Tara: A Mahratta Tale

by Meadows Taylor

  CHAPTER XXVII.

  Zyna sat beside her father, trimming the lamp as it needed, wonderingmuch at Fazil's strange absence, and occasionally taking up one ofthe papers with which her father had been occupied, and reading itvacantly. Zyna could read, which was unusual in girls of her age andclass: and, originally of a studious character, she had learned enoughPersian with her brother from their old teacher, a superannuatedsecretary, to be of use both to her father and brother; more especiallyto her father in his confidential correspondence. Apparently shefound nothing to interest her very much, for she laid down letterafter letter after reading the superscription, and looked out throughthe lattice impatiently, as it were, for the coming dawn. The brightmorning star now appeared above the tops of the trees, and a glowoverspread the whole east--the false dawn; which, while it as yet gaveno definite form to the surrounding objects, yet relieved the extremedarkness of the night. As Zyna sat, she fancied she heard a sound ofvoices at the gate, but it died away. It could not be her brother;he would have been admitted at once. Again, as she listened, and thesilence seemed painful, the murmur was renewed, and she started up.

  "It is he--Fazil is come!" she cried eagerly to her father, awakinghim. "O, father, go to meet him; would I could go myself!"

  Afzool Khan listened from the window, and Zyna could see that theexpression of his face increased in gladness, and the revulsion in herown heart caused agitation which she could not restrain.

  "He is not come," said her father; "it may be some messenger. God grantthere may be no evil tidings! Be calm, my child; I will go below andascertain, and will return or send word about him!"

  Hurrying down to the gate, he found the sentinel in altercation withthe lad we have before mentioned. It was evident that the boy had beenthere some time, and the sentinel, being informed that his young lordwas safe, had no idea of wakening any one before the usual hour ofmorning prayer. As Afzool Khan approached the gate alone, he heard thelad's earnest prayer for aid answered by a dogged refusal.

  "Begone!" said the man through the wicket; "thy tale may be trueenough, and the Sahib Zadah[8] may be where he is; but, look you, thegreat Khan Sahib is fast asleep, and cannot be awakened. Everybody isasleep; there is no woman here to send to him in the zenana. Begonetherefore, or lay down at the gate. When morning prayer is over, thoushalt have speech of the Khan. Till it is broad daylight, I draw nobolt. If thou wilt not go, at least sit quiet, for there are gentlemanin the guard-room here who might treat thee roughly if disturbed intheir sleep."

  The boy was turning away sadly, when the voice of Afzool Khan was heardcalling from the inner court, as he unfastened the door leading to thelarger one.

  "Whose is that voice?--who speaks without?--why is he not admitted?" heasked.

  "My lord," replied the man on duty, "the Sahib Zadah is not here, butthere is a boy who says he knows of him."

  "Was it well, Yousuf, to turn him away?" asked Afzool Khan. "Suppose myson had had need of us."

  "Nay; but my lord slept, and the Sahib Zadah was safe. Bulwunt Rao onlyis wounded--and there were no women to send--and I did but tell him towait," stammered the man.

  "No matter--where is the boy? Open the wicket," said Afzool Khanimpatiently.

  "He does not consider who may be behind it," said the soldier, as heunfastened the ponderous iron bars and unlocked the padlock of thewickets, "and that this may be but a device to attack the gate. But hewill always be headstrong."

  "I am here, Khodawund," said the lad, from without, and squeezinghimself through the opening between the wicket-door and the chain whichfastened it. "Behold I am now before you, valiant sir," he said to thesentinel, "whom you took to be a thief; but I would have speech of thenoble Afzool Khan himself, if it be possible to have him aroused."

  "I am he," returned the old Khan, stepping forward. "Speak on, if whatthere is to be told may be said before these men;" for several had nowarisen, saluted their master, and were standing by him.

  The boy touched the old Khan's feet reverently. "Fear not, noble sir,"he said hastily, "for the Sahib Zadah is safe. He met with no hurt,though he was in danger."

  "Ul-humd-ul-illa!--Praise be to God," broke from the old man fervently,and was heartily re-echoed by all around; for men were arriving everymoment from the different portions of the court, and crowding round tohear the news. "Ul-humd-ul-illa! O holy Geesoo Duraz!"[9] he continued,looking up, "I vow fatehas to thy tomb, and a new covering shall ithave of the costliest cloth-of-gold. But go on, boy, and fear not. Isthere aught for my private ear?"

