The Lakeland evening telegram., 1914-08-24
VICTIM OF HATRED
ssssssssssssssssssessssss
BY ]. H. GILMoUR.

east bank of the streams there stood,
in the early eighties, great country
house called The Zillah, which be-
longed to a white man, Its owner be.
longed to a family famous in the an
nails of Allahabad and all the surround
ing district They had been landed
proprietors for many years and were
one of the first to establish the manu-.
facture of indigo in the northern part
of India
The holder Of the property was, in
the eighties. practically an outlaw.
He was stunned BY his own family for
his many lawless acts, and he lived
in that great weird house surrounded
by natives Of every caste and condi,
tion Of life, and also by a lew whites
who had deserted from the army and
sought the hospitality OF man Who
was hated and feared
The man had received all the ad.
vantages Of a generous education and
Of kinship With well-known family.
In his earlier days he had acquitted
himself we'll in the dark time OF the
mutiny, having formed one OF that
small band OF gentlemen that had kept
the road open between Hattrass and
Agra
His troubles began with lawsuit
and he had a lawsuit TO the day Of
his death He had been driven from
one possession to another till all that
was left him was the "Zillah.
When the present king OF England
visited Allahabad, The owner OF The
Zillah' sent word to the authorities
that he intended TO present petition
In person TO the prince, and would
say things that would compel his royal
highness 10 take notice OF him, and
then, perhaps, he would have justice
meted out,
The man entered Allahabad with
the following OF the most disreputable
men in his village and drove to where
the prince was lodged. An army Off
Ger who was d friend of the family
begged him to desist and prevailed on
him to withdraw as his presence with
that following was little short of trea.
son.
Then give the German this paper
he said as he flung his petition to the
officer and withdrew, swearing ven.
geance at everybody From that day
he declared he owed no allegiance to
England, and swore he would not pay
another cent in taxes.
1t was collected with the aid Of
the armed police.
Like men of his kind. brought up
without any ideas OF business he was
ever borrowing large sums at ruinous
rates OF interest, and whenever he
was III need OF ready cash he would
put mortgage on some heretofore
unmortgaged piece Of property.
The man who lent him the money
was native, and in the course Of one
Of the trials the singular statement
was ELECTED from this native that he
vowed to ruin the white man If 1t took
his entire fortune He worked to this
end for many years, and artfully led
the unsuspecting victim into many
financial trap.
"A man like you, said the native
to him one day, lis often in need Of
money ready money Why do you
not come to your slave instead of GO
ing to the banks.
You are no friend Of mine" an,
swered the white man
1t is your fault that you are not a
friend Do not | owe my life to your
father
You do was the reply, but il you
will remember it was | who wanted to
blow you from gun and | would have
killed you with my own hands only |
knew the temper of my father, and he
would have himself delivered me over
to the government after promising you
your safety
Let the past be the past" said the
native. Il have come to you with of.
fer of help for the sake of thy father
and you begin TO upbraid me
Can take help at the hands of
murderer of my people?"
My hands are clean" said the ma.
tive humbly, and the offer comes from
my heart"
AT last the man listened and turned
to the native for aid. More than once
he had been warned that he was 90.
ing to his own undoing and that he
would know that a native never for
gets and never forgiyes, and that he 4
was being more completely ruined
than even he or his friends could real.
i3e.
i want the money and the men
that can ruin me are not yet born"
was all the answer he made. /
Then began a series Of foreclosures.
One house went after another The
law was inoNo,a0le ami the white
man paid the eaaty for his follv.
There was no respite for him. II
was war with yeuepance and the
legal war was driving the man to acts
of outlawry. He met thr native go.
Ing into the courtroom. smiling and /