Chenab--from the rich and smiling country of

Kuloo into a rugged and inhospitable tract called Lahoul. He did not,

however, remain long in these desolate regions; but, after crossing the

Twig Bridge across the Chandra, an affluent of the Chenab, and inspecting a

wooden bridge which had just been constructed to take its place, he

retraced his steps southwards to Sultanpore, on the Beas river. From

thence, on the 18th of October, he wrote as follows to Sir Charles Wood:--

[Sidenote: Kuloo.]

[Sidenote: Rotung Pass.]

[Sidenote: Twig Bridge.]

Thus far our expedition through the mountains has been very pleasant

and interesting. The scenery has been magnificent and the climate

enjoyable, though the changes of temperature have been considerable.

We are now at Sultanpore, in Kuloo, at an elevation of about 4,000

feet above the sea. But a few days ago we (the men of the party)

scaled the Rotung Pass, which divides Kuloo from Lahoul, and attained

in so doing a height of 13,000 feet, with a temperature low in

proportion. This pass is on the road from these provinces to Ladâk and

China, and I visited, on the other side of it, a new bridge over the

Chandra, which will be a great convenience to traders. Hitherto, if

the traders used mules or other animals of this magnitude, they could

cross the river with them only by making them swim; or, if sheep were

their beasts of burden, by driving them over a twig bridge, through

the meshes of which many fell into the river. I crossed the twig

bridge myself; and I found it about the most difficult job I ever

attempted. The new bridge will be completed in a few weeks. This road,

however, useful though it will doubtless be when improved, leads

through Ladâk, and the merchandise transported along it becomes

subject to the exactions of the ruler of Cashmere. The desideratum

would be a road which would be clear of his territory altogether.

The people in these regions seem good-humoured and merry-hearted,

producing for themselves all that they want; growing their own food,

making their own clothes; not much given to exchanges, and extremely

averse to labour. I asked a manager of a tea plantation the other day

how he was off for labour. He said that he contrived to induce

labourers to come to his plantation for a few days at a time, chiefly

for the purpose of earning money enough to pay the Government

assessment of their land; but his opinion was that, if there were no

assessment, no labour would be procurable. We have not yet come across

much tea. The plantations we have seen are on a very small scale, and

in a nascent condition; but they are promising. There seems no reason

to doubt that the climate and a certain portion at least of the soil

in this district are suited to the growth of tea. The climate, too,

does very well for the European constitution, though it is hardly as

healthy as I expected to find it. Both natives and Europeans are

subject to fever at certain seasons, especially in the valleys; but I

have no doubt that the latter may do well as employers of labour. This

place (Sultanpore) is only about 4,000 feet above the level of the

sea, and I have little doubt that, were the state of cultivation and

trade to justify the outlay, a cart road might be made to it without

great difficulty from the plain. This would greatly develop both its

natural resources and its capabilities as a commercial route.

The state of the forests which we have encountered during our route

has also engaged my attention. It is sad to see how they have been

neglected, and how much waste of valuable timber has ensued. The

natives have a practice of girdling fine trees, at a few feet from the

root, in order to strip off as much of the bark as they can

conveniently reach. It is rather a difficult practice to check; but,

if we can manage to draw a line between the woods in which the

villagers have rights and the public forests, we may impose heavy

penalties on the perpetrators of such offences.... The deodar forests

cease at the Rotung Pass. There are no forests of any value in Lahoul

and Spitti--scarcely indeed any wood at all.

We are now proceeding towards the Kangra Valley, where we expect to

find tea plantations in a more advanced condition.

[Sidenote: Illness.]

In this letter, and others of the same date, there is no hint of suffering

or of ill-health; but when they were written he had already received the

stroke which was to lay him in the grave. Before the departure of the next

mail symptoms had appeared of serious disease of the heart, probably long

lurking in his constitution, and now brought out into fatal activity by

fatigue and the keen mountain air; and on the 4th of November, having with

difficulty reached Dhurmsala, a station in the Kangra Valley,[3] he wrote

to Sir Charles Wood in an altered tone, yet still hopeful and cheerful; and

intent to the last in India, as at the first in Jamaica, and afterwards in

Canada and China, on mitigating so far as lay in his power the evils which

man brings on man.

