Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-08-18

0kCNl iLtTFA
n N ADRAS, dusty town of splen-
Nu did distances, with a harbOr
v unprotected from storms, is
yet the terminus Of four rail-
way lines and the third largest city OF
India. Its Importance is less due to its
position as trading center than to It's
being the capital of a presidency. con-
siderably larger than Great Britain
and Ireland. 1t is the seat Of a uni
versity and its observatory keeps the
time for the whole Of India.
Many of the modern public and OFF,
cial buildings in Madras are handsome
and imposing but ever since Queen
Elizabeth granted charter to the
original East India company, the
building most rich in historic. memo
ries is St. Mary's church. within the
precincts of the Madras fort. st.
George, writes A. Hugh Fisher in the
Illustrated London News. Standing one
Sunday morning In the welcome cool
ness Of the Secretariat buildings, was
upon the site of the earliest inner fort,
where divine service was held until st.
Mary's church was built In 1878. to re-
main-subject to various additions and
alteratiOns-the oldest British build.
ing now existing in India, Among the
numerous old gravestones now placed
along the north and part of the east
and west sides of the church is one of
Aaron Baker, the first president and
governor Of Fort St. George, with the
oldest British inscription In India,
dated 1852 The interior contains the
cOlOrs of numerous regiments, and so
many monuments and tablets to men
famous in the history Of the British
occupation that the church is some
times called the Westminster abbey of
India. Nor are its records associated
only with death and burial. In the
font of black granite In 1887 were bap-
tized the three daughters of Job Char
mock. whom he had by the Hindu
widow he had rescued from the funeral
pyre of her husband; Robert Give was
married here in 1853. not far from the
writers Buildings" where, some
years previously, he had twice snapped
a pistol at his own head the name of
Arthur Wellesley appears in the regis
ter as a witness to another marriage
in 1898. 1t is unfortunate that the
edifice was not designed in a 'nobler
style than was understood by its Archi.
tect, the master gunner Of the time
whose chief, and very reasonable, care
was to make the. walls thick and the
roof rounded to resist artillery.
The Madras museum is especially
rich In remains from the Buddhist
tope at Amaravati, many of the sculp.
lures from which are familiar to Lon.
doners on the walls of the grand stair.
case in Bloomsbury.
Through the NIigirl Hills.
From Madras went via Erode
Junction to Mettupalaiyam, the ter
minus Of the broad-gauge railway. and
there changed to the narrow gauge
which climbs up the Nilgiri hills. The
engine was at the rear, and from. q
seat on the extreme front of the train
1 was able to watch the scenery to ad
vantage while the lookout man KEEP
his eyes on the metals for any signs Of
landslip, such as we met In one .deer
cutting, where a piece Of fallen r0cl
lay across the line. Va,
We crossed over clefts and gorges
by bridges, through the sleepers OF
which could see foaming torrents IA
below my feet-and crept. along mar
row lodges with precipitous depths OF
one side and rocky height soaring on
the other.
"Ooty" itself (7,2OO feet above Sc,
leveD is not unlike Nuwara Eliya II
CeylOn, in its natural scenery as wei
as from the social point Of view. Sim
liar arum lilies were growing near {
similar lake, and both places ar
/ crowded during the hot weather b,
faded British seeking health and recre
alton. At the time of my visit, how
ever, Ootacamund was empty. Their
were no happy bachelors under canva
/ on the golf links, there was no one a
the hotels, and st. Stephens churcl
was almost as deserted as the cricke
| ground. In small huts on the hillside
saw some Todas, the men wearing {
mantle called the ''putkuli" thrown
round the shoulders without any fas
tening. They are distinctly lighte
|