Joseph Doke - Gandhi - An Indian Patriot in South Africa

8/20/2019 Joseph Doke - Gandhi - An Indian Patriot in South Africa

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i c D o m a i n ,

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M. K. Gandhi; an Indian patriot in South Africa [by] Joseph J. Doke,

with an introduction by Lord Ampthill.

Doke, Joseph J.

London, London Indian Chronicle [1909?]

http://hdl.handle.net/2027/njp.32101073850800

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h t t p : / / w w w . h a t h i t r u s t . o r g / a c c e s s _ u s e # p d - g o o g l e

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http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/joseph-doke-gandhi-an-indian-patriot-in-south-africa 6/119

O T N S O UTH A R I C A

E

ST R , O H AN N E S B UR G

• -

1C o

R O DUC T O N B Y

L

. , T C ., T C .

Y

N D AN C H R O N I C L E

AD. L F O R D . O N DO N

ncenet

P u b l i c D o m a i n ,

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.

, 4 R o m f o rd R o a d


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N .

notknowntomepersonally,

pathybetweenhimandmein the

einregardto thecauseofwhichhe

tedanadvocate.

allwhoare willingtotakemy

ng. respectfullysuggestthatothers

myopinionwould dowelltoavail

tionaffordedbythisbookin regard

few,unfortunately,inthiscountryhave

sneverthelessan mperial uestion

to givemorethanashort

ketchofMr.Mohandas aramchand

ndianCommunity intheTransvaal,

ookis duetothefactsthat menand

onnectedinallhumanaffairs,and

nsionofpoliticalaffairsinparticular

dgeofthecharacterandmotivesof

positiontocriticise donotdoubt

ctsareaccuratelyrecorded,and have

ethattheappreciationisjust.

Mr.Gandhi,hasbeen

,evenbyresponsiblepersons,asan

ctshavebeenmisrepresentedasmere

elaw therehavenotevenbeenwanting

motivesarethose ofself-interestand

epagesoughttodispelanysuch notions

manwhohasbeenmisledintoenter-

etterknowledgeofthe manthere

edgeofthematter.


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O N

ntheTransvaalarestruggling

ght andtheremovalofadegrada-

shmenf indfaultw iththemforthat

t,e ceptthatofviolenceanddis-

m,who haveneithervotesnor

assiveresistance.C anwefindfault

eyarenotselfishlyresistingata or

politicalprivileges theyaremerely

has beentakenfromthem—the

y. ethimwhoblamesthemsay

arcircumstances. sthereoneofus

law,wouldsubmitmeeklyandwith-

ofrights andsocialdegradation

ntcanremovebothgrievances

ceofprincipleorlosinga grainof

alGovernmentdosoforthesakeof

ntofreconciliation,union,andnew

atisthe uestiontowhichweare

nansweratthepresentmoment—the

tthe ndianswhohavetheirhomesin

veassistedasa communityinthe

ca,whoareB ritishcitizensandsub-

ing,aretohaveany lotorsharein

heUnionof SouthAfrica.

nthasbuttorepealan Act,which

chisnow uselessandunworkable,

esdeclaretobeadead letter,andto

ofanotherAct,soas toremovethe

nimposedbytheselawsandin practice

ndiansannually totheColony, onthe

e uestionwouldbesettled.The

enofurtherreasonfor persistingina

eanssufferingandruin whileforthe

alanddisgrace.This doesnotimply

rievances.Theywouldstill labour

sedbythe lateTransvaalR epublic—


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N v

ethefranchiseandtoown land,and

n locations.

ountrythatin. theTransvaal,

, ndianshaveforthefirsttime been

eyhave enjoyed,atanyratein

veryotherpartofthe mpire,viz.,

nonthesametermsasother civilised

Thatisthe simplebutstartlingfact,

od,asitoughttobe understood,

estfrommen ofallpartiesin both

ohavesosolemnlye pressedtheir

heestablishmentofa colourbar

tionforSouthAfrica.Undoubtedlythis

a iberaladministration,ofmenon

sdeprivationofanelementaryright

acialgrounds,constitutesareactionr

vernmentalmostwithoutparallel,and

eenso greatormomentousadeparture

hthe mpirehasbeenbuiltup and

nttoj ustifyitse istence,theprin-

alismwhichhashithertobelongedto

.B uttheviolationofthe political

greaterinthec aseof the c olour

ablishedintheTransvaalthanin that

onstitution. f theH ousesofPar-

otseethis anddonotthinkit worth

momentousareaction,it would

hegovernmentofan mpirehascom-

n ndiaif itshouldf inallybe

tectB ritishsubjectsundertheB ritish

owerlesstoabidebythepledgesof our

men Thosewhoknowabout ndia

hec onse uences. A ndwhatif ndia

nd humiliated—shouldbecomeanun-

nerinthegreat mperialconcern

inningof theendof the mpire.


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O N

onswhythis uestionof the

Transvaal isagreat mperial uestion

naladministrationofaself-governing

erC ountryhasneitherrightnor

chesthehonourofourraceand

mpireasawhole itthereforec on-

mpire.Moreoveritiscertainthat

ple,whichmaybesanctionedor

e mpire , w illoperateasamisc hievous

insideandout,and thenonlybysome

stemwill thearrestofmoraldecay

ernsallwhowould think

eedsmore c learthink ing thanithas

cided,notbymethodsof tem-

hichpracticeignorestheory,butonthe

theethicsofourrace.Theorycan

uit thee igenciesoftimeandplace,

windsthere isnomeansofsteering

dangermayberealisedand

hearthatnegotiationsforasettlement

uestionintheTransvaalarestillpro-

eearnesthopethan thatMr.Gandhi

mayseetheaccomplishmentof

vestruggledso bravelyandsacri-

bookis published.


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eef..........i


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thA fric a.

SO N TH E R E E F .

writtenin ohannesburg. The

withitsgreatmoundsofearth,origin-

af terthe amesonRaid, andgar-

ity,crownsthehillabove.The

heWanderers liebelow , whilebe-

gum-treeswhichguard The

nseethetowersandroofsof ohannes-

mellowedbya hazeofsmoke,and

ardlyreac hsofarasthis. B uteven

eriesalongtheReef , liketheroarof

shore,attractstheear.Atnight

ecoldnightswhenthewind blows

s liketherollof thunder,asthough

rf werebattlingwitheachother

TheWanderers. Thatroar

hot, sunnydaysitalmostdies it

likethedroneofbees intheclover.

heB atteriesof theR eefarenever

verynight andeveryday,without

eat machinerygoesor^ andthe

yieldtheir goldentreasurein

nmanyrespectsawonder-

etso old.Theproblemsofvice


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AT R I O T

thoseaggregatesofhumanity,whose

enturies,areallhere.Ayoungform,

e populationissodiverse.The

penedjustinfront ofme,andasmall

anordinarycrowdin averyordinary

ayoung talianPriestmountedhis

hinesefollowed.Thefewwho

fdifferentnationalities.Atall

han, some af f irs, andtwowhitepeople

a ew. tisthisc osmopolitanc har-

chformsatoncethe attractiveness

ce.Thereis nocohesion,thereis

ntiallyproblemsof ohannes-

d— race,colour,education,crime,

esentsitsownpeculiardifficulties,

Surelyofall placesthisisthe

erhapsthemostfasc inating. ew live

t. B utamidstthemany uestions

eC itysinceitsfoundation,there

curiousanduni uerelief,andhas

atis,thePassiveR esistance,

ths,theAsiaticcommunity,which

ransvaalabout10,000,naturallya

munity,hasbeeninrevolt against

tic awAmendmentAct,which

attheAsiaticshadinaugurateda

af f ic in permits, andwasconse-

munity,tobelegislatedagainstas

nseindignationamongstthem.They

traffic,butwererefused.They

gesinvestigatedbya udgeofthe

ppealwasignored.Theyhad no

orepresentationinParliament,so

ertogivethe outwardsignofthe


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I C A 3

hichwasthe impressionofthedigits

heydecidedonresistanc e. ortun-

ined,gentle,chivalrousman,a

esistancetookthe formof

nce. Sinc ethen, ohannesburghasbeena

sues,whichwillaffectthewhole

htout,andthebattle isstillraging.

uthoritiesaresendingnumbersof ndian

nthe ort,forcarryingontheir

fcourse,theyappliedfora licence,

,butbecausetheywouldnotregister

ons,theirmoneywasreturned,and

andsentencedtosevenandfourteen

he ortforabreac hof the aw. We

ymarchingupthedustyroadin batches

ed—thePassiveR esistersof ohannes-

ar,therewereovertwohundred

ncethen,therehavebeenreadjust-

a promisemadeandevadedbythe

ll,withnewinsufferableconditions—

nt,dignified,persistentPassive

umberthreatensagaintorise ashigh.

pathetic aboutit. The c olour

nselystrongwithamajorityof the

hisspotadifficultbattlegroundon

es.Then wehavesomanyconflict-

siderations,politicalinterests,racial

owswhatbesides.So ohannesburg

yon theactionoftheGovernment,

sufferingsofthe men—whilethose

ardlydarespeaktheirthoughts.

nderon—politicalgreed,injus-

heselfishnessoftrade thecrushing

hammeringandpoundingundertheir

plessAsiaticcommunity.Sometimes


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AT R I O T

oawhisper— againitrisesto aroar

andtheresult Well, weshallsee.

asnodoubtof theissue. saidyes-

end, itislikely tobealongstruggle—

theGovernmenthereislikeiron. '

er, hereplied, if thetrialislong, mypeople

ictoryissureto come. es,the

ofind thegold.


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I C A 5

L F .

r, 1 07, when sawMr. Gandhi

urhadbeenverybusywithhis name.

movementhadcomeintoprominence.

ade inthenewspapersbytheim-

din onewayoranother,Mr.

enbandiedf romliptolip. O neeven-

aticQ uestionatthesupper-table,

velynewto ohannesburg,although

tolduswhathethoughtof the

wassostrangeandso completely

e perience,thatitmadeuscurious,

sedecidedmeto interviewtheleader.

issikandAndersonStreets,

herof f ices. twasintendedforworkand

anddoorwere adornedwiththe

thedenominationofAttorney

m wasgivenuptoa lady-typist

wasushered,wasthesanctum

relyfurnishedanddusty.Afew

ongthewalls.Theywerechiefly

erit.The ndianStretcher-bearer

photographsof Mrs.B esant,Sir

r, and usticeR anade—severalseparate

abeautifulpic tureof esusChrist.

ndshelvesfilledwithlawbookscom-

venotedafterwards. ustthen,

entredintheman whogreetedme,

stmyideastoune pec tede perienc es.

dia, hadalmostunconsciouslyselected

maslikelyto confrontme,probably


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PAT R I O T

ndabold,masterfulface,inharmony

eseemedtoe ertin ohannesburg.

yandaggressive. nsteadofthis,

e, sparefigurestoodbeforeme,and

kedintomine.Theskin wasdark,

e whichlighteduptheface,andthat

plytookone sheartbystorm.

thirty-eightyearsofage,which

trainof hisworkshoweditstraces

airsonhishead. Hespoke nglish

tlyamanofgreatculture.

listenedtoane planationof

aised withanodofthe head,and

ntil haddone. Thenhewentstraightto

to emphasizehisthoughts,he

atementoftheAsiaticposition,in

t haveeverheard. wasan ious

elementsin thestrugglewere,and

cingclearness,e plainingpatiently

andsatisfyinghimselfthat under-

gw iththene t. O nc e, whenhe

tosee whether hadgraspedthe

edfor thesakeofcourtesy, closed

ehadf inished. Don tc loseit, he

yettoc ome.

edstrengthabouthim,agreat-

thonesty,thatattractedmeat once

e partedf riends.

ow , oneortwoscenesstandout

B C riminalC ourt,agreat

scrushedinatthedoor,and spreading

hecynicalMagistrate,withhis

heB ench thehorseshoeoflegal


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I C A 7

atspare,lithe formresponding

s aramc handGandhi, andtakingthe

acrity toreceiveasentenceof two-

forthesakeofhissuf feringpeople.

addressedthesewordstothe hun-

gatheredattheMos ue:—" N o

, w illa lwaysrepeatthatitisa

rty . . B yreligion, donotmean

aryreligion,butthatreligionwhich

chbringsusfaceto facewithour

e men,if,ontakingadeliberatevow,

erthat youmayremainintheTrans-

nvenience,youundoubtedlyforsake

wordsof the ewofNazareth, those

etoleavethe world,and callupon

sparticularinstance,toleavetheworld

dc lingstoitsmother sbreast.

s.

ymindwithe ualvividness.

him,strikinghimdownandbeating

henherecoveredconsciousness,

earbytowhichhe hadbeencarried.

ntlater. Hewashelplessandbleeding, the

ounds,thepoliceofficerswatching

hilehewas usingwhatlittlestrength

ionshouldbetaken topunishhis

Theythoughttheyweredoingright,

enodesiretoprosecutethem. Theywere

ooknopart init.

neverforget theyserveto

ndianf riendlivesonahigherplane

ctions,liketheactionsof Maryof

tedeccentric,andnotinfre uently

odonotknowhimthinkthereis some

someO riental slimness, toac count

liness.B utthosewhoknowhim

selvesinhis presence.


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AT R I O T

c harmforhim. Hisc ompatriots

H ew illtakenothing. Themoneywe

sourdeputyto nglandhebrought

entswe madehiminN atal,he

unds.H eispoorbecausehewill

angryathis strangeunselfish-

loveofprideandtrust. H eis

haracters,withwhomtowalkisa

oknowistolove.


