Ro Laren

They say you never told the True Story about Galon Two. They also say you didn't defend yourself 

at your court martial.

What was to defend? 

I didn't follow orders. 

Eight members of the away team died.

Your fault?

Yeah, my fault.

So you sit alone in crowded rooms staring at your drink.

I think you enjoy it.

I enjoy it?!

You work so hard at torturing yourself, 

I can only think you must enjoy it.

[Transporter room]

(a young woman in red uniform beams in, wearing a sullen expression and a fancy earring) 

RO: 

Ensign Ro Laren reporting as ordered, Commander. 

RIKER: 

You will follow Starfleet uniform code 

aboard This Ship, Ensign. 

(she removes the earring)

[Ready room]

RIKER: 

There will be members of this crew 

who will not want to serve 

with Ensign Laren, sir.

PICARD: 

They'll have to learn to live with it. 

RIKER: 

I intend to demand the highest level 

of performance from her. 

PICARD: 

I would expect nothing less. 

It won't be for long, Will. 

(doorbell) 

Come. 

(Ro Laren enters)

PICARD: 

Yes, Ensign Laren, 

please have a seat. 

RO: 

Ensign Ro, sir. 

PICARD: 

I beg your pardon? 

RO: 

The Bajoran custom 

has The Family Name first, 

The Individual's second. 

I am properly addressed 

as Ensign Ro.

PICARD: 

I'm sorry, I didn't know. 

RO: 

No, there's no reason you should. 

It's an old custom. Most Bajora these days 

accept the distortion of their names 

in order to assimilate. I Do Not. 

PICARD: 

I wish to be candid with you, Ensign. 

RO: Please. 

PICARD: 

I'm fully aware of your Starfleet record, 

your problems on other ships, 

and the incident on Garon Two 

that led to your court martial. 

And I'm concerned about your presence 

on this delicate mission. 

RO: 

I don't want to be here any more 

than you want me to be here, sir. 

RIKER: 

Then why did you accept this assignment? 

RO: 

If I may be equally candid? 

It's better than prison. 

RIKER: 

Better than prison? 

There are officers who wait years to serve on this ship. 

RO: 

Being called back into Starfleet was not my idea. 

RIKER: 

Nor ours. 

PICARD: 

Nevertheless, we will all be serving together. 

Commander Riker and I have expectations of you. 

RO: 

Captain, I know the routine. 

You don't have to worry about me. 

We're stuck with each other. 

So let's just get this over with as quickly as possible 

and we can go our own separate ways, okay? 

(Ro leaves) 

PICARD: 

Dismissed.

Captain's log, supplemental. 

We are approaching the Valo system on the outskirts 

of Cardassian territory, where many Bajorans have resettled.

[Observation lounge]

DATA: 

There are dozens of Bajoran camps on the three class-M planets. I suggest we may want to begin on Valo Three, where an adhoc leader named Jas Holza lives. The Federation has had several dealings with him. 

CRUSHER: I met Holza at a symposium a few years ago. 

PICARD: 

What can you tell us about him, Doctor? 

CRUSHER: 

I found him to be a very concerned leader 

and a good spokesman for his people. 

And a terrific dancer. 

No, really, I'm serious. 

At a reception afterwards. 

TROI: 

At least this man has genuine experience in Diplomacy.

PICARD: 

And that's a big advantage on this mission. 

Very well. Mister Data, will you contact Holza, arrange a meeting? 

DATA: Sir. 

RIKER: 

Ensign Ro, you're familiar with this star system. 

You'll take the conn. 

Is there a problem, Ensign? 

RO: 

You're wasting your time. Holza is nobody. 

He's the token Bajoran that respectable people 

invite to symposiums and diplomatic soirees. 

But he has no real influence among my people. 

DATA: 

Ensign, whom do you suggest we speak to? 

RO: 

Don't you understand? 

These are desperate people ready to martyr themselves. 

