Page:The Life of Lokamanya Tilak.djvu/102

82 realised only a small portion has been devoted to the material improvements of the Province."

Mr. Tilak was not afraid to beard the Hon in his own den. Referring to the cess on Abkari revenue, recently commuted, he asked whether "Government by an Executive act can repeal an Act of the Legislature." It was impossible for the Government members to dislodge him from his positions, nor did they dare hurl at him their arrows of ridicule or banter. Unlike many members of the Council, he was extremely sparing of complements to the Official Members. He never gave praise, he never sought it. His speeches were severely impersonal and unrhetorical, studded with facts, masterly handled. What struck his hearers was the breadth and originality of his view-point and the facility with which he strode through the intricacies of statistics. The success of his speeches lay in the luminous way in which he used figures without quoting them frequently. This was the case with his writings also.

Mr. Tilak's short connection with the Legislative Council came to an end in 1897, when he resigned his seat, (after the criminal prosecution for sedition had been launched against him.) Among his colleagues in the Council, were the Hon. (Sir) Chimanlal H. Setalwad, the late Sir P. M. Mehta and the late Mr. Daji Abaji Khare.

The year 1896-97 deserves to be recorded in shining letters of gold in the life of Mr. Tilak, because it brings out in bold relief that quality of his heart, which, though it forms the basis of his character, is generally over-looked by superficial observers, dazzled by his militant personality—we mean his genuine philanthrophy. Great as was the intellect of Mr. Tilak, his heart was