PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
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C.O. 882
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
5 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
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According to the proposal of the Hon. Mr. Stein, Rs. 128,150 would be distributed as ›→ follows:-
2098.
The Church of England
The Church of Scotland
The Roman Catholic Church
(No. 19.) MY LORD,
No. 23.
-
Rs.
Rs. 34,173 losing 6,527 8,543 gaining 3,153 85,433 gaining 3,373
SIR C. C. LEES to LORD KNUTSFORD. (Received February 3, 1890.)
Government House, Mauritius, January 9, 1890.
I HAVE the honour to transmit to your Lordship a memorial from the Reverend Stephen Walshe, incumbent of St. Nicholas Church, Port Louis, on the subject of the proposed redistribution of the ecclesiastical grants in Mauritius.
2, I also enclose, for your Lordship's information, a copy of a letter addressed to me by Archdeacon Mathews when forwarding Mr. Walshe's memorial.
The Right Hon. Lord Knutsford, G.C.M.G.,
&c.
&c.
&c.
Enclosure in No. 23.
I have, &c.
(Signed)
C. C. LEES,
Governor.
To the Right Hon. Lord Kautsford, G.C.M.G., Her Majesty's Secretary of State
for the Colonies.
MY LORD,
1. THE present memorial which I have the honour to address to your Lordship, relates to the question of the redistribution of the ecclesiastical grant in Mauritius. And although the Church Council of this diocese have also prepared a menorial on the same subject, to be similarly addressed. I trust, not only that the reasonableness of the course which I have thus adopted in acting separately from that bedy on this question, will be apparent, but also that the suggestions which I have here respectfully offered, will appear deserving your Lordship's favourable consideration.
2. It is to be very much regretted that, for the past 10 or 15 years, an unuscal amount of ill-feeling has existed between the Roman Catholic and Protestant clergy of Mauritius. This state of ill-feeling originated in the jealousies and contentions of the missionaries of both parties about converts from "heathenism," and gradually extended into the diocesan spheres to such a degree that our own Diocesan Council has been, during these years, largely occupied in purely missionary questions, or such others as had arisen out of these contentions. And although the Roman Catholic clergy have been often accused in this Council of aggression, bigotry and intolerance, have to confess that the very persons most prominent in these accusations have been, am sorry to themselves, actuated by a spirit of equal bigotry and intolerance. This statement will be corroborated by the perusal of pages 3 to 6 of enclosure No. 1*, entitled "the future Bishop of Mauritius," where such intolerance is described as it was exhibited by these persons in one of its most unfriendly forms.
3. While both these Christian parties are at present contending about the distribution of the ecclesiastical grant, and calculating the proportions thereof to which they consider themselves respectively entitled, they omit taking into their calculations the claims of the Indian section of the community, as if they ignored the existence of this third party altogether.
4. Now this Indian population whose existence the Christians seem thus to ignore in this redistribution question, is more than twice as numerous as they are themselves. It is also much more industrious and wealthy; and it is of far greater commercial importance.
• Not printed.
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The members of this third party already own more than the half of the town of Port Louis, in addition to their valuable possessions in sugar estates. They are actually the principal exporters of sugar, and the principal importers of grain and piece goods; and thus contribute more than the Christians to the revenue of the Colony, whether by direct or indirect taxation. I therefore respectfully submit, my Lord, that it is not fair to ignore the claims of these people in any redistribution of the ecclesiastical grant.
5. The circumstance that the Indian population do not seem at present to take such an interest in this question as the Christians, is not a just reason that their claims should not be considered. It is very probable, indeed, judging from the experience of the past decade, that in a very few years hence, the members of this party will be in possession of most of the civil appointments of the Colony; and that they will constitute the elective element in the Council of Government, as well as the majority of the Town Council. For although through pressure of business, in order to have themselves properly established in this Island, they do not now occupy any place in these legislative
odies, it is morally certain, that very soon, they will adopt a different policy.
6. In addition to the circumstance of their commercial influence, there are also other and very grave reasons, from their own point of view, which I submit my Lord, are calculated to induce them to abandon their present state of apparent indifference towards political questions. And there are not wanting even now, signs of a tendency to such an issue. They have already complained in the local press, of the disadvantage under which their children labour in respect of education in primary schools, as compared with the privileges enjoyed by their Christian fellow subjects in this respect. The Roman Catholics have teachers and an inspector of their own creed over schools aided by Government grant, where the instruction is imparted through the medium of the children's vernacular tongue. The Protestants have also Protestant teachers and inspectors over schools aided likewise by Government grant. But the Indian population have no such privilege. They have no schools aided by Government, where their children may be taught and inspected, in their own vernacular language, and by persons of their own religious persuasions.
7. The Christians receive over Rs. 129,000 per annum, including all "grants," towards religious establishments, out of the revenue of the Colony; whilst the Indians by whom the greater proportion of this revenue is contributed, receive nothing whatever as an aid to promote their religious and moral culture. Further, these grants enable the Christians to conduct, on an extensive scale, a system of proselytism which goes under the name of "the moralisation of the non-Christian population ;" and the dread of this "moralisa- tion," especially in schools aided by Government grants, has compelled the Mahomedana in particular, to have private schools in the vicinity of their Mosques, entirely at their own expense.
8. The more intelligent of the Indian population are fully convinced of the intention of the Home Government to act with the strictest impartiality towards all sections of the community, even in respect of education. Nevertheless the facility with which proselytism can be carried on in aided schools, under the plea of the "moralisation of non-Christians," is calculated to produce the impression among the less educated, that such proselytism exists with the approval of Government; and this impression is naturally calculated to perpetuate a feeling of distrust in all Government schools.
9. The "moralisation of the non-Christians effected by the missionaries is unfortu- nately, in many cases, really their demoralisation. For it is well understood here that when it is desirable to employ a domestic servant, a heathen who knows nothing about Christianity, much preferred to a convert who has been "moralised;" and that such converts in very many cases, have only ceased to be pagan heathens in order to become Christian heathens. This is especially the case with the converts of the Church Missionary Society, as I have shown on page 7, enclosure No. 1, already mentioned, and for the reasons there adduced. The Mahomedans and Hindoos are therefore averse to sending their children to be educated, more especially in schools under the grant-in- aid system, where this "moralisation" is practised more extensively than at the purely Government schools.
10. Accordingly the wish of the Indian population, as expressed by one of their own number in a long letter which appeared in the overland edition of the " Mercantile Record" of the 10th of last May, is the establishment of Indian primary schools aided by the Government, where their children would receive Instruction in English as well as in other subjects, through the medium of their own vernacular tongue; and where both teachers and inspectors would be of their own religious persuasion, whether Mahomedan or Hindoo. They claim to have the same right to this privilege as the Christians