Venu was now eleven. Haralal had passed his Intermediate, winning a
scholarship. He was working hard for his B.A. degree. After College
lectures were over, he would take Venu out into the public park and tell
him stories about the heroes from Greek History and Victor Hugo's
romances. The child used to get quite impatient to run to Haralal, after
school hours, in spite of his mother's attempts to keep him by her side.
This displeased Nanibala. She thought that it was a deep-laid plot of
Haralal's to captivate her boy, in order to prolong his own appointment.
One day she talked to him from behind the purdah: "It is your duty to
teach my son only for an hour or two in the morning and evening. But why
are you always with him? The child has nearly forgotten his own parents.
You must understand that a man of your position is no fit companion for
a boy belonging to this house."
Haralal's voice choked a little as he answered that for the future he
would merely be Venu's teacher and would keep away from him at other
times.
It was Haralal's usual practice to begin his College study early before
dawn. The child would come to him directly after he had washed himself.
There was a small pool in the garden and they used to feed the fish in
it with puffed rice. Venu was also engaged in building a miniature
garden-house, at the corner of the garden, with its liliputian gates and
hedges and gravel paths. When the sun became too hot they would go back
into the house, and Venu would have his morning lesson from Haralal.
On the day in question Venu had risen earlier than usual, because he
wished to hear the end of the story which Haralal had begun the evening
before. But he found his teacher absent. When asked about him, the
door-servant said that he had gone out. At lesson time Venu remained
unnaturally quiet. He never even asked Haralal why he had gone out, but
went on mechanically with his lessons. When the child was with his
mother taking his breakfast, she asked him what had happened to make him
so gloomy, and why he was not eating his food. Venu gave no answer.
After his meal his mother caressed him and questioned him repeatedly.
Venu burst out crying and said,--"Master Mashai." His mother asked
Venu,--"What about Master Mashai?" But Venu found it difficult to name
the offence which his teacher had committed.
His mother said to Venu: "Has your Master Mashai been saying anything to
you against _me_?"
Venu could not understand the question and went away.
V
There was a theft in Adhar Babu's house. The police were called in to
investigate. Even Haralal's trunks were searched. Ratikanta said with
meaning: "The man who steals anything, does not keep his thefts in his
own box."
Adharlal called his son's tutor and said to him: "It will not be
convenient for me to keep any of you in my own house. From to-day you
will have to take up your quarters outside, only coming in to teach my
son at the proper time."
Ratikanta said sagely, drawing at his hookah: "That is a good
proposal,--good for both parties."
Haralal did not utter a word, but he sent a letter saying that it would
be no longer possible for him to remain as tutor to Venu.
When Venu came back from school, he found his tutor's room empty. Even
that broken steel trunk of his was absent. The rope was stretched across
the corner, but there were no clothes or towel hanging on it. Only on
the table, which formerly was strewn with books and papers, stood a bowl
containing some gold-fish with a label on which was written the word
"Venu" in Haralal's hand-writing. The boy ran up at once to his father
and asked him what had happened. His father told him that Haralal had
resigned his post. Venu went to his room and flung himself down and
began to cry. Adharlal did not know what to do with him.
The next day, when Haralal was sitting on his wooden bedstead in the
Hostel, debating with himself whether he should attend his college
lectures, suddenly he saw Adhar Babu's servant coming into his room
followed by Venu. Venu at once ran up to him and threw his arms round
his neck asking him to come back to the house.
Haralal could not explain why it was absolutely impossible for him to go
back, but the memory of those clinging arms and that pathetic request
used to choke his breath with emotion long after.