"Fazil Khan, bring my hooka," cried I, as loud as I could. It was the signal we had agreed on.
"Ay," cried the Nuwab, "I will beg a whiff or two, 'twill be agreeable with my sherbet."
I had now moved round behind him; my roomal was in my hand, and I signalled to Surfuraz Khan to seize him.
"Look, Nuwab!" cried he: and he laid hold on his right arm with a firm grasp.
"How dare you touch me, slave!" ejaculated Subzee Khan; "how dare you touch a Nuwab——"
He did not finish the sentence: I had thrown the cloth about his neck; Surfuraz Khan still held his hand, and my father pulled at his legs with all his force. The Nuwab snored several times like a man in a deep sleep, but my grip was firm and did not relax—a horse would have died under it. Suddenly, as he writhed under me, every muscle in his body quivered; he snored again still louder, and the now yielding form offered no resistance. I gazed upon his features, and saw that the breath of life had passed from the body it had but now animated. Subzee Khan was dead—I had destroyed the slayer of hundreds!
But no one had thought of his poor slave girl, who, at some distance, and with her back turned to us, had been busily engaged in preparing another rich draught for her now unconscious master. She had not heard the noise of our scuffle, nor the deep groans which had escaped from some of the Nuwab's people, and she approached the spot where Surfuraz Khan was now employed in stripping the armour and dress from the dead body. Ya Alla! Sahib, what a piercing shriek escaped her when she saw what had been done! I shall never forget it, nor her look of horror and misery as she rushed forward and threw herself on the body. Although master and slave, Sahib, they had loved.
Her lips were glued to those of the unconscious corpse, which had so often returned her warm caresses, and she murmured in her agony all the endearing terms by which she had used in their private hours to call him, and implored him to awake. "He cannot be dead! he cannot be dead!" cried the fair girl,—for she was beautiful to look on, Sahib, as she partly rose and brushed back her dishevelled hair from her eyes. "And yet he moves not—he speaks not;" and she gazed on his features for a moment. "Ah!" she screamed, "look at his eyes, look at them—they will fall out of his head! And his countenance—'tis not my own lord's; those are not the lips which have often spoken kind words to his poor Kureena! Oh, my heart, what a pain is there!"
"This will never do," cried I; "some of you put her out of her misery; for my part, I war not with women."
"The girl is fair," said Surfuraz Khan; "I will give her a last chance for life."
"Hark you!" cried he to her, "this is no time for fooling;" and as he rudely shook her by the arm, she looked up in his face with a piteous expression, and pointed to the body by which she was kneeling and mourning as she rocked herself to and fro. "Hear me," cried the Khan, "those who have done thatwork will end thy miserable life unless thou hearkenest to reason. I have no wife, no child: thou shalt be both to me, if thou wilt rise and follow me. Why waste further thought on the dead? And thou wast his slave too! Rise, I say again, and thy life is spared: thou shalt be free."
"Who spoke to me?" said she, in tones scarcely audible, "Ah, do not take me from him; my heart is broken! I am dying, and you would not part us?"
"Listen, fool!" exclaimed the Khan; "before this assembly I promise thee life and a happy home, yet thou hearkenest not: tempt not thy fate; a word from me and thou diest. Wilt thou then follow me? my horse is ready, we will leave the dead, and think no more on the fate of him who lies there."
"Think no more on him! forget him—my own, my noble lover! Oh, no, no, no! Is he not dead? and I too am dying."
"Again I warn thee, miserable girl," cried Surfuraz Khan; "urge me not to use force; I would that you followed me willingly—as yet I have not laid hands on thee." A low moan was her only reply, as she turned again to the dead, and caressed the distorted and now stiffening features.
"Away with the body!" cried I to some of the Lughaees, who were waiting to do their office; "one would think ye were all a parcel of love-sick girls, like that mourning wretch there. Are we to stay loitering here because of her fooling? Away with it!"
My order was obeyed; four of them seized the body, and bore it off in spite of the now frantic exertions of the slave; they were of no avail; she was held by two men, and her struggles to free herself gradually exhausted her. "Now is your time," cried I to Surfuraz Khan; "lay hold of her in the name of the thousand Shitans, since you must have her, and put her on your horse: you can hold her on, and it will be your own fault if you cannot keep her quiet."
Surfuraz Khan raised her in his arms as if she had been a child; and though now restored to consciousness, as she by turns reviled us, denounced us as murderers, and implored us to kill her, he bore her off and placed her on his horse. But it was of no use; her screams were terrific, and her struggles to be free almost defied the efforts of Surfuraz Khan on one side and one of his men on the other to hold her on.
We proceeded about half a coss in this manner, when my father, who had hitherto been a silent spectator, rode up, as I was again vainly endeavouring to persuade the slave to be quiet and to bear with her fate. "This is worse than folly," cried he, "it is madness; and you, above all, Surfuraz Khan, to be enamoured of a smooth-faced girl in such a hurry! What could we do were we to meet travellers? She would denounce us to them, and then a fine piece of business we should have made of it. Shame on you! do you not know your duty better?"
"I'll have no more to say to the devil," said the man on the left of the horse, doggedly; "you may even get her on the best way you can; what with her and the horse, a pretty time I am likely to have of it to the end of the journey;" and he quitted his hold.
"Ay," said I, "and think you that tongue of hers will be silent when we reach our stage? what will you do with her then?"
"Devil;" cried the Khan, striking her violently on the face with his sheathed sword, "will you not sit quiet, and let me lead the horse?" The violence with which he had struck, caused the sword to cut through its wooden scabbard, and it had inflicted a severe wound on her face.
"There," cried my father, "you have spoilt her beauty at any rate by your violence; what do you now want with her?"
"She is quiet at all events," said the Khan, and he led the horse a short distance. But the blow had only partly stunned her, and she recovered to a fresh consciousness of her situation; the blood trickled down her face, and she wiped it away with her hand; she looked piteously at it for an instant, and the next dashed herself violently to the earth.
"One of you hold the animal," cried the Khan, "till I put her up again." But she struggled more than ever, and rent the air with her screams: he drew his sword and raised it over her.
"Strike!" she cried, "murderer and villain as you are, strike! and end the wretched life of the poor slave; you have already wounded me, and anotherblow will free me from my misery; I thought I could have died then, but death will not come to me. Will you not kill me?"—and she spat on him.
"This is not to be borne; fool that I was to take so much trouble to preserve a worthless life," cried the Khan, sheathing his sword; "thou shalt die, and that quickly." He threw his roomal about her neck, and she writhed in her death agonies under his fatal grasp.
"There!" cried he, quitting his hold, "I would it had been otherwise; but it was her fate, and I have accomplished it!" and he left the body and strode on in moody silence.
Some of the Lughaees coming up, the body was hastily interred among the bushes which skirted the road, and nothing now preventing us, we pursued our journey with all the speed we could. Thankful was I that I had sent on Azima in her cart; she was far beyond the scene of violence which had happened, and of which she must have guessed the cause had she been within hearing; but the driver of her cart had hurried on, and we had travelled some coss ere we overtook her. Strange, Sahib, that after that day Surfuraz Khan was no longer the light-hearted, merry being he had used to be. He was no novice at his work; hundreds of human beings, both male and female, had died under his hand; but from the hour he killed the slave he was an altered being: he used to sit in silent, moody abstraction, his eyes gazing on vacancy, and when we rallied him upon it, his only reply was a melancholy smile, as he shook his head, and declared that his spirit was gone: his eyes too would on these occasions sometimes fill with tears, and sighs enough to break his heart would escape from him.
