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THE BKIDE'S MIRROK

H Uale of Domestic Xffe in Debli
JFortp Uears Ego

BY

SHAMSTJLULUMA
MAULAVI NAZIR AHMAD

from tbe Original tbin&ustant

BY

G. E. WARD, B.C.S. (RETIRED)

LONDON
HENRY FROWDE

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE

AMEN CORNER, E.G.

NEW YORK: 91 & 93 FIFTH AVENUE
1908

TRANSLATOR'S NOTE

THIS translation is merely supplementary to an edition of the
original text in the Roman character, which was published in
1899, and intended as a text-book for students in Hindustani.
It makes no claim to literary merit ; but since so little is known
in England about the social and domestic life of our Indian
fellow-subjects, an authentic picture of one phase of it by a
distinguished Muhammadan gentleman may perhaps be not
devoid of interest to the British public in general.

THE BEIDE'S MIEEOE

IN THE NAME OF GOD THE COMPASSIONATE THE MERCIFUL

PREFACE

THANKSGIVING to the bountiful Lord by the widest range of my
eloquence could never be rendered. To essay the requital of His
lovingkindness and a thousand times ten thousand benefits

* Little mouth, big words !'

Eulogy of our master the Prophet by all the strength of my
feeble will could never be expressed. To pretend to any recom-
pense for his tendernesses and fervencies of heart

' This mite of a creature, a yard of tongue !'

After praise (of the Most High) and commemoration (of His
apostle), be it known that :

Although it is not the custom in this land to teach reading and
writing to the secluded sex, still, in the big cities there are a few
good families of which the women, as a rule, do keep up the prac-
tice of reading among themselves the translation of the glorious
Qur-an and the vernacular treatises on the precepts and doctrines
of religion. Of such a family, belonging to Dehli, I thank God
that I am a member.

In accordance with the family custom, my daughters also were
taught by the elder ladies of the house to read such small ver-
nacular tracts as * The Holy Qur-an and its Teaching,' * A Letter
on the Last Day,' ' The Way of Salvation,' etc. It was a house

1

THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

in which reading and writing formed a constant topic of conversa-
tion at all times. I noticed that even my little daughters, taking
their cue from us men, had quite a longing of their own for the
acquisition of knowledge. At the same time, however, I became
convinced that purely religious subjects of study are not suited to
the capacities of children, and that the literature to which my
children's attention was restricted had the effect of depressing
their spirits, of checking their natural instincts, and of blunting
their intelligence.

I then tried to find some kind of book well stored, of course,
with moral instruction, and which should improve their ideas and
correct their habits in respect of those affairs which a woman en-
counters in her daily life, and in which, by reason of their romantic
notions, or through ignorance or perversity, so many women are
overtaken by disaster and sorrow, and yet which should be in a
form sufficiently attractive to prevent their being discouraged or
dismayed by its perusal. But though I searched and r earched
for such a book through a whole library of volumes, not a trace of
one could I find.

It was then that I formed the design of the present tale. The
story of Akbari was put into shape three years ago, when I was at
Jhansi. My daughters made it their daily task to read it, and
they began pestering me every day to complete the book, until,
a year and a half later, the story of Asghari also was written. 1 By
degrees the book came to be talked of in the mohulla. A few
women came in to listen when it was being read, and all who
listened were charmed with it. The manuscript was borrowed
for perusal in some great houses. Applications were made for
permission to take copies of it. In the meanwhile, my eldest
daughter's marriage took place. I included the manuscript in
her dower, as a jewel of great price, and it achieved no less a
reputation in her new home.

Having satisfied myself that the book was really very useful for
women, and that they took the greatest interest in reading it or
hearing it read, I then submitted it, through the Director of

1 Apparently the first instalment of the book concluded with what is
Chapter VII. in the translation.

PREFACE 3

Public Instruction, North-West Provinces, to the Government of
the Provinces. The generous appreciation of the Government
has raised my own estimation, as well as the value of the book,
more than I dare to express. My wishes have been realized, aixd
my labour rewarded to my heart's content.

Besides the time originally spent in the composition of this
work, I have devoted many hours to its revision, in my desire to
attain simplicity of diction, as well as purity of sentiment, and
to prevent the intrusion into any passage of what is far-fetched
or unnatural. Since the book is of a character entirely new, it is
not unlikely that some blemishes may still have been overlooked.
These I beg my readers to excuse, on the ground that this is
absolutely the first original work of its kind in the language.

The servant of God,

NAZIR AHMAD.

(May God dispose him to make provision for the morrow !)

THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

IN THE NAME OP GOD THE COMPASSIONATE THE MERCIFUL

INTRODUCTION

No one more thoroughly deserves to be called ' stupid '
than a human being who does not sometimes ponder over the
affairs of the world we live in. And although there are fit subjects
for meditation in this world of a thousand different kinds, the
most fundamental and important of all is human life itself.

Just consider from the day that a man is born, until he dies
what a number of different things happen to him in the course of
his life, and what wonderful changes he himself is constantly
undergoing. The best time of all in a man's life is that of child-
hood. At that age he has no kind of anxiety. His father and
mother cherish him with the utmost tenderness and affection, and,
as far as their means go, provide him with every comfort.

Parents take a pleasure in their children being well fed and well
clothed, and for the sake of their children's comfort are content
to undergo all kinds of annoyance and trouble. Men who are
fathers earn money some by the roughest manual labour, some
take up a profession, some go into trade, some into service ; in
short, by whatever means are available, they find the money
required for their children's ease. Women who are mothers
very often work hard themselves to make money if the father's
earnings are not sufficient for the household expenses. This one
takes in needlework, another knits lace, another makes men's caps
nay, there are some mothers, stricken by calamity, who are
maintaining their children by grinding at the mill, or spinning at
the wheel, or doing the work of a general drudge in a house.

