IN INDIA.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 8 June 1917, Page 6

IN INDIA.

MAHARAJAH'S DECLARATION. The Maharajah of Bikanir, who attended the Imperial War Conference as the representative of the ruling chiefs of India, recently made to the special correspondent of the Associated Press a statement containing the following striking passages: —• "I love the King-Emperor as the representative of a sovereign power, and I love him as a man. There is no sacrifice which he might ask of me that I would not make. My resources, my life, and the lives of men at Bikanir belong to him. I myself am a ruler, the descendant of sovereigns who have held this laud for centuries. We are a proud race, but I would gladly kneel to his Majesty were he but to command, though I would do that for no one else in the wide world. That is how I feel personally towards the the Throne, and I speak with the authority arising from close association with my brother rulers when I tell you that they, too, love their KingEmperor, and will follow where he leads through thick ana thin. At an early stage in the war India was virtually denuded of British troops,

which were needed to stem the onward rush of the Germans. The existence of the Indian Empire depended on the loyalty of princes and people. It was the opportunity of generations for a successful uprising, had such a revolt been in the minds of the people of India, for there was nothing to prevent it. British India and the ruling princes and the people of native India stood by their King-Emperor throughout that trying period. Was that selfish loyalty, or was it the loyalty born of real devotion to the Throne?"

Far from wishing to sever relations with the British Government, the ruling princes desire to remain a part of the Empire, for there is no Government so great, or so good, as his Majesty's. Wc want to stay and help in the achievement of even greater things than have been accomplished in the past. We hope, of course, that before long the rulers will be given scats in an assembly such as the Council of Princes, which shall have a voice in the Government of India in matters relating to our States, our people, and ourselves. Wo look forward also to the time when the people of British India shall have prepared themselves to take a greater hand in the affairs of State. I feel sure that these things arc coming, for the signs all point that way. There is every indication that the Government of India has no greaten desire than to see the princes and the people stand on their own feet, under the guidance of England. Loyalty? Call it selfishness, or devotion, or what you will, we of the ruling houses of India have followed, and will follow, the British flag through triumph, to the end. The men of Bikanir, and the men of other States, are risking their lives, many of them dying gladly on the battlefield for their beloved King-Emperor. What better answers for the charges of disloyalty can be found.