HIRALAL GANDHI'S LETTER.
Dear Shyam Babu,
The arrest of Mr. Das, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and others fills me with both grief and joy. My duty, I am sure, is now clear. I am offering myself for arrest this evening. I was about to leave for Bombay in a day or two to be with my dear mother and children after a long absence from them. I however, feel that in Bengal, where with my Bengali friends I have shared in their pleasures and very little in their pains and amongst whom I have earned my bread and butter, lay my duty. At this juncture therefore, I cannot leave the spot. If I am mistaken, my Ba and Babu, I have no doubt, will forgive me.
The Government say we defy them as enemies. I beg to differ. Our courting imprisonment, in my humble opinion, is only by way of humble protest against the manifold grievances the existence of which no one can truthfully deny.
Adieu to all my beloved friends and well wishers.