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A
Man of Second Sight
THE
tendency not to mince matters is in itself a virtue seldom appreciated by
people who in consequence of long subjection cannot rate boldness in any form at
its proper value. But to awaken boldness in a nation which has lost the sense of honour and self-respect, has always been the first engrossing effort of those
political thinkers who meant to do their duty by the country honestly and
sincerely. The capacity to look facts in the face and support a true grasp of
the situation by a programme at once bold and heroic, has always met with a
belated recognition when fallen nations have begun their first struggle towards
emancipation. The charge of being wild and mischievous dreamers, cursed satanic
perversity and a rash haste to mislead and destroy, has invariably been laid at
the door of people who tried to initiate great national revivals. The outburst
of indignation with which the new school propaganda is being received in some
quarters, is therefore perfectly natural. But it is not these unbelievers whom
we want to reach and influence. The Pharisees and Philistines will ever dog our
footsteps and try their best to dissuade us and to defeat us. They will even try
to bring about the persecution of the true patriots; but this too none need
fear; for suffering only makes men stronger to bring about the redemption of
their country. Timidity at such times is dignified with the name of prudence,
moderation and humanitarianism; but it is mere scum and dross which bubbles to
the surface; meanwhile the true metal is being purified for use below. The
process of purification is always accompanied by such surface impurities, but
they only serve to bring truth and sincerity into bold relief. These politicians
are intoxicated with the ideal of a prosperous serfdom and cannot realise how it
eats into the very vitals of a nation. It is largely because the honour and
emoluments of a selfish few, whom the alien bureaucracy seek to humour for
victimising the rest, are brought into jeopardy that we hear such hysterical
denunciations
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of the straightforward and fearless efforts of the Nationalists. "Let their
conduct be such as not to savour of ingratitude to the benefactors.
When we find so many broad-minded Englishmen fighting our cause in and out of
Parliament, when we see a Viceroy showing every consideration to our feeling
and sentiments, when we see a Secretary of State openly sympathising with our
aspirations, when we see the administration of the country shaping itself to
modern needs, when we see all these and many more signs of the bright future
awaiting us -- we should take heart to abandon petty querulous feelings and set
ourselves earnestly to the task of self-preparation. Before we aspire to govern
our country we must learn to govern our own selves."
Such are the ratiocinations and exhortations of the prophet of the Indian
Mirror. His powers of vision evidently excel the ability of common men and
amount to something more than second sight. He sees Englishmen fighting our
cause in and out of Parliament, where the ordinary eye can only see a number of
insignificant Members of the Parliament asking questions which lead to nothing
and advising an oppressed nation to wait in patience for a far-off millennium.
He sees a Viceroy showing every consideration to our feeling and sentiments
where common beings can only see a policy of insincerity. He sees a Secretary of
State openly sympathising with our aspirations where others
can only see a Radical Minister professing liberalism and practising
hide-bound conservatism. He sees the administration shaping itself to modern
needs where we poor mortals can only see an out-of-date and semi-civilized
system, refusing to be modernized and reformed. This it is to be an occultist
and dabble in white magic! And what does it all come to? That some slight and
ineffectual reforms have been. vaguely promised, whose only result will be to
give a few more individuals the chance of getting name and fame at the expense
of the country. The Mirror is in terror of losing this chance because of
the spread of Nationalism; hence its hysterical appeals and chidings. The
country is not likely to be diverted by these selfish and narrow-minded considerations from the mighty movement into which it is casting itself or held
back from the great goal of national autonomy.
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Passive
Resistance in The Punjab
We are glad to find that Passive Resistance is being boldly carried into effect
in the Punjab. The recent demonstrations at Lahore which followed the Punjabee
conviction have evidently come as a shock upon the white population. So long
as the political ferment created by the new spirit was mainly confined to
Bengal, Anglo-India comforted itself by saying that the Bengalis were an
unwarlike race unlikely to cause real trouble. Their main uneasiness was lest
the agitation should spread to the martial races of whom alone they are afraid
and whom they lose no opportunity of flattering and trying to separate from
the Bengalis. Englishmen respect and fear those only who can strike and, being a
race without imagination or foresight, they are unable to realise that national
character is not immutable or that the Bengalis, who could once fight both
on sea and land, might possibly revert to the ancient type and put behind them
their acquired timidity and love of ease. Now, however, their fears are being
realised. Anglo-Indian journals had already begun to perceive the truth that
there is a real unity in India and that "Lahore has become
a political suburb of Calcutta". The Lahore demonstrations have carried the
conviction home. Accordingly we find the Englishman groping about in an
intellectual fog in search of such novelties as concession and reform, while in
the Punjab itself the panic is taking the form of incipient terrorism. Sirdar
Ajit Singh of the Lahore Patriot's Association has been doing admirable work
among the masses. His most recent success has been to induce the Jat peasantry
to boycott the Government canals as a protest against an iniquitous water-tax.
