The Political Future of India Part 8

In the United States (we quote the figures of New York) the lowest grade school teachers get a salary of $720, rising to $1500 a year. In the upper grades salaries range from $1820 to $2260. Princ.i.p.als of elementary schools receive $3500 and a.s.sistants $2500. In the High Schools salaries range from $900 to $3150, in training schools from $1000 to $3250. Princ.i.p.als of High Schools and Training Schools receive $5000 and the same salary is paid to the District Superintendent. The Commissioner of Education in New York gets $7500.

In j.a.pan the Minister of Education, who is a Cabinet Minister, gets $4000, and the lowest salaries paid to teachers range from $8 to $9 per month. In the United States College Professors make from $3000 to $5000 per year, a few only getting higher sums. In j.a.pan salaries range from $300 to $2000. Coming to India we find that while the Administrative officials and even the College Professors get fairly high salaries, the teachers in the schools are miserably underpaid.

Even the _Times of India_, an Anglo-Indian newspaper published in Bombay, has recently commented on the colossal difference between the salaries allowed at the top and those allowed at the bottom. Yet recently the Secretary of State has been sanctioning higher leave allowances to the European officers of the Indian Army.

The Secretary of State for India in Council has approved, with effect from January 1, 1919, the following revised rates of leave pay for officers of the Indian Army and Indian Medical service granted leave out of India:

INDIAN ARMY

per annum On appointment 200 After completion of 3 years' service 250 " " 6 " " 300 " " 9 " " 350 " " 12 " " 400 " " 15 " " 450 " " 18 " " 500 " " 21 " " 550 " " 24 " " 600 " " 27 " " 650 " " 29 " " 700

INDIAN MEDICAL SERVICE.

On appointment 300 After completion of 3 years' service 350 " " 6 " " 400 " " 9 " " 450 " " 12 " " 500 " " 15 " " 550 " " 18 " " 600 " " 21 " " 650 " " 24 " " 700

VII

THE INDIAN ARMY AND NAVY

The real enemy is the war spirit fostered in Prussia. It is an ideal of a world in which force and brutality reign supreme, as against a world, an ideal of a world, peopled by free democracies, united in an honourable league of peace.

DAVID LLOYD GEORGE

"The Destruction of a False Ideal." Speech delivered at the Albert Hall on the launching of the New War Economy Campaign, October 22, 1917.

When the Indian troops first arrived in October, 1914, the situation was of so drastic a nature that it was necessary to call upon them at once to re-enforce the fighting front and help to stem the great German thrust. Their fine fighting qualities, tenacity, and endurance were well manifested during the first Battle of Ypres before they had been able to completely reorganize after their voyage from India.

LORD FRENCH, the First Commander-in-Chief of British forces on the Western front.

The full story of the Palestine victory still remained to be told, BUT WHEN THE RECORD OF THAT GLORIOUS CAMPAIGN WAS UNFOLDED, ACROSS THE PAGE OF HISTORY WOULD BE WRIT LARGE THE NAME OF INDIA.

LORD CHELMSFORD, the Governor-General of India, on September 26, 1918.

As is usual in our history, we have triumphed after many sad blunders and in the end we have defeated Turkey almost single-handed, though our main forces have throughout the war been engaged with another foe. In fact, IT IS TO INDIA THAT OUR RECENT VICTORY IS DUE....

MAJOR GENERAL SIR FREDERICK MAURICE in _The New York Times_, November 6, 1918.

The present Governor of the Punjab (his precise designation is Lieutenant Governor), who is the most reactionary, self-complacent and conceited of all the provincial rulers of India, has in the course of his appeals for recruits for the present war said more than once that the right of self-government carries with it the responsibility of defending the country. The distinguished authors of the Report have also remarked in one place that so long as the duty of defending India rests on Great Britain, the British Parliament must control the Government of India. Now let us see what the facts are.

(1) The first thing to be remembered in this connection is that during the whole period of British rule in India, not a penny has been spent by Great Britain for Indian defence. The defence of India has been well provided for by Indian Revenues. On the other hand India has paid millions in helping Great Britain not only in defending the Empire, but in extending it.[1] Whatever protection has been afforded to India by the British Navy--and that has by no means been small--has been more than repaid by India's services to the Empire in China, Egypt, South Africa and other parts of the world. As to the military forces of India, they consist of two wings: (_a_) the British and (_b_) the Indian. The pre-war Indian army consisted of 80,000 British and 160,000 Indians.

Indian public opinion has for decades been protesting against the denial to Indians of officers' commissions in the Indian army, as also against the strength of the British element therein. Every British unit of the Indian army from the Field Marshal to the Tommy is paid for his services by India. India pays for these services not only during the time they form part of the Indian army but also for their training and equipment.

It pays all their leave, transfer and pension charges. It even pays for whatever provision is made in England for their medical relief, etc. In the line of the military and naval defence of India, Great Britain has not done as much for India as she has done for the dominions and self-governing colonies. Under the circ.u.mstances it is adding insult to injury to insinuate that India has in any way s.h.i.+rked the duty of providing for her defence. We will say nothing of India's services during the war.

In the military defence of India, the contribution of the Punjab has always been the greatest. If the British provinces are considered singly, it will be found that the Punjab has been supplying the largest number of units for the Indian army, not only in the ranks of the fighters, but also in the ranks of auxiliaries. During this war, too, the Punjab made the largest contribution of both combatants and non-combatants. Yet, if we compare the civil status of the people of the Punjab with that of other provinces, we will find that they have been persistently denied equality of status with Bengal, Bombay and Madras.

