Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-15

x
I At the time of the great famine the
world owed to the Manchester Guardian
the facts on that subject. |
Nevinsons Recently Mr.. Nevinson.
r,,,;r an experienced journalist
and traveller. who for the
| last ten years has acquired reputation in
South and Central Africa. Georgia. Mace
| donia and the Caucasus. wherever. indeed.
there was a storm center. wherever a
! struggle for freedom and oppression OF
| the weak by the strong was sent by
the Guardian to India to investigate the
| unrest there. and his report is embodied
| in a book entitled THE New Spirit in
India"
| Mr. Nevinsons Investigations have been
| general official and non-official. He has
| visited East Bengal and the Punjab
| where the unrest is most acute. ~"
| was present at the Sarat Congress last
| Christmas and witnessed I'll expression
| If differences among the ~eformers. He
| hos visited cities and ADMINISTRATOR
| VILLAGES. and has attended religious move
-,Ants which have heAn CONNECTED with
these national awakenngs. To deal with
these many topics. according TO Mr.. New
'nson. would no like putting niagara
into pi-t not" Hn thArefn~e. treats
| them under two heads: % The causes.
! f2h the remedies.
| Mr.. Nevinson attributes the cause toI
TIE arrival Of Lord Cur7on as viceroy in
| 1898 Lord Curzon. as the avatar of inn
reria lisr, instnnd OF pertaining tho re-
dictionary activity of officialisn. himself
i 'ed the attack ur"n all Institutions "'''rh
| savorad of freedom and which Indians
| cherished. In his speech in the lords
| Lord Curzon said:
! eve are sometimes told that the nm
! rest in India is duo to the oppressive
| measures of the British Government. and
ma rticularlv to the raactionary policy OF
| recent years. I have never myself heen
| abln 70 aSoa~-ain what tho re"rtin'' was
to which reference made. Nor is
this singular. for there ere none so blind
| as those who will not see.
The author Of india Today" refers
Lord Curzon to Mr.. Nevinson's svnons's
! of nOliticaI events during his vicerovalty
! And he points out that he will then under
stand that the reactionarv policy consist
| ed in ATTACKS unon all those institutions
which are tho converse Of Russian meth
| DDS: in legislation directed against the
nnpu1ar element in municipalities against
! the liberty of the press: against the indie
|! pendence Of universities.
! But besides legislation there was the
sting Of his public speech. his budget
| speech in 1904. in which.
Curzon's in defiance of Queen Vic
| toria's proclamation of
1855 he threatened to eX-
clude qualified Indians from high office;
his singularly inept address in 1905 to
the convocation of the Calcutta Univer
| sity in which he brought charge of
mendacity against the whole Indian peo-
pie. On the top of all this the final blow
was the partition of Bengal. "Other
| deep-lying causes Mr. Nevinson says
] ss,1,nr
the people. but bevond question it was
the partition that directly occasioned the
present outbreaks of distrust and hostil-
/ ity. Despair fell upon them when their
petitions remained unanswered. their pub
| lie meetings had effect, and when the
partition was carried out with despotic
Indifference to their feelings and inter-
ests'
that upon England's immediate action de-
bends the maintenance of her position in
India. us England to act with the new
| spirit party or against it, with the en-
| lightenment and self-government of the
| people. whether England's rule shall
be confronted by mpenetrable resentment
| and her best efforts thwarted by in
| difference or suspicion. Is it to be CO.
| operation or antasonism?
| The congress party asks. first that
| qualified Indians may be admitted to the
| executive councils of the viceroy and
| the provincial governors: second that the
| rendered fairly representative with sub
| stantial administrative and financial con-
/ troll: third, more extensive employment of
/ Indians in the higher branches of the
| public service: fourth. extension of local
! government, the revival of the viii
| lage 'DanchavatS for the management
! OF village affairs: fifth. extension of
primary education. making it free at
| once. and gradually compulsory.
| Lord Morley, it should be added. has
| already adhered to some such program.
and the kings message to Indians on the
/ LIST instant is evidence that home rule.
| partial or absolute. will soon be granted
| India.
| A writer in The Empire Review. Mr..
| c. I. ODonnelly. MP, under the title
! of Unrest in India" says:
"A change has recently begun to pass
over Indian feeling. and it is very easy
| to seek for explanation by the methods
; of guesswork. 1t is so convenient to-
| point to the example of Japan as the
motive power behind Indian unrest and
, to bemoan the spread of education. as if
| tens of thousands of Indians were not
highly educated quarter of a century
ago. 1t would be wise if Englishmen
would drop the superficial talk about
JaDan and generalization and listen to the
| Indians and English who allese that there
are real concrete tangible grievances in
India which need reform The people of
Europe and America have not got the
monopoly of grievances
So long as the present partition of Ben
gal is maintained. says the author there
may be peace, but no
Peace, but loyalty. in Bengal. The
NJ r,4 Bengali nation is the
| most populous and the
most wealthy and educated. and the au-
| thor adds, "the most loyal. But no nation
| forgets or forgives what it regards as a
! national outrage.
| 1t will be recalled by the readers of The
| Star that in an article on the situation
| in India June %, 19G1) the writer cited
| the Hon. Gokhala on the subject of the
| arrest of Mr.. Lajput Raj in connection
with the disturbance at Rawalpind. Mr..
| Gokhala declared that Lajput Raj should
| be released. The proposed reforms lose
their meaning said the Indian reformer
| IF earnest. hish-mnded workers in their
country's cause are TO be deported without
| trial"
Mr.. Cocktails appeal was heard. Mr.
| Lajput Raj was promptly ordered by Lord
, Morley to be brought to trial. when, hav
| ing proved that his arrest was not only
| illegal but unjust. he was released and
| returned to his home in the Punjab.
The spirit of unrest in India appears to
| be increa sing, Notwithstanding the king s
| message. On the 18th instant an anti