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In a world
without internet and mobile phones, yet a world of momentous rapid change and
uncertain futures how did people keep up with the news? How did people separated for years from
loved ones, by war and political events, stay in touch with each other? How
were the vast amounts of data handled that informed the machinery of war and
imperial business and the organised resistance thereto?
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Nowadays, when to pick up a telephone puts you
in touch with friends and relatives in the most remote parts of the world and
when TV brings instantaneous news and pictures from virtually anywhere, its
difficult to realise how bad and slow and tenuous communications were in war
time, particularly for the ordinary person. Heaven knows! Communication of
important forces messages was difficult enough, as I know well enough - but
even if we had had the modern facilities we wouldn't have been allowed to use
them because of security. No, for news it had to be English language newspapers
like the ' New Statesman', or blatant propaganda news from the 'Forces
Network'. Private news had to depend on letters - slow and uncertain.
(source: A6665457 TWEEDALE's WAR Part 11 Pages
85-92 at BBC WW2 People's War'
on http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/ Oct 2006)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
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(source: Glenn S. Hensley: Post Office, C015, Calcutta Post Office seen across Dalhousie Square from today's Brabourne Road (Opposite old No. 8 Dalhousie Square) seen at University of Chicago Hensley Photo Library at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/images/hensley as well as a series of E-Mail interviews with Glenn Hensley between 12th June 2001 and 28th August 2001)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced by permission of Glenn Hensley and under a Creative Commons license)
Trams :—Within reach of all trams, except Kidderpore, Alipore and Behala.
Buses :—2A, 3A, 4A, 5, 8, 8A, 13, 14.
Across
the placid waters of a miniature lake in Dalhousie Square stands the General
Post Office, occupying the corner of Koilaghat Street and Dalhousie Square
West, Its majestic dome and graceful pillars, crowned by Corinthian capitals,
give it a dignified appearance worthy of one of the more important public utility
services. The eastern facade is adorned by a large illuminated clock with four
dials, three of which are visible from outside; of these, two indicate Calcutta
Local Time, and the third, facing south, Indian Standard Time.
Built
from the design of Mr. Walter Granville, Architect to the Government of India,
the General Post Office was erected in 1864 on the site of the southern wing of
Old Fort William, at a cost of Rs. 6,50,000/- and opened to the public in 1868.
The General Post Office today is, beyond all doubt, the best organised and most
up-to-date in the East.
There is
much that is profoundly interesting to the visitor in the General Post Office
and the buildings that adjoin it on the north, viz. the Collectorate, the
Customs House and the East Indian Railway House. These four buildings, taken
together, cover the site of Old Fort William, which took 14 years to build, and
was in flames during the siege of Calcutta in 1756. Affixed to the walls are
marble tablets descriptive of outstanding historical events, and brass lines
let into pavements and courtyards, define the boundaries of the vanished
stronghold.
Ascending
the broad flight of steps we enter the rotunda, in the centre of which is a
circular counter where stamps are on sale from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and
from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays and holidays. In the
rotunda are also located the Enquiry Office, the Poste Restante, a counter for
the sale of stamps to the value of Rs. 100/- and upwards, separate boxes for
inland letters and packets, foreign letters and packets, registered newspapers,
and the airmail letterbox.
A
passage to the right of the rotunda leads to the northern wing of the
building, to which access can also be gained from the main road; here directly
in front are the post-boxes for local letters and packets, and inside, the
inland registration and insurance departments. Staircases at either end lead to
the private post-boxes on the upper floor.
A
passage to the left of the rotunda leans to the southern wing of the building,
where the inland parcel, money order, telegraphic money order, postal order,
and savings bank departments are located; while on the upper floor are the
departments dealing with foreign registered letters, Customs assessments and
foreign parcel delivery.
A
descent by a short flight of steps from this wing brings us to Koilaghat
Street. Turning and entering the gate immediately on the right, you are
confronted by a four-storeyed building, on the first floor of which is the
window delivery of inland parcels, and on the second floor the window delivery
of inland registered and insured letters.
The red
brick building on the left accommodates the office of the Presidency
Postmaster, and adjoining it is the office of the Accountant-General, Posts and
Telegraphs (entrance from Koilaghat Street). The office of the
Postmaster-General, Bengal and Assam, is at No. 1 Council House Street.
From To
Reference
and enquiries attended to 7
a.m. 7
p.m.
On
Sundays and Post Office Holidays 12 noon
Poste
Restante 7
a.m. 7 p.m.
On
Sundays and Post Office Holidays 12
noon
Certifitatcs
of posting graded (throughout the year) 7
a.m. 7-30 p.m.
Air
Mail Registered Articles 7
a.m. 4 p.m.
On
Air Mail days 6
p.m.
Registration
of foreign, amd inlaid letters, post-
cards and packets 7
a.m. 5-30 p.m.
With
late fee 6
p.m.
On
Saturdays 4
p.m.
With
late fee 5
p.m.
Inland
parcels received for despatch 10
a.m. 6 p.m.
On Saturdays 2-10
p.m
Foreign
parcels received for despatch l0a.m. 5 p.m.
On
Saturdays 3
p.m.
Insurance
of letters (all classes) 7
a.m. 5 p.m.
On
Saturdays 4p.m.
Insurance
of parcels 10 a.m. 5p.m.
On
Saturdays 2-30 p.m.
Value
payable articles of letter mail received
for
despatch 10 a.m. 5
p.m.
On
Saturdays 4
p.m.
Value
payable articles of parcel mail received
for
despatch 10
a.m. 5 p.m.
On
Saturdays 2-30
p.m.
Money
orders issued 9
a.m. 3 p.m.
On.
Saturdays 1
p.m.
Telegraphic
money orders issued (including
Sundays) 8
a.m. 6 p.m.
Express
telegraphic money orders paid on every
day
of the year 8
a.m. 6 p.m.
Express
telegraphic money orders are received on
every day of the year and subject to the condi-
tions
mentioned in Clause 1 (2) (II) of the Post
and
Telegraph Guide 8
a.m. 6 p.m.
Ordinary
telegraphic money orders are received
on
Post Office holidays which are not also 'Tele-
graphic
holidays’ 8
a.m. 6 p.m.
British
and Indian postal orders paid and sold 10
a.m. 3 p.m.
