ed the Rowlatt Act which, extended wartime measures, and gave the Indian colonial authorities emergency powers over Indians to deal with rebellious activities, Gandhi's non-violence tactics became popular and spread all throughout India, attracting millions of supporters. A demonstration against the Rowlatt Act was held in Amritsar and resulted in the massacre of Indians by British soldiers. The crowd was filled with unarmed men, women and children of all ages, and as the speech was being conducted gunfire broke out in the square. Within ten minutes, the firing stopped, and approximately three hundred and eighty civilians were dead another twelve hundred badly were wounded. News of the tragedy spread throughout India overnight, and the massacre at Amritsar was to become the main impetus to end British rule in India. Gandhi, as well as the vast majority of Indians, was now convinced that the problems had to be ended rather than mended. Gandhi's response to the catastrophe at Amritsar was described in his letter to the Viceroy's Private Secretary:
             ... In the place I have made my abode I find utter lawlessness bordering almost on bolshevism. Englishmen and women have found it necessary to leave their bungalows and to confine themselves to a few well-guarded houses. It is a matter of the deepest humiliation and regret for me. I see that I overcalculated the measure of permeation of satyagraha amongst the people. I underrated the power of hatred and ill will. My faith in satyagraha remains undiminished, but I am only a poor creature just as liable to err as any other. I am correcting the error. I have somewhat retraced my steps for the time being ... My satyagraha ... will, at the present moment, be directed against my own countrymen.
             Mahatma Gandhi led a protest against these Rowlatt Acts. It was unethical for British troops to open fire on a group of non-violent protestors, resulting in many causalities. Gandhi felt r...