Part 11

Anybody else could have seen through this plot of mine in a moment. And, if it had been directed against another person, Kailas Babu would have understood the joke. But after all that he had heard from his friend the Government servant, and after all his own exaggerations, a visit from the Lieutenant-Governor seemed the most natural thing in the world. He became highly nervous and excited at my news. Each detail of the coming visit exercised him greatly,--most of all his own ignorance of English. How on earth was that difficulty to be met? I told him there was no difficulty at all: it was aristocratic not to know English: and, besides, the Lieutenant-Governor always brought an interpreter with him, and he had expressly mentioned that this visit was to be private.

About midday, when most of our neighbours are at work, and the rest are asleep, a carriage and pair stopped before the lodging of Kailas Babu. Two flunkeys in livery came up the stairs, and announced in a loud voice, "The Chota LAct Sahib has arrived!" Kailas Babu was ready, waiting for him, in his old-fashioned ceremonial robes and ancestral turban, and Ganesh was by his side, dressed in his master's best suit of clothes for the occasion.

When the Chota LAct Sahib was announced, Kailas Babu ran panting and puffing and trembling to the door, and led in a friend of mine, in disguise, with repeated salaams, bowing low at each step and walking backward as best he could. He had his old family shawl spread over a hard wooden chair and he asked the LAct Sahib to be seated. He then made a high-flown speech in Urdu, the ancient Court language of the Sahibs, and presented on the golden salver a string of gold _mohurs_, the last relics of his broken fortune. The old family servant Ganesh, with an expression of awe bordering on terror, stood behind with the scent-sprinkler, drenching the LAct Sahib, and touched him gingerly from time to time with the otto-of-roses from the filigree box.

Kailas Babu repeatedly expressed his regret at not being able to receive His Honour Bahadur with all the ancestral magnificence of his own family estate at Nayanjore. There he could have welcomed him properly with due ceremonial. But in Calcutta he was a mere stranger and sojourner,--in fact a fish out of water.

My friend, with his tall silk hat on, very gravely nodded. I need hardly say that according to English custom the hat ought to have been removed inside the room. But my friend did not dare to take it off for fear of detection: and Kailas Babu and his old servant Ganesh were sublimely unconscious of the breach of etiquette.

After a ten minutes' interview, which consisted chiefly of nodding the head, my friend rose to his feet to depart. The two flunkeys in livery, as had been planned beforehand, carried off in state the string of gold _mohurs_, the gold salver, the old ancestral shawl, the silver scent-sprinkler, and the otto-of-roses filigree box; they placed them ceremoniously in the carriage. Kailas Babu regarded this as the usual habit of Chota LAct Sahibs.

I was watching all the while from the next room. My sides were aching with suppressed laughter. When I could hold myself in no longer, I rushed into a further room, suddenly to discover, in a corner, a young girl sobbing as if her heart would break. When she saw my uproarious laughter she stood upright in passion, flashing the lightning of her big dark eyes in mine, and said with a tear-choked voice: "Tell me! What harm has my grandfather done to you? Why have you come to deceive him? Why have you come here? Why----"

She could say no more. She covered her face with her hands and broke into sobs.

My laughter vanished in a moment. It had never occurred to me that there was anything but a supremely funny joke in this act of mine, and here I discovered that I had given the cruellest pain to this tenderest little heart. All the ugliness of my cruelty rose up to condemn me. I slunk out of the room in silence, like a kicked dog.

Hitherto I had only looked upon Kusum, the grand-daughter of Kailas Babu, as a somewhat worthless commodity in the marriage market, waiting in vain to attract a husband. But now I found, with a shock of surprise, that in the corner of that room a human heart was beating.

The whole night through I had very little sleep. My mind was in a tumult. On the next day, very early in the morning, I took all those stolen goods back to Kailas Babu's lodgings, wishing to hand them over in secret to the servant Ganesh. I waited outside the door, and, not finding any one, went upstairs to Kailas Babu's room. I heard from the passage Kusum asking her grandfather in the most winning voice: "Dada, dearest, do tell me all that the Chota LAct Sahib said to you yesterday. Don't leave out a single word. I am dying to hear it all over again."

