inherit any patrimony; but his maternal uncle, who was a wellto-do man, used to take care of him. He did not "starve," nor "live in misery," as your statements are likely to lead one to suppose. Always self-reliant and independent-minded, Hurrish did not much relish the life of dependence which he led, and hence his early desire to seek employment. As regards his induction into the Military Audit Office, your information is quite correct; but I think some acknowledgments are due to the late Colonel Goldie, who first discovered Hurrish's latent powers, and never failed to encourage him with friendly advice, reward, and hope.

With regard to his literary career, you have omitted all allusion to his early efforts in the columns of the Hindoo Intelligencer, started by Baboo Kasipersad Ghose, the well-known Indian Bard, a contemporary of D.L.R., H. M. Parker, Henry Torrens, &c. Hurrischander also practised public writing in the columns of the Englishman, which was then edited by Mr. Cobb Hurry, who in those days was a great friend of the Natives.

Regarding his labours in the Indigo cause, one fact need be recorded, viz. that not only did he defend the Ryots in the columns of the Patriot, and expose their wrongs and grievances, but spared no pains to write memorials for them to Government, organise means for procuring legal assistance to them for conduct of cases, and for general advice on the spot; and even went to the length of helping them with money from his own scanty pocket.

In other respects, your picture of Hurrischander is faithful; only I wish you had spelt the great Patriot's name "Hurrish," as we spell it here, and not " Harris," which reads like an English name. In fact, Hurrish himself never spelt his name otherwise than what I have written above. Trusting this will find you in good health,

* *

*

I am, yours truly,

KRISTODOP SAUL.

380

APPENDIX B.

WHILE this work was being prepared for the press, the Deed of Settlement of the Parsee Girls' School Association has been given to the public. We are not indebted to the courtesy of the Secretary for a copy of the little brochure; though the statement may be made, without warranting a charge of vanity, that our name is sufficiently public in the Native community to entitle us to a copy of whatever is distributed among the public at large. It is long since that we have set our face against the system which obtains favour with the Association, and publicly condemned more than once their reports, and their weakness and favouritism; and it is perhaps to this that we have to ascribe the neglect of the venerable Secretary. Or perhaps the Deed of Settlement was published exclusively for the members of the Association, with which we can never have anything to do. But be the case as it may, if we have been denied a copy by the old Secretary, we have succeeded in obtaining one from a friend; and we extremely regret to read that the Association has entertained views directly opposed to what we have

been propounding for female amelioration in India : they have bound down posterity to a barbarous notion of theirs, and have not only rendered the prospect of English education as remote as ever, but have actually closed it upon the Parsee community. There is a clause in the Deed which is as noteworthy for its pretension as contemptible for its barbarity :

"Fourth.--That the said Association shall establish and conduct schools in the Town and Island of Bombay, and (if funds permit) at other places in the Bombay Presidency, for imparting education to Parsee girls, professing the religion of Zoroaster; and such education shall consist of instruction in arithmetic, reading and writing, useful knowledge, industrial occupations and pursuits, handiwork and arts adapted to Parsee females, domestic economy, the principles of morality and the religion of Zoroaster, and grammar, geography, history and science shall also be taught; and such instruction shall be communicated through the medium of the vernacular language exclusively, except instruction in religious knowledge, which may, if deemed advisable by the Committee of Management for the time being, be also communicated in the languages in which the works relating to the religion of Zoroaster are composed."

We do not know who drafted this clause; but a more contemptible piece of hypocritical deception was never practised upon the public. Education at the girls' school consists, in the words of the fourth clause of the Deed of Settlement, of "instruction in arithmetic, reading and writing, useful knowledge, industrial occupations and pursuits, handiwork and arts adapted to Parsee females, domestic economy, the principles of morality and the religion of Zo

roaster, grammar, geography, history and science?! We may wonder how young girls between the ages of 6 and 11 or 12 are to learn all this. The Secretary's own reports testify that girls leave school just at the age of 11 or 12; and does he expect the public to be simple enough to believe that the long list of subjects he gives in his Deed is got up even by rote at that early age, or does he feel in the heart of his heart that he unflinchingly passes a most impudent piece of deception upon the public? We leave him to choose the alternative.

It may be argued that the list of subjects is prospective, and will obtain currency when the schools become developed. If so, why is instruction at the schools ordained to be "through the medium of the vernacular language exclusively"? The schools may in time be so developed as to admit of an English education without the least difficulty, and why should the Association exclude it by rendering the barbarous Hindoo language the "exclusive" medium of instruction to the girls?

We know what the girls are really taught: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and reduction and the rule of three in some cases; crotchetknitting in its commonest forms, and sewing; doggerel-chanting, and reading some four Gujarati books. of elementary instruction. As for useful knowledge, and industrial occupations and arts, and the rest, they are talismanic words, to delude the public. Geography they know as cleverly as that China is

north of India, and England south of Bombay, and principles of morality are taught by youngsters on 15 and 20 rupees a month, so tersely as soon to enable them to write billets doux! We are sorry to speak so harshly of the Association and their system; but our words were as harsh in 1860, when we first took up the cudgels against them, as they are in 1863. Female education ought now to be fully developed among the Parsees; in the beginning the means were small, and the task was in the hands of the young men of our College-all honour to them! -who made a commencement only after begging girls and instructing them morning and evening —their leisure hours. The thing was new, with Old Bombay arrayed against it. Now, we have the Association of the most influential and wealthy gentlemen of Bombay, and the funds accruing; and in adventitious circumstances like these it is the duty of the Secretary to at once proceed to impart English education. There is now no prejudice against female education, and there are young gentlemen who, if only courteously asked, would be ready to devote their leisure in imparting a knowledge of the English language and science to Parsee girls. What objection, then, can the Association have to inaugurate measures for the amelioration of Parsee females? Surely none. But the unwillingness and objection lies not with the Shetias, who are simpleminded, and as easy to be won to one side as to the other, but with the very gentlemen whom we should