The Arvada enterprise., 1915-09-02
CHAPTER XIV.
The Garden Of Brides.

| he Garden OF Brides.
From the four ends of the princi-
pality they came, the yelled candi-
dates; from the North. the East, the
South. and West They came In
marvellous palanquins In curtained
howdahs. on camels, in splendid bull
lock carts. Many rupee resolved
itself into newbought finery. upon the
vague chance OF getting it back with
compound interest
What was most unusual. they came
without pedigree or dowry. this being
Ramabais Idea; though, in truth.
umballa objected at first to the lack
OF dowry. He had expected to inherit
this dowry. He gave way to Rama
bal because he did not care to have
Ramabai suspect what his inner
thoughts were. Let the fool Ramabai
pick out his chestnuts for him. I'm
balla laughed In his voluminous sleeve.
Some one of the matrimonially in
clined houris the colonel would have
to select. II he refused, then should
Ramabai do the selecting. More, he
would marry the fortunate women by
proxy. There was no possible loop
hole for the colonel
The populace was charmed. enchant-
ed, as 1t always is over a new excite
ment Mrch as they individually de
spised Umballa, collectively they ad-
mired his ingenuity in devising fresh
amusements. Extra feast days came
one after another. The oriental dis
likes work: and any one who could
invent means OF avoiding 1t was
worthy Of gratitude. So. then. the
populace fell in with Umballas scheme
agreeably, 4 The bhang and betel and
toddy sellers did fine business dur
ing the festival OF Rama.
There was merrymaking In the
streets. day and night. The temples
and mosques were filled to overflow
! ing. Musicians with reeds and tom.
toms paraded the bazaars. In nearly
every square the nautch girl danced.
or the Juggler piled his trade. or there
was a mongoose-cobra fight (the cobra,
| q course. bereft OF its fangs), and
fakirs grew mango trees out OF moth.
ing. There was furry in the slave
! mart. too.
The troops staggered about over
bearing, They We're soon to get their
pay The gold and silver we're rot.
ting in the treasury. Why leave II
| there. since gold and silver were mint.
ed to be spent?
/ There we're elephant fights in the
] tod l.A
wild boars. who fought with enormous.
razorlike tusks. as swift and deadly as
any Malay kris The half forgotten
ceremony OF feeding the wild pig be.
| fore shutdown each day was given life
again, And drove after drove came
| In from the jungles for the grain.
which was distributed from plat
form. And wild peacocks followed the
pigs a wonderful sight 1t was 10 see
several thousand pigs come trotting
! in. each drove headed by it's lighting
| boar When the old fellows met there
was carnage, squealing and gruntinH.
they fought. The peacocks shrilled
and hoped from back to back for such
grain as fell upon the bristly backs OF
the pigs Here and there a white pea
cock would be shared. or boar whose
iusks promised a battle royal with
some leopard or tiger.
And through all this turmoil and
clamur Ahmed and l.al Singh moved.
sounding the true sentiments OF the
kings or white queens; they desired to
be- ruled by their kind. who would not
start Innovations, but would let AT.
fairs drift, on as they had done for
centuries.
Nor WAS Bruce inactive. Many u
time Umballa had stood within an
arms length OF death: but always
Bruce had resisted the impulse 1t
would be rank folly to upset Ramab =
plans. which were to eliminate IN
lmSallas overthrow.
Hut upon a certain hour Rnmabai
came TO Bruce, much alarmed During
his absence with Pundlta AT some
palace AFFAIR his home had been en-
tered, ransacked. and 10000 rupees
had been stolen His real fortune,
however Was hidden securely The
real troubl. was that th.s. 10000 ru
PEGS would practically undo much OF
what had been accomplished He was
certain tina, umballn had instigatcd
this theft, and that the money would
be doled out to the soldiers For upon
their dissatisfaction rested his future
Take Bnla Khan at his word. suS
gcs,ed Bruce. and ask him for his
5000 hillmen"
Ramabai smiled. And have Halls
Khan constitute himself the King OF