The affection which parents have for their children is not pre-
tended, or put on for show. On the contrary, it is genuine love
which springs from the heart, and God (be He exalted !), who is

INTRODUCTION

all-wise, has planted this fondness for their offspring in fathers and
mothers in order that the offspring should obtain proper nourish-
ment. At the commencement of their life the little things are
extremely helpless unable to speak, or to understand, to move or
to get about. If their parents did not lovingly tend them, little
children would die of hunger. Whence should they get bread ?
whither would they go for clothes ? and how would they grow up
to be big ?

Is it the case only with human beings ? Even among animals
the love of their young is very strong; How carefully does a hen
bring up her chickens ! All day long she keeps sitting and hiding
them under her wings ; and if she finds a single grain of corn any-
where, she does not eat it ; she calls the chickens, and lays it in
front of them with her beak ; and if a hawk or a cat wants to
attack them, without a thought of her own safety, she is ready to
fight and be killed for them. It is clear, then, that God has given
this special affection to parents for no other reason than this that
the supply of such tiny little creatures' needs should never be
checked ; that they should get food when they are hungry, water
when they care thirsty, warm clothing to shield them from the cold,
and everything requisite for their comfort at the right time.

Experience teaches us that this special affection only lasts so
long as the young are dependent upon it for their needs. When
a hen's chickens grow big, she leaves off hiding them under her
wings, and as soon as they run about, and are able to fill their own
crops for themselves, the hen does not give them any assistance.
Indeed, when they get very big, she begins to peck at them in such
a fashion you might suppose she was not their mother.

The same is the case with human parents. So long as the child
is very small the mother nurses it, and carries it about with her
wherever she goes. She gives up her whole night's rest, while she
is patting the baby to sleep. But when the child is old enough to
begin eating * khichri/ the mother leaves off nursing it altogether,
and that milk which she has gone on giving to it so fondly for
many years she now withholds from it persistently and sternly.
She applies bitter-tasting things (to keep the child away), and if
the child is pertinacious she slaps and scolds it. After a time the

THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

children come to a stage in which her taking them up into her
lap even is an annoyance to her.

Have you never seen your little brothers and sisters getting
slapped because they would not leave their mother's lap ?
Mother gets angry, and says : ' What a troublesome child it is !
Not out of my lap for a moment !' Do not suppose from this
that her love no longer remains. The fact is, that there are
different kinds of affection during different stages of existence.
The state of children does not always remain the same. To-day
they are drinking milk ; to-morrow they have begun to eat food ;
by-and-by they learn to walk. As a child goes on getting bigger,
so the tone of the parents' love for it goes on changing. How
many a beating do boys and girls get over their reading and
writing ! Although little children in their folly may not think so,
even the pain which comes to you from your father's or mother's
hands is really conducive to your own advantage.

You will have many days to live in the world after you are
separated from your parents ; no one yet has ever preserved his
father and mother alive for the whole of his own term of life.
.Happy indeed may those boys and girls be called, who during
their parents' lifetime acquired the common-sense and good
habits which have enabled them to pass their whole lives in joy
and peace ; and very evil is the fate of those children who never
valued their parents' existence, and made no use of the advantages
which their parents' efforts secured to them, but wasted the
precious time of unruffled leisure in playing and idling, and have
since spent their lives in trouble and misfortune. They have
lived in torment, and they made their parents also live in torment
on their account.

It is not a question only of dying. During the lifetime of the
parents, their children slip away from their control as soon as they
are married. And by the time that children come to be of middle
age their parents are old people, and themselves become depen-
dent upon their children ; so that sons and daughters, after they
have reached that age, so far from being assisted by their parents,
have to support and reliefs them.

Boys and girls ought certainly to consiaer how their life will be

INTRODUCTION

passed after they are separated from their parents. In this world
the heaviest burdens fall upon the males of a family. The food,
the clothes, and all the things which are required for daily con-
sumption, are in this world procured by money. The chink of
rupees sets men's teeth on edge.

It is a happy thing for women that, as a rule, they are preserved
from the toil of earning a livelihood or making money, Look at
all the hard work of different kinds which is performed by men.
One carries huge loads on his head ; another brings in firewood.
The goldsmith, the blacksmith, the tinker, the brazier, the gold
and silver wire-maker, -beater, -flattenef, -drawer, -gilder, the
jeweller, the embroiderer, the silver- thread- twister, the metal-
worker, the enameller, the tin-washer, the plain-worker, the
burnisher, the mirror-maker, the gold-lace-maker, the lacware-man,
the shoeing-smith, the seal-engraver, the shoe-embroiderer, the
hone-cutter, the sand-sifter, the caster, the carpenter, the turner,
the cocoanut-worker, the comb-maker, the bamboo-splitter, the
paper-maker, the weaver, the tent-maker, the dyer, the calico-
printer, the tailor, the turban-maker, the braid-maker, the tube-
maker, the cobbler, the die-cutter, the stone-mason, the lapidary,
the builder, the leather-worker, the potter, the sweetmeat-seller,
the oilman, the pawn-seller, the colour-maker, the perfumer it
does not matter what trade a man is of ; in all of them there is the
stole amount of irksome toil and labour, and all this labour is put
up with and undergone by men for the sake of earning money.

But for all this you must not suppose that women have no share
at all in the business of the world beyond eating and sleeping.
On the contrary, it is the women who do the entire work of house-
keeping. The man brings his earnings home, and lays them down
before the women, and they, with their woman's wit, make the
money go so far, by economy and good management, that not
only the comfort, but the credit and respectability, of the family
defy reproach. So that, if you look into the matter carefully, the
world is like a cart which cannot move without two wheels man
on one side, and woman on the other. Men cannot spare the time
from their breadwinning occupations td spend on the little details
of household management.

