IV. THE CALM AFTER
THE STORM
I had not yet left the police station, when, after two
days, I was taken to see Mr.Escombe. Two constables were
sent to protect me, though no such precaution was then
needed.
On the day of landing, as soon as the yellow flag was
lowered, a representative of The Natal Advertiser
had come to interview me. He had asked me a number of
questions, and in reply I had been able to refute
everyone of the charges that had been levelled against
me. Thanks to Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, I had delivered only
written speeches in India, and I had copies of them all,
as well as of my other writings. I had given the
interviewer all this literature and showed him that in
India I had said nothing which I had not already said in
South Africa in stronger language. I had also shown him
that I had had no hand in bringing the passengers of the Courland
and Naderi to South Africa. Many of them were
old residents, and most of them, far from wanting to stay
in Natal, meant to go to the Transvaal. In those days the
Transvaal offered better prospects than Natal to those
coming in search of wealth, and most Indians, therefore,
preferred to go there. This interview and my refusal to
prosecute the assailants produced such a profound
impression that the Europeans of Durban were ashamed of
their conduct. The press declared me to be innocent and
condemned the mob. Thus the lynching ultimately proved to
be a blessing for me, that is, for the cause. It enhanced
the prestige of the Indian community in South Africa and
made my work easier. In three or four days I went to my
house, and it was not long before I settled down again.
The incident added also to my professional practice. But
if it enhanced the prestige of the community, it also
fanned the flame of prejudice against it. As soon as it
was proved that the Indian could put up a manly fight, he
came to be regarded as a danger. Two bills were
introduced in the Natal Legislative Assembly, one of them
calculated to affect the Indian trader adversely, and the
other to impose a stringent restriction on Indian
immigration. Fortunately the fight for the franchise had
resulted in a decision to the effect that no enactment
might be passed against the Indians as such, that is say,
that the law should make no distinctions of colour or
race. The language of the bills above mentioned made them
applicable to all, but their object undoubtedly was to
impose further restrictions on the Indian residents of
Natal. The bills considerably increased my public work
and made the community more alive then ever to their
sense of duty. They were translated into Indian languages
and fully explained, so as to bring home to the community
their subtle implications. We appealed to the Colonial
Secretary, but he refused to interfere and the bills
became law. Public work now began to absorb most of my
time. Sjt. Mansukhlal Naazar, who, as I have said, was
already in Durban, came to stay with me, and as he gave
his time to public work, he lightened my burden to some
extent. Sheth Adamji Miyakhan had, in my absence,
discharged his duty with great credit. He had increased
the membership and added about ?,000 to the coffers of
the Natal Indian Congress. The awakening caused by the
bills and the demonstration against the passengers I
turned to good account by making an appeal for membership
and funds, which now amounted to ?,000. My desire was
to secure for the Congress a permanent fund, so that it
might procure property of its own and then carry on its
work out of the rent of the property. This was my first
experience of managing a public institution. I placed my
proposal before my co- workers, and they welcomed it. The
property that was purchased was leased out and the rent
was enough to meet the current expenses of the Congress.
The property was vested in a strong body of trustees and
is still there today, but it has become the source of
much internecine quarrelling with the result that the
rent of the property now accumulates in the court. This
sad situation developed after my departure from South
Africa, but my idea of having permanent funds for public
institutions underwent a change long before this
difference arose. And now after considerable experience
with the many public institutions which I have managed,
it has become my firm conviction that it is not good to
run public institutions on permanent funds. A permanent
fund carries in itself the seed of the moral fall of the
institution. A public institution means an institution
conducted with the approval, and from the funds, of the
public. When such an institution ceases to have public
support, it forfeits its right to exist. Institutions
maintained on permanent funds are often found to ignore
public opinion, and are frequently responsible for acts
contrary to it. In our country we experience this at
every step. Some of the so-called religious trusts have
ceased to render any accounts. The trustees have become
the owners and are responsible to none. I have no doubt
that the ideal is for public institutions to live, like
nature, from day to day. The institution that fails to
win public support has no right to exist as such. The
subscriptions that an institution annually receives are a
test of its popularity and the honesty of its management;
and I am of opinion that every institution should submit
to that test. But let no one misunderstand me. My remarks
do not apply to the bodies which cannot, by their very
nature, be conducted without permanent buildings. What I
mean to say is that the current expenditure should be
found from subscriptions voluntarily received from year
to year. These views were confirmed during the days of
the Satyagraha in South Africa. That magnificent campaign
extending over six years was carried on without permanent
funds, though lakhs of rupees were necessary for it. I
can recollect times when I did not know what would happen
the next day if no subscriptions came in. But I shall not
anticipate future events. The reader will find the
opinion expressed above amply borne out in the coming
narrative.
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