Confessions of a Thug Page 5

  CHAPTER IV.

  The day after my adventure with the tiger, I left our village with myfather. We travelled on horseback, and on the fourth morning afterwardsreached Sheopoor, the town from which the grand expedition was to setout. It was here, too, that I was to be admitted into the band ofThugs, and I looked forward to my inauguration with much impatience,and perhaps some dread, for I knew not what ceremonies I had to gothrough. We put up in the house of Moedeen, where several other Thugleaders were also; and after refreshing ourselves, my father bade meaccompany him to the council which was to determine on the futureoperations. I was presented to the members, ten in number, who werethe jemadars of the different bands. I could see, from the respect andconsideration with which my father was treated, that he was looked uponas the chief of the whole; I was gratified by the reception I met with;and my conduct in the affair of the tiger, the whole circumstances ofwhich were related by my father, raised me at once to a high station intheir respect.

  As it still wanted two days of the festival of the Dasera, myinauguration was postponed to that day; for it is esteemed aparticularly fortunate one by the Thugs, and indeed by all classes. Onit, you are already aware, that all great undertakings are commencedby armies, and, in like manner, by us Thugs; for the breaking up ofthe rains gives a hope that the adventure will not be impeded by them;and the continuance of fine weather which follows it, allows the bandto travel in comfort, and with better hope of booty from the chanceof falling in with travellers, who also take advantage of the breakin the weather to commence long journeys. Above all, it is a daypeculiarly sacred to Bhowanee, our patroness and goddess. Still, beinga Moosulman, I could not then see why such respect was paid to thefestival of the Dasera, or indeed why it was kept at all; and I appliedto my father for a solution of my doubts on the subject.

  "It is necessary to your fully understanding this," said he, "thatI should give you an outline of our belief in the divine origin ofour profession, which is intimately connected with the faith of theHindoos, and by whom we Moosulmans have been instructed in the art ofThuggee."

  "This is wonderful, indeed," said I; "how do you reconcile anyconnection between the faith of unbelievers and that of the blessedprophet?"

  "I cannot pretend to solve the difficulty," said my father; "but astheir religion is far more ancient than ours, and no doubt had a divineorigin, there are many points in it which one of the true faith mayfollow without offence, so that he does not join them in all theirforms and professions. Indeed, this is impossible, as no one can becomea Hindoo; but, as I told you before, Thuggee is one of the means bywhich Alla works out his own ends; and as the profession of it has beenhanded down to us from ages, and as it becomes the fate of those whoare called to it to follow it, there is no possibility of avoiding theprofession, though one desired it; and, as a direct consequence, no sinin associating with Hindoos in the practice of it, from whom it has hadits origin. Do you understand me?"

  "Perfectly," said I; "it was not to question its propriety that I askedthe question, but only to know how it was, that Hindoo festivals wereacknowledged and kept by us Moosulmans?"

  "The Dasera is the only one," said my father, "which is observed; andthe reason of this is, that it is the fittest time of the year tocommence our enterprises, and has been invariably kept sacred by allHindoo Thugs; but I must tell you of the origin of Thuggee, that youmay judge for yourself how ancient it is, and how well the instructionsthen given by divine command have been followed up. In the beginningof the world, according to the Hindoos, there existed a creating anda destroying power, both emanations from the Supreme Being. Thesewere, as a matter of consequence, at constant enmity with each other,and still continue to be so. The creative power, however, peopled theearth so fast that the destroyer could not keep pace with him, norwas he allowed to do so; but was given permission to resort to everymeans he could devise to effect his objects. Among others, his consortDevee, Bhowanee, or Kalee, for she is known under these names and manyothers, constructed an image, into which, on this occasion, she wasempowered to infuse the breath of life. No sooner was this effected,than she assembled a number of her votaries, whom she named Thugs. Sheinstructed them in the art of Thuggee; and, to prove its efficacy,with her own hands destroyed before them the image she had made, inthe manner which we now practise. She endowed the Thugs with superiorintelligence and cunning, in order that they might decoy human beingsto destruction; and sent them abroad into the world, giving them--asthe reward of their exertions--the plunder they might obtain fromthose they put to death; and bidding them be under no concern for thedisposal of the bodies, as she would herself convey them from theearth. Ages passed on in this manner, and she protected her votariesfrom human laws, and they were everywhere found to be faithful; butcorruptions crept in among them with the increased depravity of theworld; and at last, a gang more bold and curious than the rest, afterdestroying a traveller, determined--instead of following the old customof leaving the body unnoticed--to watch, and see how it was disposedof. They hid themselves, as they thought, secure from observation inthe bushes by the side of the road, and waited the arrival of thegoddess. But what mortal can escape the eye of divinity? She quicklyespied them, and called them before her. Terror-stricken by hersplendid and terrific appearance, and in the utmost dread of hervengeance, they attempted to fly; but she arrested their steps, and inan awful manner upbraided them for their want of faith.

