Page:Masani - Gandhi's story.pdf/45

Rh on a wheel called the charkha so that they could make their own clothes. In addition to learning how to spin, he wanted the boys and girls to learn other useful things like carpentry and farming so that when they grew up they would be able to earn their own living.

The people who lived in the Ashram had to promise that they would always tell the truth, that they would not hurt anybody, even their enemies, but try instead to win the hearts of all with love and understanding and, most important of all, that they would treat all men as equals. Now in India there were a number of people called untouchables. These people did the great and noble work of keeping the towns and villages clean but because they did the work of scavengers many people, especially the high caste Hindus, had come to think that these people were unworthy of mixing with others. Gandhiji told them that this was not right. In his Ashram he insisted that everybody also do this work, so that people realized that by doing a particular kind of work one does not change, or become inferior.

One day a man, a woman and a little girl called Laxshmi, who belonged to the scavenger class, came to stay with Gandhiji in the Ashram. Gandhiji and his followers became very fond of this family, especially of little Laxshmi, and treated them just like themselves. This had never been done before and a great many