The Alaska daily empire., 1918-02-08
Tikari of India Gives Seven Million for Fund of Home for Women
 Folks.
FOR EDUCATING THEM
Creed or Caste Shall Be No Bar to the Students Who Are Admitted
 There.

LONDON, Feb. :. One of the greatest charitable gifts in the his tory of India has just been announc- ed at Delhi. The Maharaj Kumar of Tikari, one of the wealthy native princes, has executed deed of trust devoting his entire personal estate to founding an institution for the education of Indian women. The property concerned is valued at about $7000,000. In view of the much greater purchasing power of money in India, it is believed that the gift will accomplish as much proportion. ately as a gift of nearly ten times the size in England or America.
 Dependent members of the Nah araj's family have already been pro- vided for by separate funds, and all liabilities of the estate are duly se- cured. The scheme is for a strictly "purdah" residential institution. in which the girls will be trained and educated on the best modern prin- ciples from the age of five to eigh- teen. There will be no question of caste or creed.
 The gift owed its inspiration large ly to the Maharaj's wife, who has been one of the foremost native In- dian women in the crusade for the improvement of the lot of Indian women. The Maharaj himself was one of the first native princes to fight in France, and has spent over two years on the battlefield. He was brought up by English Tutors in India and has been great traveller.
 The Maharaj's wife in a letter describing the gift, says:
 "The education of women is problem demanding the attention of all governments in every country of the world In India the issue is more vital even than in other cOun- tries. A young man leaves his home in India to be educated; he comes, perhaps to an English University. and at the end of three years he returns home to marry an Indian girl of his own social position. During his college days the young man has ! associated with cultivated Europeans. has learned many of their ways. has become used to clever, well-in- formed conversation and companion ship. What about his Indian bride? If she has been brought up in the traditional Indian way she will be quite uneducated according to Vest ern standards, and will know little of life outside her immediate sur roundings. All her days she will have been kept in seclusion, for the ultimate purpose of marriage at the age of thirteen or fourteen.
 Tt is because feel the position of the Indian girls so keenly. because I realize the grave dangers which their general inability to be real helpers entails, that I am so enthus- iastic and so anxious to do all 1 can to help.
 My husband has executed deed l of trust of his whole estate for the | founding of an institution to educate Indian and Cingalese girls, and has made it an essential point that creed and caste shall be no bar We hope ] to introduce into the school thor ough knowledge of English. A col 1 lege will be built, and will include residential quarters where the stu dents will live. A girl can stay un- til the age of eighteen, and this think very important, for the pre- vailing early marrying age in India at present cannot but prove detri- mental to the physical well-being of our women"
 A site for the college has been giv- en by Sir Ali Iman, one of the lead ing Native lawyers.