And Dada needed no encouragement. His face beamed over with pride as he related all manner of praises which the LAct Sahib had been good enough to utter concerning the ancient families of Nayanjore. The girl was seated before him, looking up into his face, and listening with rapt attention. She was determined, out of love for the old man, to play her part to the full.

My heart was deeply touched, and tears came to my eyes. I stood there in silence in the passage, while Thakur Dada finished all his embellishments of the Chota LAct Sahib's wonderful visit. When he left the room at last, I took the stolen goods and laid them at the feet of the girl and came away without a word.

Later in the day I called again to see Kailas Babu himself. According to our ugly modern custom, I had been in the habit of making no greeting at all to this old man when I came into the room. But on this day I made a low bow and touched his feet. I am convinced the old man thought that the coming of the Chota LAct Sahib to his house was the cause of my new politeness. He was highly gratified by it, and an air of benign serenity shone from his eyes. His friends had looked in, and he had already begun to tell again at full length the story of the Lieutenant-Governor's visit with still further adornments of a most fantastic kind. The interview was already becoming an epic, both in quality and in length.

When the other visitors had taken their leave, I made my proposal to the old man in a humble manner. I told him that, "though I could never for a moment hope to be worthy of marriage connection with such an illustrious family, yet ... etc. etc."

When I made clear my proposal of marriage, the old man embraced me and broke out in a tumult of joy: "I am a poor man, and could never have expected such great good fortune."

That was the first and last time in his life that Kailas Babu confessed to being poor. It was also the first and last time in his life that he forgot, if only for a single moment, the ancestral dignity that belongs to the Babus of Nayanjore.

WORDS TO BE STUDIED

=landholder.= This method of forming compound words from two original English words should be studied. Compare the following words which have "land" for one of their parts: _landlord_, _landowner_, _landlady_, _landslip_, _landfall_. When the second word is not very closely attached to the first word, a hyphen is put between, thus _land-grabber_, _land-shark_.

=extinct.= From the Latin "stinguere," to quench. Compare _distinct_, _instinct_, _extinguish_, _distinguish_.

=cheque.= This word is the same as "check,"--only in this case the original French form has been kept. The verb to "check" came into English originally from the game of chess. In Eastern lands when the chess king was in danger the word "Shah!" was called out, and when the chess king could not move, "Shah mata!" These were corrupted into "Check!" and "Checkmate!"

=bankrupt.= This word is a curious mixture of the old French "banque" (compare _bench_, _banquet_) and the Latin "rumpere," to break (compare _corrupt_, _disrupt_). It is thus a hybrid word in modern English.

=filigree.= From two Latin words, "filum," a thread, and "granum," a grain.

=otto-of-roses.= A corruption of attar. The word is originally Arabic and Persian.

=turban.= This word has now taken its place in most of the European languages. It has come to Europe from the Turkish "tulbend" and the Persian "dulband."

=tobacco.= This word came originally from Central America. It was brought to Europe by the Spaniards, who pronounced it "tabaco." It has now travelled all round the world, and has gained a place in all the Indian vernaculars as well as in the Further East.

=boon.= The Old English word "ben" meant a prayer, and this was the original meaning of "boon." But a new word appeared in English, viz. the adjective "boon" from the French "bon," meaning "good." (Compare _boon companion_). This influenced the earlier word, which thus gained its present meaning of a "blessing" or "gift."

=smoulder.= "Smolder" is an Old English word meaning "smoke." Cognate words in English are _smother_ and _small_, which come from the same root.

=gingerly.= The origin of this word is very doubtful. Some connect it with "ging" or "gang," meaning "to go." Others with "gent-" meaning "gentle" or "graceful." The word has no relation to "ginger" which is an Eastern word coming originally from the Sanskrit _ASec.raga-vera_ and the Hindustani _zunjubil_.

