Page:Twelve men of Bengal in the nineteenth century (1910).djvu/199



the nineteenth century there was no name more revered in Eastern Bengal than that of Nawab Abdul Ghani. For over fifty years he was the leading Muhammadan in Dacca and the eastern provinces, occupying a unique position there among Europeans and his own fellow-countrymen alike. From a position of comparative insignificance he raised himself and his family to one of commanding eminence, eliciting universal admiration and respect. Loyal, generous and public-spirited he won the affection of all who came in contact with him.

The original founder of the family was one Moulvi Abdulla who in the time of the Emperor Muhammad Shah came to India from Cashmir, seeking his fortunes like many another in his day at the Imperial Court of Delhi. On the fall of the Moghul Empire, when the Imperial court ceased to afford opportunities for fortune building, Moulvi Abdulla set out for the eastern provinces on the outskirts of the Empire, where all things were still possible to the adventurer. Finally reaching Sylhet he set