He accompanied us to our home, got his share of the booty, which he immediately distributed among the poorer members of the band, and after bidding us a melancholy farewell, stripped himself of all his clothes, covered his body with ashes, and went forth into the rude world, to bear its buffets and scorn, in the guise of a Fakeer. I heard, years afterwards, that he returned to the spot where he had killed the girl, constructed a hut by the road-side, and ministered to the wants of travellers in that wild region, where his only companions must have been the bear, the tiger, and the wolf. I never saw him again after he parted from us, and many among us regretted his absence, and his daring skill and bravery, in the expeditions in which we afterwards engaged: his place was never filled among us.
I have no more adventures of this expedition to relate to you: we reached our home in due course without any accident or interruption; and who will not say that we enjoyed its quiet sweets, and appreciated them the more after our long absence and the excitement and perils of our journey? I was completely happy, secure in the increasing love and affection of Azima, whose sweet disposition developed itself more and more every day. I was raised to a high rank among my associates, for what I had achieved was duly related to those who had stayed in our village, and to others who had been out on small expeditions about the country; and the immense booty we had acquired, and my father's well-known determination to retire from active life, pointed me out as a leader of great fortune, and one to whom many would be glad to entrust themselves in any subsequent expedition, as I appeared to be an especial favourite of our patroness.
The return of Hoosein's party, about two months after we had arrived, was an event of great rejoicing to us all when they reached our village. As we had agreed beforehand, at our separation, the whole of the proceeds of the expeditions of both parties were put into one, for general distribution, and on a day appointed it took place. Sahib, you will hardly believe it when I tell you, that the whole amounted to very nearly a lakh of rupees. It was carried by general acclamation that I should share as a jemadar, and according to the rules of our band I received one-eighth of the whole. Bhudrinath and Surfuraz Khan received what I did, but the latter only of such portion as we had won since he had joined us. I forget how much it was, but, as I have told you, he divided it among the poorer members of the band; and having apparently stayed with us only for this purpose, he left us immediately, as I have before mentioned. Upon the sum I had thus acquired I lived peacefully two years.I longed often to go out on small expeditions about the country, but my father would not hear of it.
"What is the use?" he would say. "You have ample means of subsistence for two years to come; my wealth you know is also large, and until we find the supply running short, why should you risk life in an attempt to gain more riches, which you do not need?"
But my spirit sorely rebelled against leading such an inactive and inglorious life, and every deed I heard of only made me more impatient to cast off the sloth which I feared would gain hold on me, and to mingle once more in the exciting and daring exploits of my profession. Still I was fond of my home. Azima had presented me with a lovely boy, who was the pride of my existence, and about the time I am speaking of I expected another addition to my family. I had already seen two seasons for departure pass, and a third was close at hand, but I suffered this also to elapse in inactivity, although I was repeatedly and strongly urged by Bhudrinath and others to try my fortune and head another band to penetrate into Bengal, where we were assured of ample employment and success.
But much as I wished to accompany them, my father still objected; something had impressed him with an idea that the expedition would be unfortunate; and so in truth it turned out. A large gang under several leaders set out from our village at the usual time; but the omens, although not absolutely bad, were not very encouraging, and this had a dire effect on the whole. They had not proceeded far when jealousies and quarrels sprang up among the several leaders; they separated from each other and pursued different ways. One by one they returned disappointed with their expedition, having gained very little booty, scarcely sufficient to support them for the remainder of the year. But one party was never heard of more; it consisted of my poor friend Bhudrinath and six noble fellows he had taken with him. Years afterwards we heard his fate: he had gone down into Bengal, had visited Calcutta, and up to that period had been most successful; but there his men dissipated their gains in debauchery, and they set out on their return with barely sufficient to carry them a few marches. They had nearly reached Benares, when, absolute starvation staring them in the face, they attacked some travellers, and, as they thought, killed them. They neglected, however, to bury their victims, and one, who was not dead, revived: he gave information to the inhabitants of the nearest village. My poor friends were overtaken, seized, the property they had about them immediately recognized, and the evidence given by the survivor of the party they had attacked was convincing. What could oppose this? The law had its course, and they were tried and hanged.
Ameer Ali here stopped in his narrative, and promising to resume it in a few days, he requested permission to withdraw, and making his usual salam departed. A strange page in the book of human life is this! thought I, as he left the room. That man, the perpetrator of so many hundred murders, thinks on the past with satisfaction and pleasure; nay he takes a pride in recalling the events of his life, almost every one of which is a murder, and glories in describing the minutest particulars of his victims, and the share he had in their destruction, with scarcely a symptom of remorse! Once or twice only has he winced while telling his fearful story, and what agitated him most at the commencement of his tale I have yet to hear.
With almost only that exception, his spirit has seemed to rise with the relation of the past; and his own native eloquence at times, when warmed with his tale and under the influence of his vivid imagination and faithful memory, has been worthy of a better pen and a more able translator than I am; but let this pass; I repeat, it is a strange and horrible page in the varied record of humanity. Murderers there have been in every country under heaven, from the time of Cain to the present—murderers from hate, from revenge, from jealousy, from fear, from the instigation of any and every evil passion of our nature; but a murderer's life has ever been depicted as one of constant misery,—the worm that dieth not, the agony and reproach of a guilty conscience, gnawing at the heart, corroding and blasting every enjoyment of life, and eithercausing its wretched victim to end his existence by suicide, to deliver himself up to justice, or to be worn down by mental suffering—a more dreadful fate perhaps than the others. Such are the descriptions we have heard and read of murderers, but these Thugs are unlike any others. No remorse seems to possess their souls. In the weariness of perpetual imprisonment one would think their imaginations and recollections of the past would be insupportable to them; but no,—they eat, drink, and sleep like others, are solicitous about their dress, ever ready to talk over the past, and would if released to-morrow, again follow their dreadful profession with a fresh zest after their temporary preclusion from it. Strange too that Hindoo and Moslem, of every sect and denomination, should join with one accord in the superstition from which this horrible trade has arisen. In the Hindoo perhaps it is not to be wondered at, as the goddess who protects him is one whom all castes regard with reverence and hold in the utmost dread; but as for the Moslem, unless his conduct springs from that terrible doctrine of Fatalism, with which every true believer is thoroughly imbued from the first dawn of his reason, it is difficult to assign a reason for the horrible pursuit he has engaged in. His Koran denounces murderers. Blood for blood, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, is the doctrine of his Prophet, which he trembles at while he believes.—And Ameer Ali is a Bhula Admee even in the eyes of his jailers; a respectable man, a religious man, one who from his youth up has said his Namaz five times a day, is most devout in his life and conduct, is most particular in his ablutions, keeps the fast of the Ramzan and every saint's day in his calendar, dresses in green clothes in the Mohorum, and beats his breast and tears his hair as a good Syud of Hindostan ought to do; in short, he performs the thousand and one ceremonies of his religion, and believes himself as sure of heaven and all the houris promised there as he now is of a good dinner.