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I C A g

.

sanctumwasfull of ndians

ssingearnestlythelatestphaseofthe

owever,itbecameclearthatMr.

ra uietc hat, w iththewell-bredin-

lentlylefttheroom.Mr. Gandhi

chairandfacedme,hisdark eyes

a littlemoresilvered, thought,

attitudealertande pectant.

an, wanttoaskyouastrange ues-

paredtomakea martyrofyourself

" H elookedalittlesurprised,

thinkyoushouldknowthatbythistime.

c a nd i dl y d o n ot . W e l l , s ai d h e, h i s

atterwithmeofcompletesurrender.

w illingtodieatanytime, ortodoanything

ecare, rejoined, perhaps shallask

ouc annotdothat, hereplied,

opportunity,anddrewthetoilsabout

said. tappearstomethatwhatweare

ngat theAsiaticsettlement—our

tisonly partofamuchgreaterfight,

gerbattlef ield. The uestionof the

ansthroughoutthewhole mpirewill

thesettlementofthatvastproblem,

say. The uestionis—howc anwe

ue H enoddedinhisown uic k,

ded: Y ouknowverywellthat, w ith

erandpersonalityareofthefirstimport-

tmustbesoathome. ouyourself

ndiancause. tisagreatthingto


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AT R I O T

rofsuc hamovement. H ewas

oppedhim. L etmec ontinue,

asleadermakesyourpersonalityofgreat

thasoc curredtomethatif c ould

ht,graphic,andreliable—makingyour

pleof ngland,itmightdosome-

hegreatstrugglethat istocome.

meappreciablyweaker,buttheydid

wenton: Y ouw illsee, however,

ependsaltogetheruponyourself.

yourchildhoodandyouth,allowme

,anddepictyourcharacter,andif

tosubmitto thiswillbethe severest

ouc ansuf fer. A h, hesaid, as

him, youhavecaughtmecom-

a i d , w ou l d th i s he l p yo u r pe o pl e H e

henreplied, es, in ngland.

fa r " F o r t he c au s e, c a n, h e s ai d .

ouwantmetodo oudon twantmeto

N o, replied, notaword just

utthat ndiancitywhereyouwereborn,

rsfarawayin the ast,thevery

urstrugglesandsacrificesand vic-

tellme,otherswillhelp metodis-

agrip ofthehand,weconfirmedthe

storywasborn.


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I C A n

I T .

nning,wemustvisit,infancy,a

, calledPorbandar, andtrytorec allit,

nago.This wastheancestralhome

geshavecomesincethen even

Porbandarhaschanged.Thecity

tsprimitivecustoms,itshaughtyisola-

e,havealmostvanished.Thecity

toccupies,ofcourse,theold

stillc laimsaproudpositionas

alityofPorbandar,inthe sub-province

v inc eofGujarat. tstillholdsf if ty

stillits R anaSahibisregarded

B utoldHinduPorbandarhasgone

write, likemosttownsin

ndedbysubstantialwalls,sometwenty

ortion.Thesehavesince been

rebuiltchieflyofstone uarriedin

onewaswhiteandsoft— easily

ere posure,sothat,intime,these

dblocksofmarblefittedto endure

pproachalsoto architecturale cel-

ofthestreetswere narrow,andthe

ctwaswonderfullypictures ue.That

hitsmassivewallsseenfromadistanc e, in

tting Sun,wasavisionofbeauty

ortunately,therewerefewtreesin

dgardenoftheR anaSahibwere

rom these,thetropiclovelinessof


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P AT R I O T

atherypalm-treesrise,

der sunnyskies,

.Theonlygreenthingswhichwere

etulsi-plants,in theirpotsortubs,

e.

eawasalmostw ithinastone s

hecityso closely,thatattimesit

orbandar,changingtheneighbour-

ndnecessitatingabridgeinlater

awayfromthesea,the plainspread

tantB ardaH ills.

osepurplehills,someforty

vil warraged.Apparently,the

avechangedthefaceof ndia—

s,thevictoriesofC liveandH astings,

ardlyraisedthetemperatureof

rouble,morethanonce,hasdoneso.

onofthepeopleofPorbandar,the

eR anaSahib,andcivilwarfollowed.

buttraditionsarestill told,over

standmade bytwobrotherswhowere

theirbravery—and ofhowthey

iantlyusinghisgunwithhis feetwhen

eGujaratiswereevidentlycastin

f themildernativesof astern ndia,

warhastold.

owerfulinfluenceoverthem.

eN orthmen,andtheB ritish,the

mother.Thechiefoccupationof

nti uity , hasbeen doingbusiness

esselsconstructedheremightbemet

en,andthewildocean-lifegavethese

ofcharacter,andawideknowledge

rlands.Thirtyyearsago,avery

nof Porbandarhadbeenacrossthe


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I C A 13

rade,carryingtheir notedgheeor

State.

omwhichtheGandhissprang.

whowereknitupwith the

nealogytoH anuman,theMonkey-

erecordsareancient.W hatstrange,

terstheseoldH induC hiefsmusthave

e, R anaSahibV ikmatji, thePrinc e

andand aramchandGandhistoodas

spicture: irm-minded,singu-

n-sighted,oftencruel,soindepen-

withthepoliticalagent,sostubborn

ar,soniggardlythathis dependents

yetwithcompensatingcharacteristics

Acuriouscombination,notun-

ecourtofsucha Princewas

atleastoc casionale c itements, anda

y. etO otamchandGandhi,grand-

eldthatpositionfor manyyears.

gnum,beforeV ikmatjicametothe

thappened,whichleftmaterial

ance.O otamchandincurredthe

n-Regent.H ewasdisplacedandfled,

bardedhishouse.Marksof the

enonthe oldmansion.Thenhe

acrosstheB ardaHills. TheNawabof

kindly,butthecourtiersnotedthat

enwiththe lefthand,aninsultgreater

ad losttheirheads.TheN awab

ereplied,respectfullybutfirmly,

hehadsuf fered, hekepthisright

tistothec reditof theNawab

triotismofthe disgracedMinister,

urablyuntilthestormpassedover,


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P AT R I O T

ed, hisson aramchandtookhis

eMinisterof Porbandarfortwenty-five

edthedispleasureofhis sovereign

taskin thosedays—tookhis leave,and

eathingtohisbrotherhisbadgeofof fic eand

ereevidentlyofconsiderableim-

feofPorbandar. O tieofmy

aidMohandas, isc onnec tedw iththe

achild,of thefamilypedigree,with

fshoots,awaythereinthe oldhome

iteC ity .


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I C A 15

ofhisparents,those who

onholyground. tisasthough

adliftedthecurtainof theinner

ahtobe seen.There,inthere,are

rand life.

saidtohim, ashesatopposite

gmoods. Tellmeaboutyour

bstance,washisreply.

ngtheH indus,eachone

omanymore:—

estlyC aste.

arriorCaste.

mmerc ialCaste.

aste.

he thirdcaste. nreligionthey

herwasanintenselyreligiousman.

heB hagavadGita, A rnold s Song

ndaccordingtothestrictestmannerof

nava.

enervatingatmosphereof

wasalsoincorruptible. O nc e, whenthe

edhim,afterlongservice,toaccepta

mto takeasmuchashedesired,

eoffer,thinkingthatit hadthe

Whatw illyoudow ithyoursons

mustprovideforthem.Takeasmuch

elativestookupthe parable,and

edownhisopposition.B uteven

ceptwasamerestripofground four

yhadnofascinationforhim.


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PATR I O T

ageofsi ty - three, hehadspentnearly

charity.

mhislife. O nc ehefellfoulof

ent, whowasan nglishman. n

ahibofR ajkot,whom aramchand

me,had nopowerbeyondwhatwas

shrepresentative,and,asarule,a

ywassufficientto procurethedis-

aramchandGandhimusthave

aringsomeinsolentremarkfromthe

sPrince,hedaredtodispute withhim.

demandedanapology.W henthis

cialhadhimimmediatelyarrested,

urs,undera tree thetownmean-

tement.SuchadefianceofB ritish

eenseen. ntheend, passiveresist-

ologywaswaived,andthetwoopponents

lofsadness.W henhis

roachinginPorbandar,hefoundit very

mR ajkot.When permissionwas

kore,itwassonearthewedding-day

of horsesbetweenthetwocities,andi

cumbersomevehiclewasoverturned,

omwhichhe neverrecovered.

ucceeded,Mohandas,his

stantcompanionandnurse,and

fidencemusthavee istedbetween

twasthemotherwhowontheboy s

voicesoftenswhenhespeaksofher,

s eyes.Shemusthavebeena

ohibited,isnotcommon,e cept

s,inPorbandar.Therewasno

eclusion,intheGandhi shome.The


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Shewasveryyoung,but remark-

elligent.Shebecame ,infact,a

eanimportanceintheState,through

ourtladies.Shewasnotfond of

ativelylittle,justtheusualnose

on herwrists,andheavyanklets.

. olkwhisperedthatthey

sevendaysatatime,and lifewas

hemadeittheatmosphereofthehome.

pline,yetwithal,this motherbore

and sympathyinherheart,thatthe

oundlessaffection. ftherewere

wouldsit upnightafternightdis-

se. fanyonenearbywasinneed,

asthe onetorenderhelpas soonas

theoldgate-waywasbesiegedby

rickenpeople,whocametoreceive

eywhichwasneverrefused justas

ediaevalconvent,andshean ndian

sherinfluenc e, morethananyother,

ofherboy.

H o l y o f H o l ie s . W h e n , h e

udentto ondonwasproposed, af ter

onsentedononecondition.Shehad

lliveslived inthatfar-offcity,

son.TakingmebeforeaSwamiof

mesweara threefoldoath,toabjure

esh,andof women.Andthat

vedmefrommanyapitfallin ondon.


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visionofafter-thoughts.

sedthegroundadjoiningtwo temples,

ontothem. oureachitnow

othe mainstreet.Thetwotemples,

rtoRama, keepguardoneitherside.

t,thenaraised verandah,andfinally

wasoriginallyno onecantell.Alter-

ygeneration.N ewfamiliesadded

ase pansionwasimpossible,storey

henthe fourthwasreached,itwas

one wouldmeandisaster,sothelast

rambling,old, weather-beaten,

dtotheafter-thoughtsofalong line

daswasborn, onthe2ndof

youngestof thethreec hildren. O nthe

induc ustom, agreatfeastwasheld

dhata, Goddessof ortune, andthe

n. Thenamechosenwas Mohandas.

ogerwasmoreor lessrespon-

sultedthesignsof theZ odiac,made

andpresentedto theparentsthe

chaname mightbemade.The

eof Mohandas, sothiswasaddled

f aramc hand, c rownedwiththe

h, andtheboy, inthisway, wasset

venyearsold,heattendedan

andar,studyingsomereligiousbook

en,owingtothe migrationofthe


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stransferredtoapublic sc hool. rom

darcontinuedtobethefamily

d.R ajkotwasfivedaysdistantby

redandtwentymilesaway,andonly

ngs,orfeastswasareturn possible.

opictures uelysituatedasisPor-

orepleasanttothe eye.C ertainly,

twaspreferable. tstandsonthe

datthattime waspartlysurrounded

ebeenpulleddown,andavenuesof

stead,sothat to-dayitisone ofthe

ovinceofGujarat

parts, representingtheold

ndtheWest. Theoldpartisruled

t,andthoseborntherearesimply

. Thenewtownor station issub-

ombay,andisessentiallyB ritish.

regulationsandtheC iv ilC ourtsareasdis-

gedtodifferentcountries.O ld

ildingsasis Porbandar.Thewhite

onesaremissing.The housesare

tiled.Thereis moreofthes ualor

utthe station isbeautiful. n

ergingfromobscurity,buttreeswere

ginningtoshowtheirflowers,while

gingintoview.N otableamongthe

engedattention,wastheR ajkumar

uropeanappurtenances,where

readypursuingacourseofstudy.

almostasfarastheeyecouldsee, green

thvillagesand cattle,orgiving

asessentiallyapastoralcountry.

mewasinold R ajkot,closeto

remerelyguests inthetown,but

eptedthepositionofDewanSahibtothe

byhim, andtheybecamesettled


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ol-daysforMohandas. irstofall

ularSchool,andcontinuedthereuntil

s transferredtothe athiawar

d-masterwasaParsigraduate,where

culatedatAhmadabadattheage

ofChristiansandChristiandoc trines

skedhim. N otatallinPorbandar, he

hristiansthere, inmytime. B utin

stianityfoundtheirwayintotheschool,

uttheywerevague,andbyno means

anshadaMissioninR ajkot,and

deeplystirredbytheauthenticre-

induhadbecomeaC hristian.The

omingaC hristianmeant,wasnot

ianity.Theschoolboysheldthefirm

nmeanteatingmeatanddrinking

thedoc trinestaught N one

charebothabhorrenttoH indus,

ofC hristianity beyondthis,they

s,onourwaytoschool,wecould

olgate, catchaglimpseofMr.

svoicein thedistance occasionally

treatmentby thepeople,but ,at

mthen. ater, gottoknowhim

usteachingwasreceivedin

armahad notdecayed.


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I C A 21

.

otingmarkedthe school-days

hismarriage,theother, acrisis

boywasmarried.Thebetro-

fouryearsbefore,in thehomeat

ar,too,themarriageceremonywas

tly , in ndia, thebrideandbridegroom

runtil thewedding-day,andsome-

eveilis liftedforthefirsttime, life

ckofrevulsion. nthiscase,how-

.O neimaginesthattheparentsin-

oreliberalin theirviewsthantheir

duR itualwouldsuggest.Atanyrate,

oughttoR ajkotsometimebefore

childrenbecameplaymatesinthe

ymerry.Mohandas,his

marriedat thesametime.N um-

ent,flowersinabundancemadethe

s andbridegroomswerebutchildren,

y,fromthepriestlychantingof

wrie-shells,wasfullof enjoyment.

dhi,like most ndianreformers,

marriage.H eregardsitas having

fhis nation,andasbeingatthe

uthearguesthatsuch alife-union,

haracterhavebeenformed,is

ofreachingani dealonenessof

hedinanyother way.This,

sowne perience.Mrs.Gandhi


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eroicwife.Duringthesemonthsof

verely. thasbeenher affliction

usband simprisonment,butshehas

ealth hasbrokenunderthestrain

butheroically,givenhereldestson

rueandloyal ndianwife, thelittle

eher duty.Shelivesnowwith

hter-in-law,andagrandchild,inthe

ereldestboy, Harila l, fatherof the

s trial,asapassiveresister,in

oldays,whilestill inthefourth

eachedareligiouscrisis,andallbut

he waspracticallyanatheist.Up

ippedthegodshonestly.H ehad

soning,imaginedthatthe stoneor

tselfa god,buthehadbeentold,

fconsecrationendowedtheimage

islocalisedspiritheworshipped.

otherminds,however,almostimper-

eptionofreligion.H ebecamescep-

encytoanalyticalstudymadehim

ything.

hesaid, howthisorthatc ouldbe

uestionswhichbroughthimatlength

thereligiousteachingofhis mother.

sofaras heknew,betweenidolatrous

SoAtheismitwas.

rtime-honouredcustoms,besides

or onehabitwhichhadhardened

stoodthestrain,theyouthwould

moral,aswellasa spiritual,wreck.

straininginfluencesofreligion,what-

ngthe wholebeing.

en,religionhavingbecomemere

ewas bendinghereffortstodislodge


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I C A 23

rone ofotherlives,shewrote: t,

utyofeveryonetobewarehowheup-

ywhichheistoo weaktoreplace,or

withbetter ones,heremovesthe

everpoorly,tosomee tentcheck

thestrain inthistimeof

wastruthfulness. twasthen, itisnow, a

notlie.O theranchorswerelost

yofAliieisticstudents,who

ighSchoolatR ajkot,andtowhom

brokesecretlythroughoneH inducus-

gmoreandmoredaring.Theygave

thegods. Theyatlengthbegan

.Theirleaderpersuadedthemthat

ueof the nglishwereduetothisindul-

iend,who,atthistime,beganto

enceoverthem,addedhispersuasions.

thattheschool-master,whowas

edinthisfood,and beforethesesuc-

ousconvictionsofyearsgaveway.

and discussedtheawfultheme,afraid

ourse.Atlast theyventured.

medfromchildhoodtothisdiet,can

orandloathingwithwhicha strict

tragesallhisreligiousinstinc ts. t

standsasthe symbolofarenuncia-

satheism.

etheydared.W henthe

uldbreaktheircasteandcausea

raditionsof theirfaith,theyfelt

ersshockedatthemselves.Aparty

espiritsstoleawayoneeveningto a

ide, carryingmeatwiththem,and

onoftheschool-master sbrother,

t. twaseaten uic kly . Mr.


