Page:The Life of Lokamanya Tilak.djvu/60

40 metics of Standard VII discovered that a suitable text-book was wanting and the Board resolved to make his book a text-book for 1889, before it was published.

About this very time Mr. Gokhale, who had been for some time working for the Sarvajanik Sabha journal now thought of accepting the post of the Secretary of that association with 2 or 3 hours' regular work every day. Mr. Tilak objected to such a diversion of members' energies. He declared that it would be carrying the privilege of private work too far to allow members to contract such definite engagements outside the body. The Secretaryship had been offered to him before, but he had declined to accept it for the above reason.

In February 1887, Mr. Agarkar found himself in money difficulties. Under ordinary circumstances, he should have put in an application for gratuity. But, while advocating members' right to earn extra money by doing extra work he had been chiefly instrumental in passing a resolution that the occasions for gratuities should be rare. He therefore brought before the Board a proposition to increase the monthly salary of all the life members. The only reason given for the proposed change was that the financial condition of the school permitted it. Mr. Tilak urged that if necessary to Mr. Agarkar, a gratuity might be given to him but the supposed prosperity of the finance was no ground for increasing salary, at least so long as the Society was not properly endowed.

These and like discussions, frequently held, created a lot of irritation which left behind it a trail of bitterness and even rancour. Questions of general policy, of starting a Boarding House and a Technical school, of