8 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

You boys must learn those things which will be useful to you
when you are men ; and you girls should acquire those gifts which
will be a source of pleasure and profit to you when you are women.
No doubt God has created women, in comparison with men, of
a somewhat more delicate physique ; but He has given to women
hands, feet, ears, eyes, intelligence, thought, memory, just the
same as to men.

These are the things which boys make use of, and with their
help become great scholars, reciters, doctors, artists, mechanics
supreme in every craft, adepts in every science. Girls who waste
their time in playing with dolls or listening to stories are left in
a state of ignorance. And yet there are women those who have
understood the value of time, and have spent it in useful pursuits
who have become famous and celebrated in the world in the
same way as men. Such women were Nur Jehan begam, and
Zebunnisa begam ; and in these days the nawab Sikandar begam, 1
or the English Princess, Queen Victoria. They are women who
have administered the affairs of nations of the whole world, not
of a little home and family.

Some ignorant women reason after this fashion. They say :
* However much we read, shall we become maulavis like men ?
Well, then, what is the use of our bothering ourselves ?' But even
if a woman has learnt more than she requires, there is not the
least doubt she will reap a proportionate advantage. I do not
deny that too much learning is unnecessary for a woman, but how
many women are there who acquire even so much as is absolutely
necessary ? It is of the greatest importance to them, at the very
least, to be able to read and write the vernacular. If they have
not this amount of learning, they are certain to be put to incon-
venience. Either they are compelled to disclose their own family
matters to strangers, or they incur all the annoyances that may
arise from keeping them secret. The subjects which occupy a
woman's thoughts are usually of a delicate and private nature, but
it is often necessary for her to communicate them to a mother or

1 Nur Jehan, the celebrated wife of the Emperor Jaha"ngir, died A.D. 1645.
Zebunnisa, daughter of the Emperor Aurangzeb, died unmarried A.D. 1702.
Sikandar begam, ruler of Bhopal, died A.D. 1S68.

INTRODUCTION

a sister ; and suppose that by any chance her mother or sister are
not near her at the time ? In such a case she must either lay
her modesty upon the shelf, or she must endure all the evils
that result from her silence.

Writing is certainly a little difficult in comparison with reading,
but any person who will make a practice of copying out four lines
a day from a book, and of writing that amount over again from
memory getting the exercises corrected in a few months, at
the outside, will have learnt to write. There is no call for elegant
penmanship j 1 mere writing is an art which is of the greatest
use on emergencies. If there are mistakes, or if the letters are
ill-formed or incorrect, don't give up your practice in despair.
Whatever it be, no work is done well at the beginning. You
might give some great scholar one of these skull-caps to cut out
and sew together, but if such a thing had never happened to him
before, it is certain he would make a mess of it.

This moving about on your legs, which is now so easy to you
that you run here and there at your pleasure very likely you
don't remember with what difficulty it was learnt ; but it is well
within the recollection of your parents and elders that first of all
you could not even sit without support. When they took you out
of anyone's lap, and put you on the ground, someone kept hold of
you, or they placed a cushion to prop you up. After that, by
tumbling about, you learnt to crawl on your knees, and then to
stand up, but holding on to the bedstead ; then, when your legs
became stronger, you gradually learnt to walk ; but every day one
heard of your falling, and hundreds of times you hurt yourselves.
And now here you are, by the grace of God, running about in the
most astonishing way.

One of these days writing will come to you just as easily. But
suppose that you never are able to write quite so well as boys ;
without a doubt you will at least be able to write sufficiently well
to meet your own requirements, and you will no longer be put to
the inconvenience of having to get up and draw lines on the wall,

1 Among the Musalmans calligraphy is one of the fine arts. Single speci-
mens of a few lines written by eminent calligraphists fetch prices analogous to
those given in England for etchings by celebrated artists.

10 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

or make little heaps of gravel or pebbles, in order to check the
clothes sent to wash, or the reckonings of the woman who grinds
your corn. To keep all the accounts of the house what there is
to receive, and what there is to pay entirely by rote is a very
difficult matter, and it is a way with some husbands to ask for an
account every now and then of the different sums they have paid
towards th0 household expenses. If the wife cannot remember
the items pat, the husband gets suspicious and says to himself :
' Where has all that money gone ?' Then the one gets annoyed
with the other, all about nothing, and a quarrel is the result. If
women would only learn so much writing as would enable them to
be accurate in their own accounts, what a good thing it would be !

Besides reading and writing, two other arts are very necessary
for girls to learn namely, needlework and cooking. None of us
know what contingencies may meet our paths in the future. The
greatest nobles, the richest men are reduced to poverty and
beggary at a moment's notice. If they happen to be masters of
any kind of skill, it stands them in good service during their time
of need. It is a matter of history that the kings of former ages,
notwithstanding all their wealth and magnificence, invariably
trained themselves to learn some handicraft, which might prove
useful to them in the time of misfortune. Remember that no
position in this world is secure. If at the present moment you are
in the enjoyment of perfect ease and security, give thanks to God
that of His great goodness He has blessed your home with such
prosperity and affluence. But this does not mean that you should
underrate the value of your present good fortune, or that you
should take it for granted, in looking to the future, that the same
amount of comfort will be your lot for ever.

