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The proposal to dismember the Turkish Empire is rightly resented by Muslims all over the world, and Indian Mahomedans have with great warmth urged the need for maintaining the integrity of the Ottoman Empire. In this they have the sympathy of all Hindus who feel that in the interests of the British Empire, due regard should be paid to the sentiments of the Mahomedans. The HinduMuslim entente was never more thoroughly demonstrated than on the Khilafat day when in almost every important city in the country large bodies of people of all nationalities gathered together to Below we give the third instalment of the views of protest against the proposed dismemberment. representative men on this important question of the future of the Khalifate.--[Ed., I. K.]

Lords Ampthill, Carmichael, etc.

We believe that those parts of Turkey which are inhabited by Turks cannot be put under alien rule without sowing the seeds of grave peril to the Empire. It is this consideration which compels us to sound, before it is too late, a most serious note of warning.

All Muslims of the Empire have an intense sympathy and affection for the Sultan of Turkey. This feeling is no doubt partly religious, because a considerable majority of them consider him the Caliph or Successor of the Prophet, and believe that he in that capacity is the spiritual head of their Faith. But the feeling of sympathy with Turkey is shared by those Mahomedans who do not acknowledge the spiritual authority of the Sultan, and it is because attachment to Turkey is so widespread among all the sects of Mahomedanism that we think it deserves your special attention.

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Our policy should be one that can be defended upon the principles to which we have ourselves appealed during the war, and to which educated Mahomedans must assent. These principles will be violated if countries such as Thrace and Asia Minor which are preponderantly Turkish are put under European domination. This will not only be a grave injustice, but a great political blunder. These countries, placed against their will under alien rule, will become a centre of disturbances as troublesome to the peace of Asia as the Balkans have been to the Peace of Europe. Every riot in the bazaar at Smyrna, every collision at Koniah between the Turkish population and a European gendarmerie, will start a wave of angry unrest in Muslim countries which will eventually break upon a British frontier, either Indian or Egyptian. As an Asiatic Power we want the good will of the Mahomedans; by the destruction of Turkish sovereignty in those countries we should inevitably forfeit it.

We feel a particular concern with regard to India, The loss of Mahomedan confidence in

British justice would be a disaster. The Mahomedans are the most compact and virile community in India; hitherto they have formed a moderate party, favourable, on the whole, to the British connection and to the present form of government. In spite of their sympathy for the Turk, they have remained staunchly loyal to their allegiance throughout the war. Mahomedan soldiers fought for us in Mesopotamia and Palestine. According to the tenets of their Faith, it was their clear duty so to do, but none the less it placed a strain upon their loyalty which it would be ungenerous to ignore.

We believe that not only the soldiers, but the whole Mahomedan community in India, were much relieved and encouraged by your speech of the 5th January, 1918, in which you declared, "We are not fighting to deprive Turkey of its capital or of the rich and renowned lands of Asia Minor and Thrace, which are predominantly Turkish in race." This declaration is now widely known in India, and there is little probability of its being forgotton. If you are unable to persuade the Powers at the Peace Conference to fulfil the pledge then given we fear that the Mahomedans will consider it a breach of faith for which they will hold England responsible. [From an address to Mr. Lloyd George signed among others by Lord Ampthill, Lord Carmichael, Sir Theodore Morrison, Mr. Charles Roberts, and Sir Francis Younghusband.

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Hon. Mr. Ibrahim Haroon Jaffer.

I would ask you to arrange for a deputation to the Viceroy and for a deputation to be sent to England so that British statesmen may realise the intensity of the discontent that prevails in the minds of the loyal Moslem subjects of His Majesty and the impending blow which threatens the Khalifate may be averted. I thank Mr. Gandhi and the Hindu leaders for making a common cause with the Mahomedans.-[Speech as President of the meeting at Poona on the Khilafat day.]

Sir Abbas Ali Baig.

The apprehension of the Moslem nations that the cause of Islam, after the definite pledges of the Allies, is being betrayed, notwithstanding the friendly attitude of Great Britain, is not unfounded if the secret treaties, the provisions of which have leaked out, are to prevail. The Government of India, have no doubt vigorously championed the Moslem cause and their representatives, the Maharaja of Bikaner and Lord Sinha, have very ably pressed the Moslem view before the Peace Conference. But the selfish interests involved in the secret treaties are so weighty that a just solution of the Turkish question likely to satisfy Moslem sentiment in India is by no means easy. All that the Moslems ask for is an honourable adherence both in letter and in spirit to the principle of nationality solemnly accepted by the Allied and Associated Powers so as to free them from the aggressive designs of non-Moslem races, armed with mandates.-(From an interview published in the Times of India.')

Khan Bahadur Kuddus Badsha Saheb.

I think that the proposed dismemberment affects the vital interests and bond of union of the Turkish people and the Muslims all over the world. The Sultan of Turkey is recognised as the spiritual head of all the Muslims and hence no attempt should be made to discountenance this important aspect of religious feelings.

