The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1896-11-28
i! DA 4
Crop all,rs 4 sIncss 81 sop,lls
q |, ernie d
81 trraifs. q q h
-, ,oas', 600 ] rA A me i IIsEaI !,
Not Only ! Famine But ! j. Dreadful |. !
=-7- Plague Is Rag q. D.
Il ing.

Boston, Mass, Nov. 21.-The American
Board of Foreign Missions has received
the following letter from Rev. r. a.
Hume, d. D., dated at Afmednagaf, India,
Oct. 16, 1906: \. &.
Il am just entering on my 23rd year OF
missionary service in India. In these
years have been through many perplex-
tiles, but the end of the 22nd years finds
me in greater pecuniary embarrassment
than ever before in my life. Many is the
day that there is not dollar in the house
for our personal expenses for our old es-
tablished, fruitful work or for our theO-
logical seminary, nor any idea of where
dollar is come from. In, the 23rd year
there seems the almost certain prospect of
the keenest and most trying suffering and
perpiexity, caused by wide spread famine.
The Indian weather bureau foretold an in
adequate rainy season this year. The re-
suit is as foretold. From the Himalayas
to Cape Comorin the rainy season has been
inadequate. In this, Ahmednagar district
the early rain In June and July was good.
Since July there has been rain, and now
the prospect is that for eight months
the first crops have not properly ripened
more no rain will fall. In consequence
the first crops have not properly ripened
Quu LUZ WALL VA ldlC1 ldlu lNC SCCOud
crops cannot be even sowed in most
places unless there are wells to be de-
pended on. Even the water supply is
now low. What will it be a few months
hence?
Il have been through one famine in
India, and the recollection of 1t Is most
sad. But that was not q general, 80 much
as comparatively local famine. The
coming famine seems likely to be very
general, for nearly the whole population
with it's 800, 100000 people. Already grain
riots are common. Grain merchants will,
not sell largely because they know the
price will greatly increase, though even
now prices are 300 per cent above nor
NAL, 80 people break open grain shops
and granaries and threaten to kill the
merchants If they interfere They say.
1--WE will have soon to die without grain.
If you interfere with our getting your
grain, and we kill you in the struggle, ii
will be all the same" Similarly these
people say to the police and courts: car
rest us for stealing and support lis in Jail.
then we shall not de from starvation"
When quiet, orderly people are aroused to
such acts and words, you can imagine
their present condition; but this. is only
the. beginning of our troubles. No more
rain seems likely to fall for eight months:
no seed can be sown for eight and half
months, and no grain be ripened for over
ten months. What fearful suffering
seems to be in store.
Already In some places parents are de-
sorting their children. In some places
cattle are being sold for the value Of their
hides. In many places farmers forcibly
drive their cattle into forest reserves and
say to forest officers, You may put these
cattle into pounds, then they will at least
get fed. but We shall not regard forest
regulations .". ae<
yesterday morning, near the gate. Of
Ahmednagar, a cart with grain was stop
ped by hungry men who held the driver
till some Of them had carried Oft the
grain. For two days my servants tried in
vain to buy so cents worth of grain for
use. II they do this thing in the green
tree what shall be done in the dry?
"The early part Of October is, theoretic-
ally, part of the rainy season; in Ordin!
airy years our water supplyis most abund-
ant now and the crops are at their best"
The Rev. Erward Hume writes from
Bombay under date of October TO-:
"You have doubtless heard through the
papers that Bombay is suffering from the
plague. Yesterdays report shows that
during. the past week there have been
nearly 800 deaths, or fifty per cent above
the normal for this time of the year. This
excess is due to the presence Of the plague
which the doctors technically call Blu
bonic fever The symptoms are swell
ings on the neck, in the armpits and
sroins, accompanied by fever and vomit-
ing and the patients present lamentable
appearance. In most cases the patients
linger on for two or three days before
death. At first the mortality was very
high. but now the authorities assure us
that not more than go per cent, of the
cases are fatal Even experts cannot tel.
us whence this disease came nor what
the cause is"
Keep the Wheat.
!. fs;x,oin M sPrica Current I'm reply