And yet Ameer Ali is a murderer, one before whom every murderer of the known world, in times past or present,—except perhaps some of his own profession, the free bands of Germany, the Lanzknechts, the Banditti, Condottieri, of Italy, the Buccaneers and Pirates, and in our own time the fraternity of Burkes and Hares (a degenerate system of Thuggee, by the bye, at which Ameer Ali, when I told him of them, laughed heartily, and said they were sad bunglers)—must be counted men of small account. Reader, these thoughts were passing in my mind, when at last I cried aloud, "Pshaw! 'tis vain to attempt to account for it, but Thuggee seems to be the offspring of fatalism and superstition, cherished and perfected by the wildest excitement that ever urged human beings to deeds at which humanity shudders."
"Did Khodawund call?" said a bearer, who had gradually nodded to sleep as he was pulling the punkah above my head, and who was roused by my exclamation. "Did the Sahib call?"
"No, Boodun, I did not; but since you are awake, bid some one bring me a chilum. My nerves require to be composed."
At the expiration of a week Ameer Ali sent word to me that he was ready to resume his narrative, and I lost no time in requesting him to repair to my residence. He arrived, and making his usual graceful obeisance, I desired him to be seated.
The reader will perhaps like to know something of the appearance of the man with whom he and I have had these long conversations; and no longer to keep him in the dark on so important a subject, I will describe Ameer Ali to him. He is what would be called a short man, about five feet seven inches in height: his figure is now slender, which may be the effect of his long imprisonment,—imprisonment it can hardly be called, except that to one of his formerly free and unrestrained habits and pursuits the smallest restraint must, of course, be irksome in the highest degree, and painful to bear. His age may be about thirty-five or forty years; but it sits lightly on him for a native of India; and it has not in the least whitened a beard and mustachios on which he evidentlyexpends great care and pains, and which are always trimmed and curled with the greatest neatness. His figure, as I have said, is slight: but it is in the highest degree compact, agile, and muscular; and his arms are remarkable for the latter quality, combined with unusual length and sinewiness. His dress is always scrupulously neat and clean, and put on with more attention to effect than is usual with his brother approvers, his turban being always tied with a smart cock, and his waist tightly girded with an English shawl or a gaily-dyed handkerchief, where once a shawl of Cashmere or a handkerchief of brocade was better suited to his pretensions. In complexion he is fair for a native; his face is even now strikingly handsome, and leads me to believe that the accounts of his youthful appearance have not been exaggerated. His forehead is high and broad; his eyes large, sparkling, and very expressive, especially when his eloquence kindles and bursts forth in a torrent of figurative language, which it would be impossible to render into English, or, if it were rendered, would appear to the English reader, unused to such forms of speech, highly exaggerated and absurd. His cheeks are somewhat sunken, but his nose is aquiline and elegantly formed, and his mouth small and beautifully chiselled, and his teeth are exquisitely white and even. His upper lip is graced with a pair of small mustachios, which would be the envy of many a gay lieutenant of hussars; while a beard close and wavy, from which a straggling hair is never suffered to escape, descends nearly to his breast, and hides a throat and neck which would be a study for a painter or a sculptor. To complete all, his chest is very broad and prominent, and well contrasts with the effect of his small waist.
His manner is graceful, bland, and polite—it is, indeed, more than gentleman-like—it is courtly; and I have not seen it equalled even by the Mahomedan noblemen, with many of whom I have associated. Any of my readers who may have been in India, and become acquainted with its nobles and men of rank, will estimate at once how high is the meed of praise on this score which I give to Ameer Ali. His language is pure and fluent, perhaps a little affected from his knowledge of Persian, which, though slight, is sufficient to enable him to introduce words and expressions in that language, often when they are not needed; but still it is pure Oordoo; he prides himself upon it, and holds in supreme contempt those who speak the corrupt patois of the Dukhun, or the still worse one of Hindostan. Altogether Ameer Ali is a character, and a man of immense importance in his own opinion, and that of every one else; and the swagger which he has now adopted in his gait, but which is evidently foreign to him, does not sit amiss on his now reduced condition.
Reader, if you can embody these descriptions, you have Ameer Ali before you; and while you gaze on the picture in your imagination, and look on the mild and expressive face you may have fancied, you, as I was, would be the last person to think that he was a professed murderer, and one who in the course of his life has committed upwards of seven hundred murders. I mean by this, that he has been actively and personally engaged in the destruction of that number of human beings.
Now, Ameer Ali, said I, since I have finished describing your appearance, I hope you are ready to contribute more to the stock of adventures you have already related.
Your slave is ready, Sahib, he replied, and Inshalla Ta-alla! he will not disappoint you. But why has my lord described my poor appearance, which is now miserable enough? But might your slave ask what you have written?—and the tone of his voice implied that he had concluded it could not be favourable.
Listen, said I, and I will read it to you. At every sentence the expression of his face brightened. When I had concluded, he said:—It is a faithful picture, such as I behold myself when I look in a glass. You have omitted nothing, even to the most trifling particulars; nay, I may even say my lord has flattered me.—And he arose and made a profound salam.
No, said I, I have not flattered your external appearance, which is prepossessing; but of your heart I fear those who read will judge for themselves; and their opinions will not be such as you could wish, but such as you deserve.
You think my heart bad then, Sahib?
Certainly I do.
But it is not so, he continued. Have I not ever been a kind husband and a faithful friend? Did I not love my children and wife while He who is above spared them to me? and do I not even now bitterly mourn their deaths? Where is the man existing who can say a word against Ameer Ali's honour, which ever has been, and ever will remain, pure and unsullied? Have I ever broken a social tie? ever been unfaithful or unkind to a comrade? ever failed in my duty or in my trust? ever neglected a rite or ceremony of my religion? I tell you, Sahib, the man breathes not who could point his finger at me on any one of these points. And, if you think on them they are those which, if rigidly kept, gain for a man esteem and honour in the world.
But the seven hundred murders, Ameer Ali,—what can you say to them? They make a fearful balance against you in the other scale.
Ah! those are a different matter, said the Thug, laughing—quite a different matter. I can never persuade you that I was fully authorized to commit them, and only a humble instrument in the hands of Alla. Did I kill one of those persons? No! it was He. Had my roomal been a thousand times thrown about their necks and the strength of an elephant in my arms, could I have done aught—would they have died—without it was His will? I tell you, Sahib, they would not—they could not; but as I shall never be able to persuade you to think otherwise, and as it is not respectful in me to bandy words with my lord, I think it is time for me to recommence my tale, if he is ready to listen, for I have still much to relate. I have been so minute in the particulars of my first expedition, that perhaps I need not make the narrative of the other events of my life so prolix; indeed, were I to do so, you, Sahib, would be tired of writing and your countrymen of reading, for it would be an almost endless task to follow me in every expedition I undertook. I shall, therefore, with your permission, confine myself to the narration of those which I think will most interest you, and which I remember to possess remarkable incidents.
Go on, said I; I listen.