His Britannic Majesty is holding sway over crores of Mussalmans. A friendly Turkish Empire and loyal crores of Mussalmans whose fighting capacity and valour has been universally recognised will be sources of strength and support to the British Empire in times of war and need. Since the "Khalifa" of Islam is the spiritual head of the Turkish Muslims, as well as of the Mussalman subjects of the our Emperor, the value of their united support can never be exaggerated.

Further I desire to urge that as this is a matter in which the cherished interests of 30 crores of Muslims are at stake, the weighty views of Muslims whenever and wherever expressed, should be greatly respected, and all the world knows that the unanimous opinion of the educated Muslims throughout the World have been against any attempt towards the aforesaid dismemberment.-(From an address delivered as president of a public meeting in Madras on Khilafat Day.)

Mr. M. A. Jinnah.

Nor are we fighting

On 5th January, 1918, you, Sir, spoke "not merely the mind of the Government, but of the nation and of the Empire as a whole" that— to deprive Turkey of its capital, or of the rich and renowned lands of Asia Minor and Thrace, which are predominantly Turkish in race We do not challenge the maintenance of the Turkish Empire in the homelands, of the Turkish race with its capital at Constantinople.

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Now that victory has been achieved, to which the Muslim blood and money have contributed not a little, the Muslims have a right to claim that nothing will be done to whittle down or alter the pledge you gave to the world generally and Muslims in particular in the above words. (From a Memorial to Mr. Lloyd George signed by Messrs. M.A. Jinnah, Yakub Hassan, Syed Hassan Imam and G. M. Bhurgri.)

The Hon Syed Riza Ali.

Let me here declare that the Mussalmans of India are strongly bound with ties of religion with the Ottoman Empire. Nor are the ties purely religious! Though the Mussalmans helped the King Emperor during the war, it would be absolutely futile to say that they have no political sympathy with Turkey. Strong political sympathy between Turks and Indians there has always been and will ever be as long as Turks and Indian Mussalmans are not wiped off the face of earth."—(From a speech delivered as Chairman of a public meeting at Allahabad).

Nawab Ali Chaudhuri, C. I. E. The Islamic Law does not contemplate the possibility of the occupation of the holy places by any power which does not enjoy complete independence in the widest sense of the term and is not competent to discharge the sacred obligations of defending and maintaining their sancity according to our religious obser vances, and therefore it is difficult for Muhamma

dans to accept any arrangement which violates this fundamental condition of the "Khilafat." We are powerless to give our consent to a transfer of authority from the recognised Khalifs of our community to any self-appointed Khalifs elsewhere. It is therefore our earnest prayer to those in whose hands, for the time being, Providence has placed the destinies of others, for just dispensation to recognise this cardinal factor in the solution of the problem.[From a speech at Serajganj on April 19, 1919.]

BY

MR. B. P. WADIA.

ABOUR in India may be divided into three classes. (1) Agricultural, including that on plantations; (2) Mining; (3) Factory. I am fairly familiar with the bad conditions from which labour in India in all these industries suffers; but my intimate experience is related to Factory Labour in Madras.

On account of various causes labour troubles have been prevalent in India for many months; the strained economic conditions and the great rise in prices have been the main causes of this unrest. The forces let loose by the War and the Russian Revolution have to a certain extent widened and coloured the political outlook of the Indian labourer. For many weary years his patience has been heavily taxed, and he has been on the look-out for means to improve his lot. Excessive hours, low wages, premature exhaustion due to malnutrition, lack of education for himself and his children, absence of any housing arrangements, and of general sanitary conditions, and the prevalence of apathy on the part of the authorities and the employers, have made the Indian labourer restless. The Indian Factories Act was passed in 1881; during nearly 40 years twice only has that Act been amended. In September, 1890, an Indian Factory Commission was appointed, and again in 1908 the Indian Factory Labour Commission went round. The reports of these Commissions led to the amending of the Factory Act, and the last occasion on which this was done was in 1911.

The law now obtains as it was amended in 1911. This law enables an employer to engage labourers for 12 hours per day on six days in the week- i. e., 72 hours per week. Women are allowed to be employed for 11 hours per day. Young persons-i. e., boys and girls of 9 to 14 years of age-are employed for six hours per day; generally two shifts are used in textile factories. The long day of 12 hours has the ridiculously small break of 30 minutes in the middle of it.

In the matter of wages the law is dumb. In the matter of sanitation and factory inspection it speaks in halting tones, and those who have practical experience know how superficial is the actual inspection, and how ineffective really in bettering the lot of the labourer,

* From a Statement submitted to the Joint Committee on Indian Reforms.