They don't want to talk. 

WORF: 

This ship is prepared to defend itself if necessary. 

RO: 

Oh, it will be. Don't fool yourself. 

This mission will end in bloodshed. 

PICARD: 

Well, let's hope that you're mistaken, Ensign. 

But can you point us at the right individual, 

as Mister Data suggested? 

RO: 

I would go to the camp on 

the southern continent of Valo Two. 

Find a man named Keeve Falor. 

He has no diplomatic experience. 

And he won't ask you to dance.

Captain's log, supplemental. 

I read about the achievements of 

the ancient Bajoran civilisation in my fifth grade reader. 

They were architects and artists, builders and philosophers when humans were not yet standing erect. 

Now I see how history has rewarded them.

[Bajoran camp]

(Ro gives her uniform jacket to a young girl) 

RO: 

This used to be me. 

KEEVE: Baleekam. Balleek, balleek. Baleekam! Baleek. 

(the children scatter) 

KEEVE: 

Ro Laren. It's been a long time. 

RO: 

Keeve Falor, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, 

Commander Data and Lieutenant Worf. 

PICARD: 

I'm pleased you agreed to meet with us, Mister Keeve. 

KEEVE: 

You honour me by the proper use of my name, Captain. 

PICARD: 

Ensign Ro has educated me. 

KEEVE: 

Has she? I'm pleased you still remember. 

Let me show you our camp. 

We are not a violent race, Captain. 

Just passionate about our cause. 

And that passion has led some to take up arms. 

PICARD: 

Do you know where we can find Orta? 

KEEVE: 

I'm afraid not. 

PICARD: 

Can you help us locate him? 

KEEVE: 

I'm sorry, I don't wish to help you. Don't misunderstand. 

I for one believe the raid on the Federation outpost 

was poor judgment. 

You are innocent bystanders, 

and I cannot condone violence against 

those who are not our enemies. 

PICARD: 

Then I don't understand why you are unwilling? 

KEEVE: 

Because you are innocent bystanders. 

You were innocent bystanders 

for decades as the Cardassians took our homes, 

as they violated and tortured our people 

in the most hideous ways imaginable, 

as we were forced to flee. 

PICARD: 

We were saddened by those events but they occurred within the designated borders of the Cardassian Empire. 

KEEVE:

 And the Federation is pledged not to interfere in the internal affairs of others. 

How convenient that must be for you, 

to turn a deaf ear to those who suffer 

behind a line on a map. 

PICARD: 

Well, I'm not here to debate Federation policy with you, 

but I can offer you assistance.

KEEVE: 

Simply because of one terrorist attack? 

Perhaps I should have known that. 

We should have attacked the Federation long ago. 

What do you think of that, Ro? 

RO: 

I think you're a small man 

who feels a rush of power in his belly 

and enjoys it far too much, Keeve.

Stop talking and listen. 

PICARD: 

We've had our problems with the Cardassians too, 

but now that we have a treaty, 

we're in a position to help. 

Your people have been forced to resettle all over the quadrant.

 

But now we can make a legitimate case with the Cardassians that this is not an isolated problem. 

We can work diplomatically on your behalf. 

But first, these terrorist attacks must end. 

KEEVE: 

We live in different universes, You and I. 

Yours is about diplomacy, politics, strategy. 

Mine is about blankets. 

If we were to exchange places for one night, 

you might better understand. 

PICARD: 

Mister Data, see to it that the replicators 

provide a blanket for every man, woman and child 

before nightfall. 

DATA: 

Aye, sir. 

(Data leaves) 

PICARD: 

Mister Worf, determine what these people may have 

in the way of emergency needs 

and provide for them. 

WORF: 

Yes, sir. 

(Worf leaves) 

KEEVE: 

Thank you. Return to your ship. 

I will contact you when I have any information 

that might be of assistance to you. Ensign. 

(Keeve leaves them)

PICARD: 

You were helpful. 

