Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1914-10-16


the best OF friends with the priests
and the chiefs, nt any one could come
across the hills with a complaint. and
Dravot would hear him ont fair and
call four priests together and say what
was to be done. They sent me
with forty men and twenty rifles. and
sixty men carrying turquoises. into
the Ghorband country to buy those
Z handmade Martini rifles that come out
of the ameer's workshops at Kakul,
from one of the ameer's Herati regi-
ments that would have sold the very
teeth out Of their mouths for tur-
quoises We got more than 100 hand
made Martins. 100 good Kohat jeZails
thatll throw to 600 yards, and 40 man
loads of very bad ammunition for the
rifles.
"Dravot was too busy to attend to
those things. but the old army that
we first made helped me, and we turn
ed out 500 men that could drill and 200
that knew how to hold arms pretty
straight. Even those corkscrewed, hand
made guns was miracle to them. ORA
TOt talked big about powder shops and
factories. walking up and down In the
pine wood when the winter was COM
ing on.
81 won't make a nation, says he,
I'll make an empirel These men aren't
niggers; they're English! Look at their
eyes, look at their mouths. Look at the
way they stand up. They sit on chairs
in their own houses. There must be
a fair 100000 Of 'em in these hills.
The villages are full O. little children.
Two million people 25O,O00 fighting
men-and all English! When everything
Is shipshape III hand over the crown
this crown I'm wearing now-to Queen
Victoria on my knees, and she'll say.
Rise up, Sir Daniel Dravot' Oh, it's
-bigE It's big tell you! But there's so
much to be done in every place-Bash-
kai, Khawak, Shu and everywhere
else It's big country, and somehow
you can't help me, Peachey, in the way
I want to be helped
eco to your blasted priests theng |
said, and was sorry when made
that remark, but it did hurt me sore to
find Daniel talking so superior when
I'd drilled all the men and done all he
told me-
Don't let's quarrel. Peachey.' says
Daniel without cursing. You're king.
too. and the half Of this kingdom is
yours, but can't you see. Peachey, we
want cleverer men than us now-three
or four of 'em, that we can scatter
about for our deputies. There's anoth-
-er thing. too. The winters coming
and these people won't be giving much
trouble and if they do we can't move
about. l want wife
For Cords sake leave, the women
alone!' says We've both got all the
work we can do. though l am a fool
Remember the contrack and keep clear
o. women.
THE contrack only lasted till such
time as we was kings. and kings we
have been these months past, says ORA
vOt, weighing his crown in his hand.
You go get wife, too, Peachey.'
Don't tempt mep l says. L will
not have any dealings with a woman,
not till we are a dam site more settled
than we are now. Let's lie off a
bit and see if we can get some better
tobacco from Afghan country and run
in some good liquor, but no women
"'For the last time of answering l
will said Dravot, and be went away
through the pine trees looking like a
big red devil
But getting a wife was not so easy
as Dan thought He put it before the
council and there was no answer till
Billy Fish said that he'd better ask
the girls. Dravot id them all round.
What's wrong with me?' be shouts,
standing by the idol Imbra. Am l a
dog or am not enough Of man for
your wenches?' He walked out of the
council room. and the others sat still
looking at the ground.
Billy Fish, says l to the chief of
Bashkai, what's the difficulty here?
A straight answer to a true friend
You know says Billy Fish How
should man tell you who know ev.
erything? How can daughters Of men
marry gods or devils? It's not proper.
A god can do anything. says l. III
the king is fond of girl he'll not lei
her die She'll have to. said Billy
Fish. There are all sorts of gods and
devils in these mountains and now
and again girl marries one Of them
and isn't seen any more Besides, you
two know the mark cut in the stone
Only the gods know that. We thought
you were men till you showed the sigr
OF the master
Il wished then that we had explain
ed about the loss of the genuine Sc
crets Of master Mason at the first
go off, but ! said nothing. All thai
night there was a blowing Of horns il
a little dark temple halfway down the
hill, and heard girl crying fit to die
One Of the priests told us that she was
being prepared to marry the king. 'Th