15. My son Gyapershad was decoyed

From the book: A Documentary History of Indian South Africans edited by Surendra Bhana and Bridglal Pachai

Gopinath Pandey, a headmaster of the village school the District Unao, Uttar Pradesh, wrote to the Government of Bengal on 26 March 1905 saying that his son had been ‘decoyed’ and was bound for Natal, and that he wanted him returned. Source: I.I./2/7, 207/1905, Natal Archives.

Most humbly and respectfully I beg to approach you with the following grievances:

1.That Gyapershad aged about 17 years my son who has been sailed per S.S. Pongolaon the 14th instant (videaccompanying copy of the Protector of Emigrants, Calcutta). He is a student and in the annual examination of U.P. from the middle school Purwa, District Unao. Being a promising lad coupled with the adverse position of my life [,] the Kankubja Mandal Sabha of Calcutta conferred on him a monthly stipend of Rs 3 per month for the prosecution of his studies.

2.That when on the occasion of attending to some ceremonies at his maternal uncle's house he was decoyed and criminally misrepresented by some recruiters of professional roguery at Cawnpur to join the Coolie Depot preparing emigrants for the Colonies.

3.That the affection which I as an old father bear to him has almost not only paralysed me but also his old mother and young wife recently married, on account of his having been snatched away from our paternal care and guardianship.

4. That I need not state that I have already struggled hands and feet in applying to the District Officer at Cawnpur, who again wired the occurrence to the Protector of Emigrants at Calcutta, who in his turn furnished me with the information referred to herein.

5. That I being an old man and in adverse circumstances am at a loss to find out my son before my eyes and those of my old wife.

6. Under the circumstances I am constrained to reach your honour in the sanguine expectation of your being gracious pleased of adopting prompt measures for stopping the said Gyapershad my son at any of the intervening stations available to the S.S. Pongolain transit from Calcutta to Natal and for taking him back to Calcutta to me and for thus saving his old parents' critical life.

P.S. It is sickening to hear that I am a Brahmin and my son Gyapershad has been misrepresented to be Rajput (Thakur) for sheerly serving the evil purposes of the recruiter.