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PATR I O T

tedatf irstnauseous, butworstofall, the

arknessofthe night,andtherewas

Stilltheyperseveredintheircourse,

superstitiousbyothers,anddeter-

he nglish.Dayafterdaythey

earwore away,andtheyevenbegan

neoftheirnumberwasa past-

ng.H emadethedishessavoury.

variations,andalthoughthefeastwas

eastnevertheless,andit wasenjoyed.

Mohandastohis oldmoor-

orsetransgressions,washis loveof

ohim.Thee peditiontothe

,tobe keptasecretfromhisparents.

terribledefection,ifdiscovered,

hocktohismother.H edarednot

seffortsat concealmentinvolvedhim

thatlifebecameunbearable.H e

ned him,wereobligedtoobtain

obeabsent,and thentocoverthereal

entions.Theyhadalsotoe cuse

heeveningmeal. nonewayor

ewpathto beaverydeviousone,

ngc loselyonalie. twasthisthat

p theircompanions,andresume

iberty,whichre uireddeceitto

s charmforthem.W hen

ngland, hismother sinsistenc eonthe

on,andbothparentsdiedwithout

nt.

omoftheboy wasnothindered

asasc eptic still. Hismother

zled,attimes,by thesearching ues-

sdifficulties,heturnedto ancient

thec odeofManu, inthehopeof

iddleoflife.W hathefoundper-


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I C A 25

eemedtohimthatamuc hpurerfaith

oksthanthefaithwhichclaimedhis

eworshiparoundhimappeared

itfailedtoretain hisrespect surely

n this.Soheargued,andpondered

induyouthisdoingstill, untilslowly


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I .

N D O N (i ).

culatedatAlmadabad,heen-

nagar, intendingtograduate. O n hisf irst

owever,aB rahminfriendofthe

aladviser,turnedhis thoughts

ajkothadjustreturnedfrom

encalledtotheB ar.Theclear-sighted

, say ing, fyouw ishtomakehead-

ecome,likeyourfather,amain of

errelin uishtheideaofgraduating

ondonandbec omeabarrister.

vingasit did,thenecessityof

withtheyoungstudent sdesires.

newcircumstances,togetherwith

t,mingledwithhisdreams.H ede-

herandbrotherwouldconsent.H is

before. twasnotdifficultto per-

emedtohim, asitdidtotheB rahmin,

gress.W ithhisusualgenerosity,

ertywhichhis fatherhadleft,to-

els,ifneed be,shouldbesoldto

dsforthisventure.

ferent.Sherealised,with

moraland spiritualperilsofsucha

ningledhertorec oilf romit. Real-

ehadf illedherw ithhorror. N ights

ays inargument,beforeatlastshe

enconsentwasonlygivenoncondition

himself byathreefoldoathof


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I C A 27

ngs,afterthis,to bedone

esewasto visittheoldhomeat

dnevertravelledsofaralonebe-

owhemustdare tobeself-reliant,

twasmadepartlybywaggon, and

Porbandarwasreachedinsafety.

athattimetheB ritishAdminis-

waswithinhispowertogrant a

ng ndianstudent,whichwould

ondon.Toobtainsuchascholarship

s journey. tresultedinfailure.

dhihadobtainedallkindsof schol-

hhe attended,hedidnotimpress

alent,or,possibly,somehostile

k.Atanyrate,the application

r rederic k , youmustgraduatef irst—

rfurtheryearsof study—thenyou

w illc onsiderit. B utanotherpartof

ssful.H isuncle,whohadfollowed

SahibofPorbandar,endorsedthe

,andsenthimbackto R ajkot,able,

m.

sit to nglandwasreceived

nPorbandarwithintensedisap-

ngedtotheoldC onservative

edhimwithabuse,toldhimthathe

clan,threatenedhimwithcondign

whentheirabuseandthreatenings

ameetingofcastemeninB ombay,

m.Tothis day,whileheiswelcomed

s,heis outsidethecastesocietyof

.

engerslandedwithMr.Gandhi

anever-to-be-forgottenSeptember

tknowingwheretofind theirfriends

c idedtogototheH otelV ic toria.


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ndfor delivery,anddressedin

tohimamostbecomingcostume,the

ponhis nglishe perienc es. They

yhappy,andMr. Gandhiretains

.H iscostumeandcolourdrewthe

ndsensitiveashewas,it appearedto

dman.Tohissurprise,nooneelse

n wasinahopelessminority,and

urtesyandrefinementwerenotfeatures

dthishewashorribly lonely . A fter

mbroughtto himan ndianfriend,

eoldermanwasversedin city

datthe youngstudent ssimplicity,

, tomakean nglishgentleman of

keMr.Gandhitoapartmentsat

c arefully instruc tedhiminthewayhe

ccepted uropeancustomswith

nkwine,smoked,andenjoyedcom-

tlemanshould.H ewashimselfa

cularlykind.H aditnotbeen for

motherhewouldprobablyhave

sit was,hewaspartlysuccessful.

seideal, theyoungstudentwasteda

eatdealofmoneyneedlesslyduring

essaryformeto takedancingles-

, andlessonsinelocution, andlessons

lin- lessons. ouknow havenoear

heresultwasa ludicrousfailure.The

ar,it onlycultivateddisappoint-

ttheonlywaytobecomean nglish

chaccomplishments, persevered

esistanceintheR ajkotstudent

kdown.H ewastrueto hisoath.


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I C A 2

o la ityfailed,plausiblearguments

hemother svowwhic hgave

.When hisfriendknewthereason,

th, youduffer " hec ried, youhad

eunderanoath. fyouweremy

oudown twasthefood uestion

m.O nenightMr.Gandhiwasin-

er studentstoabrilliantdinner-

estaurant,thefriendevidentlyimagining

dany uestions. B uthehadfailed

hecharacterwithwhichhehadto

c oursec ame, saidMr. Gandhi, laugh-

ne, summonedthewaiterandin-

smadeof. Myhostsawthemove-

hetableto askwhatitmeant.W hen

ionately, ouarenotf itfordec ent

ctlikea gentlemanyouhadbettergo.

sstudyingfortheB aratthe

tersomemonthsofworkandplay, he

seone,thathe waswastingboth

reams,andhe determinedtomake

oldhisviolin, gaveupdancingand

relythewholecourseofhis life. n

nnerTemple,hejoinedaprivate

akingthe ondonmatriculatione am-

ive rigorously.R entingasingle

stove, hewasabletokeepallhise -

onth. Hec ookedhisownbreakfastand

lyporridge,re uirednogreatculinary

egetarianrestaurant,nevere ceed-

smakingitsi pence.Theideaof

an wasforgotteninthepassionof the

dforaboutthreeyears.


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N D O N (2 ).

ers,Mr.Gandhihad triedto

nse. romthedaysofhis boyish

eperple itieswhichfollowed,hehad

mentwhenheshouldbe freefrom

omsofhome,freeto declarehimself

ce.Suchtimehadnowcome. t

senseof helplessnessandignorance

ities.Q uestionspursuedhimrelent-

oughtosaythat nothingcouldbe

ouldatheismbe thealternativeto

rewasChristianity , nowbec omea

dhim—whatof that B eyondevery-

unceuponH induismwiththepaltry

possessed V eryc autiously , but

ese uestions.

ow inc hargeof the adyMargaret s

becamehisintimatef riend, ande erc ised

erhim.Other friendships,too,were

etarianSociety,ofwhichhebecamea

ly impossibleyet, thatthe uestionof

ominent,buteverydiscussionand

subjectonlyimpressedhimthemore

nce,andignoranceofthatreligion

pec tedhimtobefamiliar. Dr. O ldf ield s

ac c eptC hristianity " wasmetbythe

tc aretostudyChristianityw ithouthaving

rst. TheDoctorw iselyac uiesced

portunityofac uaintinghimwiththe

touchwiththeTheosophists,

readherbook The eytoTheoso-


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I C A 31

e B lavatsky odge, butbeyond uic k-

ousproblems,Theosophyfailedto

rs,however,whowereTheoso-

oodservice.B eingdeeplyinterested

pressedaw ishtoreadw ithhim the

gtopleasethem,he assented.When

shamedtofindthat,althoughhewas

nguage,andhadfre uentlyread

wasutterlyunabletoe plainitssubtle

edtostudythebookfor himself.

etaskwith aprofoundvenerationfor

ad loved,buthisvenerationwas

bysurpriseanddelight,ashepondered

ngbeautyofthe songenthralled

whichhereadit,far fromhis

gers,deepenedtheeffect. twas

ousjewelwhichhad longbeenhis,

TheGitaopenedtome, hesaid, a

c hedmyspiritasperhapsitc anonly

t hadfoundatlast, as believed,

hiswasanepoc hinhislife.

ntlemanfromManchestermet

estedinMr.Gandhi sreligiousviews,

thebelievedtobefalse inthem,and

hristianfaith.Thisfriendwasso

enhesaid: ormysake,promise,at

andletmegetyouone. Mr. Gandhi

thegentlemanfailedtoindicatewhat

uldread.So thestudentbeganat

edthroughwholechapterswhichbore

ds,nortothecry ofhisheart,until

ble.Againandagainheaskedhim-

veledthisf riendtoe ac tsuchapromise

etelybesidethemark. When x odus

sedthebook,and,for atime,closed

eliteratureofC hristianity.Stillhe

eshlight.H enotonlymaintained


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mind,butheendeavouredtoplace

befound.

mself toattendtheC hurc hes. O n

H . Spurgeon. Healsolistenedto

eitherofthesepreachersimpressed

art fromtheirpremises,orfollow

helefttheirC hurcheswithoutgrasp-

Dr.Parkerit wasdifferent.H is

theC ityTempleappeartohave

twashisappealto thethoughtsof

ofme, saidMr. Gandhi, and went

n thewhole, althoughnof inalgoalwas

fluenceshelpedto uickenandmature

e,to sweepawaythefragmentsof

dbecomeareality.

aminationwithcredit,butwith

ndattheend ofhisthreeyearswas

mediatelyafterwardshereturnedhome.

ormof nglishlife askedhim.

ourably " Y es, hereplied, w ith

ne tto ndia, wouldratherlivein

rplacein theworld.


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I C A . 33 ,

N E D.

owedbyagreat sorrow.Mr.

smotherwasdead.H isfriends,,

ot toldhimofthis beforeheleft

nding,butfor hisdeterminationtogo

wouldhavestillpreservedsilence.The-

enit came.H ismother,withher

veringadherencetotheoldway,would

tle,ine plicablechangeinherson.

mwas toocloseandtendertohave

ajkotwasshornofits chiefcharm,

sapainfulone.

brother sintentiontogettheyoung

tspot,fortheprocessof ceremonial

stom,beforehisappearanceinR ajkot.

hissilenceregardingthemother s

gmustfollow. twasapurelyc ere-

ofarasMr.Gandhiwas concerned,

ce twassimplytheprescribedway

cietyandcasteprivileges.N asak,in

schosenasthesacredspot.The re-

d,apriestchantedmantrasandwhen

ne penditureofaboutR s.50,was

washeld,andwithoutanyreference

whichoccasionedit,hewas admitted

ecompany.

ajkot,andthestudyofthe

ofB ombay, togetherw ithamoresystem-

indufaithunderalearned ain,

meeighteenmonths.Thenaninvi-

rother,togoto SouthAfrica.A


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anchin Pretoria,offeredhima

menttoundertakeanimportantlaw-suit,

dianswereinvolved.Theofferwas

n18 3,Mr.Gandhimadehisfirst

thA frica. twasnotaltogetherhappy,

owedwhathasbeenhise perience

disillusionedhim. H esaid,

ming.Myclientshavemisled me.

.Thewavingbananaleaves,the

edate-bushesspringingfrom a

emindedhimofhis nativeland.

suggestedpleasantreminiscencesofthe

ea. twouldbedif f iculttoimaginea

ban,ormore hospitablepeoplethan

ntly,therewasnowelcomeforan

aradicaldifferenceoftreatmentbetween

estartledthenewarrival,and cuthim

c asteHindu, thec hildofananc ient

er,grandfather,andunclehadbeen

pectiveC ourts.H ischildhoodand

ndia,familiarwithallthesplendour

nmanhoodhehadknownnothingof

beengrantedfreeaccesstopolite

anjitsinhjiwashisf riend. B ypro-

trainedinthef ineold nglish aw

emple, andc alledtotheB arin ondon

neverysenseoftheterm.H itherto

e faceasthefaceofa friend.H e

hoodtoadmirethe justiceofB ritish

tishhonour. tistruethat, nowand

alhadshownhimselfbrus ueorover-

r,hadhappenedto chillhisloyalty.

allc hanged. When, ontheday

rdingto asternhabitsofrespect,he


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baninCourt, sittingbesidehisc lient s

andwasrudelyorderedto removehis

martingunderasenseof insult. t

tobearoused.

engagedneededhis presence

only takehimasfaras C harles-

isedhimto takeabed-ticketfor

tedtodo,having hisownrugs

urg,beforestarting,afellow-pas-

ndto hissurprise,Mr.Gandhiwas

ndgointothevan-c ompartment. A s

andknewthat thecarriagewent

,herefused.Theguardinsisted.The

erefusedagain.Aconstablewas

strangerwasforciblyejected,his

im,and,withthe traingone,hewas

g-roomallnight.

edtheTransvaal,andbeganhis

t thedisadvantageofbeingan

bouttoleavePaardebergwithMr.

