to face anything more danger- oharacteristic oare, the buildous than a legal quibble, and ing itself was not destroyed, the wonder is that the British because it belonged to Indians Government ever finds faithful who, having butohered the servants to do its bidding. manager, were not willing to On 10th April 1919 there saorifice their rent. Presently, was a violent rebellion at having battered in Sergeant Amritsar. A "hartal," or Rowlands' skull with a straingeneral shutting of shops, had ing screw, they encountered been ordered by the rebel Miss Sherwood, a lady misleaders. A poster, inviting sionary, peacefully bicycling the people to "die and kill," in a narrow street on her way had been displayed in the to one of her schools. Here Clock-tower, and the invita- was too good a chance to be tion had been generally ac- missed. The intrepid mob cepted. If the people was knocked her down by blows unwilling to die, it was at on the head, and when she least eager to kill; and when was safely on the ground they two doctors, efficient stirrers beat her unmercifully. The up of strife, called Kitchlew poor woman got up to run, and Satyapal, were very justly and again and again she was deported, the mob marvel- knocked down. When she lously increased in bitterness attempted to take refuge in and violence. "Where is a house, the door was slammed the Deputy-Commissioner?" it in her face, and the monsters asked; "we will butoher him desisted from torturing her to pieces." Speedily the crowd only because they thought that gathered volume until it she was dead. numbered some 30,000, and passed with little delay from words to deeds, The rebels began their work of destruction with the banks. They beat to death the manager and assistant - manager of the National Bank, burned their bodies, and set on fire and sacked the building. With the greed that commonly accompanies the lust of blood, they threw open the godowns to all those who were willing to loot them. Then they turned their amiable attention to the Alliance Bank, murdered its manager, and flung his body from the balcony into the street, where it was drenched in kerosene oil and burned. With

That the rebellion expressed from the very first a murderous hatred of Europeans is not in dispute. The mob oried aloud for the deaths, not of officials merely, but of all Europeans. What could be done to restore order was done immediately, and that the ever-inereasing mob might have a fair warning, a proclamation was issued forbidding all gatherings of persons and processions, and urging all respectable persons to keep indoors. On the evening of April 11th General Dyer arrived at Amritsar and took command. That there might be no mistake concerning his policy, he supplemented the

first proclamation by another. because General Dyer was "The inhabitants of Amritsar," presently condemned for not said he, "are hereby warned having sufficiently warned the that if they will eause damage people. No warning would to any property or will commit have been sufficient. The reany acts of violence in the bellion suffered no check. The environs of Amritsar, it will day after he had made his be taken for granted that such proclamation by beat of drum, aots are due to incitement in General Dyer was informed Amritsar city, and offenders that a meeting was being held will be punished according to at Jallianwala Bagh, contrary military law. All meetings to his plain order. He fired and gatherings are hereby pro- upon the mob, which, as we hibited, and will be dispersed are told, believed that his at once under military law." order was a "bluff," and he It might be thought that this achieved his object by the only warning was clear enough to possible means—the display of check the murderous ardour adequate and determined force. of the mob. It had little or no Had he thought more of his effect. The outrages continued career than of the safety of unabated. The telegraph India, he would have forgotten wires were out, railway lines his duty and stayed his hand. were torn up, and a train was But he is a brave far-seeing derailed. Accordingly, General man, and he knew that in the Dyer, with infinite patience and midst of a revolution the mob restraint, made another attempt must be taught a lesson. The to recall the rebels to reason same fate overtook him that with words. On April 13th overtook Governor Eyre, that he issued the proclamation that has overtaken unnumbered follows by beat of drum: "No servants of the Empire. The person residing in the Amrit- pedants who sat to try him, sar city is permitted to leave and who did not disdain to call his house after eight. Any him as a witness, to be used, persons found in the streets if necessary, against himself, after eight are liable to be had no difficulty in finding shot. ... Any procession or such a verdiot 88 should any gathering of four men be agreeable to the governwill be looked upon and treated ment. In brief, they found as an unlawful assembly, and that General Dyer was "open dispersed by force of arms if to criticism (1) because he necessary." The people, hear- gave the people no ing this proclamation read, ing; (2) because he continrefused to treat it seriously. ued to fire after the crowd On all hands it was dismissed began to disperse." The first as mere bluff. "The General plea is obviously ridiculous. will not fire," said the rebels. The rebellious mob received "You need not be afraid." not one warning, but three. It laughed at them all, and pronounced them "bluff."

It is necessary to cite the proclamations with some care,

warn

Apart from the

to overthrow the British, a movement which had started in rioting and had become a rebellion might have rapidly developed into a revolution.'

Government that murderers organisation. deserve no censure, and that existence of any deeply-laid they who defend themselves scheme righteously must be called upon to justify their indiscretion. Lord Hunter's Committee, indeed, takes a view of conspiracy which outside official oiroles is happily rare, and we do not suppose that any evidence, short of its own extermination, could be brought before it which could convince it that revolution was imminent or possible. "There is nothing to show," it says, "that the outbreak in the Punjab was part of a pre-arranged conspiracy to overthrow the British Government in India by force." And having said so much, it seems to be instantly stricken with doubt and repentanee. It then admits incontinently that the Punjab Government had been advised by its legal advisers that the Satyagraha movement, which was in full force, "amounted to an illegal conspiracy against government." Nor does this admission stand alone. As though to make quite clear the flagrant injustice that had been done to General Dyer, the Committee proceeds to the following confession: "The general teaching of the doctrine of civil disobedience to laws to masses of uneducated men must inevitably lead to breach of the peace and disorder. .. In the situation, as it presented itself day by day, there were grounds for the gravest anxiety. It was difficult, probably unsafe, for the authorities not to assume that the outbreak was the result of a definite

If these words mean anything, they mean a complete exoneration of General Dyer. There were grounds for the gravest anxiety; it was unsafe not to assume that the outbreak was the result of a definite organisation; a movement which had become a rebellion might have rapidly developed into a revolution. And General Dyer, in staying the revolution, which might have been far worse than the famous Mutiny, deserved, instead of the censure of the confused thinkers who cendemned him, and whe make a distinction between "conspiracy" and "rebellion," to receive immediate promotion and a vote of thanks. Alas! we are forgetting the call of politics. The agitator, at all costs, must be protected in the exercise of his calling. ""Tis no sin," says Falstaff, "for a man to labour in his vocation." And Mr Montagu, in an impudent comment upon Sir Michael O'Dwyer's administration, testifies boldly to his agreement with Falstaff. With tears in his eyes he regrets that the Punjab Government, under Sir Michael's O'Dwyer's direction, "was determined to suppress not only illegitimate, but also legitimate and constitutional political agitation." We commend it as a proper