Page:Allan Octavian Hume, C.B.; Father of the Indian National Congress.djvu/111

 and the British Parliament. Accordingly, as early as 1890, the British Committee established the journal IndiUy to place before the British public the Indian view of Indian affairs. At first the journal was issued at irregular intervals ; in 1892 it appeared as a "monthly," being issued on the second Friday of each month ; and on the 7th of January 1898 it first appeared as a "weekly" in its present form.

Besides its functions of advocacy, India performs an essential duty in supplying trustworthy information to the British public. The British Committee constantly receives requests for accurate information on Indian affairs from Members of Parliament, from journalists, and from lecturers and platform speakers. In order to supply such a demand it is absolutely essential to have a complete and handy record of current facts, events, and opinions. And this is furnished by India, which is a store-house from which arms and materials are supplied to all those who are willing to strike a blow on behalf of India. The special correspondent of The Times, a none too friendly critic of the Congress, bears witness to the performance of this useful duty, when he says of India that " it may not have a very large circulation at home, but is the chief purveyor of Indian news to a large part of the Liberal Press."

Unfortunately there is another side to the question, i,e., the financial side. As already noted, journals in this country which preach reform, whether political or social, can only do so at the expense of their supporters. The advocacy of an altruistic cause, going counter to selfish interests, popular prejudice, and national vanity, cannot be a commercial success: in the school of the world it is the vender of sweets, not the doctor with his " nauseous draught " that is welcome. And this is peculiarly the case with regard to the Congress cause in England. For