G. A. Henty

“ Annie asked.
Dick laughed.
"No, no, Annie, when we quarrel in England we fight with our fists."
"What is a fist? I never heard of that weapon."
"That is a fist, Annie. You see, it is hard enough to knock a fellow down, though it does not very often do that; but it hurts him a bit, without doing him any harm, except that it may black his eyes or puff up his face for a day or two--and no boy minds that. It accustoms one to bear pain, and is a splendid thing for teaching a boy to keep his temper, and I believe it is one reason why the English make such good soldiers. ”

“ She was possessed of strong common sense and firmness of character, and when Ben Birket returned with his tale, he was surprised at the composure with which she received it.
"I have always," she said, "had a conviction that John was still alive, and have not allowed Dick to think of his father as dead; and now I believe, as firmly as before, that someday John will be restored to me. I myself can do nothing towards aiding him. A woman can do little, here. She can do nothing in India, save among her own people. ”

“ Not swords, pistols, and daggers, Father?" Doast exclaimed, in surprise; for to him it seemed that arms were as necessary a part of attire as a turban, and much more necessary than shoes. "But, when people are attacked by marauders, or two chiefs quarrel with each other, what can they do if they have no arms?"
"There are no marauders, and no chiefs," Dick laughed. "In the old times, hundreds of years ago, there were nobles who could call out all their tenants and retainers to fight their battles, and in those days people carried swords, as they do here. ”

“ I have fought against them under Hyder, and in the last war they again showed their valour; and the strangest thing is that they make the natives under them fight as bravely as they do themselves.
"As to forts, nothing is safe from them. Were all the troops of the Nizam and the Mahrattis combined to besiege us, I should feel perfectly safe; while were there but five hundred Englishmen, I should tremble for the safety of the fortress. You have come up the hill, and have seen for yourselves how strong it is; and yet they took the place without the loss of a single man. ”

“ It is to prevent this that Tippoo's greatest cruelties are perpetrated. It is not so very difficult to get away, and take to the jungle. Some have succeeded, but most of them are retaken, for a watch is vigilantly kept up, at every village and every road leading on to the frontier; and if caught, they are hung or forced to take poison. But whether they are caught or not, Tippoo's vengeance falls upon their companions. These are flogged, ironed, and kept without rations for weeks--living, if they do live, upon the charity of their guards. ”

“ Then he inquired what force the Rajah could put into the field, and was somewhat disappointed to hear that he kept up but a hundred horsemen, including those who served as an escort.
"You see, Sahib, there is no occasion for soldiers. Now that the whites are the masters, they do the fighting for us. When the Rajah's father was a young man, he could put two thousand men under arms, and he joined at the siege of Trichinopoly with twelve hundred. But now there is no longer need for an army. There is no one to fight. Some of the young men grumble, but the old ones rejoice at the change. ”

“ I have been four or five months without practice, or I should hardly have felt it."
"And how are you, Surajah?"
"I feel ashamed at having been let down like a baby, Captain Holland, and at being so nervous."
"There is nothing to be ashamed of," Captain Holland said. "Rope climbing is a thing that only comes with practice; and as to nervousness, most landsmen are afraid to trust themselves to a rope at all. ”

“ Annie looked at Captain Holland in surprise, and then turned her eyes to Dick for an explanation.
"He is a respectable-looking old native, isn't he, Annie?"
"Yes, he looks respectable," Annie said gravely; "but he doesn't look very old. Why has he come down with you, Dick? He can't have been a slave." ”

“ You will be bigger than I am, Dick--bigger by a good bit, I should say, and any father might be proud of you, much more so one who has been fetched out from a captivity from which he had given up all hope of escaping. As it is, lad, words can't tell how grateful I feel, to God, for giving me such a son. ”

“ Scarcely was the order obeyed when the brig, which was now on the port quarter, luffed up a little into the wind, and fired a broadside of eight guns. There was a crashing of wood. The Madras was hulled in three places; two more holes appeared in her sails; while the other shot passed harmlessly just astern of her.
There was an angry growl among the sailors, as the schooner bore away a little, and also fired her broadside. Except that a man was struck down by a splinter from the bulwarks, no damage was done. ”

