college for instruction in the principles and practice of Mahomedan law. The Benares College was projected by Mr. Jonathan Duncan, the Resident at that city, in 1791, with a view to “endear our Government to the native Hindus, by our exceeding in our attention to them and their systems the care ever shown by their own native princes.” Lord Cornwallis in 1791 assigned for the support of the College, Rupees 14,000 a year, afterwards increased to Rupees 20,000.
On their foundation the Colleges at Calcutta and Benares were placed under native management, and abuses of the grossest kind soon became universal. Mr. Lushington says in his work on the Charities of Calcutta that “The Madrussa was almost useless for the purposes of education;” and that “its ample resources were dissipated among the superior and subordinate drones of the establishment.” In 1820, Dr. Lumsden was appointed Secretary and, under his charge, abuses were checked and many reforms in discipline and study were introduced.
After the departure of Mr. Duncan, the early years of the Benares College were remarkable only for an utter absence of instruction and order. Gigantic misappropriations of funds were made by the first Rector, styled by the wonderful name of Sero Shastri Gooroo Tarkalankar Cashinath Pundit Juder Bedea Behadur. Mr. Brooke, the Governor-General’s Agent suggested improvements which were with some amendments carried out by Mr. W. W. Bird in 1812. In 1820, Captain Fell was appointed Secretary and Superintendent, and under him the College attained the reputation for Sanscrit learning that it has since maintained.
With these two institutions the General Committee of Public Instruction commenced its labours. The Sanscrit College at Calcutta was opened by it in 1824; the Delhi College was opened in 1825, for instruction in Arabic, Persian and Sanscrit. The Allahabad School was opened in 1884, and encouragement was given to private Schools at Bhagulpore, Sagar, Midnapore, &c.
In 1834, the operations of the Committee were brought to a stand by an irreconcileable difference of opinion as to the principles on which Government support to education should be administered. Half of the Committee called the “Orientalists” were for the continuation of the old system of stipends tenable for twelve or fifteen years to students of Arabic and Sanscrit, and for liberal expenditure on the publication of works in those language. The other half called the a “Anglicists” desired to reduce the expenditure on stipends held by “lazy and stupid school boys of 30 and 35 years of age,”
