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 REFLECTIONS ON THE

CENTENARY OF PRESIDENCY

COLLEGE*

The following is the reprint of an article contributed By Dr. P. C. Ray to the "Calcutta Presidency College Magazine," Jan. 1917:-- A mighty river if traced to its origin is often found lost amidst tiny rills and rivulets. The early history of the old Hindu College, of which our Presidency College is the direct lineal descendant, scarcely gives an idea of the part it was destined to play in the future. The 14th of May, 1814, was a memorable day; on that day on the requisition of Sir Edward Hyde East, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, David Hare, Baidyanath Mukerjee and others, a meeting of the citizens of Calcutta was convened with a view to take steps for the opening of a school on an improved basis for teaching English literature and science.

Perhaps a slight digression is necessary in order to enable one to comprehend the full significance of the expression "a school on an improved basis for
 * For the materials made use of in this article I have borrowed freely from Pearychand Mitter's Biographical Sketch of David Hare and Rajnarayan Bose's short account of the Hindu and Presidency College in Bengal, and also my little book on "India" (Edinburgh, E. & S. Livingstone, 1886).