United States or Laos ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
As Hunsa turned from the ordeal and passed the Gulab Begum to where the Bagrees stood in line, Nana Sahib said, "Do you know, General, what that baboon-faced jamadar made oath to?" "The last one, my Prince?" "Yes, he of the splendid ugliness. He testified, 'If I fail to thrust a knife between the shoulder-blades of Ajeet Singh may Bhowanee cast me as a sacrifice."
A spark, one lunge with a knife, and they would be at each other's throats; the men of Alwar against the men of Karowlee; even caste against caste, for the Bagrees from Alwar were of the Solunkee caste, while the Karowlee men were of Kolee caste.
Beneath a rich purple coat gleamed, like silver tracery, his steel shirt-of-mail; through his sash of red silk was thrust a straight-bladed sword, and from the top of his turban of blue-and-gold-thread, peeped a red cap with dangling tassel of gold. In the afternoon of the second day the Bagrees came to the village of Sarorra.
"Yes," the Dewan answered drily. "If a party of Bagrees were to go to the Pindari camp disguised as players and wrestlers, and the Gulab as a nautchni, Amir Khan might be enticed to her tent for she causes men to become drunk when she dances. Once she danced for Raja Karowlee, and, though he is old and fat and has more of wives than other possessions he became covetous of the girl.
When he spoke of the other Bagrees, Kassim realised that in the excitement of fixing the murder upon one there they had forgotten his troop associates, and a hurried order was passed for their capture. Of course it was too late; the others, at the first alarm, had slipped away.
"You can't save Amir Khan's life unless you betray the Bagrees to him?" "Yes, Sahib, I can. Perhaps the Chief will like Bootea, and will listen to what she says. Men such as brave warriors always treat Bootea not as a nautchni so I will ask him not to come to the tent at night because of ill repute.
"It would be a merciful thing," Sewlal added "it would save bloodshed." "Well, Dewani, I must depart now. It will be interesting to see what your Bagrees do, especially when they become hungry." For two days the Bagrees sat nursing their wrath at the reproaches of Dewan Sewlal. And the Dewan, in spite of his bold denunciation of the decoits, was uneasy.
The Bagrees were already busy preparing the camp, the camp of a supposed party of men on a sacred mission. It was like the locating of a circus. The tents they had brought stood gaudily in the hot sun, some white and some of cotton cloth dyed in brilliant colours, red, and blue, and yellow.
"Now we will go back," Nana Sahib was saying as the French General brought Elizabeth from among the oleanders and crotons. The day after the Bagrees had taken the oath of allegiance to Sindhia the jamadars were summoned to the Dewan's office to receive their instructions for the carrying out of the mission.
He got up a regiment of them Budhuks, Bagrees all sorts; it was named the Wolf Regiment that was the only clever thing about it, the name. They stripped the uniforms from the backs of the officers sent to drill them and kicked them out of camp; said the officers put on swank; wouldn't clean their own horses and weapons, same as the other men."
Word Of The Day