THE PRESIDENCy COLLEGE MAGAZINE Cr STENTS PAflK FOEK.WOKD NoMiS AND NKVS 1 LEAVES OF GiiASr^s SERVILE PoPlILATroN IN VKDIC [XDIi ... ... 19 SAKATCIIAXDUA : Ajr APPKKCIATIOJJ ... ... 2,5 A SOXNET 32 IjEGTfrTATrVH SOVEP.EKINTY OF THE BoiriNION.q 33 PvAi RASAMOY MITKA BAHADFR 38 TX'l-ERNATIONAIJSJt & TMPERIAIJS:\t ... ... 4.'! AN APPEF CAIIT ... ... ... 52 Orrp.sELVEs ... ... ... h" f^stS^^WW ... ••' •-• i ^5(1 ... •- - « ^t^j«^t^^ '«i§^r^ ... ... •- "> <pj^-<<iiT>f^ ^r<i5<i ... ... ... i« <[f}S-^f?Plf ••• ••• ••• ^9 ^[%5I-»t<I«. ^f^f^ ••• •- ••• ^i > Vol. XYIU OCTOBER, 1931 No. 1 ^ s s 1 NOTICE < S s > 1 Hi'. A. p. 1 Ariii'ua.l •./ibpcviplioii in India inclml- 'i 1 iiig jiostage ... ^...2 S 0 ^S ^ 1 For Stmleiits of Prosideuey Colle-o ... ISO s ^ Single copy ... ... ... 0 10 0 <s 1 Foreiii-ii Subscription ... ... 4 Sbillingp. ^ s $ Idicre wll! oi^linavilv lie throe issues a year, in Septem- s 5 ber, l)eceml:er and Mareli. ^ •« Siudents, old Ficsidcney College men and members of J the Staff ')f ibe ('nllcgc are invited to contribute to the ^ Mairazine. Shoi't ;U;d interesting articles written on subjects J of i^'onerad irnorest iind letters dealing in a fair spirit v.dtli < colleoe and Unix'orsity matters will be welcome. The ]<^ditor 1 cannot return rojeeicil artirdes unless accompanied by stamped \ and addressed envelope. ^ All contributions for publication musi, l:e wrivuen on one $ side of the pap'or and must b-e acompa^uied by the full name ^ and address of the writer, not necessarily for publication but \ as a guarantee of good faith. I Contribuiious shoubi be addressed to iJie Gerieral ^ Secretary, Presidency College Magazine, and forwarded to the ^ College Ofhee. ^ ^ ^ A.TIT NATH ROY. 5 Printed by B. B, Roy, at the North British Press, 8, Old Court House Corner. Ca!, Edited and Published by AjitNatli Roy, Presidency College, Calcutta. •.-*^ Tuj; LATJ: Jlii. \l. Ti. JA.\(I'.S FOREWORD iN accordance with the usual practice, I have been asked h}' the Editor •''• to write a foreword and I do so gladly. I recall with great pleasure the four years I spent here as a student and six years as a Professor. I hope to be given the same generous measure of kindness and good will which it has been my good fortune to enjoy in the past. It has often been asserted that Bengal in general and the Presidency College in particular have fallen from their pride of place in tlie educa­ tional world. The College does not figure as conspicuously in the list ol successes as it did in the past. Though success in examinations is not the only standard by which an institution is to be judged, this assertion, if it be a fact, is lamentable. It is up to every one of ijs to do our utmost to help the College regain its former position. I have noticed with great pleasure the inauguration of the Presidency College Science Association which ought to have a very useful career. While pursuit of knowledge is our chief pre-occupation, wo must not neglect at the same time our physical culture. The medical examination of our students discloses alarming conditions which demand the serious attention of all of us. It is olten assumed that the laciliiics for sports are intended only for those who are specially good at them. But widiout meaning any disparagement to the players who represent the College in competitions, 1 may say without fear ol contradiction that though a strong College team is extremely desirable it is not less important that every individual student who is physically fit should have some chance lor taking part in sports and feel the pleasure of perfect fitness and pbjsicnl well-being. Let us all take our work seriously and our games with enthusiasm. B. M. S. THE 'cMm^zimo voi;xviii. SEPTEMBER, 1931. Mo. 1. NOTES AND NEWS T was a melancholy atmosphere of sorrow and gloom which pervaded I the College on the da}- it reopened after the Summer Vacation, when it was announced that Mr. James, late Principal of the College, had passed away. He died on the 3rd June at his residence in London. ^ or eight long years he presided over the destinies of this College, ami those were the proudest years in our history. Mr. James was a remarkable personality. A deep and erudite scholar, a popular and inspiring teacher, a jusl and impartial administrator, a strict disciplinarian and yet a kind and sym­ pathetic friend, he was the embodiment of all that was best and noblest in that race of British educationists in India which is now almost extinct. He was a Principal of lofty ideals and concrete acliievements, and