Almost as they spoke, the Khan's retinue approached, and, preceded by
its band of spearmen, some horsemen, and the party of the old Duffadar,
swept round the corner of the adjoining street. Very conspicuous among
the cavalcade were the figures of the father and son riding together;
the Khan in his morning suit of heavy cloth-of-gold, which glittered
richly in the sun; his son, plainly dressed in white muslin.
Fazil rode a led horse of his father's, which he sat with perfect
confidence and control of the fiery animal; but his countenance
expressed anxiety which he could not restrain. In truth, he felt,
notwithstanding his assurance to his father, that if he were
subjected to a strict examination, he should be ill able to account
satisfactorily for the various events of the night without compromising
others. In regard to Maloosray, he had one witness in the kullal; and
there was nothing to implicate him in the occurrence at the temple, in
case it should form subject of inquiry. No, he could not now recede.
As to the old Khan himself, no thought of fear disquieted him.
He considered that he was only humouring a whim of his son's in
accompanying him, that he might insure the Duffadar's being freed from
blame. Suspicion of aught affecting the safety or honour of his house
had never entered his mind; and he had ridden along gaily, causing
his fine war-horse to caracole and bound, free from all thought of
uneasiness, except what might result from the delay.
As the party entered the gate, they were met by several persons deputed
to receive them, and returned the respectful and hearty greetings of
the soldiery on duty, to whom they were well known. Dismounting at the
end of the court, they passed through to the next, where already many
suitors and complainants were assembled. There, too, on a bed which
had been placed in a side-room, lay the Lalla, with a sheet drawn over
him, which Fazil saw was stained with blood. The Lalla had covered
his face; but the pink colour of his turban, and its peculiar tie,
were not to be mistaken. So, passing all, and receiving and returning
salutations, they entered the room of audience, where, surrounded by a
few Mutsuddees, or scribes, sat the Kótwal himself.
Jehándar Beg was a Persian by birth, a man of some learning and much
cunning, but really intelligent. Those were times when the service of
Indian princes was eagerly sought for by Persians, Turks, Affghans,
and even Abyssinians; and adventurers often rose to princely rank and
honour in their service. Jehándar Beg was one of these. When young he
had accompanied a relative to the Dekhan court, the prince of which
was a Sheea--his own faith--and where, among others of his countrymen,
the historian Mahomed Kasim Ferishta had been distinguished. He had
risen steadily in the King's service, and proved himself brave in the
field, as well as sagacious and trustworthy. Having attained to his
present office, he was, in the main, respected, and was the dread of
all night brawlers, sharpers, and thieves, whom he punished heavily;
but he was fond of money, and it was whispered that, in grave offences,
he had his private price. After all, what mattered that? Occasionally a
great person was fined, or otherwise punished, and so men's mouths were
stopped, and the Kótwal believed to be a great man.
Jehándar Beg's appearance was magnificent. He always wore the peaked
lamb's-wool cap of Khorassan, and the Persian robe; and his rich brown
complexion, and dark-brown curly beard, grave features, and large soft
black eyes, combined to render his face a remarkable one, not easily
forgotten. The expression seldom varied; nothing ever caused him to
laugh in his court--rarely to smile--nor did he ever express anger.
Happen what might, his habitual gravity never relaxed for a moment, and
there was no man who could tell a lie, conceal a fact, or change an
opinion--or, in the course of duty, order the torture, and look upon
it, with such perfect imperturbability as he did.
His office was at once arduous and difficult, but he was not restricted
in power. In cases of life and death, perhaps, and if the criminal were
of importance, reference might be made to the chief legal authority or
to the King; but, as far as minor punishments were needed, the lopping
off of an arm, a hand, or a foot,--torture and imprisonment, or the
like,--no one questioned the Kótwal's acts. As chief magistrate of
a city which contained a large proportion of lawless population, he
often found it necessary to make sudden and severe examples in order
to check disorder and crime: and, recently, the city had been agitated
by conspirators: parties ran high; and duels and brawls, generally
attended by fatal consequences, were frequent.
The old Duffadar was right when he told Fazil of the Kótwal's oath
to punish severely the first brawler who should be apprehended, and
he trembled for the consequences of the inquiry into the night's
disturbances. Here were two men wounded, and, as far as he knew,
another who had been taken off, or who had got away; and one dead body,
found near the temple of Bhowani among the tamarind trees, was fresh,
though torn by wild animals, and the blood had been traced back to the
temple wall, on the top of which some stones had been displaced.
