■252 RIFLE AND SPEAR WITH THE RAJPOOTS. 



The panther soon shook himself free, and then more 

 dogs were let loose, and he was pulled down again. 

 But they could not kill him ; in fact, a panther has as 

 many lives as a cat, and often takes several bullets before 

 he is hors de combat. So one of the men rode up 

 and gave the coup de grdcc with his spear. 



Late in the afternoon, Mrs. Fraser took me to see the 

 Ranees (little Jey Singh's mothers). We first called on 

 the principal wife, or rather widow, of the late Raja. She 

 speaks a little English, and is the most advanced lady 

 of the lot. Although Rajpoot ladies rarely show in 

 public, this one used frequently to go out driving with 

 the Raja, but since his death has never once cpiitted 

 the palace. Until the Maharaja's body was burnt, all the 

 wives had to be carefully watched, lest they should 

 commit suttee, or throw themselves on the funeral pyre. 

 As usual, one had to ascend flights of narrow perpendicular 

 little stairs to reach the Ranee's room. It was a very 

 small one ; the only furniture a mattress on the floor, a 

 small wooden sofa, and an ordinary cuckoo-clock, on which 

 she seemed to set great store. 



Another wife was a very portly lady, and had a more 

 comfortabledooking apartment, the whole of one side 

 opening into a little garden. Then we went to see the 

 widow of the previous Maharaja. She was dressed in a 

 white garment, with a big black border all round, and 



