MY PRINCESS
One day--a day that is a burning point in my memory--the little
Princess was rather more than a year old, and was able to run and jump
finely; it was a short distance from a pretty lake bordered with lotus
blossoms of all colours; her governesses were playing checkers, seated
on rugs under the trees, while Parvati ran from flower to flower,
chasing a splendid butterfly.
I followed her with my eyes, interested in the pursuit. The brilliant
wings escaped her continually, fluttered on, and lighted further off;
she grew impatient, and more and more eager in the chase, following
the thousand zig-zags of the beautiful pink and blue butterfly, which
seemed like a winged flower.
To my mind the little Princess was straying too far away, and
approaching dangerously near the borders of the lake.
Why did they not call her back?
I looked over at the women. Two of them were playing checkers; all the
others were watching the game, bending over the checker-board, and
arguing about it with great volubility; they were completely absorbed,
and not one was giving attention to her whom they were employed to
watch over.
Trembling with indignation, I was about to run to them and upset their
checker-board, when I beheld Parvati on the very brink of the water,
and still running forward--the butterfly had lighted on a lotus. I was
paralyzed with anguish, but not for long; for in an instant the little
Princess had fallen, without a splash, or a cry that might have aroused
attention.
In three bounds I was at the spot where she had disappeared among the
lotus and the nenuphars. I groped and rummaged in the water with my
trunk among the matted stems.
A cloud of mud rose from the bottom, obscuring everything, and the next
few seconds seemed to me horribly, horribly long.
All the women now rushed up, uttering deafening cries, wringing their
hands and tearing their clothing. It was high time truly!--but much
good did it do! I would have been glad to throw them all into the
lake....
At last I found and grasped the poor little Princess, and raised her,
unconscious, and as if dead--dripping, and covered with black mud.
The governesses attempted to take her away from me in order to conceal
their fault; but I was resolved it should be known, and, paying no
regard to their clamours, I started to run to the palace.
It was a reception day; Saphire-of-Heaven was in the great Hall of the
Throne, surrounded by courtiers and the Ladies of her suite. I entered
without ceremony, interrupting the conversation, and the dances of the
Bayaderes, and going straight to the Queen, I laid on her knees the
child, all covered with mud, and without breath or motion.
Saphire-of-Heaven at first could not understand what had happened, and
was about to throw off the black mass which was saturating her dress,
but suddenly _she recognized Parvati_:
"My Daughter!" exclaimed she, "and in what a condition! Dead, perhaps!"
A physician was present and advanced.
"Calm yourself, your Majesty," said he, "It is only a fainting fit."
He took the child, removed its wet clothing, gave orders, and all
present hastened to busy themselves in services to the little Princess.
The governesses had entered all in confusion behind me. They now
undertook to explain matters, all talking together, with protestations,
adjurations, and tears--it was totally incomprehensible....
"Be silent," said the Queen; "Do not speak except to answer my
questions!"
She then began to interrogate the women.
"The Princess Parvati fell into the lake," said one sobbing. A negress
added:
"It was the White Elephant who pushed her in."
I gave her on the instant such a blow on the back with my trunk that
she fell to the floor.
"That woman has lied," said Saphire-of-Heaven. "Send all of them to
prison. We shall soon learn the truth. For the present I must think
only of my Daughter!"
In spite of the tears and supplications of the women, their arms were
bound with silk cords, and they were removed, while the Negress was
carried out on a stretcher.
Parvati, now revived, bathed, and wrapped in a veil of gold gauze lent
by one of the Ladies, was replaced on the lap of the Queen.
The little darling seemed quite surprised at finding herself there, and
did not appear to remember anything that had happened. She gazed at the
smiling guests with her beautiful eyes opened wide under their long,
black lashes, then shyly, she threw her arms around her mother's neck
and hid her face on the Queen's breast.
She was not dead--not even hurt. What joy! I shuffled my feet, and
teetered foolishly from side to side, and flapped my ears, having no
other way of expressing my satisfaction.
"Iravata," said the Queen, stroking my forehead with her gentle hand,
"We will find out what has happened, and you shall assist us in doing
so. Never, never could I doubt thee, or believe that thou hadst been
guilty of a wicked action. Perhaps it will prove that I shall again
have to thank thee; it may be that I owe to thee the life of my
Daughter, as I already owe that of my Husband!"
