Page:The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, vol. 2.djvu/162

 principle of compulsory return of the indentured Indians after the completion of their contracts has encouraged them to ask for more. The Indian community is expected to join in a leonine partnership: the Indians are to give all but to receive nothing worth mentioning. our Memorialists earnestly hope that, whatever be the ultimate outcome of the present position, Her Majesty’s Government will never countenance so obviously iniquitous an arrangement and stop further State-aided emigration from India to Natal.

The petition of the Union discloses a sad want of knowledge and grave prejudice on the part of the promoters thereof. Your Memorialists need hardly say that the British Colonies alluded to have not yet been allowed to pass the class legislation of the nature indicated therein. As The Natal Mercury, in a leading article on November 28, reminded the Union, “the fact of the matter is that the Acts in operation in those Colonies are almost solely directed against Chinese.” And, even if such Acts were to come into operation in future, there is hardly any analogy between this Colony and the others. Natal cannot do without the Indian labourers; it would shut the door against Indians above that level. This is hardly consistent. The Australian Colonies, on the other hand, would have this much in their favour that they would, if they could, exclude all Indians without distinction.

The disproportion between white and black races is certainly very great; but, even if the Indians were to be classed amongst black races, they are not responsible for it, for it is caused owing to there being over 400,000 natives of South Africa, as against 50,000 Europeans. The Indians, who number about 51,000, cannot materially affect the proportion even if their number were to increase to 100,000. The petition states that the introduction “of Asiatic races is in the highest sense detrimental to the natives of this Colony,” because of the cheaper Asiatic supply. Now the natives can, if at all, only take the place of the indentured Indians; but the Union does not propose to do away with the indentured Indians. In fact, the highest authorities have stated it as their opinion that the natives cannot, and will not, do the work now being done by the indentured Indians; the very fact that, in spite of all this agitation, the demand for indentured Indians is greater than ever, as seen from the reports of the Immigration Department, proves this; and it is admitted that there is no competition whatever between the free Indians, who alone the Union objects to, and the natives. As to t