Show I I I I THE EMPIRE OF INDIA Famines Ever Dreaded Spec Spectre Spectre Spectre tre FREDERIC J HASKIN Calcutta the Indians of India were ere as indolent as the uncivilized In Indians Indians Indiana diana of North America the British em empire empire empire pire would have upon IU its hands today an almshouse tenanted by nearly a fifth of the population of the world or a come cemetery tery ter half as aa lar large in area as the United States Famine U is not only written large across the pan pa pass M of oC Indias history but also looms loom darkly In the future OB nB the greatest of nC her m Its spectre spectra Is present every ever year fr despite pit elaborate systems systems systems of relief despite donations made by byrich byrich byrich rich Indian princes and despite the lib liberality liberality liberality with which the world opens its purs purse strings when the Indian peasant is starving Native politicians contend that the great obstacle between their country and pros prosperity prosperity Is an unjust system of taxation which places too Urge a burden upon the people who get their living from the soil soli but famine is la much older than British dominance domina nee It must also use be admitted that the presence of a European power with such concomitants of European progress as railway transportation postal and tel telegraph telegraph telegraph service has hag ha greatly Improved the situation Upon the other hand the na natives nathN natives tives are to be credited with habits of in industry Industry Industry that have prevented them from becoming demoralised by relief measures The ancient Indian adage The flesh of a son Is worth more than his love comes down from times Umes when famine meant cannibalism Later during the ex existence exIstence exIstence of the Mogul empire relief meas measures measures measures ures were not systematic Bullock carts or camel trains could not penetrate sec sac sections offering no forage or water and famine meant depopulation where It struck In 1770 1710 the famine in Bengal car carried carried ried ned off In 1838 1538 according to estimates believed to be conservative of a population of less than 16 starved In ne province It was only after India passed to the crown that the organization of an exten extensive extensive sive she relief system was as undertaken III then work to improve conditions has been steady and although famine has by no means been eliminated the dimensions of disaster resulting from crop failure have been reduced During the famine of or 1360 1560 1 O covering coveting an area of square miles with a population of there were Issued rations or as It Is 18 ex expressed pressed r in India that many units were relieved Five Fire years later famine visited the greater part of or India north of Ma IIa Madras Madras dras affecting a population of approximately approximately approximately This time relief work i iwas was botched The gravity of the situation was not appreciated till tilt too late and people perished Close upon the heels of this appalling sacrifice of human lives came the famine of in West India parched hills could not be traversed by vehicles and thousands died upon the road with their faces toward relief camps Then came cholera in the wake of the famine and when th the surviving villagers made a heroic rail rally upon the land in the hope of ot early rains the next spring there was no rain and again they died by thousands Locusts destroyed the fall crop raised by the re remaining remaining remaining peasantry torrential rains came in the later autumn anti and fever followed the flood It was not until 1870 18 O that the situation was relieved While the grim tragedy of Orissa and was fresh in memory Bihar Bengal and the United Provinces suffered a partial fail fall failure failure ure of rain and In the titanic struggle that ensued between famine and relief dally daily rations for an Individual were distributed Three years later southern India was in inthe Inthe inthe the clutch of famine The government which had been reckless of or expense In the previous attempt to save sae lives now in insisted Insisted insisted upon investigations to determine where relief should be tendered The Tiie re ye result suit sult was a strike of relief workers and while red tape was gone through with In Inan Inan inan an honest effort to befriend the starving without defrauding the taxpayers of the th whole country starvation and resultant fevers killed persons in British territory not including the unnumbered deaths In native states With the world standing aghast at the recurrent decimation of India by b starvation starvation tion the first great famine commission lon met In 1878 to formulate upon a working basis a policy offering relief to the real sufferers without attempting to give gen gee general general eral relief to persons merely poor and not In need of actual sustenance The result was the provisional famine code pub published published published in 1888 laying down the principle that the government in endeavoring to save life liCe Is not obliged to maintain the rural population at a normal level of comfort and that to do so would be un unjust unjust unJust just to taxpayers and would encourage Indolence An Insufficient monsoon in 1896 caused famine In areas containing about population and In British territory alone more than units were re relieved System in this famine resulted in great good being accomplished at reason reasonable reasonable reasonable able cost coat co t The next famine In showed the system to be in still better working order Altogether ra rations rations rations for an Individual for a day were is issued Issued issued sued Notwithstanding this about 1000 persons died of ot