Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1890-07-18
Strange Ride of Morrowbie
JukeS.
BY RuDYARD KIPLIyG.

BY RUDYARD KIPLIyG.
There is, as the copjurers say, no decep- |
ton about this tale. Jukes by accident |
upon village that is well known |
to exist, though he is the only Englishman |
who has been there. A somewhat similar /
Institution used to flourish on the out
skirts of Calcutta, and there is story that
If You go into the heart of Bikanir, which |
Is in the heart of the Great Indian Desert,
you shall come across not village, but
town, where the dead who did not die but
may not live have established their head
quarters.
And, since it is perfectly true that in
the same desert is a wonderful city where
all the rich money lenders retreat fortunes
30 vast that the owners cannot trust even
the strong hand of the government to pro-
tect them, but take refuge in the waterless
sands), and drive sumptnous C-spring ba-
rouches, and buy beautiful girls and deco
rate their palaces with gold and ivory and
Minton tiles and mother-o' pearl, i do not
see why Juke's tale should not be true.
He is a civil engineer, with q head for |
plans and distances and things of that |
kind, and he certainly would not take the |
trouble to invent imaginary traps. He |
could earn more by doing his legitimate |
work. He never varies the tale in the tell |
ing, and grows very hot and indignant |
when he thinks of the disrespectful treat
ment he received He wrote this quite |
straighforwardly at first, but he has since
touched it up in places and introduced
Moral Reflections, thus
Mr.. JUKEs BEGINS.
In the beginning it all arose from a
slight attack OF fever. My work necessi-
tated my being in camp for some months
between Pakpattan and Mubarakpur-a
desolate, sandy stretch Of country, as ev-
cry one who has had the misfortune to 20
there may know. My coolies were neither
more nor less exasperating than other
gangs, and my work demanded sufficient
attention to keep me from moping had
been inclined to so unmanly weakness.
On the 23d December, 1884, felt lit
tie feverish. There was q full moon at the
time, and, in consequence, every dog near
my tent was baying it. The brutes as
sembled in twos and threes and drove me
frantic. A few days previously had shot
one loud-mouthed singer and suspended
his carcass ia terr0rem about fifty yards
from my tent door. But his friends fell
upon. fought for and ultimately devoured
the body, and, as it seemed to me, sang
their hymns of thanksgiving afterward
with renewed energy.
T. The light headedness which accompan-
les fever acts differently upon different
men. Ny irritation gave way after short
time to fixed determination to slaughter
one huge black and white beast who had
been foremost in song and first in flight
throughout the evening. Thanks to
shaking and giddy head had already
missed him twice with both barrels Of my
shotgun, when it struck me that the best
plan would be to ride him down in the
open and finish him off with hog spear.
This, of course, was merely the semi-de
lirious notion of fever patient, but / re-
member that it struck me at the time as
being eminently practical and feasible.
THE START.
l therefore ordered my groom to saddle
Pormc and bring him round quietly to the
rear of my tent. When the pony was
ready, stood at his head preparedi to
mount and dash out as soon as the dog
should again lift up his voice. Pornic, by
the way, had not been out of his pickets
for couple of days; the night was crisp
and chilly, and was armed with special
long and sharp pair of persuaders with
which had been rousing sluggish cob
that afternoon. You will easily believe,
then, that when he was let 60 he went
quickly.
In one moment, for the brute bolted as
straight as die, the tent was left far be-
hind, and we were flying over the smooth |
sandy soil at racing speed. In an
other we had passed the wretched dog,
and had almost forgotten why it was
that had taken horse and hog spear.
The delirium of fever and the excitement |
Of rapid motion through the air must have |
taken away the remnant of my senses.
have faint recollection of standing up
right in my stirrups and of brandishing my |
hog spear at the great white moon that |
looked down SO calmly on my mad gal
lop, and shouting challenges to the camel |
thorn bushes as they whizzed past. Once,
Or twice, belive, l swayed forward on |
Pornic's neck, and literally hung on by my |
spurs, as the marks next morning showed.
The wretched beast went forward like q
thing possessed over what seemed to be a
limitlcss expanse of moonlit sand. Next,
remember, the ground rose suddenly in |
front of us, and as we topped the ascent I
saw the waters of the Sutlej shining like a |
silver bar below. Then Pornic blundered
heavily on his nose and We rolled together
down some unseen slope.
must have lost consciousness, for when
l recovered I was lying on my stomach in
q heap Of soft white sand, and the dawn
was beginning to break dimly over the
edge of the slope down which had fallen.
AS the light grew stronger / saw that
was at the bottom of horseshoe shaped
crater of sand, opening directly on one
side on to the shoals of the Sutlej. My
fever had altogether left me, and, with
the exception Of slight dizziness in the
head, felt no bad effects from the fall
over night.
IN THE CRATER.
Pornic, who was standing few yards
away, was naturally good deal exhaust
ed, but had not hurt himself in the least
His saddle, favorite polo one, was much
knocked about, and had been twisted un-
der his belly. 1t took me some time to
put him to rights, and in the meantime
had ample opportunities of observing
the spot into which I had foolishly drop
ped.
At tho risk Of being considered tedious /
must describe it at length, inasmuch as an
accurate mental picture of its pecdliarities
will be Of material assistance in enabling
the reader to understand what follows.
Imagine, then, as have said before,
horseshoe shaped crater of sand with steep
ly graded sand walls about thirty five feet
high. (The slope, / fancy, must have been
about sixty five degrees.) This crater en-
closed a level piece Of ground about fifty
yards long by thirty at its broadest part.
with rude well in the centre.
r