The Sun.
London, England, 1861-04-04 00:00:00

LORD lIERBERT ON THE FAMINE

IN INDIA.

On Wednesday afternoon, a public meeting of
the inhabitants of Wilton, convened by the mayor
of the borough, was held at,the Town Hall, for the
purpose of cooperating in the subscription now in
progress in London and other places for the purpose
of alleviating the distress caused by the famine in
India. It was expected that Mr. Gladstone, the
of the Exchequer, who had been u guest,
at Wilton House for several days, would have been
present, but having been suddenly called to Landau
he was unable to attend.

The proceedings were briefly opened by the
Mayor (Mr. 11. Blaekmorc), who called upon Lord
Herbert to propose the first resolution. .

Lord HERBERT, who was well received, said-1
have attended here this day at the request of m).
friend, the mayor, for the purpose of moving a re-
solution upon the subject which has already be/Ai
described to you. You will be aware from the
statements which have appeared in the 'public
papers that India has been visited by famine, and
I see that the numbers which are supposed to be
suffering under that calamity are very differently
estimated ; but the lowest I have seen it put at is
1,500,000. But then, again, you will see it stated
that the population of the .districts to which the
famine extends is not less than seven millions, and
I apprehend that the discrepancy between the
two calculations is that one has taken the number
of people through the district in which the famine
prevails, and the other has taken the number
~of persons from among the population who
are liable to fall victims to it by per-
ishing actually for want of food. Now, the
mayor has stated that India is an immense tract
of country, and we must not forget that the result
of that great extent is to aggravate immensely the
sufferings of the people, because where the means
of communication are defective, and where, for ex-
ample,foo
food is
iesaidms ,moeft.
se :Tyr sneg
gt
rhaev
adtieffid
and u 1 ty
there are no railroads except one, and almost
no
doeflaytrianntsphio'srteiansge
is death. (Hear.) Well, the country has been
desolated, not only by famine, but, within the last
few years, by civil war, which, like all wars, tends
greatly to impoverish a country. Crops are laid
waste, houses are burnt, the ordinary avocations of
industry are interrupted, the production of the
country is greatly impeded and diminished, and
' therefore a famine which comes at such a time, when
a country is unable to meet the requirements for its
own preservation, is naturally attended with the.
most disastrous consequences. (Hear.) Now, I
confess that, looking back upon the history of our •
connection with India, and judging it impartially,
we do not at end very well in the eyes of the nations
of the world. We have gone there as traders, we
have gone there as conquerors, and we have made
a great deal of money and attracted great Pros-
perity to this country through our connection with
India. (Hear, hear.) But lam not certain that
we have done all that we might or ought to have
done for the country itself. (Hear, hear.) In
the first place, I believe that we Anglo-
Saxons, who are accustomed to self-government—
who have been accustomed, in fact, not to be go-
verned at all—who have no notions of goVernmenta,
therefore, beyond that of giving security to life and
property—we have not the genius of dealing with
Asiatics, who require a mind to guide them, energy
to supply the failure of that quality, and a hand to
execute what the brain imagines. We have left
the country too much to itself, and have not done
enough in the way of public works, for example,
which might have saved the country from famine.
The irrigation effected by means of canals and the
diversion of rivers from their course has saved those
portions of the country in which it has taken place
from the perils and dangers of famine ; but through
a great tract of country we have done nothing, and
the people are reaping the reward of it. It is often
said—l have often heard it said—that we should
carry Christianity to India. Well, we have not.
carried Christianity to India, and perhaps one of
the reasons is that Christians are little agreed
amongst themselves, and that Christianity, there-
fore, means to the ears of the Hindoo some great
diversity of opinion amongst the different religious
sects. (Cheers.) The people of India see that we
do not agree amongst ourselves, and therefore they-
are unwilling to listen to us. (Hear, hear.)
But on this occasion we may carry Christianity
to them. In this sense we shall show the
practical effects and proofs of that religion its
our desire to do good, and in attempting, as for
as we can, to relieve them from their wants road
necessities. (Hear, hear.) have seen it statfal at
the time of the Irish famine that not only did the
natives of India subscribe very liberally to the
relief of the sufferers from the famine in Irelands
but actually the native soldiers; those men who',
certainly—time has shown—were not well •affe.eje
) to our rale, subscribed their pay, and sent It taa.
and
alleviate the sufferings of their conquerors,
surely that ought to operate as a lesson
_n to us.
(Hear.) Having with a strong band put doWII the
in
Indian rebellion and re-establishedh
'we for-
of the Queen, shall we not 0
eh Nvt
them
mbellion
thatas fellow-subjects caused
get all the sufferings whichthe garment
by looking upon them novf
us for food (Hear. hear.) I. trust, therefore,
have the same RP.xiety
h n we shall do our
pat in
distress, as a nation stretching out their hands to,
that as Englishmen we are not deaf to their
Wilton to
calls, but that
show that
wth
to relieve
occasion towards us. (Uheers.) 'With this feeling
I beg which they
sh°W`eti °II a revious
to propose that those pr© sent at this meet-
ing deeply sympathise with the sufferings of the
their distress
People of India under the awful..visitatiou of famine
with which they are afflicted,, and )Hold it to
be their duty to do their utmost to alley iate the dis-
tress of their fellow-subjects in (Cheers.)
The Rev. Prebendary C :RAISTIIE, rector of
Wilton, seconded the resolution wVich was carried
unanimously.
Mr. SWAYNE, clerk of tb Le peace for Wilts,.
moved, and Mr. J. E. NIGHTI NCIALE seconded, that
appointment of a committee to carry out the ob-
jects of the foregoing resolut ion, wkucli was also
agreed to.
The MAYOR announced a subscription of £lfoo
from Lord Herbert, £lO froi n the corporation of
Wilton, £5 from Mr. Swayn 0, and other seal) ter
sums, and the meeting broke aP.

