28, Rue de la Tourelle, Boulogne sur Seine. - The money that Trevelyan has so kindly sent will enable Suhrawardy to come over to England. Has received some news from India which may develop into something good; will tell Trevelyan about it when they see each other. Is delaying his departure in order to travel with an uncle who is a member of the Indian branch of the Simon Commission [Abdullah al-Mamun al-Suhrawardy]. Cannot accept the Trevelyan's kind offer of hospitality, as he will need to be at the British Library every day, but would be happy to visit whenever is convenient; hopes to spend two months in England. Wonders whether he could get a job with the Simon Commission, and will ask Sir Sankaran Nair: this would give him enough money to stay in England. Will stay with the same friends as last year. Madame Germanova sends her regards. Met [Cyril] Connolly by chance; found him 'nice but very volatile'.
Has instructed the Home Department to send Montagu a daily summary of events. With regard to martial law in parts of the Punjab, open rebellion in two districts made it imperative that he should give powers to deal drastically with the situation; but he has modified the 1804 regulation so as to preclude the possibility of sentences being passed by young and inexperienced military officers. The situation is grave but not critical; their military arrangements are ‘admirable’ and they are determined to restore law and order. Gandhi appears to have been greatly shocked by events at Ahmedabad, and has expressed to the Commissioner of the Division his determination to obey Government orders. Rioters at Ahmedabad and Amritsar have suffered heavily. In the Punjab looters played a prominent part. Will today issue a resolution of the Government of India, with the assent of Sankaran Nair, stating their determination to restore law and order, and use the powers vested in them, however drastic, to do so.
(Carbon copy.)
Government House, Madras. - 'Their Excellencies' [John Sinclair, 1st Baron Pentland, Governor of Madras, and his wife Lady Marjorie Sinclair] would be pleased if Trevelyan could join them 'at luncheon tomorrow... at 1.30 and at dinner on Monday 13th at 8 o'clock'.
Written in pencil below in Trevelyan's hand: 'C Sankaran Nair, Poondmalee Rd'
Refers to his official telegram of the 16th for the resolutions of the Bombay conference, which he does not think worthy of consideration, as they are merely the views of Gandhi. Lloyd reports that the conference was a fiasco, and that only about twenty would sign the resolutions. Malaviya has arrived, but Reading has postponed seeing him till after this evening’s debate on the matter in the Legislative Assembly. Vincent and Sapru are the chief speakers for the Government, whose view is that the terms put forward are impossible. Sir C. S. Nair, who presided over the first two days of the conference, is convinced that Gandhi only wanted a conference in order to obtain his own ‘irreducible terms’. Gandhi’s irreconcilable attitude is, Reading thinks, a tactical mistake, as it has estranged men who were momentarily inclined to join him. Moreover, the Bombay conference has for the present destroyed all notions of a round-table conference, which was the preferred course of the moderates. He continues in his view that no conference can be considered without assurances that non-co-operationists will cease unlawful activities, and that Gandhi will give no such assurance.
(Cuttings from a larger document, pasted to a sheet of paper.)