१८५७ का स्वातन्त्र्य समर (वीर विनायक दामोदर सावरकर - अंग्रेजों द्वारा छपने से पूर्व प्रतिबन्धित महाग्रन्थ)

BENARES AND ALLAHABAD
police station. And while the town and the fort were
thus involved in the flames of Revolution, all the Sepoys
and the citizens saluted it !
Almost at the same moment, the whole province of Allaha-
bad rose like one man ! Everywhere, things were altered
so quickly that, after a short time, no one would have
believed that the English had ever been ruling there ! In
every village the embroidered flag was hoisted and a stray
Englishman was beaten away or killed and the roots of
English rule were, as it were, uprooted ! Oh, how super-
ficial really are the roots of slavery in spite of the centuries
of efforts made to drive them in ! And, especially, an
unnatural seed like that of slavery, how can it take root?
Most of the Talukdars in the Allahabad province were
Mahomedans and their tenants were Hindus. Thus, the
English had considered it impossible that these two would
unite and that the whole mass of the people would rise
against them. But, in this memorable first week of June,
how many of such impossibilities were realised ! With-
out even waiting to hear about the rising of the city of
Allahabad, all the villages of the province rose simultane-
ously and declared their independence ! Hindus and
Mahomedans, because they fed on the same Mother's
milk, rose together to strike blows at English rule ! Not
only the able-bodied Sepoys, but also old military pen-
sioners enrolled themselves as national volunteers.
Twisting their white moustaches, they would organise
bands. Those who were too weak and old to do anything
themselves would explain to younger men important
points in military strategy and give advice on knotty
points of tactics. Can we wonder that the noble ideals
of Swadharma and Swaraj which thrilled youth even in
superannuated Sepoys had thoroughly permeated all
classes of the population ?¹³ Shopkeepers, Marwaris, and
13. "And with them went on not only the Sepoys who, a day
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