and another detail i just came across..
Re: was born in Porbandar in the present state of Gujarat -- this was a salt producing area of India, where sea salt was produced. India was "salt self sufficient" before british rule, but was forced to stop producing salt for itself, and to buy much more expensive English salt. this destroyed a local industry, and the imported salt, was expensive, and taxed.

The area he was born in had been poor, but people always had work, and could live. When the salt works were closed, there was no other industry, few farms, and now the area was devistated. His "salt campaign", open defience of the law against indians producing salt for local consumption, was an a tremendous act of civil disobedience, and one that was easy for other copy, and they did.

(spinning, and using home spun cloth was an other campaign, but less successful, since its harder to learn how to do write and requires more tool.. Sea Salt is created by evaporation, and isn't that hard to do. )


my other obsession