been thicker than Mr Kruger’s loins. Where he chastised with whips, they chastised with scorpions.’ 6
Gandhi’s newspaper ran several reports on the opening of an ‘India House’ in London, promoted by a Gujarati radical named Shyamaji Krishnavarma. The chief guest at the opening was the British Marxist, H. M. Hyndman. As
Indian Opinion
reported, Krishnavarma said it‘gave him much pleasure to see his veteran friend Dadabhai Naoroji who, tied down as he was by certain political views, had the catholicity and generosity of mind to give encouragement by his presence that afternoon.’ In a later speech, Krishnavarma remarked ‘that while under the Mahommedan rule they were hit on the back, under the English rule they were hit in the stomach’. 7
Mohandas Gandhi’s own contributions to
Indian Opinion
included a series of sketches of famous men. In the first week of July 1905 the paper printed a tribute to the Russian writer Maxim Gorky, singling out his criticisms of tyranny and his spirit of public service. In the last week of July it saluted Mazzini, the unifier of Italy, who was yet ‘so broad-minded that he could be regarded a citizen of every country’. In August it carried a homage to Abraham Lincoln which stressed his humble origins, his commitment to the poor, his selflessness and his patriotism. September saw the spotlight being turned on Tolstoy, who, born into a rich family, voluntarily embraced poverty, and bravely criticized the Tsar and his policies. The next week a woman was profiled for the first time. This was Florence Nightingale, whose life’s story prompted the moral: ‘No wonder that a country where such women are born is prosperous. That England rules over a wide empire is due not to the country’s military strength, but to the meritorious deeds of such men and women.’ 8
This global-minded Gujarati also wrote of Indians he admired. On the first anniversary of the death of industrialist J. N. Tata, Gandhi observed that Tata ‘never looked to self-interest … nor did he ever take distinctions of caste or race into consideration … [T]he Parsis, the Muslims, the Hindus – all were equal to him.’ An assessment of the Bengali social reformer Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar emphasized his work for the education of girls and the emancipation of widows. Vidyasagar’s career, wrote Gandhi, made clear ‘how Bengal provides an example for the other parts of India to follow.’ 9
With these sketches Gandhi was providing role models for his compatriots. As noteworthy, perhaps, was his appreciation of the African reformer John Dube, who, Gandhi informed his readers, had acquired 300 acres of land quite close to Phoenix, where he ‘imparts education to his brethren, teaching them various trades and crafts and preparing them for the battle of life’. When a progressive planter took Dube to meet a group of visiting British scientists, the African told them that thecontempt with which his people were regarded was unjustified, since ‘they worked hard and without them the whites could not carry on for a moment.’
The praise of Dube revealed a certain broadening of the mind, for Africans – or ‘Kaffirs’, as Gandhi called them, following contemporary usage – had previously been treated with condescension by the Indian leader. Further evidence of this evolution is provided by an essay attacking the Johannesburg Town Council for compelling African cyclists to wear a large badge on their left arm, so that whites could avoid them. ‘May not a Native ask the question,’ wrote Gandhi: ‘has he no feelings?’ 10
Indian Opinion
featured Gandhi the social reformer and community activist, but also Gandhi the seeker and spiritualist, printing a series of talks by him to the Theosophical Society. He had been invited to speak by L. W. Ritch, who was by now not just Gandhi’s friend, but a clerk working in his law office. The lectures were on religion, a subject that had long fascinated Gandhi. Born
Gandhi’s newspaper ran several reports on the opening of an ‘India House’ in London, promoted by a Gujarati radical named Shyamaji Krishnavarma. The chief guest at the opening was the British Marxist, H. M. Hyndman. As
Indian Opinion
reported, Krishnavarma said it‘gave him much pleasure to see his veteran friend Dadabhai Naoroji who, tied down as he was by certain political views, had the catholicity and generosity of mind to give encouragement by his presence that afternoon.’ In a later speech, Krishnavarma remarked ‘that while under the Mahommedan rule they were hit on the back, under the English rule they were hit in the stomach’. 7
Mohandas Gandhi’s own contributions to
Indian Opinion
included a series of sketches of famous men. In the first week of July 1905 the paper printed a tribute to the Russian writer Maxim Gorky, singling out his criticisms of tyranny and his spirit of public service. In the last week of July it saluted Mazzini, the unifier of Italy, who was yet ‘so broad-minded that he could be regarded a citizen of every country’. In August it carried a homage to Abraham Lincoln which stressed his humble origins, his commitment to the poor, his selflessness and his patriotism. September saw the spotlight being turned on Tolstoy, who, born into a rich family, voluntarily embraced poverty, and bravely criticized the Tsar and his policies. The next week a woman was profiled for the first time. This was Florence Nightingale, whose life’s story prompted the moral: ‘No wonder that a country where such women are born is prosperous. That England rules over a wide empire is due not to the country’s military strength, but to the meritorious deeds of such men and women.’ 8
This global-minded Gujarati also wrote of Indians he admired. On the first anniversary of the death of industrialist J. N. Tata, Gandhi observed that Tata ‘never looked to self-interest … nor did he ever take distinctions of caste or race into consideration … [T]he Parsis, the Muslims, the Hindus – all were equal to him.’ An assessment of the Bengali social reformer Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar emphasized his work for the education of girls and the emancipation of widows. Vidyasagar’s career, wrote Gandhi, made clear ‘how Bengal provides an example for the other parts of India to follow.’ 9
With these sketches Gandhi was providing role models for his compatriots. As noteworthy, perhaps, was his appreciation of the African reformer John Dube, who, Gandhi informed his readers, had acquired 300 acres of land quite close to Phoenix, where he ‘imparts education to his brethren, teaching them various trades and crafts and preparing them for the battle of life’. When a progressive planter took Dube to meet a group of visiting British scientists, the African told them that thecontempt with which his people were regarded was unjustified, since ‘they worked hard and without them the whites could not carry on for a moment.’
The praise of Dube revealed a certain broadening of the mind, for Africans – or ‘Kaffirs’, as Gandhi called them, following contemporary usage – had previously been treated with condescension by the Indian leader. Further evidence of this evolution is provided by an essay attacking the Johannesburg Town Council for compelling African cyclists to wear a large badge on their left arm, so that whites could avoid them. ‘May not a Native ask the question,’ wrote Gandhi: ‘has he no feelings?’ 10
Indian Opinion
featured Gandhi the social reformer and community activist, but also Gandhi the seeker and spiritualist, printing a series of talks by him to the Theosophical Society. He had been invited to speak by L. W. Ritch, who was by now not just Gandhi’s friend, but a clerk working in his law office. The lectures were on religion, a subject that had long fascinated Gandhi. Born
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