The number of cattle poisoned to death or slaughtered for hides are by no means inconsiderable. Government statistics would show that in the course of the last 50 years the quantity of hide exports has risen 20 times, and this unnatural rise cannot but be due to poisoning and slaughter. But it is not the quantity of animals slaughtered but on their quality that much depends, The best breeds of cattle are being daily slaughtered in any number (4) in all the principal towns of India, and the breeds of the best milkers are being gradually extirpated. It is high time that in the interests of the country indiscriminate slaughter should be checked by penal legislation. Some sort of moral influence should also be exercised upon those who sell their cows for slaughter. And institutions like the Bengal Humanitarian Association, Howrah, should be opened for maintenance of dry cows on nominal costs so that it would be unprofitable for the owner to sell his cow for slaughter. Much abuse has been from time to time thrown upon the greedy goala, but what can he do, poverty stricken as he is, if he cannot maintain his dry cows as the costs are prohibitively high. First arrange for him abundant pasture-lands and suitable facilities for keeping his cattle on a cheap rate, and if he sells his cattle still, you can then take him to task, otherwise not. One cannot surely expect a poor ignorant goala-or why goalas alone, even better class bhadralogs-to carry on his business by maintaining his cattle at a dead loss. We must make it profitable for people to maintain cows when they run dry instead of selling them for slaughter. GENERAL REMARKS The most urgent and important reforms that require introduction to satisfactorily solve the (4) Presidential Address at the First All-India cow Conferences held in Calcutta by Sir John G. Woodroffe KT., M. A., B. C. L. areas. milk-problem that stares India in the face to-day can be summarised broadly under two headsone for towns and cities and the other for rural The writer has devoted much thought on the matter and has acquired some experience in the subject. To his mind the following steps appear to be specially necessary for Urban Areas: (i) The goalas who keep cattle and supply milk should be accommodated in the outskirts of the towns and cities, where adequate grazing facilities may be afforded to their cattle. (ii) The Municipalities should be authorised to provide from their funds the cost of acquiring and maintaining pasture-lands and keeping model breeding-studs. (iii) Municipalities and private bodies should be encouraged to open model dairy farms. (iv) Slaughter of prime cows, good breeds of calves and breeding-bulls should be stopped by legislation. The following suggestions seem to be appropriate for Rural tracts :— (i) Adequate provision for pasture-lands and breeding-bulls should be made by District Boards, by Government, by Zemindars and by people in co-operation with one another. (ii) Agricultural farms should be annexed to dairies and suitable arrangements should be made on a co-operative basis for the transport and sale of products. M. K. Gandhi : An Indian Patriot in South Africa. With an introduction by Lord Ampthill. A cheap popular reprint. Price Re. 1. To Subscribers of the Indian Review, As. 12. Gandhi's Speeches and Writings. Second Edition considerably enlarged with (1) an introduction by Mr. C. F. Andrews (2) a lengthy biographical sketch of his life and career and an account of the South African Indian Struggle by Mr. H, S. L. Polak, (3) numerous portraits and illustrations; contains also all his speeches and messages to the Press on the Rowlatt Bills and Satyagraha. Cloth bound, indexed. Price Rs. 3. To Subscribers of the 1.R., Rs. 2-8. G. A. Natesan & Co., Publishers, G. T., Madras. BY MR. M. K. GANDHI. Although the desire for Swadeshi animating a large number of people at the present moment is worthy of all praise, it seems to me that they have not fully realised the difficulty in the way of its observance. Vows are always taken only in respect of matters otherwise difficult of accomplishment. When after a series of efforts we fail in doing certain things, by taking a vow to do them we draw a cordon round ourselves, from which we may never be free and thus we avoid failures. Anything less than such inflexible It is not determination cannot be called a vow. a pledge or vow when we say we shall so far as possible do certain acts. If by saying that we shall, so far as we can only use Swadeshi articles, we can be deemed to have taken the Swadeshi vow, then from the Viceroy down to the labouring man very few people would be found who could not be considered to have taken the pledge, but we want to go outside this circle and aim at a much higher goal. And there is as much difference between the act contemplated by us and the acts above described as there is between a right angle and all