INDIAN FAMINES - Institute for Social and Economic Change

OF PAST FAMINES. 115
standing that the sufferers importunately demanded
food or wages, and that Government
refused or was unable to grant their requests,
then by all means let the charges be advanced.
But if, on the other hand, bigotry, fatalistic
views, apathy, or any of the many other subtle
influences which prevail in the East, was the
cause of the sufferers concealing their necessities,
or for refusing proffered work, wages, or
food, then the charge falls to the ground. It is
also absurd to suppose that in a famine year the
general health of a community can be kept up
to the average.
Next to the statistics of mortality, we may
seek a clue to gauge the efforts made to alleviate
distress in the financial expenditure on this
object.
The following table (p. 89, 90) has been prepared
with these two points in view. I will begin
with a few prefatory remarks in explanation
of this table. First, I may observe that, generally
speaking, each author or compiler of an official
report has his own method and views. One
officer will give details under a particular head,
while another will keep the same head in the