Chapter one - On board the ship s.s. Persia.

On 9 June 1906, I boarded the ship s.s Persia at Bombay to travel to London.
Very soon, the ship left the shores of India. My friends and relations had gathered to see me off. I could no longer see them. I said to myself, “How sorry I am to say good bye to them. Is it possible that I will return to India in three years time and meet them again?” The ship gathered speed. The seashore could not be recognised any more. I was still looking at the direction of the shore. But the other passengers, who had also seen off their relatives, had already moved on and were busy finding their rooms and arranging their bags. Most of them were Europeans or Anglo-Indians. Some were returning to England with their families. All of them seem to be used to sea travel.
 
There were some who were travelling for the first time, but they were with their friends. They were happy and were laughing. But for me it was my first travel over such a long distance and I had no friends with me. In those days very few Hindus travelled abroad and Europeans looked down on Indians as ‘Natives’.
I could feel this contempt in their eyes. It was the first time; I faced a crowd of Europeans alone.
 
I soon realised that I must find where my room was, but whom should I ask? All the staff, white and black were busy in looking after the European passengers. No one was bothered about me. Eventually I found courage to approach a European officer. I showed him my ticket and asked how I should find my cabin. Luckily he was employed by my travel agents, Thomas Cook and Sons. It was his job to deal with such requests. He realised that I was travelling for the first time. He said, “Here is my assistant. He will help you.” The assistant was from Goa and he took me to my cabin. As I entered the cabin, I saw a young Sikh, some three years younger than me, who was busy arranging his bags. He was smart, with fair complexion and wearing a turban. He asked me, “Are you Mr Savarkar?” I said Yes and he was delighted. He said, “I was waiting for you. There are places for two passengers in this cabin. This is mine that that one is yours. I am so delighted that my companion is Indian. But the time was passing by and I wondered if you had changed your mind. I am travelling for the first time by sea. There are two or three Punjabis, but they have their cabins further down. I am so delighted that you are Mr Savarkar.”
 
When faced with staying away from our kith and kin in a foreign land, one feels isolated and sad. However, when we meet a fellow countryman, how delightful the meeting becomes. I said to the Sikh youth, “I am also delighted to make acquaintance with you. What is your name?”
He said, “Harnamsingh.”
 
Over the next two to three days we met those Punjabis mentioned by Harnamsingh. There were also a few more Indians and soon we formed a small group of about ten. Rameshchandra Dutta, well-known retired ICS officer was also travelling in the same ship, but in First class. The readers are going to come across the name of Harnamsingh hereafter. I therefore give some details about him.
 
Harnamsingh was born in a respected Sikh family near Amritsar. He lost his father at young age. His mother loved him dearly and got him married by the age of eighteen. He soon passed his B A examination. Maharaja of Nabha state was impressed by Harnamsingh and decided to send him to England to become a Barrister. He offered him suitable scholarship for the studies. In those days, there were hardly any Sikh Barristers. Many Sikhs felt that Harnamsingh would not only become rich but also become a boon for the Sikh society. They therefore heartily supported the idea of Harnamsingh going to England. But his mother? She had no other children. She was worried stiff – my boy is going to stay in England for three or four years, how will he manage? How can I stay without him for so long? She said, “ You become a lawyer here. We are not short of money, even if you do not work. What is the need for going overseas?” Moreover, most people considered going overseas as objectionable, a dangerous adventure. In the end, a few respected men suggested that Harnamsingh should come home once a year and his scholarship should be increased accordingly. The mother agreed grudgingly. We will see later what happened in reality.
 
Among my fellow travellers I must mention one person in particular (later on Savarkar called him Mr Etiquette). He was a rich youth from Punjab, aged about thirty. He had travelled to Europe many times. He, like many others, had adopted western way of life and as a result, people like him felt that they were equal to foreign rulers. So, even at home he behaved as if he was an Englishman. Maharaja Shinde of Gwalior has named his son as George. In Bengal and Madras, people styled their surnames to sound like English ones like Ray. Thus, for example, Chattopadhya became Chatterjee, Bandopadhya became Banerjee. Fathers were called Papa, Mothers became Mummy. Though this person on our ship had not been anglicised to that extent, he felt that unless our people and especially students adopt European customs and manners in dress, having lunches and dinners, even going to the extent of smoking a pipe and drinking; we would not be considered as equal to Europeans. He and many of his age sincerely felt the same. Many Indian students who had gone to England for the first time were also of the same opinion.