  "Nothing, my lord--nothing. There was a fray, and Meah Sahib'sattendant or friend was badly wounded. I want a palankeen for him; thatis all."

  "And my son--why did he not come with thee? And who art thou?" askedthe Khan.

  "They call me Ashruf, and I am the son of Peer Mahomed Duffadar, andMeah Sahib could not come, because," added the lad, dropping his head,"he was my father's prisoner--and----"

  "By the Prophet, but this is too much!" exclaimed the fiery old Khan."Who art thou, knave, that dares to say the son of Afzool Khan is aprisoner to any one?"

  "May I be your sacrifice, O Khan," returned the boy, nothing daunted,though the Khan's angry speech was re-echoed by all gathered aroundhim. "May I be your sacrifice, there is no harm meant to your nobleson, whom we all know and honour. He it was who in my hearing declaredthat, in order to save my father, he would attend the Kotwal's court;for it was but yesterday that the Kotwal swore he would have theright hand of the first brawler taken, cut off, and hung up in thechowke,[10] and that he would degrade the first officer who failed toapprehend those concerned in any riot. Be not angry, therefore, noblesir, for my father explained all this, and your son goes of his ownfreewill. My father could not help it, you know, my lord," added theboy, apologetically, "for a man had been wounded, and there was bloodon your son's sword."

  "Ay! Jehandar Beg is likely to be a man of his word, too," said theKhan to those about him, "and force will do no good. But it were aswell that my son should be attended, I think. What say you, gentlemen?So be ready some twenty of you, and call up the spearmen; the palankeenand bearers, too, for Bulwunt Rao. We could ill spare him, poor fellow,from among us."

  "Nothing could have happened if Meah had taken some of us with him,"cried several of the men at once. "We all wanted to go," added RaheemKhan, "but he bade us mind our own business, and took Bulwunt Rao withhim; and see what has come of ganja smoking."

  "And Meah might have been wounded or killed," added several.

  "My friends, there was need to do it," answered Afzool Khan; "a secretservice for the King cannot have too few witnesses. As to his life,or mine, or that of any of you, do we not eat the salt of the King,and should our lives be grudged? Peace, then, and hasten to get ready:the morn is fast breaking, and by daylight we should be in the saddle.Keep the boy; he must accompany us." So saying, he turned back intothe private court in order to seek his daughter, who had followed him.Goolab had been beforehand with her, and had communicated the news inher own way, with many marvellous additions, while the Khan was givinghis orders to the men. Now, therefore, on hearing her father's briefconfirmation of Fazil's safety, all past anxiety was at once forgotten,and, with glistening eyes and a thankful heart, she clung to him asthey entered the small court of the zenana apartments together.

  By this time, too, Zyna's second mother, who as yet has been barelymentioned, had been aroused from her sleep by the prevailing bustle;and as she habitually indulged in long rests, and disliked earlyhours most particularly, she met the Khan and Zyna in a mood of veryquerulous character, which arose partly from having been robbed ofa large portion of sleep, and partly from having heard Goolab'sexaggerated report of Fazil's danger. Now, the good lady had not evenknown of his going out, nor, as her lord had requested not to bedisturbed, of the manner in which the weary night had passed.

  "Blessed be the holy saints that he is safe!" was the exclamation ofZyna, as she threw herself upon the lady's neck; "there will be nodela
y now, and my father will bring him to us. O mother, are you notthankful?"

  "It was well done of thee, Khan," cried the lady ironically,disengaging herself from Zyna, and not heeding her words, "to send thatpoor boy out in such a night as the last has been. Such thunder andlightning! Naked, too, I hear--to run the chance of cold and wounds.Ugh! and thou sayest thou hast a father's love for him? Toba! toba! Iswear to thee, had he been my son, he should never stir out without mypermission. I would take care of that. He should not go hence, KhanSahib, until I knew that the planets were propitious--a thing--Alladefend us!--that some people care as little about as--as ... and thento think what a tempting of destiny it was to send the boy from homewithout asking or caring for the positions of the stars, or findingout whether there was not an adverse planet in a threatening house. Asit is, we hear that Fazil is wounded--that is, he might have been; andthat Bulwunt Rao has had his head cut off--that is, nearly, for he hasa horrible cut in his neck, and his head is hanging all on one side;and," she continued, wiping her eyes with the end of her scarf, and ina whimpering tone, "all this comes of not asking me. What am I in thehouse but less than a dog? O Khan----"