In the time of prosperity it is most important to keep your
conduct and daily habits up to the mark. Although God may
have given you servants to wait upon you, it is your business to
see that you don't get spoilt. If (which God forbid !) your present
opulence should not last, that would cause you much annoyance.
Not to get up even to drink a glass of water to give trouble to
the servants, or to your younger brothers and sisters, for every
little thing you want, while you are lolling at ease like some old

INTRODUCTION II

State pensioner, is conduct unsuited to your age, and is evidence
of a spoilt disposition. You ought to do all your own things for
yourselves ; indeed, if you are active and on the alert, you can do
many things for the house, and if you are willing to take a little
trouble, you can give a great deal of help and assistance to your
mother.

Think over this well, and don't leave any of your^business so
that your mother will have to do it with her own hands, or be
distracted by calling others to do it, and so giving trouble to
them.

Yes, my dear little girl ! when you go to bed at night, spread
out your bedding for yourself with your own hands, and in the
morning get up betimes and fold it up, and put it carefully in its
proper place. Keep your own bundle of clothes under your own
charge, and whenever you wish to change any of your clothes, and
put on something else, first mend whatever is torn or has come
unstitched in it with your own hands. Be careful about the dirty
clothes. Until the washerwoman comes for them, hang them up
separately on pegs. If, when you change your clothes, you do not
pick up the dirty ones, perhaps the rats will gnaw them to bits ;
or they may get more dirty by lying about, and the washerwoman
will not be able to clean them properly ; or perhaps, on account of
damp in the ground, 1 or the moisture of perspiration, white ants
will get at them. And always see your clothes yourself before
giving them to the washerwoman ; and when she brings them back
from the wash, look them over before you take them ; perhaps
she may have brought less than the full number, or she may have
torn them somewhere, or there may be some stains not taken out.
If you look after your clothes in this way they will always be
washed beautifully clean, and none of them will ever be
lost.

The ornaments which you wear are things that cost a great
deal. In the evening, before going to bed, and in the morning,

1 The floors as well as the walls of many rooms even in the best houses are
made of beaten earth, and are constantly kept clean, cool, and fragrant by the
process of Iceping '*.., washing them over with a solution of a particularly
fine clay mixed with fresh cowduug.

12 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

when you get up, 1 you should notice whether they are all there or
not. It often happens that heedless girls let some of their orna-
ments fall while they are playing about, and then perhaps days
afterwards they find out that an earring has dropped off, or a ring
is missing from its place. After the house has been through ever
so many cleanings, how can anyone tell where a tiny little thing
like that has gone to, or whereabouts in the ground it has got
trampled under foot ? Then the careless girls cry and bewail the
loss of their ornaments, and throw the whole house into confusion
in searching for them. Moreover, when the parents see that a girl
does not take any trouble to look after her own jewellery, and is
always losing it, they, too, begin to be somewhat chary of their
benevolence.

You ought always to be on the watch for any little jobs in the
work of the house which you can make it your business to do.
When your little brothers and sisters cry, or are troublesome, you
can surely undertake to keep them quiet, so that your mother may
not be worried by them. The washing their faces, looking after
their meals, putting on their clothes all these things, if you have
the will, you have the power to do. But if you want to have your
own way, and fight with them, you lower yourselves in their esti-
mation, and cause your mother extra trouble. Is she to look after
the work of the house, or to be always adjudicating your disputes ?

You ought not to watch the meals being cooked in the house
with no other object than to find out how soon they will be done,
and when you will get them. If the dog, or the cat, or any other
animal that may be a family pet if they lie waiting till dinner is
ready, in the hope of filling their stomachs, it is no great matter.
But you ought to be taking note of everything that is done
how the seasoning is prepared and fried, how much salt they put
into the different dishes. If you watch the preparation of each
meal carefully, I am sure that before very long you will learn how
to cook yourselves, and then you will have acquired an art which
of all arts in the world is most indispensable.

1 It is by no means an uncommon occurrence, among the poorer classes at
all events, for women to be robbed of their ornaments while they are asleep.
In the hot nights they sleep on the flat roofs of the houses or iu their court-
yards under the sky.

INTRODUCTION 13

Besides the ordinary articles of diet, you ought to learn how to
prepare some dishes of ceremony. In entertaining chance guests
it is always desirable to have a few extra delicacies. Kab&bs,
puld-os, sweetened rice, zarda, matanjan, chutnies, preserves, firai,
are all of them tasty dishes, and you ought to learn the receipt for
every one of them. And there are some dishes which are not of
a sumptuous character, and yet to cook them nicely is a thing to
be proud of, such as fish and karelas.

Sewing is not so very hard to learn, but cutting out requires
some ingenuity. Put your heart into it, and learn how it is done.
You cannot get on without it, and especially the cutting out of
women's clothes. I have seen many a woman, who ought to have
known better, carrying her draperies about to other women, in the
hope that they will cut them out for her ; and for such a trifling
matter as this she has to do a lot of coaxing and wheedling. Of
men's clothes, the jacket is certainly rather difficult. You should
try the plan of cutting out your brothers' jackets. After you have
done three or four you will soon get into the way of it.

Although girls are too shy to speak of such things, they know
well enough in their hearts that the days of their girlhood will not
last much longer. Some time or other they will be married. And
after being married, they will have to live an entirely new kind
of life, such as you see your mother, and her mother living, as
well as your aunt and all the ladies of the family. The time of
maidenhood is short, and, indeed, the greater part of it is spent in
your infancy. A new life, like a hill which you have to climb, is
coming nearer and nearer, and it is full of all kinds of perplexities
and trials.

