Modhu said: Why not take your jewels and go to your
fathershouse? Sudha gently hummed a love-song to her, and the evening wore on
tonight.
It was a rainy night towards the end of
summer.
Sudha gently hummed a love-song to her, and the
evening wore on tonight. Mani hadspent the whole night in covering every part of her
body with herornaments.
The sky was dark withrain-clouds, and there was a
silence as of something indefinite andimpending. The incessant patter of the rain
seemed to say tohim: This awakening is a dream.
She was afraid that if she put her jewels into a
box theymight be snatched away from her hands. Neverhad I felt such joy as I did,
when I thus acknowledged defeat. But just then an excellent opportunity came my way.
And his style of food, dress, and hiswifes jewels were all on the same extravagant
scale. The incessant patter of the rain seemed to say tohim: This awakening is a
dream.
Mani hadspent the whole night in covering every
part of her body with herornaments. In his dry unmusical voice Gopinath said: Give
me your keys. I found that he was the schoolmaster of the place. Acting on this
suggestion, messengers were sent to Manis fathershouse.
The police were given a description ofModhu, but
all in vain.
But if she wore them on herperson, then no one
could take them away without murdering her. Yet I never got money in the measure
that I got fun and fame. Bhusans wife did not talk very much, nor did she mix much
with herneighbours.
My mind became so depressed that, no matter how I
racked my brains, Iwas unable to write one line.
One by one all my friends andacquaintances came and
read to me the spiciest bits, laughingheartily. Just as he was thinking thus, a
jingling sound as of ornaments washeard. I think my friend had a suspicion that I
had come in search of hiddentreasure.
He was the heir to thelarge property and business
of his uncle Durga Saha, who waschildless. He only began todescribe to me what had
happened in this ruined building some fifteenyears before.
He was furiously angry,and wrote a lengthy epistle,
full of misspellings, to his master. Mani, wrapped from head to footin a thick
shawl, stepped into the boat. He found he had been asleep, and in his sleep he had
made his way downto the door of the house.
It was now only just on the other side of the
threshold. Then you shant have the keys, said Giribala. It is only when a man has
lumbagothat he becomes conscious of his waist. But the cycle seems to have
changed,and this appears no longer to hold good.
He made a supremeeffort to control himself, and sat
still.
She ended up byasking him: Now what is your advice?
On the roof of the boat the boatmen were at their evening prayer.
From what she knew of humanity she thought that
this was not onlypossible but likely. She would not venture to approachme unless
summoned. Encouraged by this thought, I wrote a farce.