=fantastic.= From the Greek "phainA," to manifest. Compare _emphasis_, _emphatic_, _fantasy_, _fancy_, _phenomenon_.

NOTES

NOTES

I.--THE CABULIWALLAH

"The Cabuliwallah" is one of the most famous of the Poet's "Short Stories." It has been often translated. The present translation is by the late Sister Nivedita, and her simple, vivid style should be noticed by the Indian student reader. It is a good example of modern English, with its short sentences, its careful choice of words, and its luminous clearness of meaning.

=Cabuliwallah.=] A man from Cabul or Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.

=embarked.=] Like a ship putting out to sea on a new voyage.

=Bhola.=] Mini's attendant.

=Protap Singh.=] Rabindranath Tagore pictures himself as engaged in writing a novel, full of wild adventures. These names are made up to suit the story.

=so precarious.=] The writer amusingly imagines the hero and heroine actually swinging by the rope until he can get back to his desk and finish writing about how they escaped.

=Abdurrahman.=] The Amir of Kabul.

=Frontier policy.=] The question about guarding the North-West of India against invasion.

=without demur.=] Without making any objection, or asking for more money.

=judicious bribery.=] He gave her little presents, _judging_ well what she would like best.

=new fangled.=] The parents had not talked about such things, as old-fashioned people would have certainly done.

=euphemism.=] This means, in Greek, "fair speech." Here it means a pleasant word used instead of the unpleasant word "jail."

=kings went forth.=] During the hot weather the kings of ancient India used to stay at home: they would begin to fight again at the beginning of the cold weather.

=my heart would go out.=] That is to say, he would long to see such places.

=fall to weaving.=] This is an English idiom, like "set to": it means to begin.

=conjure themselves.=] Just as the conjurer makes all kinds of things appear before the eyes.

=vegetable existence.=] Vegetables are rooted to the ground. So Rabindranath is rooted to his desk and cannot make long journeys.

=As it was indefinite.=] Because there was no actual reason for it. Indefinite here means vague.

=forbid the man the house.=] This is a brief way of saying forbid the man to enter the house.

=bebagged.=] This word is made up for the occasion, and means "laden with bags." Compare the words bedewed, besmeared.

=just where.=] The word "just" has become very commonly used in modern English. It means "exactly," "merely" or "at the very moment." Compare "He had just gone out." "It was just a joke."

=Scarcely on speaking terms.=] Rabindranath Tagore is here making a joke; "not to be on speaking terms" means usually "to be displeased with." Mini had become so eager to talk with her girl friends that she had almost neglected her father.

=Durga.=] The Durga Festival in Bengal is supposed to represent the time when Parvati, or Durga, left her father's home in the Himalayas, called Kailas, and went to live with her husband, Siva.

=Bhairavi.=] One of the musical tunes which denotes separation.

=chandeliers.=] The glass ornamental hangings on which candles were lighted in great houses at weddings.

=better-omened.=] It was not considered a good omen, or good fortune, to meet a criminal on a wedding day.

=dispersed.=] Used up.

=Parbati.=] Another allusion to the Goddess Durga and her home in the Himalayas.

=apparition.=] This word comes from the same root as the word to "appear." It means a sudden or strange sight. It often means a ghost. Mini had so changed that when she appeared in her wedding dress she startled him, as if he had seen a ghost.

=make friends with her anew.=] His own daughter would not know him at first.

=Saw before him the barren mountains.=] His memory was so strong that it made him forget the crowded Calcutta street and think of his home in the mountains.

II.--THE HOME-COMING

=every one seconded the proposal.=] All were so eagerly in favour that they wanted to speak at once in support of it.

=regal dignity.=] His position as a king of the other boys.

=fertile brain.=] Full of inventions and plans.

=manoeuvre.=] A French word meaning a plan of battle.

=point of honour.=] He would feel himself disgraced if he gave way.

=Mother Earth.=] Earth is here pictured as a person. There is a well-known story of a giant who gained fresh power every time his body touched the earth, which was his Mother.