other angles. And if we decide to take the Swadeshi vow in this spirit it is clear that is well nigh impossible to take an all-comprehensive vow. After having given deep consideration to the matter for a number of years, it is sufficiently can take the full demonstrated to me that we Swadeshi vow only in respect of our clothing, whether made of cotton, silk or wool. Even in observing this vow we shall have to face many difficulties in the initial stages and that is only proper. By patronising foreign cloth we have We have abandoned an committed a deep sin. occupation which in point of importance is second * Translated from the Guzerathi. only to agriculture, and we are face to face with' a total disruption of a calling to which Kabir was born and which he adorned. One meaning of the Swadeshi vow suggested by me is that in taking it we desire to do penance for our sins, that we desire to resuscitate the almost lost art of handweaving, and that we are determined to save our Hindustan crores of rupees whichgo out of it annually in exchange for the cloth we receive.Such high results cannot be attained without difficulties; there must be obstacles in the way. Things easily obtained are practically of no value, but however difficult of observance that pledge may be, some day or other there is no escape from it if we want our country to rise to its full height. And we shall then accomplish the vow when we shall deem it a religious duty to use only that cloth which is entirely produced in the country and refrain from using any another. Friends tell me that at the present moment we have not enough Swadeshi cloth to supply our wants and that the existing mills are too few for the purpose. This appears to me to be a hasty generalisation. We can hardly expect such good fortune as to have thirty crores of covenanters for Swadeshi. A hardened optimist dare not expect more than a few lakhs and I anticipate no difficulty in providing them with Swadeshi cloth but where there is a question of religion there is no room for thoughts of difficulties. The general climate of India is such that we require very little clothing. It is no exaggeration to say that three-fourths of the middle class population use much unnecessary clothing. Moreover when many men take the vow there would be set up many spinning wheels and handlooms. can produce innumerable weavers. They are merely awaiting encouragement. Mainly two India things are needful, viz., self-denial and honesty. It is self-evident that the covenanter must possess these two qualities, but in order to enable people to observe such a great vow comparatively easily, our merchants also will need to be blessed with these qualities. An honest and self-denying merchant will spin his yarn only from Indian cotton and confine his weaving only to such cotton. He will only use those dyes which are made in India. When a man desires to do a thing he cultivates the necessary ability to remove difficulties in his path. It is not enough that we manage, if necessary with as little clothing as possible, but for a full observance it is further necessary to destroy all - foreign clothing, in our possession. If we are satisfied that we erred in making use of foreign cloth, that we have done an immense injury to India, that we have all but destroyed the race of weavers, cloth stained with such sin is only fit to be destroyed. In this connection it is necessary to understand the 'distinction between Swadeshi and Boycott. Swadeshi is a religious conception. It is the natural duty imposed upon every man. The well-being of people depends upon it and the Swadeshi vow cannot be taken in a punitive or revengeful spirit. The Swadeshi vow is not derived from any extraneous happening, whereas boycott is a purely wordly and political weapon. It is rooted in ill will and a desire for punishment; and I can see nothing but harm in the end for a nation that resorts to boycott. One who wishes to be a Satyagrahi for ever cannot participate in any boycott movement and a perpetual Satyagraha is 'impossible without Swadeshi. This is the meaning I have understood to be given to boycott. It has been suggested that we should boycott British goods till the Rowlatt legislation is withdrawn, and that the boycott should terminate with the removal of that legislation. In such a scheme of boycott it is open to us to take Japanese or other foreign goods even 319 though they may be rotten. If I must use foreign goods, having political relations with England, I would only take English goods and consider such conduct to be proper. In proclaiming a boycott of British goods we expose ourselves to the charge of desiring to punish the English, but we have no quarrel with them; our quarrel is with the Governors. And, according to the law of Satyagraha wo may not harbour any ill-will even against the rulers, and as we may harbour no ill-will, I cannot propriety of