The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-07-08
midas AWFUL SCOURGE.
DETAILS \OF SOME or THE SUI.
FERINP IN REMOTE DISTRICTS.
The Cholera Raging In Western india-The
FriShtfui Lack Of water-The Destination
In tho Country % the -Frishtfui
Death Rate There Since Last Christi
mas and the World Has Heard Little Of II.

-'''sf sNh f'a'
correspondent says that there is no improve
ment TO report. Cholera still RACES in western
India, Its awful outbreaks In the famine
camps drive away those employed on the re-
lief works In thousands. but in spite OF
this the number so employed was increased
By az, 600 during the last week OF Nav. The
chief Increase is in the central provinces. al
though it il there that the cholera is driving
most from the camps.
The water famine from which vast tracts
Of country now suffer becomes more acute
every week. Springs and small streams have
long ago dried up; wells, though they are aug
deeper, show no water: while even the large
rivers are now mere trickling threads OF water,
mpandering through q wilderness OF red-hot
rock or burning sand. Unless speedy relief Is
forthcoming, this water question Will soon
assume an aspect Of the most terrible impor-
lance. To take one single instance. the big city
OF Nagpore. the capital Of the central provln-
ccs. has for weeks past been on very short COM
mons in the matter Of water. What is avail
able is Of but Indifferent quality. Tn supply
TO the railway COMPANY has been cut on. A
small allowance for drinking purposes Is all
that can be spared u the people. II IL almost
superfiuous 10 point out how this lack OF water
favors the spread Of epidemic disease. quite
apart from the great inconvenience and even
suffering il entails on the people. In districts
which. unlike Nagpore. have no regular water
works, but depend on purely natural sources.
the case is Of course worse"
Serious as is the present condition. the me
teorological reports are very discouraSing
giving rise to the theory that the monsoon
currents, as sometimes happens. have been
detected from their usual course the African
coust. The writer proceeds:
Il need not dilate on the unexampled hor-
rors Of the situation should the monsoon be
very late or poor in quantity. Quite apart
from the impossibilitv OF all agricultural oper-
! atoms. it would simply mean that countless
thousands Of people would die Of thirst"
Weeks ago information reached Simla to the
effect that the people who live in and on the
borders Of the Great Western Desert, which
comprises a large portion Of Scinde and Rajpu-
| tana. had suffered terrible losses; and that not
only had more than 90 per cent, OF their cattle
died. but that the roads. which are mere tracks
across the sandy wastes, were for miles Uttered
with human corpses.
But there are other large districst so remote
from the railway and from important centres
that IL takes months for news tNtrickle through.
The country OF the Bills is an example. Sew
sral weeks ago the writer received a letter
from a military officer stationed in this mass
OF hills and jungle. and the picture which he
painted Of It's condition was truly terrible.
There can be no doubt that months and months
ago, even before last Christmas. the people
were diving in thousands Of starvation and
that they were practically without any help
| whatever. except what vas available on the
mere edge OF their particular domain. News
of all this Is only now. six months afterward.
beginning to leak out.
Referring to n reply OF Lord George Ham
ilton in the House Of Commons. which seemed
to throw some doubt on what he described as
the sensational reports on the subject which
had been published the correspondent says
that II would be difficult to paint in too gloomy
colors the suffering starvation and death which
for months have been simply destroying the
whole population Of the Bill country. Suf-
fering there reached an acute form so long
ago as November last. and ever since that time
the people have been dying Of starvation lit
orally In thousands.
The writer shrinks from detailing the really
stckenlng horrors, as described TO hin, by his
military correspondent. the tale Of the rot.
ting corpsee. or the glistening skeletons OF
hundreds OF men and cattle which are TO be
seen in profusion. OF whole hamlets wiped out,
Of mile after mile. Of country utterly deserted
and burned up, OF the want OF water In places
where within living memory II had never been
known TO fau." and prefers y ~condense in q
touched on the fringe Of the country, and thus
missed the worst scenes.
Writing from Udaipur, perhaps the most
beautiful aud picturesque city in India, he says
that the drought OF last year converted the
Bill country into a place of slow, lingering.
terrible death" Many OF the people turned for
help toward Udaipgr. where they hoped tho
Maharana would help them. But they died In
hundreds on the road, and jackal, pariah dog
and crow fattened on their poor remains. Udai-
Pur offered no sanctuary and every morning
sight the offensive evidences Of the severity
OF the distress. The biting cold days Of De-
cember and January told like a pestiIsnce on
these weakened and emaciatcd frames, and tho
Bills died by hundreds The sights presented
In the city. in the closing weeks OF last year
and the opening, ones 81 this. have burned
themsel, es indellbly on the memories of those
who were so unfortunate "a 10 witness them.
II this could happon in the. capital Of the state.
what was the fate OF those lying In the desolate
hill tracts to the south and west Of Udaipur?
Little or nothing appears TO have been done
at the time 70 relieve this terrible misery. The
Maharana. a Prince Of the old consery alive
his capital beyond what his encourage chose
10 tell him. In any native state the task OF
famine relief Is a long time in organization.
because there is no proper stan OF engineers
or skilled civil serl ants TO superintend things.
and because, too, business OF every type. no
matter how important or hoy, urgent. is carried
NIlbukh NlN WV Nlll'N ht' lii'Nts I'lif
though relief measures were ultimately started
in Udainur, they came too late to save the
Bills. The loss Of life among these people
will probably never be known. but II IL certainly
enormous, Thousands died In the winter
months. Ave months ago. and since then thou
sands more have died OF star, alton. And now
cholera Of the most ~,irulent type has come in
TO complete the work. Apart from this cpl
demic. hundreds Of the people die Of famine
diarrhna. These two, with starvation pure
and simple, account for the appalling mortality
which is daily taking place in the Bhil country.
The pangS OF hunger are so great TINT the peo-
pie in their desI Grafton have taken to eating
all kinds Of the most disgusting or impossible
substances.
The Standards correspondent concludes with
the following appeal for charity:
If only the people of England could realize
the'true state Of affairs in this unhappy country,
they would give with even greater generosity
MANSION House Fund may have reached R3OO,-
600 b. the time this letter is IN print such an
amount, increased bv contributions from Amer,
lea and the colonies, Is a mere drop in the
ocean. The Government Is feeding some
5000, 900 people but II does not provide these
that the rains are shortl due. The people for
the most part pledged their clothing long before
they came 10 the relief works. and without
warm blankets they will get fever and die in
housands when the wet weather comes. Then
there are thousands OF purddndship women
aud many higher class people Of both sexes
who cannot from caste motives engage In man
ual labor and who would starvc rather than do
so. All these have to be supported from the
charitable fund.
But the greatest charge OF all on the fund
Is the replacement Of cattle. II India il TO re-
cover from this famine within n period Of, say.
ten years. IL l. absolutely necessary that a. soon
ma tho fret rain falls mud nrnNilaG ran food