The record-union., 1893-01-06

LIN III tHo DuSueS Win unWlnklng,
venomous eyes. This to my mistress,
he laughed, and tonight, when the
CLOCK chimes one, he dies; 1or the RAM
sought love ana he gave her but words.
w hat are words in exchange for the
Jewels she gave as bride? The Jewels he
steals from the Queen when he leaves us
tomorrow.
Lies. lies nothing but lies from the snake
1Ae sun gives gold, he does not take.
Lies lies
Heart of my heart! what are words
ana tears TO snake? And the sun far,
lar from the rose; too far for a warming.
Listen! the rose has thorns to protect
her blossoms; a woman has guiles and
smiles to protect her lover. WHAT mat
ters kiss at one?' said l. Take yours at
eleven in the twelve-doored marble sum-
mer-house powered in roses
"Hal, the greed and lust in his looks
The greed at the Daited hooki
lie saw not the thorn.
But the rose saw his dying soul; she
knew he would not take kiss, and be-
tray her when it was over. She knew
that with venomous snakes there is no
safety but death. One and eleven
wheh inquired on paper show little OF
cnahge. A stroke, a scratch OF thorn ,
no need for more than scratch ere the
paper was lost by the maiden and found
ny hef mistress. Lost by the guile Of one
woman; found in the path of another.
'0h, heart waiting mid the howers,
Counting out the hours
1lll the snakes kiss!
"One two three - r-fve-six-
seven-eight-nin eleven.
The clasp of a snake is cold. but the
ciasp OF death is colder; and coldest OF
all, the warm clnging clasp of rose,
nolqIng nm tighter and tighter when the
knlIe mashed out of the dark, Let me
CO. he shrieked in his terror, but the
tnorns OF the rose held fast, the warm
DIood staining her bosom as she waited
Ior death IN her turn. The lights and an
uproaf, ana 10! instead of the stranger the
hanFs own lover was dead
Dead! who grieves when. d snake is deado
Men are glad that its power has fed.
They laugh in their sleeve.
Yet was there crying and shouting.
ana noise bringing warning to all, reach
ing the moon in the heavens. the sun in
Its rlslng-hastening its flight from the
east to It's home in the arms of the west.
Is not that the course of the sun? Leav-
ing the east with a smile; leaving the rose
and the nightingale? Yes! tits the course
of the sun.
Hal, for the Rose, the Singing Rose!
hal, Tor the nightingale.
''Yet who kills his own pleasure2 Who
kills the bulbul in the rose? MOI thev
cut It's wings, they prison it, they bid it
sing; sing with blood-stained heat when
the sun shines on other roses. So it sang.
waiting always for the kiss which never
came. Pillar of Justice, from the land of
the western sun, say! did the Rose de-
serve the kiss which never came? Hath
she not waited long enough for the prom
ised kiSs?"
The song ceased as abruptly as it be-
gan, and Smith-Jones, distinctly disap-
pointed at its want of historical value.
thanked the old lady politely. 1t ap-
peared to him confused and bewilderinp:
nevertheless, part of it might be twisted
into some semblance of a myth. The
sun was frequently mentioned, and the
GINNING OF the hours pointed conclu-
slVe!y to the swallowing up of darkness
oy hight, and vice versa. And-by Jove,
that must be Dittu returning with the
horse!
1t was. Dittu, the horse, a bundle of
green wheat, and very broad grin. all
OF which common objects relieved Smith
Jones, who, TO say sooth, felt out of mis-
element lying on his back and being
tanned by an old mummy. In his more
collected mood it struck him as undigni-
ned. He blushed a little, rose hastily
ana prepared to mount his horse and de-
part at once. With this intention he
proceeded TO rummage his pockets for a
rupee, which, with a courteouslv in
tended grunt, he rendered to the old
woman. She might have been craven
image Tor all the notice she took of him
or his coin. The hand holding the fan
rested on her lap; her eyes were half
closed.
The Presence wastes time. He had
better give the backsheesh to me.u re-
marked Dittu grinning again. THE old
mother Is nigh stone-Geaf and blind. She
sits so all day, never saying a word save
her prayers. She is a real pious one.
Hal, hal, what misfortune! The stirrup
of the Protector OF the Poor is broken.
God send the iron may be living in the
sand whore the base born beast fell ~
Smith-Jones' puzzled, perturbed look,
as he watched Dittu on his knees search
ing for the missing stirrup-iron, NAV
have been due to anxiety lest he should
have to walk six miles into camD. on
the other hand he may have been won
dering if the fall had seriously injured his
brain; anyhow there was an unusual air
of doubt about him when Dittu's grin
and the iron came out of the sand 20
gether with the remark that, if the Pres
ence would sit down and wait awhile. he
Dittu, had some string with which a
splice of the broken strap could be made
in minute or two. Meanwhile. as the
Presence no longer required the pillow.
he would cen cover up the old mother
again with the veil he had taken from
her. 1t was more decent like and she
was a decent old creature, despite the
fancy she had to wear those gay garments
of her youth. So the white veil was
wound about the faded finerv. leaving
nothing visible but the waxen face with
its halt-closed eyes.
Nv hat are you carrying her about for?'
asked Smith-Jones ierkily.
''She is so old, HuZoor, and we. her be-
longings, thought she might like to end
her long life peacefully in holy Ganges.
So as | had the dead ancestors of the viii
lage to carry they are in those little pots
on the other side of the yoke, Huzoor).
we just put her to make a balance in the
basket"
Smith-Jones's blue eyes they really
were tine eyes, now the spectacles were
away grew big with surprise. 'You
mean that those little pots contain your
dead ancestOrsY'
Their ashes, Huzoor; the ashes of the
village for the year. Some one always
takes them at pilgrimage time, and as |
was strong 1 brought the old lady, too.
She doesn't seem able to die up there
amongst us all, and she will have to he
brought along some time. She is mostly
bones, as 1t Is, no heavier than the ashes
yonder."
He nodded his head at the netful of pots
and went on twining the thread. Smith
Jones's face grew more and more troubled.
He had read in books of old people being
brought thus to end their days devoutly
in the sacred stream, and it had seemed
to him an interesting and curious habit.
That was all. 1t seemed different now.
The Presence is surprised at the ways
of the dust-ike ones" continued Dittu
cheerfully; "but old Gulabi is accustomed
to being carried about in basket. When
she was quite girl-a long time ago, be-
fore the gracious and benefcent rule of
the Presences came to put an end to all
wrong -doiug-she had both her feet cut
of for something she did. have heard
nv grandmother say she was n erav ono.