The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-07
BY A. R. HOWARD.


 tiai address to the All India Moslem League. of Amristsar. syed All Iman exhaustively reviewed the condition of Mohammedans tn India. He remarked that they coupled position which had no parallel in the history of the world. '.Islami. in its worldwide career of conquest and conversion.> met on h. dian soil with a resistance which had little In 1t of the admirable military prowess of the Hindu. What Hindu chivalry was poweriess to protect. the Hindu social system had made inn Ppregnabie. Centuries rolled by. but the conQueror and the conquered in point of nationality, character and creed suffered not from their political association. Characteristics of race and religion and the political social ideals of the two presented irreconcil- abilities. Joranic teaching thrown open wide the door of conversion with equal right and liberty. social and political. to the newcomer. Ills entrance into the brotherhood of Islam is a passport to all that is the highest and best in that community.
 There must be something imperish- able in the cherished beliefs of both communities. Each had so far pas sionately clung to its own. Indeed. there Is much in Hinduism that evokes admiration. It Is indestruotible. It is perfect and complete in itself. Its foundation is laid in the innermost re- cesses of the sentiments and emotions of its people. It is e magnincently or ganized system, each part in faultfess coordination with the rest. Hide bound, 1t has lived down the influence of ages of alien rule. On the other hand. the vitality and robustness of 1slamic principles made it impossible for the conQueror to sbe absorbed in the civilization of the land where he | had come to stay. Under such condi- tions the fusion of the two. Hinduism and Islam. could not be predicted. The verdict. of history is that, in holding India under subjection for centuries the Mohammedan held only her body and not her soul. For political ends. for the happiness of the country as . whole. and the formation of -four ishing commonwealth, the relation of the two communities was anomalous Btatesmanship of the Great Akbar saw this, and aimed at unification by con- ciliation. compromise. and concession In religious, social and practical direc- tions A long and tolerant reiKn of about fifty years proved the failure Of the experiment.
 The Megul Empire.
 NAT. All tnSh ucsCtAbCu thO FaAhou1 events leading up to the decline of the Mogul Empire and the advent of the British power. "that gave the country peace and religious federation, that vanquished the forces of anarchy and disorder, and that introduced a form of government that paralyzed the hand of fanaticism. The coming of the Brit ish into the country was the signal for Hinduism and Islam to retire each within it's own limits. It gave the land a strong and well-ordered form of administration that respects the per- sonal law and religious principles and prejudices of all communities so long as they do not interfere with the gen. eral peace of the country"
 mentioned the high appointments to which Moslems had been appointed within recent years. and observed: ''The presence of representative Mus suimans from all the different parts of India in our gathering today Is an as- surance that the community has real ized its political responsibility. and that it is answerable for its stew ardship to the younger generation, | both within itself and without. We identify ourselves with all that aims at the general advancement Of the true interests of the country. We have a rooted conviction that the true in- terests of the country lie In the main tenance of cordial relations among the Indian communities. and that the true political ideal is the one that aims at peaceful progress of such national character as subserves the protection and advancement of the interests of all denominations. claim for the league responsibility for working out politcial amelioration. not only for the Mussulmans but for all races that i'm Aa1n repudiate the suggestion that the league Ia in opposition to other political organizations of the country. and that 1t has given blank cheque to the Government. We reserve the right of frankly. fearlessly, and boldly criticisinE the measures of Govern ment; we reserve the right to protest however respectfully, against the con- tinuance of certain of it's methods: we 1 reserve the right to refuse to believe in the soundness of a particular pol icy of 1t; and we also reserve the right of standing shouldertto shoulder with our brethren of other denominations when we find our country suffering under a real grievance. But at the same time we declare that fin our re- lations with the Government we will not permit malice to cross our path warn our Judgment and create disaf- lection.
 Professions of Loyalty.
 "In those days of political tribula- tion and unrest. professions of loyalty stand on slippery ground. But this will say. that apart from ethical as- poets of loyalty to the British Grown. | the best sense of the country recognix- es the fact that the progress of India rests on the maintenance of order and internal peace. and that order and in- ternal, peace in view of the conditions obtaining in our country at present and for a very long time to come. an immeasurably long time to come, spell British experimentation occupation not in the thin and diluted form in which Canada. Australia and South Al rlca stand in relation to England. but British occupation in the sense in which our country has enjoyed internal peace during the last fifty years. Be- lieve me that as long as We have not learned to overcome sectarian aGgreS- siveness. to rise above prejudices based on diversity of races. religions, and languages, and to alter the alarming 1 conditions of violent intellectual dis parity among the peoples of India. SD long British occupation is the principal element in the progress of the coun- I Y4a. F.