Page:Indira and Other Stories.pdf/89

 "No one of whom we know."

"Where is the residence of the generous foundress?"

The attendants pointed out a handsome mansion hard by.

"Can you tell me," said the stranger, "is the lady married or a widow?"

"She is neither married nor a widow. She comes of great people. All her relatives are dead. There is no one to give her in marriage."

"Does the lady ever admit male visitors to an interview? Do not be offended at my question. Let me tell you that many Hindu ladies now go into mixed society like Englishwomen. That is why I ask."

"Indeed," the attendants indignantly replied, "our lady has no such foreign manners. She never shows herself to males, even if they be friends of the family."

The stranger walked thoughtfully away towards the heiress's residence and entered its hospitable gate.