The Press. — London, England, 1857-07-11 00:00:00

4 ~.. said, naturally and inevitably. This is the point at which the two classes touch one another; and the necessity of keeping them distinct in any efforts for their reformation must be obvious to any person who will devote five minutes' reflection to the subject. It is obvious that such conclusions as these, if only tolerably accurate, cannot have been obtained without much well-directed study of vagrant habits, sad a careful comparison of phenomena. In this, perhaps,. consists their chief value. They point to the only proper method of conducting inquiry upon this important subject, and show us that if we wish to get to the root of the matter we must not be content to accept the traditional theories about the origin of crime and destitution, or merely to do good at random by collecting together boys of every character, but that we must endeavour to find a principle of classifi cation, and maintain a broad line of demar cation between those who are still struggling to live honestly and those who, yielding to the current, have been finally absorbed into the criminal classes. _ _ The question of labour—i.e., interference with honest workers—need not trouble us a great deal, as far as juvenile reformatories are concerned. We believe that, in those institu tions which attempt to teach any special trade, the attempt is usually a failure. At all events, boys placed under the instructions of a skilled workman, who has no motive for carefulness beyond that of earning his daily wages, can never compete successfully with an apprentice in whom every advance of skill is so much dear gain to his master. The best proof of the uselessness of this education to those it is intended to benefit is the assertion of Lord SturrseeuaY, that he knows but very few instances in which au emigrant from any reformatory has pursued in the land of his adoption the trade he had been taught at home. We trust this subject will continue to receive the attention which its growing importance demands, and that the public will, sooner or later, recognise the invaluable services of those men who have been the pioneers in opening up the great social question of modern times. THE PRESS, StrLyl 185' feeling that the Indian authorities were about to convert them to Christianity, either by fore* or stra tagem. Mistaken as such an idea was, it must be confessed there has been much in our rooent con duct and legislation that would induce an Asiatic to give it credence. Our railways and telegraphs, ab solutely necessary for the development of India, could not fail to disturb Oriental equanimity. The Aot of the Bengal Government, suppressing the Hindoo festival of Churruck Poojah (since re scinded) ; the enactments changing the law of suc cession and permitting the remarriage of Hindoo widows; the hasty attempt of the Government—at ~i~ the instigation of some visionary lawyers, alike un acquainted with the feelings, habits, and customs of the country—to introduce a universal code, distaste ful to Mahometans, Hincloos, Christians, and British subjects of the Company ; large education grants, of which ninety five per cent was expended in well paid professorships and buildings, and five per cent. it vernacular education ; the existence in Bengal of a notoriously inefficient and venal police, affording the inhabitants less protection than they formerly enjoyed under the Hindoo or Mahometan dynasties ; the wide-spread rumour that Lord and Lady Can ning, who made their missionary seal extremely conspicuous, had gone to India pledged to the Queen to convert the natives to Christianity ; commanding officers of regiments distributing tracts on their march, and otherwise attacking the Hindoo and Mahometan religions; members of the Legislative Council of Bengal presiding at all the missionary meetings, and their daughters, in defiance of Oriental propriety, preaching in the bazaars 1 these eollectively furnished a series of causes quite sufficient to produce a rebellion against our rule. Universal history teaches us that it is impossible to reason with men who believe their religion to be in danger; and Bishop Heber, than whom no man could be more anxious for the con version of the natives, psinted out that our mission aries would have no chance of guesses if their operations had any appearance of being in connection with the State. We look back with dis may upon the Bengal authorities recklessly forcing on so many changes without making a single effort to conciliate the prejudices of the natives, or to disabuse their minds of the fear that we were about to break faith with them as respected the enjoyment of their own religious customs; and yet this was the conduct that her Majesty's Government highly commended and approved! When the intelligence of the mutiny of the 19th Native Infantry was received, and Lord Ellenborough, in the Moose of Peers, justly con tended that the Indian Government ought to have issued proclamations to dispel the alarm and repu diate all intention of interfering with the religion of the natives, Lord Granville replied, on the part of her Majesty's Government, that the Indian authorities had acted most judiciously in issuing no such pro clamations. But no sooner did the mutiny spread from end to end of Bengal, than the Indian authorities shower them all over the country. Had they been promulgated in time, they might have prevented the spread of the mutiny ; but coming too late, and evidently dictated by fear, it is no wonder that the natives placed no confidence in their asser tions. The final circumstance that ignited the pile of discontent is well known to have been the issue of cartridges greased with animal fat, and which the native soldiers looked upon as one of the stratagems to convert them to Christianity, by first destroying their caste. Having thus succeeded in exciting a mutiny, let us see whether the Indian Government exhibited as much promptitude and decision in quelling it as the Ministerial organs would have us believe. The 6th Cavalry and the 00th Rifles (Queeu's troops) were at Meerut when the native regiments mutinied, and were leisurely permitted to indulge in all the bruta lity of an Oriental butchery of their officers and other Europeans, in the presence of an overwhelming European