Well then, said the Thug, Khodawund must remember that I told him I passed over three expeditions, and that I had partly determined to go on the third. It is of that expedition I would now speak, as it was marked by an extraordinary circumstance, which will show you at once that it is impossible for any one to avoid his fate if it be the will of Alla that he should die.
At the time I speak of I had been obliged to form another set of intimates in consequence of the loss of Bhudrinath and Surfuraz Khan, for both of whom I had the sincerest regard. Hoosein, though I loved and revered him as my father's dearest friend, was now too old and grave to participate in all my thoughts and perhaps wild aspirations for distinction. So as Peer Khan and Motee-ram, with whose names you are familiar, had now risen to my own rank, and proved themselves to be "good men and true" in various expeditions, I took them into my confidence, and we planned an enterprise, of which I was to be the leader and they my subordinates. Fifty of the youngest, stoutest, and most active and enterprising of our acquaintance were fixed on as the band; and all having been previously warned, we met a few days before the Dussera of the year 18—, in a grove near our village, which was shady and well adapted for large assemblies, and was always used as a place of meeting and deliberation: it was considered a lucky spot, no unfortunate expedition ever having set out from it.
We were all assembled. It was a lovely morning, and the grass, as yet not even browned by the sun and drought, was as if a soft and beautiful carpet had been spread on purpose for us. The surrounding fields—many of them tilled by our own hands—waved in green luxuriance, and the wind, as it passed over them in gentle gusts, caused each stalk of tall jowaree to be agitated, while the sun shining brightly, made the whole glitter so that it was almost painful to look on for a continuance. Birds sang in the lofty banian trees which overshadowed us; hundreds of green parroquets sported and screamed in their branches, as they flew from bough to bough, some in apparent sport, others to feed on the now ripening berries of the trees; and the whole grove resounded with the cooing of innumerable turtle-doves, whose gentle and lovingmurmurs soothed the turbulence of the heart, and bade it be at peace and rest and as happy as they were.
My father and Hoosein were present to guide us by their counsels and experience, and the matter in hand was commenced by a sacrifice and invocation to Bhowanee; but as I have before described these ceremonies, it is needless to repeat them; suffice it to say that the omens were taken and were favourable in the highest degree; they assured us, and though I had little faith in them notwithstanding all I had heard to convince me of their necessity, they inspirited the whole band, and I partook of the general hilarity consequent upon them. My father opened the object of the meeting in a short address. He said he was old and no longer fitted for the fatigues and privations of a journey; he recapitulated all I had done on the former expedition, pointed out the various instances in which I had displayed activity, daring, and prudence beyond my years, and concluded by imploring the men to place implicit confidence in me, to obey me in all things as though he himself were present, and above all not to give way to any disposition to quarrel among themselves, which would infallibly lead to the same disastrous results as had overtaken the expedition which had gone out the previous year.
They one and all rose after this address, and by mutual consent swore on the sacred pickaxe to obey me—the most impressive oath they could take, and any deviation from which they all firmly believed would draw down the vengeance of our Protectress upon them and lead to their destruction. I will not occupy your time, Sahib, by a narration of what I myself said; suffice it to say, I proposed that the band should take the high road to the Dukhun, and penetrate as far as Jubbulpoor or Nagpoor; from thence we would take a direction eastward or westward, as hope of booty offered, and so return to our home. Khândésh I mentioned as being but little known to us Thugs, and where I thought it likely we might meet with good booty, as I had heard that the traders of Bombay were in the habit of sending large quantities of treasure to their correspondents in Malwa for the purchase of opium and other products of that district. I concluded by assuring them that I had a strong presentiment of great success, that I felt confidence in myself, and that, if they would only follow me faithfully and truly, we might return in a few months as well laden with spoil as we had on the former occasion.
Again they rose and pledged their faith; and truly it was a solemn sight to see those determined men nerve themselves for an enterprise which might end happily, but which exposed them to fearful risk of detection, dishonour, and death.
Our meeting broke up, and I returned to prepare Azima for my departure. I had invented a tale to excuse my absence. I told her that the money which I had gained on my mercantile expedition to the Dukhun was now nearly expended; and although, in her society, and in the enjoyment of happiness such as I had never hoped for, I had been hitherto unwilling to leave my home, yet I could delay to do so no longer without absolute ruin staring us in the face. I added, that my father had placed a sum of money at my disposal for the purposes of trade; with which, if I met with the success I had reasonable ground to hope for, from the letters of my correspondents at Nagpoor and other places, I could not fail of realizing a handsome profit—enough to allow us another continued enjoyment of peace and affluence.
Long and vainly she strove to overrule my determination, pointed out the dangers of the road, the risks to which I should be necessarily exposed, the pain my absence would cause to her; but finding these were of no avail, as I told her my plans had been long laid, and that I was even now expected at Saugor, where my agents had collected the horses I was to take for sale, she implored me to take her and our children with me, adding that travelling was a matter of no difficulty to her, and that the children would enjoy the change of scene and the bustle and novelty of the camp. But this also I overruled. It would have been impossible to take her, not to mention the expense of hertravelling-carriage; and at last, after much pleading and objections of the description I have mentioned, she consented to remain; and placing her under my father's care on the morning we were to depart, I took an affectionate farewell of her. Many were the charms and amulets she bound about my arms and hung round my neck, which she had purchased from various wandering Fakeers and holy moolas; and with streaming eyes she placed my hands upon the heads of my children and bade me bless them. I did so fervently and truly, for I loved them, Sahib, with a love as intense as were the other passions of my nature.
At last I left her. Leaving one's home is never agreeable, often painful; for the mind is oppressed with indistinct visions of distress to those one leaves behind, and is too prone to imagine sources from which it might spring, though in reality they exist not. It was thus with me; but the appearance of my gallant band, as they greeted my arrival among them with a hearty shout, soon dispelled my vague apprehensions, and my spirit rose when I found myself in the condition which had been the object of many a fervent aspiration. I was my own master, with men willing to obey me, and—Inshalla! I exclaimed to myself, now Ameer Ali's star is in the ascendant, and long will it gleam in brightness!
I have told you of the ceremonies which immediately preceded our departure on a former occasion; of course they were repeated on this; the omens were again declared to be favourable by Motee-ram, who was our standard-bearer and director of all our ceremonies, as Bhudrinath had been; and we proceeded, accompanied for some coss by my father and Hoosein, who stored my mind with the results of their long experience. Among other things both particularly urged me to avoid the destruction of women. "In olden times," said my father, "they were always spared; even parties in which there might by chance be any, although in other respects good bunij, were abandoned on their account, as, our patroness being a female, the destruction of her sex was considered obnoxious to her, and avoided on every occasion. Moreover, men are the only fit prey for men; no soldier wars with women, no man of honour would lift a finger against them; and you of all, my son, who have a beauteous wife of your own, will be the last to offer violence to any of her sex."
"Rely upon me that I will not," said I; "I was, as you know, strongly against the fate of the unhappy women who died on my first expedition, and, you will remember, I had no hand in their deaths; but I was overruled in my objections, first by Bhudrinath and afterwards by Surfuraz Khan, and what could I do? And it would be terrible indeed to think that the distresses of their party and the unknown fate of poor Bhudrinath were owing to the tardy, but too sure vengeance of our patroness."
