Volume Thirty-Three
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1. STATEMENT TO THE PRESS It is matter of great grief and disappointment to me not to be able to complete the whole of the Bihar tour as was previously arranged. I see that the continuous travelling for the past 12 months has put a severe strain upon my constitution. I must therefore take the tour in easy stages. The Reception Committee has kindly accommo- dated me. I hope that the committee and the people in the parts which are being omitted will forgive me. I shall endeavour early next year to finish the balance of the tour. The Searchlight, 25-9-1925 2. SPEECH AT PUBLIC MEETING, BIKRAM1 September 25,1925 Mahatmaji . first apologized for not being able to go to them the previous day as arranged. Then he told them that he did not know what he was to say to them as the thing which he wanted to say they must have heard already. Their presence in such large numbers was a sufficient proof of it. The belief was growing in him every day that they had nothing except the charkha which would appease the hunger of crores of Indian villagers. They knew that for four months in the year they had no work and that time could be employed best in plying the charkha. The poorest of them had to spend on cloth at least five or ten rupees in a year. The small sum amounted to crores which could be saved and brought in the villages only by the charkha. He did not know why people did not understand such a simple thing. If they did not do such a simple work even, it was impossible to establish swaraj, or Ramarajya or whatever they might call it. Those who did not spin formerly, he hoped, would begin to spin now. Then he turned towards the organizers of the meeting and said he was grieved to see the children who sang the opening song were not clad in khaddar. He hoped that they would not repeat the mistake. He told the Hindus that Hinduism recognized nothing like untouchability. If anybody thought that touching another man was a sin, he was himself committing a sin. As to Hindu-Muslim unity he did not know what was to be said. He had lost all influence over both communities. But he did not forget that unless both communities joined hands, swaraj was a dream, never to be realized. In the end with an appeal for Deshbandhu Das Memorial Fund he concluded. The Searchlight, 27-9-1925 1 Among those who accompanied Gandhiji during his visit to Bikram and later, in the afternoon, to the meeting, were Rajendra Prasad, Jamnalal Bajaj, Satis Chandra Das Gupta, and Jagat Narayan Lal. VOL. 33 : 25 SEPTEMBER, 1925 - 10 FEBRUARY, 1926 1 3. LETTER TO CHHAGANLAL GANDHI [About September 25,1925]1 CHI. CHHAGANLAL, I have your letter. The coconut for Nimu should be sent to Amreli for religious reasons. It seems better if it is not sent to the Ash- ram. This is just my feeling. If the same feeling persists, it can be made use of in future. Ramdas is independent. He has set up a house in Amreli. He finds peace there. Therefore, I would feel happy if the coconut is sent there. I would like that the marriage, whenever it is to take place, should take place at Dr. Mehta’s bungalow. However, I will abide by the wishes of Nimu’s grandfather. I feel that its performance at Dr. Mehta’s bungalow will add to the solemnity of the occasion. It is good that Nimu has started menstruating. We will be happy to get her married the moment she reaches the age when she can bear the burden of children. If her grandfather is indifferent, I would like to influence Nimu from today itself to postpone her marriage. We seem to believe that Radha, Moti and others have reached the age of marriage. However if their minds are pure, age is of no consequence. Take the case of Miss Schlesin. I find such women here too. Only we believe that the girls should be married off the moment their bodies are filled out. But the experience of the whole world shows that it is not true. Sixteen is the minimum age. Average age should be 20 years. At that age, one is mentally mature. I wish I am able to talk to Nimu as freely as I am able to talk with Ramdas today. Now I would not write anything more. I am happy that we all think of Nimu’s good. If we find that she is getting impatient, we will solemnize her marriage soon as we did in Rami’s case. I decided to do that after ascertaining Rami’s desire myself. I hope you know my programme. Blessings from BAPU From the Gujarati original : S.N. 32852 1 Ramdas and Nimu got married on January 27, 1928. The letter, however, appears to have been written about the same time as the one to the addressee dated ‘before September 23, 1925, Vide?Letter to Chhaganlal Gandhi”, before 23-9-1925. 2 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI 4. LETTER TO VALLABHBHAI PATEL Saturday, September 26,1925 BHAI VALLABHBHAI, I shall reach Bombay on the 20th [October]. Will you come with me to Kutch on the 21st? If so, you should be in Bombay on the 20th. There is a telegram from Devdhar about Manibehn. I have sent it to her. He is willing to take her in December. We may not put Dahyabhai to work in a mill. If we place him with Birla, it is very likely that he would be put to work only in a mill. We shall talk it over when we meet. I am discussing this with Jamnalalji. Blessings from BAPU [PS.] I have no time to write more. [From Gujarati] Bapuna Patro—Sardar Vallabhbhaine 5. LETTER TO MANIBEHN PATEL Saturday [September 26,1925]1 CHI. MANI, I enclose Devdhar’s telegram. I think it is better to wait till then. But, meanwhile if you like, I will try to put you in the Sevasadan at Bombay or, if you knows about the schools at Calcutta, but he is not in favour of your joining it. He is, however, willing to make arrangements at the Girls’ School at Wardha. There is Marathi in Wardha and you will feel at home there, so it is better to have your first experience there. Let me know what you wish to do. Send your reply to me at Patna.2 Blessings from BAPU [From Gujarati] Bapuna Patro—Manibehn Patelne 1 As in the source 2 Gandhiji was in Patna from September 20 to September 29 and also from October 12 to October 15. VOL. 33 : 25 SEPTEMBER, 1925 - 10 FEBRUARY, 1926 3 6. KHADI PROGRAMME Although the following letter is full of criticism, I print it in the hope that all workers may learn from it whatever is worth learning:1 I hope that no worker will misunderstand the aim behind this criticism. It is the duty of khadi workers to accept whatever part of it is applicable. What has been described as?inducement” by the critic I would call protection or?bounty” as it is known in English. We have forsaken khadi for a long time. It is natural that help should be necessary in the initial stage in order to propagate khadi amongst people who have less or no patriotism in them. Everyone knows that such assistance cannot be given for ever. Even during the period when assistance is given, there must be a gradual butcontinuous improvement in the quality of khadi, the cost of production should come down and the quantum of help diminish. All this is happening. There has been an improvement in the quality, there has been a reduction in the cost and in the assistance given. I am not pained by the fact that the cloth produced in the Amreli Centre is being sent to Bombay, but it pains me that so little is sold in Amreli itself. This is a measure of the sad plight of our country. The thoughtful people of Amreli have not understood their natural duty of wearing khadi. They fail to take advantage of the Ganga which flows by their doorstep. Time alone will improve this state of affairs. The residents of Amreli should let the khadi centre know if it is to blame for sending out locally-manufactured cloth. As far as I know the centre does try to sell khadi locally but its efforts have not met with the success they deserve. In these circumstances, we cannot indeed deprive the poor in Amreli of the help they receive by way of wages for spinning. It is, of course, necessary to see that the women who spin start wearing khadi themselves. Experience suggests that even this cannot be brought about all at once. The women who spin for money do so only to earn something and cannot be asked to buy expensive khadi. They will wear khadi only if we reduce its price for them. Hence, khadi workers who wish to make khadi wholly self- supporting should take account of the difficulties involved. If they do 1 The letter is not translated here. The correspondent had argued that the cause of khadi could prosper only through the spontaneous endeavour of farmers and not through the efforts of outside workers. 4 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI not, it will be impossible to advance the cause of khadi.