Thus it will be perceived that the record of the administration in improving and bettering the condition of the factory labourer is not a satisfactory one. This point is not only of academic interest, but becomes a matter of urgent practical importance when we see that the Report of the Functions Committee makes the "settlement of labour disputes" and the "welfare of labour, including provident funds, industrial insurance (general, health and accident) and housing" reserved subjects. I do not quite understand why somewhat peculiar arrangement detailed below is resorted to in that Report. If we refer to p. 26 of the Functions Committee Report and look at items 24 and 25, and then turn to p. 46 and look at Serial No. 15, we find that No. 24, "development of Industries, including industrial research and technical education," is a transferred subject, in all provinces, while No. 25, "Indus. trial matters included under the following heads:

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(g) Welfare of labour, including provident funds, industrial insurance (general, health and accident) and housing."

are reserved in all provinces.

This is the first point which I respectfully submit for consideration to the Joint Committee. I would strongly urge that the whole of No. 25 of the Provincial subjects (Functions Report p. 26) should be transferred. Of the seven items included in No. 25, (a) (b) (c) (d) are made "subject to Indian legislation": while I see the point of (a) factories, (c) electricity and (d) boilers being made subject to Indian Legislation for the sake of obtaining uniformity, I fail to see why (b) settlement of labour disputes should be so treated. This is actually to sow the seeds of future discord, and I think it my duty to strike a note of warning. Trade Unionism is bound to grow fast in India; the settlement of labour disputes will be claimed as one of their rights by the Trade Unions on behalf of the labourer, and if it is in the hand of Government, it will bring the Unions into conflict with Government, and will inevitably lead the labourers to regard the Government as on the side of the employers, The Government

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Presently we shall require in India some kind of legislation for the recognition of Trade Unions and other labour organisations. Why should a start not be made now, by transferring the whole of item No. 25 and making the popular half of the provincial diarchical government responsible for the entire subject of the development of industries-which is recommended to be a transferred subject (with the exception of large industries) claimed by the Government of India)-and the management of industrial matters, including the welfare of labour? It is most important item (g)

my considered opinion that Indian ministers will be better fitted to carry out adequate factory reforms than the official executive. Anyway, the past record of the administration does not inspire hope or confidence in their capacity or zeal for bettering the lot of the misused labourer. Therefore, with all the force I can command I respectfully urge that item No. 25 of the provincial subjects should not be reserved but should be transferred.

This naturally brings us to the question of Indian Labour properly and adequately influencing the legislatures. So far back as 1911 Mr. E. S. Montagu, speaking on the Indian Budget in the House of Commons, said :—

"The leaders of Indian opinion must set their faces against the degradation of labour, and they need to be specially vigilant because India's working classes, besides being themselves unorganised, are not directly represented on the Legislative Councils, whose Indian members come almost exclusively from the landlord and capita listic classes."

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It is true that in the past non-official members of Legislative Councils have been mostly landlords or capitalists or lawyers who did not familiarise themselves with the difficulties and complexities of the life and work of the labourer. I am not forgetting such Gopal Krishna Gokhale of the Imperial Council or Dewan Bahadur P. Kesava Pillai of the Provincial, who have more than one occasion championed the cause of the poor. we going to remedy the evils of the past?

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In the Bill before us I find no attempt made to introduce any measure of reform which will give the labourer any voice in safeguarding his own interests; in no way can he better his own

conditions; he will have to rely, as in the past, on the good will of others, be they foreigners or be they his own countrymen; he has been ex`ploited in the past and will continue to be so exploited. But what is worse, the people who exploit him are coming into greater power. Take Madras-the Franchise Committee recommend a Provincial Council of 120, of which 13 are unalA factory manager, & loyed capitalistic seats.

shop-owner, a planter, can not only vote but get elected from his Chamber of Commerce, his Trades Association, his Planters Association. Capitalists will form a powerful element in the Provincial Council; and under the system of franchise recommended by the Southborough Committee, the labouring classes will not be able to influence the election. I am speaking specially with reference to the factory labourer, and Bombay affords a better example; the Mill-Owners' Association returns a member, but no Labourers' Associa tion exists. Commerce and Industry have eight seats-excluding landholders' seats-and not a single seat is made available for the representative of labour. I will grant at once that labour organisations do not exist to any great extent; but is that sufficient reason for allowing the exploitation of Indian labour? Is there no way to bring the Indian labourer into power ? I maintain that the Indian labourer's interests must be safeguarded, and that the process of safeguarding them must be put and into no one hands Own into his else's. I beg to submit that the masses in Indiaand among them are the factory labourers-have a culture of their own. Their power of understanding political and economical issues and a practical manner suggesting proper remedies in is well known to those who have worked for and with them. Their political instincts are clear and strong. The factor to be borne in mind is that the Indian labourer loathes the idea of slavery in any shape or form. The Indian labourers want to have schools for their children, houses for themselves, better wages and shorter hours-all as The efforts on the a matter of right and justice. part of the employers or the Government to seen as fetters of patronise the labourers are slavery, albeit golden fetters instead of iron ones. This new spirit is in evidence among Indian labourers, and it is well to recognise that even the golden fetters are resented and the Indian hand," but labourer feels that he is not only a also that he has a head and a heart, and aspires to come into his own.

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