"It may be so," said my father; "but let not that prey on your mind; both myself and Hoosein have killed many a woman in our time, and, as you know, no ill effects have resulted from it. But bear in mind what I have said, act with wisdom and discretion, and above all pay implicit attention to the omens, and your success and protection are sure."
We rode on, conversing thus, and when we arrived at the boundary-stone of our village, we dismounted and embraced each other, and I left them and rode on with my men. According to our rules, no one was to shave or eatpanuntil our first victim fell; and as this was a matter of inconvenience to many of the men, you may be sure we had our eyes in all directions, and our scouts well occupied in every village we passed through or halted at. But it was not till the fifth day that we met with any one who offered a secure, and in every way eligible, sacrifice; we had fallen in with bands of travellers, some going to, and others departing from, their homes; but they had invariably women in their company, and them I was determined to spare, as well for my wife's sake as from the injunctions of my father.
However, as I have said, on the fifth day, early in the morning, we came to a cross-road, and were glad to see a party of nine travellers, three upon ponies, having the appearance of respectable men, and the rest on foot, coming up the road a short distance from us. To our great joy they struck into the road we were about to take. We had halted in pretended indecision as to the road, and when they came up we asked it of them. They readily pointed to the onebefore us, and although expressing themselves astonished at our numbers, they agreed to accompany us to the village where we proposed to halt, and the road to which we had inquired of them. I soon entered into conversation with the most respectable of their party; and I replied, in answer to his inquiries, that we were soldiers proceeding, after our leave to Hindostan, to Nagpoor, where we were in service. He told me in return, that he and his brother, one of the two others mounted, with a friend and some attendants, were on a travelling expedition; that they had come from Indoor, and were going to Benares, as well for the purchase of cloths and brocades, as to visit that sacred place of Hindoo pilgrimage.
Ho, ho! thought I, these are assuredly men of consequence going in disguise, and I have no doubt are well furnished with ready cash. No time must be lost, as they have come by a cross-road, and have not been seen in our company; there can consequently be no trace by which we could possibly be suspected on their disappearance; so the sooner they are dealt with the better. To this end I lagged behind a little, and imparted my determination to Peer Khan, who rode in the rear of all; by him it was told to another, and thus it circulated throughout the band before we had gone far. I was gratified and delighted to see how, as they became aware of what was to be done, each took his station, three Thugs to each traveller, and the rest disposed themselves around the whole, so as to prevent any possibility of escape. I remembered the road well, for it was that upon which we had travelled before; and what Thug ever forgets a road? I knew also that, although the country around us was open and bare, there was a river not far off, the sandy bed of which was full of the wild cypress, and the bodies could be easily disposed of in the brushwood.
When we arrived at the brink of the river, the man I had continued to converse with begged for a short halt. "We have been travelling since midnight," said he, "and I for one am well tired, and should be glad of rest."
I made no objection of course, for it was the very thing I wished; and dismounting, and leading my horse to the water, I allowed him to drink, and then joined the party, which had all collected, and were now seated; the travellers discussing a hasty meal they had brought with them, and the Thugs sitting or standing around them, but all in their proper places. I was on the point of giving thejhirnee, and I saw the Bhuttotes handling their roomals in a significant manner, when, thanks to my quick sense of hearing, I distinguished voices at a distance. It was well for us that I had not given the signal; we should have been busily engaged in stripping the bodies when the party I had heard would have come upon us. Of course they would have seen at a glance what we were about, and have taken the alarm. But our good destiny saved us. I hesitated, as I have said, and in a few minutes fourteen travellers made their appearance, and came directly up to where we were sitting. They were persons of all descriptions, who had associated for mutual protection, and I had half determined to destroy them also, which I think we could have done, when they relieved me greatly by taking their departure, wishing us success and a pleasant and safe journey.
On one pretence or another I delayed our associates until the other party had proceeded far beyond the risk of hearing any noise, should there be any; and now, seeing everything ripe for the purpose, I called out for some tobacco, the word we had agreed to use, as being least likely to attract attention or inspire suspicion. I had planted myself behind the man I had been speaking to, and as I spoke my handkerchief was thrown! Three years' rest had not affected the sureness of my hold, and he lay a corpse at my feet in an instant. My work was done, and I looked around to see the fate of the rest; one poor wretch alone struggled, but his sufferings were quickly ended, and the party was no more! "Quick, my lads!" cried I to the Lughaees, "quick about your work!" One of them grinned.
"Why," said he, "did you not observe Doolum and four others go away to yon brushwood when we reached this spot? Depend upon it they have the grave ready, or they have been idle dogs."
And it was even so; the grave had been dug while the unsuspecting travellers sat and conversed with us. We were so busily engaged in stripping thedead, that no one observed the approach of two travellers, who had come upon us unawares. Never shall I forget their horror when they saw our occupation; they were rooted to the spot from extreme terror: they spoke not, but their eyes glared wildly as they gazed, now at us and now at the dead. "Miserable men," said I, approaching them, "prepare for death! you have been witnesses of our work, and we have no resource but your destruction for our own preservation."
"Sahib," said one of them, collecting his energies, "we are men, and fear not to die, since our hour is come;" and he drew himself up proudly and gazed at me. He was a tall, powerful man, well armed, and I hesitated to attack him.
"I give you one alternative," said I; "become a Thug, and join our band—you shall be well cared for, and you will prosper."
"Never!" he exclaimed; "never shall it be said that Tilluk Sing, the descendant of a noble race of Rajpoots, herded with murderers, and lived on their unblessed gains. No! if I am to die, let it be now. Ye are many; but if one among you is a man, let him step forward, and here on this even sand I will strike one blow for my deliverance;" and he drew his sword, and stood on the defensive.
"I am that man," cried I, though the band with one voice earnestly dissuaded me from the encounter, and declared that he was more than a match for me: "I am that man; now take your last look on the heavens and the earth, for by Alla you never quit this spot!"
"Come on, boasting boy!" he exclaimed; "give me but fair play, and bid none of your people interfere, and it may not be as you say."
"Hear, all of you," cried I to them; "meddle not in this matter—'tis mine, and mine only. As for the other, deal with him as ye list;" and in an instant more he was numbered with the dead.
"These are your cowardly tricks," cried the Rajpoot, now advancing on me, for he had stood contemplating the fate of his companion; "my end may follow his, but I shall die the death of a soldier, and not that of a mangy dog as he has done."
I have before told you, Sahib, that my skill in the use of every weapon was perfect, thanks to my good instructor; and I had never relaxed in those manly exercises which fit a man for active combat whenever he shall be called into it. My sword was the one Nuwab Subzee Khan had so much admired, and I felt the confidence of a man when he has a trusty weapon in his hand and knows how to wield it. I have said that the Rajpoot advanced on me; he had no shield, which gave me an immense advantage, but the odds were in his favour from his height and strength, yet these are a poor defence against skill and temper.
He assailed me with all his force and fury; blow after blow I caught on my sword and shield, without striking one myself; he danced round me after the fashion of his people, and now on one leg now on the other, he made wild gyrations, and at intervals rushed upon me, and literally rained his blows at my person; but I stood fixed to the spot, for I knew how soon this mode of attack must exhaust him, and the loose sand of the river added to his fatigue. At length he stood still and glared on me, panting for breath. "Dog of a Kafir!" cried he, "son of an unchaste mother, will nothing provoke thee to quit that spot?"