RO: 

The blankets were helpful. 

Nothing I said mattered.

PICARD: 

In an age when their technology 

should be able to 

clothe and feed all of them, 

that they should have 

to live like this. 

RO: 

I couldn't, and I wouldn't. 

That's one reason I ran away. 

They're lost, defeated. 

I will never be.

And Geronimo was not among those.

“We had many people in Our Tribe 

who had the characteristics 

that would appropriate for 

Being A Chief —

Who were well-respected 

and who were known 

for making careful decisions

 for the well-being 

of The People. 

And Geronimo 

was not among those."

"Like most Apache women, Alope pierced her babies’ ears to make her children grow faster

and bathed them in waters steeped with wildflowers to make their skin strong. 

And just as their parents had done, Alope and Geronimo taught their children to sing prayers to Ussen, The Creator, for health,

strength and wisdom.

One day in the early 1850s, Geronimo and his family joined other Chiricahuas on a trading trip. 

The group camped on the outskirts of a Mexican town called Janos 

and the men headed in to trade. 

On the way back the Chiricahuas met distraught members of their band.

Mexican soldiers had ransacked their

camp, 

the women cried, stealing their ponies and supplies, leaving their wickiups in ruins. 

The Apaches scattered.

 That night Geronimo slipped back in to camp. 

There he discovered the bodies of his mother,

his wife and his three small children, 

lying in pools of blood.

Zelda Yazza, 

Chiricahua Apache: 

When he saw all his family massacred there 

he cut his hair, 

and he

left his hair there with them. 

You see all the pictures that were taken. 

You see their hair short, like mine.

That was a sign of mourning, 

that they lost someone.

Narrator: 

When Geronimo returned home he ripped down his wife’s paintings, tore apart strings of

beads she had made and gathered his children’s toys. 

And just as Apaches had done 

for generations when

loved ones died, 

he set everything 

his wife and children 

had owned on fire.

Silas Cochise, 

Chiricahua Apache: 

Geronimo’s attitude changed after his mother was killed, 

after his wife was killed, 

after his children was killed. 

And so that created an attitude 

towards the non-Indians.

Robert Geronimo, Geronimo’s great grandson: 

It just changed him completely and totally.

Silas Cochise, 

Chiricahua Apache: 

Maybe it wasn’t a wise thing 

to deal with things like that, but 

he wanted revenge.

Vernon Simmons, Chiricahua Apache: 

Your Wife’s dead, 

Your Kids are dead, 

Your Mother’s dead.

That’s Your Life, 

taken away 

from you in an instant. 

It- want to make you 

go kill everybody.

Narrator: 

“I had no purpose left…” 

Geronimo later recalled, 

“my heart ached for revenge.”

Ellyn Bigrope: 

Power is everywhere, 

it Lives in everything. 

It might be known through a word, or come

in the shape 

of an animal. 

We all have Power, 

but some tap into 

different rooms. 

Power Speaks to 

Those Who Listen.

Elbys Hugar, 

Chiricahua Apache: 

The greatest thing 

a person can have is 

The Power — Benegotsi. 

It’s scary. 

(in Apache) 

This is The Truth. 

To Live with Power 

is very challenging. 

It’s so potent you must be

wary. 

To have Power is 

a Great Responsibility. 

You can choose to leave it alone or accept it. 

It’s up to you.

Narrator: 

Not long after the vicious murder of His Family, 

a despondent Geronimo 

ventured deep into 

Chiricahua country. 

Alone, he buried his head in his hands and began to cry. 

Suddenly he was startled by A Voice :

“No gun will ever kill you,” it said. 

“I will take the bullets from 

the guns of the Mexicans … 

and

I will guide your arrows.” 

Geronimo later said that he had been given what Apache people call Power, 

a gift from Ussen.

Robert Haouzous, Chiricahua Apache: 

The concept of Power is fundamental 

in Apache belief.