On
Saturdays 1
p.m.
Savings
Bank business transacted 10 a.m. 3 p.m.
On
Saturdays 1
p.m.
Issue
of Wireless Broadcast Receiver licenses 7 a.m. 6
p.m.
On
Saturdays 5
p.m.
Hours Day
Europe,
Egypt, Palestine, America,
Allahabad, Karachi 8 p.m. Monday. Tuesday,
Wednesday,
Friday,
Saturday
Sudan,
Kenya, Uganda. 8p.m.
Tuesday, Wednesday,
Saturday
French
Guinea. Gold Coast, Ivory
Coast,
Nigeria 8
p.m. Tuesday
East.
South and South-West Africa,.
Mauritius 8
p.m. Wednesday, .Saturday
Cawnpore,
Delhi, Jodhpore 8 p.m. Tuesday, Friday
French
Indo China (Southern)
and
Saigon 6 p.m. Sunday
Northern
and Central Sumatra 8
p.m. Monday, Thursday,
Saturday
Hong-Kong,
China, Japan, Philip-
pines,
Hanoi and North China 8
p.m. Tuesday, Saturday
Ceylon
(By air from Madras) 3
p.m. Daily (except Wednesday
and
Saturday)
Burma,
Siam, Malaya, Dutch East
Indies,
Australia & New Zealand 8 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday,
Saturday
Europe,
America Despatch closes 6-30 p.m. on
Thursday
Australia “ “ 3-00
p. m. on Tuesday
Malaya
and China “ “ 3-00 p.m. on Wednesday
Ceylon “ “ 3-00
p.m. daily (except
“ “ Wednesday)
Burma “ “ 6-00 a.m. on Tuesday,
Friday,
Sunday
Mauritius “ “ 3-00 p.m. on Sunday
When direct mails are
not closed South Africa and Mauritius
mails posted up to 5-45 p.m. are sent to Bombay daily. Japanese
mails posted up to 3-00 p.m. are sent to Colombo
dally.
Rs. A. P.
Letters—Not
exceeding one tola in weight 0 1 0
For
every additional 1 tola or fraction 0 0 6
Book and Pattern
packets—For the first 2 ½ tolas or
fraction
thereof 0 0 6
For
every additional 2 ½ tolas or
fraction 0 0 3
Newspapers—For a weight up to 10 tolas 0 0 3
For
a weight up to 20 tolas 0 0 6
For
every additional 20 tolas or fraction 0 0 6
Parcels—Not exceeding 40 tolas in weight 0 4 0
For
every additional 40 tolas or fraction 0 4 0
All parcels over 5 ½
seers must be registered. No parcel
weighing over 12 ½
seers can be accepted by the Post
Office for transmission.
Registration—The fee
for registration is 3 annas, for each
article to be
registered, whether it is a letter, a postcard,
a book or pattern
packet, a newspaper or a parcel.
Insurance — When the value does nut exceed Rs. 100 0 3 0
When
it excecds Rs.l00 but not Rs. 150 0 4 0
When
it exceeds Rs. 150 but not Rs.200 0 5 0
For
every additional Rs. 100 or fraction
thereof over Rs. 200 and up to Rs. 1000 0 2 0
For
every additional Rs.1100 or fraction
thereof over Rs. 1000 0 1 1
Money Orders—For a sum not exceeding Rs. 10 0 2 0
Exceeding
Rs. 10 up To Rs. 25 0 4 0
On any sum exceeding
Rs. 25, for each complete sum of Rs. 25 the charge is four annas and
four annas for the remainder if it exceeds Rs. 10, otherwise it shall be only two annas.
The amount for which a
single money order may be issued must not exceed Rs. 600.
Indian postal orders starting from annas 8, and rising by steps of 8 annas to Rs.
10, are sold by all head and sub-post offices. The commission charged in respect of each order is 1 anna.
For England
and Countries participating in the Empire Air Mail Scheme
Letters, Printed matter, Business papers and Sample
packets— For every ½ oz. or
fraction thereof 0 2 6
For Burma
Letters—For a weight not exceeding 1 tola 0 1 6
For
every additional 1 tola or part thereof 0 1 0
Post Cards – Single 0 1 0
Printed matter – For the first 5 tolas 0 0 9
For
every additional 5 tolas or part 0 0 6
Newspapers—For every 10 tolas or part 0 0 6
Business papers and Sample packets—For the first 5 tolas 0 0 9
For
every additional 5 tolas or part 0 0 6
For Aden,Ceylon, Nepal and Portuguese India – India Inland rates
For other British Possessions and Protectorates –
Letters
and printed matter-up to 1 oz. 0 2 6
For
every additional 1 oz. or part 0. 2 0
For all Foreign Countries served by the Foreign Post –
Letters—For
a weight not over 1 oz. 0 3 6
For
every additional 1 oz. or part 0 2 0
Printed matter—for every 2oz. or part 0 0 9
Business paper—for a weight nor over 10 oz. 0 3 6
for
every additional 2 oz. or part 0 0 9
Sample packets—for a weight up to 4 oz, 0 1 6
for
every additional 3 or- or part 0 0 9
Parcels—The rate or parcels vary according to their
weights and countries
of destination.
Parcels for England—
For a weight not exceeding 3Ib.{ via Gibraltar 1 8 0
{
via. Overland 1 13 6
For a weight of 7 Ibs. {
via Gibraltar 2 12 0
{
via. Overland 1 1 6
British postal orders for fixed sums from 6d. to £l-1-0
are available for sale to the public at all head and sub-
post offices.
Foreign Rupee Money Orders—
On any sum not
exceeding Rs. 10 0 3 0
Exceeding
Rs. 10 but not exceeding Rs. 25 0 6 0
The procedure on larger sums is the same
as that on
Inland money orders.
On Sterling Money Orders—
On
any sum not exceeding £1 0 4 0
For each additional pound or part up to £5 0 3 0
Above £5, Re. 1 for
each complete sum of £5 and for
the remainder as for
money orders not exceeding £5.
For a postcard 6
pies plus ordinary postage
For a letter or packet One
anna for eachtola or part
thereof
plus ordinary postage
For a money
order One anna in addition to ordi-
nary
commission
For Ceylon and Portuguese India—India
inland rates
For Burma—1
½ annas per tola or fraction,. plus
ordinary postage
For
Letters, Printed matter or Sample packets—
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Rate
per half
ounce
or part
Country of destination thereof
in addi-
tion
to ordinary
postage
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Rs. A. P.
