Page:A General Biography of Bengal Celebrities Vol 1.djvu/51

 42 LIFE OF MR, WOOMESH CH UNDER BONNE BJEE. India should have representation and its details. Many sug-_ gestions have been made on the subject, requiring deep consi- deration. My opinion is that there ought to be a representa- tive Assembly, and a senate sitting in India, with a power of veto to the Governor-General, but under the same restriction as exists in America, with perhaps an absolute power of veto to the Crown." (See page 176, Journal E. 1. A) Then again he says :— M To understand the people, you must go to them direct. Yon will then find that they possess a remarkable degree of intelli- gence. They are equal to any task, but the task must not be imposed on them with a high hand. They must be properly treated. If they are trusted in any way, however slight, their gratitude knows no bounds, and a sense of responsibility so works upon them that they are sure to execute any commission entrusted to them with great care and skill. This sense of responsibilty on their part» it is, which will ensure representa- tive Government a thorough success in the country. I do not mean to deny that their education is very defective — in fact they might be said to possess no education at ail, if we measure education by a European standard. But compared to their richer countrymen, who are, there can be no doubt what- ever, thoroughly capable of appreciating representative Govern- ment, they are not a whit less educated than the lowest householders compared to the educated classes in this country. The common people of India may not be able to understand Sanscrit, or explain the bearings of the Sunkhya philosophy, but in common walks of life they are as shrewd and careful as possible. They are neither extravagant nor intemperate ; they are neither migratory not dissipated. They are as a rule family men, labouring bard to maintain them- selves in comfort, if not in affluence. These qualities may not be the result of a very extensive education, but they at