force. When this force was brought into play the mutineers and rioters were dispersed, large numbers of them being kilted. We may estimate their resistance from the fact that they were put to flight without any loss of life to the Europeans. Incredible as it may appear, they were permitted to retreat quietly to Delhi, where they were joined— by all se...counts, most unwillingly on the part of one of them—by the three native regiments that garri soned the town, and after great delay by part of the artillery. Here again there seems to have been the same indecision and infatuation on the part of the officers. Had the 74th (the unwilling regiment) and the artillery been immediately led out against the mutineers, and blood once spilt on either side, all chance of a junction would have been at an end. The all-pervading imbecility seems to have in fected the Governor-General, who after the corn- mencement of the mutiny disbanded within sixteen miles of Calcutta the 34th and 19th Native Infantry, to find their way to their own homes, 500 or 6()0 miles distant, as well as they could, and to become plunderers and leaders of the disaffected in their way. Now, if we take the most favourable view of the revolt, and assume that it is confined to the Bengal troops, and that there is no rising of the population, or of the neighbouring States, the reinforcements sent out must prove inadequate, and from the nature of the climate marching European troops through Bengal at this season may be attended with fatal results. Under any circumstances, the entire Bengal army requires to be remodelled, and this can only be effected in the presence of a large force of troops that can be perfectly relied upon, and such can only be Europeans. But are we wise in calculating as a certainty that the inhabitants of Bengal will not rise and join the mutineers ? Our Eastern subjects have no confi dence in the Government of India—a thing not be expected under our system of constantly attacking vested rights ; and even the measure of endurance of the long-suffering Hindoo may at last be full. It should also be remembered that between Calcutta and Dacca is a line of villages principally inhabited by Ferazees, the most fanatical sect of Mahometans, who look upon the murder of a Feringhee as the most meritorious act they can perform, and so keep a puppet king at Moorshedabad, whom the insurgents might endeavour to use as a rallying point for their cause. Every consideration proves the necessity for preparation; and I may mention that, to add to our difficulties, there are symptoms of disturbance in Ceylon, where according to the last mail the Cingalese chiefs connected with the Government had resigned their employment—an action which has on former occasions been followed by revolt. It is most unfortunate at such a crisis that the chief command of the Indian army should rest with a gentleman who can scarcely be considered better than an amateur, as he has seen no service since the battle of Waterloo, and the subsequent victories he has been engaged in have been confined to the turf. Lord Palmerston, or a higher personage, might be able to inform us why so important a post has been so peculiarly filled. At any rate, the performances of the gallant general have been very characteristic, and fully vindicated his attachment to British sports, for it is recorded that on hearing of the mutiny he came down a little way from the hills, made a speech, purchased a cricket-bat, and returned to Simla. Let us, therefore, hope that mu if we should lose India, we may enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that General Anson has won his game. VISCOUNT MONCK and MR. W. M. THACKERAY are reported as among the probable candidates for Oxford City. A FEARFUL MURDER was committed at Sierra Leone on the night of the 14th of May. Captain Pearsoa, of the Ist West India Regiment, entered the apartment of Lieutenant Watson, of the 3rd Weet India Regiment, and, lifting the mat partition, shot him dead as he lay asleep in his bed. On the pre vious evening at a public entertainment the Captain played Othello, Lieutenant Watson played lago ' and the part of Desdentona was performed by Mrs.Fitz maurice, who appears to have been the unfortunate cause of this sad catastrophe. The inquest returned a verdict of " Wilful Murder," which was probably confirmed at the trial appointed to take place on the 21st, of June. THE INDIAN MUTINIES• LORD Mtrods aptly compared our supremacy in the East to a man sitting upon a mine. That mine has now exploded in its worst form—s mutiny of the Bengal native army; and, as her Majesty's Go ♦ernment express implicit sonfidenee and approba tion in all the acts of the Indian authorities, both preceding and following the insurrection, it may be well to see whether the public can justly regard them with equal satisfaction. Those who are acquainted with the habits of our Eastern subjects can have no difficulty in assigning the causes of this outbreak, and the Indian authorities have been re peatedly warned that their course of conduct would inevitably end in revolt. The origin of the mutiny can be traced, in the first place, to the practice of disconnecting military officers from their regimental duties, and giving them civil employments, for which they were often unfit. By this means the tie that should unite officers and men was severed, and. instead of as officer taking pride in his profession and being intimately acquainted with his troops, be has been taught to look upon remaining with his regiment as a disadvantage and disgrace, showing that he was supposed by his superiors to be incapable of filling any more lucrative appoint ment, or bad not sufficient interest to procure one. In the second place, we must notice the conduct of the Government in destroying the respect of the native troops for the commanding officers of regi ments, through a constant system of intermeddling with their legitimate functions and authority. The sepoy was thus taught that he was not to look to his commanding officer as the source of reward and punishment; discipline was subverted, and revolt became a matter of expectation. In addition to these elements of danger, it has been well known to Us Government for some time past that there existed in the mind of the natives a vague ; undefined