  "'You have seen me,' said she, 'and looked upon a power which no mortalhas ever yet beheld without instant destruction; but this I spare you;henceforward, however, I shall no longer protect you as I have done.The bodies of those whom you destroy will no longer be removed by me,and you must take your own measures for their concealment. It will notalways be effectual, and will often lead to your detection by earthlypowers, and in this will consist your punishment. Your intelligenceand cunning still remain to you. I will in future assist you by omensfor your guidance; but this my decree will be your curse to the latestperiod of the world.'

  "So saying, she disappeared, and left them to the consequences oftheir own folly and presumption; but her protection has never beenwithdrawn. It is true, the remains of those who fall by our hands aresometimes discovered, and instances have been known of that discoveryhaving led to the apprehension of Thugs, at least so I have heard;but during my lifetime I have never known of one; and it is my firmbelief that such instances have been permitted on purpose to punishthose who have in some way offended our protectress, by neglecting hersacrifices and omens. You therefore see how necessary it is to followthe rules which have guided our fraternity for ages, and which cannotbe changed without incurring the displeasure of the divine power; noris there anything in our creed to forbid it. We follow the blessedprecepts of our prophet; we say our Namaz five times a day; we observeall the rules of our faith; we worship no idols; and if what we havedone for ages--ever since the invasion by our forefathers of India--wasdispleasing to the apostle, surely we should have had, long ere this,some manifestation of his displeasure. Our plans would have beenfrustrated, our exertions rendered of no avail; we should have draggedon a miserable existence; and long ere this, should have abandonedThuggee, and our connection with its Hindoo professors."

  "I am convinced," said I; "for your relation is wonderful. Truly haveyou said that we are under the especial protection of Providence;and it would be sinful to question the propriety of any usages whichhave been transmitted from a period so remote, and followed withoutdeviation. I will allow that I had thought this open connection withKafirs as offensive, because I was led to believe them sunk into thelowest depths of depravity and bad faith, from the representations ofthe old Moola who was my instructor; but he must have been ignorant, ora bigoted old fool."

  "I will say nothing more than this," said my father, "that you will bethrown much into the society of Hindoos, all of good caste, and youwill find them as faithful and as worthy of your friendship as anyMoosulman; such, at least, has been my experience of them."

&n
bsp; On the day of the Dasera the ceremony of my inauguration as a Thugcommenced. I was bathed and dressed in new clothes which had neverbeen bleached, and led by the hand by my father, who officiated as theGooroo or spiritual director, and to whom seemed to be confided theentire direction of the ceremonies. I was brought into a room, wherethe leaders of the band I had before seen, were assembled sitting ona clean white cloth, which was spread in the centre of the apartment.My father then advancing towards them, asked them whether they werecontent to receive me as a Thug and a brother, to which they allanswered, "We are."

  I was then conducted into the open air, accompanied by the wholenumber, when my father, raising his hands and eyes to the sky, cried ina loud voice, "Oh Bhowanee! mother of the world! whose votaries we are,receive this thy servant--vouchsafe to him thy protection--to us, anomen which may assure us of thy consent."

  We waited for some time; and at last, from a tree over our heads, theloud twittering of the small tree-owl was heard.