Everybody acknowledges that somebody has 

a certain Power, like 

The Power of Medicine, 

The Power of

Healing, 

The Power of Seeing or Feeling Something 

at a Distance.

Oliver Enjady, 

Chiricahua Apache : 

There were people that knew 

where you were, 

people that knew

about horses, 

people that knew 

about hunting. 

We call this Power.

Ramon Riley, 

Western Apache 

(in Apache): Geronimo had 

“N’daa K’eh Godih.” :

A Prayer power 

that worked on the minds 

of his enemies to make 

their bullets miss their targets 

and turn into water.

Geronimo had This Power 

and it helped him survive.

Narrator: 

Soon after The Voice spoke to him, 

Geronimo put His Power into action. 

He got permission

from the Chiricahua chiefs to take revenge for the massacre at Janos. 

With a force of 200 men, he lured the Mexican soldiers 

who had killed his family, into battle. 

Leading the charge 

through a hail of bullets,

Geronimo whirled and dodged, 

killing with his knife 

when his arrows ran out.

David Roberts, 

Writer: 

So he’s dashing back and forth, 

running this zigzag pattern, and obviously

scaring the daylights out of the Mexicans. 

They had never run into an antagonist 

quite like this guy.

Vernon Simmons, Chiricahua Apache: 

“I don’t care what you put up against him. 

He’ll come after you. 

That’s the kind of fighter he was. 

He was a true blooded 

Chiricahua fighter.

And he said he didn’t -

He wasn’t scared of bullets.

That, I heard from my grandpa.”

Narrator: 

Geronimo and his men decimated The Enemy. 

From that day forward, 

Mexicans would shudder at his name, while the Chiricahuas would accord him great respect. 

As a sign of his status, over

the years he would take many wives, including the daughter of the greatest Chiricahua chief, Cochise.

Yet Geronimo would never be 

A Chief himself. 

For the Apaches, he was 

too impulsive, too fretful, 

too vengeful.

Michael Darrow, 

Fort Sill tribal historian: 

“We had many people in Our Tribe 

who had the characteristics 

that would appropriate for 

Being A Chief —

Who were well-respected 

and who were known 

for making careful decisions

 for the well-being 

of The People. 

And Geronimo 

was not among those.

Tribe

Do you think we ever lived like this? 

Like A Tribe?

 

Together with a common language, 

a reason and a name 

for each living thing? 

Did we once belong somewhere -- 

a time and a place, however briefly?

Connor Macloed :

Slan is mine.

-Protecting Tessa is my job.

[laughter]

-Good to see you.

You're sure you wouldn't rather

use a sword, Connor?

Connor Macloed :

I take it that, uh, what you

saw last night was new?

New?

-Yes, as a matter of fact, it

is quite new for Tessa.

How long have you two known each other?

Are you related?

Duncan Macloed :

We're clansmen.

When I was growing up,

there was a legend in My Clan about a--

a strange man in my grandfather's time who was

killed in battle and then miraculously revived.

Everyone thought it was,

uh, witchcraft.

I thought it was an old wives' tale.

Until one day--

-I know.

Someone killed you, but you didn't die.

Duncan Macloed :

And then I found him.

Um--

well, you know, the way

someone found me.

-Connor taught me everything I

needed to know to survive as

an immortal--

the rules, the tactics

needed to win.

-As once someone taught me.

-Win what?

Why does this Slan person

want Duncan?

[SARCASTICALLY] Please,

don't say anything in

front of the lady.

Let me just go in the next room and crochet 

while you have cigars and brandy 

and talk about beheadings.

Duncan Macloed :

I told Tessa some of it.

I thought I was out of it.

She didn't need to know 

all The Rules.

Connor Macloed :

You're not out of it anymore!

There can be only one.

Remember that rule?

Duncan Macloed :

One what?

One of you?

Only one immortal left in the end?

Is that it?

And what does the winner get?