=Furies.=] These were supposed to be certain demons, who pursued guilty men with loud cries.

=the servant was master.=] Notice the play of words here. The "servant" and "master" change places.

=critical juncture.=] At this exact moment when things were so dangerous.

=Dada.=] The usual Bengal word for "Brother."

=no love was lost.=] This is a mild way of saying that they disliked one another.

=on pins and needles.=] Exceedingly restless; like some one standing on sharp points.

=in perpetuity.=] The phrase is a mock legal one, meaning "for all time."

=by no means pleased.=] She was very displeased, because she had already children of her own. In English a phrase is often put in a negative way to imply a very strong positive statement. Thus "by no means happy" may mean "very unhappy."

=committing such an indiscretion.=] Doing such an unwise thing.

=indecent haste.=] A mock humorous expression, meaning "very quickly."

=craves for recognition.=] Wishes to be noticed and loved.

=physical love.=] Just as a young animal clings to its mother for protection.

=animal instinct.=] The phrase repeats in another form what was said before, in the words "a kind of physical love."

=pursed her lips.=] Drew her lips tight like the mouth of a purse which is tightened by pulling the string.

=as if expecting some one.=] He was looking for his mother.

=very critical.=] Very dangerous. The danger point of the illness might be reached at any moment and death might come.

=By the mark.=] When a shallow place comes at sea, or on a great river, one of the sailors throws a piece of lead, with a string tied to it, into the water, and then looks at the _mark_ on the string. He calls out that the depth is "three" or "four" fathoms according to the mark.

=plumb-line.=] The line with a lead weight.

=plumbing.=] To plumb is to get to the bottom of a piece of water. Here Phatik is pictured as himself going deeper and deeper into the sea of death, which none can fathom.

=the holidays.=] The Bengali word for "holiday" means also "release." It is as though he were saying, "My release has come." This cannot be represented in the English.

III.--ONCE THERE WAS A KING

In this story Rabindranath Tagore begins with some amusing sentences about the dull, matter of fact character of modern scientific people, who cannot enjoy a fairy story without asking "Is it true?" The Poet implies that there are deeper truths than modern science has yet discovered. The ending of the present story will show this more clearly.

=sovereign truth.=] There is a play upon the word "sovereign" which can mean "kingly" and also "supreme."

=exacting.=] There is further play here with the words "exact" and "exacting." "Exact" means precise and "exacting" means making others precise.

=legendary haze.=] The ancient legends are very obscure, just like an object seen through a mist.

=knowledge.=] Mere book knowledge,--knowledge of outside things.

=truth.=] Inner truth such as comes from the heart of man and cannot be reasoned or disputed.

=half past seven.=] The time when his tutor was due.

=no other need.=] As if God would continue the rain merely to keep his tutor away!

=If not.=] Though it might not have been caused by his prayers, still for some reason the rain did continue.

=nor did my teacher.=] Supply the words "give up."

=punishment to fit the crime.=] An amusing reference to the doctrine of _karma_, which states that each deed will have its due reward or punishment.

=as me.=] Strictly speaking it should be "I" not "me" but he is writing not too strictly.

=I hope no child.=] The author here amusingly pretends that the child's way of getting out of his lessons was too shocking for young boys in the junior school to read about.

=I will marry my daughter to him.=] The verb to "marry" in English can be used in two senses:--

(1) To wed some one: to take in marriage.

(2) To get some one wedded: to give in marriage.

The later sense is used here.

=in the dawn of some indefinite time.=] In some past existence long ago.

=If my grandmother were an author.=] Here Rabindranath returns to his mocking humour. A modern author, he says, would be obliged to explain all sorts of details in the story.

=hue and cry.=] This is a phrase used for the noise and bustle that is made when people are searching for a thief.

=Her readers.=] Referring back to the Grandmother.

=in an underhand way.=] Under the disguise of a fairy story.

=grandmother again.=] That is, in the old conditions when people were not too exacting about accuracy.

=luckless grandson.=] A humorous way of referring to himself. The author had the misfortune to be born in the modern age of science.