resorting to boycott. see the For a complete observance of the restricted Swadeshi vow suggested above, I would advise the following text: "With God as my witness, I solemnly declare that from to-day I shall confine, myself, for my personal requirements, to the use of cloth, manufactured in India from Indian cotton, silk and wool; and I shall altogether abstain from using foreign cloth, and I shall destroy all foreign cloth in my possession." spun in For a proper observance of the pledge it is really necessary to use only handwoven cloth made out of handspun yarn. Imported yarn even though spun out of Indian cotton and woven in India is not Swadeshi cloth. We shall reach perfection only when our cotton is India on indigenous spinning wheels and yarn so spun is woven on similarly made handlooms. But requirements of the foregoing pledge are met if we all only use cloth woven by means of imported machinery from yarn spun from Indian cotton by means of similar machinery. I may add that covenanters to the restricted Swadeshi referred to here will not rest satisfied with Swadeshi clothing only. They will extend the vow to all other things as far as possible. I am told that there are in India English owned mills which do not admit Indian shareholders. If this information be true I would consider cloth manufactured in such mills to be foreign cloth. Moreover, such cloth bears the taint of ill-will. However well-made such cloth may be it should be avoided. Thousands of men believe that by using cloth woven in Indian mills they comply with the The fact is requirements of the Swadeshi vow. that most fine cloth is made out of foreign cotton outside India. Therefore the only satisfacspun tion to be derived from the use of such cloth is that it is woven in India. Even on handlooms for very fine cloth only foreign yarn is used. The use of such cloth does not amount to an observance of Swadeshi. To say so is simple selfdeception. Satyagraha, i e., insistence on truth is necessary even in Swadeshi. When men will say, 'we shall confine ourselves to pure Swadeshi cloth, even though we may have to remain satisfied with a mere loincloth,' and when women will resolutely say, 'we shall observe pure Swadeshi even though we may have to restrict ourselves to clothing just enough to satisfy the sense of modesty,' then shall we be successful in the obserIf a few of the great Swadeshi vow. thousand men and were to take the Swadeshi vow in this spirit others will try to imitate them so far as possible. They will then begin to examine their wardrobes in the light of Swadeshi. Those who are not attached to pleasures and personal adornment, I venture to say, can give a great impetus to Swadeshi. vance women Generally speaking there are very few villages From times immemoin India without weavers. rial we have had village farmers and village as we have village carpenters, shoeweavers, makers, blacksmiths, etc, but our farmers have become poverty stricken and our weavers have patronage only from the poor classes. By supplying them with Indian cotton spun in India we can obtain the cloth we may need. For the time being it may be coarse, but by constant endeavours we can get our weavers to weave out fine yarn and so doing we shall raise our weavers to a would go a step still better status, and if we further we can easily cross the sea of difficulties lying in our path. We can easily teach women and our children to spin and weave cotton, our and what can be purer than cloth woven in our own home? I say it from my experience that acting in this way we shall be saved from many a hardship, we shall be ridding ourselves of many an unnecessary need, and our life will be one song of joy and beauty. I always hear divine voices telling me in my ears that such life was as amatterof fact once in India, but even if such an India be the idle dream of the poet, it does not matter. Is it not necessary to create such an India now? does not our purushartha lie therein? I have been travelling throughout India. I cannot bear the heart rending crv of the poor. The young and old all tell me,' we cannot get cheap cloth, we have not the means where with to purchase dear cloth. Everything is dear, provisions, cloth and all. What are we to do?' and they have a sign of despair. It is my duty to give these men a satisfactory reply. It is the duty of every servant satisof the country, but I am unable to give a factory reply. It should be intolerable for all thinking Indians that our raw materials should be exported to Europe and that we have to pay heavy prices therefore. The first and the last remedy for this is Swadeshi. We are not bound to sell our cotton to anybody and when Hindustan rings with the echoes of Swadeshi, no producer of cotton will sell it for its being manufactured in foreign countries. When Swadeshi pervades the country every one will be set a thinking why cotton should not