Connor Macloed :

The last one will have the power 

of all the immortals who ever lived.

Enough power to rule this planet forever.

If someone like Slan is that last one, 

Mankind will suffer an Eternity of Darkness 

from which it will never recover.

-And you didn't think this was

important enough to mention?

It's nothing new.

Duncan Macloed :

It is for me.

You can't stay out of The Game, Duncan.

You've tried before.

Duncan Macloed :

Damn it, Connor!

It had nothing to do with The Game, 

and you know that.

[Queen - "Who Wants to Live Forever"

There's no time for us 

There's no place for us 

What is this thing that builds our dreams 

Yet slips away from us? 

Who wants to live forever? 

Who wants to live forever?

Duncan Macloed :

[crying] 

She knew the names of all the grasses... the wildflowers... the songs that told where her people came from, how they lived, what they believed in!

Connor Macloed : 

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

[Who wants to live forever?]

Duncan Macloed : 

[watching funeral pyre burn] 

Do you think we ever lived like this? Like a tribe?

[Who wants to live forever?]

 

Together with a common language, a reason and a name for each living thing? Did we once belong somewhere -- a time and a place, however briefly?

[Who dares to know forever?]

8. CUT

8. Outside antique store 1

[DM pulls up in T-bird, feels 'buzz', enters store cautiously.]

Connor Macloed :

Hey... I know you loved her, 

but you can't keep them from dying. 

They all do. Men kill men. 

We kill each other.

Duncan Macloed :

I don't care who does the killing. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of the endless mindless fighting. I'm tired of death.

Connor Macloed :

You can't quit.

Duncan Macloed : 

I didn't ask you for permission, Connor.

Connor Macloed :

I know why you chose this place. 

It's holy ground.

Duncan Macloed : 

That's right. And I did ask permission 

of the old ones to build my cabin here.

Connor Macloed :

No Immortal can fight here... ever. 

You'll always be safe.

Duncan Macloed : 

Glad you approve. 

Connor, the battle between good and evil 

can do without me for a while.

Connor Macloed :

Maybe, but you can't stay out of it forever.

Duncan Macloed :

No, not forever, but for a while.

Connor Macloed :

They'll find you.

Duncan Macloed : 

Eventually.

 

Satyagraha - The Truth Force

CHAPTER XII

THE ADVENT OF SATYAGRAHA

Gandhi, M.K., Satyagraha in South Africa 

(Ahmedabad, 1928 (revised 2nd edition, 1950) pp. 95-102)

The meeting was duly held on September 11, 1906. It was attended by delegates from various places in the Transvaal. But I must confess that even I myself had not then understood all the implications of the resolutions I had helped to frame; nor had I gauged all the possible conclusions to which they might lead.

The old Empire Theatre was packed from floor to ceiling. I could read in every face the expectation of something strange to be done or to happen. Mr Abdul Gani, Chairman of the Transvaal British Indian Association, presided. He was one of the oldest Indian residents of the Transvaal, and partner and manager of the Johannesburg branch of the well-known firm of Mamad Kasam Kamrudin. The most important among the resolutions passed by the meeting was the famous Fourth Resolution by which the Indians solemnly determined not to submit to the Ordinance in the event of its becoming law in the teeth of their opposition and to suffer all the penalties attaching to such non-submission.

I fully explained this resolution to the meeting and received a patient hearing. The business of the meeting was conducted in Hindi or Gujarati; it was impossible therefore that any one present should not follow the proceedings. For the Tamils and Telugus who did not know Hindi there were Tamil and Telugu speakers who fully explained everything in their respective languages.

The resolution was duly proposed, seconded and supported by several speakers one of whom was Sheth Haji Habib. He too was a very old and experienced resident of South Africa and made an impassioned speech. He was deeply moved and went so far as to say that we must pass this resolution with God as witness and must never yield a cowardly submission to such degrading legislation. He then went on solemnly to declare in the name of God that he would never submit to that law, and advised all present to do likewise.