,whentheguard,abig Dutchman,

mtothis place,tellingthe ndian

hisfeet. N o, saidMr. Gandhi,

otdoso. Theresultwasabrutalblow in

nto therail,whenanotherblow

.Thenthepassengersinterfered,

sgust. etthepoorbeggaralone, they

eningto doforhim atthene t

andertonthecoachwaschanged,and

saccomplishedwithoutincident.

w , toanyoneac uaintedw ith

erenot sopitiful,tonotehowutterly

asofitall.H eevendrovetothe

onreac hing ohannesburg, where, of

oom forhim. verywhereitwasthe

aterribledisadvantage,ande peri-


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PATR I O T

tenedanddisgustedhim,that,but

ndians,hewouldhaveleftSouth

him, andthetwelvemonths

stinctgain.H elearnedself-

esentrykickedhimoffthe foot-path

ger shouse, andhis uropeanfriends

f theact,herefusedtoretaliate.H e

whichattachedtohisraceandcol-

ispeople,healmostgloriedin them,

thandeducationgavewaybefore

dhiattendedB ibleclasses

tsolicitorinPretoria,andstudiedthe

eople,withakeennessofvisionwhich

avingplentyoftime,heread widely,

oksw ithinthisyear amongthem, B utler s

s w or k s, T h e Si S y st e ms , b y a a i n ph i l-

lofDr. Parker s C ommentaries.

ibleforthef irsttime. When, inhis

ac hedthe SermonontheMount, he

harmofScriptures. Surely , he

tionbetweenH induism,asrepresented

dthisrevelationofChrist bothmust

ughtorconfirmhisconviction,

endDr.O ldfield,andalearned

ay. Healsoc orrespondedonthesubject

ane ponentof soteric Christianity .

sbookentitled ThePerfec tWay had

ewasslowlyfeelinghiswayto some

otleastamongtheformativeinflu-

isittotheW ellingtonC onvention,

drewMurray,theveteranDutch

SpencerWalton,and otherleadersof


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I C A 37

eak ingw ithapprec iationof thise peri-

sedsmile: Thesepeoplelovedme

veinfluencedmetobecomeaC hris-

omevegetariansthemselves " So

ed.


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N GO F N ATA .

r. GandhiwasagaininDurban,

yfor ndia,but,atasocialgathering

wthe NatalMerc ury , anddiscov-

wasabouttointroducea B illtodis-

alsosaw,fromvariouscommentsinthe

theprecursorofotherdisablingB ills.

tothenoticeofhis compatriots,and

tedaction,pointingoutthat,if pro-

eand theeffortopposed,nothing

tee tinc tion. The ndianswere

wnothingaboutit. Mr.Gandhi

onagainsttheB ill,iftheywould,on

es.Theyagreed,andthateveninga

wasthecommencementofthatlong

andinjustice,whichisstill unfinished,

s devotedhislife.

the ndianswassonovel,that

N atal.Thepetition,whichwas

mstoGovernmentre uestingadelay

ationtoMembersofParliamentin

kedanewself-consciousnessinthe

ncommunity,whicheventheGovern-

utconcern. tfailedtodefeatthe

diansthattheywerenotciphers, andit

atanewforcehadbeenborn into

ssed, Sir ohnRobinson, whowas

ngseveralusefuladmissions,while

eticallyreviewedbytheN atalPress.

erhimselfit wasagloriousbegin-

vestof richfruits.W iththesympa-


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I C A 3

an, c oupledw iththeinstinc tofane -

iheldthatit neededbutanawaken-

fthispeoplefrom theservilecondi-

dtohavesunk. Thesystemofin-

ported ndianstoworkinthe sugar

ervitudelittle betterthanslavery.

feltitsdegradingef fects. Saveinsome

werenohighprinciples,nogreatam-

ofmanhood,amongthemwithwhich

chingoppressionofC oloniallaws.

andto liveasslaves. twasthis

m.H esawofwhattheywere

hattheyweredrifting,anddeter-

mighttheelements,bothwithinhis

whichweremakingfordegradation.

ntureinthevalleyofSt. ohn, withthe

den:—

ertakethee,

lwakethee.

thcome andthroughthewhole

wthrillofself-consciousnesshad

ashisendeavournowto fosterand

plift

speopleshould sendawidely

mperialC olonialSecretary.Thiswas

natureswerevery uicklysecured,and

on. TheB illfa iledtoreceivethe

withdrawn. twaswithdrawn,how-

illshortlyafterwardsintroduced,

oalbyadifferentroute. The ndians

sed.

posedtheformationofaper-

atchtheinterestsofthe ndians,and

.H isfriendsrepliedthatthe idea

acticableunlessheconsentedtoremain.

e,ashewouldnotacceptpecuniary


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andifhesettled inSouthAfrica,ho

tinghimselfand maintainingfitly

The ndiansthenofferedtoguar-

seemedtothem,nowthatthey were

essoftheircondition,thatit wasessen-

omeoneto actforthem,whowas

thoughtsof thetwonations,andgive

rowndesires.So theypressedtheir

oftheir arguments,Mr.Gandhi,al-

veclosedhiseyes tothemandre-

onsentedtoremain.So South

hisadoption,andunder hishandthe

essandtheNatal ndian duc ational

r,forhimtoobtainadmissionto

applicationwasstrenuouslyopposed

etyonthespec if ic groundofc olour. t

sotheyargued, thatcolouredbar-

ntheroll. Tothec reditofNatal,

hedatthisobjection,andMr. Gandhi

edtwoyearsofhardwork,practis-

,withalltheforceandenergyof his

n18 hev isited ndiaonc emore, w ith

his wifeandchildren.


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I C A 41

.

R I E N C E .

atal,hewroteandpublisheda

pen etter, whereinhesetforth

abilitiesunderwhichthe ndiancom-

sheenlargedonreaching ndia,

cture,whichhereprintedand circu-

untrywasthesignalfora great

sympathy.Meetingswereheldin

oona,atwhichhewasinvitedtospeak.

ountsofthesemeetingsand thever-

aid. videntlytheimpressionwas

ssionedspeaker.His speechis

chieflytotheintellect.B utwiththis

ofplacingasubjectinthe clearest

tforce.Thetonesof hisvoice,

d,bearthenote ofsincerity,andhis

seizesonpointswhichmatter,and pre-

sisthatcarries conviction have

hingthefacesofhis audience,and

man orator,andcertainlyhavemet

menwhoseelocution> naturaland

tohis, havenevermetwithamore

e. nGujaratihenaturallyspeaks

n nglish,butwithevenlessvaria-

aveshisarms,seldommovesa finger,

onviction,hismodesty,andhislogic

m. ewcanwithstandthecharmof

nownhisbitterestopponentssilenced


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epowerofhis owncourtesy.Thet

withall whodebatewithhimisone

courtesy.Theyrecognisethatthey

vetoldgreatlyin ndia,andthe

catethatall classesofpeoplewere

ofthewrongsunderwhichB ritish

nSouthAfricastirredthemwith intense

eto-day.Unfortunately,whilethe

entercabledto nglandahighly -

Gandhi saddress.Thiswasthe mes-

14. A pamphletpublishedin ndia

nsinN atalarerobbedandassaulted,

dare unabletoobtainredress.The

advoc atesanen uiry intotheseallegations.

s summary,butitwasnotall the

ruthis evertheblackestoflies.

romstatementsofparticular

esmentionedbyMr.Gandhihadbeen

monlotof ndiansinN atal, andthe

whowasamenaceto the mpire.

easit wascirculatedingreatnum-

of indthenoteof the irresponsible

nguageisc lear, forc ible, andc alm, while

borneout. f fac tsabouttheColonies

awithoutawakeningshameandanger,

efactsshouldbechanged.The

burdeningMr. Gandhiwithsucha

stransmittedtoSouthAfrica,

arms. ndignationmeetingswere>

enouncedinveryforcible,if not

waschargedwithbesmirchingthegood

hadentertainedhim.Thesearethe


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I C A 43.

eutteredbya prominentdoctorand

atheringofcitizensin Durban,and

talA dvertiser. Theyformagoode -

aideverywhere:

irmed, hadacc usedtheC olonists

unfairlyw ith ndians, andofhav ing

w indledthem(avoic e: ouc an t

(theDoctor) uiteagreedw iththat.

to ndiaanddraggedtheminthe

sblackandfilthy ashisownskin,

elingwasatwhiteheat.

,whileMr.Gandhiwasarrang-

a,hereceivedacablegramfromN atal

ce,asParliamentwasabouttosit.

18 6 .H ereturnedtoB ombayimme-

ebythefirst availablesteamer,and

embarkedonthe s.s.C ourlandfor

ndleftB ombayonthe28thofthat

iledtwodayslater.Theycarried

reachedDurbantogether.Thenthe

ce uarantined,anddetained

yongthe usualtime-limit,although

ard,and noreasonassignedforthe

edappealsbyagentsandby captains,

hority,buttotheGovernment,was

while,arrangementswerebeing

Demonstrationorganised,withthe

ngthe ndiansfromlanding.The

nthe NatalA dvertiser onthe

esignatureof H arrySparks,chair-

eting, oneofHerMajesty sc ommis-

ted, everymaninDurbantoattenda

argeroomattheV ic toriaCafe, on

t8o c lock , forthepurposeofarranging


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edtothePointand protestagainstthe

About2,000peopleattended,andthe

eldintheDurbanTownHall. ts

theresolutionspassed.

isstronglyofopinionthatthe

helanding ofanymorefree ndians

y,andnowcallsupontheGovernment

rnedto ndiaattheC olony se pense

oard theN aderiandC ourland,and

ndiansorAssociatesbeinglandedin

smeetingagreesandbindshim-

gtheGovernmenttocarryoutthe

allhis countrymayre uireofhim,

fnecessary,attendatthePointany

theseresolutionsmadeit clear

premeobjectof reprobation,and

swere uitepreparedtoadoptforce

.

ngtoastatementmadebythe

e, thenA ttorney-GeneralofN atal, were

ators,butwashamperedbylegaldiffi-

ng,onthe7th anuary,Dr.Mac-

conferencewiththePrimeMinister

mbehadsaidthat theGovernmentwere

peditethematterineverypossible

econtinued: Somegentlemansaid, x -

thatwase ac tlywhatParliamentwasgoing

sof Sink theship ' )H ehearda

ghtthathe wouldgiveamonth spay

aseverymanpresentpreparedtopay

c arryouttheobjec tof themeeting

ent)ThentheGovernmentwould

dthem.


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I C A 45

rriedforward,andfullarrange-

sofmenwhowerewilling touse

ntof c aptains toleadthem. Dur-

citement.Theterrifiedresident

outbreakofmob-violenceatanymoment.

ellhowmuc hof thise tremehostility

to arealdeterminationonthepart

oughtheirproposition,andhowmuch

eansto inducethe ndianstobeat

uitec ertainthateverythingwasdone

boardthetwoships awareofthe

keit cleartoMr.Gandhiespecially

receptionshouldheland.Prob-

wasmainly bluf f, butwhenaspirit

evoked,itisnot,as arule,easily

hisfellow-passengers,however,

The C olonistsmightdowhatthey

arednotrefusethe landing,andthere

whoknewthat.

metheshipshadbeen detained

rsandappealsremainedunanswered.

theships-ownerswrotetoMr. sc ombe:

wbeenatthe outeranchoragefor24

perdiemtous sowetrustyouw ill

yourgivingus fullanswerbynoon

rightto informyouthat,failinga

assurancethatweshallbepaid^ 150,

youare takingstepstosuppressthe

odisembarkthesteamers,prepara-

mencedtosteamintoharbour,relying

erespectfullysubmit,Government

is uic klydrewareply . Mr.

wsat10.45thefollowingmorning: The

tedthatsteamersshallbe readyto

2o clockto-day.TheGovernment

esponsibilityforthemaintenanceof


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adfailed toscareawaythe

y H arrySparks totheMasterof

gthedangeroustempeTofDurban,urg-

n totheirnativeland,andpromising

aytheire penses, hadalsofailedof its

erpretedtheletter tothemall,and

mighte pec t. H ee plainedalsoto

uty demandedthattheyshouldper-

toaccepthisguidance.Alaconic

Thepassengersdeclinetogoback.

N a t a l A dv e rt i se r , o n a n ua r y 1 t h , t h e

heC ourlandand N aderiweredaring

trumpetersgallopedthroughthe

yafter10 o clockonWednesday

essionwasthatthepoor ndianswere

ttemptedtoland, andthatevenif

fraidtodisembark,theywouldbe

hystericsbythehooting,groaning,

bly buttheendwastobethesame

landingatanyprice. Thesame

ountofwhatactuallyhappened.

c lock , themusteronA le andra

andasfarascouldbe ascertained,tne

umbersofnamesarehere givenof

tolead mostofthemarebutnames

otten):—R ailwaymen, 00to1, 000.

ub, andR ow ingC lub, 150. C arpenters

rs,80.Shopassistants,about400.

asterersandbricklayers,200.