“ Surajah said, "we should not be here, but at Bangalore or Seringapatam. These villages are not the places where news is to be gained."
This was so self evident that the officer had nothing to say against it.
"At any rate," he said, after a pause, "there is no confirmation to your story, and, as I have orders to put all suspicious persons under arrest, I shall detain you."
"It is very hard--" Surajah began; but the officer made an impatient gesture, while two of the soldiers put their hands on the shoulders of the prisoners, and led them from the hut. ”

“ But the next time will be the last, and Tippoo, tiger as he is, will meet the fate he seems bent on provoking.
"But beyond Mysore lies the Mahratta country, and the Mahrattis alone can put thirty thousand horsemen into the field. They are not like the people of Bengal, who have ever fallen, with scarce an attempt at resistance, under the yoke of one tyrant after another. The Mahrattis are a nation of warriors. They are plunderers, if you will, but they are brave and fearless soldiers, and might, had they been united, have had all India under their feet before the coming of the English. ”

“ Moreover, the fact that Dick and Surajah rode close by her side, and would be able to catch her, at once, if she swayed in the saddle, gave her confidence.
"It is much better than I thought it would be," she said. "It is quite a pleasant motion. I will go faster, if you like."
"No, there is no occasion for that," Dick replied. "This is the pace the horses are most accustomed to, and they will go on longer, at it, than at any other. There is no fear of pursuit, and we have all day before us." ”

“ Tippoo said; "and in faith you have rendered me good service, for had it not been for your interference, he might have worked havoc in my harem, and that before a single one of my officers or men had recovered his senses;" and he looked angrily round at the officers standing near him.
"How comes it that you were so quick in thought and execution?" he asked Surajah, as the elder of the two.
"My brother and myself have done much hunting among the hills, your Highness, and have learned that, in fighting a tiger, one needs to be quick as well as fearless." ”

“ It is as your cousin says, Doast. You have been down with me to Madras, and you have seen that, except the officers in the army, none of the Europeans carry arms. It is the same in England. England is a great island, and as they have many ships of war, no enemy can land there. There is one king over the whole country, and there are written laws by which everyone, high and low alike, are governed. So you see, no one has to carry arms. All disputes are settled by the law, and there is peace everywhere ”

“ The Hindoo was surprised, indeed, when they told him what had happened, and that they were already officers in the Palace, and might consider themselves as standing high in Tippoo's favour.
"It is wonderful," he said, when they brought their story to a conclusion. "Surely Providence must have favoured your pious object. Such good fortune would never have occurred to you, had it not been that it was destined you should find your father still alive. But if good fortune befalls you, it is because you deserve it. ”

“ It is not what you do, Dick, but it is what you don't do. You can't sit on your heels--squat, as you call it. That is the habitual attitude of every native. He squats while he cooks. He squats for hours by the fire, smoking and talking. He never stands for any length of time and, except upon a divan or something of that sort, he never sits down. Before you can go and live among the natives, and pass as one for any length of time, you must learn to squat as they do, for hours at a stretch ”

“ Ben said nothing, at the time, to damp her courage; but he shook his head, as he left the cottage.
"Poor creature," he said. "I would not say anything to discourage her, but for a woman and boy to try to get a captive out of the claws of the Tiger of Mysore is just madness."
Each time he returned from a voyage, Ben called upon Mrs. Holland. He himself had given up every vestige of hope, when it was known that the name of her husband was not among the list of those whom Tippoo had been forced to release. Margaret Holland, however, still clung to hope. ”

“ There was a dull, confused sound in the air, and then Surajah, pointing up the road, exclaimed, "Cavalry!"
Far away on the white road, a dark mass could be seen. At first, Dick instinctively turned to resume their flight, but then he said:
"It is of no use, Surajah. The sides of the valley are too steep to climb, and they will be up in five or six minutes. We must fight it out here. Run out to that man I shot, and bring in his gun, bandolier, pistols if he has any, and sword. I will take them from these two. It will make all the difference, having spare weapons." ”