=Seven wings.=] The word "wings" is here used, not for "wings" like those of birds, but for the sides of a large building, projecting out at an angle from the main building.

=But what is the use....=] The author here breaks off the story, as though it were useless to go on any further in these modern days when every thing has to be scientifically proved.

=Some "what then?"=] Some future existence about which explanations might be asked.

=no grandmother of a grandmother.=] No one, however old.

=never admits defeat.=] Refuses to believe in death.

=teacherless evening=.] Evening on which the teacher did not come.

=chamber of the great end.=] Death itself is referred to; it is the end of human life on earth and what is beyond death is shut out from us.

=incantation.=] Sacred verses or _mantras_.

IV.--THE RETURN OF THE CHILD

=found two masters.=] The wife was his master now, as well as her husband.

=make for safety.=] Get to some place where he could not be caught.

=will be a judge some day.=] The baby seemed so wise to Raicharan, that he thought he would certainly grow up to be a judge.

=epoch in human history.=] It seemed to Raicharan as though some great event had happened which ought to be recorded.

=wrestler's trick.=] The writer, in fun, makes Raicharan's skill depend on doing just what the wrestler tries to avoid, i.e. being thrown on his back.

=swallowed down.=] Washed them away in a flood.

=little despot.=] The baby, who was able to make Raicharan do exactly what he liked.

=The silent ceremonial.=] The author pictures the sunset as like some splendid kingly ceremony, where every gorgeous colour can be seen.

="Pitty fow."=] "Pretty flower." The baby can only lisp the words.

=He was promoted from a horse into a groom.=] He was no longer asked by the baby to be a "horse" in his games, but to look after this toy carriage, as a groom would.

=with all sorts of curious noises.=] He began to imitate the sounds of birds.

=destined to be a judge.=] The baby could see through Raicharan's attempts to deceive, as a judge would see through false evidence.

=wavelets.=] The little waves seemed like so many thousand little children running away in fun or mischief.

=there was no one there.=] These words are repeated again and again to give the sense of utter loss and desolation.

=overwhelming resentment.=] His own baby seemed to have been given to him in order to tempt him to forget his little Master. Raicharan was angry to think that any one could imagine such forgetfulness to be possible.

=The little Master could not cast off the spell.=] Could not keep away from the servant who loved him so much. He fancies his little Master has come back to life again in this new little baby, drawn as it were by some enchantment of love.

=accumulated.=] Gathered together: referring to the idea of _karma_.

=personal appearance.=] He spent a long time in arranging his clothes and making himself look handsome.

=country manners.=] Country people have habits and ways of speaking which seem absurd to town people.

=a kind of condescension.=] As if he were superior and Raicharan were beneath him.

=mendicant quack.=] A beggar dealing in herbs and medicines and charms.

=hungry, eager eyes.=] As if she could never gaze long enough upon him.

=the magistrate in him.=] The magistrate's way of looking at things.

=magisterial conscience.=] His instincts as a judge, who must condemn the guilty.

V.--MASTER MASHAI

=Ratikanta.=] He is represented throughout as a typical hanger-on of the rich family, selfish and flattering.

=Victor Hugo.=] The most famous of Victor Hugo's stories is called "Les Miserables." Its opening scene of San Valjean and the saintly Bishop is very well known in literature.

=deep-laid plot.=] Notice how throughout this story the different members of this wealthy house appear to be unable to take account of unselfish motives.

=this is sheer kidnapping.=] Adhar Babu believes that Haralal has acquired some hypnotic influence over Venu and is trying to rob him of his money.

=brokers and middlemen.=] Those who bought the grain from the peasants and sold it to the English firm.

=any security.=] A money payment which would be forfeited if anything went wrong.

=a note of hand.=] A paper signed by Venugopal saying that he owed so much money.

=filed a suit.=] Brought an action in the law courts against the father to recover the money lent to the son.

=Currency notes.=] Notes of twenty, fifty, a hundred rupees,--such as could be changed for money.