Page:In Black and White - Kipling (1890).djvu/57



Tweed said tae Till:— What gars ye rin sae still?" Till said tae Tweed:— Though ye rin wi' speed An' I rin slaw— Yet where ye droon ae man I droon twa"

HERE is no getting over the river to-night, Sahib. They say that a bullock-cart has been washed down already and the pony that went over a half-hour before you came, has not yet reached the far side. Is the Sahib in haste? I will drive the ford-elephant in to show him. Ohé mahout there in the shed! Bring out Earn Pershad, and, if he will face the current, good. An elephant never lies. Sahib, and Ram Pershad is separated from his friend Kala Nag. He, too, wishes to cross to the far side. Well done, my King! Go half-way across, mahoutji, and see what the river says. O well done, Ram Pershad! Pearl among elephants, go into the river! Hit him on the head, fool! Was the goad made only to scratch thy own fat back with, bastard? Strike! Strike! What are the boulders to thee, Ram Pershad, my Eustum, my mountain of strength. Go in! Go in!

No, Sahib! It is useless. You can hear him trumpet. He is telling Kala Nag that he cannot come over. See! He has swung round and is shaking his head. He is no fool. He knows what the Barhwi means when it is angry. Aha! Indeed, thou art no fool, my child! Salaam, Ram Pershad, Bahadur! Take him under the trees, mahout, and see that he gets his spices. Well done, thou chiefest among tuskers. Salaam to the Sirkar and go to sleep.

What is to be done? The Sahib must wait till the river goes down. It will shrink to-morrow morning, if God pleases, or the day after at latest. Now why does the Sahib get so angry? I am his servant. Before God, I did not create this