  "Peace, Lurlee!" returned Afzool Khan tartly. "What cross words arethese so early in the morning? Enough for thee that the boy is safe,and that we have subject for thankfulness in his escape from danger,and not of sorrow. Peace! is it thus Alla should see thee after Hismercy? Fazil will be here presently, and will tell thee perhaps as muchas I know."

  "Ay, perhaps!" retorted Lurlee. "I, who am less than a cat in thehouse, and as gentle as a sheep, am thus treated! O Khan! shame uponthee that I know everything only when it is stale, and comes to methrough the bazar! Are not all your goings and comings hidden from me?and now I hear you and Zyna sat up all night together; and I was toldyou were not to be interrupted, and had to eat my dinner by myself, andto get to sleep as best I might. O Khan! am I less than nobody? I whoam of the family of----"

  "Thou wouldst only have been anxious and fretful, Lurlee," returned theKhan soothingly. "The planets would have troubled thee. We meant onlywell in not telling thee. It was an urgent matter, and we could notwait for the astrologer to read the tables for us, or tell us what starwas in the ascendant. Go, see after some breakfast, or whatever can begot for Fazil; we may be detained, and I'll warrant he is hungry enoughalready. We cannot wait for lucky hours sometimes, but must take whatAlla sends us."

  "I will not go, Khan. I will not be put off with empty words," shecried, angrily; "and if you do not choose to read the stars, whatdoes it signify? are not the consequences of your error on your ownhead? When was it that the stars were aught in your eyes? Have Inot read you many a warning, which, had it been heeded, would havesaved much trouble--much! When Fazil went forth to battle, did I notwarn you not to let him depart? and did he not come home wounded andsenseless? And when I told you one day, when one of the horses died,that something bad must befall us because of the evil aspect of thestars, I was only laughed at. Is this true or false? And yesterday,if I had but been asked beforehand, could I not have told all thatwas going to happen? Behold!" and the lady drew from her bodice atable regularly constructed to aid her astrological predictions andresearches--"behold! were not Saturn and the Moon in conjunction? Isnot that bad enough? and cannot you see that is the reason why BulwuntRao, poor fellow, has had his head cut off?"

  "Peace, Lurlee!" again cried the Khan, to whom his wife's astrologicalwisdom had long proved a serious annoyance. "If all the planets inthe sky had come together for good or evil, Fazil must have gone lastnight, for it was an errand of life or death. Now all is safely over,go and prepare some sheernee for distribution, and be thankful for whatis, rather than anxious about the stars----"

  "Toba, toba!" exclaimed the lady, interrupting him; "for shame, forshame! O Khan, to blaspheme the stars! May your sin be forgiven!"

  "Nay, mother, but he did not blaspheme," urged the gentle voice ofZyna. "He did but mean that Fazil was safe everywhere; for thouknowest, dear mother, that he is in the hands of Alla, and that theblessed Alla is above all."

  "He is not above the stars," retorted the lady angrily,and over-anxious to establish the truth of her favouritesuperstition--"that is, He--I mean--He is above them; but then----"

  "Ah, Lurlee; better leave them alone," cried the Khan, laughing. "Artthou not sinking deep into the mire of thine own conceit, lady? Well,thou art welcome to them if they will teach thee not to be wilful, andnot to do thine own desire, which is ever ill controlled and variable;and as to their being higher than Him who made them--why, I have nomore to say."

  "I said no such thing," retorted the lady doggedly; "but it is everthus. Take care, Khan, of wilful disregard of warnings."

  "Another time, perhaps, wife. Now we cannot delay, for the Kotwal hasgot hold of Fazil, and that is worse than an adverse conjunction ofplanets. But fear not," he added, seeing that the countenance of Zynabetrayed alarm; "a word from me, and he will be released."

  "If he is not, I will go to my cousin the Wuzeer's wife, and beg forhim," replied Lurlee.

