OCCASIONAL NOTE

Speaking at Cawnpore, Sir Harcourt Butler said that he had seen an attack on the Government of India for neglecting the industries of the country. Possibly the attack in question was Mr. Montagu’s somewhat absurd apostrophe to the effect that the state of things must end in which India could not make “things like railway engines, trucks and even rails” without oversea machinery and skilled workers from abroad. One of the Government of India’s first tasks, according to the Secretary of State, must be to render India self-dependent. The Government of India will find the task no easier in 1920 than in 1910, despite Mr. Montagu’s talk.

The Tata firm had to go to America and Germany for its experts, and if ever locomotives are built in India it will be the result of extraneous skill and with the aid of foreign capital. Sir Harcourt Butler rightly laid on Lord Morley the responsibility for discouraging the Government of India in making such efforts as it could to encourage Indian industries. It seems, however, that under the influence of the “new angle of vision” the Government of the United Provinces is renewing its efforts in this direction.

To achieve industrial development, the “master thing,” said Sir Harcourt Butler, “was the improvement and development of our educational system and specially the spread of industrial and technical education.” He said that his Government was preparing schemes and that he himself was hopeful that there would be great progress after the war.

MAHOMEDAN BOY S TRAGIC DEATH

On Tuesday the Coroner held an inquest on the body of a Mahomedan boy servant named Sheik Ismail, aged 14, on the night in a godown in Robinson Street. Sub-Inspector L.M. Banerji, of the Park Street thana, read the police report, which suggested that at about 9-30 P.M. the boy was slapped twice on the head by his master. Half-an-hour afterwards he was sick and fell down. He was removed to a neighbouring godown where he died within an hour.

Major N.P. Sinha, Police Surgeon, said he found from the autopsy that the brain, lungs and windpipe of the deceased were anaemic. The spleen was ruptured. In his opinion death was due to rupture of the spleen. Regard being had to the diseased condition of the boy, the rupture might have been caused by a slight blow on the pit of the stomach or a fall on the face or the sides. There was no mark of external injury. Mere slapping on the face could not cause the rupture. The jury returned a verdict of death from rupture of the spleen, how caused not known.

SEQUEL TO CHINGLEPUT CONSPIRACY CASE

Madras, Aug 6

At the High Court yesterday Cheetaram Iyer, who was convicted recently at the Chingleput Sessions on charges of attempting to communicate with the enemy, etc., applied for suspension of the sentence of rigorous imprisonment. When the matter came up before Mr. Justice Sadasiva Iyer and Mr. Justice Napier they enquired whether any criminal appeal had been filed against the convictions and sentence, and said that if none had been filed they could not understand the application for suspension of sentence. The Public Prosecutor, who was present in court, said he had no notice of any appeal or of the application. Their Lordships desired the Public Prosecutor to ascertain if any appeal had been preferred. Mr. E.R. Osborne this morning intimated to their Lordships that no appeal had been filed. In the circumstances their Lordships dismissed the application.

DARING DACOITY IN RANGOON

A dacoity took place in the thickly populated central district of Rangoon last night. A party of armed men entered a house where a number of Burmese women engaged in bazaar trade lived and, having forced the women to keep quiet by threatening to shoot them with a revolver, removed Rs 700 and some gold bangles. On leaving the house the last man stumbled and an alarm was raised. The dacoits ran through the bazaar, and the armed man shot two durwans who tried to stop him. Neither was seriously wounded. The police

surrounded the building and on a systematic search being made the armed man was found under a pile of gunny bags, the revolver being in a tray of rice close by. Another man was arrested at

Kemmendine and a third who was being searched for surrendered today. The women have identified all three.