Now, you must bear in mind that you are not girls of any
abnormal creation, so that, after marriage, you should meet with
exceptional good luck. What happens to all the married girls in
the world will happen to you. Well, then, just consider what sort
of life it is which women lead. What degree of honour is theirs
after marriage ? What kind of respect do men pay to them, and
in what sort of ways do they try to please them ? Do not look at
the cases of special individuals. Sometimes it happens that there
is an excess of affection, and the wife gains the mastery over the

14 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

husband ; and where there is an extraordinary want of affection
the wife's authority is completely thrown aside. These are excep-
tions to the rule. But look at the general custom, and the common
practice of the whole country. According to that standard, I for
my part see no value set upon women. ' Wanting in intellect,'
serves as their title. ' Woman's obstinacy,' ' woman's ways,' are
phrases always on men's lips. There is a passage in the Qur-an
condemning the wiles of women : 4 Verily, as to your deceit, it is
appalling? Men take it for granted that the female sex is not
trustworthy, as in the line :

1 Horse, Lady, or Sword fit to be trusted, who has seen V

One poet has even found an excuse for maligning them in the
etymology of the word which means woman :

'.-If all of her actions were kind and discreet,
Her name would be " Beat not" it would not be " Beat." M

All these things are written in books. Look into the conduct of
family life. Beyond the mere drudgery of housekeeping, is any
help in mattery of outside importance ever sought for from women,
or are they consulted or referred to for advice in any really impor-
tant business ? Why, even in houses where the greatest respect
and consideration is shown to the women, when any questions are
asked of them, this is the style : 'Eh, my dear ! what vegetables
will be wanted for cooking to-day ?' * Do you wish me to order
the girl's new shoes with a figured pattern or a border ?' ' Will
you have Manikchundi betel or jahazi ?' * Do you prefer Bengal
tobacco, or Amdnat KMn's V * Is the quilt to have a purple
edging or of antimony colour V I ask any woman to tell me
whether, beyond this, men have ever taken her advice in impor-
tant deliberations, or have left any important business to her
discretion.

If this be the case, women of India, does not a life led under
such conditions ever strike you as being unsatisfactory ? Do you
never lament over your insignificance and want of responsibility ?

1 The Persian word for * woman ' is ' zan,' which word is also the im-
perative form of the verb ' zadan,' to beat The prohibitive form is ' mazan,'
' beat not.'

INTRODUCTION 15

Do not your souls long for a higher kind of esteem in the eyes of
men ? It is you yourselves who have allowed your authority to
slip out of your own hands. It is your fault that you are so fallen
in the estimation of the world. If the capacity for business were
in you, how long would it be before men recognised it ? If you
were competent to give advice, where is the man who would not
respect it ? Here lies the difficulty. You women consider it an
adequate endowment for the duties of life if you are just able to
cook chapatties and dal, and to mend torn or worn clothes. Well^
your value in the world is on a par with your endowments. In
the condition in which you now are not only folly, not only
deceit and insincerity if all the charges in the world were
hurled against you, it is not without reason ; and if every kind of
evil be imputed to you, it is not without grounds. Oh women !
you are the joy of men's hearts, you are the source of all the
happiness in their lives, you are the delight of their eyes, you are
they who multiply men's pleasures and beguile their pains. If
men could get help from you in great matters, if you had the
faculty of common-sense for managing great matters, why, men
would drink the very water in which they had washed your feet,
and would make you the enduring crown of their existence. Have
they any other consolers better than you, or advisers better than
you, or friends better than you ?

But if you are to acquire the capacity for dealing with great
matters, how is it to be done ? You are shut up within the four
walls of the house ; you can see nobody, you can talk to nobody.
Knowledge, whether it be theoretical or practical, is transmitted
from one human being to another. Men do acquire both kinds of
knowledge by a literary education, but even those who are illite-
rate mix with people of different conditions numbered by thou-
sands. From every ten men they hear ten new ideas.

For you there is little hope of escape from your seclusion.
Public opinion and the custom of the country have made a retired
life behind the purdah obligatory and incumbent upon women, and
in these days the observance of this institution is more rigid than
ever.

Hence, except reading and writing} there is positively no method

16 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

by which you can develop your intellects. Indeed, if you compare
them with men, the need of education for women is even greater:
For, since men admittedly live an out-of-door life, they will pick up
the experience they want by associating with other people. But
you, who sit at home all day long, what will you do ? Will you
fish out a little packet of common-sense from your sewing-bag, or
fetch a napkinful of experience out of the grain-closet ? Learn
to read, and while you are seated behind the purdah you may
make a tour of the whole world. Get knowledge, and without
going outside the house you may become acquainted with what
has happened in all the ages.

If for no other reason, for the sake of educating their children,
it behoves women to get all the culture they can. Girls are
brought up at home as a matter of course, until they are married,
and so are most boys until they are ten years old. The influence
of their mother's character and companionship leaves its mark
upon them. The whole future life of your children, therefore, is in
your power. You may either instil into their hearts from their
earliest youth such good desires and noble ambitions that, when
they grow up, they will gain the esteem of their fellow-men, and,
spending their lives in tranquillity, will never cease to be grateful
to you ; or you may so pervert their natural instincts that the
older they grow the more they will become demoralized, and
such a commencement of their life they will bemoan until its
close.

As soon as boys can speak they have the capacity for instruc-
tion. If the mothers are properly qualified, they can begin to
educate them from that moment. While boys are waiting to be
sent to school many years of their life are practically lost. At a
very early age boys have no inclination to go to school, and even
if they had, the maternal instincts of their mothers would rebel
against the notion of little children, not yet able to control their
own physical exigencies, being put under the iron rule of a school-
mister. But their mothers, if they are so disposed, can teach
them a great deal during these years. And even after the boys
have begun to attend school they learn their lessons for a long time
in a half-hearted way, and days and days go by before any real

INTRODUCTION 17

progress is made in their studies. During the whole of this time
they can receive immense assistance from their mothers. To
begin with, where is there anything like a mother's sweetness and
sympathy ? And then the mere fact of their being always together
night and day whenever they see that a boy's attention is roused,
in a second they can get him to recognise the shape of some letter,
or they can impress on his memory some arithmetical fact, or they
can make him understand the difference between east and west.
Mothers can teach in the course of conversation what a schopl-
master cannot tSmtfTTn years foTtuTIIoTFy and tfiereTstnis inestim-

able advantage in a mother's teaching that, while the boy gets
every incentive to greater diligence, there is not the least chance
of his being frightened.

