a group of about twenty girls, among them a little girl of twelve,
and another of four. Everywhere we went among the degraded women of
India, we found children in the chaklas, these Government-regulated
brothels, with their ever-present guards, so that Englishmen knew
perfectly that children were being trained under Government regulation
for prostitution. The advocates of licensed prostitution for India are
fond of insisting as an excuse for licensing the evil, that it does
no great harm because the recruits come from "the prostitute caste."
Repeatedly we made enquiries of Englishmen, native physicians, and in
one case applied to the census office for some information concerning
this special class. Its existence was practically denied, excepting
those cases which can be found in every land, in which women of all
classes may fall into shame and train their daughters after their own
evil ways. It is scarcely necessary in this connection to mention
the temple and nautch girls of India, who are found in civil lines.
They are a wholly distinct class from the enslaved women who are set
apart to minister to the vices of the British soldiers. Among the
latter we found Hindus of all castes, from high-caste Brahmins down;
and we also found Mohammedans, Arabs, Egyptians, Afghans, Kashmiris,
Jewesses,--recruits, in fact, from those among whom "caste" does not
prevail. If it were true that all these chakla women constitute one
caste, for what object did the Government of India, in times past,
provide invariably (so far as our observation extends) for a record
of the "caste" of the women to whom registration tickets were given?
The ticket which we purchased of a woman at Meean Meer in 1892 (a
fac-simile of which is given in this volume, _Appendix B_) recorded her
"name," "caste," "registered number," "place of residence," "date of
registry," and "personal appearance."[5]
But there is a class in India being trained to prostitution, though
not a "caste," properly speaking, and they are getting their training
in the brothels established and managed by Englishmen, and many of the
candidates in this class are the children of Englishmen, who have been
deliberately placed there, or allowed to go there, by their inhuman
fathers. This is, properly speaking, the prostitute class of India,
those born to their fate; the reader may judge whether the existence of
the class justifies licensing it for the purpose.
In the chakla we sang, "Where He leads me I will follow," and its
interpretation constituted our Gospel message. With tears in their
eyes the girls assured us, with characteristic gesture, that we were
"on their eyes and on their hearts"; in other words, had won their
affections; and spoke feelingly of the honour it was to them that
Englishwomen should come to see them, saying that usually Englishmen
forbade their wives to even look at them. One girl said that when at
Cawnpore missionaries used to come to them, and that for days after
their visits her heart was so sore that it seemed as if it would burst.
The girls stood in the doorway, many of them with streaming eyes, and
waved good-bye as we departed, begging us to come again soon.
We hastened to the railway station for the three o'clock train. When we
alighted, we spoke a few kind words to our cabman, for he had served us
most faithfully, all these hours under the mid-day glare of the sun,
after so unpromising a beginning. We wished to pay him well, and asked
him to set his own price on his services. The simple, rough native man
hesitated a moment, stammered something unintelligible, burst into
tears, and averting his face with noble shame, said, "I don't want
anything at all. I never saw anything like this before; I would like to
help, too." Thrusting a coin into his unwilling hand, ample for both
fee and present, we hastened to our seats in the car, and were soon
rolling away to our next destination. We wrote up our notes of the
day's doings on the way, and arrived at our next field of operations
the following morning at two o'clock, stealing into another Cantonment
unobserved, excepting by the Heavenly Father, without whom not even a
sparrow can fall. We give this history of one day as a sample; the work
was heavy and painful; but we encouraged each other often with the
words, "Even if we fall by the way, we could not die in better work."
We visited a Rest Camp at Meerut. As usual, we had no difficulty in
passing the sentinels; God took care of that. We learnt from official
records that the regiment had only been in India two weeks; yet the
complete paraphernalia of vice was at hand. There were fourteen little
tents for women, and near their quarters a huge tent pitched for those
who wished to smoke opium. Think of it, fathers and mothers, boys of
the age of from eighteen years upwards, supplied by their superior
officers, before they could have made a demand for the same, with every
convenience for giving themselves over to debauchery! The sight of
their fresh young faces touched us deeply.
At another place, away up on the northern frontier, we found only
five girls; the others had somehow escaped their cruel bondage. As we
entered the gateway of the mud wall that surrounded their quarters,
a native man standing near threw up his hands in great astonishment,
exclaiming, "O God! ('Allah'), how wonderful that ladies should come to
such a place!" It was a dreary, weird scene. The evening was piercingly
cold, and we were well wrapped. The old mahaldarni and her girls
were trying to warm themselves by a wretched little pot of charcoal,
stretching their thin fingers by turns over the coals.
While we talked, the sudden night of a country without a twilight
came on, although it was not really very late. One of the girls
lighted a native lamp of the rudest sort--a bit of wick floating in an
earthenware cup of oil--and set it in a niche in the wall. The room
was unfurnished excepting the _charpoy_, or cot bed, on which we sat.
