OF TUE OLD WORLD, 137 



or four of my brother-officers, listening to the regi- 

 mental band, and cogitating upon the vapid life I 

 was leading, when suddenly my chochra (a young 

 Mussulman lad, whose office it was to assist me to 

 dress and wait at table) rushed up with frantic 

 haste, exclaiming, " Sahib, sahib, Chineah iya hy ! " 

 (Sir, sir, Chineah has come !) Now Chineah was my 

 head shekarry or huntsman, who had been out on a 

 reconnoitring expedition after large game, and a 

 great man in my establishment. 



" Let us have him in at once," said B , " and 



hear where he has been, and what shckar-khubber 

 (hunting news) he has brought." 



So Chineah was sent for, and in a few minutes 

 was salaaming before us. 



" Well, Chineah," said I, " what great news have 

 you brought, that you have been away so long? 

 From not having heard from you, I have been ex- 

 pecting yoii back every day for the last fortnight, 

 and at last began to imagine that some accident 

 had happened, for three or four of your women 

 came up to me declaring that they had heard in 

 the bazaar that you had been eaten by a tiger." 



" Women no good, master," answered he, " tell 

 plenty lies, go too much to the bazaar ; plenty, 

 plenty talking, never do any work. I go away 

 nearly two months, then come home, find no cloth 

 in ffo-down,* no rice, no nuffin. To-morrow make 

 plenty bobbery, (noise), plenty floggee. Ah, sahib ! 



* Go-down — servants' quarters, generally out-offices. 