Iraq 0 2 6
Iran (except Western
Iran) and Siam 0 3 0
Iran (Western), China,
Japan, Hedjaz, the Philip-
pines and French Indo China 0 4 0
Netherlands Indies 0 6 0
All countries in
Europe, except Great Britain and
Ireland 0 6 0
United States of America
(excluding internal services) 0 6 0
Do. (including
internal services) 0 10 0
French. Equatorial
Africa, Nigeria and Gold Coast 0 7 0
Countries in Europe
served by India-Greece-Ger-
many service 0 8 0
Portuguese East and
West Africa and Belgian Congo 0 8 0
Bahamas, Costa Rica.
Cuba, Dominican Republic,
El Salvador. Guatemala, Hayti, Honduras,
Jam-
aica, Leeward Islands, Mexico, Nicaragua,
Panama.,
Porto Rico,Trinidad, Virgin Islands and
French
West Indies 0 13 0
Venezuela 1 2 0
Dutch West Indies
(Curacao, Oruba and Bonaire) 1 4 0
Colombia, Equador.
British, Dutch and French Gui-
ana and Peru 1 4 0
Brazil 2 14 0
Argentine, Bolivia,
Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay 3 6 0
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Rs. A. P.
The
Central Telegraph Office is open day and night for
the
despatch of express telegrams, and from 8-30 a.m. to
9-30
p.m. daily (except on Sundays and Holidays) for
ordinary
telegrams.
Express—For the first 8 words or less 1 2 0
For
every additional word 0 2 0
Ordinary—For the first 8 words or less 0 9 0
For every additional word 0 1 0
Charges
for Burma are double those of Inland rates.
Britain and
all places in the British Empire via I.R.C.-
Full rate—per
word 0 13 0
Code
rate—(maximum 5 words)
per word 0 8 6
Deferred rate—(maximum
5 words) per word 0 6 6
Letter Telegrams—(for
25 words or less) 7 0 6
For
every additional word 0 4 6
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with John Barry 1940)
Hello. This is your local APO
saying hello and wishing you "Quick mailing service!" Expect our
cooperation. You will get it. However, casuals at this APO for only a short
time should neither attempt no expect to receive mail. Anyone remaining at this
APO for a sufficient length of time to receive mail should contact the local
Postal Officer. Use only the facilities of the APO for mailing and for money
orders. You will find complete postal services on the ground floor of the
Hindusthan Building. Packages are now limited to a weight of ten pounds - one
per month. Watch the weight of that gift you purchase.
New Service on V-Mail. V-mail may
now be speeded up by using a 6 or .06 air-mail stamp. V-mail bearing air-mail
postage is transmitted on a separate roll. After developing it goes by air in
the States. Remember: All V-mail has to be properly addressed inside and
outside, censored inside and outside, and then sealed before posting.
Local APO Postal Hours.
1. Stamps, parcel post, registry service:
Daily 0815-1200, 1315-1545, Sundays
0900-1300
2. Money Orders:
Daily 0815-1200, 1315-1545, Sundays
0900-1200
Cables. U.S. Military personnel and
civilians who are authorized by the War Dept to use the APO can send a cable to
the U.S., either E.F.M or Sender's Composition Cable, at the office of the Base
Censor, Fourth Floor, Hindusthan Building. Have it censored, pay for it, and
have it filed - all right on the spot.
Orders for Flowers. Anyone desiring to
send flowers to someone in the U.S. can do so through the American Express Co.,
28 Dalhousie Sq.; or they can send a Money Order to a home-town florist and
give him the necessary address and instructions.
(source: “The Calcutta Key” Services of Supply
Base Section Two Division, Information and education Branch, United States Army
Forces in India - Burma, 1945: at:
http://cbi-theater-12.home.comcast.net/~cbi-theater-12/calcuttakey/calcutta_key.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
India
February 9, 1945
Dearest:
Per my usual fashion, when given the
opportunity, I am starting your letter early tonight. That is a good idea in
two ways: first, should I get real busy I'll have had my chat with you; second,
it provides me with a chance to write half a letter to you, spend the evening
accomplishing other objectives, and then finishing your letter with a final
word to you.
About the mail. I received your January 26
letter today, as well as clippings postmarked January 24 and the Miss Somers'
January copy of the NEA mailed January 17. So you did handsomely by me today,
as indeed you did yesterday. My January 29 issue of Time arrived also,
and a carbon copy of a general letter issued by Rhea Burrow. Further, I got
quite a surprise when a heavy package filled with fruit cake, candy, and
cookies came from the Misses Floro and Dorff. It had been sent to my temporary
APO and so had taken a long time in transit - however, the contents were in
excellent shape. I brought some of the items along to eat while CQing tonight.
Now that it is definitely warmer and rain is
threatening, our friendly pests, the bugs, are back. It is interesting to
observe how the bugs change in kind and character from one season to another.
At the moment I am being particularly annoyed by a brown bug, about a half inch
across, through, and deep. It infiltrates through the bamboo lattice works and
goes careening around the room. I've already killed a half dozen of them. The
ever present mosquito is here, but I've seen very few of those small blue bugs.
Just as I was about to write that the huge, inch long, half inch wide beetles
hadn't been seen recently, I heard a buzzing by the door, and sure enough,
there was one, appearing for all the world like an overloaded bomber struggling
through the air.
A moment ago I checked with Capt. Frankel on the
appearance of the OD, or rather his lack of appearance. The Colonel came out of
the door at the same time - and it seems that no one had noticed that there was
no OD. In the meantime (it is 7:45) the Colonel and the Captain have been
missing their supper.
I have a lot of letters that I should tackle,
but I don't feel ambitious tonight. Instead, I think that I'll rather ration
myself - one letter, your clippings, another letter, the NEA Journal, etc.
Okay? See you in a couple of hours, sweetheart.
