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Leader (1850-1860), 24th July 1858, Edition 1 of 2, Page 721, Untitled Article

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      sources of the valley of the Indus . As one means of promoting these obects Mr , Aadrew reviews the measure ! for English settlement in India pro-Doanded hy the Association for Promoting English Settlement in India , and now under the considera-Uon of Mr . Ewart ' s Committee in the House of Commons . On the whole he is favourable to the ^ fam singly impressed with the belief that when the means of mtrfcommunication are unproved m India , Manchester and other great manufacturing towns wJl be induced to send English agents into the interior

      of the country to purchase the raw materials , especially cotton , on the spot where they are produced , instead of wceivinir as at present the goods at the jort of shipment through the slow , expensive , and inefficient system of barter of the native traders , and that other persons of intelligence may be induced to settle in a country possessing every variety of climate , and producing indigenously every product necessary or agreeable to man . India , unlike our colonies , is a densely peopled country , and labour is abundant and cheap ; an able-bodied labourer is paid 3 d . per diem , and it Is computed that three able-bodied men do as much in the field as one

      good labourer in this country . In this assertion other India authorities , including men now resident in India , differ from Mr . Andrew , for they affirm one English labourer will do thrice as much as a native labourer , and it is a significant circnmstance . that one settler is abontto The great field for English enterprise for some time must be in the superintendence and direction of that cheap labour , which is one advantage India presents to the settler , unlike so many of our colonies ¦ where labour is not to be got . Mr . Andrew proceeds : —

      In India there is no field for the bone and muscle of the English peasant , what is wanted as the capital , the enterprise , the skill of England to direct the many millions of willing hands hanging listlessly in idleness to explore the resources of a country known to be rich in mineral treasures , and possessing a soil capable of returning three harvests in the year to the most rude and inefficient husbandry . The plains of India are unfit for European settlers , further than as masters of labourers ; bat in the capacity of coffee , indigo , and , above all , cotton planters , zemindars , manufacturers , clerks , master artificers , contractors , tradesmen , there is room for an enormous increase of numbers , and every encouragement ought to be given to their settling in the country . With respect to the hills , Mr . Andrew gives testimony .: ¦— .

      The Himalayan and Inter > Himalayan regions are wonderfully adapted for the European constitution . They are as salubrious , and generally cooler than a great portion of Australia . Europeans can , if they choose , work in the open air , in proof of which it is stated that the strongest built house at one of the hill stations was constructed entirely by European soldiers , without any native aid whatever . In Australia , there is no navigable river with the exception of the Murray , to a limited extent , few running streams , no water power , very little fertile soil , the climate is arid , the whole continent does not produce one single indigenous edible fruit , root , or grain , the very timber is so heavy and hard that it sinks in water , and turns the edge of carpenters' tools not specially made for tho purpose .

      The Kangra and many other valloys of the Himalayas are of great . fertility . In them we see the astonishing spectacle of the productions of the temperate and torrid zones growing side by side , tho creeping-rose intertwining its branches with the bamboo , and tho wild violet and tulip flowering round the roots of the plantain . Further in the interior , there are inexhaustible forests of pine ; a rich vegetable loam , on which all tlie fruits and vegetables in Europe will thrive in perfection . tho vine

      1-1 . . awar ' unpraned , uncultivated , growing like a bramble in the hedges , yields a . grape unequalled in the world . Water power everywhere abounds . The wool trade might bo increasod to any amount . Gold is found in fine dust , but only at the conEuenco of certain streams . What is . still more valuable than gold , iron and coal exist in the hills ; tho formei in extraordinary abundance . Following tho lead of tho Government , European enterprise has already made some progress ill the cultivation of the tea-plant in th « hilly regions of

      frnm ftfftn ? * ^ fel * ™ ™ S ^ thOT 0 « * WIl-Blopo from 8000 to 6000 feet in elevation which is not marc or less rtdaptecl for tea cultivation . India enn , and will , one day , supply the world with that commodity . Iran Doyrah to Kashmore , various localities present t omselves in every gon 80 calculated for tho growth ol H , ° i , J , nt > > SimIa and Ku 88 ° wlio , already possessing wif a- ° , um ' nor a considerable number of residents , v , oi « ld nftord a iinitCLl nmrket on tho spot . The vegetation Hero resembles that or the locality whom tho plant " loimd growing Bpontanoousl y , and tho uliinata is , in Burp * 1 ""! " ' a consido ™ oxporienco , not to bo

