Shall we copy Dyerism and O’Dwyerism even whilst we are condemning it?  Let not our rock be violence and devilry.  Our rock must be non-violence and godliness.  Let us, workers, be clear as to what we are about. Swaraj depends upon our ability to control all the forces of violence on our side. Therefore there is no Swaraj within one year, if there is violence on the part of the people.

We must then refrain from sitting dhurna, we must refrain from crying ‘shame, shame’ to anybody, we must not use any coercion to persuade our people to adopt our way.  We must guarantee to them the same freedom we claim for ourselves.  We must not tamper with the masses.  It is dangerous to make political use of factory labourers or the peasantry—­not that we are not entitled to do so, but we are not ready for it.  We have neglected their political (as distinguished from literary) education all these long years.  We have not got enough honest, intelligent, reliable, and brave workers to enable us to act upon these countrymen of ours.

IX.  MAHATMA GANDHI’S STATEMENT

[The following is the Statement of Mahatma Gandhi made before the Court during his Trial in Ahmedabad on the 18th March 1921.]

Before reading his written statement Mahatma Gandhi spoke a few words as introductory remarks to the whole statement.  He said:  Before I read this statement, I would like to state that I entirely endorse the learned Advocate-General’s remarks in connection with my humble self.  I think that he was entirely fair to me in all the statements that he has made, because it is very true and I have no desire whatsoever to conceal from this Court the fact that to preach disaffection towards the existing system of Government has become almost a passion with me.  And the learned Advocate-General is also entirely in the right when he says that my preaching of disaffection did not commence with my connection with “Young India” but that it commenced much earlier and in the statement that I am about to read it will be my painful duty to admit before this Court that it commenced much earlier than the period stated by the Advocate-General.  It is the most painful duty with me but I have to discharge that duty knowing the responsibility that rested upon my shoulders.  And I wish to endorse all the blame that the Advocate-General has thrown on my shoulders in connection with the Bombay occurrence, Madras occurrences, and the Chouri Choura occurrences thinking over these things deeply, and sleeping over them night after night and examining my heart I have come to the conclusion that it is impossible for me to dissociate myself from the diabolical crimes of Chouri Choura or the mad outrages of Bombay.  He is quite right when he says that as a man of responsibility, a man having received a fair share of education, having had a fair share of experience of this world, I should know them.  I knew that I was playing with fire.