Page:Stories of Bengalee life - Prabhat Kumar Mukerji.pdf/116

104 Doctor's book containing copies of prescriptions, two or three files of old letters, the household account book, a framed portrait of Babu Surendra Nath Banerjea, monthly magazine containing portraits of Bepin Pal, Aurobindo Ghose, Tilak, Lajpat Rai, &c., were all seized with avidity. Opening the almirah containing medicines, he examined every phial minutely to see if anything of an explosive nature could be discovered. There was a bottle enclosed in a wire-netting, displaying a label well known to the Daroga by its appearance—for he could not read English. He took it out, held it against the light and addressing the two search witnesses, said—"Hello,—I didn't know the Doctor went in for such things. I thought he was a d—d teetotaler." The Daroga looked at the bottle very affectionately—and turning to the others said—"Have a drop gentlemen?"

"No, thanks, we don't drink,"—replied one of them.

"Nothing like an ounce of brandy, taken neat, when you are tired,"—and the Daroga suited his action to his words.

But it tasted so peculiar that the Daroga felt some misgivings as to the nature of the liquid. Handing over the bottle to the search witnesses, he requested them to see what it was. They read the