I've had an evening of excellent fun, inasmuch
as I have done nothing but take my time writing a few letters, reading a
detective book, and poring over your letters. Among the letters which I wrote
was one to Ray and Miriam and when you read the copy which I am sending you, I
hope you do not think me too severe in my dealings with Ray. I really enjoyed
the twitting which I gave him, but I'm not too sure that he will. However, read
his portion of the 1-6-45 V.Mail which they sent me and see if you don't think
that he deserved it. After all, I could have just let my punches fly, instead
of pulling them as I did. In some fashion, though I presume it's folly to try,
I must cure him of that habit of talking down to me. He does it to everyone, I
realize, but it particularly irks me. While I recognize his brilliance I refuse
to concede, on the basis of the evidence which I now have, that he is a better
thinker than I. Furthermore, I know a lot more about a great many more subjects
than he. And when it comes to questions of world policy, I don't consider that
his performance of the past two or three years grants him the slightest right
to even open his mouth. Tsk. (I imagine that I'll continue to split infinitives
right to the bitter end!)
It is now quite late, and I presume that I ought
to say goodnight. There was a slight mixup at the 81st on the OD question, but
one put in an appearance around 8:00. About 10:45 I heard someone open the door
to the Staf room and enter. I was amazed to hear the Colonel's voice asking if
the OD had shown up. Lt. Steegman dropped in for a few moments today. One more
mission, then home for him. He expects to leave about the 20th, he said.
I note that in an earlier paragraph I remarked
about the absence of the little blue bugs. I take it all back. I have killed so
many of them that there is a heap by my desk.
Well, sweetheart, I sent you another big brown
envelope today filled to the brim with letters, service papers, and copies of
my letters. I hope you find it interesting.
All my love to you, cherished one, and I repeat,
what fund to sleep with you.
Goodnight, darling Ritter.
Dick
(Source: page 128 of Elaine Pinkerton (ed.):
“From Calcutta With Love: The World War II Letters of Richard and Reva Beard”
Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press, 2002 / Reproduced by courtesy of Texas
Tech University Press)
Censorship is a necessary evil that actually
amounts to be a blessing in disguise; the general idea is to keep you safe so
that one day you can return to Seventh Heaven. Cooperate - give yourself a
break. Help your censor instead of hindering him. He, in turn, wants to make
those letters interesting (after all, the guy has to read 'em); therefore he
offers instead of the usual list of "Don'ts," a list of
"Do-write-home's."
1. Do write about India and about Indians in a
general way. Write your frank opinions on everything save the war and local
politics.
2. Do write that you were in an air raid. Write
it, "We had an air raid awhile back." Facts aren't allowed; nor are
they necessary to impress the folks back home.
3. Do write with common sense about what you see
and hear in this Theater. Ask yourself, "Would my telling this hinder the
war effort in even the slightest way?" Your own good judgment will cause
the censor's razor blade to grow rusty from lack of use.
4. Do send picture postcards, making sure to
include scenes from several different cities so as to avoid identifying any
certain location.
5. Do send home both notes and coins in small
amounts.
6. Do send home postage stamps up to 10 in
number, however, not disclosing your geographical location at the time.
7. Do send home menus, etc., after cutting out
location and name.
(source: “The Calcutta Key” Services of Supply
Base Section Two Division, Information and education Branch, United States Army
Forces in India - Burma, 1945: at:
http://cbi-theater-12.home.comcast.net/~cbi-theater-12/calcuttakey/calcutta_key.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
As I say, I sent my parents an allowance but I
wrote them very desultorily. I wasnae a great letter writer. They wrote me
pretty regularly. But you got letters from horne in big packs, because it took
weeks and weeks. And generally even the letters from home were censored.
Sometimes it was just a waste o' time. Accordin' to ma folks, they told me some
o' the letters I wrote there was just hardly anything left o' them by the time
they got them, censored, pencil through them, you know.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Ian MacDougall)
Because of the civilian friends I made at
Barrackpore, it may seem that life was fairly comfortable. It could certainly
have been worse - and undoubtedly was at many other more remote RAF stations.
Still, apart from the climate, there were many drawbacks that home based admin
and civilians wouldn't understand. One of the things was loneliness - complete
separation from loved ones - as no home leave and even a lack of knowledge of
where or what people were doing. Mail was erratic and uncertain. I would
estimate that about a third was lost either to enemy action or RAF or P/O
inefficiency. When mail did arrive it was a very major event in our lives even
though the news could be months out of date. We were not even living in a
particularly friendly country. The "Quit India" movement was in full
swing and most people wanted us "out". Not for us the friendly
reception our forces had in Europe, the Middle East, Australia and the American
continent.
(source: A6665457 TWEEDALE's WAR Part 11 Pages
85-92 at BBC WW2 People's War'
on http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/ Oct 2006)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
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This is a telegram sent from my Father, Philip
Gallop, to my mother, Audrey Brown, before they were married.
It reads as follows:
'253 C CW K 4577 Overseas 19 20 1620
LC = Audrey Brown 174 Liverpool Rd Reading
Best wishes for a Happy Xmas, All my love
darling, Philip Gallop.'
It was dated 1943.
(source: A8612967 A Christmas Telegram at BBC WW2 People's War' on http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/
Oct 2006)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
Edgar Baker of TIME-LIFE International, publishers and
distributors of our overseas editions,
returned last week from a six months' business trip to the South Pacific, Malaya and India, where he experienced the
usual quota of unexpected surprises and
contradictions.
In India, for instance, he found that sending telegrams
was a fruitless occupation because the operators were likely to mail the
message to its city of delivery, where another operator retyped it on a telegraph
form—both operators then pocketing the difference.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
There were several
placements in India but for the main part Alfred was stationed in Bengal at
Khargpur, where the remit was to keep the lines of communication open between
Delhi and Calcutta and between Calcutta and Madras. Sections of
the telegraph lines on which the messages were sent were stolen from time to
time by the locals who melted them down and made copper ornaments from them.
Alfred's company had patrols out to prevent the thefts as far as possible
(source: A4103506 Captain Alfred Richardson ISO
JP and his War in India at BBC WW2
People's War' on http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/ Oct 2006)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
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The telephone is so widely used today in almost
every department of life, that we have come to take it for granted and consider
it just a bare fitting to be installed as a matter of course. If we but pause
to dwell on the subject, we cannot but marvel at the ingenuity of its inventor,
and the way the telephone has developed in a scant sixty years. On its
inception it boasted a handful of venturesome subscribers, while today
telephones are numbered in their thousands in all important cities of the
world.