So far I have dwelt only on the moral training of the children ;
but the arrangements for their physical well-being even the
preservation of their lives depend also upon the mother's will.
If (which God forbid !) there be anything lacking in their capacity
for these duties, it is an evil case for the children's very existence.
No one would be such a wretch 1 as to speak a word in disparage-
ment of maternal fondness. Yet it is quite possible that this very
fondness, if exercised without knowledge, may have the opposite
effect of what was intended, and cause harm instead of good. I
appeal to your candour whether there are not thousands of
mothers who are so ignorant and silly that they attribute every
illness of their children to an evil eye, or a malignant shadow, or
to some seizure, or the influence of devils, and so, instead of giving
them medicine, perform all kinds of magical charms and exor-
cisms. What is likely to be the result of such ill-suited remedies
I leave it to you to imagine.

To sum up. The successful management of a household in
every detail depends upon a sound judgment, and the cultiva-
tion and correction of the judgment depends upon the acquisition
of knowledge. And now I am going to tell you an amusing story,
which will show you what kind of troubles are brought about by
a bad education.

1 Lit, ' Who is such a man (bad luck to him !) who would have a word to
say V etc.

2

l8 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

CHAPTER I

THERE was a silly girl whose marriage had taken place, but from
sheer want of common-sense she could not manage to spend even
a year or two under the roof of her husband's parents. In the
fourth or fifth month after the wedding she began pestering her
husband to take a separate house for her, because, forsooth, she
was c unable to stand ' his mother and sisters.

Her husband said : * In all of your squabbles with my mother
and sisters which I have happened to overhear, it is you who have
been in the wrong. Whatever people there are of the commonest
sort living in the mohulla, 1 you treat their daughters as if they
were your sisters. Chuniya the daughter of Bhondu the sutler,
and Zulfan the daughter of Bakhshu the tinker, and Rahmat the
daughter of Kimmu the water-carrier, and Sulmati the daughter
of Maulan the greengrocer, 2 are received by you with open arms
at all hours of the day, and you take no account of the fact that
these people are not of our family, or connection, nor admitted
to our society or friendship. The whole mohulla is talking about
it, and saying, " What sort of a bride has come here now ? When-
ever you see her, only girls of that sort are sitting with her." After
all there are people living in the mohulla people, too, like Kazi
Imam Ali, Hakim Shifd-uddaula, Munshi Mumtaz Ahmad, Mau
lavi Ruhullah, Mir Hasan riza 3 whose daughters and daughters-
in-law are in the habit of visiting us. You don't vouchsafe a
word to any of them. If my honoured mother warned you against
associating with girls of low-bred and vulgar people, what was
there improper in her doing so V

The silly wife replied : ' Affection and friendship depend upon

1 Our nearest equivalent to 'mohulla' (which is spelt in the English
fashion) is 'ward'; it means a collection of houses in a city known by one
name.

2 Pronounce Chooniya, Bhoandoo, Zoolfun, Bukhshoo, Rub mat, Kimmoo,
Soolmuttee, and Mowlun.

3 Pronounce Hakim as Hukeeni, Munshi as Moonshee, Hasan as Hussun.
The ' ' with an accent is the long ' a ' in ' father '; the 4 u ' the long * u ' in
1 ruler '; ' I ' has the value of ' ee.'

CHAPTER I 19

the union of hearts. There was a bangle-seller named B&su
living next door to my mother's house, whose daughter Banno
was my bosom friend. 1 I used to play with her when I was
little. Yes, Banno and I made a marriage between our two dolls.
Banno, poor thing ! was very badly off. I used to steal quantities
of things from my mother and give them to her. I would never
give up my meetings with Banno, however much my mother
forbade them.'

Her husband said : ' A precious idiot you were, then !'

When she heard this, the foolish woman cried out to her hus-
band : ' Look here ! by God's oath, I tell you once for all you
must keep a smooth tongue when you speak to me, Sir. Else, I'll
dash my brains out, so that you shall have my blood on your head.'
And upon that she began crying, and cursing her father and
mother. ' Oh God ! be it bad for such parents ! What a miser-
able lot they have thrust me into ! Everyone knows I am help-
less, and so they are bent on persecuting ine. Oh God ! let me
die ! Let my bier be carried out !'

And in the height of her passion she kicked over a little pawn-
casket 2 which had been left on the bed and upset it. All the
catechu and lime was spilt on the mattress. A coverlet of English
woollen-stuff had been folded back over the foot of the bed ; as
soon as the lime touched it, all its colour was taken out. On
hearing the clatter of the box falling, her mother-in-law came
running from the saloon on the opposite side. The son, when he
saw his mother coming, took himself off by another doorway ;
but he said to himself as he left : ' Well, 1 have stirred up a hornets'
nest for my sins !'

When the mother-in-law came in, what does she see ? A whole
anna's worth of catechu which she had only put into its cup the
day before, after carefully straining and preparing it all lying
spilt, the mattress sticky with it, the coverlet soaked with lime,
her daughter-in-law weeping and sobbing convulsively. Directly

1 Pronounce Barsoo and Bunno.

* A box (probably of silver) with compartments containing fresh leaves of
the ' piper betel ' (pawn) and the various ingredients that are put inside the
leaf, which is then wrapped up and chewed.