[Sidenote: Last letter.]

You will not expect (he wrote, in this his last letter) to hear much

from me by this mail when you hear how I am situated. The Hill

expedition, of which I gave you some of the details in my last, had an

unexpected effect upon me; knocking me down prostrate to begin with,

with some symptoms of an anxious character behind, which require

looking into. The nature and extent of the mischief are not

sufficiently ascertained yet to enable me to say positively whether my

power of doing my duty is likely to be in any degree impaired by what

has happened. But Lady Elgin has brought up from Calcutta the medical

man who attended me there, and he arrived this morning; so that a

consultation will take place without delay. Meanwhile I have got over

the immediate effects sufficiently to enable me to do such business as

comes before me now. No change has taken place in our plans. We move

rather more slowly, and I have given up the idea of going to Peshawur;

but this is rather occasioned by the desire to confer with the Punjâb

Government, while these affairs on the frontier are in progress, than

by my mishap.

I think that the expedition (against the Sitana fanatics) will be a

success; and I labour incessantly to urge the necessity of confining

its objects to the first intentions. Plausible reasons for enlarging

the scope of such adventures are never wanting; but I shall endeavour

to keep this within its limits.

Lady Elgin is bearing up courageously, under a great pressure of

labour and anxiety.

The sad story of what follows cannot be told in other words than those in

which it has already been given to the world, with all the skill of an

artist combined with the tenderness of a brother, and with that fulness of

authentic detail which only one source could supply.[4]

'Although he had suffered often from the unhealthy and depressing climate

of Calcutta during the summer and autumn of 1862, and thus, to the eyes

that saw him again in 1863, he looked many years older than when he left

England, yet it was not till he entered the Hills that any symptom

manifested itself of the fatal malady that was lurking under his apparently

stout frame and strong constitution. The splendid scenery of those vast

forests and snow-clad mountains inspired him with the liveliest pleasure;

but the highly rarefied atmosphere, which to most residents in India is as

life from the dead, seemed in him to have the exactly reverse effect.

'It was on the 12th of October that he ascended the Rotung Pass, and on the

13th he crossed the famous Twig Bridge over the river Chandra. It is

remarkable for the rude texture of birch branches of which it is composed,

and which, at this late season, was so rent and shattered by the wear and

tear of the past year as to render the passage of it a matter of great

exertion. Lord Elgin was completely prostrated by the effort, and it may be

said that from the exhaustion consequent on this adventure he never

rallied. But he returned to his camp, and continued his march on horseback,

until, on the 22nd, an alarming attack obliged him to be carried, by slow

stages, to Dhurmsala. There he was joined, on the 4th of November, by his

friend and medical adviser, Dr. Macrae, who had been summoned from

Calcutta, on the first alarming indications of his illness. By this time

the disorder had declared itself in such a form as to cause the most

serious apprehensions to others, as well as to himself the most distressing

sufferings. There had been a momentary rally, during which the fact of his

illness had been communicated to England. But this passed away; and on the

6th of November Dr. Macrae came to the conclusion that the illness was

mortal. This intelligence, which he communicated at once to Lord Elgin, was

received with a calmness and fortitude which never deserted him through all

the scenes which followed. It was impossible not to be struck by the

courage and presence of mind with which, in the presence of a death

unusually terrible, and accompanied by circumstances unusually trying, he

showed, in equal degrees and with the most unvarying constancy, two of the

grandest elements of human character--unselfish resignation of himself to

the will of God, and thoughtful consideration, down to the smallest

particulars, for the interests and feelings of others, both public and

private.

'When once he had satisfied himself, by minute inquiries from Dr. Macrae,

of the true state of the case, after one deep, earnest, heartfelt regret

that he should thus suddenly be parted from those nearest and dearest, to

whom his life was of such inestimable importance, and that he should be

removed just as he had prepared himself to benefit the people committed to

his charge, he steadily set his face heavenward. He was startled, he was

awed; he felt it "hard, hard, to believe that his life was condemned;" but

there was no looking backward. Of the officers of his staff he took an

affectionate leave on that day. "It is well," he said to one of them, "that

I should die in harness." And thenceforth he saw no one habitually, except

Dr. Macrae, who combined with his medical skill the tenderness and devotion

at once of a friend and of a pastor; his attached secretary, Mr. Thurlow,

who had rendered him the most faithful services, not only through the

period of his Indian Vice-royalty, but during his last mission to China;

and Her who had shared his every thought, and whose courageous spirit now

rose above the weakness of the fragile frame, equal to the greatness of the

calamity, and worthy of him to whom, by night and day, she constantly

ministered.