Others also delivered powerful and angry speeches in supporting the resolution. When in the course of his speech Sheth Haji Habib came to the solemn declaration, I was at once startled and put on my guard. Only then did I fully realize my own responsibility and the responsibility of the community. The community had passed many a resolution before and amended such resolutions in the light of further reflection or fresh experience. There were cases in which resolutions passed had not been observed by all concerned. Amendments in resolutions and failure to observe resolutions on the part of persons agreeing thereto are ordinary experiences of public life all the world over. But no one ever imports the name of God into such resolutions.

In the abstract there should not be any distinction between a resolution and an oath taken in the name of God. When an intelligent man makes a resolution deliberately he never swerves from it by a hair's breadth. With him his resolution carries as much weight as a declaration made with. God as witness does. But the world takes no note of abstract principles and imagines an ordinary resolution and an oath in the name of God to be poles asunder. A man who makes an ordinary resolution is not ashamed of himself when he deviates from it, but a man who violates an oath administered to him is not only ashamed of himself, but is also looked upon by society as sinner. This imaginary distinction has struck such a deep root in the human mind that a person making a statement on oath before a judge is held to have committed an offence in law Ft the statement is proved to be false and receives drastic punishment.

Full of these thoughts as I was, possessing as 1 did much experience of solemn pledges, having profited by them, I was taken aback by Sheth Haji Habib's suggestion of an oath. I thought out the possible consequences of it in a moment. My perplexity gave place to enthusiasm. And although I had no intention of taking an oath or inviting others to do so when I went to the meeting, I warmly approved of the Sheth's suggestion. But at the same time it seemed to me that the people should be told of all the consequences and should have explained to them clearly the meaning of a pledge. And if even then they were prepared to pledge themselves, they should be encouraged to do so; otherwise I must understand that they were not still ready to stand the final test.

I therefore asked the President for permission to explain to the meeting the implications of Sheth Haji Habib's suggestion. The President readily granted it and I rose to address the meeting. I give below a summary of my remarks just as I can recall them now:

"I wish to explain to this meeting that there is a vast difference between this resolution and every other resolution we have passed up to date and that there is a wide divergence also in the manner of making it. It is a very grave resolution we are making, as our existence in South Africa depends upon our fully observing it. The manner of making the resolution suggested by our friend is as much of a novelty as of a solemnity. I did not come to the meeting with a view to getting the resolution passed in that manner, which redounds to the credit of Sheth Haji Habib as well as it lays a burden of responsibility upon him. I tender my congratulations to him. I deeply appreciate his suggestion, but if you adopt it you too will share his responsibility. You must understand what is this responsibility, and as an adviser and servant of the community, it is my duty fully to explain it to you.

"We all believe in one and the same God, the differences of nomenclature in Hinduism and Islam notwithstanding. To pledge ourselves or to take an oath in the name of that God or with him as witness is not something to be trifled with. If having taken such an oath we violate our pledge we are guilty before God and man. Personally I hold that a man, who deliberately and intelligently takes a pledge and then breaks it, forfeits his manhood.

"And just as a copper coin treated with mercury not only becomes valueless when detected but also makes its owner liable to punishment, in the same way a man who lightly pledges his word and then breaks it becomes a man of straw and fits himself for punishment here as well as hereafter. Sheth Haji Habib is proposing to administer an oath of a very serious character. There is no one in this meeting who can be classed as an infant or as wanting in understanding. You are all well advanced in age and have seen the world; many of you are delegates and have discharged responsibilities in a greater or lesser measure. No one present, therefore, can ever hope to excuse himself by saying that he did not know what he was about when he took the oath.

