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INDIA AND INDIAN PROGRESS.
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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THE GREAT NATIONAL HIGHWAY . THE RAILWAY JROUTE TO INDIA . Few men who set forth great projects live long enough tp witness their realisation , and few to find their labours appreciated , and to receive a reward , nor are enterprises connected with India commonly exceptions to this rule . " Waghorn did indeed open the overland route , but his pecuniary meed was small , and his widow ' s pension meagre . Melville
inaugurated the application of auxiliary steam power for Indian ships , but it has made little progress . Raffles Was disappointed in the labours of a life , and obliged to accept Singapore as the result of his efforts , when an empire had been thrown away , and Brooke now offers the Government a kingdom , which they reject . Sir Macdonald Stephenson has been , to some extent , more fortunate . Beginning with a plan for Bengal railways , he proceeded to lay down a gigantic and seemingly rash project for a scheme of railways and telegraphs between England and India . It was with considerable difficulty he succeeded in combating the Government , and forcing from them the concession and guarantee of that line which has received the
name of . the East Indian Railway , and which having been prolonged throughout the valley of the Ganges , on the east / by means of the Northern Bengal and other projected lines , stretches towards China , and on . the west is promised connexion with the countries of the Indus . This grand-trunk route he has sought to connect with Europe . Naturally , neither the Bombay nor the Madras line can put forth such pretensions , for they terminate on the ocean ; hut the great northern line points to the interior of Asia ,, and
for the completion of a connexion with it Sir Macdonald has laboured . When he first took this in hand the endeavour seemed almost hopelesSj and in Europe he could look for little attention ; but in India our countrymen encouraged him , for they were themselves made more hopeful b y the rapid progress of communication in the valley of the Ganges , where the steamer having superseded the native boat , they very well saw that the railway could successfully follow the steamboat . Sir
Macdonald hadj therefore , the sympathy of the Indian Governments and community , and , armed with this , he was able to negotiate in Turkey and Persia , and to ask for support from the home Government . As he did not demand money , but only letters to the ambassadors , he the more readily obtained this aid , and he proceeded to negotiate with the several Courts through whose territories the railway to India would pass . The English ambassadors were struck with the energy of the man who had taken
on himself such a task , and they manfully cooperated with him . Among them were Lord Stratford de Kedcliffe , Lord Cowley , Lord Howard de "Walden , Lord Normanby , Lord Ponspnby , and , at home , Lords Palmerston , Aberdeen , Clarendon , and Malmesbury . By the influence of these men Sir Macdonald nad conferences with the statesmen of the Continent ; but it was on Austria and Turkey that he made the most impression , and , indeed , those were the points where an effort was most
important . into Austria two lines of railway were then in progress , one by way of Belgium , Prussia , apd Bavaria , and the other by way of France ,, Baden , and Bavaria ; thereforo m those countries little was to be done , but in Austria the great effort was to be made , because if the Austrian lines could be got forward to the Turkish frontier , then Turkey ¦ would take up the railway system , and Turkey cained , Persia would follow , while the completion
pf the Punjab railways would encourage operations from the eastern end . Up to , that time Austrian railways had : gpne on very slowly , and m 1860 , when Sir Macdonald appoarod at Vienna , the country'was still suffering from the revolutionary war . ^ Thafc very war , however , has been the moans of qreating in Austria a more energetic and onlightened Government , has stimulated ; the cauaoof improvement , and brought into power many able men . True it is the Austrian Government had long been desirous pf increasing its trade , particularly in connexion witU the East , and had with that view encouraged steam navigation en the Danube
and the Black Sea , and done everything for the development of Trieste . Metternich was still influential , and he gave his personal attention to Stephenson , whilst the younger Ministers , Messrs . Bach and De Bruck , engaged eagerly in his views . They saw at once the full value of the work , and though it interfered with existing plans , they determined to make strenuous efforts to continue their lines to the frontiers of Turkey . At that time Stephenson was not able to visit Constantinople , but . the cause was well supported . In the course of a short tour Sir Macdonald
received assurances of cordial co-operation from the Governments of Belgium , Trance ; and Wurtemberg , and then proceeded to India to fulfil his duties in pushing on the works of the East Indian Railway . Thus , for a time , the Great National highway was left to take its own course , but oh his return to Europe the subject was renewed . By that time many of the blanks in the line were filled up , and he was able to announce that a comparatively limited section would bring the line to Constantinoplej whilst at the eastern end the whole Indian section was in progress or conceded . The leading members of the press accorded their support , and in May , 1856 , the Times ,-io the surprise of the public , came forward to give its serious adhesion to the vast scheme of a line from London to
Calcutta , which should be traversed in ten days . This announcementj instead of serving Stephenson ' s purposes , for a time thwarted them ; it was thought to afford a good Opportunity for other parties to come into the field , and it will be remembered a Euphrates Valley Railway and Telegraph Company was started , which has made little progress , but has materially retarded the main operations . Sir Macdonald , driven off his own line , gave it . tip for a time , and devoted himself to the Red Sea Telegraph and the Smyrna and Aidin Railway , the successful prosecution of which have in the end
put him in a position to resume his labours . After a ser ies of efforts , which were much interfered with by the endeavours of some of the advocates of the Euphrates line , dog-in-the-manger-like , to prevent any other route from proceeding , the Red Sea line was granted . By pushing oii the Smyrna and Aidin Railway , the first section of which was opened in November last , Sir Macdonald gave confidence to his supporters at the Sublime Porte , and on proceeding to Constantinople he was readily induced to engage in measures for promoting his original undertaking . This he considered could be best effected by inducing the Turkish Government to
adopt a systematic plan for the formation of a railway system , on the same basis that he had got the Indian Government to adopt . The Government received him with attention , and he has proceeded to engage in the matter seriously , thoughlie has no longer a personal interest to serve , and the state of his health does not allow him to devote , as formerly , his whole energies to such an enterprise . The first step he took was the formation of a committee at Constantinople of the representatives of the concessions then made , to co-operate with committees of capitalists in London , Paris , and Vienna . Being uninfluenced b y personal motives , so , too , no political or party bias has affected him , nor will such , wo hope , interfere with his progress . His aim is to servo Eurepean purposes and npt
English alone , he asks / or no individual commission , and he includes in his committee the' Samsoon and Sivas , the Euphrates , the Kostendjo , and the Smyrna railway representatives . Thoro can bo little doubt that the measures so bogun will ensure the progress of railways generally m Turkey , and thereby of tho portion belonging to the Groat National Highway , but wo shall pass ovor for tho time any consideration of those arrangements to revert to tho influence of tho plan upon India .
