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

THE SUMMING UP
by actively helping the Revolutionaries, to give a handle
to the English, if they should be able to overpower the
Revolutionaries, to confiscate their estates. Thus, they
provided for the other alternative of the Company coming
out victorious. Fools that they were, not to be able to
see that, if they joined the Revolutionaries, there was
absolutely no chance for the English to succeed ; while,
if they remained neutral, the chances of the success of the
Revolution were greatly lessened ! This is the real expla-
nation of the conduct of most of the states in this critical
period. If the people and the troops drove out the English
from the Residencies, they were permitted to do so ; be-
cause, it meant the freedom of the states. Notwithstand-
ing this, the rulers would continue to declare their friend-
ship for the English, so that, in case of English success,
they should not lose what they had. It would seem that
Cutch, Gwalior, Indore, Bundela, Rajputana, and other
states—all behaved in this manner.
And it was this selfish conduct on the part of the princes
which, in the end, strangled the Revolution. If they had
boldly come forward, crying “ Freedom—or Death ! ”, they
would certainly have obtained freedom. But they played
a double-game—the result of mean selfishness. Their
good intentions, being weak, achieved nothing and their
baseness was conspicuous ! They were not open and bare-
faced traitors to the country like Patiala and others ; but
they played, indirectly, the part of traitors : they let base
selfishness take possession of their souls, even while hoping
for the noble goal of freedom and, hence, they are cursed
for their sin. When will they wash it away ?
But these selfish motives which mastered the minds of the
princes did not enter for a single moment the hearts of
the people. And it was by their glorious onslaughts
from Peshawar up to Calcutta that the fire broke forth
and blood began to flow, in order to reduce to ashes and
wash away the terrible curse of slavery which had smitten
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