00. Sothatitwasestimatedthat

toopposethelandingby force.These

edandwell-captained.Thenative

Thesewereamusedandkeptin

ngthedemonstration,adwarfhaving

der.Thejournalcontinues:

sfeltonboardthe vesselsastowhat


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I C A 47

ouldassume.C aptainMilneofthe

tedthebolderattitudeof thetwo, was

akenin first,althoughshelayfur-

aderi.H edecidedthatsomeeffort

his passengers,ashehadreceived

mentthatanystepshadbeen taken

adtheUnion ac krunupatthefore-

wasplacedabovethe ship shouse-

he redensignwasalsoe hibitedat

stohisofficerswereto preventany

ngaboardifpossible,but,iftheydid

ntheUnion ackandpresentitto the

atno nglishmanwouldseekto

rthis surrender. ortunately,as

tnecessarytohaverecourseto this

enteredthebay,alleyeswereon the

heDemonstrationwastaking.A

gfromthesouthendof themainwharf

enorthpier, couldbeper-

otakemattersverycalmly.The

seemmuchscared,andMr.Gandhi

on decklookedonwithanunper-

mainbodyofthedemonstrators,who

tthe mainwharf,couldnotbeseen

ers.Thesurprisee periencedby

twhentheysawtheC ourlandlaid

annelmooringwasseenbytheiractions.

er andthither,entirelyata loss

heyall lefttoattendithemeetingon

iswasthelastthatthevesselswereto

Demonstration.Meanwhile,Mr.

ngsidetheC ourlandinarowing-boat,

yC aptainB allard,PortC aptain,Mr.

ndMr.Simpkins,Mooring-master.The

C aptainMilne, wantyoutoinform

areas safeundertheN atalGovern-

intheirownnativevillages. The


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dvisableforhimtoallowthemto land.

athe(theCaptain)hadbetterseehim

easimilarcommunicationtothe

pulledashoretoaddressthecrowd.The

werelaidsidebysideneartotheB luf f

ourlandbeingnearesttoland.

failed, itwasMr. sc ombe spolic y

owd.Soheaddressedthemwithhis

e,andpersuadedthemthattheyhaddone

promisedthatanearly sessionof

hthematter.Thenhecommanded

ueen, todisperse.Afterafewother

thecommandwaseffective,andthe

edaway.

ngerslandedin smallbatches

however,reachedMr.Gandhifrom

himnottolandwiththe others,butta

eSuperintendentoftheW aterPolice

sadvicehewaswilling toaccept.

Mr. aughton, of thef irmofMessrs.

ndC ook,Solicitors,cameonboardand

houldgoashore withhim.They

nd,acceptingthesoleresponsibilityof

eshoreat once.Mrs.Gandhiand

arately,andreachedtheirdestination

r.Gandhiwasseenonthe boat,he

oys,andthealarmgiven.Mrs.

dbeentaken tothehouseofMr.

ealthy ndianf riend. twasarranged

ow,butthe crowdwaslargeat

camethreatening.Mr. aughtonsug-

gedone,butthe peoplepreventedthe

etwocomradeswalkedtogether.

t Street,thegatheringwasenormous,

ss. ntheconfusionandhustling,

d.Mr. aughtonwastornaway,and


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I C A 4

gsbeganto fallaroundMr.Gandhi.

burly uropeanfrombehind

manwhowrotetothePress andfol-

ck.Mr.Gandhiheldon,in an

tion,tosomerailingsnearby,andhe

sailant.

thing happened,whichthrows

hedscene.Mrs.Ale ander,thewife

olice,recognisedhim,andopening

e flyingmissils,courageouslywent

nheattemptedto goforward,she

astheinstinctandac tofanoble

dthevictimfromsevereinjury.

oyhadrunfor thepolice,shoutingthat

andhi,andat thecriticalmoment

d.TheSuperintendentofferedan

ntoMr.Gandhi,but thelatterwas

andpreferredtogoontoMr. Rustom-

ithoutfurthertrouble.

owdbecameverylarge and

orethehouseanddemandingMr.

uperintendentA le andersentintosay,

w ishtoseehisf riend shouseburnt

his family,hehadbetterfollowthe

en,andstealthroughthecrowdsdis-

Mr.Gandhi,dressedas an ndian

ucerunderhisturban,and attended

n ndianmerchant,passedsafely

ng.Theywereobligedtojump

enrails,andpassthroughastore, before

tlasttheyfound thepolice-station,

edangerwas over.

feelingwas duetomisunder-

crupulousmenattemptedtomake

ereincensedatwhattheybelievedto


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atedstatementsandfalseaccusationsof

ryatwhatthey thoughtwasan

atal.

edaddress,andrealizedthat it

hanhehadpublishedbeforein

neralfeelingthatthe C olonistshadbeen

atalMerc ury c hangeditsangrytone,

ispart, andonbehalfofhis country-

the isnotentitledtodo, andfrom

cipleheisworkingforis anhonour-

eiswithinhis rights,andsolong

astraight-forwardmanner,hecannot

th.Sofar asweknow,hehasalways

mphlet,wecannothonestlysay,isan

sef romhispointofview . Renter s

eationofMr. Gandhi sstatement. He

rofgrievances,butthesebyno means

athis pamphletdeclaresthatthe

obbedandassaultedandtreatedlike

btainr edress.

eretwootherfalsefactorsin the

asrumouredthatMr. Gandhiwas

sonthetwoships tosuetheGovern-

uarantine, andalsothat hehad

timmigrationagencyin ndiatoland

attherateof onetotwothousandper

ers,supposedtoamounttoeighthundred,

Thiskind ofchargehaspursuedits

etofloodSouthAfricawith ndianim-

sationwasshamelesslyfalse.Mr.Gandhi

etup ac aseagainsttheN atalGovern-

eingincompanywiththesepassen-

dinnumber,twohundredonlybeing

undredwereoldresidents,was due

en recall.


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mours,repeatedfromliptolip,

sentment—afeelingthatwasfostered

y theunscrupulousleadersofthe


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I .

E F I E L D .

whentheWarbegan, thestirande c ite-

ssesofcolonialsociety,touchedeven

esiredtotakesome partinthosegreat

ningaroundthem. twasMr.

ractionin thiscrisismightproveat

mpire,andrefutethecommonsneer

enedtheC olony, the ndianswouldrun

atedcontention,thatif theywereready

oclaimtobe regardedasB ritish

allyreadyandeagertoaccepttherespon-

eaccordinglycounselledhis

viceinwhatevercapacitytheGov-

em.Theproposalwastakenup,and

theGovernment,butrejected,the

herewasnoneedof helpfromthe

edtheH on.R . ameson,Mem-

ouncil,towhomhewaswell-known.

d,Mr. amesonlaughingattheidea.

a id h e , k n ow n o th i ng o f wa r . o u w ou l d

my youwouldhavetobetakencare

ptous. B ut, repliedMr. Gandhi,

ndo Canwenotdoordinaryservants

eHospital Surely thatw illnot

genc e N o, hesaid, itallneeds

ouraged,the ndianleader

aughton,whoreceivedhissugges-

That stheverything, hesaid, do

peopleintheestimationofusall, andit


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I C A 53

ermindMr. ameson. Soanother

overnment,butthis,,too,failed.

fdisaster,andtheune pected

r,weresurelymodifyingtheattitude

asneeded. B ritonandB oerwereloc ked

eGardenC olonyastheprize.

other uic kly . I twasupon

orgeW hitehadbeenthrustbackinto

ember2nd,telegraphiccommunication

ted.O nN ovember3rd,therailway

mber10th, theB oersheldC olensoand

the14th, wastheaffairof the

8th,the enemywerenear stcourt.

eac hedtheMooiR iver. Grathe23rd,

atWillowGrange. romthenonwards,

smassinghistroopsatChieveley , inpre-

o crosstheriverandto relieve

which,callingfrombehindtheline of

rconstanttale ofrestlessattackand

nanDoyle).

ee citementinDurban,and

ebeensevere. ttended,however,

nsof thecommunity. tinvested

w illingto gotothef ront, andit

etterfeelings,whichafterwardsfound

e Sonsof the mpire.

lB uller, buthisproblemwasa

snotalwaysin theascendant.That

rnbankof theTugelaR iverhadto

eda repetitionofAlmatoourmen.

ewasthepassageofthe river,and

ierof hillscrownedwithstonewalls,

s,defendedbythousandsofthebest

pportedbyanadmirableartillery.


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tmeant,too,theneedof hospital

sonascalemuchlargerthanat first

ospitalswerethenformed, and uro-

ntup,whiledoctors,nurses,andbearers

enec essity thatthe ndiansobtained

hatmenpersistso doggedlyinpress-

g peoplewhenhelpmeans,tothose

ng,perhapsdeath. twasanobject-

ontoprovethemselvesworthyofre-

edsuchapatheticfeatureof their

th,whowastheninchargeof the

, andB ishopB aynes, madeanother

rtof the ndians.Atfirsttherewas

eB ishopinterv iewedC olonel ohnstone,

sityofincreasing,or supplementing

e,whilethepressureofneed onthe

meeverydaymoreintense,Mr.

t favourablyentertained,andsanction

an ndianAmbulanc eCorps.

asconceded,itbecameclearto

ataverylargecorpswouldbe desir-

smadetothe employersofinden-

heirmento volunteerforthisservice.

henthecallcame,asit didvery

reeandindentured,whoresponded

Therankandfile receivedtheordin-

y theleadersgavetheirserv ices. The

iedthestoresanduniforms,andDr.

orpsinthecapacityofMedical

eneverknownhimpreach

actice,andhe naturally,inthis


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ctivepart,thatGeneralB ullerdes-

tSuperintendent, andwhenthetechni-

uttohim,he repliedthathemeantit

foronewhohaddonesomuc hinthis

onthedayprecedingthebattle

usand ndiansreac hedthesc eneof the

derinvaluableserviceinthe removal

ainedamidstscenesofunusualen-

veleyatthemomentofneed,and,with-

unger,marchedon toC olenso,and

eficentworkallthroughthenight.

vebeenterrible,forthewounded

nsofdying agonystampedthemselves

ofthosewhosaw. verywhere,over

river,heapsofwoundedanddead

onehundredandfiftywerekilled,and

ywounded,inthisengagement. t

hthe ndianseagerlyresponded,and

opeancomradeswithrivaldevotion.

refersto withpride.W henthe

bertswasbroughtinfatallyshot,in

uns, an ndiancontingentwasdetailedto

e basehospitalatC hieveley.

ianbearersweredisbanded,and

weretoldto e pectanothercall

vensevendaystothiswork .

meontheeveofSpionkop,about

metheyremainedthreeweeksinthe

eyweremore thanonceunderfire.

thetwoengagements,aboutthirty-si

dplacedthemselvesintrainingunder

sothatthey mightproveofgreater

wastheduty ofthebearerstoreceive


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neof fireandtrampwiththemto

irtymilesaway.Mr.Gandhi wasin

es,and whenGeneralWoodgate

signedtohis care,andhehelpedto

field-hospitaltothe base-hespital.

ase crutiatingduringthatmarch,

ey hurriedthroughtheheatand

die beforetheycouldreachcamp.

hourofthisengagement,when

e furtherbankoftheriver,audi

t MajorB aptecametoMr.Gandhi,

newthatthe termsoftheircontractin-

dangersofthefiring line,said: The

dalthough cannoturgeit,yet,if

thepontoon,andworkfromtheother

reciated. Thepontoonwas,of

sedtothegunsof theenemyonthe

leaderputthe uestiontohismen,

Theysaid es, w ithouthesitation, and

h,theycrossedthebridge and

e.N onewasallowedtoclimbthe

dforthat,theworkat itsbasewas

ekeptthestretcher-bearersemployed

rereforseveralhours. Notafewof

totheefficientworkdonebythe

at V aal rantz,theshells

ontofthemasthe bearersremoved

es,water-carriers,nurses,bearers,all

y thinginthisdireneed andal-

obligedtoacceptinsultsorto stand

mselveswithgreatcredit,andearned

soldiers.

diansonthebattle-fieldsofSouth

recognition.Theirdeadhavebeen


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I C A 57

umentcrownsaneminenceover-

raisedpartlybypublicsubscription,to

dianswhodiedinconnectionwiththe

ssueofaburstofenthusiasmforthe

hose astern Sonsof the mpire,

his stretcher-bearersworked,when

testraits.B utthatfinefeelinghas

understandhow,withinsightofthis

ldbemadetosufferimprisonmentand

eto enjoytherightsofB ritishciti-

theybled.

mofanobelisk,andon its

ears theinscription,in nglish,

ritishO fficers,

tiveN. C . O ' s. , andi

nts,N albands

ndianArmy, who

9 -1 02.

earethreetabletsbearingrespectively

rian.


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P AT R I O T

.

TH E TR O UB L E .

edf romabriefv isitto ndia

,perhaps,forthefirst time,thegreat-

hehadputhis hand.H ereached

ary , 1 03. A llwasc hanged. The

approachable.AnAsiaticDepart-

ndthosein chargeofithad,appar-

hthe ndians. He attemptedtoget

on,whowasthenC olonialSecretary,

ianshadfailedbeforehim. O nly

heableto seeithisgentleman,and

eferredtotheAssistant.The Assist-

asnotevencourteous.H esentforthe

ensuredthemforinvitingtheirleaderto

he(theAssistantC olonialSecretary)

r interests,andthathedidnot wish

sc ompany. ThenhesentforMr.

ndlyforcomingto theC olony,and

essthere,andrepeatedhisassertion,

onsultedbythe ndians. Noef fort

standthe positionofaffairs. do

discussthesematterswithyou, he

urn,thesamespirit wasshown.

on. osephC hamberlain, whowasthen

eceivedadeputationof ndians

r. Mr. Gandhi srec allfrom ndia

viewofthisfunction. nPretoria,

edfromasimilardeputation.W henthe

ohannesburgdesiredtoseetheprincipal

oanew loc ationor bazaar, Mr.


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I C A 5

nstruckoffthe listproposedbyhis

owever, the ndiansabsolutelyrefused

hichtheir chiefadviserwasnotin-

wasrespected.Still,theuneasycon-

he ndianmind,thattheGovernment

htremorselesslywithMr.Gandhi,

hisinfluencefromAsiaticpoliticsin

theviewof the ndiancommunity,

domtotake. tappearedtothem

thecommunity,coupledwithaspot-

perience,couldmakeitimpossible

cattle,ortobe treatedwithcontempt.

ossiblethe continuanceofthatsystem

hhadalreadycommenced.The

Gandhi.Theywereall weaker,

heyknewit. twasnaturalthat

earanceuponthescene.B utwhether

ornot,thelineof conductwhichthe

seinthee treme.

rcounsellorimplicitly,asthey

e,and lovedhim.Anyattemptto

ermadethemthemoresuspiciousof

nedtoretainhimin theirmidst.The

enforeseen.H ostilityandfollyon

doggeddeterminationonthe other,

tsurelyintothestate ofcivilwar

tryto-day. ftheGovernmenthad

emenofcourtesyanddiscrimination,

delicateworkofdealingwithO rien-

o understandtheirmodeofthought,

c oolies, thewholeof thistrouble

Asitwas,officialignorance,race-

deverything.

c leartothe ndiansthatMr.

