Tara: A Mahratta Tale

by Meadows Taylor

  CHAPTER LXXXV.

  Khundojee Kakrey performed his promise faithfully. By secret mountainpaths known to few, and through the dense forests of the tract whichlies between Pertabgurh and Kurrar, on the right bank of the Krishna,the Mahratta guided his charge safely, and with as much comfort as thenature of the journey would admit of. The two women maintained theirdisguise of peasants, and Zyna's ability to speak Mahratta, as well asLurlee's to speak Canarese, assisted in aiding the deception. By nightKakrey sought shelter of villages where he seemed to be well known,for a decent house was always ready for them to sleep in, the bestdelicacies of country farmhouses cooked for them: and frequently, notonly the matron of the house, but other women of the village, attendedto bathe them, and otherwise minister to their comfort.

  But for all this, those days were remembered as a time of bittergrief and sore trial; the more difficult for Zyna to endure, becauseLurlee could not be brought to believe that her husband was dead, andpreserved throughout, a demeanour of hope, if not, indeed, of actualjoy. "No one saw him die," she would say, "his body was not buried bythem. They dare not say he is dead, and I will hear no more of it. Whenwe are at Kurrar he will return, and we will go home together." Againand again, too, were the astrological diagrams consulted: but the ladywas unable to find any error in them, and for the present they were toher far more conclusive than the report she had heard from Fazil, andit was a happy thing for her, perhaps, that the delusion lasted even asfar as the town to which they were journeying.

  With Zyna, however, there was no delusion. She had at once believed herbrother's report. Kakrey, too, had told her that there was no hope ofher father's existence. Of Tara's fate he knew nothing. Mourning forhim, therefore, and in miserable anxiety about her brother, Zyna hadhad to endure a twofold trial, which her naturally buoyant dispositionand innate piety only, enabled her to sustain. Possibly, too, had sheremained in one place it would have been more severe; but the dailymovement--in a manner before unexperienced by her--the sense of freedomfrom restraint in the wild country they traversed, the beautiful and,to her, wonderful mountains, forests, and natural objects of all kinds,which, brought up as she had been in the seclusion of a zenana, shehad had no chance of seeing before--served to divert her mind from theterrible reality of her loss, to fill it with hope, and to render thesense of danger they incurred in their escape to be blunted by theexcitement of perpetual change.

  Of the servants who had escaped with them, and who joined Fazil'sparty, Goolab alone remained to attend the ladies by permission oftheir guide. She had been divested of every particle of Mahomedanattire, and, dressed in a coarse Mahratta saree, with a dab of redcolour smeared on her forehead, and mounted upon a small amblingbullock, passed readily for a Mahratta farmer's wife. In this ride,the old woman was in her element; now guiding the docile animal sherode, beside Lurlee, now beside Zyna, cheering them on when they werefatigued, and often dismounting and supporting them in places where theponies hesitated and had to be carefully led. Unless near a mountainvillage, their guide, Kakrey, seldom approached them; he was generallyin advance with some of his men, while others remained behind, guardingthe rear. When in motion, the party was made to resemble, as far aspossible, the appearance of people journeying upon a pilgrimage, andsmall orange flags, carried by several of the men, and fastened to thepommels of the women's saddles, assisted and maintained the deception.

  It was on the afternoon of the fourth day that, emerging from a ruggedpass in the mountains, they saw below them part of the wide plain ofthe Dekhan, the blue waters of the Krishna river sparkling in thesun, and the town, which they had hitherto only hoped to reach. Greatnumbers of white tents were pitched upon the plain near the fort,showing the presence of a considerable force, and the royal standardfluttered lazily in the evening breeze from its highest tower. It wasa pleasant scene of quiet soft beauty, and seemed a true resting-placefor the now weary and almost exhausted travellers. The last march hadbeen a longer one than usual; for some of the way they had passedthrough village lands, in regard to the people of which Kakrey wasnot without apprehension; the country was becoming more open, and thedanger of detection greater; nevertheless, he had guided them safelyand truly, as he had promised.

  It had been no easy matter to sustain the lady Lurlee that afternoon.All the confidence she had displayed hitherto, false as it was, seemedto have suddenly deserted her as she drew nigh to her destination; andwhile they rested during the hottest part of the day, under some coolshade by the side of a rivulet, Zyna saw that the old diagrams werelaid aside for once with a heavy sigh, and seemed to afford no comfort.She thought the evident weariness might be the result of a longer androugher ride than usual, and tried to soothe Lurlee. "Only a few cossmore, mother," she said, "and we are safe with our own people: do notfail now, when the end is so near!"

  "It matters not--what is the use of it?" replied Lurlee--"who will carefor us, now they are gone from us?"

  "The Blessed Alla, and the Prophet, and the saints," answered Zynadevoutly, "and there is Fazil too----"

  "He could not love me, now that Tara is not with me," returned Lurlee,interrupting Zyna.

  "Tara, mother?"

  "Yes, his soul will be gone away to her and to his father, Zyna. Heis dead," replied Lurlee, sighing. "I know it now. All day long theold man's face has been before me, gashed and bloody, and I think,"she said, passing her hand across her eyes, "that I am not deceivednow--no, not now."

  "We shall know the best or worst soon, mother; but Fazil could not havebeen deceived," replied Zyna.

  "And thou hast not wept, Zyna! O hard heart! Was he nothing to thee? Itis the old who cannot weep--the old like me."