"Kafir!" I exclaimed, "and son of a Kafir, thy base words have sealed thy fate;" and I rushed on him. He was unprepared for my attack, made a feeble and uncertain blow at me, which I caught on my shield, and the next instant my sword had buried itself deep in his neck. He fell, and the blood gushed from the wound and from his mouth.
"Shookur Khoda!" exclaimed Peer Khan, "you have settled his business nobly; let me embrace thee;" and he folded me in his arms.
The Rajpoot was not dead; he had sufficient strength remaining to raise himself up on his arm, and he looked at me like a devil; he made many attempts to speak; his lips moved but no sound followed, as the blood prevented utterance, "Some of you put him out of his pain," said I; "the man behaved well, and ought not to suffer."
Peer Khan took my sword and passed it through his heart; he writhed for an instant, and the breath left his body. "Away with him!" cried I, "we have loitered too long already."
The Lughaees took him by his legs and arms, to avoid his blood, and carried him away; others strewed a quantity of dry sand over the spot where he had fallen, and in a few minutes more we were pursuing our way as if nothing had happened. After this proof of my personal courage and skill, I may safely say I was almost adored by the whole band. They all assured me that a Thug having killed a traveller and a soldier in fair open combat was an unprecedented circumstance, and only required to be known to make me the envy of old and young, and I gloried in what I had done; their praise was sweet incense to my vanity.
The booty we got from the merchant and his brother was rich, and was of itself a fair amount of booty for any expedition. Some were even for turning back, but they were only two or three voices, and were easily overruled. "It would be a shame," I said, "if, while fortune favoured us, we did not take advantage of our good luck." Sahib, we continued our march, and when we had reached Saugor we had killed nineteen other travellers, without, however, having obtained much plunder; ten, fifteen, and, on one occasion only, nearly a hundred rupees, were as much as any of them afforded us.
The town of Saugor was, and is now, a large and busy place, built on the edge of an immense lake, nearly as large as that of the Hoosein Sagor; the cooling breezes which travel over it make it a delightful spot. We encamped on the border of the lake near the town. For the four days we remained there, we daily perambulated the bazars, and frequented the shops of Bhuttearas, one of whom was well known to Peer Khan, and whom we paid handsomely for information. He promised to be on the look-out for us, and on the third day after our arrival, Peer Khan came to me in the evening, as I sat before the entrance of my little tent, smoking and enjoying the delightful breeze which came over the vast sheet of water spread before me.
"Meer Sahib," said he, "the Bhutteara is faithful; he has got news of a Sahoukar going our road, who is to leave this place in about a week; he says we are certain of him, but that we must quit this spot, and march about within a few coss of the town, leaving two or three men with him to carry information."
"Ul-humd-ul-illa!" cried I, "he is a worthy man; we will listen to his advice, and be off to-morrow early. Three of the best runners shall stay here as he counsels to bring us the news."
"But he stipulates for a large reward in case we are successful."
"I see nothing against it," said I; "he will be worthy of it if he is true to his word."
"Oh, for that you need not fear; he is faithful so long as you pay him."
"Then he shall have it. How much does he want?"
"Two hundred rupees if we get five thousand," he replied; "double, if we get ten; and in proportion if between one and the other."
"If the Sahoukar is rich, Khan," said I, "we can well spare what he asks; so go and tell him he shall have it."
"I go," he said: "should I not return, conclude that I have stayed with him." He sought out the men he required to accompany him, and taking them and a small bundle of clothes with him, I watched him far beyond the precincts of our camp on his way to the town.
We travelled from village to village for four days, meeting with no adventure, and in truth I was beginning to be weary of the delay and inactivity, when, on the fifth morning, one of the men we had left behind to bring information arrived.
"Peer Khan, Sahib, sends his salam," said he, "and requests you will return immediately, as the bunij has been secured, and is about to leave the city."
"Know you aught of who he is?"
"No, I do not, Meer Sahib. I lived at the Bhutteara's, and he and the Jemadar were often in earnest conversation about him, but I was not let into the secret."
"'Tis well," I replied; "refresh yourself, and be ready to accompany us. How far are we from Saugor?"
"By the way I came, about fourteen coss," said he, "but by a path which I know, the city is not more than half the distance."
"Then we may be there by evening?"
"Certainly; by noon if you please—and I will conduct you now."
Accordingly, guided by him through a wild track which I should never have found alone, we reached Saugor towards evening, and after occupying our former ground, I hurried to the Bhutteara's, where I was pretty sure of meeting my friends. Peer Khan was there, and welcomed me. "I was fearful the messenger would miss you," said he; "but, praise to Alla, you are come."
"And this is our worthy ally, I suppose?" said I, making a salutation to the Bhutteara.
"The same," he answered; "your poor slave Peroo is always happy when he can serve his good friends."
"I have not forgotten what you are to get, my friend," said I, "and you may depend on the word of a true Thug for it. Are we sure of the man?"
"As sure," said Peer Khan, "as of those who have hitherto fallen; to-morrow he will take his last look on Saugor."
"Ul-humd-ul-illa!" I exclaimed; "so much the better. And he will be a good bunij, you think?"
"He will be worth seven or eight thousand good rupees to you," said the Bhutteara; "and allnugd(ready money) too."
"Good again, friend; but why do you not take to the road? You are a likely fellow enough."
"Oh, I have tried it already," said he, laughing; "I was out on two expeditions with Ganesha Jemadar. Do you know him?"
"I have heard of him," I replied; "he is a leader of note."
"He is," said the Bhutteara; "but he is a cruel dog; and to tell the truth—I fear you will think me a coward for it—I did not like the way he treated the poor people he fell in with; so I quitted active work, and only do a little business as you see now, by which I pick up a trifle now and then."
"Well," said I, "you do good, it appears; but beware how you act, and see that you do not bully poor Thugs out of their money by threatening to denounce them." The fellow winced a little at my observation, but recovering himself, stoutly protested he had never been guilty of so base an act.
Peer Khan threw me a sly look, as much as to say, you have hit the right nail on the head; but I did not press the matter further, for we were completely in his power. "Then," said I, "we start in the morning I suppose?"
"Do so," replied the man; "the Sahoukar goes to Jubbulpoor. It would be as well not to show yourselves for some days, as he might take the alarm, and some people of note have disappeared of late on the road."
"Now," said I to Peer Khan, "we have no further business here, and I am tired; let us go to the camp. We can send two scouts to remain here, to give us intelligence of the Sahoukar's departure, if necessary." The men were instructed in what they had to do, and we left them and the Bhutteara.
"You probed that rascal deeply by what you said," said Peer Khan as we walked along: "it is the very practice by which he gets his money; the fellow is as rich as a Sahoukar by this means, and never omits to levy a contribution on every gang which passes Saugor."
"Then," said I, "my mind is made up as to his fate. Such a wretch is not fit to live—a cowardly rascal, who sits at his ease, runs no risk, undergoes no fatigue, and yet gets the largest share of any one. He ought to die. What say you to putting him to death?"