"I know that pledges and vows are, and should be, taken on rare occasions. A man who takes a vow every now and then is sure to stumble. But if I can imagine a crisis in the history of the Indian community of South Africa when it would be in the fitness of things to take pledges that crisis is surely now. There is wisdom in taking serious steps with great caution and hesitation. But caution and hesitation have their limits, and we have now passed them. The Government has taken leave of I all sense of decency. We would only be betraying our unworthiness and cowardice, if we cannot stake our all in the face of the conflagration which envelopes us and sit watching it with folded hands.

"There is no doubt, therefore, that the present is a proper occasion for taking pledges. But every one of us must think out for himself if he has the will and the ability to pledge himself. Resolutions of this nature cannot be passed by a majority vote. Only those who take a pledge can be bound by it. This pledge must not be taken with a view to produce an effect on outsiders. No one should trouble to consider what impression it might have upon the Local Government, the Imperial Government, or the Government of India. Every one must only search his own heart, and if the inner voice assures him that he has the requisite strength to carry him through, then only should he pledge himself and then only will his pledge bear fruit.

"A few words now as to the consequences. Hoping I for the best, we may say that if a majority of the Indians pledge themselves to resistance and if all who take the pledge prove true to themselves, the Ordinance may not I be passed and, if passed, may be soon repealed. It may be that we may not be called upon to suffer at all. But if on the one hand a man who takes a pledge must be a robust optimist, on the other hand he must be prepared for the worst. Therefore I want to give you an idea of the worst that might happen to us in the present struggle.

"Imagine that all of us present here numbering 3,000 at the most pledge ourselves. Imagine again that the remaining 10,000 Indians take no such pledge. We will only provoke ridicule in the beginning. Again, it is quite possible that in spite of the present warning some or many of those who pledge themselves may weaken at the very first trial. We may have to go to jail, where we may be insulted. We may have to go hungry and suffer extreme heat or cold. Hard labour may be imposed upon us. We may be flogged by rude warders. We may be fined heavily and our property may be attached and held up to auction if there are only a few resisters left. Opulent today we may be reduced to abject poverty tomorrow. We may be deported. Suffering from starvation and similar hardships in jail, some of us may fall ill and even die. In short, therefore, it is not at all impossible that we may have to endure every hardship that we can imagine, and wisdom lies in pledging ourselves on the understanding that we shall have to suffer all that and worse.

"If some one asks me when and how the struggle may end, I may say that if the entire community manfully stands the test, the end will be near. If many of us fall back under storm and stress, the struggle will be prolonged. But I can boldly declare, and with certainty, that so long as there is even a handful of men true to their pledge, there can only be one end to the struggle, and that is victory.

"A word about my personal responsibility. If I am warning you of the risks attendant upon the pledge, I am at the same time inviting you to pledge yourselves, and I am fully conscious of my responsibility in the matter. It is possible that a majority of those present here may take the pledge in a fit of enthusiasm or indignation but may weaken under the ordeal, and only a handful may be left to face the final test. Even then there is only one course open to some one like me, to die but not to submit to the law. It is quite unlikely but even if every one else flinched leaving me alone to face the music, I am confident that I would never violate my pledge.

"Please do not misunderstand me. I am not saying this out of vanity, but I wish to put you, especially the leaders upon the platform, on your guard. I wish respectfully to suggest it to you that if you have not the will or the ability to stand firm even when you are perfectly isolated, you must not only not take the pledge yourselves but you must declare your opposition before the resolution is put to the meeting and before its members begin to take pledges and you must not make yourselves parties to the resolution.

"Although we are going to take the pledge in a body, no one should imagine that default on the part of one or many can absolve the rest from their obligation. Every one should fully realize his responsibility, then only pledge himself independently of others and understand that he himself must be true to his pledge even unto death, no matter what others do."

I spoke to this effect and resumed my seat. The meeting heard me word by word in perfect quiet. Other leaders too spoke. All dwelt upon their own responsibility and the responsibility of the audience. The President rose. He too made the situation clear, and at last all present, standing with upraised hands, took an oath with God as witness not to submit to the Ordinance if it became law.

