Chapter 44 Chapter 17 Settling in Natal

In 1893, Hazi Muhammad Hazi Dadasay was considered the most popular leader of the Indian diaspora in Natal.In terms of economics, Abdullah Hazi al-Dansay was the leader among them, but in public affairs, he and others always gave the first place to Hazi Mohammad Sai.So a meeting was called at Abdullah Sai's home, presided over by him, and it was decided to object to the electoral law. Volunteers are registered.Indians born overseas in Natal, mostly young Christians, were invited to the meeting.Mr. Paul, Interpreter of the Durban Court, and Mr. Suban Godfrey, Headmaster of a missionary school, were present, and they were responsible for bringing to the meeting a large number of young Christians, all of whom had volunteered to register as volunteers.

Naturally, many local businessmen have registered, among which Daoud Mohammad Sai, Mohammad Kasan Khamruddin Sai, Adanji Miyehhan Sai, A Kolandaviru Pi Rai, Si Rachirang, Rangesami Bhatiazi and Ahmad Zihua.Bashi Rostunji was included, of course.The clerks were Manikji, Joshi, Nassinghrang, gentlemen, employees of Dada Abdullah & Co. and other big firms.They were all surprised and delighted to find themselves sharing a share of public work.It was the first time in their lives that they were invited to participate in this kind of work like this.Facing the suffering suffered by the entire overseas Chinese group, all the differences between high and low, high and low, master and servant, Hindus, Muslims, Zoroastrians, Christians, Gujarats, Madrasians, Sindhis, etc. Forgot.All people are like sons and daughters and servants of the motherland.

The bill has passed or is about to pass its second reading.From what was said in the discussion, the fact that no Indians objected to this unreasonable bill was taken as proof that they were not worthy of the franchise. I explained the situation at the meeting.The first thing we did was send a telegram to the Speaker of Parliament asking him to postpone further discussion of the bill.The same telegram was also sent to Sir John Robinson, then prime minister, and Mr Eskambi, a friend of Dada Abdullah.Our hearts were cheered by the prompt reply of the Speaker, who promised to postpone the bill for two days.

A petition to be presented to the Legislative Assembly has been drawn up.This had to be written in three copies, and one more to be sent to the press. The petition had to get as many signatures as possible, and all of this had to be done overnight.Volunteers who understand English and several other people engaged in an overnight.There was an old man named Mr. Arthur who was in charge of transcribing the original copy because of his good calligraphy.The remaining copies were read by one person and written by several people, so five copies were written at the same time.Some merchant volunteers rode in their own carriages, and some hired carriages at their own expense and went out to solicit people's signatures on the petition.The job was quickly completed and the petition sent out.

Several newspapers carried the petition with favorable reviews.The petition also made an impression in Parliament and sparked discussion.A defense of the original motion, apparently feeble, was provided by prejudiced persons against the arguments presented in the petition.Yet the bill was passed.We all expected this to be the inevitable result, but the excitement caused by it injected new vitality into the overseas Chinese group, and brought them a firm belief: the Indian overseas Chinese group has been united as one, and it is impossible. It is their unshirkable responsibility to fight for the political rights and the right to do business of this overseas Chinese group.

Lord Lee Penn was at this time the British Secretary of State for the Colonies.It was decided to send him a big petition.This task is not small, nor can it be completed in a day.We enlisted some more volunteers, all of whom shared some of the work. I have put a lot of effort into drafting this petition.I have read all the books I can get on the subject. My argument centers around one principle and one expedient.I propose that we should have a suffrage in Natal, as we have a suffrage in India as well.I appeal to the retention of this suffrage as an expedient measure, since the number of Indians who can exercise it is, after all, a minority.

In less than half a month, 10,000 people signed the petition.It was not an easy job to get so many signatures across the province, especially since the people doing the job were all inexperienced.We selected a few able volunteers especially for the job, because it was decided that the signer should not be compelled to sign the petition unless he had full knowledge of it.Some villages are scattered over great distances.The work can be done quickly only by a group of men who put their hearts and souls into the work.And they did.All of them actively performed the tasks assigned to them.Today, as I write these lines, the images of Daoud Muhammad Sai, Rosdunji, Adanji Meyyakhan and Ahmad Zihua come to my mind clearly again.They got the most signatures.Daoud Sai was running around in his carriage all day long.And it was all a labor of love, no one ever asked for any expenses.Dada Abdullah's house became at once a center of human circulation and a public office.I had a group of educated friends who helped me with my work, and a lot of people ate there.So each helper costs a fortune.

The petition was finally delivered.We printed a thousand copies and distributed them.It brought to light for the first time the situation of the Natal Indians.I am sending this petition to every newspaper and publishing house I know. The Times of India strongly supported the Indian demands in an editorial on the petition.We also sent several petitions to various party publications and publishers in the UK.The Times of London backed our demands, and we began to have some hope that the Bill would be defeated. It was now impossible for me to leave Natal.Indian friends surrounded me from all directions and asked me to stay for a long time.I express my difficulty.I have made up my mind to live independently of public expenditure.I feel the need to stand on my own.I think there should be a good house in a good location.I have another thought: Unless I'm living the life of a usual lawyer, I'm not going to increase the trust of expatriates.And I don't think it's possible to maintain such a facade without £300 a year.I therefore decided that I would only be able to stay if the Indian community guaranteed me a minimum of legal work, and I informed them of this decision.

"However," they said, "we'd rather have you raise that money for your public work, and we can raise it easily. Of course that's in addition to what you're entitled to from your private lawyer's work." "No, I can't take your money for public work." I said, "This kind of work doesn't take much talent from a lawyer. My job is mainly to mobilize you all to participate. So how can I count your money for it?" What's more, in the future I'll be asking you for donations for this kind of work, and if I'm depending on your donations for my living, I'll find it inconvenient to solicit large sums from you, and we'll find ourselves immobilized in the end And besides, I want the Overseas Chinese Society to raise more than £300 a year for public work?"

"But we've known you for quite some time, and we're sure you don't want anything you don't need. And if we want you to stay here permanently, shouldn't we pay for your expenses?" "You say this because of your love and your immediate enthusiasm. How can we be sure that this love and enthusiasm will last forever? And as your friend and servant, I will complain to you at any time. I will have your favor. However, I cannot accept any salary from you for public service. You have all agreed to entrust your case to me, which has a lot of confidence in me. Although this will add a lot of difficulties to you. .Since I am neither a white lawyer, how can I be sure that the court will agree to me? Besides, I am not sure what my luck is as a lawyer. So even if you hire me as legal counsel, you may have to take risks. Take a risk. Since you support me, I certainly regard this fact as my reward for my services.” As a result of this discussion, some twenty businessmen hired me as their legal counsel for a period of one year.In addition, Dada Abdullah purchased the necessary furniture for me with the money he intended to send me off.In this way, I settled down in Natal.