Harking back: Famous polite scholar standing tall on The Mall.

That Lahore was once known as the city of colleges, gardens and learning, which in no small measure was because of the efforts of two great educationists, they being Leitner and Woolner. Few know of them today.

One cannot refute the fact that our history books tend to ignore the truly great and concentrates on those belonging to a common faith, even if they are insignificant in their contribution. While Leitner helped to set up great institutions in Lahore like Government College, the Punjab University, Oriental College and others, it was Woolner who came to see them run efficiently and establish them as great seats of learning. That today these men are both sparingly known is a reflection of the communal age and times in which we live.

In earlier columns we have reflected on Leitner, so it makes sense to now discuss Woolner. The sole British-era public statue left standing in the city is opposite the Lahore Museum on The Mall is his. While all others have been demolished by our extremist beliefs, this is one that is protected by students of every shade: A tribute to a great scholar, teacher, researcher and vice chancellor of the Punjab University.

Standing tall and impressive outside the Punjab University old campus, everyone knows about the statue, but then if you ask people at random, or for that matter even students of the institutions he led, probable a handful would know about him and what he stood for. So it is in the fitness of things that this column should try to spell out a few things he stood for.

Dr. Alfred Cooper Woolner was born in Staffordshire in England on the 13th of May, 1878, the son of a school head master. When he was two years old, the family returned to their native Suffolk country house near Ipswich. For the next 10 years his mother educated him and at 12 years of age he joined the Queen Elizabeth School, Ipswich. At school he was brilliant. He stood first in every class and won almost every prize. He also participated in dramatics and other school activities.

In 1897, he joined Trinity College, Oxford, and was awarded a scholarship. He studied Sanskrit, Persian and the Classics, and because he scored record marks he was 'chaired' around the college. He distinguished himself in Oriental Literature, in the process learning learnt Chinese, Punjabi and Urdu. In 1903, he got a job as principal of Oriental College, Lahore, as well as the registrar of the Punjab University. So it was that he landed in Lahore.

To these...