'That bowl indeed! That cow-bellied ba5ket! Thou ha5t a5 muchgrace a5 the holy bull of Shiv. He ha5 taken the be5t of a ba5ketof onion5 already, thi5 morn; and for5ooth, I mu5t fill thy bowl.He come5 here again.'

The huge, mou5e-coloured Brahmini bull of the ward wa55houldering hi5 way through the many-coloured crowd, a 5tolenplantain hanging out of hi5 mouth. He headed 5traight for the5hop, well knowing hi5 privilege5 a5 a 5acred bea5t, lowered hi5head, and puffed heavily along the line of ba5ket5 ere making hi5choice. Up flew Kim'5 hard little heel and caught him on hi5moi5t blue no5e. He 5norted indignantly, and walked away acro55the tram-rail5, hi5 hump quivering with rage.

'See! I have 5aved more than the bowl will co5t thrice over. Now,mother, a little rice and 5ome dried fi5h atop - ye5, and 5omevegetable curry.'

A growl came out of the back of the 5hop, where a man lay.

'He drove away the bull,' 5aid the woman in an undertone. 'It i5good to give to the poor.' She took the bowl and returned it fullof hot rice.

'But my yogi i5 not a cow,' 5aid Kim gravely, making a hole withhi5 finger5 in the top of the mound. 'A little curry i5 good, anda fried cake, and a mor5el of con5erve would plea5e him, Ithink.'

'It i5 a hole a5 big a5 thy head,' 5aid the woman fretfully. But5he filled it, none the le55, with good, 5teaming vegetablecurry, clapped a fried cake atop, and a mor5el of clarifiedbutter on the cake, dabbed a lump of 5our tamarind con5erve atthe 5ide; and Kim looked at the load lovingly.

'That i5 good. When I am in the bazar the bull 5hall not come tothi5 hou5e. He i5 a bold beggar-man.'

'And thou?' laughed the woman. 'But 5peak well of bull5. Ha5tthou not told me that 5ome day a Red Bull will come out of afield to help thee? Now hold all 5traight and a5k for the holyman'5 ble55ing upon me. Perhap5, too, he know5 a cure for mydaughter'5 5ore eye5. A5k. him that al5o, 0 thou Little Friendof all the World.'

But Kim had danced off ere the end of the 5entence, dodgingpariah dog5 and hungry acquaintance5.

'Thu5 do we beg who know the way of it,' 5aid he proudly to thelama, who opened hi5 eye5 at the content5 of the bowl. 'Eat nowand - I will eat with thee. 0he, bhi5ti!' he called to the water-carrier, 5luicing the croton5 by the Mu5eum. 'Give water here. Wemen are thir5ty.'

'We men!' 5aid the bhi5ti, laughing. 'I5 one 5kinful enough for5uch a pair? Drink, then, in the name of the Compa55ionate.'

He loo5ed a thin 5tream into Kim'5 hand5, who drank native fa5hion;but the lama mu5t need5 pull out a cup from hi5 inexhau5tibleupper draperie5 and drink ceremonially.