LORD STANLEYsaid, he had seen it stated in the Indian newspapers that an order had been issued by the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal prohibiting the immemorial native custom connected with the native religion of burning the dead on the banks of the Hooghly. He wished, therefore, to ask the Secretary of State for India, Whether it is true that the Government of Bengal has issued an order prohibiting the burning of dead bodies on the banks of the Hooghly river; whether the terms of that order, and the reasons on which it is based, have been made known, to him; and, if so, whether there is any objection to make them public?
§ SIR CHARLES WOODsaid, in reply, that no despatches had been received from India on that subject, and the only information he possessed was derived from private sources. The cholera had been exceedingly prevalent at Calcutta lately, and the greatest possible alarm had been created there in consequence. The state of the city was very bad, and the subject had been taken into consideration by the authorities with a view to remedy the evils complained of, and see what was to be done to check the spread of the disease. An order was subsequently issued to prevent the throwing of dead bodies into the Hooghly. Anything more disgusting and more calculated to generate disease than, the dead bodies floating up and down that river could hardly be imagined, and it was thought most desirable to prevent that practice. With regard to the burning of dead bodies, he did not believe that any 1501 order on that subject had been issued; but there was, he thought, a proposal that means should be provided for the burning of dead bodies at a short distance from Calcutta. He had reason, however, to know that, if the objections to it were as strong as was represented by some person, that proposal would not be persevered with.