Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-09
At The END OF THE PASSAGE.
BY ARD K1PLIN G &.

n DIR men. theoretically entitled TO
iSlfe liberty and the pursuit OF happi-
~ ness" sat at a table playing whist. The
thermometer marked for them - 1Ol
degrees Of heat The room was dark
ened till 1t was only Just possible to distinguish
the pips OF the cards aud the very white faces
Of the players. tattered, rotten punkah OF
whitewashed calico pudding the hot air
and whining dolefully at each stroke. Outside
lay gloom Of November day in London.
There neither sky, sun nor horizon
nothing but a brown purple haze of heat Ii
was though the earth were dying Of apo
plexy.
From time to time clouds Of tawny dust rose
from the ground without wind or warning, flung
themselves tableclothwise among the tops OF
the arched trees and came down again Then
IA whirllng dust-devil would scutter across the
plains for a couple OF miles, break and fall
outward, though there was nothing to check
its fight save n long low line OF piled railway
s.eepers white with the dust. cluster of huts
made of mud. Condemned rails and canvas,
and the one squat four-rOOmed bungalow that
belonged to the assistant engineer III charge of
IA section Of the Gandhari state line then un-
der construction.
The four men. stripped to the thinnest of
sleeping suit played whist GROSSLY, with wrang-
lings rs TO leads and returns. 1t was not the
best kind of whist but they had taken some
trouble to arrive at it MOttram of the In
dian survey had ridden thirty aud rallied one
hundred miles from his lonely post in the
desert since the previous night; Lowndes of
the civil service, on special duty In the polit-
zeal department. had come as far TO escape for
an instant the miserable 1ntrl9ues of an i'm
poverlsned native state. whose king alternately
fawned and clustered for more money from the
pItltul revenues contributed by hard-wrung
peasants and despairing camel breeders, Spur
stow, the doctor OF the line, had left cholera
stricken camp of coolies to look after itself for
:orty-eLght hours while ne associated with
white men once more. Hummil. the assistant
engineer, was the host. He stood fast and re-
celved his friends thus every Sunday if they
could come in. When one of them failed to
appear he would send a telegram to his last ad-
dress, in order that he might know whether
the defaulter was dead or alive. There be very
many places in the east where it is not good or
KIND to let your acquaintance drop out of
sight even for one short week.
DRY PLAY AND BYPLAY.
The players were not conscious Of any special
regard for each other. They squabbled when
ever they met, but they ardently desired to
meet as men without water desire to drink.
They were lonely folk who understood the
dread meaning of loneliness. They were all
under thirty years of aSe-which is too soon
Tor any man to possess that knowledge.
.'PIlsener,' sarj Spurstow, after the second
rubber, moppinS his forehead
Beers out I'm sorry to say. and there's
hardly enough soda water for tonight" said
Hummil.
What filthy bad management" snarled
Spurstow.
Can't help it. I've written and wired, but
the trains don't come through regularly yet.
Last week the ice ran out. Lowndes knows"
Glad didn't come. / could ha' sent you
some if had known, though. Phew, it's too hot
to go on playing bumblepuPPy." This with a
L.
lie was hardened offender.
Mottram rose from the table and looked out
of cblnk in the shutters
What a sweet day. said he.
The company yawned unanimously and be-
took themselves to an aimless investigation of
all Hummils possessious-guns tattered
novels, saddlery, spurs aud the like. They
had fingered them score of times before, but
there was really nothing else to do.
Got anything fresh?' said Lowndes.
Last weeks Gazette Of I,adid and a cutting
from home paper. My father sent it out
Its rather amusing"
''One of those vestrymen that call 'emselves
Mp. again. Is it, said Spurstow who read
his newspapers when he could get them
Yes. Listen to this. list your address
Lowndes- The man was making "a speech to
his constituents and he piled it on. Here's a
sample: And assert unhesitatingiy that the
civil service IN India is the preserve-the pet
preserve-of the arlstOcracy of England. What
does the demOcracy-what do the masses-get
from that country which we have step by step
fraudulently annexed? answer nothing what
ever. 1t is farmed with single eye To their
own interests by the scions of the aristocracy
They take good care TO maintain their lavish
scale of incomes. to avoid or stfie any inquiries
into the nature and conduct OF their admins
tratlOn, while they themselves force the I'M
happy peasant to pay with the sweat of his
brow for all the Injuries in which they are
Tapped Hummil waved the cutting above
his head :" Ear. ear" said his audience.
FACTS VERSUS FANCY.
Then Lowndes, meditatiyely-'Td give-Fd
give three months pay to have that gentleman
spend one month with me and see how the free
and independent native prince works things
Old Misunderstanding was his hippant title
for honored and decorated prince-.'has
been wearing my life out this week past for
money. By Jove, his latest performance was
10 send me one of his women as a briber
Good for you! Did you accept III" said
Mottram.
No. l rather wish 1 had now. She was a
pretty little person. and she yarned away to
me about the horrible restitution among the
kings women folk. The darlings haven't had
any new clothes for nearly month and the
old man wants TO buy new drag from CAL
eutta-sohd silver ratings and silver lamps and
iTlfies of that kind. I've tried to make him
understand that he has played the deuce with
the revenues for the last twenty years and must
go slow. He can't see it"
but he has the ancestral treasure vaults to
draw on. There must be three millions at least
IN jewels and coin under his palace" said
Hummil
Catch a native king disturbing the family
treasure! The priests forbid it except as the
last resort. Old Timbersides has added some
thing like quarter Of q million to the deposit
In his reign"
Where the mischief does it all come fron?"
said Mottram
The country. The state OF the people is
enough TO make you sick. I've known the tax
men wait by a mich camel till the foaI was
born and then hurry off the mother for arrears
And what can do? can't get the court clerks
TO give me any accounts | can't raise any
thing more than fat smile from the COM
mander-ln-chief when find out the troops are
three months in arrears, and old Timbersides
hcgins to weep when | speak to him. He has
taken to the kings peg heayily-liqueur brandy
for WHISKY and Heidsieck for soda water"
That's what the Rao of Jubela took to.
Even native can't last long at that" said
Spurstow. Hell go out"
And good thing, too. Then suppose we'll
have a council of regency and tutor for the
young prince, and hand him back his kingdom
with ten years Accommodations"
Nv hereupon that young prince, having been
taught all the vices of the English, will play
ducks and brakes with tie money and undo ten
years work IN eighteen months I've seen that
business before. said Spurstow. Il should
tackle the king with hight hand if we're YOU,
Lowndes- They II hate you quite enough under
any circumstances"
BLACK CHOLERA.
That's all very well The man who looks