Page:On the Coromandel Coast.djvu/277

 night. The Mussulman servant of the bungalow met his lordship at the door, and said:

' "You cannot sleep here, my lord. No one can spend the night in this house. An evil spirit disturbs it; and it is not good to be in the same house at night with an evil spirit."

'The Bishop was not afraid. He said that he would sleep there, and he begged us not to fear any evil spirits; they could do us no harm.

'We made his lordship's dinner, prepared the bedroom, and cooked our own food. He ate his evening meal with a calm mind, and, having said his prayers as usual, he laid himself down on the cot in the bedroom, while we spread our mats in the verandah close by. In the middle of the night we heard sounds of people moving in the kitchen. There was chopping of wood, rolling of the curry-stone, and noise among the cooking-pots. From within the house came the sound of splashing water, as though someone was bathing in the bathroom adjoining his lordship's sleeping-room. Presently the Bishop called, and I went to him.

' " There is someone washing in the bathroom; bring a light, that I may see who it is," he said.

'I brought the lamp in from the verandah, and together we entered the the bathroom. The sounds ceased as we opened the door. The Bishop asked:

' "Who is there?"

' He received no reply. The room was empty, and there was no sign of water having been thrown about since the Bishop himself had taken his bath. He closed the door and returned to his bed, while I went back to my mat in the verandah. No sooner did we close our eyes in sleep than the noise began again. I knew from the beginning that it was not the noise of a human being, but of a spirit. It was the spirit of a man who years