CHAPTER ELEVENTH. CONTENTS. "The Lion asks help from the mouse, to free him from the net he has got into 86 none so blind as those that wont see," as the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him, for he refresheth the soul of his "masters." "What shall we do, Azîzūdîn? eh faqirji! speak plainly, and let me have none of your half and half counsel." Thus spoke Maharajah Ranjit Singh to his most confidential servant, on the 16th August 1831, not many weeks after the occur. rence of the events narrated in my last; the answer given by the Secretary was, as usual, canny though sensible; he said, quickly but respectfully," the friends of the darbar are the poor faqir's friends, and your highness's enemies are mine, but it need not be told that I always loved the farangi." Thus much he said, and looked hastily round as if he thought there might be listeners, and then more slowly and lowly continued;" I am but a faqir, and the Raja is a rich man, powerful, and able; what can your highness's slave do in opposition to his will?" "Yes, it is exactly as I thought," replied Ranjit, "I'm but second here; 'tis the Dogra Raja who ruleth at Lâhaur, the old Sikh is a tool in his hands; the son and grandson of a king is to be bearded in his own darbar by this upstart minion-tell me faqir, does your fear of him exceed your gratitude to me?" 66 My life is welcome as a sacrifice on my Lord's behalf; speak but the word and thy slave will this instant throw himself into a well, or otherwise devote himself for the king and master of his heart." "Yes faqir, I do not distrust you, but there is an undue leaning on your part towards these Rajas, be it from love or fear the effect is the same, and is most inconvenient to my service, preventing access to my presence, and hindering in many ways the transaction of business; listen to me, I know the power and the address of these creatures of my own upraising, and I so little love contention that I will not disturb them—that is, if they let me alone-but by the favour of Sri Purakji, I'll be master in my own kingdom, and I'll e'en defend those of my servants who serve me faithfully, and not allow them to be trampled on-Bellasis shall be recalled from Kangra ; that neighbourhood is now too hot for him; but he is a good soldier and an honest man; we'll give him a clearance of his accounts, after the Rupar mulakat, and put him into some other honorable post-mind me faqir, not a hair of his head shall be touched, his safety shall be your responsibility." The Maharajah quite warmed as he thus spoke, and Azîzūdîn seeing him so earnest, and having really no ill will towards myself, but merely going with the current against me, replied, "Bu Chashm, the royal pleasure is mandate enough for the Faqir ; but how does your Highness purpose to remove Bellasis? he is firm, nay obstinate, and he has a peremptory order to yield only to your Majesty." "Neither need he, order the preparations to be made; we'll take Ajit Singh and Attar Singh Sundhanwallas; let also Cols. Odam Singh and Ali Baksh be warned to attend with their battalions; we will move towards Khangra with the new moon, and return to Amritsir in time for the Daserah; give the necessary orders on both matters, let it be generally understood that every jagirdar with his men at arms must attend fully equipped, and with all possible display, preparatory to proceeding to Rupar." "Your Highness's orders shall be obeyed," replied the faqir, who had scarcely finished the sentence before Raja Dhyan Singh entered, and was as cordially as usual received by Prince and secretary. His quick eye, however, at once told him, all was not right, and though the Maharajah's countenance was unreadable, the undue officiousness of the faqir shewed to the powerful minister that the supple moslem had been tripping. Quietly, however, he introduced his budget, and having discussed more confidential matters, proposed to the Maharajah to move to the darbar. The debates of that day, I understood, were more than usually noisy; an eaves-dropper had heard part of the conversation of the Khilvat, and had retailed it with exaggerations to some of the Sardars, opposed in heart to the Raja: when therefore the affairs of Kangra were brought on the tapis, there were more than the usual number of voices in favour of the foreign officer, and even the Faqir, backed by the echo of other tongues, declared his confidence in my integrity. Raja Dhyan Singh set down the Faqir, who quailed before him, but not so Jamadar Khushiyal Singh, who, thoroughly hating the man that ousted him from the first place in the counsel, omitted no safe opportunity of thrusting at the Raja and his party; the friends of the Bhais joined in the wordy war, and the Maharajah as usual was diverted with the takrar, and quite lost his uneasiness of the morning in the pleasure and excitement of the sparring before him. When the Maharajah considered that enough had been said, and opinions sufficiently disclosed, he turned the subject