The pioneer of the telephone was Professor
Graham Bell of the United States of America; in 1877 he perfected his
invention, and succeeded in transmitting sound over a length of wire. The
following year he crossed over to England, and demonstrated the practicability
of his invention. Official circles,
however, were sceptical, and it was left to private enterprise to make the telephone
what it is today.
The first page in telephone history was written in 1878, when an exchange was opened in America. A year later London followed suit; but
it was not until 1883 that the first telephone exchange was opened in Calcutta,
with an initial total of 121 subscribers. Progress was slow at the start; it
took seven years to raise the figure to 437, and another ten years to 821.
Howrah was connected in 1884 and Budge-Budge in 1892.
During the Great War the progress of the
telephone suffered a setback owing to Government restrictions. When these were
removed, however, subscribers joined in ever-increasing numbers, till a total
of approximately 15,000 was reached in 1937 ; this number is today nearing 20,000.
In 1921 the Telephone Corporation opened the
Central Exchange at No. 8 Hare Street with an ultimate capacity for 10,000
lines, and later, with a view to relieving pressure on the Central Exchange and
to speed up the service, two exchanges were opened in 1924, one in north
Calcutta, known as "Burra Bazar" and the other in south Calcutta,
called "South," while yet another exchange was opened in 1929 in Park
Circus, known as "Park." Today there are six exchanges spread over
the city with a total of 250 operators.
The amazing development in the Trunk Telephone
System has brought the farthest cNoorners of India within easy reach of
subscribers, whilst the Overseas Telephone Service has made it possible for one
to converse with a subscriber in almost any part of the world.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with John Barry 1940)
The six exchanges are Calcutta, Park Street
(P.K.), Burra Bazar (B.B.), South, Regent and West.
Other exchanges in the Calcutta area are Howrah,
Barrackpore.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with John Barry 1940)
Telephone communication is slow and poor.
Messenger service often is more satisfactory.
(source: “A Pocket Guide to India” Special
Service Division, Army Service Forces, United States Army. War and Navy
Departments Washington D.C [early 1940s]:
at: http://cbi-theater-2.home.comcast.net/booklet/guide-to-india.html)
If Smith spells his name Psmith, that's his
business, but it's a nuisance to telephone companies. The Calcutta phone
company decided last week to take a strong line with variant spellings. Its
trouble was not with Smiths (everybody in Calcutta knew the billboarded Smith
Bros., Dentists) but with Mukerjees. They spelled it Mookerjee, Mookharjea,
Mookarjie, Mocurgey, and a dozen other ways. The Chatterjees and the Bannerjees
also went in for whimsical variations.
Hereafter, each name would be listed only one
way in the phone book. But which way? That was left up to Calcutta University
(which already standardizes its students' names). A faculty board found that
the high-caste ancestors of present-day Mukerjees, etc., had all been imported
from Benares 600 years ago by a Bengali king who wanted to increase the number
of Brahmans in his realm. When the British East India Company came to Calcutta,
the Brahmans' descendants flocked to work as babus (clerks). Their employers
promptly shortened the babus' names and made them more pronounceable for
British tongues.*
The university decreed a return to the
pre-British forms. Mukerjees, Chatterjees and Bannerjees would find themselves
listed as Mukhopadhyaya, Chattopadhyaya and Bandopadhyaya. Anything simpler,
Calcutta nationalists swore, would be a British imperialist corruption.
* An old Sassenach trick. Unable to pronounce
Gaelic names, Edward IV issued an order in 1465 requiring all Irishmen to take
"an English surname of one towne, as Sutton, Chester . . . or art or
science ... or office, as cook, butler." Though the law was generally
ignored, the Irish did find it expedient to Anglicize their names. In the proud
name O Ceallaigh, for example, the O was dropped, hard Irish c became k, the
guttural aigh softened to y; and the result was Kelly. Many Eire patriots are
now reversing the process, with Murphy re-emerging as O Murchadha, and Moriarty
as O Muircheartaigh.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
Said Kunming: "Wai! Wai! Hello!
Hello!"
Said Calcutta: "Hum Calcutta se bolte hein Calcutta
calling!"
For the first time China and India were linked
by telephone last week. U.S. engineers, with British material and Chinese and
Indian labor, had strung the wires, in pace with the construction of the
Stilwell Road, across 1,750 miles of some of the world's toughest jungles and
mountains, made tougher by Japanese gun fire. Said the New York Times:
"Whether or not swift communication makes
for swift understanding one doesn't know. The line may carry angry words. . . .
But the Orient ... is shrinking, and this is one of the shrinkages. ..."
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
Calcutta to
Kunming
Sirs:
Reference is
made to TIME'S [June 25] article on the Calcutta-Kunming telephone line. . . .
Word received here from the India-Burma Theater indicates that TIME'S casual
reference to construction by "U.S. engineers, with British material and
Chinese and Indian labor" has had a detrimental effect on the morale of
some 5,000 U.S. Army Signal Corps men who participated in the project. These
men spent 22 months fighting malaria, monsoons, wild animals, pests, and Jap
snipers to build this vitally important line through 1,700 miles of treacherous
jungle and mountain terrain, and unquestionably deserve a world of credit for a
great job. . . .
In
overcoming tremendous obstacles to build this communications link, which serves
the Stilwell Road, the pipeline and many airfields, these Signal Corps men have
made an important contribution to victory over Japan and certainly should not
be ignored in any discussion of the project.
FRANK E.
STONER
Major
General, U.S.A.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
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Most Indians have a different idea about time
and punctuality from ours. If a man says he will come at 5 o'clock he doesn't
necessarily mean 5 o'clock sharp but within and hour or two of five. If you
instruct a workman to finish a job by Tuesday, he may take it to mean merely
sometime soon. If you want work done on time, you must keep a close check on
the progress of it. All work stops on holidays, which sometimes last for
several days.
(source: “A Pocket Guide to India” Special
Service Division, Army Service Forces, United States Army. War and Navy
Departments Washington D.C [early 1940s]:
at: http://cbi-theater-2.home.comcast.net/booklet/guide-to-india.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
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The Calcutta counterpart of the American
railroad magazine stand. Available are
canes, suitcases, soda water, shopping bags, cigarettes and a hundred other
items peculiar to the Indian taste.