  "Jey Bhowanee! Victory to Bhowanee!" cried the whole of the leaders;and my father embraced me, saying,

  "Be of good cheer, my son; the omen is most favourable. We could hardlyhave expected such an one: thy acceptation is complete."

  I was then reconducted to the apartment, and a pickaxe, that holysymbol of our profession, was placed in my right hand, upon a whitehandkerchief. I was desired to raise it as high as my breast; andan oath, a fearful oath, was then dictated to me, which I repeated,raising my left into the air, and invoking the goddess to whose serviceI was devoting myself. The same oath was repeated by me on the blessedKoran, after which a small piece of consecrated Goor, or coarse sugar,was given me to eat, and my inauguration was complete. My fatherreceived the congratulations of the assembly on the fortunate issue ofthe ceremony, and he then addressed me as follows.

  "My son, thou hast taken upon thee the profession which is of allthe most ancient and acceptable to the divinity. Thou hast sworn tobe faithful, brave, and secret; to pursue to destruction every humanbeing whom chance, or thy ingenuity, may throw into thy power, with theexception of those who are forbidden by the laws of our profession,which are now to thee sacred. These are particular sects, over whom ourpower does not extend, and whose sacrifice is not acceptable to ourdivine patroness; they are Dhobees, Bhats, Sikhs, Nanukshahees, MudareeFakeers, dancing-men, musicians, Bhungees, Tailees, Lohars, Burraes,and maimed or leprous persons. With these exceptions, the whole humanrace is open to thy destruction, and thou must omit no possible means(but at all times dependent upon the omens by which we are guided) tocompass their destruction. I have now finished: you are become a Thug;and what remains of thy profession will be shown to thee by our Gooroo,who will, under the necessary ceremonies, instruct thee in its details."

  "It is enough," said I; "I am yours to death; and I only pray that anopportunity may soon be afforded me to prove to you my devotion."

  Thus I became a Thug: had I commenced my career under other andordinary circumstances,--I mean, had I not been introduced to myprofession by one so powerful and well esteemed as my father thenwas,--I must have entered the lowest grade of all; and had I provedmyself to be active, intelligent and brave, I might have risen in timeto the highest. But this was spared me; and though too young myself tobecome a leader, I was in a rank above the rest, and was consideredto be, and looked up to as, the person who was hereafter to fill myfather's place, whenever it should suit him to retire from activeemployment.

  The business which the Thug leaders had assembled to deliberate upon,was a plan of my father's, for a large body under himself and twoother leaders (one of whom was Hoosein), to take the high road to theDukhun; to advance together as far as Nagpoor, from whence my fatherwas to proceed to Hyderabad; and the others separating, one to goto Aurungabad, thence through Khandesh, by Boorhanpoor, to Indore,and back to Sheopoor; the other also to Aurungabad, but from thenceto Poona; afterwards, if possible, as far as Surat, and from thencehomewards; but if the season should be too far advanced, they were toget to Boorhanpoor and home in the best way they could; finally, wewere all to meet at Sheopoor by the commencement of the next rainyseason.

  No opposition was made to this; on the contrary, it was highly approvedof, as, under the personal direction of Ismail, it could not fail ofsuccess, and as an expedition had not been made to the Dukhun for manyyears before. The other gangs were to proceed in various directionsabout Hindostan as far as Benares, and round through the Saugor andNerbudda country,--their proceedings to be guided by circumstances,which could not now be foreseen.

  Thus planned, but a few days elapsed before we set off on our journey:with us there were sixty men, with Hoosein forty-five, and with theother jemadar, whose name was Ghous Khan, thirty; making in all onehundred and thirty-five.

  Before we commenced our journey, however, it was necessary to consultthe omens; and as the ceremonies are somewhat curious, I shall relatethem to you,--observing, that no expedition, whether of a large orsmall body, can be undertaken without them.