Transvaaland fightthebattle

tobefoughtoutc hief ly inthe aw


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PATR I O T

mustbeadmittedtoprac tiseintheTrans-

. Applicationforadmissionwas

April,1 03,Mr.Gandhiwasenrolled

neyof theSupremeCourt.

asnowdefined.Thepolicywhich

artmenttheyregardedasaliento

nship,andsubversiveofjustgovern-

edstrenuously.Although,undeTthe

anshadsufferedmanyhardships,there

ent.UndertheB ritishflag,thepre-

,withtheobjectofmakingtheAsiatics

withseparately,andlegislatedagainst

e e c ansee, now, thattheA siatic aw

7wasthelogicalissueof thisprinciple

positionofdegradingrestrictions

nal. n1 03, thepolic ywasalready

heinc orporationof the ndian

tofthe TransvaalC olony,andthe

sastruecitizensof the mpire.

osegregate,toseparate,tostigmatise

hts ofcitizens,wastohismind an

ationalinjury,and atravestyof

preparedtoresist thispolicytothe

werenearlyallpre-warresidents

dpermitsfromthe DutchGovern-

paidastatutory feeof^ 3to^25,

edashavinga righttoresidehere by

ePreservationO rdinancepermits.

ancialinterestsin thecountry.N ot

. twastowin justiceandcitizenship

rectedall hisenergy.

ciononeitherside hasbeen

es.The ndianshavesometimes


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I C A 1

ons,imaginingwrongsandslights

ded.O ntheotherhand,the initial

ythe AsiaticDepartmenthadbeen

nc e. romsuchsow ing, noharvestbut

tmentcouldspring,andthe endis

ernmentintheTransvaalhasgiven

otherthansuspiciousandresentful.

setothemhasbeenbroken. His

adewhileHigh C ommissioner,speaking

hichhis officeinvestedhim,was

tionisa protectiontothem.To

ttac hedajQ $ ta . tisonlyasked

vepaiditto theoldGovernmenthave

e doneso,andtheyhavenotto pay

eregister,their positionisestab-

trationis necessary,norisafresh

gistrationgivesthemaright tobe

ndgo.

ndimprisonmentofnumberswho

henHighC ommissioner, andre-

attime,isa strangecommentaryon

isehasbeenshamefullybroken.

aticsunderstoodGeneralSmuts

hentheleaderswerein prison,they

tformedthechiefinducementtothe

ondtimevoluntarily,inaccordance

olonialSecretary sownstate-

tR ic hmond, on ebruary5thof this

The ndians sec ondc ontentionwas, he

everregisteruntilthe lawhadbeen

anindignity anddisgrace. told

t berepealedsolongas therewas

hohad notbeenregistered,and,like

e ndiamcommunityhadwaivedthe


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PATR I O T

every ndianinthec ountryhasregis-

repealed. R ely ingonthisinduc e-

ethata B illwouldbeintroducedat

mentbyGovernment,withtheobject

ywaivedthe c ontention thatrepeal

tion,andtheyregistered,loyallyad-

compromise.Theydidevenmore

uiredofthem,inorder tohelpthe

givingtheirdigitimpressionstoen-

o dothesame.W hen,however,the

e,andtheaimoftheGovernmentwas

cretaryrepudiatedhispartofthecon-

aidin Parliament: tmayhave

. TheA siaticssay: twasabroken

edtheR oyalsanctiontoameasure

ationof criminals.B yitsadminis-

gallydeported,fined,andimpris-

ceinB ritishjustic eisinruins. t

se andgoodruletorestore it.


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I C A 3

asmarkedbyunusualrain.

plydrenched. orseventeendays

ow,andthe rainsoakedthecity.

.Atfirst,andfor sometime,the

eunabletodiagnosethedisease,and

ereneglected.Mr.Gandhi,confi-

c ein ndia, thatthesesc atteredc ases

umonicplague,andthat,underthe

eoldlocation,aconditionwhich,he

ctof themunicipality,asevereout-

ed,reportedhisconvictions,andurged

s,untilthe disasterreachedpropor-

mediateaction.Mr.Madanjit,the

O pinion, was, atthattime, stay ingin

he18thMarch,Mr.Gandhireceiveda

e ndianlocation,fullofalarming

ndianswerebeingbroughtinf romthe

rdead,strickenwiththis terrible

ngthatdayreachedatotal oftwenty-

eprovedfatal.

ematteri ntohisownhands.

whowasactingfor theMedical

totheTownC lerk , hehurriedof f in

ortothesceneofthe trouble,andbegan

Death.W ithMr.Madanjitandfour

okeopenanemptystore,convertedit

edthepatientsfrom thedifferent

n ndian,soonjoinedthem,and

servicethroughoutthatdayandthefol-

rpromptitudeinseparatingthe

annesburgfromanappallingdisaster.


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PATR I O T

eTownC lerkheldaconference

tskirtsofthelocation,andthanked

been done,butaddedthatnofur-

deforthe patientsthatday.H e

Gandhi sc are, authorisinganye pen-

eedful. To-morrowmorning, he

cewillbefound.

rienc eforthedevotedlittleband.

m,the ndiancommunityheldamass

nds.Storeswereprovidedby ndian

illinghandscoulddowaszealously

nightmenweredyinginagony,

nkeptotherhelpers away.Mr

ence,however,andDr.Godfrey sunremit-

handfulofvolunteernurses,who

theR andPlagueC ommitteehas

he18th March,Mr.Gandhi,Dr.

tinterestedthemselves,removedall

ouldf indtoStand3 , C oolie oc ation, ,

kets,etc.,andmadethesufferersas.

1 th, Dr. Mac enzieandthewriter

ndsomeseventeenpatientseither

g, the1 th, thepatientshadbeen

stoavac antstandN o. 3 , andtem-

beenmadebythe ndiansthemselves

sufferers,chieflythroughthe agency

hisf riends.

ntimationsmadeofthe splen-

fficiallyduringthoseterribledays.


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I C A 5

the1 th, theoldC ustom-house,

rovidedbytheMunicipalC ouncilas

the ndianswerelefttocleanseand

Somethirtymenvolunteeredfor

sspeedilymadehabitable,andthe

ursewasthensent downfromthe

al,andDr.Pakeswasplacedincharge.

tientsadmittedonSaturday,onlyfive

t.Subse uentlytheplaguepatients,

ontein, azaretto,andasuspectcamp,

odfrey,wasformedat lipspruit.

ofthesegentlemen,invaluable

. W. R itc h, whohassinc ebecome

yoftheSouthAfricaB ritish ndian

. He was, atthattime, articledtoMr.

rivilegeofhelpinghim.H isdevo-

e patientsatgreatperilto hislife,

e andpersistentservicewhichhe

e- land, wherehehasdevotedhisuni ue

e ndiancause.

boutamonth.Thenumber

,amountedtoone hundredandthir-

ncludingtwenty-fivewhites,fifty-five

ed people, andtwenty-ninenatives. ts

enbythepromptmeasureofthosefirst

ohannesburgwentonitsway,almost

uiteinsensibletotheservicesren-

ndians.

notherstory:

undinitapoorw iseman, andheby

ty yetnomanrememberedthat


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PATR I O T

.

D R E A MS .

sbeassociatedwithMr.

rk inSouthA fric a. O neisthepropa-

03,amonghisownpeople,bymeans

ndianO pinion theother, that

Phoeni , where ndianO pinion is

hemhavee ertedagreatinf luenc e

ty .

edreamsofan ndianc om-

dedtogetherbycommoninterests

ated,moral,worthyofthatancient

eir remainingessentially ndian,

fricawilleventuallybeproudofits

cordthem,asofright,thoseprivileges

ectshouldenjoy.Thisis thedream.

tareality,or dieintheattempt.

tformsthefoundationofall hisefforts

eople,andtodefeateverythingthat

brethrenor holdthemina servile

ticaldreamer.Ashislife-work

this planscouldonlybematerialised

ediumofconstantintercoursewith

SouthAfricanC olonies,andaftermature

pinion waslaunched.

dyatworkin Durban,under

it,aB ombayschoolmaster. n

ents,Mr.Gandhihadcontributeda

This printing-plantwasnowavail-

toncevolunteeredtoactas unpaid


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I C A 7

f greatculture,anundergraduateof

ainedjournalist,andonewhosecharac-

twoyearslater,wasa profoundloss

azar sofferwasaccepted,andonthe

ndhishouldcontributecertainfunds,

e nglishcolumns,thefirstnumber

sary,butitprovedto bevery

eltyto thecommunity,itsvalue

rityofthe ndianswerenotin-

andtimewasneededtoarouseinterest.

volvedconsiderableinitiale pense,

nglish, Tamil, Gujarati, andH indi, with

owever,toMr.Gandhitobe so

tduring thefirsttwelvemonthshe

pensesabout^2, 000fromhisown

ac riticalmoment, ^1, 00of this

omthe Municipalityof ohannes-

edinasuccessionoflaw-suits.

O pinion hasdoneveryf ineserv iceto

Undoubtedly,PassiveR esistance

blewithoutit. thasbeena wonder-

undertheableandculturededitorship

omisesto bestillgreater.B utat

asthedeficitwasso large,itbecame

ithertoclosethe ventureorto

himself.H edecidedonthelatter

esponsibilityeversince. thas,

tta onhim, as ndianO pinion has

reamedanotherdream. Thisishis

erthePlague paidaf lyingv isittomy

tal. sawtheirstore, butwhatat-


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PATR I O T

creof gardengroundattheback

eplanted.Theselookedsobeautiful,

landappearedtobeso great,that

at mycousinswerewastingtheirtime

hworkandsomuchbeautylayaround

yedlabourtocultivatethegarden,

hycouldtheynotlabourthemselves

d be e n re a di n g R u s ki n s U n to t h is a s t

nfluenceofthe bookclungtome.

be realised.

hisbrother,andanotherstore-

gerwerealsopresent,andbetween

ed.

ythatacreof fruittreesand

asthis. Thehandfulofmenalreadyem-

ndianO pinion shouldformthenuc leus

yshouldtakeland inthecountry,

o newbuildingstobeerectedthere,

y , work for ndianO pinion and n-

hegroundthemselves,anddrawonly

ess.Theywould,inthisway,be

ofreethemselvesfromthetempta-

lopsuchasettlementasmightprove

ty,andan incentivetoothers.

mismarvellouslycontagious.H e

rtoMr.C hhaganlalwhoatonce

othe cousinsofthestore,andthey

homesand attempttomaterialisehis

oDurbanto puthisschemebefore

glishfriend, whowasthenmanaging

eas joint-managerwithMr.

anservicetothe ndiancause.Mr.

heissueofit allwas,that,within

oughta pieceofgroundinhis own

leforasettlement.W ithinamonth,


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I C A 9

toMr. ParseeR ustomji,hadbeen

olepresstransferredfromDurbanto

ttheinterruptionofasingle issue.Since

medaroundthat centre.H ouses

een cultivated,aschoolcommenced,

ifeabundantlydemonstrated.The

twohoursdistancefromDurban,on

sycountry,withtreesatintervals,

nsshowingbrightlybetween.Mr.

nd inbriefintervalsofharassingtoil

dscompleterestinreturningtothe

sotherswork.

aredividedintotwoclasses— the

epaidworkers. The sc hemers arethose

estin thescheme.Theyaregranted

uilding,forwhichitis understood

enthey areable.B esidesthis,they

m ndianO pinion, w itharightto

e othersaresimplypaidforwhat

alised,but theyhaveabsolutely

er. What ndianO pinion hasnot

has. Tomeetthesedemands, however, is

ty,and insuchself-sacrifice,bring-

uetohis ideal.


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P AT R I O T

I .

E L L I O N .

etheA siatic awA mendmentO rdin-

ovisionalGovernment,theZ ulure-

rwasmadebytheNational ndian

ssuggestion,toraisea Stretcher-

withthetroops,as hadbeendoneinthe

ywase perienc ed, however, andthe

eunc ertaintyof thepolitic alsituation,

ome,andtookhiswifeandfamilyto

urprise,onreachingDurban,he

earerC orpshadbeenaccepted,and

for himtotakecommand.The

yfree ndians.Mr.Gandhiwasoffered

,withthreeSergeantsandoneC or-

rtedness,hethrewhimselfinto

onththat followed,heandhismen

he engagements.Thesupposedwork

ythewounded but early inthec am-

esseduponthem.

argeofthe ambulance,asked

the scopeoftheirwork.W henthey

ngto doalltheycould,heplaced

n theirhands,andemployedthem

swhohadbeenlashed.

eatreserveofthis e perience.

erdivulge.1imagineitwasnot always

anity.Asamanof peace,hatingthe


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I C A 71

almostintolerableforhimtobe so

pedition.Attimes,hedoubted

ght.N o-onebesideshismen,how-

e work,andsheerpityforthesuf-

en uishit. Notinf re uently , the

n,whowereplacedin theircharge,

sfilthy,theirliveshangingin the

heunstintedpraiseofall. Tothe

ariablyhumane.B utamongthe

hewasthee c eption. Sothese ndians

sday afterday,cleansingwounds,

ash hadmade,carryingthehelp-

y,upand downthehillsfortwenty

stretch,orattendingto thesanitation

, self -sac rif ic ingtoil. Norwasit

ndianstodothiswork . Theywere

dculturedrace,withthe elementsof

gtomakeuptheir characters—men

rldhasreceivedportionsofits finest

sof itsgreatestthought. twasno

omevoluntarynursestomennotyet

gradedstate.B utdistinctionsofthis

dinSouthAfrica. ndiansare

nglyclassedwithaboriginalnatives.

renot allowedtorideinthe trams,and

mentsfortheminthetrains. nour

chedtotheirc ollars, todenotethepeople

d,andinfood— thoughthefoodis

hing,in work,inthecells,toall

are natives.

ultiesduringthis PassiveR esist-

verthe uestionof food. N ativeshave

ie-pap,chiefly,andcrushedmealies

fanimalfat—asparediet, butsuitedto

nrushofPassiveR esisterscame,and


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P AT R I O T

anyofthemculturedmen,throngedthe

hesame diet,withthee ceptionthat,

eeorclarifiedbutterwasmadeto

replacethecrushedmealies.A

edthattheyshouldbe classedasnatives,

classed,theywereforcedtobe con-

ughtheyhadneverbeen accus-

anditcausedbothadditionalhard-

ds wereunabletoobtainanychange.

erswerethosewhosufferedmost.

have beensomerelief.

meoftheotherprisons,the dis-

dwithnativeswasevenmoreintoler-

malfat wasplac edintheregulationsto

ealies,animalfatwassystematically

mentofreligiousprinciplewhich

ns.ThePassiveR esistersweredivided

indus,tomostofwhomall animalfood

on,andtheMohammedans,who

ifithasbeen rituallykilled.To

pliedbytheprisonauthoritieswasan

wascookedwiththecrushedmealies,

hemselveswithrice,whichwasserved

rveratherthantakethefoodwhichhad

ereresponsibleforthisprisonrdiet

egheeforanimalfat, ashadbeendone

thoutsuccess.Onlyafter aninterview,

,andpetitions andnewspaperlet-

ndthen,asthoughin irony,theanimal

tgheebeingsupplied.Andthisis

e immensedistancewhich

romthe af f irinthesc aleofc iv ilization.

