The Annual Register 1914: A Review of Public Events at Home and Abroad for the Year 1914Anonymous
History
The Annual Register 1914: A Review of Public Events at Home and Abroad for the Year 1914
Anonymous
History, Modern; History, Modern -- Periodicals; World War, 1914-1918
In a war of such a character, help was eminently needed from the whole
Empire; and when Parliament reassembled (Sept. 9) statements were
made in both Houses of the wonderful offers of service and money made
from India. In the Commons Mr. Charles Roberts, Under-Secretary for
India, read a telegram from the Viceroy telling how the rulers of the
Native States, in all nearly seven hundred, had offered their personal
services and the resources of their States. A number of Princes and
nobles had been selected for active service. The veteran Sir Pertab
Singh, Regent of Jodhpur, would not be denied his right to serve the
King-Emperor; his nephew, the Maharajah, aged sixteen, accompanied him.
Twenty-seven of the Native States maintained Imperial troops, and all
these were put at the service of the Government. Contingents had been
accepted from twelve States, including a camel corps from Bikaner, and
most had already embarked. The Maharajah of Mysore had placed fifty
lakhs of rupees (about 330,000_l._) at the disposal of the Government
for the Expeditionary Force. A hospital ship; thousands of horses for
remounts from the Chief of Gwalior and other rulers; camels and drivers
from the Punjaub and Baluchistan; large subscriptions to the Indian
Relief Fund and Prince of Wales's Fund; loyal messages and offers
from the Khyber tribes and Chitral; large donations from the Durbar
and Maharajah of Nepaul; and--as a climax--even an offer of 1,000
troops from the Dalai Lama of Tibet, accompanied by a statement that
throughout that country thousands of Lamas were praying for British
success. The same spirit had prevailed throughout British India; offers
of service and money had poured in from religious, political, and
social associations of all classes and creeds, Moslem, Hindu, Sikh, or
Parsee; meetings had been held to allay panic, keep down prices, and
maintain confidence and credit; and generous contributions had poured
in from all quarters to the Indian Relief Fund. The message was loudly
cheered, and it was promised that it should be circulated throughout
the Empire. It was also read in the Upper House by the Marquess of
Crewe, together with an account of the demonstration of loyalty and
sympathy made by the Legislative Council, and it was welcomed by the
Marquess of Lansdowne, who laid stress on the magnitude and value of
this loyally offered aid.
A message from the King to the Governments and peoples of his
self-governing Dominions (published Sept. 9) was as follows:--
"During the past few weeks the peoples of my whole Empire at home
and overseas have moved with one aim and purpose to confront
and overthrow the unparalleled assault upon the continuity of
civilisation and the peace of mankind.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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