It was true; without me our lovely little flower would have been
lost! If I had unfortunately been away from the palace at the moment,
wandering in the forest, or in the bath, or eating a meal--or even
absent-minded, and looking in another direction, it would have been
a dead little girl that would have been taken out of the water. I
shivered at the thought! and made up my mind never to lose sight of her
again, and for this purpose I determined to give up my excursions, and
my trips outside of the city.
The disturbance in the palace had attracted the notice of the King,
and it had been impossible to conceal from him the accident which had
happened to the Princess. He came in, much agitated; but Parvati ran to
him, laughing, and quite recovered, delighted with the long golden veil
in which she was wrapped, and which trailed behind her, making a noise
on the carpet!
After having tenderly embraced his daughter, Alemguir asked for details
of the accident, and as no one could furnish any, he directed that a
search be made at once of the locality where it had occurred.
"Iravata," said he, "conduct us to the spot."
I obeyed immediately. The King, who carried Parvati in his arms, the
Queen, and all the guests followed me, deeply interested.
Having reached the borders of the lake, I showed the King the
overturned checker-board, and all the pieces scattered about, as when
the game was interrupted. But they failed to understand what this had
to do with the Princess having fallen into the water.
They examined with much emotion the spot where she fell--the broken
lotus flowers, and the turf all trampled by my feet.
[Illustration: PARVATI RAN TO HIM, LAUGHING AND QUITE RECOVERED]
But all this explained nothing. _Who_ was the guilty one? _Who_ should
be punished?
The women were brought again and questioned. But they continued to lie,
making statements that were contradictory, but all accusing me.
"He came past us like a hurricane, terrifying us to death! The Princess
was running on before him, and he pushed her into the lake."
"And then," inquired Alemguir, "who rescued her?"
"We did--we did: but the Elephant snatched her away from us and ran to
the palace!"
The Prince looked at me, and I made a sign that this was not so.
"Let them be beaten till they are ready to speak the truth."
At once there was a concert of shrieks, which redoubled in shrillness
when the slaves appeared armed with thongs of leather.
The King gave the word: the slaves seized, each one, a woman, threw
her onto her knees, and administered a blow with the lash. One was
sufficient to loosen their tongues and it was a race to see which
could tell the story first.
"I am listening," said the King, and he designated the one who should
be spokeswoman.
"Have mercy upon us, oh Mighty King," said she: "_we are guilty_! This
is what happened: Annanta was playing a game of checkers with Zobeide,
and the game turned out very extraordinary. We were all looking on,
interested in spite of ourselves, but at the same time keeping watch
over the dear Princess, who was gathering flowers and bringing them to
us. Unfortunately, we were tempted to make wagers, and at the decisive
moment our attention was entirely absorbed by the progress of the game.
His Lordship, the White Elephant, had been standing for a long time
looking through the bushes. All at once with a terrific roar he rushed
through, tearing apart the branches, trampling the flowers, and ran
towards the lake, from which after a moment he lifted the Princess."
The King approached me with tears in his eyes.
"Thou art verily our Good Genius, oh Iravata!" said he; "after saving
me from a shameful death, thou hast now restored to me my daughter!
Certainly there is not anywhere upon earth a _man_ to whom I owe such a
debt of gratitude, as to thee. Let those miserable women be sent away
in exile," added he. "So much for the punishment of the Guilty; but how
to recompense worthily the Rescuer?"
I would have been glad to be able to speak, and say that no reward
could be more to me than the happiness of seeing them all alive, and of
being allowed to live near them.
Saphire-of-Heaven shed floods of tears kneeling at the edge of the
watery gulf that had so nearly deprived her of her child. All at once
she rose, took Parvati in her arms, and held her out towards me.
"Oh, thou! my unknown Ancestor! Thou who so evidently protects us,
accept the guardianship of my Daughter; I confide her to thee; thou
only shalt watch over her, and in that way anxiety and dread will no
longer afflict my heart!"
The little Princess Parvati to be mine! Mine this exquisite human
flower whom I loved above all else! It was I who was to protect and
watch over her, and be always near her! It filled me with enthusiastic
delight, and I gave such a formidable blast of the trumpet that all the
guests trembled.
I stopped short, ashamed and distressed, lest my beloved little one
might have been frightened, and not care to have me for a guardian.
But no, quite the reverse; she laughed and clapped her little hands
together, crying:
"More--_more_!"
So to please her I trumpeted again--but this time rather less
violently!