  "Ay, in spite of the stars? Well, well, beebee, I hope it will not beneeded," said the Khan cheerily. "We are not yet come down to askingfavours of our cousins' wives. No, Lurlee; keep thine interest foranother time, and see to it that thy cousin doth not require thine aidere thou hast to ask hers."

  "Impossible, Khan!" cried the lady sharply. "Thou art pleased thismorning to underrate my poor self and my relations. It is well, OAfzool Khan!" (she meant to be very impressive when she called him byname)--"it is well--I say it is very well, that you speak thus. See toit that thou, too, want no aid from them."

  "I do not need them, Lurlee," replied the Khan. "As to their aid tome--nay, be not angry--I have not much hope of it; and for the rest, ifI am right in what I think, there is evil impending over the Wuzeer'shouse, which all the stars will not tell thee of, nor him either. Maythe saints avert it! If it be true, thou shalt know of it ere manyhours be past, and we will try to aid him; but at present let there bepeace between us. By-and-by thou wilt say to Fazil, It was well done,though our news may not please thee. Go, girl, bring me my sword," hecontinued to Zyna. "Bring a shawl too, for the morning air is chilly."

  Zyna was glad to escape, for, in truth, bickerings such as we havenoted were too frequent in the house to be very tolerable, andsometimes one side, sometimes the other, was in fault; most frequentlyperhaps, the lady, who, having had no children of her own to care for,and having in her youth been instructed in Persian, had turned todivinity and astrology with great zeal. In the latter she had indeedgreat faith, and professed herself able, as no doubt she was willing,to direct all affairs of the house, as also of the state, by planetaryinfluences. Thus, no event could happen without its being, to herperception, plainly written in the book of destiny, which the light ofthe planets rendered easy reading; and if a dish happened to break, ora cow or bullock died, or a horse had to be purchased or exchanged,or any household rejoicing made, or trouble endured, all were foundto have connection with the planets, or to be the consequences of thelucky or unlucky days and hours of which her life was composed.

  Lurlee Khanum being a scholar, was also an object of envy to many ofher female friends, and was consulted by them upon various turns oftheir fortunes; and in regard to lucky colours for dress, lucky momentsfor putting on new clothes, settling matches and marriage days, theweaning of children, putting them into new beds, cutting their hairor nails, and the like domestic matters, she was an unquestionableauthority. She, according to the rules laid down in her book, hadwritten several charms, and given them to her friends, which, togetherwith the virtues of certain herbs and medicines, had been the causeof relief to babies when cutting their teeth, and when they criedat night, or had bad dreams, or infantine ailments; and had beenefficacious also in averting evil spirits, evil eyes, and the enviouswishes of others.

  For these accomplishments--especially her skill in astrology,which was believed to be very wonderful, indeed almost a specia
lrevelation--Lurlee Khanum was held in vast respect by all classes inher quarter of the city; and her opinions and interpretations of thestars were decidedly preferred to those of Meer Anwur Ali, the oldMoolla of the public mosque nigh at hand; and a considerable feudexisted between them in consequence. For the Moolla considered heras an interloper, and as one by no means instructed or qualified tohave converse with what she professed, whether astrology or medicine;and had been known to say, irreverently no doubt, that more peopledied of Lurlee Khanum's medicines than the angel of death knew whatto do with. In short, Lurlee Khanum, the second wife of Afzool Khan,was a much more popular person than the first had been; who, being aforeigner, and absorbed in her husband and children, cared little abouther neighbours; whereas her successor was in most respects the exactreverse.

  Lurlee Beebee had once been handsome. She was of somewhat darkcomplexion, but had very large lustrous eyes, with a prominentnose, and had not escaped marks by smallpox, though they were notdisfiguring. When the Khan married her, her figure was perfect; but shehad lately, much to her mortification, increased in size; and thoughshe took many infallible receipts to prevent fat, it would accumulate.For many years she had had hope of children, and had made vows to allthe shrines in Beejapoor, had sent gifts to those at Allund, Gulburgah,and Gogi, and had vowed to make vast distributions of money, and todo other charitable acts, if her prayers were granted. Now she beganto fear she had no chance, which had vexed her not a little, and hadcombined, with other troubles, to give a sour, grim expression to hercountenance, which rarely left it.

