The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1878-09-29
BRITISH MISR ULE THE CAUSE or
FAMINE AND DEATH IN INDIA VI


Florence Nightingale in the Nineteenh
Century for August dispels the glamour
which ls industriously spread over British
rule in India. She gives the number NJ
those who have died from famine In that
country within single year, apparentiv
1874, at 6 OOO. 900. The official figures fo,
the years 1877 70 are 1 $4,000. The evil
BILE ravages of death are: The lack of irri
cation, which the local administration ha,
engaged to provide the monstrous tara.
ton, which crushes out manufactures, and
the usury which is permitted by the laws.
The famine has been warded on from the
provinces of Tapjore and Kistna where
irrigating has been provided. In other
provinces one person out OF iour OF the
total population has been starved to death.
The cry of the land and of the people ia
for the water which the Government has
the power to secure. or taxation Mia,
Nightingale cites the duty levied on salt
of seven pounds ton, upon cost of l2s
Ga. This is tax of more than HOO Der
cent on q chief necessity of life. Our
lures are etrangled by the tax on saltu
Yet this is in the chief dominion of the
Government which claims to be the lead
ing champion of free trade for the world,
She has reasons for calling the authorities
to account for their grievous extortions
upon the suffering provinces.
The taxes are rendered more burden.
some by the fact that they are payable in
money, and not in kind, as in the olden
time. AS q consequence the people must
get money for this purpose at every risk
Whether they have crops or not, whether
their crops are salable or not the taxes
muet be paid. The producer often has to
borrow money to satisfy the tax gatherer.
For this he has to pay commonly Sc per
cent, and often more, even up to 100 per
cent. The money lender ia shrewd there
as elsewhere; the ryot is often ignorant
and he signs for his loan the bond which
is presented to him. The costs of the fore.
closure of the claim are fearful. Miss
Nightingale cites one case where, uron
de bt of { the costs were ZIG, or 400 per
cent. All these things occur under Eng
lish law. The consequence ia that the
title OF the land is going to the Insurers,
and India is etarving to death. Terrible
ss ia the picture, it is sketched by the
band of u woman who, by her devotion in
the Crimea, has proved her devotion to
Britain and its highest interests. Surely
British rulers cannot neglect such evils in
the provinces which give to the sovereign
her proudest title. Let us add only sin
gle paragraph of incidents which she re.
lates from life
"In the Madras famine QS73-74) chii.
dren of seven to ten years used to bring
poor, little, naked, living skeletons of two,
and three and four years to the govern
meut relief centres. feeding the babies day
after day for weeks, with the daily dole,
asking for nothing for themselves, till the
little foster mothers would themselves sink
at the gates. They were often of no kin,
sometimes even of different caste or
religion. Hundreds of fathers and mothers
going to other parts of the country to get
work aud food, left children to die in their
villages. Little ones who had no little
foster mothers, wandered about to get
dole of food from anyone who would give,
then lay down and died with-pass me the
word-tbe heroic agony of childish pa
thence. For example, one missionary from
Caddapah met in one day over one hun
dred (children) who had no one in this
world to care for them"