I can never forget the scene, which is present before my mind's eye as I write. The community's enthusiasm knew no bounds. The very next day there was some accident in the theatre in consequence of which it was wholly destroyed by fire. On the third day friends brought me the news of the fire and congratulated the community upon this good omen, which signified to them that the Ordinance would meet the same fate as the theatre. I have never been influenced by such so-called signs and therefore did not attach any weight to the coincidence. I have taken note of it here only as a demonstration of the community's courage and faith. The reader will find in the subsequent chapters many more proofs of these two high qualities of the people. The workers did not let the grass grow under their feet after this great meeting. Meetings were held everywhere and pledges of resistance were taken in every place. The principal topic of discussion in Indian Opinion now was the Black Ordinance.

At the other end, steps were taken in order to meet the Local Government. A deputation waited upon Mr Duncan, the Colonial Secretary, and told him among other things about the pledges. Sheth Haji Habib, who was a member of the deputation, said, 'I cannot possibly restrain myself if any officer comes and proceeds to take my wife's finger prints. I will kill him there and then and die myself.'

The Minister stared at the Sheth's face for a while and said, 'Government is reconsidering the advisability of making the Ordinance applicable to women, and I can assure you at once that the clauses relating to women will be deleted. Government have understood your feeling in the matter and desire to respect it. But as for the other provisions, I am sorry to inform you that Government is and will remain adamant. General Botha wants you to agree to this legislation after due deliberation. Government deem it to be essential to the existence of the Europeans. They will certainly consider any suggestions about details which you may make consistently with the objects of the Ordinance, and my advice to the deputation is that your interest lies in agreeing to the legislation and proposing changes only as regards the details.'

I am leaving out here the particulars of the discussion with the Minister, as all those arguments have already been dealt with. The arguments were just the same, there was only a difference in phraseology as they were set forth before the Minister. The deputation withdrew, after informing him that his advice notwithstanding, acquiescence in the proposed legislation was out of the question, and after thanking Government for its intention of exempting women from its provisions.

It is difficult to say whether the exemption of women was the first fruit of the community's agitation, or whether the Government as an afterthought made a concession to practical considerations which Mr Curtis had ruled out of his scientific methods. Government claimed that it had decided to exempt women independently of the Indian agitation. Be that as it might, the community established to their own satisfaction a cause and effect relation between the agitation and the exemption and their fighting spirit rose accordingly.

None of us knew what name to give to our movement. I then used the term 'passive resistance' in describing it. I did not quite understand the implications of 'passive resistance' as I called it. I only knew that some new principle had come into being. As the struggle advanced, the phrase 'passive resistance' gave rise to confusion and it appeared shameful to permit this great struggle to be known only by an English name.

Again, that foreign phrase could hardly pass as current coin among the community. A small prize was therefore announced in Indian Opinion to be awarded to the reader who invented the best designation for our struggle. We thus received a number of suggestions. The meaning of the struggle had been then fully discussed in Indian Opinion and the competitors for the prize had fairly sufficient material to serve as a basis for their exploration. Shri Maganlal Gandhi was one of the competitors and he suggested the word 'Sadagraha,' meaning 'firmness in a good cause.' I liked the word, but it did not fully represent the whole idea I wished it to connote. I therefore corrected it to 'Satyagraha.' Truth (Satya) implies love, and firmness (agraha) engenders and therefore serves as a synonym for force. I thus began to call the Indian movement 'Satyagraha,' that is to say, the Force which is born of Truth and Love or non-violence, and gave up the use of the phrase 'passive resistance,' in connection with it, so much so that even in English writing we often avoided it and used instead the word 'Satyagraha' itself or some other equivalent English phrase.

This then was the genesis of the movement which came to be known as Satyagraha, and of the word used as a designation for it. Before we proceed any further with our history we shall do well to grasp the differences between passive resistance and Satyagraha, which is the subject of our next chapter.