  The morning we were to separate on our different destinations,everything having been duly prepared, we repaired to a spot which hadbeen chosen on the road, a short distance from the village, and thewhole band was in attendance. Bhudrinath, a man of much intelligenceand respectability, and who was learned in the conducting ofceremonies, bore the sacred pickaxe, which had been previously dulyconsecrated, and was immediately attended by my father and three otherjemadars. My father, as the leader of the whole, carried a lota filledwith water, suspended by a string which he held in his mouth, downhis right side. Had that lota fallen, what a dire omen would it havebeen to him! Nothing could have averted his death in that year, or atfurthest in the year following.

  We moved slowly, till we reached the spot fixed on, and there my fatherstood. Turning his face to the south, the direction we were to take,he placed his left hand on his breast, reverently lifted his eyes toheaven, and pronounced in a loud voice the following invocation toBhowanee:--"Mother of the universe! protectress and patroness of ourorder! if this expedition be pleasing to thee, vouchsafe us thy help,and give us an omen of thine approbation!"

  He was silent, and every mouth repeated the prayer aloud. Now everyone looked impatient for the omens: the band scarcely breathed, sointensely anxious was the suspense. Long we waited, perhaps half anhour: no one spoke; and the reverent silence of the assembled numbershad something exceedingly impressive in it. At last the Pilhaoo, oromen on the left hand, was vouchsafed; a jackass brayed, and was almostinstantly answered by one on the right, which was the Thibaoo. Whatcould have been more complete! such an omen had not been known foryears, and promised the utmost success, and splendid booty. Loud andfervent were the cries of praise to Bhowanee; and each turning to hiscompanion, congratulated him on the happy prospect.

  Seven long hours my father sat on that spot, during which time all wasprepared for the journey. At its expiration he arose, and we took thenearest road to Guneshpoor.

  At the stage where we stopped for the evening, the Thibaoo and Pilhaoowere heard by Bhudrinath, who carried the nishan, the pickaxe, or,as it was now called, having been consecrated, _khussee_; and theserenewed favourable omens produced an increased confidence in theexpedition and its leaders. At the first streamlet we passed the nextmorning the band all sat down, and some goor and dall, which had beenbrought with us, was shared to all. Proceeding, favourable omens wereagain seen, and all declared that we should speedily gain a rich booty.To me this was all strange and unaccountable; but the implicit faithwhich every one seemed to place in the omens, and the regularity withwhich the ceremonies were conducted, impressed me with a strong idea oftheir necessity; though, to my shame I say it, as I acquired confidencein myself, I scorned them as foolish; until misfortune, no doubt sentby Bhowanee, brought me to my senses, and made me penitent.

  In a few days we arrived at Guneshpoor, and as yet we had no adventure.On reaching the town, the Sothaees or inveiglers, whose duty it isto entice travellers into the power of the Thugs,
were sent into thetown, while we remained under a mango-grove on the outside. They wereabsent most part of the day; and when they returned they were eagerlyquestioned for intelligence. The men who had been sent on this dutywere two Hindoos, one by name Bhudrinath, whom I have mentioned before,a Brahmin, and the other a man of inferior caste, by name Gopal; butboth were persons of the most bland and persuasive manners, and I wastold that they rarely failed in their object. I was, among the rest,highly curious to hear their adventures in the town, and joined myfather on his taking his place in the assembly.

  Bhudrinath told us that he had gone through the whole of the bazarwithout success, when he was attracted to a bunnea's shop by arespectable old man, who was in high dispute with the bunnea. He wentup to him, and the old gentleman, who was in a violent passion at someattempted exaction on the part of the merchant, immediately accostedhim, and begged him to be witness to the transaction, expressing at thesame time his intention of having the man brought before the Kotwal forhis dishonesty. "The bunnea was very insolent and abusive," Bhudrinathwent on to say; "and after some altercation, I contrived to settlethe matter by dint of threats and persuasions. The old man seemedhighly pleased with me; and it naturally led, after we left the shoptogether, to a conversation about whither I was going, and who I was.I took advantage of this, to convince him that the town was no saferesidence for a traveller, even for a night, and discovered that he wasa Persian mootsuddee, or writer in the service of the rajah of Nagpoor,whither he was travelling with his son. I of course alarmed him as muchas I could with accounts of the thieves and Thugs on the road, andrepresented ourselves to be a company of travellers proceeding also toNagpoor, on our way to the Dukhun, and associated together for mutualprotection; and that we always rested outside the villages, as beingthe safest places when our number was so large. He seemed so struckwith the proposal I made to him to come out and join us, that I lost notime in pressing him to leave the town, and I have succeeded. I haveleft Gopal, who joined us, to show him the way out, and assist him inpacking up his things, and I have no doubt they will be here beforesunset."

