Twenty-One Days in India Part 16

NOS. 15 AND 16

THE OLD COLONEL AND THE CIVIL SURGEON

"The Old Colonel" and "The Civil Surgeon," p. 123, are both types of characters that have since practically ceased to exist in India, although fairly numerous in the 1870's.

"The Old Colonel," a relic of the great changes caused by the disappearance of many regiments during the Indian Mutiny, and the alterations in Army organisation due to the introduction of the "Staff corps" system, has disappeared from the scene, having long since attained the pensioned rank for which he was ripening when depicted by Ali Baba.

As regards "The Civil Surgeon," an entirely new state of conditions has altered him also. Even, however, in Ali Baba's time it could not be said--as it was "long ago"--that a medical officer intended for an Indian career, in order to become perfectly qualified need only sleep one night on a medicine chest.

All the same, to those of us who can look back to life in India forty or fifty years ago, there will surely arise visions of many genial old colonels and doctors, full of good stories and much sympathy in health or sickness for those just entering upon an Indian career.

Captain Atkinson, in his book "Curry and Rice," published at the lime of the Indian Mutiny, depicted by pen and pencil individuals who in after years developed into Ali Baba's subjects. Ill.u.s.trations which may now surely be regarded as valuable records of past Anglo-Indian life and character.

NOS. 19 AND 21

THE TRAVELLING M.P. AND ALI BABA ALONE

"The Travelling M.P." requires no elucidation. He is still with us and has developed greatly during the course of years, in fact, increased facilities of communication between England and India have much increased the species. Happily there are correctives in the shape of adverse votes by const.i.tuents which, in some notorious instances at the last Parliamentary elections, have relieved the situation.

As to "Ali Baba Alone," nothing could add to the perfect picture which, among other things, good-naturedly alludes to many surmises and rumours current at the time as to the ident.i.ty of the Author, leading in some cases to public disclaimers by various highly placed officials and others.

THE TEAPOT SERIES

"SOCIAL DISSECTION" and "THE ORPHAN'S GOOD RESOLUTIONS"

These papers when first published in _The Bombay Gazette_ aroused keen speculation as to their authorship. They are as applicable to Society everywhere as to that of Anglo-India. Greatly appreciated all over India, they were, with the others of the series, reprinted in book form and published shortly before the Author's death in a volume, ent.i.tled "Serious Reflections by a Political Orphan," which has long been out of print.

"THE GRYPHON'S ANABASIS"

The amiable and other idiosyncracies---personal and official--of the late Sir Lepel Griffin, K.C.S.I., who, born in 1840, died on March 9, 1908, having retired in 1889 from the Bengal Civil Service, which he entered'in 1860 by open compet.i.tion, and of which he was a distinguished ornament, are very well pourtrayed in this article. An article of very tragic interest, because its publication was the indirect cause, in all human probability, of the death of its Author.

This is not the place to recount Sir Lepel Griffin's career in many high places of Indian administration and diplomacy, latterly more particularly in the Punjab and Afghanistan.

Suffice it here to say that in 1880, when Chief Secretary of the Punjab, a post he had then held for upwards of nine years--earning the reputation of being the _best_ occupant of that very important and responsible appointment ever known--Mr. (as he then was) Lepel Griffin was selected by the Viceroy--Lord Lytton--to proceed to Kabul, and arrange for its Government as a prelude to the termination of the British occupation of Afghanistan.

Under the Viceroyalty of Lord Lytton's successor, the Marquess of Ripon, and after anxious negotiations, Abdur Rahman was proclaimed Amir of Afghanistan, July 22, 1880. In a spirit of thoroughly good-natured banter the Gryphon's veritable "Expedition" from Lah.o.r.e to the seat of Government to receive the Viceroy's instructions, and thereafter Afghanistan-ward to carry them out--made under very different conditions from that one by Cyrus the younger--is amusingly pourtrayed.

Travelling through the provinces then ruled over by the late Sir George Couper and Sir Robert Egerton respectively, until finally Kabul is reached, where Sir Frederick Roberts handed over his powers to the Civil authority, as embodied in the Gryphon. A progress which, as profusely chronicled by the correspondents of the innumerable newspapers, British, Indian, and Foreign, attracted to India by the second Afghan War, is lightly, yet not unkindly, satirized by Aberigh-Mackay under the _nom de plums_ of "Your Political Orphan."

Who also in this article gave expression to the general impression of the day, that by entrusting Mr. Lepel Griffin with the direct negotiations, the position of the then Foreign Secretary to the Government of India, Mr. (now Sir) Alfred Lyall had been somewhat ignored.

Be this as it may, for his undoubtedly great services, in which he was very greatly aided by his intimate acquaintance with the Persian language, still the French of Afghanistan and other Central Asian lands in diplomacy and etiquette, Mr. Griffin was created a K.C.S.I., and shortly afterwards appointed Governor-General's Agent in Central India and Resident in Indore--where Aberigh-Mackay was Princ.i.p.al of the Rajk.u.mar College--the College for the "Sons of n.o.bles"--the first "Eton" established under British rule in India. These appointments Sir Lepel held from 1881 until 1888, when he was appointed Resident at Hyderabad, the last official position he held in India.

The article now under elucidation appeared on March 29 1880, in _The Bombay Gazette_, then edited by the late Mr. Grattan Geary, whose narrative of a journey from Bombay to the Bosphorus through Asiatic Turkey, published in 1878, did much to revive and stimulate interest in those important countries, where happily British trade and other influences are now being actively commented upon by the press of Western India, and developed by the merchants of Bombay, Karachi, and Western India generally.

