Meadows Taylor

“ Yes, she was beautiful, fair as my own Azima, as delicate and faultless in form. The Lughaees shall not behold these beauties, thought I, nor could I listen to their coarse remarks; so I covered up the bosom, folded the body decently in the sheet which had been around her, and sat down by it to await their coming.
"How, Jemadar Sahib!" said Gopal, as he came up to me, "have you not stripped the body? But let me do so; yonder sheet is worth two rupees."
"Let it alone!" cried I; "touch her not; she is too fair for the like of you to look on. ”

“ I looked at the transition as one that would lead me to eternal joys—to Paradise—to my father and Azima. But as I thought again and again, other reflections crowded on my spirit: I was to die, but how? not like a man or a soldier, but like a miserable thief, the scorn of thousands who would exult in my dying struggles; and then I remembered those of the wretch who had been hung before my eyes when Bhudrinath was with me, and I pictured to myself the agony he must have suffered ere life was extinct—the shame of the death—the ignominy which would never leave my memory. ”

“ I must receive it before I peril my situation, and, more than that, my life in your behalf."
"Listen then, Meer Sahib," said I; "I trust you,—you are a Syud and I also am one; you dare not deceive me, and incur the wrath of Alla."
"I will not, by the Prophet, whose descendant I am," said he; "were the Koran in my hands this moment, I would swear upon it."
"No, no," said I, "do not swear; the word of an honest man is far more binding than an oath. I believe that you are true, and therefore it is that I trust you. ”

“ She is one day in favour and loaded with kindnesses, another, in a fit of jealousy or rage, he deprives her of every comfort, shuts her up in a lonely room, and will not even allow me to go to her. You, my son, are young and brave; you will not suffer her to continue in this state, she who is the pearl of Hyderabad, who has found favour in the sight of princes and nobles. For the sake of Alla, exert yourself, and she is free, and will accompany you to the end of the world. She has seen you, and your beauty has entered into her soul and is consuming her liver ”

“ Are you thieves? if so, take what you will from us and let us go."
"We are not thieves," said Peer Khan; "but stay quiet, we are worse."
"Worse! then, brother, we are lost," cried one to the other; "these villains are Thugs; it is even as I whispered to you when you must needs stop among them: they have been at their horrid work, and yonder lie those whom they have destroyed."
"Yes," said I, "unhappy men, you have guessed right; yonder lie the dead, and you will soon be numbered with them; it is useless to strive against your destiny." ”

“ You have seen, my brethren, that Ghuffoor Khan is a devil; such a person can hardly be called a man: bad as these Pindharees are, he is the worst among them, and is unfit to live. You, Motee and Peer Khan, remember the fate of the Brahmin girl at Karinjah; you may remember my ill-suppressed indignation, which then almost impelled me to destroy this fiend; and I would have done it, but that I felt his fate was not in my hands. I felt that Alla would sooner or later urge me on to be the humble means of a retributive justice overtaking him. ”

“ What, if he be a Nuwab, is he not a man? and have I not fairly enticed him according to every rule of our vocation? It may be something new to kill a Nuwab, but think, man, think on the glory of being able to say we had killed Subzee Khan, that valiant among the valiant; why, our fathers and grandfathers never did such an act before."
"That is the very reason why I raise my voice against it," said he; "anything unusual is improper, and is often offensive to Bhowanee."
"Then take the omens upon it," said I, "and see what she says. Inshalla! we shall have the Nuwab yet." ”

“ I opened our conference in the usual manner, by presenting the hilt of my sword as a nuzzur; and having dressed myself in my richest clothes, I was instantly welcomed as if I had been a Sirdar of rank, and had the command, not of seven men, but of as many hundreds.
Cheetoo was a fine-looking man and a gallant leader. He ought to have died on the field of battle, instead of in the miserable manner he did. No man that ever led a Lubhur was juster in the division of plunder; no one was ever more attentive to the wants and complaints of those under him than was Cheetoo Pindharee. ”

“ Does not our law allow you four wives? Is it not so written in the blessed Koran? You cannot deny it. Even I, who am a woman, know it. I would love Azima as a sister, and your children for your sake; and can you refuse wealth and a future life of distinction for them? Oh, man, are you bereft of sense? See, I speak to you calmly, and reason with you as I would were I your sister."
"I would to Alla thou wert my sister," I said; "I could love thee fondly as a sister, but never, never can I consent to this unhallowed and disgraceful union. Yes, Shurfun, disgraceful! ”

“ The destiny which had been marked out for me by Alla I was to fulfil, and I blindly strove against it. The vain purposes of man urge him to pursue some phantom of his imagination, which is never overtaken, but which leads him on often by smooth paths and buoyed up by hope, till he is suddenly precipitated into destruction.
I had planned an expedition on a larger scale than ever, towards Calcutta, and we had sworn to Bhowanee to pay our devotions at her shrines of Bindachul and Calcutta; the omens were favourable, and we left our home in joy and high excitement. ”

“ I know nothing of this matter: of other murders I can tell you, but I know nought of this."
"He lies!" said the other approver; "he was with Ismail Jemadar; he is afraid to speak out, and has lied to you, O Prince."
"You hear him," cried the Rajah to Bodhee; "you hear what your fellow Thug says; yet, much as you have deserved death, I give you a few moments more: the shadow of the verandah is now close on my musnud,—till it reaches it thou shalt live—beyond it, one finger's breadth, and you die!" ”

“ Bitterly did I upbraid the men who had prevented my getting at my weapons. Had I but possessed them, Ameer Ali would never have been taken alive; I would have sold my life dearly, Sahib, and sooner than have been seized I would have plunged my sword into my heart, and ended a life which had no charms for me, and which I only wished to prolong to wreak vengeance on mankind, the source of all my misery. ”