  "Barik Alla!" exclaimed my father; "your face is bright in our eyes,Bhudrinath; and I have no doubt, lads," said he to the knot oflisteners, "that the old Khayet has abundance of money and jewels,and his plunder will help to see us on to Nagpoor: so if he does notcome to us of his own free will, we must even waylay him, and that tooin the next march. A short time will decide this; and if he does notcome, some of you Lughaees must be off to prepare the bhil or place ofburial."

  But we were saved the trouble; for the Khayet came into our camp, as hehad said, by sunset, and was met at the confines of it by my father,and the two other jemadars. The respectability of his appearance struckme forcibly; he was evidently a man of polished manners, and had seencourts and good society. After arranging his travelling-cart to sleepin, by placing some tent walls around it for protection to his women,he and his son, an intelligent handsome-looking youth, came to the spotwhere my father and the other leaders had spread their carpets; andmany of the band being assembled, there ensued a general conversation.Who could have told, Sahib, the intentions of those by whom he wassurrounded! To me it was wonderful. I knew he was to die that night,for that had been determined when he arrived in our camp, and while hewas arranging his sleeping-place. I knew too that a spot had been fixedon for his grave, and that of those with him; for I had accompanied myfather to it, and saw that it was begun; and yet there sat my father,and Hoosein, and Ghous Khan, and many others. The pipe and the storypassed round, and the old man was delighted at the company he hadfallen into.

  "I thank you," said he to Bhudrinath, "that you brought me out ofthat unsainted village; truly here is some enjoyment in the societyof gentlemen, who have seen the world: there I should have been inperpetual dread of robbers, and should not have slept a wink all night,while here I need not even to be watchful, since I am assured by theKhan Sahib," pointing to my father, "that I shall be well taken careof."

  "Ay!" growled out in a whisper an old Thug who sat behind me, "he willbe well taken care of sure enough, I will see to that."

  "How?" said I.

  He gave the sign, by which I knew him to be one of the Bhuttotes orstranglers who had been selected.

  "I have an old grudge against him," he continued, "and the time is comewhen I can repay it."

  "Tell me how it happened," said I in a low tone, for the man's facewore a savage expression as he said it.

  "Not now," said he, "how can I? I will tell you to-morrow night when wemeet in the mujlis: that man is Brij Lall, as great a rascal as everlived, one who has committed more murders and more villanies in hislife than any of us Thugs. But his cup is full, his breath is alreadyin his mouth; one squeeze from me, and it will go forth never toreturn."

  "And the boy," said I, "that fair, fine boy,--surely he will be spared."

  "To tell all he saw, I suppose," said the man; "to deliver us up at thefirst place we come to! No, no, Mea, we know better, and so will youone of these days." And he went round and seated himself just behindthe old man, who turned about as though he were intruded upon.

  "Sit still, sit still," said my father; "it is only a companion: in anopen camp like this every one is privileged to hear the conversationof the evening mujlis, and we usually find some one among us who canenliven the evening with a tale, until it is time to rest for thenight."

  So the old Thug sat still: I could see him playing with his fatalweapon, the handkerchief, now pulling it through one hand and nowthrough the other; and I gazed on the group till my brain reeled againwith excitement, with intense agony I might call it with more truth.There sat the old man; beside him his noble-looking boy; behind themtheir destroyers, only awaiting the signal; and the old man looked sounconscious of danger, was so entirely put off his guard and led intoconversation by the mild, bland manners of my father, that what couldhe have suspected? That he was in the hands of those from whom he wasto meet his death? Ah, no! And as I gazed and gazed, how I longed toscream out to him to fly! had I not known that my own death wouldhave followed instantaneously, I had done it. Yet it would have beenof no use. I turned away my eyes from them; but they returned to thesame place involuntarily. Every movement of the men behind seemed theprelude to the fatal ending. At last I could bear the intensity of myfeelings no longer: I got up, and was hurrying away, when my fatherfollowed me.