'On the following day, the clergyman whom he had ordered to be summoned,

and for whose arrival he waited with much anxiety, reached Dhurmsala, and

administered the Holy Communion to himself and those with him. "We are now

entering on a New Communion," he had said that morning, "the Living and the

Dead," and his spirit then appeared to master pain and weakness, and to

sustain him in a holy calm during the ceremony, and for a few hours

afterwards. "It is a comfort," he whispered, "to have laid aside all the

cares of this world, and put myself in the hands of God;" and he was able

to listen at intervals to favourite passages from the New Testament. That

evening closed in with an aggravation of suffering. It was the evening of

the seventeenth anniversary of his wedding-day.

'On the following morning, Lady Elgin, with his approval, rode up to the

cemetery at Dhurmsala to select a spot for his grave; and he gently

expressed pleasure when told of the quiet and beautiful aspect of the spot

chosen, with the glorious view of the snowy range towering above, and the

wide prospect of hill and plain below.

'The days and nights of the fortnight which followed were a painful

alternation of severe suffering and rare intervals of comparative

tranquillity. They were soothed by the never-failing devotion of those that

were always at hand to read to him or to receive his remarks. He often

asked to hear chosen chapters from the Book of Isaiah (as the 40th and

55th), sometimes murmuring over to himself any striking verses that they

contained, and at other times repeating by heart favourite Psalms. At times

he delighted to hear his little girl, who had been the constant companion

of his travels, repeat some of Keble's hymns, especially those on the

festivals of St. John the Evangelist and of the Holy Innocents.

'Until his strength failed him, he was carried at times into the verandah,

and showed by words and looks his constant admiration at the grand

evidences of God's power and goodness in the magnificence of the scenery

before him; and on one such occasion was delighted with the sublime

description of the wonders of nature in the 38th and 39th chapters of the

Book of Job.

'At times he was able to enter into conversation and argument on serious

subjects. When, under the pressure of his sufferings, he was one night

entreating to be released--"O that God would in mercy come and take me"--

Dr. Macrae reminded him of the dread of pain and death which seems to be

expressed in the account of the Agony of Gethsemane, and he appeared to

find much comfort in the thought, repeating once or twice that he had not

seen it in this light before, and several times saying with fervour, "Not

my will, but Thine be done." At other times, he could even be led, by way

of steadying his wandering thoughts amidst the distraction of restlessness,

to fix them on his school and college days, to tell anecdotes of his hard

reading, or to describe the visit to Oxford of his venerable friend Dr.

Chalmers. He dwelt in this way on a sermon of Dr. Chalmers at Glasgow,

which he remembered even in detail, and from which he quoted some eloquent

passages, bringing out the general scope of the sermon, to the effect that,

rather than teach people to hate this bad world, we should teach them to

love and look up to a better one.[5]

'It will naturally be understood that long converse was nearly impossible.

As occasions rose, a few words were breathed, an appropriate verse quoted,

and a few minutes were all that could be given at any one time to discourse

upon it. It is characteristic of his strong, cheerful faith, even during

those last trying moments, that he on one occasion asked to have the more

supplicatory, penitential Psalms exchanged for those of praise and

thanksgiving, in which he joined, knowing them already by heart; and in the

same strain of calm yet triumphant hope, he whispered to himself on the

night when his alarming state was first made known to him, "Hallelujah; the

Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. We shall all meet again."

'That thought was raised to its highest pitch by the sight of a portrait of

a beloved son, who had died in England during his absence. It arrived in

the close of those sad days. He recognised it with a burst of tenderness

and delight which at once lifted his mind above the suffering of his mortal

illness. Again and again he desired to see it, and to speak of it, with the

fixed conviction that he and his "angel boy," as he called him, would soon

meet in a better world. "Oh, when shall I be with you?" "You know where he

is; we shall all go to him; he is happy."

