India, its administration & progress / Sir John Strachey.

  • John Strachey
Date:
1903
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: India, its administration & progress / Sir John Strachey. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    443/552 page 413
    THE BENGALIS the province are men of far robuster character than the Bengalis of the western districts ; it was among them that the sepoys who fought under Clive at Plassey were chiefly recruited, and the maritime districts supply thou- sands of intrepid boatmen and lascars to the mercantile marine. It has often been said, and it is probably true, that Bengal is the only country in the world where you can find a great population among whom personal cowardice is looked upon as in no way disgraceful. This is no invention of their enemies; the Bengalis have them- selves no shame or scruple in declaring it to be a fact. Even in the western parts of Bengal Proper and in Calcutta there can, however, be little doubt that English education, which has taken so deep a root, is encouraging the growth of manliness among other virtues, and is producing effects which are not limited to the young men trained in our colleges. The writers in the popular vernacular newspapers have begun to speak of patriotism and courage as qualities which should be presupposed to be present in characters worthy of respect. Even the academic admiration of such things is a mark of progress. The people gener- ally are acute and intelligent, patient and industrious, and when they get more knowledge they may become more self-reliant and less helpless against wrong. Leaving speculations on possible changes that may come to pass if our dominion should last sufficiently long, and looking to present facts, it is difficult to conceive for such a people as that of Bengal any in- dependent political future. Neither in our own great Native army nor in the army of any Native State is there a Bengali soldier; it would be impossible to induce Bengalis to enlist, and equally impossible that
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