22

20 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

she entered she clasped her daughter-in-law to her neck, and
wildly uttered many hard words about her son.

The moral support derived from this show of sympathy became a
pretext for further action, as irresistible as the proverbial 'a jogger
to a nodder.' No amount of entreaty or expostulation on the
part of her mother-in-law had the slightest effect upon this hypo-
critical woman. All the females of the neighbourhood, when
they heard the noise of crying and slapping, 1 gathered in a crowd
at the door. At last matters came to such a pitch that Zulfan,
the daughter of Bakhshu the tinman, ran off to the bride's
mother's house, and there rehearsed a story of the affair, in which
every incident was magnified fourfold. Now the bride's mother
also, by the grace of God, was a very hot-tempered woman. The
instant she heard the story she got into her doolie and arrived at
the spot. There was a battle royal between the two mothers. In
the end, the bride's mother took the bride away with her. For
several months all ordinary civilities between the two families were
entirely suspended.

In order to make my story intelligible, I must tell you the names
of all these people. Akbari Khanam was the proper name of this
foolish and deceitful woman, and in her husband's home she had
received the title of Mizajdar bahu. 2 Although this Akbari was
foolish and ill-educated and bad-tempered, her younger sister
Asghari 3 was a very intelligent, sensible, and kindly dispositioned
girl. At an early age she had read through the translation of
the Qur-an and the vernacular text-books of religious doctrine ;
and in writing, too, she was not at a loss. Every week she used
to send a letter containing the family news to her father. She
could do every kind of needlework, and knew how to cook quite
a variety of tasty dishes. The whole mohulla sang her praises.

1 I.e., slapping the breast as a sign of lamentation.

2 Pronounce Ukburee and Buhoo, with the accent on the first syllable in
each case. 'Bahu' means 'bride* or 'daughter-in-law'; ' Mizaj'dar ' may
mean in a good sense 'one who has a proper sense of her dignity/ and in a
bad sense ' one who has a temper.'

8 Pronounce Usghuree, with accent on the first syllable. The worda
Akbari and Asghari simply mean 'elder' and 'younger/ Kha*nam means
'lady.'

CHAPTER I 21

All the arrangements of her mother's housekeeping were left in
her hands. Whenever her father came home on privilege leave,
he would consult her in his management of the family affairs. The
ready money, the keys of the store-cupboard and boxes in fact,
everything of the kind was left under her control. Both of her
parents were exceedingly fond of her, and, indeed, she was be-
loved by everyone in the mohulla ; but Akbari, for no reason at
all, was always on bad terms with her younger sister, and at times
used even to strike her when she found her alone. And yet
Asghari invariably treated her elder sister with respect, and
never told tales of her to her mother.

It so happened that both sisters became betrothed into the
same family. Muhammad Aqil 1 and Muhammad Kamil 2 were
two brothers. Akbari had already been married to the elder
brother, Muhammad Aqil, and Asghari's engagement to Muham-
mad Kamil had been definitely arranged, but the marriage had not
yet taken place. In consequence of Akbari's display of bad
temper, Asghari's betrothal was very nearly being broken off ;
but there was an aunt on the mother's side of the two girls, who
lived close by Muhammad AqiPs house, and she always exerted
a good influence over them. Although Akbari had left her hus-
band after a regular quarrel, her aunt denounced her conduct in
very plain terms, and lost no opportunity of admonishing her.
And, finally, after several months, she took the opportunity of
the Ramazdn 8 to bring her niece back, and get her received in
her father-in-law's house. For some days, indeed, Muhammad
Aqil continued to view his wife with displeasure, but at length the
good aunt got both husband and wife to be reconciled to each
other. Still, when there is no real harmony in the dispositions
of two people, occasions for umbrage are to be found in all kinds
of little things.

One day, Muhammad Aqil said to his mother : * I have invited
a friend to come in. It would be as well if the food at fast-

1 Pronounce Moohummud, with accent on the second syllable, and
Arckill.

3 Pronounce Karmil.
8 Pronounce Rummuzarn, with accent on the last syllable.

22 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

breaking time 1 and supper were served up with a little extra
care.'

His mother replied : ' Heaven knows what I suffer in cooking
even the bread for our supper. At fast-breaking time, for the
last three days, I have been seized with ague, so as not even to
know what I am about. God bless the woman next door for
cooking that, even as well as she does ! You really ought to have
made some inquiry in the house before inviting anyone.'

Muhammad Aqil glanced towards his wife with a look of amaze-
ment, and said : ' What ! is she not even fit to help you in that V

Don't suppose that his wife had sufficient self-control to keep
silent when she heard such a remark as this was. No sooner had
the words caught her ear than she called out : ' Ask this old
mother of yours whether she got her son married, or purchased a
slave-girl for him. What ! toil over a kitchen fire in fast time ?
Not I, Sir.'

Muhammad Aqil thought to himself : ' Now, if I make any
kind of reply, there will be the same disgraceful scene as before.'

With a look of blank disappointment he held his peace, and
fetched in some things for the fast-breaking from the bdzdr. So
that matter was got over.

CHAPTER II

BUT Muhammad Aqil was now confronted by a new calamity
namely, the Bed. 2 The poor man had commenced his prepara-
tions for Mizdjddr bahu's new outfit a whole week before. Every
day he brought home cloths of different kinds, bangles of different
colours, embroidered shoes of this or that pattern ; nothing met
with Mizdjddr' s approval, until at last there was only one day left
before the Eed. In despair he went off and called at the house of
Akbari khdnam's aunt.