(source:
webpage http://oldsite.library.upenn.edu/etext/sasia/calcutta1947/? Monday, 16-Jun-2003 / Reproduced by courtesy of David N. Nelson,
South Asia Bibliographer, Van Pelt Library, University of Pennsylvania)
(source: Glenn S. Hensley: News sellers, C003, News sellers at the Esplanade seen at University of Chicago Hensley Photo Library at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/images/hensley as well as a series of E-Mail interviews with Glenn Hensley between 12th June 2001 and 28th August 2001)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced by permission of Glenn Hensley and under a Creative Commons license)
Information Channels. Do as you
would in any strange city at home: ASK QUESTIONS. Ask that M.P. coming along
the sidewalk. Or go into any store and you will find a manager or a salesman
who can speak English well enough to direct you. Ask any fellow American
soldier that you chance to meet. For officers, a special information service
has been set up in the Maidan Camp Headquarters, opposite Grand Hotel. For the
best available information on almost any question try:
ARC Cosmos Club - Dalhousie Square
ARC Burra Club - 8 Dalhousie Square ARC Rest
Camp 1 - Lady Brabourne College Continental Services Club - 12 Chowringhee Rd.
Y.M.C.A. - 25 Chowringhee Rd. Information Desk, Hindusthan Building.
(source: “The Calcutta Key” Services of Supply
Base Section Two Division, Information and education Branch, United States Army
Forces in India - Burma, 1945: at:
http://cbi-theater-12.home.comcast.net/~cbi-theater-12/calcuttakey/calcutta_key.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
For one day last week, India was practically
without news. More than 100 of India's newspapers suspended publication in a
one-day hartal (Indian sitdown strike). Only nine major papers appeared.
India's press is a hodgepodge. There are the
British-owned English-language papers: the Calcutta Statesman, the Bombay Times
of India, etc. There are few Moslem papers (some English-language, some
native), like the newly started Delhi Dawn of Obstructionist Mohamed Ali
Jinnah. And there are the liberal, Hindu-owned English-language and
Hindu-language papers, like the Calcutta Amrita Bazar Patrika and the Bombay
Chronicle, that support Mohandas Gandhi. These latter, in the majority, are
always whole-hog for Indian independence.
Before the war all Indian papers were fairly
free; there were restrictions, but the British seldom applied them. When war
came, Indian editors and British leaders agreed: 1) the press would not hamper
Britain's war effort; 2) the Government would permit the papers to go on
demanding Indian independence; 3) as a control, the Government retained the
right to close any obstreperous publication after giving the offending editor
full warning, a second chance. Things worked well until last August, when the
suppression of Gandhi's civil-disobedience campaign culminated in disorders.
Heavy Hand. India's press at once felt Britain's
heavy hand. Papers in Delhi were ordered to limit political trouble stories to
three columns, use headlines not higher than a fifth of an inch over them.
Elsewhere in India news offices were searched, some papers suppressed, some
editors arrested.
India's editors stood it as long as they could,
in late December decided to stage last week's hartal. They also decided to
refuse to print, thenceforth, any unnewsworthy British handouts or the speeches
of any British statesmen. On New Year's Day they failed to publish such routine
news as Britain's annual "honors list." Although the British-owned
Indian papers did not participate, they sympathized; the Calcutta Statesman
offered Indian-owned papers "our good will and . . . mediation. . .
."
Boomerang. Because Britain long encouraged the
teaching of English in Indian schools and colleges, Indians learned to like
their news in English, which explains why so many Indian papers are printed in
English. By watching the British press, Indians long ago learned that an
unfettered press is a steppingstone to freedom. Because they had good British newsmen
as models (Rudyard Kipling joined the Lahore Civil and Military Gazette in
1882), Indians grew up to be Grade A journalists, dialectically skillful,
intensely nationalistic.
The British, faced with a rebellious Indian
press, this week had only to look to the past to see who was to blame. From
Britain herself, Indian editors had learned to value press freedom and to fight
for it.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
P. S. I
wonder how many of TIME'S 20 editions you remember. Seven of them, with 424,727
circulation,
are printed just for our armed forces overseas and are their No. 1 source of
news these
days. You'll find the whole list below.*
* Here are
the 20 editions of TIME, printed on every continent except Antarctica. TIME U.
S. (four
printings) Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Classroom; TIME Canadian; TIME
Air Express
for Latin America (five printings); Export, Mexico City, Bogotá, Buenas
Aires, Sào
Paulo; TIME Overseas (three printings); Export Honolulu, Stockholm; TIME for
the Armed
Forces (seven printings); Pony, Pacific Pony, VMail, Sydney, Calcutta, Teheran,
Cairo.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
By the time
you read this letter, the full election story will have galloped with TIME'S
Pony Edition to our troops in Germany—flown with TIME'S Calcutta Edition to
G.I.s deep in the jungles of Burma and India —reached interned U.S. airmen far
in the north of Sweden through the pages of the Scandinavian Edition we print
behind the German blockade.
We held this
issue open until 4:15 Wednesday afternoon te give TIME'S editors time to weigh
our correspondents' reports, integrate the last-minute news with our stacks of
advance research and write an election report that would be complete and
straight and in perspective. And then it was up to our production and
distribution men to make up for this almost-a-day-and-a-half delay.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
For a long
time now TIME has been perhaps the biggest single importer into the U.S. of a
better understanding of what is going on in other lands. And now that we are
printing TIME each week on every continent—in Mexico City, in Bogota, Sao
Paulo, Buenos Aires, Honolulu, Manila, Sidney, Calcutta, Teheran, Cairo, Rome,
Stockholm and soon Paris—we hope we are also taking our place as perhaps the
most trusted exporter to other lands of a better understanding of America and
the part America is trying to play on the world scene.
