He told me that he
had possession, but that he found it very difficult to keep
cultivators upon it.
"And why is this, my old friend?" I asked. "Cultivators are abundant
in Oude, and glad always to till lands on which they are protected
and encouraged by moderate rents and a little occasional aid in seed,
grain, and stock, and you are now in circumstances to afford them
both."
"True, sir," said the old subadar, "but the great refractory
landholder, my neighbour, has a large force, and he threatens to
bring it down upon me, and my cultivators are afraid that they and
their families will all be cut up some dark night if they stay with
me."
"But what has your great neighbour to do with your village? Why do
you not make friends with him?"
"Make friends with him, sir!" replied the subadar; "the thing is
impossible."
"And why, subadar sahib?"
"Sir, it was from him that the village was taken by the orders of the
Durbar, through the interposition of the Resident, to be made over to
me, and he vows that he will take it back, whatever number of lives
it may cost him to do so."
"And how long may he and his family have held it?"
"Only thirty or thirty-five years, sir."
"And neither you nor your family have ever held possession of it for
that time?"
"Never, sir; but we always hoped that the favour of the British
Government would some day get it for us."
"And in urging your claim to the village, did you ever tell the
Resident that you had been so long out of possession?"
"No, sir, we said nothing about _time_"
"You know, subadar sahib, that in all countries a limit is prescribed
in such cases, and at the Residency that limit is six years; and had
the Resident known that your claim was of so old a date he would
never have interposed in your favour, more especially when his doing
so involved the risk of the loss of so many lives, first in obtaining
possession for you, and then keeping you in it.
Pages:
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429