o starvation or cholera due to the pollution of water and of ma malarial malarial lariat fever resulting from the unusual number of ot mosquitoes bred upon the stag stagnant nant rant water holes Survivors whose money was sunk in cattle before the famine found themselves Impoverished Recently th the relief scheme has been enlarged to todeal todeal todeal deal with the fodder famine as well as the scarcity of food for human beings While great strides have been made and field work has been given sinews of war from many sources aside from Crom the United Kingdom and the Indian govern government government government ment the famine amine problem has not been eliminated Gradually but very gradual gradually ly iy the caste prejudices that re relief relief relief lief work from reaching many Hindus are being broken down The hill bill country weavers who formerly starved rather than eat at a relief camp lest partaking of unclean food should destroy their craftsmanship have been won over and shy wild tribesmen are learning that it itis ItIs Itis is better to live upon unorthodox food than to be dead Hindus Native states are conducting valuable relief measures as a Ii result of the exam example example pie of Europeans but not until Irrigation extends its benefits to a greater portion of the sunbaked deforested and densely populated agricultural country countI or the growth of other native industries draws a fair proportion of the people from Crom the theland thel theland land l nd will ill famine and incidental pest pestilence pestilence lence of a dozen varieties cease to make large periodical reductions of population With more physical stamina the Indian I I would lees 1 quickly succumb to hunger or I disease but the race cannot acquire greater stamina without sufficient mt nour nourishment nourishment i lehment The frequency of famine in India Is du due to the immensity of a population sub subsisting subsisting slating almost entirely by b agriculture in ina Ina ina a country where the tillers of the soil are too poor to save against a rainy day if a paradoxical expression may 1 be used where saving against a rainless day dayis dayis dayIs is the imperative need The question que Is How may the Indian masses ma become bet better better better ter off financially It is a large ques question question tion readily enough answered by b the poll pal politician who h says reduce the land re rev reve revenues sues collected by the British government to maintain her ber armies for policing not only India but the Asian outposts of the British empire It Is difficult for or th the I student of Indian affairs to answer finally The Indian politicians say that former formerly ly I war rapine and the misrule of un unbridled unbridled Unbridled bridled despots caused famine and that In these piping times Umea of peace there should be no hunger in the land The reply of the gentlemen responsible for forthe forthe forthe the government of India Is ie that peace has bas multiplied the people India is 18 the foremost suicide country count in the world Religious custom not only sanc sane sanctions sanctions timis but enforces early earl marriages The poorest agricultural laborers rear the largest families There is practically no no Immigration to foreign countries when the vastness 8 of the country la Is considered and caste te language and local attachment deter Inhabitants of ot congested conge ted districts from removing to sections where there Is untenanted land Holdings of oC land con continue to be subdivided Agricultural la Ia laborers I borers without land are as numerous as locusts unlike the locusts ta cannot take wing when they have consumed the visible supply of food I IThe The great need of India th one hop of the elimination of the I I spectre of oC famine Camine that stalks talks be behind behind behind hind the naked peasant In is t ii diversification of industries I Row How is ill It I to be brought about The miles of oC railway in the country the irrigation works in upkeep and an construction com corn commercial mercial undertakings and manufactories backed by European capital the for laborers to handle freight at seaports porta makes a considerable draught upon la Is labor labor Isher bor her but how little this is proportion proportionately proportionately proportionately is plain from the fact that 86 per percent cent of the people of India still live Jive in the country Manufacturers employing native labor are making what seems a fair record of steady growth but the Indian birth rate Is from 45 IQ 4 to 50 SO for each 1000 persons or a year That the diversified industries are aN not keeping pace with the th growth of or the population Is I undeniable It must further be borne in mind that most t orientals oriental are conservatives con that In Indians dma ar are especially so eo and aDd that Hindus are taught by their ligion that the vio violation yb latton lation of precedent K 11 an indignity and anda a sacrilege put upon dead ancestors For this reason the masse masses of laborers laborera are not no noby noby by nature seekers and selen of opportunity opportunity opportunity like Europeans who readily cross oceans ns to find better wages wage wa e in a new country It is ea easy for the thc babu who has been to an English university to arraign the th British f for r responsibility r fT r famine pea pes and ard poverty in but his hili ar gum nt aid a i h from fon 1 t In which he hei i harges Gr GrOat Gra ai Britain wit wiLl i supporting In Indian Indian dian arn arnis arnds s i 1 it t as sed l t t lice India are i not entirely convincing Not all of the I t Industrial Ills of th the country can ean rightly i ibe i ibe be charged char Pd to a loaded land tax t x J j |