108 HIS MAJESTY’S OPPONENT
ing this period of loss and mourning in Jawaharlal’s life. After reaching
the Kurhaus Hochland in Badgastein on March 3, 1936, Bose at last
found a moment of peace after his whirlwind tour of the Continent,
which had lasted more than six weeks. “The landscape here is beauti-
ful,” he wrote, “exactly like the Hi ma la yas. There is snow all around and
the mountain ranges stand firm and unshakable.”^61 The next day he
wrote a warm and supportive letter to Jawahar, who was soon to leave
for India to preside over the Lucknow session of the Congress. He
wished his friend could have had some rest in Europe before plunging
into the vortex of Indian politics. In a strong endorsement of Jawahar-
lal’s leadership, Subhas wrote:
Among the front- rank leaders of today—you are the only one whom
we can look up to for leading the Congress in a pro gres sive direction.
Moreover, your position is unique and I think that even Mahatma Gan-
dhi will be more accommodating towards you than towards anybody
else. I earnestly hope that you will fully utilize the strength of your pub-
lic position in making decisions. Please do not consider your position
to be weaker than it really is. Gandhiji will never take a stand which will
alienate you.He was very pleased that Jawaharlal intended to set up a foreign de-
partment of the Indian National Congress that was entirely consonant
with Subhas’s views.^62
After three years in Europe, Bose was ready to give his own assess-
ment of Italy and Germany in public and private, prior to his depar-
ture for India. Late in 1935, he had already published an article on Italy,
after the launch of its imperialist expedition against Ethiopia. He con-
demned Ital ian aggression and British hypocrisy. The lesson that he
drew from Ethiopia’s predicament was that in the twentieth century a
nation could “hope to be free only if it is strong.” For that to happen, it
was necessary to harness all the knowledge that modern science could
offer. He tried hard to find something positive in the rather sorry and
sordid state of affairs in East Africa. “Abyssinia will go down fight ing,”
he wrote, “but she will stir the conscience of the world.” This would
happen in two ways: a new awakening among people of color, and a