Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 238
Trust and Accountability 233 who work the land are poor; if they cut down a tree, where is the harm? Thus, I cannot say with certainty that the tree was our property. It is however possible that we may have a share in it. ' They (the land tillers) had great faith in his truthfulness and when questioned by the magistrate, they said without any hesitation, 'Why do you question us? Ask Hadrat Mirza Sahib. He would tell you the truth. ' So the magistrate questioned him. His reply was, 'In my opinion, trees are part of the farmland. We have a share in the farmland and those who till it have also a rightful share'. At this, the magistrate decided in favour of the tillers. When Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s father heard of this, he became extremely upset and cried, 'Mullah, Mullah. My son is a Mullah!’ meaning that he was over-religious and must be punished for this folly. Consequently, he threw him out of his parental home. His mother used to secretly send food to the place where he had found shelter. Learning this, his father forbade his mother to do this. After suffering for a while at Qadian, Hadrat Mirza Sahib moved to Batala where he spent a couple of months with the meagre resources he could muster. Eventually his father relented and called him back to Qadian. 38 Once a certain gentleman constructed a terrace on the land adjoining his house. The land actually belonged to the family, but over the years it had been used by the owner of the house and by virtue of long