Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-24
CHAPTER XIV.
Over the Water.

Ram Nath, patient and impassi as
ever, had the tonga waiting for Amber
before the residency. Exalted beyond
words, the American permitted himself
to be driven of through Kuttarpurs in
tricate network of streets and backways,
toward destination of which he knew as
little as he cared. He was a guest of the
state, officially domicled at the desig,
mated house of hospitality; without espe-
cfal permission, obtained through the eff
forts of the resident, he could sleep in no
other spot in the city or it's purlieus. He
was Indifferent, absolutely; the matter in
terested him as scantily-which is to say
not at alias did the fact that an escort
of troopers of the state, very we'll &C
coutered and disciplined, followed the
tonga with great jangling of steel and
tumult of hoofs.
He was in that condition of semi-daze
which is the not extraordinary portion OF
declared lover reveling In the memory
of his mistress eyes, whose parting look
has not been unkind. Upon that glance
of secret understanding. signaled to him
from eyes as brown as beautiful, he was
building him a palace of dreams SO
strange, so sweet, that the mere contem-
plation of it's unsubstantial loneliness
filled him with an exquisite agony of
hope, poignant ecstasy of despair. 1t
was too much to hope for, that she
should smile upon him in the morning.
Yet he hoped.
Unconscious of the passage of time,
he was reused only by the pausing of
the tonga and its escort before the Gate
way of the Elephants-the main Octroi
gate in the northern wall of the city.
There ensued brief interchange of for
malities between the sergeant of his es-
cort and the captain of the quarter guard.
Then the tonga was permitted to pass
out, and for five minutes ratified and
clattered along the border of the lake.
stopping finally at the rest house.
Alighting in the compound. Amber dis
bursed a few rupees to the troopers paid
off Ram Nath-whO was swift to drive
off city-wards, in mad haste lest the
gates be shut upon him for the night
and entered the bungalow. An aged.
talkative and amiable .khansamah met
him at the threshold with expressions of
exaggerated respect, no doubt genuine
enough. and followed him, mumbling
shadow, as the Virginian made a brief
round of inspection.
Standing between the road and the
water, the rest house proved to be mod
erately spacious and clean; on the lake
front it opened upon marble bund, Or
landing stage, it's lip Tapped by whisper
ing ripples of the lake Amber went out
upon this to discover, separated from him
water. the ghostly white walls of the Raj
Mahal climbing in dim majesty to the
stars: A single line of white lights out
lined the topmost parapet; at the water S
edge single marble entrance was aglow
between the two, towers and terraces,
hanging gardens and white scarplike
walls rose in darkened confusion unimag-
inable-of, rather, fell like cascade of
architecture down the hillside to the
lake. A dark hive teeming with the oc-
cult life of unnumbered men and women
-Salig Singh, the inscrutahle and strong;
Naraini, the mysterious, whose loneliness
lived fable in the land, and how many
thousand others-living and dying, work
ing and idling. in JOY and sadness. in
hatred and love. weaving forever that
myriad-stranded web of intrigue which
is the life of native palaces -"
The Virginian remained long in rapt
wondering contemplation of it, until the
wind blowing across the waters had
chilled him to the point of shivering:
when he turned indoors to his bed. But
he was to have little rest that night.
The khansamah who attended him had
hardly turned low his light when Amber
was disturbed by the noise of an angry
alteration In the compound. He arose
and in dressing gown and slippers went
to investigate. and found Ram Nath in
violent dispute with the sergeant of the
escort-which. 1t appeared, had builded a