14 JUNE 1930, Page 15

[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] Sm,—May I congratulate the

Spectator on publishing Dr. Rabindranath Tagore's eloquent appeal to idealism as the only basis- on which British-Indian relations can be put on a satisfactory footing

I do not think you are altogether justified, however, in • stating that Dr. Tagore " misunderstands the aim of the British 'Empire in India," for in his article he frankly states that " our sufferings would have been terribly greater under any imperialistic rulers other than the British." Surely, this autumn, if the best minds in Great Britain and India can be brought to bear on the problem of working out a satisfactory scheme of Indian self-government within the British Commonwealth, the task should not prove insuperable. In the meantime contributions like Dr. Tagore's are very help- ful in enabling us in Great Britain to see things from the Indian standpoint.

What a relief it is to turn to the columns of the Spectator after reading the articles now appearing in certain widely circulating daily papers in this country which approach the problem of India from the standpoint of Great Britain's profit