"
"He has not been to his mosque for these twelve years?"
"'Tis too true."
"Hearken now, Gahagan Khan. His Highness Prince Holkar has sent me to
thee. You shall have the moon-face for your wife--your second wife, that
is;--the first shall be the incomparable Puttee Rooge, who loves you to
madness;--with Puttee Rooge, who is the wife, you shall have the wealth
and rank of Bobbachy Bahawder, of whom his Highness intends to get rid.
You shall be second in command of his Highness's forces. Look, here
is his commission signed with the celestial seal, and attested by the
sacred names of the forty-nine Imaums. You have but to renounce your
religion and your service, and all these rewards are yours."
He produced a parchment, signed as he said, and gave it to me (it was
beautifully written in Indian ink: I had it for fourteen years, but a
rascally valet, seeing it very dirty, WASHED it, forsooth, and washed
off every bit of the writing). I took it calmly, and said, "This is a
tempting offer. O Vizier, how long wilt thou give me to consider of it?"
After a long parley, he allowed me six hours, when I promised to give
him an answer. My mind, however, was made up--as soon as he was gone, I
threw myself on the sofa and fell asleep.
*****
At the end of the six hours the Vizier came back: two people were with
him; one, by his martial appearance, I knew to be Holkar, the other I
did not recognize.
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