MARY CARPENTER. 117 



Tuckerman Mary Carpenter gave earnest thought and 

 labour during the best years of her life. The interest 

 in the native races of India which had been roused 

 by Rammohun Roy had during this time been 

 necessarily put on one side ; there was no opportunity 

 of taking any step in this direction. 



But Mary Carpenter was a woman who could not 

 disregard a claim which had once been "brought 

 home " to her, and those who knew her well were not 

 astonished when, late in life, having done what she 

 could to assist the neglected and destitute children of 

 England, she once more turned her thoughts to the 

 condition of the women of India. At this time Miss 

 Carpenter was nearly sixty years of age, her hair was 

 white, her health was not good (for she never entirely 

 recovered from the effects of the serious illness she 

 passed through soon after the Red Lodge Reformatory 

 was opened, yet her energy and determination were 

 as strong as ever. She made up her mind to go to 

 India, acquaint herself with the facts concerning 

 education, the position of women, the discipline of 

 prisons, and similar subjects, and see whether some- 

 thing could not be done to bring about desirable 

 improvements. 



Most people who had accomplished what Mary 

 Carpenter had done, and arrived at her age, would 

 have felt that they had earned a little rest, and 

 allowed a gigantic task like this to be taken up by 

 some one younger and less weary than themselves. 



