Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1920-12-27

III EHBAdHu Ol INlS pO!ICy ny SOHle leg
.slators in the debates Of parliament;
and the subscription to a testimonial
to Genera Dyer got up by a London
newspaper which amounted to- EGO, 900.
To General Dyer's claim that he
fired on a menacing mob In the be-
lief that he was preventing O seditious
outbreak, the Indian replies that the
crowd was peaceable and in
tended not the slightest harm. Tbs
made known through the length and
breadth Of the land and undoubtedly
have done more to embitter the pop
alton of India than anything in re-
cent years.
u vi Living Past Hits Indians. +
The cost of living has hit the aver;
t.ge Indian exceedingly hard, since his
main interest in life centers in his;
food, his business Journeys, his ne
.odicaI pilgrimages to various parts
If the country, and In the observance
-Dode and its furnishings trouble
aim little or not at all. He is now un-
able to buy the food to which he has
been accustomed, simple as his wants
are. Likewise, he can no longer
make his journeys, depending on his.
friends for food and lodging because.
forsooth, his friends cannot afford to,
lIlLCTIdlIl UkNls Ito Liz AOI1kduAC Hi
dian this is a grievous thing.
Even religious. observaces are af-
fected, a most serious matter. The
gravity Of the situation from the In
dams standpoint may be illustrated
by referring to the cost of ordinary
cotton cloth which at one time got
oeyond the mea of the masses. The
lohammedan religion requires that
the dead shall be buried in unused
~ ,..O,,I,S. - 'lNnlc 10 Hnnoa0f the "a rNinQ1
'ules, the observance of which, to the
members Of this religion, of whom
there are nearly W,0O0,0 900 in India.
s. all important. II I
Funeral Custom Changed.
With the price Of cotton cloth be-
ond his reach, the lower class Mo-
lead in ordinary, clothing which had
,een worn. To the living this seems
% be the limit Of %sacrilege, and they
are terrified of the hereafter. If this
appear like a trivial matter to the
western mind, n has only to recall
chat one of the causes of the great
mutiny in India in 1853 was that In
dian soldiers were compelled to bite
off the end Of paper cartridges which
and pigs. The COW is a sacred AMI
NAL in the Hindu religion and may
not be eaten, while the pig is ana
.hema to the Mohammedan. 9
The high cost of living, and all 9TH
er troubles which may have fallen
!. on the Indian, are attributed by him
to the government. This is due to
the .p~aternal system which the gov
eminent has for generations exercised
in India. The government has come
to be the all-powerful thing from
which come all things, both good and
bad. Literally speaking, If there has
been q favorable monsoon and the
crops have been good, the government
has always received the credit for 1t
but that Delhi makes the weather.
Since the reverse is also true, the
government is now condemned for
poor crops or high prices. Thus the
government is being censured for all
present conditions throughout the
country.
The present "Rowlatt' regulations,
which are: causing so many heart
burn.ngs, were passed after the war
to take the place OF those under
which the country has been governed
during the conflict. They give the
government powers almost as wide as
those which would obtain under mar
tial law. 1t had been planned to dis
continue such measures six months
after hostilities ceased, but when the
time arrived the government felt that
the moment was not ripe for the
change. Accordingly another measure
Of similar purport was passed and
still remains, in effect. This is resent
ed bitterly by the population.
So far as. the political agitation is
concerned, those who know India well
state that much depends, on the work
Ing of the new Montagu bill which
vS1,nos<hn ~nk;r,oc roovo co - iN the of.
fairs Of government and which be-
comes effective next year. 1t is said
to be acceptable to a large portion of
the educated, thinking people of In
dia, although 1t has some strenuous
opponents among the extremists, who
claim that 1t does not go far enough.
| Should the measure fail to work out
as has been anticipated by the gov
eminent the consequences, may be Sc
rious, but 1t is. said to be recognized
by moderate opinion as a true step in
the, direction OF self-governlnent for