TIIF.A TR L, HAYMARKET.
Leance, Mr. J. 13. ilactstoue.
THIS EVENING, the performances will oommense with
A DUKE IN 1./IFFICULTIES. Mrs. Stirling, Miss p.
Haydon, Mrs. Wilkins, Miss Fanny Stirling, Mr. Buckstone,
Mr. Compton, Mr. Howe, &a.
After which, will be revived, with entirely new scenery
and effects, and all the original. music by the late Sir Henry
Bishop, the melodrama of THE MILLER AND HIS MEN.
Commence at 7.i

11 EAT-RE-ROYAL LYCEUM.
Sots Lessee and Directress, Madame CELESTE.
Two New pramas.—Reappearanceoi.Mr. John Drew, and

'4th appearanceOf Miss Matilda Heron,

THIS EVENING, THE TWO GREGORIES.
After which, a new original comic drama, written by Saml.
Lover, Esq., entitled MAC CARTHY MORE ' • or, Possession
rims Points of the Law. John Drew, J. Johnston, Forrester,
J. Rouse, Medlin ; Misses Rawlings, Hudspeth, &c.

To conclude with a new drama, NEW YEAR'S EVE ; or,
The Belle of the Season. Messrs. H. Neville, Villiers, Jas.
Johnstone, J. Rouse; Mrs. Winstaniey, Miss Matilda Heron,
Miss Willard, &c.

ji OYA L PRINCES S'S THEATRE.-
Lessee and Manaffer. Mr. A. Harris.
THIS EVENING, THRICE MARMED. Messrs. Shore,
Meadows, Garden, and Miss C. Leclereq.
Followed by HAMLET. Hamlet. Mr. Pechter. Sup-
ported by Messrs. Ryder, Hermann Vezin, Graham, Shore,
Meadows, &C. ; Misses Heath, R. Leclercq, and Elsworthy.

NEW THEATRE-ROYAL, ADELPHL-
Sole Proprietor and Manager, Mr. B. Webster.
Great Attraction for the Ea4ter Holidays.-4th appearance
this season of Mr. B. Webster and Miss Julia Daly.
THIS EVENING, a new drama (2d time) MAGLIORE,
PRESTIDIGITAI OR. Messrs. B. Webster, J. L. Toole,
D. Fisher, ac.; Miss K. Kelly, MISS H. Simms, die.
After which, OU GAL. Miss Julia Daly, Mr. Romer,
Mr. Eburne, and MrR . Warde.
Doors open at half past 6—Commence at 7.

CANTERBU R Y-
tmins AH L
-road. CONCERTS !!
WestLer
Proprietor.-- „C. Morton.
A. Grand Selection from VeO,r's new. Opera,
IL CORSARdi

(This opera has never been produced in this or any other
country,
except at these Concerts), having met with that de-
cided success which charactise 4 the most popular werks of
this great Master, will be performed EVERY EVENING ;
together with a Selection from LA FIGLIA DEL REGGI-
3KENTO, by Donizetti,
Principal Artistes—Miss Russell, Madame Maria, Miss
Tyrrell, Mr. H. Herbert, Signor Tivoli, H. Drummond, and
c. W. Bernard. Director, Mr. F. Jonghmans.
The Comic Department comprises Messrs. E. Marshall, A.
B. Hollingsworth, J. Blanchard, F. Bell, W. H. Welland, and
the Brothers Conrad.
John Martin's Three celebrated Pictures will remain on
view a short time longer in the Fine Arts Gallery of the
Establishment.

HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
THIS DAY.—Morning, 9h. 13m.—Afternoon, 9h. 58m.
To-moßßow.-Morning, 10h. 40m.—Afternoon, 11h. 19m.

THE WEATHER.—Sux Orrica, APRIL 4, 1861,
THERMOMETER, IN THIS SHADE.
54—highest since noon yesterday.
42—lowest this morning and during the night.
52—this day at noon.

BeRomETER-29.85.
Wixom—Westerly—light; with fine weather.

The dissensions so long subsisting—either latent
or overt—between the Masters and their Workmen
will this day, we hope and trust, be brought at
length to a satisfactory termination.
Arrangements were made some time since for a
meeting of the master contractors upon this very
afterooon—at which meeting they were to have de-
cided upon the day on which they would all of them
close their yards simultaneously : supposing, that is,
that the mea were still implacable and unreasonable
enough as to hold out against the generous terms
now offered for their acceptance ; supposing them
still rashly and blindly to persist in this Strike
against the leading firms of sir MORTON PET,O,
of Messrs. KELK and Messrs. Lucks. Fortunately,
there has now sprung up within the last few hours
between the employers and the employed reasons,
good and sound reasons,why this pre-arranged meet-
ing of the master contractors should be postponed.
It has been postponed. The adjournment of this
projected meeting being fixed now for next Thursday
—so as to allow the men themselves to meet, as
they propose meeting, this day—to consider impar-
tially, for once and for all, whether they will
accept or whether they will refuse the liberal
terms now offered to them by Messrs. KELK and
Messrs. LtrcAs. What are those terms ? We
explained the nature of them minutely a few days
since; and it will be remembered that the pith and
marrow of the proposition generously volunteered
to the workmen by their employers, consisted in
the fact that, at an increase of a farthing for the I
better class of artizans, the men were to be paid
henceforth by the hour, and not as heretofore by
the day. The proposition was in itself so mani-
festly reasonable upon the face of it, that the men
for once began to have doubts as to their own
sanity in further listening only to the delegates,
those domineering demagogues, who, not so much
rule the roast as stir up the stew at the
Trades' Unions Committees. The workmen generally,
or at any rate the more thoughtful amongst them,
began to think over the matter carefully themselves.
They had previously begun to find out at last that
Mr. POTTER and his crew had been leading them
into a bit of a dilemma. In consequence of the
prevailing badness of trade, of the protracted
severity of the late winter, of the exhausting in-
fluence of the last strike, and of the fact that this
new strike was begun, therefore, in a period of
much depression—they woke at length to the recog-
nition of the stern reality that the Unions were
really and truly without funds for their support
during a lock-out of any long continuance. They
recognised, in fact, that if they resolved upon going
for relief to any Union at all, it would infallibly be
to the Unidn Workhouse. Then came the know-
ledge to them, unwillingly enough, but quite plainly
and unmistakeably, that the masters were this
tune at last so entirely driven to bay, were
so determined, at length, to stand no further non-
sense in the way of these periodical strikes, that
they had formerly come to the determination that
no further would they budge before the advance of
the leaders of the nine hours' movement ! But that
on their:next meeting they would at once—supposing
the last proposition, the proposition for the pay-
ment by the hour instead of by the day, were
rejected—that they would then, at once, carry out
a system they have now determined upon in that
contingency, the system of introducing foreign
workmen (chiefly, we believe, Belgians)—a system
now understood to be fully organised by the master
contractors and in perfect readiness. The men
knew this—they knew that the delegates were
Powerles.6 to aid them in this new contest, which
they were, nevertheless, urging them to
enter upon with their masters knew,
moreover, that the suggestion of payment by the
hour had obviously its advantages--and knowing,
and seeing all this by the light of their own
common set,* they began, we say, for once, to
look into the matter under dispute themselves. The
result has been already that the delegates are e o
far losing their raar,w, influence,that 28 of the
stone-masons (about the must unlikely class of ell
to break away from the strike, because among all
the sections of ,the workmen the masons are the
most well-to-do) 33 or the nutso
•
ns have already
York at Messrs. L
returned to their \
"48 8 yard
a probability that where there is by the
day after to morn Iv at the latest their
aggregate number will have reached a full half
hundred. ExExamininginto the plan now
proposed fot the palm int of wages by the hour,
they have found that ac tually it was so much of an
improvement to them, w
hen compared With the eV

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THE SUN.
LONDON, THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 1861.