The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-03-04

people to their wretched fate. If
there is anything that can affect
English conscience the spectacle of
these famished legions ought to, but
it seems that the soul of John Bull
is calloused by long familiarity with
such scenes.
THE ENGLISH DEFENSE.
The Englishman defends his fail
ure to relieve the suffering of the
masses by claiming that their re-
ligious prejudices and caste absurdi-
ties have stood in the way of help
ing them: he ends any argument
by telling you how many thousand
miles of railways and irrigation
canals have been built, and dwells
upon the security that now prevails
There is no philanthropy in his en-
terprise, although he would lead
you to think SO. 1t is safe to say
that neither the railways nor the
irrigation projects would have been
put through were they not the
means of producing so much revenue.
That the Englishman loses enthusiasm
when dividends fail is proved in the
case of Burmah. This is a province
of India with ten million inhabitants,
but railways have not been profitable
there, consequently the country has
only APO miles of track Additional
proof of the backward character of
the Burmese is afforded by the fact
that ten million of them support only
eight newspapers.
There is really no foundation for
the English contention that the
Asiatic is not capable of being edu-
Gated. The success the missionary So
cieties have met with in their school
enterprises is a refutation of the
claim that the inferior races can not
assimilate knowledge. The truth of
the matter is that the English have
not seriously tried to educate. 1t is
a sad commentary on neglected OPP
portunity in this respect that India
at the present time is producing
$3.50, 900 annual revenue, yet
there are only 734 schools in the en-
tire country receiving government
support. What might not have been
accomplished in this wasted century
if England had only bought more
school books for its dependency in
stead of SO many guns? The need
for common tongue is shown by the
fact that there are 121 different lam
guages in common use in India, fifty
four of these being used daily in the
JOHN BULL WANTS DOLLARS.
Compulsory education and the en-
forcement of drastic sanitary meas
ures would undoubtedly be resented
at first by midas ignorant inhabi-
tants. but it does not follow that their
masters are unable to compel them To
improve their habits. The reluctance
of the government to enforce reform
Oh the ground that the people VIII nos
accept it can hardly be taken in good
faith. If England has the strength to
invest the land. demand tribute from
Il, and force its stewardship upon the |
people, does it not seem reasonable |
hat it could force them to wash their |
sirty faces and clean their filthy hab- |
tations? The gist of the matter Is |
hat John Bull is not in India to look
lfter the health or prosperity of the
his chief concern rests in |
making money out of them one way
n another. and so long as taxes, in
crest and dividends are forthcoming, |
dolatry and heathenism can flourish |
With his consent. But if by any turn
hese ancient rites that the government
Processes itself afraid to interfere with /
hould jeopardize British investments
he aforesaid ancient rites would De
mashed to smithereens before you L
ould say Jack Robinson.
I know that I am bearing down i
ather hard on our English friends
nut I think that they deserve 1t. IheE
ave plainly shirked their duty to hu
aanity by allowing the Brahmln L
,riests to stand between them and the
.iseas,s which is eating at the vitals Of
he nation. They should also De re
ulled for their official extravaganza II |
his miserable land where the gaun-.
onv hand of the beggar is always 1
utstretched. The Viceroy of India IL
CONTINUED on Page s.