The list of honours usually published at the beginning of
the year is unusually short, and contains no remarkable names except that of Sir J. Lubbock, who is made a Privy Coun- cillor, of Mr. Savory, the President of the College of Sur- geons, and of Sir A. Sassoon, who both receive baronetcies, The rise of this Jewish family in England has been remarkably rapid, as they were till quite recently strictly Indian Jews, almost natives in their manner of life. They have long borne, however, a high character in Bombay, both for business capacity and a punctilious honour in dealing which has been in part the source of their wealth. Much of the Central Asian trade is in their hands ; and this trade depends absolutely upon personal integrity, the merchants and the caravan-owners being compelled to rely implicitly upon each other's statements. The Sassoons in particular used to have large sums out every year for which they had no security either in law or fact—the debtors being always out of the reach of any civilised tribunal—except the moral certainty that their correspondents would reli- giously keep their faith. The history of Asiatic trade would be a curious chapter in the history of the human con- science. Asiatics are supposed to be swindlers ; but nobody ever saw an Indian " hoondee " dishonoured, and half the busi- ness of Asia is conducted on confidence alone. It would not pay to cheat ; and so in the course of ages, cheating of certain kinds comes to be regarded as impossible dishonour. This is the more curious, because the very same man whose word is good for thousands, will lie about his goods like a defendant in a Divorce Court.
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