The girls and mahaldarni sat, native fashion, on the floor, their
cotton chuddars and skirts fluttering in the cruel wind that came in at
the open archway, for door there was none.
They said the men of their regiment were very bad, and often when
drunk beat them and robbed them, not only refusing to pay them any
money, but even taking away their cotton quilts and selling them to
their own native servants for a few pice with which to buy drink. They
described the case of one woman who was beaten terribly by a soldier,
and cut in the arms and breast; after this, several of the girls had
effected their escape. We have often spoken of this as one of the most
deeply shaded pictures in our memory, not only because of the dreary,
comfortless surroundings, but because of the cruelty and oppression
that weighed these helpless women down, from which there seemed no hope
of escape. We talked to them out of the fullness of our sympathy, and
promised to pray and work in their behalf, that they, and others like
them, might have an opportunity to turn to a good life.
But turning from the physical injury inflicted on these poor women, we
wish to present a view of their mental sufferings. It has been urged
by many advocates of the regulation of vice that the whole nature of
a woman was changed by her sinful life--that she had no sensitiveness
and no deep sense of the degradation of her position. We utterly
deny this on behalf of the scores of women with whom we have talked
in India--whether of high or of low caste, Hindoo or Mohammedan, and
of whatever nationality; whether brought up in virtue and afterwards
betrayed, or brought up from infancy in vicious surroundings. We
deny it even in regard to the mahaldarnis placed over the women, whom
avarice might blind, and the ordinary routine duties of their position
might harden. Yet when their womanly feelings were appealed to, they
always responded, and felt shame with and for the women under their
care.
In all our conversations there was shown a most remarkable patience,
on the part of the women, in regard to the various inconveniences and
hardships which the regulations entailed upon them. The fire of their
hatred and indignation all centred upon _the heart of the regulations,
the examinations_, and the violation of womanhood which these
examinations were felt to be. It is of no use for any one to deny to us
that these women have deep feelings in regard to their wrongs and their
shame. We have felt the beating of their aching hearts against our own;
we have heard histories that throbbed with the strong agony of betrayed
innocence; we have seen a hopeless woe in eyes that will haunt us for
ever.
At Peshawar, the women said, when speaking of the great hardship
of being turned out of the Cantonment, "Where can we go to? We are
prostitutes. No one would give us work." And again, "Every one under
this Government is treated well but ourselves; _we only are despised_."
We do not present these facts with any thought of taking our position
with those who argue that the better regulation of vice implies a
better protection of the degraded women; but rather to show that in the
working out of such regulations the _woman_ is absolutely lost sight
of, and only the _prostitute_ is considered. Every interest in the
woman's character, happiness, health, life itself, is made subservient
to the health and convenience of the British soldier. Every assertion
that would put a humanitarian gloss on the regulation of vice is utter
hypocrisy.
At Meerut, where there were a good many women present, one, without
any question whatever on our part, suddenly broke forth into the most
intense expressions of disgust at the Governmental regulation of vice,
in which those girls gathered about her sympathized, one especially
taking part in the conversation from time to time, and corroborating
what was being said. She said, "The Queen does not approve of this; it
is the Commander-in-Chief and the officers who are doing these things!
Oh, what a shame that the Government does these things!" Then she burst
into a passion of indignation, describing in vivid language and with
a natural eloquence of gesture the whole shameful proceeding, and the
humiliation to which they were subjected.
Words fail to convey the force, and fire, and pathos with which that
poor, untaught woman pleaded the cause of her sisters. It was one voice
out of many protesting against this cruel wrong, and representing the
undying dignity of a woman's nature, even when forced into a deeper
abyss than she ever voluntarily chose to enter. We asked if the other
women felt as this one did, and they all answered indignantly, "We
all hate it." The first woman cried out, "It is very disgusting; oh,
_shame_!" We told them it was a grief to us that those who called
themselves Christians should do such things, and that they ought not to
bear the name. She replied bitterly, "Yes; the Commander-in-Chief, the
Colonel, and all of them, all the way down--your Christian men!--they
all favour these things. The Queen does not countenance it, for she has
daughters of her own; and she cares for her daughters in India also. It
is the Commander-in-Chief" (meaning Lord Roberts).
The accounts we have given in previous pages reveal the extremely
tender age at which some of these girls were thrust into a life of
shame by court proceedings under the Contagious Diseases Acts, when
they were openly enforced. Two Benares girls declared they were taken
up by the police at fourteen, and one Sitapur girl said she was sold
to a mahaldarni at eleven. Much has been said of the horrors of
child-marriage in India, and these atrocities should not be minimized,
even though we bear in mind the usually slender type of Eastern
manhood; but what shall we say when the robust British soldier has
had placed at his mercy a little girl of fourteen years old, of the
delicate Oriental type; and this done by regular process of law "_to
preserve his health_"?
