Finally : we must bear in mind that when the oppressive canal rates in the Chenab colony were rescinded, there was considerable abatement of resentful feeling. Even Lord Morley was strongly of opinion that these taxes gave rise to grave discontent.
In reference to his other activities, Laj pat Rai may, without any exaggeration, be called the soul of the Arya Samaj. Though it has not fallen to his lot to be a whole-time worker like Principal Hans Raj of the D.A.V. College, Lahore, or Mahatma Munshi Ram of the Gurukul at Hardawar, he has organised numerous branches of the Arya Samaj ; collected funds for the college and general propaganda work ; delivered courses of lectures and generally infused a new spirit of earnestness and social service among the educated young Arya Samajists. During the famines of 1897-1898, and 1899-19o0, Lajpat Rai, at considerable personal risk and inconvenience, organ ised a famine relief party and administered relief to at least 1,700 distressed Hindu orphans in Raj putana, Kathiawar, parts of Bombay and the Central Pro provinces. The first orphanage at Ferozepur, opened under the auspices of the Arya Samaj, and in healthy rivalry to Christian mission ary organisations, was established principally at the suggestion of Lajpat Rai. Appeals issued on behalf of the Hindu Orphan Relief movement were generally responded to, by all sects and castes of Hindus.
As a direct sequel to these philanthropic activities, numerous orphanages were established in various parts of the Punjab, new industries were started for the benefit of the famine-stricken, and young college graduates offered their services most gener ously, bore the chief burden of responsibility, taking considerable risks and accepting no remuneration. The philanthropic work referred to was not confined to famine relief, but included medical relief. It gained from the Government recognition as an organised movement with definite aims and a high standard of efficiency and success to its credit.
Further it brought together the normally divergent sects and creeds and threw the upper classes and the poor people together. Mr. Lajpat Rai in his pub lished report of the Arya Samaj's relief work makes the following significant statement : " But still more blessed are those who paid for their own bread and did not spend even a pie of public money on their own food. Personally, my gratefulness to them is beyond words. They have earned the ever lasting gratitude of their people by setting such a good and noble example of self-sacrifice to the other members of the rising generation. Let us hope that
these services are an earnest of what may be expected of them in the future. This record of their work is a bright ray in the sunshine of Hindu revival, to which we all look with hope and pleasure " (" Arya Samaj : an Indian Movement," p. 218).
Even on his return from the now historic deporta tion, Lajpat Rai did not relax his philanthropic efforts. To quote from Lajpat Rai's own account of his work.
" Famine Relief in 19°8.
" In 1908, however, the movement was expanded and general relief was aimed at. The following extracts from the Census Report of the United provinces of Agra and Oude will give some idea of the extensive scale on which work was done during the famine : " The emissary of a well-known Arya leader came round distributing relief during the famine of 19o7-8 and visited a certain village near which I had encamped. After his visit, the recipients of his bounty, being not quite sure whether they were doing right in accepting private charity, when Government was looking after them, sent a deputation to ask me whether they might keep his gifts. I, of course, told them to take all they could get ; and then their leader asked me who was the man (the Arya leader) who was distributing money in this wholesale way." (cf. " The Arya Samaj : an Indian Movement," by Lajpat Rai, pp. 218-219).
Since his deportation, he has once been on a political mission to this country in the company of Messrs. Jinnah, Bhupendra, Nath Busu, the late G. K. Gokhale and others.
Mrs. Annie Besant pays him the following compliment : " Laj pat Rai is a whole-hogger ' in his political attitude, impatient of compromise and not heedful of questions of detail. It is difficult to satisfy him with illusory schemes of mere tinkering reforms, since he is a shrewd, hard-headed thinker, not easily carried away by sentiment, unless it be love for the mother-land." The writer's own impression about Laj pat Rai's speeches is that they breathe out sin cerity and the spirit of self-reliance, but they lack dignity and balance. They arouse high spirits among friends, but only bitter animosity in the hearts of critics. He lacks the tact, the power of appeal to the generous and chivalrous emotions of his critics that was so eminently shown in Gokhale, and which won for the latter numerous converts even from the ranks of stout opponents.