El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-08-20

to the diggers and cents to the WON
en- who carried the earth from one place
TO another in baskets They worked
from daylight till dark The children
were paid cents a day. They were
used TO break up the clods and smooth
over the ground
The Rich and Poor at Calcutta.
The truth is the Indian empire is
largely an empire of paupers. and that
OF paupers surrounded by plenty. Tan
talus ike, they are up to the neck in
waters of poverty, with rich fruits of
III kinds hanging over their heads When
they grasp for the fruits they vanish,
and they strive and strive and strive in
vain [ was struck by this at Calcutta.
That capital is known as the City of
Palaces, but it is also a city OF novels.
1t has its thousands of splendid car
Tiages and automobiles, with coachmen
and chauffeUrs In the most gorgeous liv-
cries 1t has rich Englishmen AMI ma
tive raiahs and nabobs who are loaded
with jewels: but with them is want so
keen that it cuts TO the heart There
are thousands upon the street who 90
almost naked. The dress OF the common
people is such that the legs of the wom-
en- are often bare to the knees and OF
the men to the thighs. The bones are
clad only in sinews and skin There is
rot enough meat on the legs to tempt
a hungry dog. They are as straight as
g pipe stem, the swelling of the calves
being absent. The arms show nothing
but bones. The poor Bengal CORE
spends to Kipling's description Of the
woman who was "a rag a bone and 4
hank Of hair" save that there is now
and then a strin"v muscle thrown in.
These people work almost naked, and
their whole forms NAV be seen. | have
spent some time watching them bathing
in the Ganges. The wafer CLUES the
clothes to the skin. and YOU see thou
sands of skeletons bathing and pray
ing
Ard then the homes Of the peoUlel
Outside the mansions Of the rich which
face the Madam and the fine buildings
of the government, and the palaces Of
a few Taiahs, the native quarters of Cal
cutta are largely composed of homes
no larger than packing cases. The
stores are mere holes in the walls Whole
families live in one room and even out
in the countr-- the huts are so small that
the beds are set outside in the daytime.
The Farmers.
| have travelled extensively among the
farmers of many countries, but | know
OF no place where they work so hard for
so little. This is an agricultural nation.
Two-t thirds of the people relv upon
farming as their principal business, and
this means about 20O.000.000. These are
more than 100.000,0O0 here who work
in the soil, and there are ,90000,000
men, women and children who actuaiI-
farm. If eveTv man. woman and child
in the Dnited States should 90 out to
the fields every day to Gig UP the land
or 10 h1- q
the farming situation in India. In ad-
dition, there are some millions engaged
in stock grazing and two or three mil
lions who take care OF domestic animals
of various kinds
The wages of these farmers are low,
beyond American conception. The en-
pIoyes are often paid in kind. getting, in
some cases, their food and a small per
centage of the crop. Where money is
paid. the wages do not average 1925
per month, and nowhere. except in As
sam. do thew rise to So. In the valley
OF the Canoes, where the soil is as fat
as that of the Nile. the average wage
is S15O monthly and in the province
of Dude it is s12S. In addition to this,
some of the labOrers are bond servants,
who get only their living, and a cent
now and then for feast
The farmers who, have thir own lands
are mortgaged up to their eyes. and the
money lender and the tax collector give
them no peace. The, government levies
on real estate have been advancing The
agitators claim they are exOrbitantly
high in COMPARISON. and a current book
on India states that One-eighth of the
entire farming population of Madras has
been sold out Of house and home within
less than 40 decade Not only their
farms. but their furniture and personal
belongi have been. taken for taxes.
On the other hand, it Is claimed that
the taxation today is less than it has
ever been. and that it is lighter per head
than the taxes Of anv other country of
the world We paw 13 times as much
taxes per head as the Hindus. The
Russians pay eight times as much and
the English 20 times rs much
Oppressed bv the Money Sharks.
Indeed. we shall have to look outside
the government for the causes OF India's
poverty We can find one in the nature
OF the people. which leads them to Dor
row whenever they can. and in the mon
ev sharks. who lend at usurious rates
upon their crops and lands. In MANY
such cases the interest is taken in kind,
the shark having his agent on the ground