12 



thus considerably reducing the chief source of 

 contribution to the public finances. 



Government is lending the ryot the capital of the 

 State, i.e., the soil of the country, in order that, by 

 his labour, he should make it yield an interest from 

 which to maintain himself and his family, and to 

 pay his share towards the requirements of Govern- 

 ment. But it will be proved in the following 

 pages that, as has been asserted before, the ryot 

 maintains himself and pays his dues, not from the 

 interest, but from the capital itself. Is it not, then, 

 incumbent upon us to endeavour to prevent what 

 will be the inevitable result of this system 

 increased pauperism of the cultivator, and sterility 

 of the soil ? Should we not try to inculcate in 

 the ryot some of the principles of an improved 

 method of cultivation, convince him of the indis- 

 pensability of observing the great principle of 

 giving a return to the soil for the annual defection, 

 and show him how to attain maximum results with 

 the minimum of expenditure without detriment to 

 the soil, or impairing its prolific capabilities in 

 any way ? 



Quoting the words of Dr. Mouat, the Hon'ble 

 the Court of Directors stated, in their well-known 

 despatch of the 19th July 1854, on the subject of 

 education in India, that there was " no single 

 advantage that could be afforded to the vast rural 

 population of India that would equal the introduc- 

 tion of an improved system of Agriculture." But 



