Page:Heroes of the hour- Mahatma Gandhi, Tilak Maharaj, Sir Subramanya Iyer.djvu/252

 them as the leading men of the day of their native district. The present Zemindar of Kamnad, in keeping himself clear of caste bias and antagonism in matters of civic and political importance, worthily follows the traditions of his house.

After the death of his father, the care of the child fell upon the mother who survived her husband for a period of 55 years, and the care of the family fell on th eldest son of Subbaiyar, Ramasawmy Aiyar by name who rose to be the Huzur Sheristadar of the district. When young Subramaniem came up to the High School standard in his fourteenth year—he came under the influence of a European Principal of the New Zilla School just then started, Mr. William Williams to whom Sir Subramanya Iyer even to-day attributes his love of classical English prose works. Those were days of the Crimean War. Although illustrated journalism had not then advanced much, still there were a few illustrated journals which Mr. Williams on receiving his English Mail would spread on his table and explain the events as though he was by his own fire-side in the bosom of his family circle. It was this capacity to make intellectual companions of the young that