A man of faith and purpose

Kenneth Miln writes in praise of Cheshireborn man of letters Reginald Heber, who served as the bishop of Calcutta for the final two and a half years of his life until his passing at the age of 42 in 1826.

The Monifieth dweller, who was brought up in West Bengal in the 1940s, declares: “Just 25 years before the first Dundee jute wallahs began setting up jute mills on the

banks of the river Hooghly, Bishop Heber had visited many locations which were to become jute mill compounds.

“The good bishop had also sailed upon the Hooghly, close to places which were to become familiar to many wallahs and their families during their years in India.

“Few jute wallahs would have known that Bishop Heber’s influence had paved the way for the spread of harmonious relationships between Indians and European expatriates, an effect of which was to enable Dundee jute wallahs to work alongside their Indian counterparts in developing India’s jute industry.

“Unfortunately, Bishop Heber’s term of office in India was cut short by his untimely death in Madras 1826. Arduous duties in a hostile climate were said to be major contributory factors.

“The bishop’s wonderfully detailed, illustrated and evocative narrative of his voyage out to India and his journeys through the provinces of that great country have given the world important records of its people and their culture, as well as its fauna and geography.

“The good bishop certainly achieved a great deal during his short term in India, the legacy of which should be fully acknowledged, valued and not forgotten.

“Having spent my childhood, boyhood and part of my working life in India and very close to the routes travelled by Bishop Heber, I can – albeit in the mind – while

reading his narrative see, hear, smell and ‘feel’ much of what he must have during his many exotic journeys.”