Lord William Beresford, V.C., Some Memories of a Famous Sportsman, Soldier and WitMenzies, Stuart, Mrs.
History
Lord William Beresford, V.C., Some Memories of a Famous Sportsman, Soldier and Wit
Menzies, Stuart, Mrs.
Beresford, William Leslie de la Poer, Lord, 1847-1900
And what were the feelings of Lord William when he said farewell to
the friends who had always shown him the greatest consideration and
kindness?
[Illustration: LORD LYTTON, FAMILY AND STAFF, 1877
_Left to right._ _Standing_: Col. Colley, Mil. Sec. (later Sir George
Colley); Lord William Beresford, Capt. Rose, 10th Hussars; Col.
Villiers, Dr. Barnett, Capt. Liddell, Miss ---- (author forgets),
Lord Downe, Lady Downe, Capt. Jackson
_Seated_: Mrs. Burne, Sir John Strachey, Lord Lytton, Lady Lytton,
Lady Strachey, Col. Owen Burne, Private Secretary; Lord Kilmaine,
brother of Mrs. Burne
_Children, left to right_: Bina Lytton, Connie Lytton, Fanny Strachey]
To many A.D.C.’s it would only be a case of “Le Roi est mort, vive
le Roi,” but their late “aide” was much attached to them, and being
of an affectionate and loyal nature must have felt rather as though
he had been torn up by the roots. That Lord William lived to see
the good results of some of the seeds sown by Lord Lytton’s policy
and earnest work there can be no doubt, for he surely laid the
foundations of some of our latter-day benefits in India. Amongst
the measures that must always be associated with Lord Lytton were
the Famine reports and Insurance, the equalisation and reduction of
the salt duty, the system of Indian Finance profoundly modified by
decentralisation, and reconstruction of Provincial responsibility. In
recognition of his services when returning from India an earldom
was conferred upon him.
To an impartial observer looking back over the lives and works of the
different rulers in India, it appears to matter not what the views
and policy of each may be, they cannot get away from the fact that
they must, and do, reap the benefit to some extent of the work of
their predecessors. This must be a consoling thought to the retiring
Viceroy, who may feel on leaving India that he will be a thing of
the past, but that at any rate his work will live after him, and,
maybe, he will be spared to see it grow. Even those who know nothing
of India may therefore readily grasp what a difficult thing it is to
know the actual share each Viceroy has taken in the measures proposed
and carried out during his time. Each Viceroy is of course actually
responsible, though his part of the transactions of the Government
of India is sometimes confined to a careful perusal of the papers
and an affirmatory nod or two at the Council table. That Viceroys
work hard and conscientiously there is little doubt, but cannot take
real interest in, or have a thorough knowledge of, half the big
questions they have to deal with. In some cases the very weight of
their responsibility and possible far-reaching personal influence,
makes them shy of exerting that influence, preferring to leave many
questions to be virtually decided by those who have, or ought to
have, first-hand knowledge.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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