Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-28
RELIGIOUS RIOTS In INDIA
CALLED BAR TO AUTONOMY
Britain Seeks Only to Establish Law
and Order and Will Yield Home Rule
Then, Observer Declares.
By HENRY CABOT LODGE.


IL IN other parts of the world, and
in addition they have a host
OF other complicated and distressing
questions which are peculiar to India.
It would be impossible to list all the
problems and it would be foolish for any
one not an expert to attempt to depict
all the intricacieS of India, but some
light may be thrown upon the situation
by describing the recent Bombay riots
and by setting forth the broad outlines
of the government of India which the
Simon commission was named to mod
Uy where change seemed advisable.
1t has not been admitted officially,
but the Bombay riots were the most
serious Communist disturbance which
has taken place in India in 20 years.
The number of deaths caused by them
was officially announced as being about
100, but this figure is based entirely on
the number of bodies taken to the
morgues. In Indian riots comparatively
few bodies find their way there, but are
quickly dragged out of sight, hid in
some friendly hut during the day and
bdrned at the CHAT at night.
Riot Death Toll 1900.
Police officers in Bombay who have
much experience in these things said
that about 1900 persons had lost their
lives. Compare this with the more than
600 dead in the Prince of Wales riots
and with the more than 900 in the Cal
cutta disturbances and it will be seen
that this riot has no modern parallel.
Unlike the Prince of Wales riots, these
recent ones were not caused by any
anti-foreign sentiment but by religious
antagonism between Hindus and Ma
hometans. About one Indian out Of every
five is Mahometan and is frequently
of the same racial stock as the Hindu,
having been converted by missionary
activity. The religious differences,
however, have made the Hindus and
Mahometans very different people, who
hometan has fighting instincts and is
usually poor. The Hindu is timorous,
and in the small Indian communities he
Is usually the pawnbroker, to whom the
Mahometan farmer is In debt.
In Bombay, however, there were spe-
cial factors. There are great textile
factories here employing thousands of
laborers-chiefiy Hindus. Just before
the riots these Hindus went on strike
Going out on strike is q simple matter
in India, because the laborer merely
rides few miles into the country and
lives OF his relatives. He takes a job
In the city to give hemSelf some extra
money or merely for variety's sake The
expressions of pity for these poor job
less men" which were heard from Com
munists In London are thus evidently
based on ignorance.
Trouble Based on Rumor.
The managers of the textile factories
then employed Mahometans to come
In and take the Hindus' places. Hindus
picketed the factories and did it quietly.
Soon, however, wild rumor was going
the rounds. flercely and rapidly as
rumors can in countries where few can
read and where every one gets his In
formation by word of mouth. The rumor
said that the Mahometans had kid
mapped 200 Hindu babies, which they
were going to sacrifice by burying them
alive in the corner stone of new Ma
hometan building. Not scrap Of proof
has ever been found to subStantiate
this runor, and there is every, reason |
to believe that it is an entire fabrica-
ton. 7TsH
It started the fighting, though, and
desperate it was. None of the natives
has firearms, but as we have learned
Ia Nicaragua, this does not stop them
from killing each other. ! saw q coll
station. There were broomsticks, pieces
Of iron piping, iron bolts, knives and
quantity of wooden slaves or 'laths.'
The Mahometans are expert with the
stave and some are as def as our
ancestors were with the single stick
centuries ago.
The fighting ragged up and down the
narrow streets to the accompaniment of
blood-curdling screams. Some OF these
screams were caused by pain and some
BY religious frenzy.
Martial Law Futile.
Sir Frederick Sykes, Governor of the
Bombay Presidency, was faced with this
problem when he had been In the city
scarcely two months. The moderation
which he used In dealing with 1t has
caused him to be criticized, but now
that some Of the smoke has cleared
away he Is being commended for hav-
ing kept his head when nearly every
one was urging him to declare martial
law. He could have declared martial
law and by shooting down some Of the
rioters could probably have brought the
thing TO close few days sooner than
1t was actually ended by the efficient
police methods used. But martial law
brings In its train serious reactions.
It might have been worth doing IL It
could have been counted on to solve
anything, to remove the cause Of the
dread social disease. But every one
now admits that 1t could not Appar-
emily nothing can. These sects hate
each other and have never been able
TO do otherwise.
The Bombay riots show plainly one
of the main Indian problems II the
natives are SO anxious to get rid OF the
British-and q vast number Of them
undoubtedly are-one would think they
would at least concentrate on that
How can the rest of the world take
their discomfort with Britain seriously
when from time to time they provide
such spectacles as these riots?
Another significance also has been
read into the riots. AS Is well known,
the British have left the Indians al
most complete freedom as far as their
religious observances are concerned.
and order-and they are pledged to
grant the Indians responsible govern
ment as soon as 1t Is evident that they
can maintain law and order. This does
not seem hard TO bear, especially when
one adds to it the fact that under
British rule the population of India has
increased, the wealth Of the individual
Indian has gone up, his health has i'm
proved and he has been better fed than
ever before.
Indifferent to Benefits.
But the Oriental mind is so different
from ours that they appear TO be In
different TO the material benefits con-
ferred by British rule and TO be whole
heartedly opposed TO law and order.
India was a romantic country before
the British brought justice and kind
ness TO it. With no roads. holding one
of races and languages more different
from each other than are any OF the
European races or tongues, and with a
continent as big as Europe west OF the
vistula, 1t was an ideal place for petty
syrants, cruel generals. deadly epidemics
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