As a result the Deputy Commissioner in imitation of the Fuller Administration,
published this remarkable order,
--
"Ajit Singh of
Lahore is forbidden to address any public meeting in Multan district. If he
disobeys, he will be arrested." The only result was that Sirdar Ajit Singh
addressed a meeting of 15,000 men in defiance of this ukase and the police stood
helplessly by. We pointed out in our last article on Passive Resistance that
Government by ukase would always be one of the methods the government must instinctively resort
to in order to snuff out our resistance and that
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it was the imperative duty of every patriot to resist such arbitrary orders. We
are glad to see that the Punjab has promptly taken up the challenge thrown down
by the bureaucrat.
Bande
Mataram, April 23, 1907
By The Way
The Englishman and Mr. N. N. Ghose, faithful brothers in arms, were
beside themselves with joy last week. What had happened? Had Nationalism by some
divine miracle been suddenly blotted out of the land? Had the spirit of
Nobokissen appeared to his devotee and admirer and prophesied the eternal
continuance of the British domination in India? Or had Mr. N. N. Ghose been at
last elected to the Legislative Council? No, but happy signs and omens,
prophetic of these desirable events, have appeared in the political heavens.
Hence this war-dance of victory in Hare Street and Sankaritola. The great Twin
Brethren, the black Aswin and the white, the two heavenly physicians of our
political maladies, have laid a joint finger on the national pulse and
discovered that the fever of Nationalism is passing away and the patient
returning to a healthy state of loyalty and contented servitude.
*
The epoch-making pronouncement of the Indian Mirror is the chief source
of joy and comfort to these allied powers. The Mahatma of Mott's Lane has waved
his wonder-working hand and Nationalism is no more. Narendranath has spoken; the
British Empire is saved. It is not surprising that the discoveries made by the Indian
Mirror should have awakened admiring wonder and delight in Hare Street,
for they are certainly such discoveries as are only made once or twice in the
course of the ages. The Mirror has discovered that all is for the best in
the best of
all possible Governments. It has detected libralism in Mr. Morley's Indian
policy and a passionate desire for reform in Anglo- India. And to crown all, it
has found out that the Extremists,
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-- those bold,
bad, dangerous men, -- represent a party which consists only of themselves. This
is a discovery worthy of Newton or Kepler, and it has naturally filled Hare
Street with delighted awe. An ordinary man might ask, of whom else should the
party consist? But such criticism would be profane in the face of so much occult
knowledge.
*
The Englishman sits at the feet of Babu Narendranath Sen like a pupil,
with lifted eyes full of childlike wonder and admiration. Mr. N. N. Ghose
welcomes his neighbour on equal terms as a fellow-loyalist and
fellow-discoverer. For Mr. N. N. Ghose has also been industriously discovering
things, not only in natural history, but in political science. The other day he
discovered the surprising fact that Mr. Tilak and Lala Lajpat Rai do not belong
to the new school of politics -- a discovery which will certainly edify and
astonish both the hearers of Lala Lajpat Rai's speeches and the readers of the Kesari.
He has discovered too that the new school have no "constructive
programme" and are do-nothing politicians. Unhappily, this is a discovery
which Mr. N. N. Ghose is in the habit of making about his opponents and critics
ever since he attacked Shambhunath Mukherji, in language of astonishing
coarseness, so it lacks the charm of novelty.
*
The Amrita Bazar Patrika has also become an object of Mr. N. N.
Ghose's
scientific investigations. He has discovered that this great organ of public
opinion is returning to light, -- in
other words, that it was mad and is becoming sane. We do not precisely know why.