In the
vastly complicated ONE WORLD that is emerging from the war, the need for this
sort of understanding among thinking people, alike at home and abroad, may well
prove the greatest need of all.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
WHEN India became free, it was incongruous that
her main domestic news agency, even if staffed almost throughout by Indians,
should remain under non-Indian control, and (though this was not quite so
evidently important) that news coming from abroad, other than that supplied by
newspapers' own correspondents, should not be sifted by Indians so that what
seemed most likely to interest the public here should be given more fully, what
less interesting compressed. The new agreement, the result of much patient
negotiation removes these anomalies. In future, Indian newspapers will, through
the Press Trust, become proprietors of the present Reuters subsidiary company
the Associated Press of India and themselves share in the ownership of Reuters,
a world-wide agency whose facilities for collecting news are thus at India's
service. Indian correspondents will be posted abroad with Reuters'. Reuters
will maintain a special "Indian Desk" through which news coming to
this country will pass, and will distribute abroad news supplied by the Press
Trust in India.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with The Statesman)
During the last four years we have told you a good deal
about the development and growth of our
overseas editions. This week, thanks to an announcement by C. D. Jackson,
vice president of TIME Inc., I can tell
you about their postwar destiny in TIME-LIFE
International, a new division pooling all the international editions of
TIME and LIFE.
At war's end we found ourselves tangled up in the
complications of printing 17 different
international editions of TIME, totaling over 1,000,000 copies a week,
and speeding them to the four corners
of the world. These editions were of every conceivable size, from a V-Mail TIME to a "Pony" edition
(the first miniatured magazine to be sent by fast overseas delivery to our armed forces), to "Colt" sizes
like the Paris edition, and others in
the familiar U.S. TIME size. Some—like our prewar Air Express edition to
Latin America and the edition we began
in Sweden in 1943—carried their own advertising and served our English-reading subscribers around the earth. But most
of them—like the editions printed in
Honolulu, Australia, Calcutta—served military needs only.
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non
commercial educational research project. The copyright remains with Time Magazine)
Newspapers. To keep yourself
orientated on the latest news from the war fronts try The Statesman, The Amrita
Bazar Patrika, and The Hindusthan Standard newspapers in the morning and The
Star of India in the evening.
The Roundup. The Roundup is the
weekly newspaper published by and for the Military Personnel in India-Burma
Theater - distributed free of charge to all installations in the Base Section.
If it's news you want (excellent maps and new analysis), if it is information
you seek, or if you merely desire some good reading material to pass away the
time, the Roundup is your Number One bet. It appears every Thursday morning;
and with unfailing regularity its small yet highly efficient staff gives you a
newspaper that you can be proud to call your own. It is published for you, it
is yours. Get your copy at your own camp, or see one in town at one of the
clubs you visit. Pre-censored for mailing home.
(source: “The Calcutta Key” Services of Supply
Base Section Two Division, Information and education Branch, United States Army
Forces in India - Burma, 1945: at:
http://cbi-theater-12.home.comcast.net/~cbi-theater-12/calcuttakey/calcutta_key.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
VU2ZU Calling. VU2ZU calling at
1355 on the dial! You Yanks in Base Section No. 2 not only have a great
newspaper of your own, but you also have a modern and complete radio station
serving you and the Allied Forces in the I-B Theater. With two small,
well-equipped studios and a large auditorium for producing live shows, and now
operating on 1000 watts, VU2ZU is now Big Time. Sound-proofed walls, indirect
lighting, heavily carpeted floors - it's worth anyone's visiting just to take a
look.
Listening In. Much of the
broadcasting time is and will continue to be devoted to transcribed programs fresh
from the States. But live shows featuring you and your buddy are one of the
main factors in entertaining you. Daily summaries of the news will be augmented
by important news flashes that will be broadcast throughout the day. Sports
events, important ceremonies, etc., will continue to receive spot covering.
Consult the Radio Station for weekly radio programs, keep tuned in for late
happenings, or when in Command town visit the studios to look them over and, if
you wish, to participate with the audience in live shows. For any program
requests, write or telephone to the Station Director, Station VU2ZU, located in
Rest Camp No. 1 of Base Section No. 2.
(source: “The Calcutta Key” Services of Supply
Base Section Two Division, Information and education Branch, United States Army
Forces in India - Burma, 1945: at:
http://cbi-theater-12.home.comcast.net/~cbi-theater-12/calcuttakey/calcutta_key.html)
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial
educational research project. The copyright remains with the original
submitter/author)
Muslim journalism
in Bengal cannot be said to be in its infancy. But it does not appear to be a
force to reckon with. This is not without reason Muslim journalists have got to
work under serious disadvantages.
Administration,
commerce and industry being the main sources of patronage that supply the
financial sinews of the press of a country and the Muslims being practically
non-existent in all of them, Muslim journalism simply cannot thrive.
Therefore, we find,
during the last half-a-century, Muslim newspapers came out in large numbers but
all of them died prematurely in quick succession.
The Khilafat
movement gave the Mussalmans a rude shake-upage As a result Muslim journalism
made several attempts with renewed vigour to come to life.
The Daily
"Sevak" and the Daily "Mohammadi" of Moulana Md Akram Khan,
the Daily "Sultan" of Moulana Islamabadi, Daily "Navajug"
of Maulvi AK Fazlul Haq, Daily "Taraqqi" of Sir AH Ghaznavi, the
Daily "Mussalman" of the late Maulvi Mujibur Rahman and "Muslim
Standard" of Sir Abdur Rahim are instances of this attempted renaiscence.
All these attempts in their turn also failed chiefly due to the above-mentioned
handicaps.
All this, no doubt,
is a tragic history so far as success is concerned but none the less it is a
glorious chapter in the history of journalistic as well as of political
renaiscence of Muslim Bengal. The hollowed names of Munshi Reazuddin Ahmad,
Munshi Shaikh Abdur Rahim and Maulvi Mujibur Rahman of revered memory and those
of Moulana Md Akram Khan, Moulana Maniruzzaman Islamabadi and Moulana Ruhal
Amin will be written in letters of gold in the history of Muslim journalism.
During this period
of apparent unsuccess, weeklies, bi-weeklies, tri-weeklies and dailies have
come and gone. Some of them were political extremists, some were moderates ;
some of them were pro-Congress, some were anti-Congress ; some of them were
Nationalist, some were communist. The same paper was sometimes this, sometimes
that ; the same paper had developed now conviction and changed sides.
But nobody minded
it, for like other communities, the Muslim community itself has, and have
divergent political groups in her womb. It is neither unnatural, no desirable.
on the contrary, it is a sign of life in a community.
Muslim Out and Out
But in spite of
these political differences, they all had one common characteristic: they were
all Muslim concerns, with a clear Muslim tone speaking in a distinct Muslim
language. With a clear Muslim tone speaking in a distinct Muslim language.
