of the Victoria Hotel to give our cabman the proper fare. Mr. Abdul Majid thought very highly of himself, but let me write here that the dress which he had put on was perhaps worse than that of the porter. He did not take care of the luggage too, and as if he had been in London for a long time, stepped into the hotel. I was quite dazzled by the splendour of the hotel. I had never in my life seen such pomp. My business was simply to follow the two friends in silence. There were electric lights all over. We were admitted into a room. There Mr. Majid at once went. The manager at once asked him whether he would choose second floor or not. Mr. Majid thinking it below his dignity to inquire about the daily rent said yes. The manager at once gave us a bill of 6s. each per day and a boy was sent with us. I was all the while smiling within myself. Then we were to go to the second floor by a lift. I did not know what it was. The boy at once touched something which I thought was lock of the door. But as I afterwards came to know it was the bell and he rang in order to tell the waiter to bring the lift. The doors were opened and I thought that was a room in which we were to sit for some time. But to my great surprise we were brought to the second floor. [Incomplete]
Notes
4. When his nephew and co-worker, Chhaganlal Gandhi, was proceeding for the first time to London in 1909, Gandhiji gave him his "London Diary" The diary filled about 120 pages. Chhaganlal Gandhi gave it to Mahadev Desai in 1920. But, before doing so, he copied out in a notebook about 20 pages of the original. The remaining 100 pages were not continuous writing, but merely a chronicle of incidents during his stay in London from 1888 to 1891. The original being untraceable, Chhaganlal's copy is reproduced here with minimum editing. Gandhiji wrote the diary in English when he was 19.
5. Former princely States in Gujarat. 6. ibid. 7. A district in Saurashtra. 8. Priest family friend and adviser of the Gandhi. 9. Leading lawyer of Kathiwan. 10. Gandhiji's cousin and father of Chhaganlal and Maganlal both of whom worked with him in South Africa. 11. Gandhiji's cousin.
12. Boyhood friend of Gandhiji whom he tried for several years to reform, but without success. 13. Gandhi's cousin. 14. Gandhi's elder brother. 15. British Agent in Porbandhar State during the minority of the Prince. 16. Gandhiji's Cousin. 17. Political Agent of Kathiawar, stationed at Rajkot.
18. Ruler of the State. 19. Vide "Speech at Alfred High School, Rajkot", 4-7-1888. 20. Ranchhodlal Patwari was very close to Gandhiji with whom he was in correspondence. Patwari's father helped him financially to go to England. 21. River near Rajkot. 22. Locality.
23. The source has "28th" which was a Sunday. Evidently this is a slip. In An Autobiography, Pt. I, Ch. XIII, Gandhiji says he arrived in London on a Saturday, which fell on October 27.
Draft of Letter to Frederick Lely (December 1888)
24 London, December, 1888
Dear Sir,
You will know me by looking at the note which, you said, when I had the opportunity of seeing you, you would preserve. At that time I had requested you to render to me some pecuniary aid as a means to enable me to proceed to England; but unfortunately you were in a hurry to leave; so I had not the sufficient time to say all that I had to say. I was at that time very impatient to proceed to England. So I left India on the 4th of September, 1888, with what little money I had at that time. What my father left for us three brothers was indeed very little. However, trusting that nearly, which was all my brother could with great difficulty spare for me,
