The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-11-07
THE BISARA OF P00REE.

i LIZ OlDL1llA1 vi OO1llll1s
rrhe author Of this STORY, Rudyard Kipling, is a
young Engllshman who has lived most Of his life
b British India. His stories of that country,
written during personal contact with its people
and the British army, have recently attracted a
great deal Of attention both in England and
America
Some natives say that it came from the
other side of Kulu, where the eleven inch
temple Sapphire Is Others that it was
made at the devil shrine of Ao-Chung in
Thibet, was stolen by Kafir, from him by
Gurkha, from him again by a Lahouli,
from him by khitmatgar, and by this
latter sold to an Englishman, so all its vir-
tue was lost because, to work properly,
the Bisara Of Pooree must be stolen-with
bloodshed if possible, but, at any rate,
stolen.
These stories of the coming into India
are all false. 1t was made at Pooree ages
since-the manner Of its making would fill
a small book-was stolen by one of the
temple dancing girls there, for her own
purposes, and then passed on from hand TO
hand, steadily nortbward till it reached
Banla; always bearing the same name
the Bisara of Pooree. In shape it is tiny
square box Of silver, STUDIED outside with
eight small b9las rubies. Inside the box,
which opens with a spring, is little eye
less fish, carved from some sort of dark,
shiny nut, and wrapped in a shred of faded
gold cloth. That is the Bsara of Pooree,
and it were better for man to take king
cobra in his hand than to touch the Bisara
of Pooree.
All kinds of magic are out of date, and
done away with except in India, where
nothing changes in spite Of the shiny, toy
scum stuff that people call civilization"
i, Any man who knows about the Bisara of
Pooree will tell you what its powers are-
always supposing that it has been honestly
stolen. 1t is the only regularly working,
Trustworthy love charm in the country,
with one exception.
[The other charm is in the hands of a
trooper of the Nizam's Horse, at place
called Tuprani, due north of Hyderabadl
This can be depended upon for a fact.
Some one else may explain it,
If the Bisara be not stolen, but given or
bought or found, it turns against its owner
in three years, and leads to ruin or death.
This is another fact which you may ex-
plain when you have time Meanwhile,
you can laugh at it. At present the Bisara
IS safe on an ekka pOny's neck, inside the
blue bead necklace that keeps off the evil
eve. If the ellka driver ever finds it, and
wears it or gives it to his wife, / am sorry
for him.
A very dirty hill-cooly woman, with
goiter, owned it at Theog in 1884. 1t came
into Simla from the north before Churton's
khtmatgar bought it, and sold it for three
times its silver value, TO Churton, who col
lected curiosities. The servant knew no
more what he had bought than the master;
but a man looking over Churton's collec-
ton of uriosities-ChurtOn was an assist
ant commissioner. by the wRy-saw and
held his tongue. He was an Englishman,
but knew how to believe. Which shows
that he was different from most English
men. He knew that il was dangerous to
have any share in the little box when work
ing or dormant; for unsought love is a ter
rible gift.
pack-"Grubby" Pack, as we used to
call him-was in every way a nasty little
man, who must have crawled into the army
by mistake. He was three inches taller
than his sword, but not half so strong
And the sword was a fifty-shilling, tailor
made one. Nobody liked him, and l sup
pose it was his wizenedness and worthless
ness that made him fall so hopelessly in
love with Miss Hollis, who was good and
sweet and five foot seven in her tennis
shoes. He was not content with falling in
love quietly, but brought all the strength
OF his miserable little nature into the bust
ness.
II he had not been so Objectionable, one
might have pitied him. lie vapored. and
fretted and fumed, and trotted up and
down, and tried to make himself pleasing
in Miss Hollis bic, quiet, gray eyes, and
failed. 1t was one of the cases that you
sometimes meet even in this country
where we marry by code, of a really blind
attachment all on one side, without the
faintest possibility of return. Miss Hollis
looked on Pack as some sort Of vermin run
ming about the road. He had no prospects
beyond captains pay, and no wits to help
that out by one anna. In a large sized man
love like his would have been touching. In
good man it would have been grand. He
being what he was, il was only nuisance.
You will believe this much. What You
will not believe is what follows: Churton
and The Man Who knew what the Bisara
was were lunching at the Simla club to-
gether ChurtOn was complaining of life
in general. His best mare had rolled out
of stable down the hill and had broken her
back; his decisions were being reversed by
the upper courts more than an assistant
commissioner Of eight years standing has
a right TO expect; he knew liver and fever,
and for weeks past had felt our Of sorts.
Altogether he was Disguised and disheart-
ened.
Simla club dining room Is built, rs all
the world knows, in two sections, with an
arch arrangement dividing them. Come
in, turn TO your left, take the table under
the window, and you cannot see any one
who has come IN, turned TO the right and
taken a table on the right side of the arch.
Curiously enough, every word that you
say can be heard not only by the other
diner, but by the servants beyond the
screen through which they bring dinner
This is worth knowing. An echoing room
Is = trap TO be forewsrned against.
Half in fun and half hoping to be be
lieved, The Man Who Knew told Churton
the story of the Bisara OF Pooree at rather
greater length than have told it 10 you
IN this place. winding mp with a sugges-
tion that Cburton might as well throw the
little box down the hill and see whether
all HIS troubles would go with it. In ordi-
Narv cara Epslish ears the tale was ONLY