,theyareall niggers alike.B utto

nc ebeenmodif iedbyrecentregulations. —L . W. R .


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I C A 73

ulanceC orps,tenderlyministeringto

shedZ ulus—withthesonofan ndian

ad—isworthyofanartist sbrush.

aveits meed.


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I I .

UGG E .

returnto ohannesburg, the

dedthatitwasessentialfora deputation

urposeofpreventing,if possible,the

ventothenewAsiaticmeasure,which

nthadframedandpassed,andMr.

ppointedto thisduty.Tosomee -

ccessful.Thedelegateswerecourte

onsofthe B ritishpublic.Theyinter-

atefortheC oloniesandotherminis-

effortswasthedelayof mperial

houldhaveformedits C onstitu-

asasmuchastheycoulde pect.

putationin ondon, aC ommitteewas

estsandto influenceParliamentin

wasparticularlyfortunateinsecur-

Sec retary, andwhen ordA mpthill

sident,withSirMancherjiB how-

f the x ec utiveCommittee, theposi-

anisationwereassured. thassince

h.

sionto nglanddelayedtheev ilday

stheProvisionalGovernmenthad

utionalGovernment,thesameAct,

siaticcommunity,waspassedby

g,and againsubmittedtothe ing.

ohurriedly,thatits pro-

,andeventheC olonialSecretarywas

eereadingsin onedayconcluded

timetheR oyalsanctionwasgiven.


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I C A 75

emovement, knownasthe Passive

tookprac tic alform. Thiswasin uly ,

, theresidentChinese, tothenumber

nedthe ndians. Mostof theC hinese

s,butastheywereAsiatics,andinvolved

hepressureofitsprovisions.They

atthetime,andunder theleadership

toodf irminthegreatstruggle.

uring allthesemonthsofcease-

illiant nglishc omrade, Mr. H. S. .

ihimself,isan attorneyofthe

nsvaal. orweekstogether,while

on,theburdenofthestruggle has

sborne itwithunwaveringcour-

gelectedhimasAssistantSecretary

ndianAssociation. now ingwellall

inthisstrangebusiness,hehas been

otheharassedPassiveR esisters. n

advocate,intheofficetheiradviser,

ametime hehasdevotedhimself

theB ritish ndians, throughoutSouth

withwonderfulpersistence. ike

. Gandhihasthemagicpowerof

ohimselfthepassionatedevotionof

gresistancehastoldseverelyon

Manyofthemhavebeenpractically

eirsplendidcourage,determination,

ntheadmirationofall.The vege-

e hawkers, haveenteredintothe

as greatself-sacrificeanddevotion

hown.Theyhavecheerfullygonein

vesufferedagainandagain.The

rowna glamourevenoverthegloom

ationoftheirwork.Thisisnot,one

gforthe futureeffectoftheprison-


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PATR I O T

alissueofthe usewhichourrulers

ntroversywithmenwhomGeneral

nscientiousobjectors. Theirrepeated

ausehasobliteratedthecriminaltaint

shment,andtheyhave taken joy-

oods.

oubtthatthepersonalityoftheir

upremeforcein itall.H iscom-

nttoarouseallthedrpowersof self-

rassthepolice-officersintheirefforts

nwhenheisabsentforweeks, his

hmarvellouspower.Whathe would

pivotonwhichthelives ofmanyof

odo saidtheotherdaytoour

ruggedhisshoulders,spreadouthis

swhiteteeth.

hereplied, ifMr. Gandhisay

said die, notafewwould

uched:theybitterlyopposehim.

trymen,heiswhatonecalledhim,

ourtrue arma ogi.

nwhittleddowntotwo disputed

ngof theleastimportancetothe

fectingtheAsiatics.Theonepoint

awAmendmentAct,whichbegan

astheobjectiveof thesemenfrom

rmedaverbalbut anessentialpart

chtheyunderstoodtheGovernmentto

the Statute-bookisthecauseofun-

notremainandbeinoperative. tis

nActhasbeenpassedwhichis sup-


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I C A 77

nadditiontothis, ithasbeenacknow-

orkable.TherepealofthatActis

truggle.

usofeducated ndians.Mr.

shaveneverattemptedto flood

Theywouldnaturallydesirean

w ingtothec harac terof thec ountryandthe

theyrecogniseandacceptthenecessity

tionsonsuchimmigration.They

eyaretobe sorestricted,theyshall

evelopmentalongthelines oftheir

rtheirownnaturalteachers.The

estrictionActprovidesfortheadmission

maybeable topassaneducationtest,

hin thediscretionoftheimmigration

thattheycomeundertheoperation

nmentrefusestoadmit.N othing

teprohibitionof Asiaticsnotalready

ecircumstances,theAsiaticsoffer,of

eentry oftheirculturedmentoa

yoneyear all ndiansdesiringtoenter

ectedtowhatevereducationaltestthe

enforce,andadmittedorrejected

fthedooris closedontheircountry-

mthatitshallnotbec losedontheground

easonableandjust. fthey

mbersofthecommonwealth,they

urethemeansof development.They

heir owndoctors,lawyers,andre-

t,allsectionsofthe community

ortingeducatedmenfromothercoun-

minationinSouthAfricacanasyet

C olonialministers,andleastofall


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P AT R I O T

itsnewAct,togrant tern

ttheirclaim,butit demandsnogreat

recognisetheutterfutilityof this

ichmightbec anc elledatanymoment

al,wouldbeuselesstoaself-respecting

cofanycharacterwouldsubmitto

of- eave, andtheA siatic communityre-

sisofsettlement.Theclaimisfor

notmorethansi , asof right, notof

passtheeducationaltestimposed.So

avebeenrefusedbyGovernment,

oadministerthoseobjectionable

eirworthlessness. udges,magis-

havebeenalikeperple edoverthe

atedmeasures,andtheSupreme

o giveitsverdictagainsttheGovern-

Asiaticsclamourforachange

heseunjustandunfortunateactions,

Thisis notapoliticalagitation.

wouldbringnorelief.GeneralB otha

n,andthe membersoftheGovern-

oubtlesscomparefavourablywiththe

ernment.Moral uestionsfind

seofconscience,andinmanycases,

inthismatteronly,religionandcon-

ownbyconsiderationsofe pedience

rogressiveparty,it hasallied

ssubject.Achangeof Government

dno relief.

lehavebeen,racialprejudice

dofficialincapacityintheAsiatic

annotbechangedatonce time

ouldbe alteredwithoutdelay.

cialsmaybeinother respects,theyare

ndians.Theydonotunderstandthem,


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I C A 7

olies. f therehadbeenastric tadher-

dacourteousrecognitionofreligious

areplacedinchargeofAsiaticaffairs,

eardnothingofthe troublethatisso

ouldgofarto settlethewhole


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P AT R I O T

.

D .

totheAsiaticQ uestionmay

eoppositionisnotall injustice,nor

e-prejudiceorgreed.Thereisa

greatnumbersofthoughtfulC olon-

uldbea whiteman sc ountry , and

Asiaticswouldmeana largeinflu

ustratethatdesire.Thebugbearof

t, waitingmultitudein ndia, eversup-

sttheir gate,andreadytofloodthe

eceaseforamoment.

chieflybythe conditionsof

ethatthesestrangerscan liveonsuch

ntsareso few,thattheyareableto>

doust himfromthemarket,and

hips,theyhavedone so.N oone

pathywiththesefears.B ritish

obear,ofwhichthe lightly-accoutred

ing,owingtoenforcedcircumstances.

zens,speakingawhile sinceat

nnesburgC hamberofCommerc e, put

homely,words:—" H ebelievedMr.

tobeathoroughgentleman, c ultured, con-

yeducated,andafirmbelieverinthe

ut,allthesame,be believedMr.

ut,whetherhewasrightor wrong,the

uestionhadbecomeoneofself-preser-

theGovernmentruinedthe mpireir

wouldbee tremelyregrettable.

rushothersweakerthanthemselves,it

theywouldfall. twassow iththe


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I C A 81

ey inthisc ountryhadsomethingmore

dto thinkoftheirbread-and-butter,

read-and-butter. This, perhaps, e -

emajority.

thewhiteman,whohas

hasspent bloodandtreasuretomain-

agedinlayingthe foundationofa

sno intention,sofarasthesecolonists

afaultybrickintothe building.

outthe ndianswhoareatpresent

inkitwise tomake itimpossiblefor

oreapthe benefitsoftheirtravail.

chinfluencealargeproportionof

pletelyrecognisesthemoderate

epointsoutthatthe whitecolonist

nsarepractic allyatone. Neitherhas

penthegatesof SouthAfricato

onfromthe ast. The astisnot

of loodSouthA fric aw ith ndians the

tw ishaninf lu of theirbrethren. O n

otherpoint. ThoseAsiatics

eshouldbeallowedto remain.A

ofwhiteC olonistsundoubtedlydo

tics,buttheyarenotthe majority.

donotwishto turnoutthosewhohave

ntry,andthe righttobehere we

rsfromcoming. Sofarbothare at

,further,that,sincethe

ht aretoremain,andasimmigra-

cted,itbecomesamatterofjustice

mittheprovisionof meansforthe

sothat theymaybecomeanasset


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P AT R I O T

etushave, heurges, afewof

tobringthehighestideals withthem,

and toministertoourspiritual needs,

eleveloftheaboriginalnatives,but

, worthyc itizensof the mpire. et

kwithusandinsist onpropersanita-

processoflevellingup,sothat ndian

ompeteonsuchune ualterms. Do

tyour ndianfellow-citizensaredogs.

ewuponthemuntil theyacceptitout

velikedogs. etthe ndianhave

llowinghimto ac uireapieceof

decenthouse stimulatehimto

ecountry,bygivinghimsomevoice

reat concernswhichaffectthewel-

asamanandac itizen, andhew illbe-

emoderate,just,andthoughtfulC olonist

ndsuch,wemayhope,will rulethe

eserecognisethejusticeofhis

yeitherformthe minority,orare

ythosewhoclamourthatit isine pe-

siontothe ndians.

reyesaretoomuchc entredonthat

and ontheimmediatedifficulties

oparochial.W eleavetoomuchout

of the mpire,andthosegreat

hhavetheirhomein ndia. Weneed

perienceandoffar-reachinggaze,who

ondourborders,teachushowto

meusfromour selfishness.Nay, more.

buildinjusticeinto itswalls.Such

willbring disaster.Amidstallthe

day,this,atany rate,shouldbe

se altethanation.


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I C A 83

ST AN C E .

stanceasameansofopposing

nphilosophy. noldtime, itwas

Sometimesawholec ommunitywould

stheirPrince. thasbeenso inthe

hentradewasdislocatedandforce

ofPassiveR esistance.

f itmanyyearsagoinhisjournal

ormourning, istoremainmotionlessinthat

e posedtotheweather,tillthe person

edconsentstothe re uestoffered,and

whoeverdiesundersucha process

rittohauntand afflicthisinfle ible

e,PassiveR esistancewasresolved

gly,thenewsflewoverthecountrylike

adyof the ake, andthreedaysafter

e Governmentwereintheleastap-

ree hundredthousandpersons,asit

es,shut uptheirshops,suspended

reboreto lightfires,dressvictuals,

and satdownwithfoldedarmsand

nysheep,onthe plainwhichsur-

aof PassiveR esistance,no

tentforthecomparativereadiness

ptedby the ndiansintheTransvaal.

nsensiblytheirleader.Mr.Gandhi

andevolutionof thisprinciple,so

uiteotherinfluences.


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said, howoneverseofaGujarati

learnedatschool,clungtome.

:—

adrinkofwaterandyougive

snothing

oinggoodagainstevil.

powerfulinfluenceoverme,and

ce.Thencamethe Sermononthe

s u re l y th e B h a g av a d Gi t a ca m e fi r st "

o f co u rs e k n ew t h e B h a ga v ad G i ta

ut hadnotmadeitsteachingin

twastheNewTestamentwhichreally

nessandvalueofPassiveR esistance.

SermonontheMount suc hpassagesas

evilbutwhosoeversmiteththeeonthy

eotheralso, and oveyourenemies

rsecuteyou,thatyemaybesonsof

heaven, wassimplyoverjoyed, and

f irmedwhere leaste pec tedit. The

dtheimpression, andTolstoi s The

hin ou gaveitpermanentform.

toihasprofoundlyinfluenced

ormer,inthesimplicityofhis life,

rances,andthenature ofhisteach-

oundawarm-hearteddiscipleinMr.

veryprobably , theC ount srepresentation

hhashaditsweightw ithhim, andhis

istianChurc heshasnotbeensuf f ic iently

tTolstoi steac hingon^ome ues-

ents,hasnotwonhis assent.R uskin

dsomesharein forminghisopinions,

nofWildO live beinganespecialfavourite.

