will not work at them, owing to the danger attending their excavation, and hence such works bring little labour to the ryot's door. I had a practical exemplification yesterday of the danger surrounding the construction of these works, and this too in a small ordi

one man.

nary kapile well. The result ended in the death of As pointed out by Colonel Pearse, these wells are a permanent benefit to the country, but the classes who now need relief will not work at them.'

One of the earliest indications of the reality of the pressure from which the people were said to be suffering was afforded by the sale of family ornaments and jewels. When Indian people part with their ornaments, there can be no question as to the reality of their distress, 6 ornaments being a sort of reserve fund to be sold in difficulty.'1 The markets were stocked with these greatly treasured articles. Shroffs and goldsmiths attended the fairs regularly to buy up the ornaments. The jewellery worn by the higher and lower classes, and generally presented by the husband at the time of marriage, may be thus described: The wife of a poor ryot has a silver kadagu or bracelet, valued at 5 rs. or 6 rs., a silver minchu or anklet valued at 3 rs. or 4 rs., and a gold gundu or necklace valued at from 15 rs. to 30 rs.; the ornaments usually possessed by the females of the superior classes consist of one vali, or earring, worth 25 rs. to 100 rs., and one bugadi, another kind of ear ornament, set with pearls, priced 30 rs. to 70 rs. The women in both higher and lower classes set great value on these ornaments and will only part with them under the most pressing and unfavourable circumstances. In some of the small markets the sales began with the disposal of articles valued at 1,000 rs., and as distress intensified, the number and value greatly increased. In

1 'Depreciation of Silver,' by Walter Bagehot, page 4. Longmans.

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addition to ornaments and jewels, a number of old coins of various kinds are said to have been produced for sale, and it must not be forgotten that in all probability the value of articles sold privately exceeded that of those brought to the markets, as many persons were deterred by feelings of shame from carrying on transactions in public.1

1 The writer of the report whence the facts mentioned have been gleaned, remarks: In connection with this, a published statement of the quantity of silver sold to the Bombay Mint is worth perusal, showing as it does the increasing extent of these sales in that Presidency since November and December. While it is sad to think that so many families have been compelled to part with property to which they are attached, it is on the other hand a matter for congratulation that they have been able in better times to accumulate silver which has stood them in good stead in a time of great need.'

CHAPTER II.

OCTOBER 1876 TO AUGUST 1877.

THE South-west monsoon in 1876 began well in Mysore, and then failed. The north-east monsoon was practically a failure. It was not till it seemed certain that the future of the province could not be relieved by even a late rainfall, that the chief commissioner definitely announced that a famine had to be faced This was in October. On the 3rd of that month a statement was drawn up, showing the successively bad seasons which the country had had to endure, the increased prices of food stuffs, and the prospects of crops. The latter, the most important item of all, was thus described: Of the three districts composing the Nundydroog division, Kolar and Tumkur are chiefly affected. In these tracts the dry crops, which, owing to the delay in the monsoon rains, had been recently put down, have been more or less wholly lost by the absence of timely showers during August and September. There has been an absolute failure of pasture, and cattle, which are so indispensable to the ryot, have died literally in thousands.' A request for further funds followed, and it was pointed out that the lakh already given from savings, with the exception of 3,000 rs. for feeding kitchens, and 1,06,983 rs. from local funds, had been expended wholly on relief works, such as the repair of tanks and the deepening of wells. This was a good beginning, and if the same principle had been borne in mind throughout,

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better would it have been for the reputation of Mysore administrators and for the welfare of the people. Several communications by telegram passed between the President in Council and the chief commissioner, in which the former asked for early separate statements regarding each taluk in districts where drought or scarcity prevailed, showing area of taluk, population, realisable revenue in 1875-6, rough proportion of kharif to rabi cultivation, average annual rainfall, actual rainfall this season, ordinary price of staple food of the taluk at this season, actual present price of the same, probable extent of failure of crops, and amount, if any, sanctioned for relief works and other relief.

On November 1 Mr. Saunders gave up the last ray of hope and set to work to meet the difficulty, the modes of operation being altogether different from those in working order at that time in Bombay and those being prepared in Madras. Sir Henry Norman, the President in Council, was informed by telegram that the statements asked for should be prepared and submitted. He added:-'The failure of the north-east monsoon has completed the destruction to the extent of twenty per cent. of the kharif crops in all districts. Great distress exists throughout from loss of harvest in two successive years. Relief works already in operation, and will be needed on a large scale in every district. Large imports of grain by rail. I have sanctioned purchase of grain in local markets for payments on relief works. Public meeting takes place to-morrow morning, when I propose, unless prohibited, to intimate the intention of local administration to supplement all local private subscriptions for relieving distress by an equivalent grant, as was done in the famine of 1866 by Mr. Browning.' The next day the answer came. 'Government approves proposed intimation at public meeting that local ad

ministration will supplement all local private subscriptions for relieving distress by an equivalent grant, as was done in 1866.'

The meeting was held, subscriptions were raised, and a large central committee was formed in Bangalore to cope with the existing distress. To this body was entrusted the organisation of other committees whose operations would extend to the outlying districts. Thenceforward, for ten months, the relief committees and non-official agency formed an integral part of Mysore relief efforts. Too much dependence was placed upon means which, at the utmost, should be considered simply as auxiliaries supplementing Government labours and rendering aid where the authorities were unable to afford assistance. This was a radical defect in administration. The mistake was (1) that nothing was done to dovetail this food relief into the form of relief by works; (2) that after private subscriptions had ceased, the committees remained to arrange expenditure of Government money. Instead of one man having control over everything, each within certain limits did what was right in his own eyes, and the consequence was the distress was not properly or fairly met. The members of the various committees worked exceedingly well, and with their chief, Mr. J. D. Gordon, C.S.I., deserved the eulogium passed upon them by the Viceroy in September 1877. What was wanted was a clear and coherent policy of works and gratuitous relief, in which the efforts of non-official gentlemen could be made available in helping forward the general scheme.

The public had been earlier than the Government in recognising the need for relief and in giving it. The chief commissioner made his appeal in November. It should be stated, however, that the chief commissioner had assisted kitchens before this. In September Kolar