“ Strange was it, Sahib, that Shurfun, knowing who we were, should not, when she had discovered it, at once have fled from us! How she, a woman unused to and unacquainted with deeds of blood, could have borne to look on, nay more to have caressed and loved, one a murderer by profession, whose hand was raised against the whole human race, is more than I have ever been able to understand: I can only say it was her fate. ”

“ One day has seen the end of my family; and it was our fate. Yet bear to Mohun Lall my hate, and the curses of a dying man. It is he who has killed me, and for this he will have to pay a fearful retribution. And now," said he, turning to the Mangs, "do your horrible office; I have no more to say."
I was going to speak again, but Bhudrinath stopped me. "What is the use?" said he; "the fellow is obstinate, and, depend upon it, if he were spared, it would only be to lead good men into danger, if not into destruction: let him die, he deserves it." ”

“ Yet I once more uplifted my voice. 'Nuwab!' I exclaimed, 'it is of no use to contend further with destiny; were we a thousand times innocent, this array of facts against us would convict us. I now conceal not that we are Thugs—followers of the blessed Bhowanee, who will receive us into Paradise. We shall die by your command, but why should that vile wretch live?—he who, for a greedy demand of more than his share, which he knew he could not receive according to our laws, has denounced us, has broken his oath, and been unfaithful to the salt he has eaten? ”

“ I might, when I did advance to meet her, have passed on indifferently; and, even when she spoke to me, I might have denied that I was the person she was sent after, or I might have refused to accompany her; but destiny impelled me on, nay, it led me by the nose after a slave-girl, to plunge into an adventure I fain would have avoided, and which my heart told me must end miserably. Sahib, there is no opposing Fate; by the meanest ends it works out the greatest deeds, and we are its slaves, body and soul, blindly to do as its will works! I say not Thugs only, but the whole human race. ”

“ 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. ”

“ Zenat tuned it, and, taking the bow, played a short prelude. It was one of the most entrancing sounds I had ever heard. Zora surpassed all her former attempts; it was ravishing to listen to her; and her sister, who was a perfect mistress of the instrument (a strange thing for a woman) , gave it its full force of melody and expression. You know, Sahib, how nearly it accords to the human voice; and now, as accompaniment and song rose and fell together, it appeared as though two of the richest, fullest voices were pouring forth strains such as angels might have come down from the skies to hear. ”

“ In the name of Narayun, who will do you any harm? Are you a child—you, with those mustachios? Shame on you, man; dullal as you are, be something less of a coward; get up, ask for your money boldly, ask for whatever these gentlemen please to give you, though indeed you deserve nothing for your impertinent attempt at deception."
He got up and stood on his left leg, with the sole of the right foot against the calf, his hands joined, his turban all awry, and the expression of his face most ludicrously miserable.
"Ten rupees, my lord," he faltered out; "your slave will take ten rupees." ”

“ In vain I pushed and battered it with the hilt of my sword, it was too securely fastened within to give way. I called out Zora's name—I raved—I threatened as loud as I could to destroy myself at the door, and that my blood would be upon the head of that cruel old woman. It was all in vain, not a bolt stirred, not a shutter moved, and I sat down in very despair. A few persons had collected, observing my wild demeanour, and as I looked up from my knees, where my face had been hidden, one of them said, "Poor youth! it is a pity his love has been unkind and will not admit him." ”

“ Have we not worshipped the pickaxe every seventh day according to the law? Have we not performed all the necessary ceremonies on the death of every traveller?"
"That is all true," said my father; "but it is madness to think of proceeding. Foolish boy! you have never known a reverse, thanks to your good fortune, and the excellent advice by which you have been guided; but beware how you disregard omens—it will one day lead you to destruction. As to this matter, the designs of Bhowanee are inscrutable, and she must be obeyed!" ”

“ 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 bound my turban over my still burning and aching brow, so that man might not see my shame, and took the road before me. I wandered almost unconscious of anything, save the pain I was suffering, until night fell around me, and I directed my steps to a village, the lights of which were a short distance before me. Exchanging one of my rupees, I sat down at the shop of a Bhutteara and satisfied my craving appetite. There I slept, and when I arose I was refreshed, and again believed myself to be Ameer Ali. ”

“ There are plenty of openings for a fine fellow like you, and your appearance will take with some of those who command troops. Inshalla! you might have had it here, but my list is full; and you are not likely to separate from your men?"
"No," said I, "that I could not; the poor fellows would starve in a strange land; and having collected them, I must perform my promise of taking them down to the city."
"Now you must see my pride, Zora, dance," said the Nuwab. "Inshalla! your heart must be hard if she does not make it ache, as she has done that of many a one." ”

“ Say, will you dare the adventure; or be a coward, a namurd, who would not risk a drop of blood for a woman, and one so fair as she is?"
"I am no coward, I believe," said I, "though I have no deeds of arms to boast of. I accept the risk, and I pray Alla to defend us! Are there soldiers near the place?"
"No," said she, "not one; the only danger is at the village gate, which is always guarded. How will you pass this?"
"If that is all," said I, "trust to me; and Inshalla! we will all laugh at the Nuwab's beard in the morning. ”

“ 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." ”

“ Men's wisdom is nothing; men's eloquence is nothing; their character nothing; their rank nothing; but this vile metal, which has no voice, no intellect, no character, no rank—this rules our destinies on earth as surely and as potently as Alla himself does in heaven."
"Alla ke Qoodrut!" said I with a sigh; "your words are true, my father, now that one thinks on them; and we have had a precious specimen in the sudden change of opinion in the worthy Moola, who asked no further questions when he saw your gold." ”