The Bertrand Russell Society Quarterly

a philosopher’s hope: letter to time magazine ^[*]

Introduction by Ray Perkins, Jr.

Russell’s involvement in India’s struggle for civil liberty and national independence has gone largely unnoticed by all his official biographers, even though Russell was Chair of the India League in London during the 1930s and penned five letters to the Manchester Guardian in support of Indian social reforms and in general sympathy with the aspirations of Gandhi’s National Congress Party. While in the US during World War Two Russell continued to concern himself with Indian politics and wrote five more letters to the editor during the war. ^[1]

At the time of this letter to Time Magazine, the Cripps’ mission had been initiated by Churchill to secure Indian cooperation in the war in exchange for Indian independence at the war’s end. But negotiations broke down, and Gandhi’s demand for immediate independence and British withdrawal from India led to his arrest in August. Russell had already expressed disapproval of Gandhi’s position in a letter to The New York Times in early August. ^[2]

In this letter, to my knowledge not published in full since its initial appearance in Time Magazine, Russell compliments Time’s account of Indian events, explains the rationale for the British position and expresses his hopes that a compromise may be yet reached.

PHILOSOPHER’S HOPE

Time Magazine
September 28, 1942

Sirs, I have read with much interest the account of Indian events and persons in Time, Aug. 24. I admire the impartiality with which highly controversial matters are treated. I deplore the present conflict in India, but I do not think it would be possible, as the Congress party demanded, to hand over the Government to a professedly representative collection of Indians hastily assembled in the middle of a war, and bitterly at odds among themselves on many important questions. Apart from the difficulties necessarily involved in a change while a Japanese invasion is imminent, the replies to Sir Stafford Cripps made clear that a British withdrawal now would leave India in chaos and anarchy, if not actually in civil war, which would result in an easy conquest of India by Japan.

I still hope that a compromise may be reached, perhaps by the British Government inviting suggestions from commissioners appointed by the Governments of the United States, the U.S.S.R. and China, such suggestions to be made after conference with Indian leaders. Such articles as yours are extremely useful in helping American readers to understand the very complex problems involved.

Bertrand Russell

Malvern, Pa.

NOTES

^[*] Reprinted with the permission of the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation.

^[1] See Yours Faithfully, Bertrand Russell, pp. 182-90.

^[2] Yours Faithfully, pp. 182-83.