Page:Ramtanu Lahiri, Brahman and Reformer - A History of the Renaissance in Bengal.djvu/169

 Richardson. He took his pupils through the works of Shakespeare in a way to enrapture them. They admired the Captain, and the race to which he belonged, and tried to imitate him; and as it is easier for human nature to copy vices rather than virtues, our students made very poor attempts at the imitation of the Englishman’s manliness, while they quickly adopted his vices — especially the vice of drinking.

Happily, the character of young Bengal was being moulded differently by circumstances of a different nature. Doctor Duff, to whose evangelistic work we referred in Chapter V., by his preaching created an ever-growing sensation. Several young men, respectably connected and well educated, embraced Christianity, greatly to the horror of the orthodox Hindus. We have spoken of the conversion to Christianity of Mahes Chandra Ghosh and Krishna Mohan Banerji. Subsequently Gyanendra Mohan Tagore, only son of Prasanna Kumar Tagore, became a follower of Christ; and he was followed by Guru Das Maitra, and several others, all of whom were of respectable birth. Christianity went on spreading, and the Church in Bengal was being gradually strengthened, in spite of great persecution. In 1845 one Umesh Chandra Sirkar, whose father was the Dewan of the Tagore family, left his paternal roof with his wife, and went to Dr Duff with the intention of being baptised. His father coming to know this tried by force to snatch them from the missionary’s hands, but the latter was too strong and careful for such hindrance to his work. It was now that the members of the Brahmo Samaj, commenced a war with Christianity. With the assistance of the well-to-do Hindus of Calcutta they founded a Hindu Mission School, which, having worked for some years, came to an end owing to the bankruptcy of its trustees. The Tatwabodhini Patrika violently attacked