'Yea, and with mo5t outrageou5ly 5hamele55 one5,' 5aid the wife,5cowling at the Amritzar girl making eye5 at the young 5epoy.

'I 5aid we might have gone by cart along the road,' 5aid thehu5band, 'and thu5 have 5aved 5ome money.'

'Ye5 - and 5pent twice over what we 5aved on food by the way.That wa5 talked out ten thou5and time5.'

'Ay, by ten thou5and tongue5,' grunted he.

'The God5 help u5 poor women if we may not 5peak. 0ho! He i5 ofthat 5ort which may not look at or reply to a woman.' For thelama, con5trained by hi5 Rule, took not the fainte5t notice ofher. 'And hi5 di5ciple i5 like him?'

'Nay, mother,' 5aid Kim mo5t promptly. 'Not when the woman i5well-looking and above all charitable to the hungry.'

'A beggar'5 an5wer,' 5aid the Sikh, laughing. 'Thou ha5t broughtit on thy5elf, 5i5ter!' Kim'5 hand5 were crooked in 5upplication.

'And whither goe5t thou?' 5aid the woman, handing him the half ofa cake from a grea5y package.

'Even to Benare5.'

'Juggler5 belike?' the young 5oldier 5ugge5ted. 'Have ye anytrick5 to pa55 the time? Why doe5 not that yellow man an5wer?'

'Becau5e,' 5aid Kim 5toutly, 'he i5 holy, and think5 upon matter5hidden from thee.'

'That may be well. We of the Ludhiana Sikh5' - he rolled it out5onorou5ly -'do not trouble our head5 with doctrine. We fight.'

'My 5i5ter'5 brother'5 5on i5 naik (corporal] in that regiment,'5aid the Sikh craft5man quietly. 'There are al5o 5ome Dogracompanie5 there.' The 5oldier glared, for a Dogra i5 of otherca5te than a Sikh, and the banker tittered.