Page:Speeches And Writings MKGandhi.djvu/329

 penance and austerity, then they have themselves much to learn, then they will be the people who have cursed and ruined the land.

My friend, the Chairman, has asked me the ques- tion whether it is true that I am at war with my leaders. I say that I am not at war with my leaders. I seem to be at war with my leaders because many things I have heard seem to be inconsistent with my notions of self- respect and with self respect to my Motherland, I feel that they are probably not discharging the sacred trust they have taken upon their shoulders ; but I am sure I am studying or endeavouring to take wisdom from them, but I failed to take that wisdom. It may be that I am incompetent and unfit to follow them. If so, I shall revise my ideas. Still I am in a position to say that I seem to be at war with my leaders. Whatever they do or whatever they say does not somehow or other appeal to me. The major part of what they say does not seem to be appealing to me.

I find here words of welcome in the English lan- guage. I find in the Congress programme a Resolution on Swadeshi. If you hold that you are Swadeshi and yet print these in English, then I am not Swadeshi. To me it seems that it is inconsistent. I have nothing to say against the English language. But I do say that, if you kill the vernaculars and raise the English lan- guage on the tomb of the vernaculars (hear, hear), then you are not favouring Swadeshi in the right sense of the term. If you feel that I do not know Tamil, you should pardon me, you should execuse me and teach me and ask me to learn Tamil and I having your welcome in that beautiful language, if you translate it to me, then I should think you are performing some part of the

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