  "Where are you going?" said he; "I insist on your staying here; this isyour initiation; you must see it, and go through with the whole."

  "I shall return directly," said I: "I go but a pace or two; I am sick."

  "Faint-hearted!" said he in a low tone; "see you do not stay long, thisfarce must soon end."

  A turn or two apart from the assembly restored me again, and I returnedand took up my former place, exactly opposite the old man and his son.Ya Alla! Sahib, even now I think they are _there_ (and the Thug pointedwith his finger), father and son; and the son's large eyes are lookinginto mine, as my gaze is riveted on them.

  Ameer Ali looked indeed as though he saw them, and stared wildly; butpassing his hands across his eyes, he resumed,--

  "Taajoob!" said he, "wonderful! I could have sworn they both lookedat me; but I am growing old and foolish." Well, Sahib, as I said, Igazed and gazed at them, so that I wonder even now, they saw nothingextraordinary in it, and did not remark it. But no: the old mancontinued a relation of some treaties the Nagpoor Rajah was formingwith the English, and was blaming him for entering into any leaguewith them against his brethren, when my father called out "Tumbako lao(bring tobacco)!" It was the signal! quicker than thought the Thughad thrown his handkerchief round the neck of the old man, anotherone his round that of the son, and in an instant they were on theirbacks struggling in the agonies of death. Not a sound escaped thembut an indistinct gurgling in their throats; and as the Bhuttotesquitted their fatal hold, after a few moments, others, who had beenwaiting for the purpose, took up the bodies and bore them away to thealready-prepared grave
.

  "Now for the rest," cried my father in a low tone: "some of you rush onthe servants; see that no noise is made; the bullock-driver and otherscan be dealt with easily."

  Some of the men ran to the place the _khayet_ had chosen, andsurrounded the unsuspecting cart-driver and the other servants, whowere cooking under a tree. I saw and heard a scuffle; but they alsowere all dead ere they could cry out.

  "Come!" said my father and Hoosein, taking me by the arms and hurryingme along; "come and see how they are disposed of."

  I went, or was rather dragged along, to one side of our encampment,where there was a ravine some feet deep, in the bottom of which a holehad been dug, and by the side of which eight bodies were lying. Thefather and son, his two wives, the bullock-driver, two male servants,and an old woman; also a servant, who was in the inclosure with thewomen. The bodies were nearly naked, and presented a ghastly spectacle,as they lay in a confused heap, but just visible from the brink of theravine.

  "Are they all here?" asked my father.

  "Yes, Khodawund," said one of the Lughaees, whom I knew.

  "Then in with them!" cried my father; and they were quickly depositedin their last resting-place, the head of one over the feet of another,so that they might lie close.

  "We had better open them," said the Lugha, "for the ground is loose andthey will swell."

  So gashes were made in their abdomens, and the earth quickly filled inon them; it was stamped down, the top smoothed, and in a few momentsno one could have discovered that eight human beings had been secretedbeneath the spot. We turned away from it, and every one betook himselfto repose.

  Sahib, can I describe to you how I passed that night? Do what I would,the father and son appeared before me; the old man's voice rung in myears, and the son's large eyes seemed to be fixed on mine. I felt asthough a thousand shitans sat on my breast, and sleep would not cometo my eyes. It appeared so cold-blooded, so unprovoked a deed, thatI could not reconcile myself in any way to have become even a silentspectator of it. Yet my father had joined in it--my father whom Iloved intensely, and Hoosein too. But all would not do; I could nottranquillize myself. I crept from beneath our little tent, and sat downin the open air. The moon shone brightly as ever, as now and then sheemerged from beneath a passing cloud, and there was a cool breeze whichfanned my burning face and soothed me. I watched her as she appeared totravel along in the heavens, till she became overcast; and a few heavydrops of rain, as if she wept over the deed she had witnessed, drove meagain under the tent. I crept close to my father, who was sound asleep,and embracing him with my arms, sleep came to my eyelids, and I wokenot till the usual hour of prayer arrived, when I was roused by myfather to join in the morning supplication.

