Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-05-02
A BEAUTIFUL RIVER
Crossing the Hooghly for the
Sights Of Calcutta.
FEEDING CITY'S POOR
FORTY OR FIFTY THOUSAND OF
THE INDECENT.
Great Care Taken That Each Caste Re-
ceive the Food Religion
Prescribes.
FEEDING CITY'S POOR
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star
AS we were very anxious to wind up our
experience of the coronation festivities OF
King Edward with those in Calcutta, we
left Agra rather earlier than we had cx-
pected to. and after a very firing journey OF
twenty-eight or thirty hours arrived at
the Howrah station across the river from
the great city itself. In spite of all we had
read of Calcutta we were surprised at the
width of the River Hooghly. which is over
half a mile wide in front of the town and
Is a beautiful sight. filled with shipping OF
all sorts, for the largest ships, even the
P. & o. steamers, come up as far as the
city.
Our first impressions are supposed to be
the most truthful, so 1 may say that our
first was of a very western city with a
very eastern population. The houses and
public buildings are most imposing. the
private houses being much alike. very
large, square and of plaSter-cOvered brick.
set in beautiful gardens surrounded
by high walls. AS the feeding of the poor
Of Calcutta was to take place at o'clock
on the 9th, the day after our arrival, we
could do little else on the morning of that
day except drive about the town to get an
idea of its extent and appearance, and we
found there the beautiful river along
which Calcutta is built has on one side OF
II a very Hne QTlVe, where tHo VIII anu
fashion of the city takes the air of an
evening, and which runs from Eden Gar
dens, past the fine old fort, where the COM
mander- in-chief lives. up to the lieutenant
governors beautiful palace, ''Belvidere,"
which is much finer than Government
House. On the other side of the drive is
the Madam or plain, great open field
dotted with trees and ponds, where one can
walk with fairly good turf under ones feet
have a morning canter, if one prefers
This splendid breathing space for Cal
cutta is mile and half in length and has
a very good drive also on it's other side, and
at one end the race track which is gay
scene in the morning between 7 and 8, for
all of those who ride. to a man. arise. win
ter and summer, at $50 and sally forth for
an hours exercise on the track
When the City Poor Eat.
The feeding of the city poor we found a
most interesting sight Between forty and
forty-f1ve thousand Hindoos and Mahomme-
dams, principally beggars and scavengers,
but also ghari drivers and khalassigor or
boatmen. were fed. All attention possible
was paid to caste, and all the expense
possible borne by one man, rich Hndoo,
the Babu Byujan Lall Lohia, at least all
save the meat for the Mohammedans who,
for some religious reason, could not be pro-
vided by the Hindoo. On dit that he wishes
to be made knight. What more laudable!
A part Of the Madam, large enough to
seat the forty-five thousand. was fenced in
with native mats, and then divided up into
blocks 225 by seventy-f1ve feet, which would
each accommodate one thousand people,
seated on the ground. Twenty of the en-
closures were reserved for the Hindoos