“ One secret of our success, Dick, is that the English get on better with the natives here than the French do--I don't know why, except what I have heard from people who went through the war. They say that the French always seemed to look down on the natives, and treated even powerful allies with a sort of haughtiness that irritated them, and made them ready to change sides at the first opportunity; while the British treated them pleasantly, so that there was a real friendship between them. ”

“ Well, Ibrahim, we feel sure that we can trust you, and so I may tell you that I think it likely we shall, very shortly, go away. You know what the sultan is. One day he gives you honours and rewards, the next he disgraces you, and perhaps sends you into the ranks of the army, perhaps has you thrown to the tigers. We do not care to live under such conditions, and we mean, in a few days, to slip away and go to our friends down the ghauts. ”

“ But how is it, Father, if the English never carry weapons, and never fight, that they are such brave soldiers? For have they not conquered all our princes and rajahs, and have even beaten Tippoo Sahib, and made him give them much of his country? ”

“ Surajah suggested, although somewhat doubtfully.
Dick laughed.
"The first really good swordsman that came along would make an exhibition of me. No; one would have to do something really well."
The subject was renewed, after they had seated themselves with Pertaub.
"It would be an excellent disguise," he agreed. "A good juggler could gain admission to the Palace, and might even enter forts where no others could set foot; for life there is dull, indeed, and anyone who could amuse the soldiers would be certain of a welcome, and even a governor might be willing to see his feats." ”

“ It is but a short time since I was sure I was going with you, but I have ever hoped that the time would come when, instead of the dull work of drilling men and placing them on guard, I might have the opportunity of taking part in war and adventure, and indeed had thought of asking my lord, your uncle, to permit me to go away for a while in one of the Company's regiments, and there to learn my business. Since the English have become masters, and there is no longer war between rajah and rajah, as there used to be in olden times, this is the only way that a man of spirit can gain distinction. ”

“ Dick uttered an exclamation of disgust, as he laid the letter down.
"It does not matter about my news turning out wrong," he said, "but it is very bad that General Meadows should have allowed Tippoo to pass him, as he may do frightful damage to the country, before he can be overtaken."
"He never can be overtaken, as long as he chooses to keep ahead. He is hampered with no baggage train. He lives on the plunder of the country he passes through; and the British army, with all its baggage and provision train, has no more chance of overtaking him than it has of flying." ”

“ After all, the pay out here is quite as high, in comparison with the ordinary rate of earning of a peasant, as it is in England. It is never the pay that tempts soldiers. Among young men there are always great numbers who prefer the life to that of a peasant, working steadily from daylight to dark, and I don't know that I altogether blame them."
"Then you think, Uncle, there is no doubt whatever that there will be war?"
"Not a shadow of doubt, Dick--indeed, it may be said to have begun already; and, like the last, it is largely due to the incapacity of the government of Madras." ”

“ The Rajah was vexed at being able to learn nothing of what was passing on the plateau, and was therefore more disposed than he might otherwise have been to listen to Dick's proposal.
"Don't you think, Uncle," the latter said one evening, "that I might try to learn something by going up with Surajah alone? We could strike off into the hills, as if on a shooting expedition, just as we used to do from Tripataly, except that I should stain my face and hands. The people in the villages on the top of the ghauts are, every one says, simple and quiet. ”

“ Tippoo was found lying there, not only wounded, but dead. He had indeed received several wounds, and was endeavouring to escape in his palanquin, when this had been upset by the rush of fugitives striving to make their way through the gate.
The gateway was, indeed, almost choked up with the bodies of those who had been either suffocated in the crush, or killed by their pursuers. On his palanquin being overturned, Tippoo had evidently risen to his feet, and had at the same moment been shot through the head by an English soldier, ignorant of his rank. ”