  We spread our carpets, and I repeated the form with him; but mythoughts were with the old man and his son, and the event of thepreceding night. Immediately after it was over our horses were saddled,and we set out on what proved to be a long march; for it was necessaryto get as far as possible from Guneshpoor, that no suspicion mightattach to us. In due time we arrived at the stage, and a man was sentinto the town to purchase one rupee and a quarter's worth of goor orcoarse sugar: what this was intended for I could not imagine, but itwas soon made known to me when I asked my father.

  "This," said he, "is the sacrifice of the Tupounee, in which we alljoin after any adventure similar to what you saw last night; it is arite of the utmost solemnity, and must never be neglected."

  The man returned with the sugar, and a place having been chosen,Bhudrinath, the bearer of the khussee, was seated on a blanket spreadfor him, his face towards the west. All the best men and notedBhuttotes seated themselves on each side of him, looking in the samedirection as he did. My father then made a small hole in the groundnear the blanket, upon which was placed the sacred pickaxe and the pileof sugar, and a piece of silver as an offering. A little of the sugarwas then put into the hole by my father; he raised his clasped hands toheaven and in a supplicatory manner cried aloud--

  "Powerful and mighty goddess! who hast for ages vouchsafed thyprotection unto thy votaries, and who particularly to Joora Naig andKhudeek Bunwaree gavest one lakh and sixty thousand rupees in theirneed, we beseech thee in like manner to aid us, and fulfil our desires!"

  This prayer was devoutly repeated by all around, and my father takingwater in his hand sprinkled it upon the pickaxe and into the hole; hethen took pieces of the sugar and presented them to each of the Thugsin succession, who ate it in silence. They then drank some water, andthe pile of sugar was distributed among the rest of the assembled band,who likewise ate their portions in silent reverence--all except myself;for not having as yet strangled a man, I was not eligible to partake ofit with the rest. However, my father had reserved a portion of his ownfor me, which he made me eat. After I had swallowed it, he said--

  "You have eaten the goor, and are now a Thug in your heart; were youto desire to forsake us you could not, such is the power it has, whenconsecrated as you have seen it over the hearts of men. Were any oneto find a portion and eat it, whatever might be his rank or conditionin life, he would assuredly become a Thug; he could not avoid it, thepower it would exercise over him would be irresistible."

  "This is wonderful indeed," said I; "have such things been known?"

  "I could relate hundreds of instances, had I time," he replied; "butask Hoosein, or any one, they will all tell you the same."

  In the evening, when all were assembled as usual, my father took me totask about my faint-heartedness, as he termed it. "This will never do,my son," said he; "you who ran in upon the tiger so nobly ought not toshrink from such child's-play as this; you must be a man, and behavebetter, and remember you have eaten the goor."

  "For shame, brother!" said Hoosein; "do not speak so to the Sahib-zada;remember you were no better yourself at first; do you not recollect thebusiness at ----, and what difficulty I had to persuade Gunesha thatyou were in reality good stuff? Let the Sahib-zada but see one or twomore of these affairs, and he will be quite a different person, he willbecome a tiger at the work. I do not fear, my son," said he, turning tome and slapping me on the back; "worse men than you have begun better,and ended in being chicken-hearted fellows, only fit to dig graves andbe scouts. Old Hoosein never yet was mistaken in any one, and you,Inshalla! will surpass your father. Only let him," continued he, againaddressing my father, "let him see one or two more affairs, and thentry his hand himself; you will then see whether I am wrong or not."

  "It is well," exclaimed my father; "believe me, my son, I meant not toupbraid you, but I was fearful the feeling you displayed might growupon you; be kind as you will to those around you, affectionate to yourconnections; pity the poor, give alms to the needy; but remember thatyou are a Thug, and have sworn relentless destruction to all those whomAlla may throw in your way."

