 Reference Base  Address on game preservation in India. In: Minutes of pro... |
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Curzon, G.N., 1908. Address on game preservation in India. In: Minutes of proceedings at a deputation of the Society for the Preservation of the Wild Fauna of the Empire to the right Hon. The Earl of Elgin, His Majesty’s Secretary of State for the Colonies). Journal of the Society for the Preservation of the Wild Fauna of the Empire 3: 20-32
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| Location: |
Asia - South Asia - India |
| Subject: |
Conservation |
| Species: |
Asian Rhino Species |
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The vision of the Society’s founders of conservation was more complex than the label of ‘‘penitent butchers’’ implies, although the legacy of colonial thinking is none the less problematic for that. In 1906 Lord Curzon, Vice President of the Society, made a plea for conservation to the Colonial Secretary that reflected a frankly imperial vision of global responsibility: ‘‘we owe the preservation of these interesting and valuable, and sometimes disappearing, types of animal on life as a duty to nature and to the world. I have seen enough of the world in travelling to know not merely that many of these types have irretrievably gone, but that owing to the scandalous neglect of our predecessors there are others which are tending to dwindle and disappear now. We are the owners of the greatest Empire in the universe; we are continually using language, which implies that we are the trustees for posterity of the Empire, but we are also the trustees for posterity of the natural contents of that Empire, and among them I do undoubtedly place these rare and interesting types of animal life to which I have referred.
We find in India a progressive diminution of many interest ing and valuable types of animal life, which is due to a number of causes, the improvement of firearms, the increasing depredations of the natives, sometimes to protect their crops — which, of course, is a very worthy reason — sometimes to obtain food for themselves — again a very proper reason — sometimes, alas, for the money to be derived from the sale of skins and hides. Well, looking at the question in India, we came to the conclusion that there were two ways of dealing with that diminution of those types of animal life : one is by more stringent (lame Laws, and the other is by reserves. Now, in regard to India, your familiarity with that country, my Lord, will remind you that we have existing in India, owing to natural causes, perhaps, tho greatest extent of reserves in the world. In the first place we have our forest reserves, which, no doubt, were created in the first place for the growth and preservation of timber, but which constitute indirectly a sort of reserve for game ; then the Native States in India, particularly when you have a sporting Kajah at the head, are in themselves a sort of reserve ; and, finally, all along the north of India you have under the mountains the long strip of Nepaul, which, as at present administered, is perhaps the finest natural game preserve in the world. Therefore in India we have not to look at the question from the same point of view as in Africa ; we have not got to create reserves, because they exist ; and in India we were devoting ourselves, when I left the country, to an alteration and a strengthen- ing of the Game Laws.
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