My Mother — Page 159
Farewell 159 Mian Sharif Ahmad with a stick. When she learnt of it she was deeply distressed. She repeatedly told Chaudhri Zafrulla Khan that not only did she feel it very keenly her- self, the thought of Hazrat Umul Momineen’s suffering affected her beyond endurance. One day she said to him, ‘Lady Willingdon professes great affection for me. Could it be arranged that I should meet her when the Viceroy should also be present, so that I could tell them how I feel. ’ He told her there would be no difficulty, but whatever she wanted to say she would have to say it on her own. She assured him he need have no worry. God would guide her. According to the Holy Quran, at her age the observance of the veil did not present any difficulty, and a meeting was arranged as desired by her. Chaudhri Zafrulla Khan served as interpreter. Lady Willingdon was close. She told the Viceroy, ‘I am a countrywoman. I know little of governments and their policies. Hazrat Promised Messiah had told us that the British are a good people, so prayers for the British rose from my heart. When the British were afflicted with misfortune I supplicated with tears in my eyes, “Lord, guard them and help them and deliver them from misfortune. ” But now our people are being so treated, particularly in Qadian, that though I still pray because of the direction of Hazrat Promised Messiah, my prayers do not rise from my heart as my heart is not happy. What have we done that we are mistreated?’ Lady Willingdon was so deeply affected by these sim- ple words that she drew the speaker close to herself, tried