  "I am rebuked," said I, "and your words have sunk into my heart; nevermore shall you have to say of me that I flinched from my duty. Wheneveryou think fit I am ready to take the handkerchief." And to turn thesubject, I said, "I beg to represent, that Mahomed the Bhuttotepromised to tell me some history of the man who died last night, and Icall on him to fulfil his word."

  "Well spoken!" cried a dozen of the men; "Mahomed is a sure hand at astory--let us have it."

  Mahomed, after stuffing a large quantity of pan-leaf and tobacco intohis mouth, crunched it several times between his teeth, and after acopious discharge of red saliva, settled himself upon his heels, and,addressing my father, spoke, as nearly as I can remember, as follows:--

  "I was born at Boree, which is a small village in the Nagpoorterritory: my father was a Thug, as you all know, and my ancestors werethe same for generations before. Tales of their feats have been handeddown in our family from father to son, and they are worth relating,but they have nothing to do with my story. They had been prosperous,however, and had saved money enough to give a large sum at the court ofNagpoor for the office and lands of the Patelship (chief magistracy) ofour village; nevertheless they pur
sued their profession of Thuggee. Mygrandfather, Kasim, as many of you know, was as notorious a leader ofThugs as any one has been since he died; and my father, who was thenyoung, succeeded to his property and situation. Long he held it, andnone arose to dispute his claim.

  "But his prosperity was not fated to last. Well do I remember the daywhen some soldiers, sent by order of the peshkar of the court, arrivedat the village with an order to bring him to 'the Presence.' My fathervainly endeavoured to learn from them the reason of this sudden callfor him, as he was regular in his payments to the government; andfinding reasoning would not avail, he strove to bribe the leader ofthe party into conniving at his absence. But all would not do; hewas obliged to accompany them, and he took me with him at my earnestentreaty. I was then a young man, probably about the age of theSahib-zada there. We reached Nagpoor after some long marches, and onour arrival we were cast into a vile prison, our legs loaded withirons, and we were denied the commonest comforts. We had no paun ortobacco, no clean clothes, were not allowed to see any one, and weregiven the coarsest and most wretched food to eat. In this manner wepassed four long months. My father in vain entreated to know what hewas accused of, or who was his accuser; and equally in vain were hisattempts to have his situation made known to his family and friends. Wewearied ourselves in our lonely prison with conjectures as to what thecause of the misfortune could be, but without success. At last, one daythat wretch Brij Lall, who died last night by my hand, came into ourprison attended by soldiers. My father gave himself up for lost, andthought his hour of death had arrived; but recovering, he appeared torecognise Brij Lall, and instantly assailed him with imprecations andabuse.

  "When he had finished, Brij Lall, eyeing him with a grim look, said,--

  "'Pateljee! perhaps you will now condescend to give the government someaccount of the effects of Jeysookhdas, the merchant, who lived in yourvillage, and about whose affairs you well know I was sent some yearsago. You may also remember the reception and treatment you gave me, forwhich, by the blessing of God, I will now see whether I cannot effect areturn.'

  "'Thou art a liar, and a base-born rascal of a mootsuddee!' cried myfather, 'and not one word shalt thou ever know from my lips: send someone more fit to confer with Kasim Patel, and he will tell what heknows; but not one word to thee, thou dog and son of a dog.'

  "'We will see,' said the vile wretch; and making a sign to the soldierswith him, my poor father was seized; and a horse's nose-bag filled withhot ashes being tied over his head, he was thumped violently on theback till he was forced to inhale the hot dust, which nearly killedhim. This was repeated several times, on every refusal to tell to BrijLall what he desired to know. At last nature could bear no more, and hefainted. The wretch then left the prison, particularly ordering that nowater should be given. But in this his vile intentions were frustrated;for fortunately some had remained from our morning's supply, and aftersprinkling my father's face, and forcing a draught into his mouth, herecovered sufficiently to sit up and drink some more, which revivedhim."