Then again considering the heathen training of these women, we were led
to expect that we should find blindness of the moral sense in relation
to this sort of wrong-doing. On the contrary, they expressed great
shame and humiliation, never tried to justify their sinful acts, spoke
almost universally of their hatred of the life, shed bitter tears,
and told us how burdened their hearts were in thinking of their sins.
Unlike what we met elsewhere in speaking of religion to the natives,
they had little desire for controversy. With not a single exception,
we were made welcome, treated courteously, and listened to and blessed
for our message. Even in the case of the mahaldarnis we found them not
inaccessible, but inclined to expressions of contempt for the whole
system of regulation, and of apology for being the hirelings of such a
system--an excuse which must have more weight than in a country where
industries are open to women. Rahiman of Meerut was an exception. She
said she considered her business perfectly legitimate, because she was
in a "Government position."
Several times we asked the women, "What do you wish us to do for you?"
and were surprised at the answer. Desperately poor as many were, there
was never an appeal for money; rather they said, "Pray for us;" or, "If
you would build us homes, so that we could go to them, and not sin any
more, what more could we ask?" and, "If you will help us to have the
examinations stopped." Above all, we were astonished at the appeals
made to us concerning the latter outrage. We told none of them our
whole object in coming among them, yet with great care they described
and expressed their abhorrence of the examinations, as well as the
wickedness and illegality of them; and in two or three instances they
mentioned that they had heard of ladies interested in their behalf, and
suggested the possibility that we might do something for them. In one
instance several of the women, after telling us of their humiliation,
clasped their hands together, and lifting their eyes to heaven, prayed
to God that He would "help us to help them." They invariably exonerated
the Queen from all blame in this matter, saying, "She is a woman
herself; she would not do this. She cares for her daughters in India."
Says Mrs. Josephine Butler: "It is impossible not to think of the
fathers and mothers of the young Englishmen, mere boys, who go out to
India as soldiers, and who are trained in this disgusting manner by
the military authorities; not only in the indulgence of their vices,
but in cowardly and brutal cruelties towards the weaker sex. It seemed
a grand object indeed on the part of Lord Roberts and his subordinates
to aim at sending back their discharged soldiers to England free from
physical disease, regardless of their manliness, their moral character,
their respect for women, and decent habits of life! Would not the loss
of these be bought too dearly by the mere exemption from physical
disease, even if this could be made possible?"
After months of toil, we were now far up towards the north-western
frontier of India. We requested our cabman to drive us to the quarters
of the Government women of the Cantonment. We left the cab just outside
the narrow street. As we walked past the native shops and turned into a
little sort of lane, a woman shouted in great concern from her doorway
to us, "Why do you come here? Don't come here; all are prostitutes who
live here." With a smile of re-assurance we replied, "We know it, and
you are just the women we are seeking; we have a message for you."
With surprise, she then welcomed us most warmly and invited us in,
saying she would go and call all the women and bring them to hear the
message. In a few minutes chairs had been borrowed for us to sit upon,
and nine native women were clustered on the floor at our feet.
We both exclaimed regarding the remarkable personal appearance of
the woman who had addressed us first. She closely resembled, in fine
bearing and apparent intellectuality, a much-beloved mutual friend in
Chicago, a woman of more than local fame in scientific pursuits; it
touched us deeply. With utmost simplicity and confidence this woman
came and seated herself by Mrs. Andrew's side, leaning her arm across
her lap, and many a time during the interview that followed, her
earnest, wistful eyes met ours, while Mrs. Andrew gently stroked her
shoulder, her heart almost breaking with pity as the woman told her sad
story.
A plaintive native song was sung by our interpreter, and tears flowed
freely. After that the simple Gospel message was given. They told us
then some of the painful details of the conditions under which they
were living, saying that they must either meet these conditions or be
expelled from the Cantonment, and added, "If we are expelled, where
shall we go? we must leave all our friends, and no one will give us
work. It means great hardship; we would starve." Speaking of the
hateful examinations, they said the Queen had forbidden these things,
but the officers yet compelled them to go on.
The woman at Mrs. Andrew's side told us the following: "Some time ago
a lady in Calcutta saw a woman weeping as she was going to the Lock
Hospital with other women. The lady asked her why she wept. She told
why she was obliged to go, and how she hated the examinations.
"The lady could not understand this, but took the woman home with her,
and closely questioned into the matter. Then the lady said to her,
'This ought not to be,' and promised that she would do all she could
for them. Then the lady went home to England and talked to the Queen.
She spoke with wonderful power in behalf of the poor women of India.
She said to the Queen that she (the Queen) was a woman, and these in
India were women, and their shame was the Queen's shame, and for
them to be outraged was as though she (the Queen) was outraged, that
it was a shame for _women_ to be treated so when a woman was Queen.