  There were times, however, when she was bright and pleasant; for,really kind at heart, few had greater powers of pleasing than LurleeKhanum; but as her husband became more and more occupied with publicaffairs, estrangement had begun, and was progressing. There was onefear which had beset Lurlee for many years--that her lord, seeing shehad no children, would marry again; and the idea of a sister-wifewas very intolerable: this, however, had passed away. The Khan wasadvancing in years, his children were growing up, and she had no fearof another usurping what affection remained, or interfering with herhousehold management.

  To the Khan's children Lurlee was fondly attached; indeed, they werenow the principal links between her lord and herself. Their motherhad died when they were of tender age; and, after Lurlee's hopes ofchildren ceased, she took more kindly to them than before, and had doneher duty by them. Nor did their father interfere with that deferenceto her judgment in matters concerning them, of which she had betterknowledge; but her increasing faith in her own infallibility had begunto distress both, as they could not help estimating at its proper valuethe superstition upon which the majority of her acts and opinions werefounded once for all.

  Such was Lurlee Khanum, the only lady in the harem of Afzool Khan.Other nobles of his rank would have married as often as the lawallowed, without reproach; but the old Khan's affections had seeminglydied with Zyna's mother; and the excitement of war, of politicalevents, and provincial government, together with the management ofhis fine estate of Afzoolpoor, had apparently filled his mind to theexclusion of other subjects.

  In a few moments Zyna had returned, bearing the weapon, which herfather took from her; and having entered the garden with her, theyperformed their ablutions in the mosque before mentioned, and wentthrough the usual forms of the early prayer. The Khan then returned tothe zenana, where Lurlee Khanum met him.

  "I have put up some food in the palankeen," she said; "see that Fazileats it. I would all this were safely over," she added, after a pause."Thou art not angry with me, Khan--with your Lurlee? do not go forthangry with me, my lord."

  "No, no! not angry, dear one," returned the Khan, much moved andsoftened. "I am not angry, but impatient; forgive me, Lurlee. Alla keepyou till I return: and you too, my child! Fear not; I will bring himsafely to both of you."

  The Khan's horse awaited him in the outer court, and with it a strongtroop of his best horsemen, with a company of spearmen, whose combinedforce seemed enough to have rescued Fazil, had there been need. AfzoolKhan was greeted heartily by all, and as he cast his eye over thegroup of steady and oft-tried retainers, he felt that confidence whichresults from habitual companionship with others, and that no dangercould reach Fazil which they could not share or overcome. The greetingwas as heartily returned as given; and the gates being thrown openafter a few questions to his son's messenger, and preceded by him andthe band of spearmen who ran before his horse, Afzool Khan and hisretainers pushed forward at a rapid pace.

  It was now broad daylight, and the freshness of the morning, and itsclear bright atmosphere, rendered every object more beautiful than ithad been before the rain. Every stately mosque and minaret, palace andmausoleum, with their bright gilded spires, caught the fast-increasinglight, and stood out boldly against the clear eastern sky; while therich foliage of the trees, unmoved by any wind as yet, hung in heavymasses, and seemed refreshed by the moisture they still retained.As they passed the various gardens, the rich fragrance of tuberose,lime, and orange flowers loaded the air almost to excess; while thevery ground gave forth that refreshing earthy scent which, in India,after rain, mingles so peculiarly and yet so gratefully with everyother perfume. Few persons were yet abroad; and with the exception ofan occasional devout Mahomedan proceeding to early morning prayer atthe mosque--a young rake, with a small band of sword-and-bucklermen,returning from the night's questionable companionship--a few humblecarriers of fruit and vegetables coming from villages without thewalls to the morning market, with here and there small companiesof travellers starting on their daily journey,--all was silent anddeserted; and the heavy tramp of the horsemen, as they proceeded at arapid pace, sounded strange and suspicious at that unusual hour.

  FOOTNOTES:

  [8] The respectful title of a son--literally, "lord's son."

  [9] _Huzrut Syud Geesoo Duraz_--"Prince of the Long Locks"--the name ofa celebrated Mahomedan saint, whose tomb at Gulburgah is esteemed themost holy, as the saint is the greatest favourite of all, perhaps, inthe Dekhan.

  [10] Market-place.