"It is a rare plan," replied he; "but how to get him out of the town I know not; he is as wary as a fox."
"Oh," said I, "that is more easily managed than you think. The Kafir is fond of money?"
"As fond as he is of his own miserable existence."
"Then, Peer Khan, we have him. Directly we get to the camp I will send a man with a message, which you shall hear me deliver, and if it does not bring him, call Ameer Ali a father and grandfather of jackasses."
"Good," said he, laughing; "we will see this rare plan of yours; but I tell you the villain is most wary. I never knew him come out except in broad daylight, when there was no danger, and then only to small parties."
"Here, Junglee," said I to a smart young fellow who always attended my person; "you know Peroo, the Bhutteara?"
"Certainly; my lord was with him this afternoon. I know his house, for I was in the bazar purchasing some flour, and saw my lord at the shop."
"Good," said I; "then you will have no need to inquire for it. Now go to the Bhutteara, and take my seal-ring with you: mind you don't let it go out of your hand; tell him, with many compliments from me, that as we are so sure by his kindness of the bunij in prospect, and have some money with us, I will pay him what he asks, if he will come here to receive it. Say that I do so, as our return by this road is uncertain and may be at a distant period, and that I shall have no means of sending him the coin; and add, that I do this favour to him, as I am convinced of his good faith, and have placed implicit reliance in his assertions. Now, can you remember all this? Mind you speak to him in Ramasee,—he understands it."
"Certainly," said the lad; "I know all." And he repeated what I had told him word for word.
"That will do," said I, "and here is the ring: now be off,—run, fly, and let us see how soon you will earn two rupees."
"I am gone, Jemadar Sahib," cried he joyfully. "I will be back instantly."
"That is a sharp lad," said Peer Khan; "he takes one's meaning so readily. But oh, Meer Sahib, Peroo will never come for that message; he is too old a bird to be caught with chaff."
"Depend on it he will; he will hear the tinkling of the silver, and will run to it as ever lover did to his mistress's signal. Besides, he has no chaff in prospect, but rupees, man, rupees. The fellow would run to Delhi for as much."
"We shall see," said Peer Khan. "If it be written in his fate that he is to come, why, Alla help him, come he must, there is no avoiding destiny. What! Peroo the Bhutteara come out of his house at night to visit Thugs! I say the thing is impossible; it has often been tried, and failed utterly; the fellow laughed at them, as well he might."
"For all your doubts, Khan," said I, "Inshalla! we will throw earth on his beard to-night; and as we may as well be ready, call Motee, and two or three Lughaees; the grave must be dug, and that immediately."
Motee came, but was as desponding of success as Peer Khan. "You will never take him," he said; "did not Ganesha offer to divide a large booty here last year, and that Peroo should have a share if he would come to take it? and he sent word that he laughed at our beards, and we had better leave his share in the hollow of an old tree known to us, or he would send the whole police of Saugor after us in the morning."
"And so you left the share?"
"We did, and it was a good one too."
"Then Ganesha was an owl, and I will tell him so if I ever meet him. Peroo should not have had a cowree from me; nor will he now unless he comes to take it."
We were silent for some time, and I could hear the dull blows of the pickaxe, as the sound was borne by the chill night-wind from the place where the grave was preparing. He will come, thought I, and his iniquity will be ended: shame on the cold-blooded coward who can sell men's lives as he does, without striking a blow against them! As I was thus musing, our messenger was seen, in the dusky light, returning at the top of his speed, and alone. "We told you so!" cried both my associates triumphantly; "we told you how it would be!" I was vexed, and bit my lips to conceal my chagrin. "Let us hear what he says, at any rate," said I.
"Well, what news, Junglee?" cried I, as he ran up quite out of breath.
"Wait a moment, Jemadar," said he, "till I can speak: I have run hard."
"Here, drink some water: it will compose you. What has happened. Is there any alarm?"
"Ah, no alarm," replied the lad, "but listen. I went as fast as I could without running, for I thought if I appeared out of breath when I reached him he might suspect something; so when I got to the town gate, I walked slowly till I reached his shop. He was busy frying kabobs for some travellers, and told me to go into his private room and wait for him. In a short time he came to me.
"'Well,' said he, 'what news? Why have you come? The bunij is safe; it was but just now that one of your scouts came and said he had heard orders given for his departure to-morrow. What do you want?'
"So I repeated your message, word for word as you delivered it to me, and he seemed much agitated. He walked up and down the room for some time, talking to himself, and I could hear the words 'Ganesha,' 'treachery,' once or twice repeated. So at last I grew tired of this, and said to him, 'I cannot wait, I have orders to return immediately: will you come or not?' and this stopped him; he turned round and looked at me severely—
"'Tell me,' said he, 'young man, was Motee-ram present when this message was delivered?'
"'No, he was not,' I replied.
"'Did he know it?'
"'No; he had not returned from the town when I received it; at any rate, neither I nor the Jemadar Sahib saw him.'
"'Was Peer Khan present?'
"'No,' said I stoutly, 'he was not.'
"'But he left this place in company with your master.'
"'He may have done so,' said I, 'but I did not see him; I was preparing the Jemadar's bedding when he returned, and the message was delivered to me privately; for after he lay down to rest he called to me and delivered it: and I may as well tell you that he counted out the money from a bag which was under his pillow.'
"'How much was there set apart for me?'
"'Two hundred and fifty rupees; he was counting more, but he stopped short, put the rest into the bag, and said it would be enough.'
"'And how much is in the bag?'
"'Alla maloom!' said I; 'how should I know anything about it?'
"'Who sleep in the tent with the Jemadar?' he asked, after another silence and a few more turns about the room.
"'No one,' said I. 'I sleep across the doorway; but no one is ever allowed to enter.'
"'You are a good lad,' he rejoined, 'and a smart fellow. How should you like to be a bhutteara?'
"'Well enough,' said I; for I wanted to see what he was driving at, and I suspected no good."
"Did you ever hear of such a rascal?" said Peer Khan. "Oh, if we only had him, I would wring the base neck off his shoulders."
"Let him go on," said I; "don't interrupt him."
"Well," continued Junglee, "he paced to and fro again several times, and at last came and sat by me, and took my hand in his. I did not like it, so I laid my other on the hilt of my dagger, which was concealed in my waistband.
"'Junglee,' said he to me, 'thou art a good lad, and may be to me a son if thou wilt aid me in this matter. Young as thou art, this bloody trade can have no charms for thee; besides, I'll warrant your Jemadar does not make a pet of you as I would, and obliges you to work hard?' I nodded.
"'Ay! it is even so,' said he, 'and thou wouldst be free? speak, boy, and fear not; thou shalt be a son to me. Alla help me! I have neither wife nor child.' I nodded again.
"'That is right,' continued he; 'although you are ill used, you do not like to abuse the salt you have eaten, and I like you the better for it. Now listen to me. I will come, but not now. You say you lie at the entrance of the tent—good: you must sleep as sound as if you had taken opium—doyou hear? I shall step quietly over you, and I know an old trick of tickling with a straw—do you understand?'
"'I do,' said I; 'you would have the large bag.'
"'Exactly so, my son,' said he, 'you have guessed rightly; trust me, I will have it. As I go away I will touch you; you need not follow me then, but you can watch your opportunity.'
