Page:Sketches of some distinguished Indian women.djvu/55

 hardships of a widow's lot, would commit suicide by drowning themselves in the sacred rivers, rather than lose their caste by putting themselves under the care of people who would teach them a strange religion and try to convert them.

The Pundita's idea was to open homes, where young widows of good family could take refuge without losing their caste or being disturbed in their religious belief, and where they might have entire freedom of action with regard to caste rules, such as cooking their food, &c. In these homes she proposed to train them, according to their several tastes and capacity, in such branches of work as might enable them in time to earn a respectable livelihood.

Her proposal met with considerable opposition, many good people thinking she was making a mistake in attempting to work such an institution on non-missionary lines; but she had fully considered the question, and had made up her mind on the subject.

"I admire greatly missionary work," she wrote to the editor of the New York Evangelist, "but that does not make me shut my eyes to the many wants of my sisters that cannot always be met by missionaries. . . . Although we cannot enforce the study of religion in our school-home for widows, we shall encourage them, if they choose, to be acquainted with the teaching of Christ. Christian literature will be placed in our school library; be-