Stephenson already looks forward to tho time when India itself will become the centre of a railway system , and hp i , a prepared for tho extension or railways from Russia to the Indian frontier . He has shewn a branch from the East Indian Railway penetrating through Nepaul into Tibet and giving access to tho Western Ohinoao frontier , but , ournr ously enough , he has stopped his map at a point whero a branch devised by himself extends tho East Indian Railway to nearer contact with China .
From Rajmahal his Northern Bengal Railway proceeds to Dinajpore , and thence to Bogliporc on the Burrampooter . Its northern extension to Darjeeling will be close to the Tibet frontier , but that the Burrampooter valley will be traversed by a railway there can be no doubt , and with the opening it affords for European exertions , perhaps at an earlier period than some other parts of India . In this valley pur frontier is close to that or China , and it is by such a railway that the millions of Chinese emigrants will pour into Bengal . Sir Macdonald shows a northern line of transit from the East Indian Railway through Afghanistan and Persia , and a southern route from the Scinde Railway and the western coast lines through Belatter
loochistan and Southern Persia . The * running along the coast , and in so far under naval protection , he prefers to the northern line . When we look at his map , which extends from London to Calcutta , and reflect that most of the line in Europ e is open or , in progress , and that the same is to be said of the line in India , we can look more hopefully to the realisation of the central portion , part of which is already under the auspices of Turkey . The moment that the Indian lines are sufficiently advanced the Indian Government will become anxibus to encourage a line through Bcloochistan , and the approach of a railway to Persia will enable that country , even as Turkey has done , to compass the requisite financial arrangements .
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NOTES ON INDIAN PROGRESS . The Frierid of India refers to a very valuable article on colonisatioft in the Himalayas , showing that the subject is now ; well understood in India * and seriously taken up . "The writer points out the numerous occupations particularly suitable to Englishmen . Such are tea , coffee , flax , and hemp growing , hop planting , iron and copper mining and smelting , coral mining , lime burning , brick making , machine works , lumbering , preparing forest products , brewing , cUst tilling , tanning and fur-dressing , sheep farming , wool combing , grazing , cheese and butter making . Then there are many subdivisions of these employments , and numerous trades for the supply of the garrisons in the hills . The writer says that there is room in tea planting alone for fifty thousand small tea-farms on the frontier from Muneepore south of
Assam to Cashmere . This is exclusive of those on the Ghauts , Vindhyas , and inner ranges . He observes with truth that one English yeoman on each farm , with twenty or thirty Chinese assistants , would very much modify our position in India . A very awkward circumstance has transpired in Cashmere , that ill-fated possession which has been put into the hands of the Jummoo Rajah instead of being thrown open to English occupation . An assault has been made on Lieutenant H . H . Godwin Austin , of the General Trigonometrical Survey , who was reviled as a Kaffir and left lying senseless on the ground , it is supposed at tho instigation of fugitive mutineers . Tho conduct of the Rajah , on being required to obtain redresa for this outrage , has been far from satisfactory , and is only one fact in addition to a series of acts which are well calculated to
awaken the displeasure of our Government . Assistant- Surgeon J . M , Cunningham , M . D ., has been appointed to tho medical charge of Nyneo iul . Lieutenant Maunsell has been appointed Executive Engineer of Aboo and Dessa . The Nepaul complication is not yet settled , for Colonel Rarasay »> the late Kesidont , refuses to return to Katnandoo , even for ono week ; as ho considers ho should only expose himself and tho Government to further insult from Jung Bahadoor . Ho has tendered his resignation , but this the Viceroy has declined to accept . ... his mission to
Mr . Theobald , on his return from England , has resumed his duties as Secrotary to tho Indigo Planters' Association , Mr . E . O . Craster , ojf Maldali , a very energetic member of tho civil service , who lias done much to promote tho Darjeeling and Assam roads , is about to return homo . Major G . Vornor has been appointed Commissioner of Carracan . Mr . Oust has been appdinted an extra Commissioner for tho Punjab , in consequence of' tho increase of duties in that government . He xs , n is said , to bo stationed at Sealkote , with a salary ot 3300 / . a year . , Tho Government press in Bengal has fully succeeded as a moans of saving thottandlwork of tne
India And Indian Progress.
INDIA AND INDIAN PROGRESS .
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T 62 THE LEADER . [ No . 462 , January 29 , 1859 ;
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 29, 1859, page 152, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2279/page/24/
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