Mr. Thomas Gibson Bowles, the proprietor of _Vanity Fair_, who had always warmly appreciated the literary work done for him by Aberigh-Mackay, about this time offered him the editorship of the paper. This post Aberigh-Mackay had virtually accepted.

Shortly before Sir Lepel Griffin took up his appointment as Governor-General's Agent, gossip, more especially at Indore and in Central and Western India, was very busy with surmises as to the fate in store for the writer of this article, as well as many other paragraphs commenting, _inter alia_, upon Afghan affairs, and, _en pa.s.sant_ Mr. Lepel Griffin, which had appeared in _The Bombay Gazette_ from February to December, 1880, under the general heading of "Some Serious Reflections." These articles, hitherto anonymous, having being republished in book form, with their authorship avowed, at Bombay in 1880, shortly before the new Resident and Governor-General's Agent arrived at Indore.

The gossips were--as is nearly always the case--quite wrong, for one of the first men to extend a friendly welcome to Aberigh-Mackay when he arrived at Lah.o.r.e on the 13th August, 1869, to take up his appointment of "Manager of the Government Zoological Collection" was Mr. Lepel Griffin, then the Deputy-Commissioner of the City and District.

Afterwards, at Simla and elsewhere, these two kindred spirits--in many ways--met frequently, and learnt to understand each other thoroughly well. They also had several common friends, civil, military, and non-official; and their literary pursuits in historical directions were also much in sympathy.

In 1881 they were not fated to meet, although Aberigh-Mackay had taken immediate steps to endeavour to do so, as soon as he became aware that a prevalent rumour was abroad to the effect that the Gryphon would--to use a colloquialism--now make it hot for him.

Aberigh-Mackay indignantly repelled any such surmises, and laughed to scorn the idea that Sir Lepel could possibly entertain any revengeful thoughts of the kind that were antic.i.p.ated by those who knew absolutely nothing of the old and existing intimacies of either of the two men concerned.

To effectually dispel and give the lie to all such insinuations, he arranged to postpone his departure for England until after the arrival of Sir Lepel Griffin at Indore, and then make patent to official and other society the true inward state of affairs.

Aberigh-Mackay was a very keen all-round sportsman, and in the first weeks of December, 1880, had played at Mhow and Indore in the interesting polo matches between the 29th Regiment and the station of Indore, both matches being won by Indore, notwithstanding a good fight by the Regimental team, headed by Major Ruxton.

On the 7th January, 1881, he read and played with the Chiefs and Thakores of the Rajk.u.mar cla.s.s of his College; on the evening of the 8th he played lawn-tennis in the Residency garden, when he caught a chill. The next day--Sunday--symptoms of teta.n.u.s appeared which created anxiety among his relatives and friends. On Tuesday, the 11th January, signs of imminent danger became apparent, and at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, he died, some weeks before the new Governor-General's Agent arrived at Indore.

It is a very pleasing fact that the most eloquent and very evidently heart-felt testimony to the great and abiding worth of Abengh-Mackay's work at Indore and far beyond, came from the very pen of Sir Lepel Griffin in his "Report of the Central India Agency for the Year 1881-82," issued in July, 1883, as follows.--

'The death of Mr Aberigh-Mackay was for Central India, an almost irreparable loss. The patience, tact, and enthusiasm which he brought to his responsible educational duties were worthy of all admiration and those young Chiefs who had the benefit of his guidance will compare most favourably both in acquirements and manners with any students trained under the most favourable conditions in the colleges of British India.

It so happened that at the time Mr Mackay was in charge of the Rajk.u.mar College, a large number of important Chiefs were minors, including the Rajah of Rutlam, the junior Chief of Dewar, the Nawab of Jaora, and the two sons of His Highness the Maharaja Holkar. At present there are no Chiefs of the first rank in the Residency College. It will be well if the earnestness and devotion which animated the work of Mr. Abengh Mackay will be felt by those who succeed him.

In Elucidation No. 1--"The Viceroy"--Lord Lytton's _personal_ nomination of Abengh-Mackay to a Fellowship in the Calcutta University has been referred to. This act of _n.o.blesse oblige,_ in the highest sense of the term, was happily known to Abengh-Mackay during his lifetime.

"SOME OCCULT PHENOMENA"

In the autumn of 1880 many strange stories were afloat in India concerning the studies and practices of what is now widely known as occult science, indulged in and made manifest by the late Madame Blavatsky, the auth.o.r.ess of _Isis Unveiled,_ who claimed to possess in a high degree, by nature, those attributes which spiritualists describe (without professing to understand) as "mediumship".

Prominent members of Anglo-Indian society a.s.sociated themselves with Madame Blavatsky, supported her, and believed in the _bona fides_ of her powers, derived as Madame declared from Eastern "adepts" in the science of Yog-Vidya, as this occult knowledge is called by its devotees.

A science according to some--to others a mere vulgar imposition--with which, as maintained by certain renowned Western exponents, Lord Lytton was well versed and largely imbued, his _imagina-tive_ account of the achievements accomplished by Vril in the _Coming Race_, being, according to the school and scholars of Madame Blavatsky, altogether inspired from that Eastern fount.

"Mr. Cypher Redalf, the eminent journalist," in the proper person of Mr. A.P. Sinnett, editor of _The Pioneer_, a daily newspaper published at Allahabad, and then, as now to an increased degree, the leading English newspaper in India, printed in that journal an authoritative statement of various occurrences in Blavatskyian circles at Simla when Madame was on a visit to Mr and Mrs. Sinnett.