to that of the approaching Daserah festival, questioned the Sardars as to the state of their troops, asked if their numbers were complete, and their arms and accoutrements all in good order; the commandants of the different Top Khanas at Laheur were called to the presence, each closely questioned as to any deficiencies, and told that they would be held responsible for the appearance of their batteries at Amritsir, where they would be inspected and put through the manœuvres that they would have to perform at Rupar; practice at the target was also enjoined, so that they should make a good display before the English. his re The above was all duly reported to me, but not by my own Vaqil; for having ceased to trust him, I relied less upon ports, than on what I gathered from other quarters. I heard also that there was considerable excitement at Lahaur, and that although Raja Dhyan Sing was the mainspring of all measures, was the minister of the interior, the head of the council, and the commanderin-chief, yet there were not wanting voices to murmur against the grasping propensities of him and his friends; and I was led to be lieve that at this time there were many at court who would have readily joined in any well-devised outbreak against his authority; but the fact was, that the Maharajah was so surrounded by the creatures of his minister, and was so dependant on him in all the concerns of Government, that he could not even, if he would, shake him off; and was, therefore, obliged silently to put up with the domineering Vazir, only occasionally hauling him up in open darbár, when he very much exceeded the bounds of moderation in the exercise of his deputed authority. The communications from the Darbar to my address at this time were flattering and conciliatory to the highest degree; I was told that His Highness would probably visit Kângrâ and take me with him to Rupar, where my skill and address, it was expected, would gain for myself fresh honours, and do credit to the Sikh Government and the Ruler's discernment. Soft words turn away wrath, and in truth they were not lost upon me; but my heart was not now at Kângrâ, and I cared no longer to rule its destinies ; the events of the last few months had both altered my views, and deadened the aspirations that I had been enthusiastic enough to indulge in, regarding my charge. I began to see the folly of hoping to effect any thing permanent on a shifting sand, such as was the Government I served; and my eyes suddenly opened to the impossibility of one man working out the plans that I had desired for my principality; I saw too that their greatest success could only save the ship from wreck during my own life or that of Ranjit Singh; and that on the boulversement that would take place on his death, my improvements and reformations would only mark my people and Government for more signal spoliation; to be perhaps, as Sarhind or Lahâur, an object to be pointed at, to mark by its desolation the æra of some great event. My heart was, besides, far from being in my employment, and while I should have been inspecting my works, and examining my accounts, my thoughts were with her I had lost, devising schemes for her recovery, and racking my brain as to where she could be concealed, what the cause of her silence, whether the whole party had been cut off, or had met with captivity worse than death. While I was one day pacing the ramparts in such thoughts, the sounds of a sitar fell upon my ear; caring little for instrumental music, and indeed scarcely knowing one tune from another, I passed, more than once, three blind old musicians, who, ensconced in an open tower, were vigorously plying away at their strings; suddenly, however, one of them struck up a song, the words of which thrilled through my soul, and drew me quickly to the spot. "The Sun has set mid clouds afar, "Why shines not then my evening star? It was a song that my sweet girl had often warbled; many a time had the words reproached me, when I heard them from her plaintive voice, as I approached her tower; and now I thought what a fool I had been to lose one opportunity of enjoying her society, while, yet in my reach, and wondered how I could ever have allowed my caution so far to controul me, as to give her a shadow of reason for complaining of my absence. Disengaging myself from the few followers that attended my steps, I sauntered towards the musicians, and in one, despite of his assumed blindness, I recognized Akrâm Khān Multânī, the Jamadar in whose charge I had placed my affianced bride; at the sound of my voice, the man looked up, but suddenly recollecting himself, shewed, as before, two apparently sightless orbs; striking up however, in a different measure, he sang as follows: "There is a bird, that sings by night, And there is a flower, that shuns the light, Till the midnight clouds o'er the sky are spread." "More meant than meets the ear," thought I, as I looked hard at the musician, and then turned away and joined my followers. |