'Every care had been taken for the public interests, and for the interests

of those still nearer and dearer to him. He had laid the most solemn charge

on his faithful secretary to conduct Lady Elgin home on her mournful and

solitary voyage. He had given to Dr. Macrae, with the tenderest marks of

affection, a turquoise ring: "We have had a long struggle together; keep

this in memory of it." He had dictated a telegram to the Queen resigning

his office, with a request that his successor might be immediately

appointed.

'With this exception, public affairs seem to have faded from his mind. "I

must resign myself to doing no work. I have not sufficient control over my

thoughts. I have washed my hands of it all." But it was remarkable that, as

the end drew nearer, the keen sense of public duty once more flashed up

within him. It was on the 19th that he could not help expressing his wonder

what was meant by his long lingering; and once, half wandering, he

whispered, "If I did not die, I might get to Lahore, and carry out the

original programme." Later on in the day he sent for Mr. Thurlow, and

desired that a message should be sent, through Sir Charles Wood, expressive

of his love and devotion to the Queen, and of his determination to do his

work to the last possible moment. His voice, faint and inaudible at first,

gained strength with the earnestness of the words which came forth as if

direct from his heart, and which, as soon as pronounced, left him prostrate

with the exertion. He begged, at the same time, that his "best blessing"

might be sent to the Secretaries of the Indian Government, and also a

private message to Sir Charles Wood in England.

'These were his last public acts. A few words and looks of intense

affection for his wife and child were all that escaped him afterwards. One

more night of agonized restlessness, followed by an almost sudden close of

the long struggle, and a few moments of perfect calm, and his spirit was

released.

'His death was on the 20th of November, and on the 21st he was privately

buried, at his own request, on the spot selected beforehand.'

* * * * *

He was cut off, as those felt most keenly who were most capable of judging,

'just at the moment when his best qualities were about to show themselves;'

just when the information and experience which he had accumulated were

beginning to ripen into confidence in his knowledge of the country; and to

the historian his figure must remain as an unfinished _torso_ in the

gallery of our Indian rulers. But those who have read the foregoing pages,

more especially the fragments which they contain of his own words and

writings, will have derived from them some impression of the varied

ability, the steady conscientious industry, the genial temper, the

'combination of fertility of resource with simplicity of aim,' of firmness

with tact, of cautious sagacity with prompt resolution, which might have

found even larger scope in the government of India than in the active and

eventful life which has been described.

These attributes, however, do not make up the man, such as he lives in the

memory of those who saw him most nearly. Beneath the manifold outward

workings of his strong and capable nature there flowed a 'buried life' of

depth more than proportionate.

After his death, one who had known him long and intimately, on being asked

what he considered to be the most distinguishing characteristic of his

deceased friend, answered at once, 'Disinterestedness: he seemed utterly

incapable of regarding any subject except with a view to the interests of

his country. And next to that,' he added, 'affectionateness; I never can

forget the grief he showed at the death of his first wife; I thought he

never would have held up his head again.' How this tenderness deepened and

mellowed in the husband and father of later years, some slight indications

may be found in the letters that precede.

Disinterested devotion to public duty; tender and affectionate sympathies;

a passionate love of justice, showing itself especially in a religious

regard for the rights of the weak; all resting on the foundation of a firm

and loving trust in God; these, far more than his ability or his eloquence,

are the qualities that made him what he was: the qualities, by the exercise

and imitation of which, those who seek to do him honour may best perpetuate

his memory.

There is one spot from which that memory is not likely soon to pass away:

the spot towards which, in his most distant wanderings, his thoughts turned

with even more than the ordinary longing of a Scotsman for the place of his

birth, and always with the fond hope that he might be permitted--

life's long vexation past,

There to return, and die at home at last.