Altogether, matters had an ugly appearance; and the old man could not
help thinking that Fazil was concerned in both affairs. "May God be
merciful to him," he said to himself, "for he is a brave youth, son of
a gallant father; better a hundred battle-fields, and a fair chance
man to man, than the crooked ways of this court, and the merciless
character of Jehándar Beg. Be wary, my lord," he whispered to Fazil,
as, having made his obeisance and report, he was falling back to get
free of the advancing parties; "Jehándar Beg's looks are not pleasant
this morning, and you need to be careful. I should not warn you without
there were need; be careful in what you say, and I will guide you by my
looks from time to time."
But Fazil had no fear. Unused to such scenes, he could only feel that
his word would pass him free from all suspicion, and that his father's
rank and good faith were above question.
To the old Khan, the Kótwal's greeting was one of respectful deference;
and the seat of honour was assigned to him. To Fazil, however, he
maintained a stiff reserve--so pointed, that the Khan could not but
notice and remark upon it.
"That is my son," he said, after an awkward pause which no one
apparently dared to break, "and I would have you acquainted with him,
Meerza Sahib. Shookr Ulla! he is not utterly unknown among the ranks of
those who are true to the King in Beejapoor, though he is but a youth."
There was no reply, however, given to this speech, and the
embarrassment of all grew more painful. The clerks and guards looked
from one to another, and the old Khan to them in succession, with
increasing indignation at their demeanour.
"By the Prophet!" he exclaimed at length, ironically, "ye seem
marvellously engaged, gentlemen," as, on hearing him speak, every one
looked away, or into the papers before them, "that a civil greeting
does not obtain a civil answer. Your politeness, Meerza Sahib, is
proverbial in the city; but it seems to have deserted you on this
occasion, or is reserved for thieves and loose women. Come, my
son--come; we intrude here. Jehándar Beg has his own private work to
do, no doubt, and does not need our company."
"Hold!" cried the Kótwal; and, as he spoke, several of the armed
attendants closed up the doorway with their long broad spears, while
others without blew the matches of their guns. "Hold! Thou mayst go,
Afzool Khan, for what may follow may grieve thy brave heart; but there
is blood on thy son's sword, and it must be inquired into. Young man,
what is this they say against thee? A man killed in a drunken brawl in
the worst quarter of the city? Was this to be expected from the son of
Afzool Khan? Speak, and speak truly, before God and his Prophet." The
Meerza's eyes flashed and dilated as he spoke; and as they rested upon
the young man, who had not seated himself, they were met by a gaze as
bold and fearless as his own.
"I am no brawler, Meerza Sahib," he exclaimed, in reply.
"Astagh-fur-oolla!--nor drunkard either. Peace, father! sit quiet; let
me answer for myself--I am not afraid," he added, as the Khan attempted
to rise, and was evidently provoked beyond endurance. "Ask the Duffadar
who accompanied me, and the man in whose house it happened, whether I
am to blame. Their statements will suffice."
"There are two matters to answer for, Meah Sahib," said the Kótwal.
"Were you not in the dress of a Gosai last night, and another with you?
Nay; no denial!"
"I have nothing to deny, Meerza Sahib," returned Fazil. "My father knew
of it, and I went by his permission."
"Good. Now, Peer Sahib, what happened to you?" asked the Kótwal of
another officer present.
"My lord, it was just before midnight," he replied, "when two men,
Gosais, brought a third person, who was slightly wounded, but
complained much of his neck. He is a foreigner, for he speaks the Delhi
language. They said he had been robbed, and told us to keep him safe
till the morning, when they would come for him; and as the man was
very helpless, we put him on a bed in the guard-room, and have brought
him here. Again at dawn, some of the men were going towards the temple
of Toolja Bhowani, when they saw the dead body of a man, with a deep
wound in his back and a stab in his breast--a Hindu, for he had on a
Brahmun's thread, so he may be a Rajpoot; but no one knew him. Several
mohurs were picked up by him and others between this place and the
temple:--the Mutsuddee has them--eleven, I think,--and there was blood
all the way along. It was a desperate cut; and how the man could have
run at all with those wounds, it is hard to say."
"He was murdered, then," thought Fazil; "would I had not struck him!
yet there is one traitor and robber the less."
"And the man who was brought in, what of him?" asked the Kótwal.
"He moaned and groaned, my lord, worse than a woman; said he had been
robbed at the temple; spoke of Pahar Singh who had wounded him, Maun
Singh who had throttled him, then of the Shah's secretary--may his name
be honoured!--and some ten thousand rupees. In short, noble sir, we
could make nothing of the matter, for he began to weep if we spoke to
him, and told us to take him to the King without delay. So we brought
him here, and must speak for himself. It appeared to me like the dream
of some opium-smoker," continued the speaker to those about him; "we
could not understand it at all."
"Shouldst thou know the men who brought him?"