Then the Queen ordered it to be stopped. But the officers still carry
it on." This she added sorrowfully, all the other women joining in
the assertion. Then a sudden thought came into the woman's face, and
she asked: "Are you like that lady of Calcutta, going to try to do
something to help us?" We told them we would work and pray for them
that help might come and homes be provided for them. They blessed and
thanked us over and over. We told them, "We are your sisters;" they
replied, "_We are your slaves_."
Then the woman whom we have especially described lifted her hand and
with impressive solemnity uttered a vow that she would no longer lead a
life of shame.
The next morning we went back to the same place and stopped before
the open door. The old mother was sitting on the floor by a little
charcoal fire preparing the breakfast. The two daughters of the house
were putting their simple little abode in order for the day. The
penitent one came forward and smiled so faint a welcome, and seemed so
embarrassed at our coming, that we at first thought she was offended;
but they exclaimed almost instantly, "We were awake at midnight last
night talking of you, and we said it must have been the true God who
had sent you to tell us of your religion." We replied that they had
been sorely on our hearts, so that we could not sleep, and that we too
were awake at midnight, talking of them and praying for them. They then
poured out blessings upon us, with hands clasped in prayer.
As we talked earnestly and lovingly to them, through our interpreter,
the one who had made the solemn vow came forward and knelt beside
Mrs. Andrew, who was standing, and timidly took her hand. Mrs. Andrew
laid it on the poor girl's shoulder as on the day before, but the
interpreter said, "Put your hand on her head; she is asking you to
bless her." Tears streamed from the eyes of the penitent, and she shook
with sobs as Mrs. Andrew fervently blessed her in the name of our God,
and pleaded with Him for the way to open for her escape from bondage.
Then in like manner the other daughter came and was blessed. Then the
poor old mother threw herself with her forehead on the ground, laying
her hands on Mrs. Andrew's feet, and while Mrs. Andrew prayed over her,
groaned and cried bitterly, saying, "I am a sinner, I am a sinner. For
twenty-five years I led a life of shame, and brought up my daughters to
it."
We then wrote down their names, promising to pray for them, a pledge
which we have faithfully kept ever since.
FOOTNOTES:
[4] An official form of expression.
[5] For forms of tickets of registration of prostitutes see
Departmental Committee Report (1893), pages 12, 331, 334, and 335.
IV.
The Contagious Diseases Acts.
THE advocates of State-regulated fornication contend that diseases due
to vice will be best checked by licensed prostitution, combined with
medical care. The Abolitionists hold that morality alone is sufficient,
and that vice is not necessary. It is a square issue; shall it be
immorality and medicine, or shall it be morality?
The Regulationists believe that vice is necessary; the Abolitionists
believe that vice is not necessary, and that virtue must be demanded. A
memorial signed by one hundred and twenty-three British women, of whom
over half belong to the titled aristocracy, presented to the British
Government April 24, 1897, declares:--
"We feel it is the duty of the State, which of necessity, collects
together large numbers of unmarried men in military service, to protect
them from the consequences of evils which are, in fact, unavoidable."
A memorial, on the other hand, of sixty-one thousand four hundred and
thirty-seven British women, and presented to the Government July 31,
1897, asserts:--
"No permanent diminution of disease will ever be attained by measures
which do not strike primarily at the vice itself."
The leader of the sixty-one thousand and more, Mrs. Josephine Butler,
answers to the statement of the one hundred and twenty-three: "The
confidence of ultimate victory based on a foundation which cannot be
shaken, enables us to regard with composure the forward advance and
claims of materialism and fleshly indulgence, and to compassionate
those--furious against us to-day--who will be beaten to-morrow, and who
will be forced, before the 'great cloud of witnesses' in heaven and
earth, to confess themselves defeated and deserving of defeat."
The cause of venereal disease is promiscuous relations carried to
excess. The hope of eradicating such disease, then, by licensing its
cause, betokens the extreme of moral blindness, and contradicts all
science. Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell says: "We may as well expect to
cure typhoid fever whilst allowing sewer gas to permeate the house;
or cholera, whilst bad drinking water is being taken, as try to cure
venereal disease whilst its cause remains unchecked."
A recent official plea for licensed prostitution in the Cantonments
of India declares: "The efforts to teach the soldiers habits of
self-control" have "signally failed." We wish for a moment to consider
the efforts that have been used in the past. There lies before us a
copy of the "Report of the Army Health Association." It was printed at
Meerut, India, in 1892. We have also the subsequent reports for several
years. In speaking of the efforts put forth to teach self-control, much
is made of the work of this Association (see Departmental Committee
Report, 1897, page 13), as a means that has been used. This report of
the Army Health Association has printed on its cover such texts as,
"Keep thyself pure," "He that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh
reap corruption," etc.; giving the impression that it is a religious
document. In fact it is interspersed all through with Scripture
quotations.