'Wherever else he was honoured' (to borrow again from the author already

quoted), 'and however few were his visits to his native land, yet Scotland

at least always delighted to claim him as her own. Always his countrymen

were proud to feel that he worthily bore the name most dear to Scottish

hearts. Always his unvarying integrity shone to them with the steady light

of an unchanging beacon above the stormy discords of the Scottish church

and nation. Whenever he returned to his home in Fifeshire, he was welcomed

by all, high and low, as their friend and chief. Here at any rate were

fully known the industry with which he devoted himself to the small details

of local, often trying and troublesome business; the affectionate

confidence with which he took counsel of the fidelity and experience of the

aged friends and servants of his house; the cheerful contentment with which

he was willing to work for their interests and for those of his family,

with the same fairness and patience as he would have given to the most

exciting events or the most critical moments of his public career. There

his children, young as they were, were made familiar with the union of

wisdom and playfulness with which he guided them, and with the simple and

self-denying habits of which he gave them so striking an example. By that

ancestral home, in the vaults of the Abbey Church of Dunfermline, would

have been his natural resting-place. Those vaults had but two years ago

been opened to receive the remains of another of the same house, his

brother, General Bruce, whose lamented death--also in the service of his

Queen and country--followed immediately on his return from the journey in

which he had accompanied the Prince of Wales to the East, and in which he

had caught the fatal malady that brought him to his untimely end.... How

little was it thought by those who stood round the vault at Dunfermline

Abbey, on July 2, 1862, that to those familiar scenes, and to that hallowed

spot, the chief of the race would never return. How mournfully did the

tidings from India reach a third brother in the yet farther East, who felt

that to him was due in great part whatever success he had experienced in

life, even from the time when, during the elder brother's Eton holidays, he

had enjoyed the benefit of his tuition, and who was indulging in dreams

how, on their joint return from exile, with their varied experience of the

East, they might have worked together for some great and useful end.[6]

'He sleeps far away from his native land, on the heights of Dhurmsala; a

fitting grave, let us rejoice to think, for the Viceroy of India,

overlooking from its lofty height the vast expanse of the hill and plain of

these mighty provinces--a fitting burial beneath the snow-clad Himalaya

range, for one who dwelt with such serene satisfaction on all that was

grand and beautiful in man and nature--

Pondering God's mysteries untold,

And, tranquil as the glacier snows,

He by those Indian mountains old

Might well repose.

'A last home, may we not say, of which the very name, with its double

signification, was worthy of the spirit which there passed away--"the Hall

of Justice, the Place of Rest." Rest, indeed, to him after his long

"laborious days," in that presence which to him was the only complete Rest

--the presence of Eternal Justice.'

[1] One of the Indian journals of the day described the ceremony as

follows:--'On Wednesday afternoon, the few Europeans in the station

collected at five o'clock in the Memorial Garden and Monument. None,

who had seen the spot after the subsidence of the Mutiny could

recognise in the well-planned and well-kept garden, with its two

graveyards, and the beautiful central Monument on its grassy mound,

the site of the horrid slaughter-house which then stood in blood-

stained ruin about the well, choked with the victims of the foulest

treachery the world has ever seen.... The ceremonial was as simple as

it well could be, and few ceremonies could be more impressive.... The

Viceroy advanced to the top of the steps of the Memorial, and, through

the Commissioners, formally requested the Bishop to consecrate that

spot, and the adjacent burial-places. The Bishop, taking his place,

then headed a procession of the clergy and the people present, and

proceeded round the two burial-places and the interior of the Memorial

itself, with music playing and soldiers chanting the 49th, 115th,

139th, and 23rd Psalms. After this, his chaplain read the form of

consecration, which was signed by the Bishop; and, the 90th Psalm

having been sung, he shortly addressed those present in most feeling,

manly, and impressive terms befitting the occasion; and the ceremonial

concluded with prayers read by the chaplain of the station, closing

with the benediction by the Bishop.' The Bishop was the lamented

George Cotton. See his Life, p. 286.

[2] _The Company and the Crown._ By the Hon. T. J. Hovell-

Thurlow.

[3] One of the side valleys which run up northwards from the main

valley of the Beas.

[4] For permission to use this narrative the Editor has to thank

not only its author, Arthur Stanley, Dean of Westminster (and it is

but a small part of the obligations to him connected with this work),

but also the proprietors of the _North British Review_, in which it

appeared.

[5] 'The Expulsive Power of a New Affection.'--_Commercial

Discourses_, No. IX.

[6] That third brother, Sir Frederick Bruce, was laid in that same

vault, when his remains were brought home from Boston, where he was

suddenly cut off in 1867 at his post as Minister to the United States.