Evening star., 1923-04-13
Congress of Lausanne to Consider
Claims to Tiny Island of Ada-Kaleh

were formerly subject to the rule of
the sublime porte.
+ x **
That Great Britain continues, as in
past centuries, to exercise her vigil
liant protection even over the most
diminutive and insignificant of her
subjects has been strikingly shown
by her action with regard to the lit
tie seven-year-old girl Doris Hawker.
The latter had been sent out to Ma
dras to be adopted by a childless cou
pie who were understood to be we'll
to-do English people. and who had
applied to the London institution
where the child was being brought
up as anxious to make her a mem
ber Of their family, and to assure
her future welfare, as if their own
offspring.
When the child reached Madras. the
officers Of the ship on which she had
made the trip discovered that the
people who met her on her arrival,
and with whom she was to make her
home, though bearing the name of
Bentinch, and describing themselves
as Indians" were in reality
Eurasians, occupying house in the
native and insanitary quarter of
Georgetown, at Madras. The man
turned out to be a son and grandson
OF European men of inferior rank,
and Of their native wives, while his
own Wife was native woman Of the
lowest caste, since no high-caste ma
tive woman would have consented to
wed EuraSian.
On these facts being brought to the
attention OF the governor Of Madras,
Lord Willingdon, whose only son is
now visiting the United States, he at
once caused the child to be removed
from the custody of the Bentincks,
and from their home in the native
quarters, and conflded her to Com
and to his wife, Capt. Campbell be,
ing the conservator of the port of
Madras, and one Of the most respect
ed members Of the English COM
munity. Lord Wellington took this
somewhat arbitrary step Of taking
the child from the Bentincks on the
ground that 1t was not fitting that
g. white English child should be
brought up amid such low-class ma
H,.s. I've surroundings. .1,l, ind and that if the
Bentincks from London for adoption.
1t was under the impression that they
were English citizens. instead Of half
caste natives.
They had described themselves as
"Anglo-Indians," which was the
cause OF the misapprehension. The
term "Anglo-Indians" in the past has
been used exclusively for the fam
lilies of Englishmen of prominence
whose families have furnished gem
erations of high officials to the ad
ministration of King Georges great
oriental empire. Thus, the Durands.
the Lawrences, the Willcocks, the
Rawlinsons, the Younghusbands-
all Of whose names are household
words throughout the orient, are
termed Anglo-Indians, and they have
deeply, resented the growing pre-
sumption of the half-castes in ADOPT
ing this style, owing to the contempt
entertained alike by the whites and
by the natives for the DESIGNATION
OF "Eurasians," which is generally
understood to mean that those fie-
uring under that head have inherited
the worst qualities of both the white
and the dusky races.
1t is Lord Willingdon and the gov
ernment in London who will see to
the future welfare Of little Doris
Hawker, and to her bringing up
amidst wholesome English environ
ment, and the evidence that the Brit
ish empire still continues to observe
its old-time maxim of DE minimis,
non curat lex" and extends its pro-
tecting arm over two continents to
shield this London waif Of seven
from the risk of harm, shows that
It still continues the policy which
led it, in 1866, to send an entire
army, under Lord Napier of Magdela,
to avenge on the then Emperor of
Abyssinia the cruel treatment which
he and his warriors had meted out
to q missionary who was an English
subject, and not even an Englishman
by birth. That Abyssinian war cost
Great Britain millions Of pounds
sterling, but con6ymed her reputa-
tiop for protecttustSher citizens,