PassiveResistancemovementin ngland


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I C A 85

asprovedanobjectl esson,notonlyto

ngularforceandinterest.

ewasof feredby ndian

torsinSouthA fricaforthebestessayon

veR esistanc e. wasinvitedtoactas

emostofallin theessaysby ndians

heessayistsshowedwiththeeduca-

and. Dr. C lif ford snamewasasfam-

fromthe seed-thoughtplanted

r. Gandhi smind, hisidealisnotso

y ithasitsactivecomplement—to

donotliketheterm passivere-

itfailstoc onveyall mean. tdesc ribes

ofthesystemofwhichit isonlypart.

my aim,isindoing goodagainstevil.

ebecauseitiswell-known,andeasily

,atpresent,thegreatmajorityofmy

dea.To me,theideaswhich

andthe SermonontheMount

holeoflife.

thismovementamongyourpeople

h e r ep l ie d , s o me y e ar s a go , wh e n b e ga n

epubliclifeofN atal,theadoptionof

easthe bestcoursetopursue,should

enunorganisedconditionofour

attemptseemeduseless.H ere,how-

whentheAsiaticR egistrationActwas

ommunitywassodeeplystirred,and

mondeterminationtoresistit,thatthe

ne.Someactiontheywouldtake it

olony,andaltogetherright,that

ea riotousform,butthatofPassive

ovoteinParliament,nohopeof ob-

uldlistento theircomplaints.The


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PATR I O T

eindifferent,so proposedthispathway

hdiscussion,itwasadopted. n

erewasalargegatheringof ndiansinthe

enthepositionwasthoroughlyfaced,

ofdeepfeeling,and ontheproposal

,theysworeasolemnoathcommitting

esistance.

beenbitterlyattackedbymany

setheyimaginethatitplacesanew

natives.Mr.Gandhihasfre uently

ments,briefly,arethese:—

ycrisisadoptthismethodofmeet-

injustice,ratherthanresorttoforce,

ankful. twouldmeanthatthe gun

eplaceto peacefultactics.Menwhc

oblemswhichareconnectedwiththe

sof thefuture,andthat,doubtless,

sternstruggletomaintainhisascen-

henthemomentofcollisioncomes,

ofmassacre,assegai,andfire,the

PassiveR esistance,itwillbea

lony.

anonlybecarriedtoa success-

bejust. Theacceptanceofsuffering,,

, re uiressuchmoralpowerinthose

nocommunitycouldsuccessfully

njustic eandPassiveR esistanc ehave

pleshaverisensufficientlyhigh.

o giveupsavagewarfareanduse-

settlingadispute,they willbefitto

ein politicalaffairs.Thiswillbethe

onsconnectedwithPassiveR esistance-

fmeetingallsuch combinationsisto

,andto givethem,directlyorin-


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I C A 87

ementofthose uestionswhichcon-

ncenevertendstobecomeactive

necessity,fromthemethodsofviolence

rchists. tisat theoppositepole

f,then,thenativesacceptthedoctrines

ntamongstthe ndiancommunity,

thehorrors ofaracialuprising. t

e necessityofmaintaininganarmy

e. tsfuturewillbe muchbrighter

hthe ndianleaderuseswhen-

isdiscussed. PassiveResistance, he

y well, thankGodforthat—if isthe

ingsthinkthat theyetasee,

er,abrighterdaydawningacrossthe

swordbeturned intotheplough-

thepruning-hook Whyshouldnot

A ndwhocantellbutthatthislong-

aybethebeginningof thate perienc eof

tpresentsoapparentin ndia,

sagethroughthesepagestothe

d.H isreplyinwriting liesbefore

haveanyrighttosendamessage

venevercomeintopersonalcontact,

d consent.These,then,aremy

alis notwithoutitsinterest

agedinraisingmenwhowillgiveagood

nypartofthe world.We haveunder-

ollowingassumptions:— .


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P AT R I O T

alwaysinfinitelysuperiorto

rrierbetween uropeansand

beenthemotivesoftheB ritish

adesireonthepartof

eethatjusticeisdone.

tobreaktheconnection

pleandthepeopleof

edas, orassertourright

n, whetherin ndiaor

nbetweentheBritish

ndiac annotonlybe

calculatedtobeof

eworldreligiously,

dpolitically. nmy

ecomplementofthe

nnectionwiththeTransvaal

stifiableonthestrength ofanyofthese

easlowremedy, but regarditasan

otonlyforourills intheTransvaal,

othertroublesfromwhichour


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I C A 8

.

V I E W S .

ews,andhis placeinthetheolo-

ybeenasubjectofmuchdiscussion

wastoldthat heisaB uddhist. N ot

escribedhimas aC hristianMoham-

narymi tureindeed. O thersimaginethat

ldbe uitepreparedtofinda shrine

e trunkofGunputtyprojectingfrom

ewbelievedhimto beaTheosophist.

nysystemofreligioncanabsolutelyhold

oselyalliedtoC hristianity tobe

oodeeplysaturatedw ithHinduismtobe

ssympathiesaresowide andcatholic,

hehasreachedapointwherethe

ningless.

sewasstill, wearguedoutthe

ndtheseare theresults.

dHinduism, theHindusimofthe

efaith,freefrom idolatry thatthe

asbeencorruptedbymaterialism,and

herplaceinthevan ofthenations

d,pervadingall,has manifested

s,becomingincarnate,forpurposes

tofleadingbackinto therightpath,

y :—

sandwhenirreligionprevails,then

ortheprotec tionof thegood, forthedes-

establishmentofthedharma am


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P AT R I O T

h a s C h r is t ia n it y a ny e s se n ti a l pl a ce i n

tispartof it, hesaid, esusC hristis

B utnottheuni uerevelationthat

d. N otinthesenseyoumean, hesaid

thimonasolitarythrone, bec ause be-

teagainandagain.

nselypracticalthing. tunder-

ntsofre uentlyusedagainstthe

paign,that itissimplya political

sinit,but havingnorelationto

tradictioninterms.Politics,morals,

owith conscience:mustbereligion.

onisprofoundlystirredbythe

, andtheideaofself-renunciationpic-

heB hagavadGitaand The ight

eteassent.Self-mastery,self-denial,

uidanceoftheSpiritof God,are,in

ping-stonestotheultimategoalof

a, thegoal, asheinterpretsit, of ohn

teabsorptionofredeemedManin God.

nyreligiouscreedwouldbelarge

ews, oranyChurc hsystemample

ewandChristian, H indu, Moham-

andC onfucian,allhavetheirplaces

f thesame ather. A reyou, then,

a s ke d . N o , h e s ai d e mp h at i ca l ly , I a m

muchin Theosophythatattracts

eenabletosubscribeto thecreedof

s,indeed ,onenoteofthe

vement. thasboundtogetherall sec-

munity . twouldbeimpossibletodeter-

onhasdonemostfor itsinterests.

dMahomed,andMr.B awazeerarefol-

ParseeRustomjeeandMr. Sorabjiare


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I C A 1

P. V yasandMr. ThambiNaidooare

ufferedimprisonment,andallhave

e,whilecommonsufferinghasdrawn

oa brotherhoodofsympathyinwhich

rgotten.

ustwillillustratethisstatement.

r, Mr. ThambiNaidoo, theTamil

nforthethirdtime, todo hard

Mr.Gandhi suggestedthatweshould

assentedgladly.On our.way

ulvieandthe mamoftheMos ue, to-

entleman. twasac uriousassembly

tthelittleH induwomaninherhome

indu, a ew, andaC hristian. A nd

boy supportingher,andthetears

ers.Shewaswithinafew daysof

ood.Afterwehadbenttogetherin

afewwordsof comfortinUrdu,and

whatwecouldinourown waytogive

he manyglimpseswhichwehave

e, whichmocksatboundariesof

rc olour. twasav isionofMr.

seofthe sacrednessoflife,and

egetarianismiswithhimareligious

oughtoutin childhoodunderhis

utsincethattime,abstinencefromall

matterofstrong convictionwithhim,

y.W hen,intheseTransvaalprisons,

cookingthecrushedmealiesof the

followerspreferredtostarverather

edtolivesimply . Hebelieves

Heteac hesthatagreatdealofsic k -

ofourday,maybe tracedtothis


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PATR I O T

withastronghand,to crucifyit,

wnlife,ThoreauandTolstoi-like,

,arepositivedelightsto him,only

guidingotherlivesinto thesame

houseinwhichheusually liveswhenin

eristheopenstoep—thereisthe rolled-

eeps. twouldbedifficulttoim-

eassaultsof prideorsloth,thanthe

ngthatcanministertotheflesh is

Gandhiremindsoneof Purun

ngwrites:—" H ehadusedhiswealthand

ewbothtobeworth hehadtaken

way hehadseenmenandcities

citieshadstoodupand honoured

esethings go,asamandrops the

Thisisa graphicpictureofour

hathebelievesto behisduty,accepts

nsueswithcalmness,takeshonourifit

ndthen, letsitgoasamandropsthe

, shoulddutybringdishonour. nthe■

agat, hewoulddoeasilywhattheB hagat

wouldbe surprisedtoseehimgo

oneelsecanhear,hiscrutchunder

hishand,anantelopeskinflung

deepcontentonhislips.

e

ofhimself.

stianinanyorthodo sense.

stianityhasitselftoblamefor this.There

seColoniesforan ndiantorec ognise

nderthedisguisein whichC hristianity,

tinteresthastheC hristianChurc hin

thesethousandsf rom ndiaandC hina,

sidentin ourmidst Practically

dtobelievethatthey,too,aresouls


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I C A 3

B ynomeans. Hereandthereindi-

ade,andsomefew ndiansattend

hip,butforthe mostpart,theyhave

hilethefewmen> whohavetriedto

eartof loveintheChurc hofChrist,

wordonbehalfofa sufferingpeople,

mannerof abuse,andhavebeen

tisthis discrepancybetweena

atmentofthe ndianatthedoor,

thinks.

believe,torealisetheinwardness

cemovement andtheapparentindif-

shasbeendeeplyfeltbythese men.

dedispute1, norisitapoliticalmove

struggle. tisasignof theawaken-

seoftheir manhood,thetokenthat

aservileordegradedpart inour

put forwardinsuffering,tobetreated

stianway.Thisisthewonderfulvision

hurchesalikehavefailedtosee.

mythinking,theseekerhasnot

wonderfule perienceofC hristwhich

anfaith,enrichingthewealthiestlife,

e strong, cannotforgetwhatthe

N oteveryonewhosaithuntome, ord,

ofheaven,buthethatdoeththe will

heaven.


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.

assentenced,forthesecondtime

tfortwomonths. H ardlabour

mewasthat,in returningfromN atal,

certificate,whicheveryoneknewhad

hichhehadburnedwiththerest, when

sewererepudiatedbythe Govern-

vehisthumb impressions,asmeansof

essformality— andwhichwouldhave

epresentAct.

duct,throughallthis trouble,

thehumblestofhiscountrymenand

fac t, alltheA siatic leadershavedone

nthehawkerswerearrestedfor

teducatedandwealthiestmeninthe

ame hawkers. The mamofthe

anof theB ritish ndianAssociation^ the

eseAssociation,andotherslikethem,

hbasketsof fruitorvegetables,or

nvitedthe police-officersandmagis-

ctof kinshipwhichwasappreciated

ow,aprivatetelegramfromV olksrust

ihasbeendraf tedontoworkonV olks-

nthe usualprisongarb.

onhim,themagistrateisreported

erymuchregrettoseeMr.Gandhi,an

of theSupremeC ourt, inhispresent

eelotherwise,lookingatthesitua-

ssuf feringforhisc ountry. B ut c an

oint ofview.


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I C A 5

eitperfectlyclearhowhe re-

gtheC ourthesaid:—" nc onnec tion

myregistrationcertificate,andto

rfinger-impressions, thinkthatasan

dof theSupremeCourt, oweane -

ndifferencesbetweentheGovern-

ndianswhom representasSec retaryof

ociation, overtheA siatic A c tNo. 2of

eberation, tookuponmyself therespon-

trymennottosubmitto theprimary

Act,butstill,as law-abidingsubjects

sanctions.R ightlyorwrongly,in

c s, c onsiderthattheA c tin uestion,

dsourconscience,andtheonlyway

theAsiaticscouldshowtheirfeeling

uritspenalties.And,in pursuance

that haveadv isedtheac c used, who

sesubmissiontotheAct,as alsothe

gthat, intheopinionofB ritish ndians,

edby theGovernmenthasnotbeen

eoretheC ourttosufferthepenaltiesthat

otetomeonasc rapofpaper:—

, amtherefore uitec heerful.

ywithabouttwohundredand

dthroughouttheTransvaalgaols,

, asheputitinanoterec ently , to

of ing dward sH otel. C heerful

ngtohisownwords thehappiestmanin

he og—thatmanissuc h,

d, andinjoys

ngoutsidethestress

ger.


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astransferredfromV olksrust

hannesburg.

becomee pert pickets, always

ofthischange,andplantedmenat

eof route.When hereached ohan-

ctclothes,markedalloverwiththe

hedunderguardthroughthe streets,

hisbundlesasanyconvictwould.

of theB ritishruleunderwhic h

fcourse,itis simplyaresultofthe

orsofthesegaolsare gentlemanly

rs,withonee ception,havebeenmost

lassedasaN ative, andaPassive

hilea criminalnativemustsufferthe

helawprovides.Sothebatteries of

avageandconscientious ndianwith-

heardthatMr. Gandhi se perienc es

tremelyshocking.Againthecast-

ult.Asa nativeprisonerofthe

edintoacell withnativeandC hinese

dedthanitiseasyto imagine,accus-

otbenamed.Thisrefined ndian

keephimselfawakeallnightto resist

self,suchashesaw perpetrated

neverbe forgotten

enhim. TheCrownre uiredMr.

ayattheC ourtasawitness

andspoketohim.H elooksthin

edfood,andhisgaole periences,

ealth.B uthissoul iscalmandhis

well, hesaidinhis uic k inc isiveway.

chedtohim,accompaniedtheir

tothe ort. Theywalkedinline


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I C A. 7

ceupthedustyroad,in hopeof

dofthrowinghima wordofcheer.

c ewas steadfastlysettogoto erusa-

ngbutthat.

aw inthatlongmarc h. N ottheimme-

agine)—theplac eofc ruc if i ion. knowi

thanthat.The ort,withitscells

s.Thoselongfilesof prisoners.

vewarders,swaggeringalongwith

ashforthe obdurate,andthe

ywhosesecretsmaynotbetold

emergecriminals,andcriminalsinfin-

yentered.

other erusalemwhic hhefaces

c ityasallinspiredmensee, andto

endurethecross,despisingshame.

edownfromGodoutof H eaven,

nseenbyworldlysouls,amidthes ualor

sc hildrenare. A new erusalem,

everopentoall nations wherero

mttedtoc hallengethe ndian, andno

eC hinese intowhosewallseven

preciousstoneswhich,oneday,will

Y B r o s ., 4 R o m fo r d o a d, M an o r Pa r k,


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o o g l e

Joseph Doke - Gandhi - An Indian Patriot in South Africa

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