Sri Aurobindo
Karmayogin
Political Writings and Speeches — 1909-1910
Karmayogin: A Weekly Review
Saturday 25th December 1909 — No.25
Facts and Opinions
Futile Espionage
We wonder whether it is really impossible to maintain a great Empire without demoralising oneself and the country by means of an unworthy system of espionage.
Since the initiation of the Swadeshi movement the army of spies and informers have grown as plentiful as insects round a bright light.
Formerly men of some distinction had the honour of being watched in their houses, dogged in their goings, honoured by the private inspection of their correspondence.
But nowadays it is enough to be suspected of patriotism to have the inefficient hirelings of the Police, if not the worthy guardians of the Law themselves, sticking like burs to one's heels.
Is anything gained by these excessive and no doubt costly precautions?
If we are to judge by the sorry specimens who have besieged us for the last six months, a more incapable creature than the ordinary Indian spy does not exist.
He has an engaging simplicity of artifice which at once betrays his savoury vocation, and if he does not carry “spy” written legibly on his forehead, as a multitude of them do, he is so transparent in his methods that he might just as well be labelled, “Due at Royd Street”.
Nor do we quite see what is gained by watching a man's house or his office with an open brazenness.
The office of the Dharma1 has recently been favoured with the loitering of watchers who spend their days gazing lovingly at the building and making affectionate and importunate enquiries as to the movements and habits of the editor.
This open love-making strikes us as a little indecent; it would be better done behind a veil.
And what do the authorities hope to gain by these unique researches?
Do they hope to see either bombs or packets of sedition being carried into the building?
Or is a leader of public agitation likely to convert his newspaper office or his house into an open resort of secret conspirators?
Even a bureaucracy ought to credit its political opponents with some little common sense, even if they cannot credit them with honesty of motive and frankness of action.