Occasional help from Hindu friends and well-wishers and patronage from
Government had never interfered with their Muslim colour and character, nor
have they ever sabotaged their independent growth as Muslim institutions.
But the time has
changed. With the introduction of provincial autonomy, some of the
disadvantages artificially created for the Mussalmans have been removed.
They have been
given at least theoretically, some political powers. This transfer of political
power having had a democratic process, Muslim masses also are having to play
their parts in this renaiscence. A thrill of life has shaken their slumbering
lifeless body-politic. A sign of awakening is clearly visible here, there,
everywhere.
Now, the Press
being the "Fourth Estate" according to the universally-accepted
modern political theory, the Mussalmans are naturally looking up to the growth
of an adequate number of newspapers to help and supplement their political
regeneration.
Not only is it a
national necessity but also the time is rife and the soil is also ready. The
newspaper-reading public in the community has in recent years considerably
grown in size. A large number of working journalists, as distinguished from
proprietor journalists, have grown upage Highly educated Muslim young men are ready
to rush in the financially risky profession of journalism in preference to a
safe berth in the Provincial Service. They seem to have realised that the
future of their great community will have to be hammered out and built on the
anvil of the national press rather than in the bench and the bar.
This is therefore
the proper time and opportune moment for the Muslim financiers to start Muslim
dailies both in Indian languages and English, which are bound to be politically
powerful and commercially lucrative.
Slow process
But the process is
a bit too slow for no other reason than that the number of moneyed men amongst
the Bengalee Muslims is not large. The result is that, in a country like Bengal
(including Bengali-speaking part of Assam) with a Muslim population of forty
million, we have got only one Bengali daily the "Azad" and only one
English evening daily, the "Star of India". They are undoubtedly
doing yeomen's service to the Muslim community both in giving them political
training and in fighting for their rights and privileges. But for a population
of forty million of whom at least two to three million are literate enough to
read newspapers, one Bengali daily and one English daily are by no means
adequate. Both for healthy political education and for profitable commercial
avocation, there ought to be at least two to three English and four to seven
Bengali dailies run, managed and edited by Mussalmans themselves. For a
community, which have got the democratic right to rule Bengal, to have no more
than one Bengali and one English Daily, is a matter of great shame. This state
of affairs cannot go on for any length of time, Muslim Bengal is bound to have
a rich, powerful and profitable Press of its own in no time.
This opportune
moment in the journalistic and consequently in the political and commercial,
life of Muslim Bengal, may have, for the present, been overlooked by the Muslim
leaders and moneyed men, but it has not escaped the hawks eye of some
non-Muslim commercial adventurers. Just as the cow-worshipping Marwaris are
merrily making money out of dealing in hide of the "mother-cow" just
as the Islam-hating non-Muslims are merrily making money out of printing and
selling the Holy Quran ; in the same self-same manner, some non-Muslim
businessmen of Calcutta have taken it into their hands to make money by running
"Muslim Dailies".
This is to say the
least, a positive menace to the growth of Muslim journalism in Bengal. This is
sabotaging the political training of the Muslims. This is simple burglary into the
commercial and industrial interests of the Muslims. How this is working, I
shall describe in a moment from my very recent personal experience.
Recent experience
During recent years
we have made in co-operation with some Muslim gentlemen of position and
eminence several attempts to run a Bengali Muslim Daily. on each occasion our
attempt failed not because the paper did not go, but because Non-Muslim
commercial adventurers had butted in, conspired and driven us out. These papers
are still going on masquerading as "Muslim Papers" blazoning for non
Muslim names as editors or " directors", but Hindu writers running
the roost. They have driven us out, and with us and our Muslim colleagues,
alleging that we were not sufficiently non-communal; but strangely enough, we
have been replaced, not by abler and more non-communal Muslim hands but by
Hindu hands. This has converted overnight a Muslim paper into a Hindu paper.
How we fell prey into the traps laid by these unscrupulous commercial
adventurers, is another story ; but, in order to avoid misunderstanding, it may
be mentioned here that in starting those papers avowedly with the object of
preaching non-communal politics, we had thankfully accepted financial help from
Hindu friends. We found nothing objectionable in accepting financial help from
our Hindu brethren in starting a Muslim newspaper, just as we find nothing
objectionable in accepting financial aid from our Hindu brethren in starting a
Maktab, a Madrassa or an Etimkhana, or any other Muslim institution.
"Dummy"
editors
In consequence, we
now find "Muslim Dailies" run by non-Muslims, edited by non-Muslims
and even composed and printed by non-Muslims, only bearing Muslim names as
editors. This is deception pure and simple played upon the Muslim community. People
have heard of political "show-boys". The epithet is certainly apt in
the case of Muslim leaders of the Congress ; but here in Bengali journalism we
have got "show-boys" as "Muslim editors".
This is dishonesty
from top to bottom ; for it is cheating both the reading public and the
advertisers.
Financially
speaking this is nothing short of burglary into the commercial and industrial
interests of the Mussalmans.
Politically
speaking it is simply defrauding the Muslim public. Needless to say, our Hindu
friends have got the natural and democratic right to openly appeal to their
Muslim countrymen towards any ideal they themselves like and adopt. What we
strongly object to is this unjournalistic subterfuge and political deception.
It is inimical to the wider interest of the country.
The Press has got a
sacred duty to perform. The Muslim Press is no exception. It must not therefore
be allowed to become a gambling place for non-Muslim […]
(source ‘Star of India’, Calcutta,
23.06.1942, page 06)
In the
dining hall we were arranged by classes, the Senior Cambridge nearest the top
end, then two lines of tables of ten, all the way down to Standard Three, near
the doors to the kitchen. The Prefects (aka The Oppressors) had their own table
on a raised platform, and among their perks was toast instead of bread at
breakfast, and newspapers to read. It was a constant criticism from the masses
that our un-elected leaders always read the sports pages before the headlines
on page one. Our point was that we were in the middle of World War Two, and we
felt the happenings in North Africa, Burma and the Pacific Islands were more
important than batting averages. Truthfully, we were just upset that they had
toast!
(COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Reproduced under 'fair dealing' terms as part of a non commercial educational
research project. The copyright remains with John Gardiner)
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