ction, but against rejection pure and simple it set its face at
once, and it rallied so steadily and surely to acceptance that few of
the Moderates attended the Provincial Congress, where they were promptly
howled down, and they determined to hold a Conference of their own in
opposition to the special Congress session. At this Conference, as well
as in the Committee of non-official members of the Indian Legislative
Council, there was a good deal of disjointed criticism of various
recommendations in the Report, not infrequently due to misunderstanding
of their import, but on the whole it was recognised as representing a
great triumph for the cause of political progress on constitutional
lines and therefore for the educated opinion of India. The breach
between the Extremists and the Moderates was clearly defined by Mr. B.L.
Mitter, a prominent Moderate of Calcutta and a member of the new
Moderate organisation, the "National Liberal League":

The Extremists would have nothing to do with the English in the
Government or outside; the Moderates consider co-operation with the
English necessary for national development, political, industrial,
economic, and otherwise. The Extremists would straightway assume
full responsibility of Government; the Moderates think that would
lead to chaos, and would proceed by stages. It is the difference
between cataclysm and evolution. The Extremists' ideal is
destruction of the existing order of things in the hope that
something better will take its place, for nothing can be worse than
what is; the Moderates' ideal is formation of a new order of things
on definite progressive lines. One is chance, the other is design.
The primary difference (so far as methods are concerned) is that
the Extremists' method is not necessarily constitutional; the
Moderates' method always constitutional. Some Extremists use
violence, others work secretly and spread discontent and
disaffection. Others again, pretending to follow legitimate methods
of agitation, take care not to discourage unconstitutional methods
or even crimes, nay, they miss no opportunity to applaud criminals
as martyrs. There are others, again, who merely idealise and are
content with rousing the passions of the people. Intrigue and abuse
are the general weapons in the Extremists' armoury. The Moderates
always act openly and with dignity, a