The Punjab peasantry, which supplies the largest number of soldiers to the army, is the most illiterate and ignorant of all the cla.s.ses of Indian population. Their economic and legal position may better be studied in Mr. Thorborn's _The Punjab in Peace and in War_. The Munic.i.p.al and Local Boards of the province do not possess as much independence as has been conceded in the other provinces. The judicial administration of the province is as antiquated as it could possibly be under British rule. Instead of a High Court we have still a Chief court.[2] Captains and Majors and Colonels are still performing judicial functions as magistrates and judges. The trial by jury in the cases of Indians is unknown. Until lately the Punjab was stamped with the badge of inferiority by being called a non-Regulation province. Even in this report the Secretary of State for India and the Viceroy have spoken of it as a backward province. It will thus be seen that the contribution of the Punjab to the military strength of the Empire has in no way benefited her population in getting better opportunities for civil progress or greater civil liberties. But recently the President of the Punjab Provincial Conference uttered hard words against the Provincial administration's policy of repression and coercion. He said that their "cup of disappointment, discontent and misery, in the Punjab, at any rate, was full to overflowing."

So much about the discharge of obligations for military defence carrying with it the right of self-government. The Indians have no desire to s.h.i.+rk their responsibility for the military defence of India; nor do they want to balk their contribution to the Imperial defence. Their demands in this respect may be thus summarised:

(1) That the Indian Army should be mainly officered by the Indians.

(2) That as much as is possible of the arms and ammunition equipment, and the military stores required for the Indian army be produced in India.

(3) That the strength of the British element be considerably reduced.

(4) That the nature of the Indian army, which is at present one of hired soldiers, be converted into that of a National Militia with a small standing army and a great reserve.

(5) That in order to do it, some kind of compulsory military training be introduced. All young men between the ages of 17 and 21 may be required to undergo military training and put in at least one year of military service.

(6) That as a preliminary step towards it the existing Arms Act be repealed and, under proper safeguards, the people be allowed to carry and possess arms in peace and war, so as to be familiar with their use.

(7) That slowly and gradually, as funds can be spared from the other demands more urgent and pressing, an Indian Navy be built.

Having explained the position of the Indian Nationalist in this matter, we will now see what Mr. Montagu and Lord Chelmsford say on this matter in their report. In Paragraph 328 they state the "Indian wishes" and point out that "for some years Indian politicians have been urging the right of Indians in general to bear arms in defence of their country"; and that "we have everywhere met a general demand from the political leaders for extended opportunities for military service," but that the subject being more or less outside the scope of their enquiry and "requirements of the future" being dependent "on the form of peace which is attained," they "leave this question for consideration hereafter with the note that it must be faced and settled."

In Paragraph 330 they deal with the question of "British Commissions for Indians."

"The announcement of his Majesty's Government that 'the bar which has. .h.i.therto prevented the admission of Indians to commissioned rank in His Majesty's Army should be removed' has established the principle that the Indian soldier can earn the King's commission by his military conduct. It is not enough merely to a.s.sert a principle. We must act on it. The services of the Indian army in the war and the great increase in its numbers make it necessary that a considerable number of commissions should now be given. The appointments made so far have been few. Other methods of appointment have not yet been decided on, but we are impressed with the necessity of grappling with the problem. We also wish to establish the principle that if an Indian is enlisted as a private in a British unit of His Majesty's Army its commissioned ranks also should be open to him."

The "other methods of appointment" that have been announced since the report was signed are far from satisfactory. It has been said that the responsibility for this n.i.g.g.ardly policy in the matter of admitting Indians to the Commissioned ranks of the army rests with the Home Government and that the Indian Government's recommendations were much more liberal. Now, as practical men, we fully realize that for some time to come, at least until British suspicion of India's desire to get out of the Empire is completely removed by the grant of responsible government to India, India's military policy and the Indian army must be controlled by the British executive. On that point all the parties in India are agreed. But it is absolutely necessary that some steps be at once taken to remove the stigma of military helplessness from India's forehead. Let the British retain the control and the command, but let us share the responsibility to some extent and let our young men be trained for the future defence of their Motherland. To deprive them of all means of doing that, to charge them with neglect of that paramount duty and then to urge it as a disqualification of civil liberties, is hardly fair.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] See chapter on "How India has helped England make her Empire," in _England's Debt to India_, by the present author.

[2] It has now been converted into a High Court.

VIII

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY IN INDIA

The old world, at least, believed in ideals. It believed that justice, fair play, liberty, righteousness must triumph in the end; that is, however you interpret the phrase, the old world believed in G.o.d, and it staked its existence on that belief.

Millions of gallant young men volunteered to die for that divine faith. But if wrong emerged triumphant out of this conflict, the new world would feel in its soul that brute force alone counted in the government of man; and the hopelessness of the dark ages would once more fall on the earth like a cloud.

DAVID LLOYD GEORGE

"No Halfway House." Speech delivered at Gray's Inn, December 14, 1917.

A whole section of the Report has been devoted to a consideration of the claims of the European Community in India. It is said:

"We cannot conclude without taking into due account the presence of a considerable community of non-official Europeans in India. In the main they are engaged in commercial enterprises; but besides these are the missions, European and American, which in furthering education, building up character, and inculcating healthier domestic habits have done work for which India should be grateful.