ed with well irrigation." So important was well irrigation, that the
Government had resolved to make advances to ryots willing to construct
them, at a low rate of interest, and repayable by easy instalments in a
long series of years. In the event of water not being found, or found in
insufficient quantity, the Government had undertaken the risk of failure,
so that the farmer was placed beyond all risk of loss. And, in order to
facilitate the progress of such works, a special officer had been
appointed to give the advances on the spot, so as to avoid the delay
caused by the usual circuitous official correspondence.

I may here pause for one moment to remark on the great value of the
Assembly as regards any new measure like the one just alluded to, for it
often happens that from the scarcity of newspapers, and the inability of
the poorer ryots to purchase them, measures of great value are not taken
advantage of, or only are so after a long delay. Now an assembly like that
of Mysore provides an excellent means for distributing information on all
Government matters, and in one part of his address the Dewan particularly
requested the representatives from two important districts to explain
fully to the people certain matters, the particulars of which I cannot,
for want of space, give here.

The Dewan then went into the interesting subject of Forests, and it was
satisfactory to notice the progress that had been made in planting, and
that sandal wood had year after year been yielding an increased revenue.
The transition from forests to elephants was natural, and during the year
70 had been caught. Some died after capture and others were liberated. Of
the 44 retained, 41, of which 14 were tuskers, were sold for 50,705
rupees. Having fully discussed the elephants, the Dewan turned next to
education, and here he was able to record marked progress in every
direction, and especially in female instruction. There were now 97 girls'
schools in the province, and an important change had been made as regards
their immediate supervision, which was now exercised by local committees.
"The committees," said the Dewan, "have been given large powers of
management, and the initiative rests, in almost all cases, with them,
subject to the approval of Government." The object of this of course was
to interest the people in the subject, and the Dewan observed that "Female
education cannot become firmly established in the country until the people
begi