  Zyna's tears were falling fast, but she checked them. "I would notgrieve thee, mother, needlessly," she said; "when Fazil comes, he willtell us all."

  "If I could see her, the daughter the good Alla gave me, Zyna--thegirl who softened my heart--and give her to him--it would be enough!but they took her away, and she, too, is dead! Once," she continuedmysteriously, after a pause, and catching Zyna's arm,--"once since wewere out in these wilds, she came to me in a dream, and mocked me. Shesaid she was going to die, and go to her Mother, but she would come tosee me first. Ah, she was very beautiful, Zyna, and smiled lovinglyupon me in her old way. Now, when she said that, it must have been nearmorning, when we were asleep in the village where they gave us milk todrink, and about the third watch of the night; but I cannot understandwhat planet ruled the hour. Ah me! I used once to do so, but the more Ilook at the tables now, the more I fail."

  "Trust in Alla, mother, not in them," replied Zyna.

  "I have no trust in them," muttered Lurlee gloomily--"none now inanything; all have failed me, and she most of all. O Tara! why didstthou go? O my child, my child, whom Alla gave me when I had none, andwhen thy mother died. Alas! why was I mocked, Zyna? why did Alla takehim too, who loved me, and leave me here? O daughter, this is unjustoppression, this----"

  "Hush, mother! else Alla will hear thee, and be angry, and the saintstoo; and can any one resist fate? O mother, be patient!" said Zynasoothingly. "Only for their help we had not escaped the slaughter, andworse--dishonour; and yet we are here, and our friends now are not faroff."

  "Your friends and Fazil's, girl!" she returned tartly. "I have been ofsmall account enough already among ye, and am not likely to improve."

  "Do not speak bitter words, mother, I beseech you," cried Zynaentreatingly. "We are your children--indeed we are, and will neverleave you. If Fazil lives----"

  "Peace!" rejoined the lady, interrupting her, "do not let falsehoodcome into thy mouth, girl. Enough for me that Tara is not, and thouart."

  Zyna could never reply to Lurlee's caustic speeches, least of allunder the pressure of their mutual bereavement; and as they sat therethey broke forth from time to time from her without tear or sob--oldgrievances--old jealousies--old allegations of neglect. Matters whichZyna had utterly forgotten, seemed to have rushed back on the lady'smemory like a flood. They were h
ard to endure; and yet not so hard,Zyna thought, as the false confidence, the fearful mockery of truth andreality, which had lasted till then--that disbelief in her father'sdeath for which she could not account.

  "Ah, if Tara can only be rescued from them, there may be some naturalrevulsion yet," thought the girl; and yet what hope of that? She couldnot deceive herself into a belief that Tara would be given up, or thatshe could escape from her family; perhaps, on second thoughts, shewould not desire it--but if it could be so? And amidst such conflictingthoughts, and the endurance of Lurlee's dogged, desperate state ofmind, the afternoon's journey into Kurrar, though the last, wasindescribably more miserable than any which had preceded it.

  They descended the pass, and were once more on level ground. "Hence toBeejapoor," said Goolab cheerily, as she was leading Lurlee's pony downthe last steep descent, "there are no mountains--a child might ridethither without trouble. Keep a good heart, therefore, O my Khanum!trust in Alla, and the Prophet, and the blessed Peer Khaderi, and thouwilt see it. I vow Fatehas to the shrine, and to feed----"

  "They are liars like thyself," retorted Lurlee savagely: "peace, for aprating old fool as thou art! Did not the planets tell me Afzool Khanwas alive, and now men say he is dead! After that, can I believe? Owoman, thou art mad--so keep thy tongue silent!"

  Goolab thought her mistress mad--perhaps she was so in some degree.Excitement, grief as yet without vent, and heavy fatigue in a blazingsun to one unaccustomed to exposure, might easily cause temporarydelirium, and it was with difficulty that she supported her mistressupon her pony over the ground which intervened from the bottom of thepass to the town. Shiverings had come on, and it was evident that thepoor lady might be seriously indisposed.

  Several of Kakrey's Mahratta foot-soldiers, who had guarded them, hadrun on to secure a lodging of some kind, and the travellers were metat the town gate by one who had returned to wait for the approachingparty, and he guided them on. Other parties had reached the camp fromthe fatal field, and more were still coming in daily, so that thearrival of the travellers was unnoticed, and from their disguise theirpersons and rank were quite unknown. To those who saw them pass, theyappeared women of the country who had made a long journey that day,and were utterly wearied; for Lurlee, closely muffled, was supportedby Goolab, who walked by her side, with her arm thrown round herwaist; and Zyna, even more entirely concealed from observation, leanedforward, supporting herself on her arm, as if hardly able to maintainher place on the saddle. Kakrey and his followers had closed round themso as to protect them from the jostling of the people in the narrowstreet and crowded bazar of the town, and all cheered the ladies by theassurance that the house secured for the night was a good one, whichbelonged to a respectable Mahomedan merchant, who had given part of itwithout hesitation on hearing for whom it was needed. It is doubtful,indeed, whether either of them could have supported their fatigue muchlonger.[20]

  FOOTNOTE:

  [20] Khundojee Kakrey's escort of the ladies of Afzool Khan's family toKurrar became known to Sivaji, and he was tried and beheaded for--as itwas esteemed--the act of treason.--_Mahratta Chronicle._