      Perhaps there is no part of India which approximates so much to a European colony as Simla , which is about 8000 feet above the level of the sea , and situated on the lower Himalayas , overlooking the extensive plains watered and bounded by the Sutlej and Jumna . As we ascend the first elevation towards Simla , flowers and shrubs of our own land surround us till we descend the precipitous road to Sabathoo . Here the fir-fringed forests , which form so striking a feature in the Kussowlie Hills , disappear ; and we pass through barren rocks here and there dotted with some solitary specimen of . the vegetable world . Approaching Simla , the shades and appearances of the vegetation which abound at Kussowlie , with slight variations , again appear ; and as we enter Simla , nothing can exceed the

      pleasing variety which greets the traveller from the plains . Varieties of tie pine , including the gigantic deodar or Himalayan cedar , the oak , and many other timber trees , the apricot , the apple , the cherry , and other fruit-trees , are natives of the soil , interspersed with black currant and raspberry bushes , and amongst the flowering shrubs , the rhododendron is the most conspicuous , which here attains to the size of a tree , and in the m « nths of April and May , covered with large crimson blossoms , and growing in groves along the hill-sides , adds at once a novel and beautiful feature to the scene . Simla is a paradise as to climate compared with the heat of the plains between April and June . There , amid cloud and the grateful shade of fir-fringed elevations , the exhausted frame inhales the fresh breeze from the

      broad snow-belt of the Hindoo Koosh , and one insensibly forgets all about the fever heat of Delhi or Agra . The bazaar at Simla is well supplied at all seasons ; and living , although expensive compared to the cheapness of the Dooab , is Ies 3 tban one-half the sum at which similar comforts could be secured in Europe . The : sceneTy during a fine day is magnificent , the plains , 7000 feet below , and at thirty miles' distance , appear like a map , while the devious course of the river Sutlej is discernible as far as the eye can reach . Fields and . villages appear distinctly marked out in the landscape .

      Here and there a blue line of mist , following the _ irregular course of the lateral ridges which extend into the plain , marks the course of some pure spring whose sweet wateT 8 are pouring down to cool the parched sufferers below . From the sub-Himalayan range , the great Saul Forest descends into the plain of Bengal , and affords another quarter inviting enterprise ^ The area of this forest has been roughly estimated at fifteen hundred miles . This is truly a land of promise , looking to the demand for timber for the Punjaub andl other railways , and the steady market throughout the year for local

      requirements . At Simla , a resident pays much more in yearly ground rent for his land than" he could buy it for , out and out , in many of the English colonies , and is hampered by many restrictions as to cutting down timber on his own estate ; and pays for labour at a rate amCn ^ a&flyQ ' w ' Iiat it not only costs in the neighbouring native states , but in the adjoining British possessions . It is a strange anomaly that the East India Company should , with their usual liberality , have obtained for their officers privileges in regard to land in certain of the English colonies , -which privileges they partly withhold in their own dominions .

      But even under existing circumstances cotton planters and agents would find in the plains profitable occupation —wliile tea-planters , timber-merchants , and dealers in wool would have in the hills an ample scope for their capital and energy . Were the Indian Government frank in the policy of colonization , did it let in , its true light the value of its own encouragement and of the application of English enterprise and intelligence , India would make a better figure before the English public as a country of progress . To that new branch of industry , the tea cultivation , Mr . Andrew has referred , and it is one that does credit to the Government of India , but the rise , or rather creation of the port of Kurrachec is a feat to be compared with San Francisco or Chicago , or any giant creation of the Far West . In' 1811 the total exports of Kurrachec were 1010 / ., and in 1857 , 735 , 522 / . Mr . Andrewsays : —

      A good port , capable of admitting ships of large burden , and at all hours and sonsons , is indispenable to tho success of tho combined system of rail and river for tho valley of the Indus , intended to be carried out by tho Scindo and Punjaub Railways , in conjunction with tho Indus Flotilla . Such an harbour is to be found in KurTachec , the most western port of India , and the only land-locked harbour between Bombay and tho Persian Gulf . This port is perfectly safe , and easy of access to

      large ships by day and night , und even during thomonsoous . Accord ing to Commodore Young , of the Indian nnvy , who in 1854 . took tho steam frigate Queen twico into Ivurruchec in tho night-time , during tho south-west moonsoon , though u bur-harbour , Kurracheo has depth of water , oven in its existing state , for ships from 17 to 18 feet draught at tho high water of ordinary tides . At high spring tides the depth is from 20 to ' 21 fcot , and at times oven to 22 $ feet . In this view , Commodore Young is confirmed , by Commodore Uenuie , of tlie Indian

