The old question whether natives of India are to be
admitted to posts in the Civil Service has again come up this week. A party of Anglo-Indian philanthropists waited on Sir Stafford Northcote to urge—we are quoting a report evidently drawn' rawn up by a reporter who does not understand India—that he should 'help natives to come home and strive for Civil appointments. We presume they asked for examinations in India, as the particular .men we want no more need pecuniary aid than dukes' eldest sons ,k1o. The plain fact of the case ia, that if we want the best „natives in the Civil Service we must have the examinations in 'Calcutta, and in Calcutta they cannot be honestly competitive. Do we want them ? Hitherto the India House has said no, and if it is giving up that theory—a very poor and thin one—we would -much rather it opened great appointments without examina- tion, or other imbecile contrivance for abolishing patronage. Let Sir J. Lawrence choose a native to rule a regiment, a province, or a department. He will do it very well, provided we do not insist on selecting the kind of fool who alone could succeed in a com- petitive examination.
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