The passages quoted from the Amrita Bazar Patrika merely report views
which it has been insisting on for a long time past and the programme which it
sets before the public is one in which the Amrita Bazar and the new
school are in entire agreement. In the opinion of Mr. Ghose, however, this
programme shows an insufficiently broad view, and he holds
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out an
ominous threat of broadening Srijut Motilal Ghose's intelligence. For the
present, however, "we reserve our suggestions" and the Amrita
Bazar is spared this painful operation. In passing, Mr. Ghose informs a
startled world that in regard to constructive works he has his own ideas. Evidently
he has a constructive programme up his sleeve and is awaiting the dramatic
moment for dazzling the world by its appearance. But for how long will he
condemn us to hold our breath in awed expectation?
*
The Amrita Bazar finds occasion to condemn such effusive receptions as
Babu Surendranath received at Rajashahi, and, in doing so, disclaims the charge
of envy and jealousy which is usually brought against it when it criticises the
moderate leader. Immediately the Indian Nation falls on its neck and
weeps joyfully, "I too have been accused. Embrace me, my
fellow-martyr." We doubt whether our contemporary will quite relish being
put on a level with Mr. N. N. Ghose and the
Indian Nation. Its editor is
a recognised political leader and his paper has from early days been a power in
the land, read and relished in all parts of India and even in England; but Mr.
N. N. Ghose is only Mr. N. N. Ghose
and the circulation of his weekly is -- well, let us say, confined
to the elect.
*
The Hare Street journal has undergone a startling transformation. It is trying
to write sympathetically and pretending to have political ideas. This is rather
hard on the unfortunate people who
are compelled to read its outpourings; for the attempt to make
some sense out of its leaders involves an agonising intellectual strain, which
one naturally resents because it is not in the day's work. If our contemporary
goes on much longer in this strain, we shall all have to go on strike and either
petition the Government to pass prohibitive legislation or else organise passive
resistance. As a sort of anti-popular Red Indian in war-
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paint and on the war-path, brandished tomahawk in hand and yelling wild and
weird war cries, the Englishman is picturesque and amusing. But its new
departure makes neither for instruction nor for entertainment.
*
It followed up its great pronouncement. "For such a Time as this" with
an almost equally fog-bound leader on "Swaraj". This document begins
by entreating us to give up our political aspirations out of respect for the
lamented memory of Professor Huxley. After paralysing our wits with this stroke
of pathos, the Englishman, not to be outdone by the Mirror or the Nation,
announces a political discovery of its own. Our moderate friends, it
appears, have been labouring under a serious delusion. The Liberal Party
cannot give us reform, even if it would, but there is one who can and will, and
it is -- the Government of India! Codlin's the friend, not Snort. We congratulate
our moderate friends on the delightful choice that is open to them. Minto's the
sympathiser, not Morley -- Minto will give you Swaraj, -- the Englishman stands
guarantee for it. But after bidding us kowtow to the Government of India because
it alone can help or harm us, our contemporary with light-hearted inconsistency
declares that our habit of kowtowing to those who can help or harm us, is the
chief reason of our unfitness for Swaraj. It seems, on the other hand, that our
behaviour is very disrespectful towards those who cannot help or harm us,
e.g., Tommies, coolies and the Englishman. The Anglo-Indian rules India
because of his paternal kindness to the coolie; until we too learn to enquire
habitually into the state of the coolie's spleen with our boots and overwhelm
him with vigorous and lurid terms of endearment in season and out of season,
we shall not be fit for self-government. No wonder the Mirror asks us
solemnly to lay our hand on our hearts and declare truthfully whether we are
morally, mentally and physically fit for self-government. If this is the
loyalist test, we answer sorrowfully, "No."
*
Page-283
Political discoverers are not confined to this side of India. The lndu of
Bombay is full of impotent wrath against Mr. Morley for prolonging Lord
Kitchener's term and gives him a severe journalistic whipping for his
misconduct. The lndu is extremely anxious, as a good moderate should
be, for the safety of the British possessions in India; it has discovered that
Lord Kitchener is not a good
general and is capable of nothing more heroic than digging up dead Mahdis, so
it clamours for a better general who will defend the British Empire more
effectively and spend less over it. Poor Mr. Morley! Even the Indu has
found him out at last. We cannot expect our contemporary to realise that only in
a free and prosperous India can defence be both effective and inexpensive. The
present Government has to provide both against aggression from outside and
discontent from within, and this means a double expenditure. But what is the use
of the lndu's shaking its moony fist in Mr. Morley's face and calling the
darling of moderatism bad names? Much better were it done to send a petition
with two lakhs of signatures for Lord Kitchener's recall, and, having done that,
-- sit content.
Bande
Mataram, April 24, 1907
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