like the great Sir Asulosh Mookerjee might rightly be regarded as an educational statesman. What the late 5ir Asutosh was to the Calcutta University, the late Mr. James was to the Presidency College. The extension ol the College compound by the removal of a big insanitary bustee area in the vicinity of the old College, the splendid group of buildings known as the Baker Laboratories, the neat and well-arranged Peake Science Library, the many important additions to the teaching staff, are standing monu­ ments of his unceasing activities for the expansion of this institution, both external and internal. The College Magazine owes its origin to him, and the College Seminars their inception ; the idea of the College Register was his ; the inauguration of the Founders' Day was due to his initiative ; of the scheme for a College Hall he was the first sponsor ; the starling of PBESIDE?!CY COLLEGE MAGAZINE the College Calendar and the College Information Book shows his care tor the minutest details ; while the manifold improvements in the office and the Library bear testimony to his all round administrative-abilities. His premature retirement From service was a great calamity, and the College has not yet been able to get over the shock it received sixteen years ago. Even after retirement Mr. James never ceased to thmk and work for the College whicli he loved so dearly and which loved him so deeply in return. The memorandum that he submitted to the Calcutta University in August 1917 against the proposal for transferring the f''ost-g!aduale classes from this College, the appeal that he issued to ex-students through Mr. Stapleton in January 1928 for funds in aid of the College Hall, the kind and thoughtful inquiries that he used to make of us from time to time regarding the changes'and activities of the College, the last kind gift that he sent to us from Portugal lor our depleted Magazine fund-—all go to show what an affectionate interest he used to take in us. Such a man is no more ! When shall we see his like again ! The death of Professor Bidhu Bhusan Dutt of the department of C! iemistry canie as a great shock to us and to all those connected with the College. His was literallj' a death in harness. Presumably not in the best of health, he came to the College on a sultry April mornhig, attended to his University Examination work, took his class, retired to his ante room, and an hour later was discovered dead m his chair. A perfect gentleman, quiet and unostentatious, upright and sincere, he was held in high esteem by Ins pupils and colleagues alike. With the passing away of Rai Rasamay Mitra Bahadur, retired Head-Master of Hindu School, Bengal loses one of the greatest school-. masters that this province could boast of. He was a man of vast erudition and culture, and famous not only as a great educationist but also as an elegant writer and a musician of note. Elsewhere appears a memoir of his life from the pen of an ex-student of ours who had the privilege of sitting at his feet. The late Mr. K. C. Ray, C. I. E., M. L. A., one of the founders and organisers of the Associated Press of India, who is regarded a's the 'Father of the Indian Press', began his life as Assistant Superintendent of the Eden Hindu Hostel attached to our College. Our heartfelt condolence to the members of the bereaved families. * * * XOTFS AND X£\VS '.} Il IS our nielancluily dutj' to i-ei:(>r(l the tlentli o( several of our oltl alunini. The late Mr. Lahiioliaii Doss, who tlieil at the lipe old a,t;e of 85. had a very distingaislied eareer al the Bar and was also on tiic i5erie!i ol the Caltuitla 1 Iigh Court lor some years. A Fellow of the Caleutla University, antl sonielinic Dean ol the Facility ol Law, the late Mr. Justice Doss will be ever renieinl)L'red lor his great work on Riparian • rights which is an enduring conlnbulion lo legal lore. The late Rai Bahadur Dr. Ramaprasad Bagchi, B. A., M. D., was anoll;er veteran who, after a distinguished career at the University botli in Arts and Medicine, settled at Agra, and was lor about half a century recognised as a leader of bis profession and ol the Bengalee community of the United Provinces. The late Rai Surendra Natb Majumdar Bahadur was a member of the Provincial Executive Service, who retired a lew years back as the Commissioner of Income-Tax, Beiiar and Orissa. He was one of the greatest singers India has produced in recent times, and it is painful lor those who had the privilege of hearing him to realise that his wonderful voice is stilled lor ever.