October, 1911.] 



335 



Miscellaneous. 



Our association is principally con- 

 cerned with the Khundsal or Sugar 

 industry. You are aware that this is 

 the chief industry of our district. 1 

 remember that about 20 or 25 years 

 ago this industry was in a prosperous 

 and flourishing condition. What is its 

 condition now? I think 1 shall be quite 

 justified in describing its condition as 

 moribund. I am afraid it is almost at 

 its last gasp, and why ? You remember 

 that at one time we used not only to 

 make our own cloth, but we also export- 

 ed it to foreign countries. That trade, 

 the cottage loom trade, was killed by 

 power looms, 



By the same process our sugar industry, 

 which is nothing but a cottage industry, 

 is being gradully but surely killed by 

 the factory power. The inevitable 

 result ha3 been averted on account of 

 the orthodoxy of our people. But we 

 cannot hold on indefinitely, and so it ie 

 vanishing. With all the resources of 

 our country we are unable to compete 

 with foreign sugar. The other day I 

 was reading an excellent article in one 

 of the leading Anglo-Indian papers on 

 this subject. The writer who seems to 

 be an expert, in the course of the article 

 said : " There is no reason why India 

 should not grow all the sugar she 

 requires and have quite a solid margin 

 to spare for export. With improved 

 solid methods of cultivation, selected 

 cane and up-to-date mills, the final goal 

 seems well within reach, but perhaps 

 things will go on in the old, old way, till 

 some sugar expert takes the matter in 

 hand, erect a central factory in a good 

 cane-growing locality, and sees that the 

 canes are planted around the factory or 

 within easy reach of it by light Railway 

 or Tramway." 



I am sure you will excuse this long 

 extract, but I really think the writer 

 put in a nut-shell the whole question. 

 What are our difficulties? 



1. The methods of cultivation are 



defective. 



2. The canes are not what they 



should be, 



3. The mills are not up-to-date. 



The question of a great central factory 

 we may well keep out of view at present. 

 But can we not do something to improve 

 the other things ? We have a large 

 number of people here in our city and 

 also in the district, men cf wealth and 

 intelligence who have been in this trade 

 for a long time, and cannot they be 

 persuaded to take the initiative in this 

 matter, if for nothing else at least for 

 self-preservation. The Indian canes at 

 the best are not nearly as good as they 



might be. The whole system is faulty 

 from beginning to end, and will have 

 to be altered. It can certainly be 

 altered for the better, as witness 

 the vast strides in sugar production 

 in Java, Formosa and the West Indies. 

 Since the introduction of the central 

 factory system, Java, Mauritius and 

 the West Indies indent labour from 

 India, and still they beat us with one of 

 the weapons we ourselves place in their 

 hands. 



Now we are importing sugar, mind the 

 absurdity of the whole thing. India, 

 which ought to be one of the greatest 

 sugar-producing countries, is importing 

 sugar to the extent of eleven and a half 

 crores of rupees every year. This vast 

 sum by a little judicious manipulation 

 of existiug methods could be kept in the 

 country instead of being paid away 

 mostly to Java. The Indian cultivators, 

 I admit, are very conservative, but they 

 are not fools. If you can bring it home 

 to them that their system of cane cultiv- 

 ation is faulty, and that the canes are 

 not good, place within their reach better 

 and selected canes and give them better 

 mills, they will give up the old methods 

 and adopt yours. Cannot one of our 

 wealthy Khundsalis be persuaded to 

 start an agricultural experimental farm. 



Show the agriculturist how to manure 

 the land first, what cane to plant, and 

 then get some improved mills and de- 

 monstrate to them how to do this busi- 

 ness from start to finish. While doing 

 this, you can also show them how to 

 improve their grain cultivation, place 

 within their reach better seed, and de- 

 monstrate the result by doing things 

 yourselves in your experimental farm. 

 Just consider what immense improve- 

 ment has been made in America in this 

 direction. Follow in their footsteps and 

 prove to your tenants that they could 

 also do the same with benefit to them- 

 selves and with increased profit to your- 

 selves. I say with great regret, but 

 nevertheless it is true, that our Zemin- 

 dars have not done their duty to their 

 peasantry. It is their duty only to 

 collect their rents by all manner of 

 means, and spend the same on themselves 

 to live luxurious lives ? Complain of the 

 assesment, and do nothing whatever to 

 improve the condition of the peasantry? 

 There is universal complaint that the 

 land is being impoverished by over cultiv- 

 ation. There is also a general complaiut 

 of the impoverishment and deterioration 

 of the cattle of the country. Unfortun- 

 ately many of our Zemindars think that 

 if they can keep themselves in the good 

 graces of the circle inspector and the 

 Tahsildar, keep the mighty Patwari 



