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S. R. GHAURI was a brave and courageous journalist who expressed his views in his sharply worded columns and editorials. But I mourn his passing away on Sunday not just for his professionalism but for his sterling human qualities. It was early Tuesday morning when a long distance call from my newspaper in Karachi gave me the sad news and asked to write a tribute to Mr Ghauri, a former Editor of Morning News and later a columnist at Dawn and the Editor of Herald. The passing away of Ghauri Sahib was a personal loss to me as he was my former editor and also a great patron. Writing an obituary proved to be a bit of a challenge for me in those moments of gloom as I had not met or spoken to Ghauri Sahib for a very long time. Somehow I managed to revive old memories which suddenly started coming back. The moment that immediately flashed before my eyes was in January 1972, days after the creation of Bangladesh, a tragic event that left Pakistan divided and me with out a job. Ghauri Sahib, whom I used to see every day at the Karachi Press Club, came to me and said, "Come to my office (Morning News) and start working as a reporter". I was then working for the Eastern News Agency (ENA) as a reporter. Veteran journalist Jawaid Bokhari had hired me in September 1971. Three months later the news agency closed down and I lost my monthly cheque of Rs. 150. Mr. Ghauri was aware of my plight, but his greatness as a person was that he never asked me whether I needed a job he just offered it.