"Well, my lord, I can't say for certain," replied the officer, "but one
of our people said they were not what they seemed; and he thought one
was Bulwunt Rao, who is a Silladar of the noble Khan yonder, and who
goes about bazars at night, sometimes; the other's face was tied up,
and he did not speak."
"I was the other, Meerza Sahib," interposed Fazil, quietly.
"I thought as much," said the Kótwal, drily. "Were they armed, Peer
Sahib?"
"Yes, to be sure, my lord," he replied; "would any one go about in
those quarters at night without being armed? Yes, they had sword and
shield."
"Where are the weapons?"
"Here, my lord," replied the other Duffadar, who now interposed, "in
my keeping; the young Khan gave them up to me. He has another sword
now."
"Yes, there is blood on the blade, and here are cuts, fresh ones, on
the shield," said Jehándar Beg, examining Fazil's weapons. "How, young
sir, do you account for these?"
"I will reserve what I have to say; it is no use speaking now,"
returned Fazil, who had observed his old friend shake his head, and who
again nodded approvingly.
"Bring in the wounded man," cried the Kótwal; and the bed on which
our poor friend the Lalla lay, was carried in and set down; "we must
confront the parties."
"Get up, good man," said an attendant Mutsuddee; "this is the Kótwal;
make your reverence, and tell what happened to you."
"Ah, protect me, befriend me. I have been robbed and murdered.... I
cannot get up.... I am a poor man and a stranger. Look at my blood,"
gasped the Lalla by turns to all about him.
"Who did it? and who art thou?" cried the Kótwal. "Where hast thou come
from?"
Now, it might be awkward for the Lalla to answer these questions.
He knew he had a few gold coins left, enough to keep him for some
time--for he had been used to poverty, and could endure it--if he could
only get free. Any man with quick wits, could do something for himself
in the city; and had he not done good service? These thoughts passed
rapidly through his mind ere he spoke.
"Asylum of justice!" he said, in his most humble tones, "I don't know
who did it, but I was robbed in the temple."
"Of ten thousand rupees? Speak truly."
"Ah no, sirs. What would a poor Khayet like me do with ten thousand
rupees? No, but of what I had in my humeana."
"And Pahar Singh? they tell me he was mentioned by thee."
"Ah, noble sir, I am a stranger and a foreigner; what do I know about
Pahar Singh, or anybody? I am very weak," added the Lalla, in a feeble
voice; "will no one help me?" and he lay down, as well to escape
further questioning, as to excite pity for his misfortunes.
"This will not serve thee, whoever thou art," returned the Kótwal;
"answer truly, where art thou come from, and what took thee to that
lonely temple at night?"
"My lord, I am a poor Khayet from the north, seeking service; and I
fell among thieves who decoyed me thither and robbed me. See, they
wounded me also, and tried to strangle me. What more can I say?"
"That is not enough, friend," resumed the Kótwal; "we must know how it
happened, for others here appear concerned in the matter, and murder
hath been done."
"Murder, my lord!" cried the Lalla, again raising himself; "there was
no murder, though perhaps they thought they had killed me when they
took what I had."
"Who, Lalla? be not afraid," said Jehándar Beg, soothingly.
"A seeming Jogi and another. They ran away, and left me senseless. Then
two Gosais came and raised me up, and gave me water, and took me to the
guard-room. May the gods recompense them, for they bound up my wound!"
"Two Gosais--ah, this may be some clue!" said the Kótwal; "this agrees
with the other statement. Then thou art one of them, Meah Sahib?"
"I have already said so," replied Fazil; "and my retainer, Bulwunt Rao,
was the other."
"What took you there?"
Fazil considered for a moment. What he had been witness of could not
now be related, and he replied, "It was a matter, Meerza Sahib, in
which I am not bound to answer you. If those it concerns are to hear of
it, they shall know otherwise."
"Beware, young sir!" said the Kótwal, gravely; "there can be no secrets
here."
"Nevertheless, I cannot answer. It is enough that I have told my father
of it," returned Fazil.
"Yes, Jehándar Beg," said Afzool Khan, "he has said enough to prove he
was no robber, and that ought to content you."
"Yet there was murder done, my friend," replied the official, quickly;
"blood was on the wall of the court, and a corpse not far from it, and
there is blood on this sword of your son's. He should clear himself
of this horrible suspicion. But stay; there is the other affray to be
accounted for,--that in the wine-shop--a drunken brawl, I fear."
"I am no brawler, Meerza Sahib, nor drunkard," exclaimed Fazil,
indignantly. "The man is present in whose house it occurred; let him
say what happened."
"Let him be brought forward, and let Fureed Duffadar state what
happened," said the Kótwal, authoritatively. "Till then be silent,
Meah."