      navy , who , during the preparations for the late expedition to the Persian Gnlt , was constantly in and oat of the harbour with troops , and became convinced that there was frequently more water on the bar than the portregister showed . As a proof of tlis it may be stated , not only that the Bussorah Merchant , a large vessel drawing 20 ft . 6 in ., passed the bar in May last , when the register showed only 21 feet water ; but that when on the 5 th of September last , the Hugh Lindsay vent cut of the harbour with the London in tow , the . lead never gave

      less than 26 ft ., though the signal at Manora marked only 21 ft . In the same month the Ajdaha , H . E . I . C . steam-frigate , and the England , one of Mr . Lindsay ' s Calcutta line of steam-ships , with the 4 th Regiment on board , ran up to the landing-place at Eeamaree without difficulty . All that such a port requires to make it easily available to ships of heavy burden at all seasons of the year , is a good pilot establishment , a steam-dredge , and some moderate engineering ; improvements , all of which measures have already been ordered by the East India Company .

      Lieut .-Colonel ( now Brigadier-General ) John Jacob , C . B ., Officiating Commissioner , reports , under date the 30 th April , 1856 , that , during the year 1854-5 , 1086 vessels of the burden 56 , 695 tons entered the ports of Scinde inwards ; 39 of which , including steamers , were square-rigged , of a burden of 13 , 841 tons . The number that cleared outwards was 1103 vessels , burden £ 8 , 194 tons , including square-rigged ships and steamers . ; The increase of the import and export trade is still continuing , especially in the exports of the staple products of the valley . The steadiness of the rate of increase is not less remarkable than its large amount , as the following table shows : — Year . Imports . Exports . Total . ¦ ' ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ' £ . ¦ ' ¦ £ ' £ " 1843-4 121 , 150 1 , 010 122 , 160 1804-5 217 , 700 9 , 300 227 , 000 1845-6 312 , 900 40 , 500 353 , 400 1846-7 293 , 400 49 , 300 342 , 700 1847-8 287 , 872 154 , 730 442 . C 00 1848-9 344 , 715 107 , 133- 451 , S 49 1849-50 419 , 35 a 114 , 378 533 , 731 1850-51 425 , 831 196 , 461 622 , 293 1851-52 489 , 220 244 , 122 733 , 343 1852-53 535 , 690 376 , 337 800 , 000 1853-54 508 , 793 376 , 310 885 , 103 1854-55 575 , 196 346 , 893 922 , 089 1855-56 629 , 813 604 , 440 1 , 234 , 253 1856-57 685 , 665 734 , 522 1 , 420 , 187

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      No . , Jrac 24 , 1858 . ] T H . E L E A I ) E R . 721

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      SELECT COMMITTEE ON COL . ONI The evidence given before Mr . Ewart ' s is so important , and throws such light o A dition of the English settlers , not only in the hill regions , but throughout India , that we think it most desirable to give an abstract of some portions of it ? , though all of it is important . Here , in fact , will be found the materials for discussing many of the leading questions connected with the administration of India . MAJOR-GENERAL TftEHENIIEEKE , C . B . "What do you consider the best means of promoting European settlement in India ?—The state of tie existing means of travelling in India is sufficient alone to prevent the country and its resources from becoming known to capitalists . The ordinary mode of travelling is either by marching in stages from twelve to fourteen miles a day , or travelling by dawk in ~ a palanquin . Capitalists will not submit to this tardy mode of progress . I conceive that if railways existed , places holding out prospects of profitable investment would be readilyvisited , and capitalists would then judge for themselves of the advantages to be gained by settlement . Do you consider the want of capital to be an obstadtt ? —Yes , capital is a sine qud non ; but I conceive that before capital can be attracted to India , it is necessary to give the greatest facility for intercommunication . Both the agricultural and tho mineral resources of the different localities could then bo readily inquired into on the spot . Those resources would mot only bo accessible to capitalists , but would bo placed within easy communication one with thn nthnr , which in not the case now . Can you state tho principal localities of those ? 'The principal localities of coal which is worked , in India are thoao of Hurdwan , and on tbo Nerbudda river : the whole of Burdwan ( as is well known ) furnishes a groat doal of tho steam coal which is used in India . Tho coal of tho Ncrbudda has only been recently visited by prol ' ossional mineralogists , and a coul und iron viewer wna sent there last yeur by desire of tlio East India Company . Thero are several other localities in which coal is found in India ; but , from observations of my own , I conceive that it is coal of recent formation , itnd not probably bo well adapted to commercial purposes as the couI-boUs of Uurciwan and of tbo Norbudda . It has not

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), July 24, 1858, page 721, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2252/page/25/