Page:On the education of the people of India (IA oneducationofpeo00trevrich).pdf/68

54 to be more fit for an antiquarian society than for a seminary of popular education was profusely patronised. Extensive plans for the publication of Arabic and Sanskrit works, which exceeded the means of any literary association, were executed out of the fund which the British parliament had assigned for enlightening the people of India. The full extent of this union became apparent after it had been dissolved. A limb had been torn from the parent trunk, and the struggle with which the disruption was resisted showed how intimate the connection had been. By vehemently complaining of the suspension of the plans for the encouragement of ancient oriental literature, the literary societies virtually acknowledged the identity of their own operations and of the past operations of the education committee.

Those societies are entitled to the highest respect, and nobody can blame them for endeavouring to obtain support in the prosecution of the laudable objects for which they are associated. The responsible parties were the education committee and the Bengal government. It was for them to consider whether the mode which had been adopted of disbursing the education fund was the one best suited to the accomplishment of