(Dr. Besant is now in her eighty-fifth year. She has retired from active life, after serving India and the world in varied spheres. She is "waiting for the call." We wish, while yet we may, to add our tribute of grateful praise to this friend of Humanity and fighter of forlorn causes. On many occasions during her stormy life, she has stood forth on behalf of the weak and the disinherited, and roused the ire of those in power. One such arose out of the "Appeal to the Government and to Europeans" which she issued in February 1910, calling attention to the glaring discourtesy shown to an Indian gentleman by an Englishman on a railway journey. She felt that incidents of this nature helped to swell the ranks of the Indian Anarchists. With her characteristic fervour she called upon all Englishmen "to be loyal to the Emperor, to whose race you have the privilege of belonging, and do not shame his name and undermine his Empire." Finally she made a personal appeal to the then Viceroy, Lord Minto, thus: "Proclaim the reign of peace; bid all, officials and non-officials, to forget that their races differ, that their creeds differ, and to remember that their humanity is one. . . . Mutual trust, mutual sympathy, mutual respect–these alone can bind the Rulers and peoples together, and insult breeding outrage and outrage breeding insult will cease, when all know that your high displeasure will fall on each alike."

The "Appeal" which was published in the Central Hindu College Magazine, created a great stir at the time, and it was believed that the local officials of the U.P. Government brought pressure to bear on the Princes and Zemindars to withdraw their support from the College. Even a prosecution of Dr. Besant was rumoured. Mr. G. K. Gokhale intervened on her behalf, and the Government of India assured him that no prosecution had ever been contemplated. We give below three important letters, being part of the correspondence relating to this incident. We are obliged to Mr. C. Jinaraiadasa for copies of the letters which are here published for the first time. –Editor, Triveni.)

2 Auckland Place, Calcutta.

10 March, 1910

Dear Mrs. Besant,

Your letter of the 23rd February reached me here on the 26th. I sent you a wire immediately to acknowledge its receipt, which you must have duly received. On getting your letter, I first consulted Mr. Sinha and Sir Lawrence Jenkins and then as the matter belonged to the Home Department of the Government of India, I saw Sir Harvey Adamson. He first took a line of strong disapproval of your appeal, saying that it was unfair to the great body of Englishmen in the country and that the impression it left on one's mind was that a large proportion of Englishmen were habitually guilty of the kind of conduct complained of. He also said that you should not have accepted the Indian gentleman's version without further inquiry and that as regards the other incident referred to by you, the assault had been committed not by an Englishman but by an Indian. Ultimately, however, after a good deal of discussion, he agreed that it was preposterous for anyone to suggest that your object in making the appeal was anything but the highest and he also agreed that it would cause a perfect storm in the Hindu community throughout the country, if the Government tried to touch either you or the Central Hindu College. As I was about to leave, he told me that there was really no official reference made by Sir John Hewett at all in the matter, that he had only written demi-officially to the Viceroy and that the Viceroy had sent the letter down to the Home Department for minuting on it. I next saw Col. Pinhey, the Viceroy's Private Secretary, who told me that Sir John Hewett's letter had been addressed to him and not to the Viceroy, and that the matter would have to be dealt with by him and not by the Home Department. I left your letter with him and he undertook to lay all that I said before the Viceroy, and if necessary, to give me an opportunity to talk over the matter with His Excellency before it was disposed of. I learnt afterwards that the Government had decided to drop the matter and yesterday morning I got the enclosed letter from Col. Pinhey. Since then I have seen him personally and he said he was going to write to you direct, and probably he has already done so.

I am sure Sir John Hewett would never have dared take any action against you personally, and I believe what he wanted to do was to frighten the Ruling Chiefs and others who support the Central Hindu College. Sir Lawrence Jenkins thinks that Lord Morley should see your letter to me. Have I your permission to send it to him? Probably you have already written to him direct. In that case, of course, it is not necessary to send this own. Sir Lawrence's idea is that Lord Morley should know what manner of man Sir John Hewett is and how he and his officials do not hesitate to treat even one in your position and of your eminence. Sir John Hewett is shortly going to England and it will be an advantage if Lord Morley sees this letter before Sir John meets him.

I need hardly say what you have no doubt noticed,–that the hearts of millions and millions of Indians have been with you in this affair. Your appeal has no doubt caused some unpleasantness, but it has, on the whole, done a great deal of good and the insults and vexation you have had to endure on its account will be repaid a hundred fold by the gratitude of Indians for the way you have spoken out.

With kind regards,

G. K. GOKHALE.

P. S.-1 suggested to the Government that they should allow a question to be put to them in this matter and should give a friendly reply, as that would have a good effect over the public mind. They have however expressed their inability to do this for fear of offending Sir John Hewett.

Government House, Calcutta

8 March, 1910

Dear Mr. Gokhale,

I return herewith Mrs. Besant's letter to you. You will be glad to hear that there has apparently never been any idea of a prosecution under the Press Act and Mrs. Besant has been informed

accordingly.

All that was done was to consider the advisability of asking the Patrons of the College to repudiate any sort of sympathy with the "Appeal" and to try and have it recalled. The "Appeal" has undoubtedly created a great stir and there was a good article on it in the Indian Spectator. The matter has now been dropped, at any rate as far as the Government of India is concerned,–and I hope we shall hear very little more about it.

I hope to see you to-morrow.

Yours sincerely,

A. G. PINHEY.

From Dr. Besant to Bishop C. W. Leadbeater

On Saturday I had over an hour's talk with Lady Minto on Theosophy, and have promised to send her some books. She asked me to stay to lunch, and after lunch the Viceroy took me aside for half an hour's talk. He had not disapproved my para, but when I found that he had quashed everything and had himself written to the Lieut-Governor, and that he wanted the thing ‘closed,’ I volunteered to say no more.

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