HKB
"I do."----"Well, then, you must dig in the hollow of the trunk; about a cubit deep you will find all I have--gold, silver, and ornaments."
"Now," said I, "villain, I have kept my word, you shall remain here; the grave is dug which shall hold thee, and has been ready for hours: I swore that I would spit on thy beard before morning, and Bhowanee, whose votaries thou hast bullied and threatened, has delivered thee into my hands:" and I spat on him; all the men who were near me did the same. "Again," cried I, "hold him fast, and bring the tobacco." He knew the fatal jhirnee, and struggled to be free; but he was a child in the power of those who held him--in an instant more he was dead!
"Off with you, Motee!" cried I; "take ten men and go to the spot he mentioned; he may have told the truth, and we shall be the richer for it; then will many a man cry 'Wah! Wah!' when he hears of this deed."
The body was taken away and buried, the grave was smoothed over and beaten down, the place plastered over, some fire-places made, and fires lighted to blacken them, and our work was concealed. Now did not that villain deserve his fate, Sahib? To my perception, his cold-blooded work was far worse than our legitimate proceedings; and as for his treachery, he paid the forfeit of it.
It was a fearful revenge, said I; but you spoilt the justice of it by your vile love of plunder. Why should you have promised him his life, and then have murdered him? that was base.
I did not promise it to him; I said he should remain where he was, and he did remain--ay, he is there now.
It was a nice distinction certainly, Ameer Ali, and only shows the more how little you are to be trusted. But how did you get on afterwards,--had he told the truth about his money?
He had, replied the Thug. Long before morning Motee returned, and rousing me, poured at my feet a heap of gold and silver coins, necklaces, armlets, bracelets, and anklets. They were worth nearly three thousand rupees, and not one article of them was there but had been given him by Thugs. Motee, Peer Khan, and others recognised most of the property. We melted all the ornaments, and divided the whole at our next stage, and it was a good booty, and enriched us for a long time; indeed I may say it lasted till our return home.
And the Sahoukar, I asked, was the news true about him?
Oh, quite true, said Ameer Ali; I will tell you of him. We left Saugor early, and at a short distance on the road sat down to eat the goor, as is usual with us after any adventure. While we were thus employed, one of the scouts came up, and told us the joyful news that the Sahoukar had left the town, and was close behind us, and that the other, whose name was Bhikaree, had taken service with him as far as Jubbulpoor as an attendant, to watch at night while the Sahoukar slept.
"And how does he travel?" I asked.
"He is on a tattoo, a good strong beast," said the scout, "and has two others laden with him, and there are four men besides himself and Bhikaree."
"Good," said I. "Now, my lads, we must push on; the Sahoukar must see nothing of us for some days, and till then I shall avoid all others."