Page:Speeches And Writings MKGandhi.djvu/479

 for it. We have kept our women strangers to these activities of ours, and have thus brought about paraly- sis of half the national limb. The nation walks with one leg only. All its work appears to be only half or incompletely clone. Moreover, the learned section having received its education, through a foreign tongue, has become enervated and it is unable to give the nation the benefit of such ability as it possesses. I need not reiterate my views on this subject, as I have elaborated them in nay address delivered before the Gujarat Educational Conference. It is a wise decision, that of conducting the proceedings of this Conference in Gujarati, and I hope that all Gujaratis will adhere to the determination and resist every temptation to alter it.

The educated class, lovers of Swaraj, must freely mix with the masses. We dare not reject a single member of the community. We shall make progress only if we rarry all with us. Had the educated class identified itself with the masses, Bakr-Id riots wonld have been an impossibility.

Before coming to the last topic, it remains for me to refer to certain events as a matter of duty and to make one or two suggestions. Every year the god of death exacts his toll from among our leaders. I do not intend to mention all such occasions of sorrow. But it is impossible to omit reference to the Grand Old Man of India. Who am I to estimate the value of the service rendered to the country by the deceased patriot ? I have only sat at his feet, I paid my respects to him when I went to London as a mere lad. I was privileged to carry with me a note of introduction to him, and from the moment of presentation I became his worshipper. Dadabhai's flawless and uninterrupted service to the

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