"'But the scouts,' added I; 'you have not thought of them.'
"'Oh, I can easily avoid them; the night is dark and cloudy, and no one will see me; I shall strip myself naked, and throw a black blanket over me.'
"'Then I agree,' said I; 'and I will quit those horrid people and become an honest man. Now what am I to say to the Jemadar?'
"'Say,' replied he, 'that the herdsman's flock has often been robbed by the wolf of its fattest sheep; and the herdsman said to himself, I will catch the wolf and put him to death. And he dug a hole, and suspended a fat lamb over it in a basket, and sat and watched; and the wolf came, and saw from afar off that there was something unusual in the generosity of the herdsman, and he said to himself, Wolf, thou art hungry, but why should one lamb tempt thee? the time will come when thou mayest find the herdsman asleep; so wait, although thy stomach is empty. Say this to the Jemadar and he will understand thee.'"
"By Alla! thou hast done well, Junglee," said I, "and thy faithfulness shall surely be well rewarded. What think you, my friends, of this villain?"
"Ah, we are not astonished," cried both, "it is just like him; but, Inshalla! he will fall into his own snare."
"Now," said I, "call two of the scouts;" and they came. After I had told them of the plot Peeroo had formed. "My friends," I continued, "you must allow this rascal to come into the camp: one of you lie down close to my tent, and pretend to be asleep; but have your eyes open, and directly you see him enter, rouse Peer Khan and Motee, and bring them to the entrance; and do you two then place yourselves one on each side of the door, so that he cannot see you. I shall feign to be asleep, and shall let him take the bag, though he should even fall over me in doing so; as he comes out you can seize him and hold him fast; do him no harm till I come; and as for you, Junglee, if you do not sleep as sound as though a seer of opium was in your stomach, I swear by Alla you shall lie in the same grave with him."
"Do not fear me," said the lad; "I have eaten your salt, you are my father and my mother, you have treated me kindly, and how could I deceive you? had I intended it, I had not mentioned a word of what he told me."
"Then we are all prepared," said I. "Did he say when he would come?"
"He did," said Junglee; "in the second watch of the night, when he had no more business."
"Good; then mind you are all ready, and we will spit on his beard."
Anxiously to me did the hours pass, till the time came when I might expect him. I went out of my little tent repeatedly to see that all were at their proper posts, and returned as often, satisfied that they were. Peer Khan was lying near my tent apparently in a sound sleep, but I knew he was awake; the scouts were wandering lazily about; above all, the night was so dark that I could not see my hand before me, and the splashing and murmuring of the tiny waves of the lake upon the shore would prevent any noise of his footsteps being heard. "Yes," I said, half aloud, as I retired to my carpet for the last time, "he will come; thief as he is, he will not miss such a night as this; but the darkness favours us as much as it does him."
"Now, Junglee," said I, "this is the last time I stir out; mind your watch, my good lad, and I will not forget you; Peer Khan is close at the back of the tent: I care not much about the rest, they will soon be collected when he is caught."
"Do not fear me," said the boy; "my eyes are not heavy with sleep, and when I move from this spot to call Peer Khan, a rat will not hear me."
I went in and lay down; I drew my trusty blade and laid it close to my right hand, so that I could grasp it in a moment; and covering myself up with my quilt, as well to hide it as to assure me when he came (for I knew he would endeavour to pull it off me), I continued to stare steadfastly on the entrance of the tent; and my eyes becoming sensible of the greater darkness of the insidethan of the outside, I was certain that if any one entered, or even passed the door, I should see him. Long, long did I lie in this position; I hardly stirred, lest Peeroo should be outside listening whether I was awake. It was now, I guessed, considerably past midnight; still no one came, and I should have been inclined to despair, did I not feel certain that his fate would lead him to destruction. Why is it, Sahib, that one has these presentiments? I have often felt them during my lifetime, but I never could account for them.
At last he came. I saw an object darken the doorway, hesitate for a moment, and then pass in over the body of Junglee, who snored so loudly and naturally that I could have declared he was asleep, had I not known the contrary by having spoken to him a short time before. Alla! Alla! Sahib, how my heart beat!—I could hear its throbbings, and they seemed to be so loud in my breast that I thought he would hear them too. Another thought flashed across me—could he be armed? and would he attempt to destroy me? It might be; and I almost trembled as I thought how I was to lie inactive and in his power while he abstracted the bag; I was on the point of leaping up and passing my weapon through his body, but I dismissed the idea. He is a thief, a miserable thief, and has not courage to bring a weapon, much less to use it; and he will want both his hands too—he cannot have one. So I lay quiet, with my hands on the hilt of my sword. The tent was very low, and he was obliged to advance stooping: he reached my side and knelt down, and as I feigned the hard breathing of sleep, I felt his warm breath when he looked over me and into my eyes to see whether I really slept or not. He appeared satisfied that I did, for he instantly thrust his hand under the pillow, but so quietly that I could not have felt it had I been asleep: but the bag was not on that side, it was under my other ear; he felt it, but found, I suppose, that he could not abstract it without his awakening me; so he felt about on the ground for a piece of straw or a blade of grass, and began tickling my ear on the side next to him. I obeyed the intention of the action, and turned towards him with a grunt: it startled him, and he was still for a moment: but again his hand was groping; I felt the bag recede—recede till it was withdrawn from the pillow; I heard the clink of the money as he placed it on his shoulder, and I was content: I saw too that Junglee was not at the door (though when he had gone I know not—having been too much occupied by my own situation), and that the Bhutteara was aware of it. He stopped, and murmured in a low tone, "Strange that he should be gone; but he knows the way and will not disappoint me." Another step, and he was beyond the threshold, and in the rough grasp of Peer Khan, Motee, and a dozen others.
"Capitally managed!" cried I, as I ran to the door and joined the group: "strike a light, one of you; let us see the face of this Roostum among thieves—a fellow who dares to rob a Thug's camp and defy him to his beard."
A light was brought, and there stood the trembling wretch, with the bag of rupees still on his shoulder, and clutching it as though it were his own. "Ha!" said I, "so it is you, Peeroo, and the wolf who was so wary has fallen into the hands of the shepherds at last; he would not take the little bait, but the large flock was well watched, and he has fallen into the trap. And now, rascal," I continued, "thou wouldst have robbed us, and dost deserve to die, yet upon thy answers to the questions I will put to thee depends thy life or death."
"Name them, oh name them!" said the wretch; "let me live,—I will set off without delay, I will even accompany you; you may turn me out from among you in the jungle, and if ever my face is seen in Saugor again or on this road, deal with me as ye list."
"Very good," said I; "now answer the following questions. Is the bunij you have promised false?"
"As true as that I breathe: ah, Meer Sahib, have not your men seen the preparations, and will not you hear the same to-morrow from them? how could you doubt it?"
"How much money will you give us to let you go? I want two thousand rupees."
"Ai Méré Sahib! Méré Sahib!" cried the wretch; "two thousand rupees! where am I to get them? I have not a cowrie in the world."
"It is a lie," said Motee and several others; "you have thousands of rupees which you have bullied poor Thugs out of; we could name a hundred instances in which you have taken money from us: how dare you deny it?"