Page:England & Russia in Central Asia,Vol-I.djvu/98

78 78 ENGLAND AND EUSSTA IN CENTRAL ASIA. • affairs. Without throwiDg any aspersion on the cha- racter of the teachers themselves, it may be said that the educational methods adopted in these madrassees are absurd, and an utter waste of time and money. For this the Russian Grovernment is responsible. It cannot shirk its duties by proclaiming that it has desired to leave the natives to their own devices, and to interfere as little as possible with their customs, prejudices, and practices. The very reason which justifies Russia's presence in Turkestan is that it is a civilised country, which is bound to set a higher example to its subjects, and to see that they follow it in so far as it is possible or reasonable to expect them to adopt new and strange ways. The subject of education is the test question of whether a power is fit to govern inferior races or not. Russia has done nothing for Central Asiatics. She has left them in their own dark, narrow ways, and it is conceivable, from what we know of Russian character, that the day might arrive when there will be in Turkestan a race descended from Russian officials which will correspond, in its vices and its barbarism, with the Englishry of Ireland during the Middle Ages. Thirteen thousand roubles are expended on the edu- cation of the children of Russian officials. Not a penny out of the State coffers goes for the instruction of the Mahomedan subject, who is permitted to remain in his own dark path. The day must come when Russia will repent her of this short-sighted policy, and then it is at least open to question whether the same grati- tude will be evinced towards Russia's lenience in