that, in my opinion, the opponents of caste should
follow. What the opponents of caste should preach is, not the abolition
of that institution, but toleration for the educated and advanced members
of the community who, finding caste an impediment and a burden, wish to
discard it. They should admit that this institution has been, and is at
the present moment, of value amongst the rural populations, but they
should, at the same time, point out that times are changing, and that the
peoples of the towns ask for some toleration, not because caste is
necessarily a universal evil in itself, but because it is, as far as they
are concerned, highly inconvenient. This is the way--and, if this plan
does not answer, I feel sure no other will--that the evils of caste are to
be mitigated, and I urge these views accordingly on the serious attention
of all enlightened Indians.

The reader will have observed that, when pointing out the advantages of
caste in repelling our interpretation of Christianity, I have assumed that
the adoption of Christianity necessarily involves the entire abolition of
all those social distinctions that make up what we call caste. Such have
been the terms on which Christianity has been offered to the peoples of
India by our English missionaries; and I, for one, do most sincerely
rejoice that their hide-bound interpretation of the Protestant faith has
been as promptly as it has been decidedly rejected. But why should
caste--which, as I have shown, can be proved to have produced such
favourable results as regards drinking, and as regards the morality of the
sexes--why should this institution, which in these respects can be proved
to have produced better results than Christianity has over done in Great
Britain--why should this be swept away because you wish to introduce the
religion of Christ? It has been alleged to be entirely incompatible with
Christianity; and were this so, there would, of course, be no more to be
said. But this I wholly deny. It is, of course, incompatible in some
respects with exalted conceptions of the most advanced Christianity; but
there is no reason why Christianity should not be allowed to exist
alongside of abnormal social growths, and why, in short, Christianity
should not be stretched to tolerate caste, in the same way that it was
allowed by the apostles to exist alongside of evils with which the
institution of caste cannot, for iniquity or for general ill effects, be
for one moment co