be refined and spun and woven in the place where it is produced, and when the Swadeshi mantra resounds in every ear millions of men will have in their hands the key to the economic salvation of India. Training for this does not require hundreds of years. When the religious sense is awakened people's thoughts undergo a revolution in a single moment. The Only selfless sacrifice is the sine qua non. spirit of sacrifice pervades the Indian atmosphere at the present moment. If we fail to preach Swadeshi at this supreme moment we shall have to wring our hands in despair. I beseech every Hindu, Mussalman, Sikh, Parsi, Christian and Jew, who believes that he belongs to this country to take the Swadeshi vow and to ask others also to do likewise. It is my humble belief that if we cannot do even this little for our country, we born in it in vain. Those who think deep will see that such Swade hi contains pure economics. I hope that every man and woman will give serious thought to my humble suggestion. Imitation of English economics will spell our ruin. are BY MR. V. B. METTA R. Lowes Dickinson thus concludes his I should look, therefore, for a redress of the balance in Europe not directly to the importation of ideals from the East, but to a reaction prompted by its own sense of its excesses on the side of activity. And on the other hand, I expect the East to follow us, whether it like it or no, into all these excesses, and to go right through, not round, all that we have been through, on its way to a higher phase of civilization. In short, I believe that the renewal of art, of contemplation, of religion, will arise in the West of its own impulse; and that the East will lose what remains of its achievement in these directions and become as materialistic as the West, before it can recover a new and genuine spiritual life. These are interesting words-with a sub-conscious continental bias. It therefore behoves us to expose with the help of History some of the fundamental fallacies which underlie them. Mr. Dickinson seems to take for granted that particular types of civilisations are everlasting, -that after the vilest of excesses in material luxury, a nation will be reborn into a heaven of spiritual ecstasy! It does not occur to him that a civilisation which is full of lower passions, sense enjoyments, and the fever and fury of momentary exaltations is in its last days,-and consequently, it might never rise again! Why is he so confident of the ultimate renaissance of present-day Europe? If it has performed its duly appointed task, will it remain a vital force much longer? The loose sexual life, the breaking up of family life, the enervating art, the refined but pornological and petty literature that prevail and abound in Europe to-day, were also to be found in the Roman Empire when its decline began. It was the same kind of life which obtained in Baghdad after the sack of the city by Hulagu The civilisation of Ancient Greece did its appointed work and expired-and was never born again! The civilisation of Rome, after Khan. achieving its life's goal expired and has not been born again. With the Renaissance begins what ! is called Modern Europe. And it is worth remembering that in the fifteenth century, when the Renaissance began, Italy and Spain were the leaders of Europe in literature, science, and the arts of feeling and living well. Those two countries did their work and then lost their place as living countries, that is, as countries which could do great creative work. What is the Italy of to-day-even after her 'unity' of half a century ago.? She has borrowed institutions from other Western countries, but has not been able to give anything of lasting worth to them in return. And Spain? Is she not a mere phantom, a miserable shadow of her former self-without so far as we can see any hope of doing great things in future? The same can be said of little countries like Portugal and Holland, which were leaders of Europe in some departments of human activity, but are now inconsiderable from nearly all points of view. With all these facts before him, we wonder how Mr. Dickinson manages to feel so optimistic about the future of Europe. Since his essay was published, the Great War has come and gone. It certainly brought out the activity and energy of the European nations for the time being, but are we quite sure that with the end of the War, a new Era has not commenced-an Era in which America will lead and Europe will follow? It is not visible yet. The phantom figures of the Future may not be seen by all, but we can feel which way the winds are now blowing. America has lent money to England and the other European nations. America is trying to have and will have perhaps the largest navy in the world within a decade. She possesses the largest merchant marine already. France, though victorious, is exhausted and is not likely to become the Great Power that |