THUMB-NAIL SKETCHES OF GREAT LIVES.

Hutt News, Volume 2, Issue 49, 15 May 1930, Page 12

THUMB-NAIL SKETCHES OF GREAT LIVES.

WARREN HASTINGS.

Here ia~a story that England should never forgot-^the almost incredible Btory of Warren Hastings, one of the greatest Englishmen who ever lived.

A Worcestershire lad who became the rater of 50,000,000peoplel v

A penniless orphan w&o made hiniself the despot of India! *

A poorly paid young clerk who rose to be the ablest wariioi and statesman ♦f his day!!

The one man who established British rale in India, in spite of enemies abroad and fools at 'home 1

Such was Warren Hastings,

He was born in a wee English village in 1732. At the age of twelve he was an orphan—without either parent or property.

As he grew up, he was an undersized, half fed little lad If fever a lad was chucked into the deep water of life, to sink or swim, he was

At eijrlit, an uncle appeared and sent young Warren to a school in .London. HeTO he was noted as a good boatman swimmer and scholar. At fourteen he was top boy in the school.

All was going' well with Jiim until his good uncle died Then, he had to shiftfor himself. So,at seventeen, he went to India as a clerk of the East India Company. :

Af^er several years of .clerking he was suddenly caught, in the midst of an Indian rebellion. He was flu'^g into gaol and ne-ariy into the Black Hole of Calcutta. '- . ~

He escaped and joined Clive, who had just began his great career. Hastings was seven -yeatis younger than Olive The two became Inn friends.

At thirty-two ho came back to Eng-

laud. He was ""now moderately Tic-h, but he soon -spenit his money on boolcs and friends. He associated with men of letteis. Cowpex, the poet, Was he lifelong friend

In four years, for lack of- uioney^ lie Tvas forced to return-to India.- On the snip aq fell, ill, and was nursed

back to health by a beautifull ißussian .girl, wh.o had maTiied a rascally GeTman baron.

He fell in love with her, enabled her to secure a divorce, married and remained a devoted hjusband for life.'This affair caused endless scandal, although mow tßw,t he is dead everyone admits that he ivm as piare and honourable c man as over lived.'

He "promised to make his wife the Queen of India, and he did. He soon became the U3KJn>wiiißd king. He soon put Nabobs up and down. H« had only a handful "of redcoat® but he help the territory tbat Olive had captured and added'to it.

If Warren Hastings had been left alone he would have solved the problems of India G-overment, and prevented the troudles of to-day, but he was not left

alone.

. The directors of the East India Oompauy. constauCly clamoured for more money. They compelled Hastings to take the treasure of the Nabobs and' send it to London.

Hastings lobbed -India, or ra)t>lier he Tobbed the robbers of India. But that

was nothing new. India had always be<en xobbed most of a3l by hex native rolers. .

There was never so little robbing as tliOire was under Hastings, He did his

)-(&i to put doNyn all robbery and oppfessicm, and -he gave India the best goverinen-t it ever had. ;■..

Then the politicians of Westminister be^an to Interfere in matters of which they had no knowledge. They passed fcbo "Begulatirig Act." to take away

the j'Ower of Hastings,

Yhis, of course, encourged the Indian revolutionists,- and Hastings soon had a war on Ms hands. He seized the leader of the rebels—a Bra»hin.in called Nuneomar—tried iim and hanged him in broad daylight before thousands of

n& tives

It was a terrible cure for a terrible dfinger. After that there were no rebellions, and not an Indian dared J&fit a finger or wag a tongue at Hastings

Both Parliment and the East India Company attacked him. He was ordered to resign. He refused. He was 15,000 miles from London, and he was determined tttrait Britian. should, not IJose

India,

Nest the Supreme Court -of India tried to take controlj but Hastings at once opposed his soldiers to the sheriffs and put the judges in their place.

Then came a, war with Hyder Ali— t*he ablest of the Indian generals. Parliament at on>ce backed down and begged Hastings to do as he liked.

. Hastings trained his little army and attacked Hyder Ati in the great -battle of Porto Novo. Hyder Ali was defeated If Hastings had resigned, India would probably ;have been lost.

Just to make his .victory complete, Hastings actually took fifty redcoats and captured the rich, city of Benares. Ho seized the liajah/ held the palace against an army, and - "won ~<by sheer audacity. ■'.. .:■'-■

Then he settled down to create a fair .jjTvat system of goverinent for India. He was trusted by the naitives He spoke several : bfr^edr- 7languages and he was sincerely fond of thPMi.

He Esta;blished Pea'ee in' India— 310 one can deny .fiat. And with on« ex-

ception there has been peace everaircc

.Hastings held j India at a time when-, the, British Empire was falling ffco piescs. It was\duxing the reign of the eras'y. German King—George 111.

i America had been lost. So hadSeiuv jja'V Goree.-aii'l Minorca/- 7ln-iia, too, j would -have gone if Hastine-s had :iot loidit single-handed. '

If he had been a man of any o-ther it&tJonality he would probably have made himself the emperor of" India and founded a dynasty.

At\ fifty-three >his job was finished, and well done; so he came home: to spend the resit of his days in his beloved Worcester.

To Ms amazement he was attacked on all sides for being cruel and corrupt—the who had done more to stop cruelty andeorruption than any man of Ms gen-

c nation

Parliament voted to empeach Mm—' 119 to 79. Burke, who was now old and irascible, led the attack. Hastings was arxeslfced. He was tried in a great shameful trial t&at lasted for eight years. *

This -. trial was a_ national disgrace. It should keep us careful and humble for all times. Att last ,he was found not guilty —23 votes to 6.

By this time nearly all his money had been spent, so he and Ms wife /went to the village of Daylesford, where he was !born. :

Here he bought a faim and lived quiettiy ...for twenty-three; among*JMs cattle, ihis books and Ms fraends.fiTe was never embittered by his coun>try,s

ingratitude. He took it all as part of tie interesting game of life, in whioh. lie 'had been for a time champion player. • Shortly before he died he was sent for by Parliament and given a, grand ovation. Honours were showered upon him. ■So, jufiter all, he died with a smile; and out in" Benares the natives erected a temple to his memory. Warren Hastings Kept India British, !. An-1 It Has Eemained So For 150 i Years.