Page:MKGandhi patriot.djvu/112

Rh time, is a strange commentary on British honour. The promise has been shamefully broken.

The promise which the Asiatics understood General Smuts to have made at a time when the leaders were in prison, they also regard as broken. It formed the chief inducement to the Asiatics to re-register a second time voluntarily, in accordance with the compromise. The Colonial Secretary's own statement, made in a speech at Richmond, on February 5th of this year, is significant:—"The Indians' second contention was," he said, "that they would never register until the law had been repealed, that the law was an indignity and disgrace. I told them that the law would not be repealed so long as there was an Asiatic in country who had not been registered, and, like wise men, the leaders of the Indian community had waived the question of repeal. Until every Indian in the country has registered, the law will not be repealed." Relying on this inducement, and a verbal promise that a Bill would be introduced at the next session of Parliament by Government, with the object of repealing that law, they waived the "contention" that repeal must come before registration, and they registered, loyally adhering to the comprise