Page:On the Coromandel Coast.djvu/50

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

Madras for medical advice. For a time he was one of the lay trustees of the cathedral, and was most helpful to the cathedral chaplains while filling that position. H. A. Tarrant was a barrister. His wife took a deep interest in the cathedral. The beautiful embroidery which still adorns the altar was the work of her clever fingers. Sir Charles A. Lawson stood at the helm of the 'Madras Mail,' with Henry Cornish as his colleague, editors and part proprietors of the daily paper which Sir Charles built up on a firm foundation until it ranked foremost of all the journals of the Presidency, a place it still maintains. H. E. P. Carter was Chief Engineer of the Madras Railway. Beddy Branson, a barrister, was a remarkable personality among the leading natives of Madras. Born of English parents in the country, he was a perfect master of the Tamil language. The native gentlemen gave him their confidence and trusted him with their most intimate concerns. His knowledge of them and of their innermost thoughts was unique. John Shaw was an expert gardener, and threw himself heart and soul into the development of the Botanical Gardens and the annual flower-shows held in the grounds. He lived in the house near the gardens, which was afterwards occupied by the Bishops of Madras in turn. He laid out the garden, which is the most artistic in Madras. He was succeeded as secretary of the Botanical Gardens by J. Steavenson, who was equally enthusiastic over horticulture, and ever ready with advice and encouragement for the amateur gardener struggling under tropical difficulties. A lady once wrote to him to say that a tree in her compound, which she had recently obtained from the Botanical Gardens, was showing signs of decay and had the appearance of being blasted. Steavenson replied promptly that he would come at once and examine her blasted tree.

The Commander-in-Chief, Sir Neville Chamberlain,