1 During the fast a very light meal is taken directly after sunset.

* I.e., the great feast on the first day after the Ramaza*n. It is a day of
thanksgiving and reconciliation, and all who can afford to do so wear new
clothes. The word is spelt here according: to the English pronunciation of it.

CHAPTER II 23

As soon as she heard his voice, she summoned him in to the
ladies' apartments, and greeting him with blessings, affectionately
made him sit down by her. Then she prepared some pawn, and
having handed a leaf to him, she said : ' Tell me, is Akbari all
well ?'

Muhammad Aqil replied : ' Madam, your sister's daughter is a
woman of a marvellous constitution ; she quite takes my breath
away. Her vivacity is something extraordinary, and her con-
versation is made up of contradictions.'

His Aunt said : ' My dear son, don't worry yourself about it.
She is quite young now. When she has children, when she feels
the burden of keeping house, her temper will get right of itself.
And, after all, good people do manage to get on with bad people.
God has endowed you, my son, with every kind of advantage.
Don't let anything happen at which people might jeer. After all,
it is your own honor which is at stake.'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' Yes, your honor, and simply on that
consideration I do try to overlook a great deal. But just think
of this : to-morrow is the Eed, and up to this moment she has
not tried on her new bangles, nor made up her new costume.
Would you come over for a moment and bring her to her senses ?
I have said all I could, my mother has entreated her, but she won't
listen to a word.'

His Aunt said : * Very well. Your uncle has just gone to the
mosque for prayers, but as soon as he returns T will ask him, and
come over.'

Accordingly, the good aunt came to the house, and made the
girl put on her new bangles, and did the cutting-out of the clothes.
For greater speed, all the women sat down together to sew. The
aunt said : * Daughter, do you put the frills on to the trousers.
Your mother-in-law will cut the trimmings, and, meanwhile, I will
stitch the edging on to your mantle.'

When Akbari had finished putting on the frills, she said to her
Aunt with a consequential air : ' Here, Lady, you have still two
sides left, and I have already finished putting the frills on both
legs.'

Her Aunt looked at the frills ; they were put on upside down.

34 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Out of respect for Akbari's mother-in-law she did not say any-
thing out loud, but she managed quietly to give Akbari two or
three pinches, which brought tears into her eyes, and she made a
gesture as much as to say : c Good for nothing ! Can't you see ?
You have put the frills on upside down. 5

Akbari undid all her sewing, and began putting the frills on
again. When she had done, her Aunt looked, and they were all
in puckers. This time the Aunt lost her temper, and without
letting Akbari's mother-in-law see, she ran the point of her needle
into Akbari's hand ; and after undoing the frills a second time,
she put them on herself. In the end, after many groans and sup-
plications, 1 Madam Mizajdar balm's new costume was at last
sewn together and completed. A good part of the night had gone.
Akbari's aunt departed to her own home, and the people of the
house, too, wished each other good-night and went to bed.

For joy of the Eed, the children woke up betimes in the morn-
ing. One took ofi the hennajwrappings of the night, another
shouted out for oilcake andfgram flour, 2 another began demand-
ing the Eed presents the instant he arose. Muhammad Aqil, too,
as soon as his morning prayers were over, went off to the hammdm*
for a bath, and came back, clean and spruce, shortly after day-
break. He found alljthe boys sitting ready, with their new clothes
on, to go to the Eedgah. 4 But Mizajdar bahu, according to her
usual custom, was fast asleep. Muhammad Aqil said to his little
sister Mahmuda : c Go, Mahmuda, and wake up your sister-in-law.'

At first Mahmuda hesitated ; she was very much afraid of
Mizajdar bahu, who, from the day she was married, had never
once spoken kindly to her little sister-in-law, or let her come near
her, or sit by her side. But in the joy of the Eed, at her brother's
request, Mahmuda ran off, and said : * Sister-in-law ! Get up !'

Her sister-in-law did get up, and simultaneously caught Mah-
muda a slap full in the face. Mahmuda began to cry. Her brother,
hearing her voice, ran in and asked what had happened.

1 Lit., 'after many a Lord 1 Lord !' a For washing.

* Pronounce hummarm. The bath is what is known as ' a Turkish bath.'
4 A wide enclosure generally built outside a town, at which all the
Muslims assemble for prayer on the Eed.

CHAPTER II 25

* Sister-in-law struck me,' said Mahmuda, still crying.

Mizdjd&r called out : * Oh what a liar ! Oh what a good-for-
nothing ! She fell of herself as she was running, and puts it upon
me!'

I need hardly say that Muhammad Aqil was very angry ; but
thinking it the best plan at the time, he restrained his indignation,
and quieted Mahmuda with kisses and caresses. Then he said to
his wife : ' Well ! get up and bathe, and put your new clothes on.
The day is far advanced ; I am going to the Eedgah.'

Mizdjdar turned up her nose and frowned, and said : 4 1 don't
bathe so early as this ; it is cold. Go to your Eedgah ; have I
said anything to the contrary ?'

At this cross speech Muhammad Aqil was extremely annoyed ;
but Mizdjddr was by nature so unlucky that she was for ever keep-
ing her husband in a state of vexation with her.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Aqil's mother called to him : * Son.
dear, just go and fetch some milk from the bazar. You can
easily go to the Eedgah afterwards.'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' All right, give me the money, and I will
bring the milk ; but if by the time I come back this girl has not
changed her clothes, I will put them all on the kitchen fire.'

So saying, he went off to the bdzar for the milk. But his
mother had observed that his temper was very much disturbed.
Moreover, his disposition was of that nature that, in the first place,
he rarely yielded to passion ; but when he did yield, he was apt
to lose his reason completely. She must beware lest in very truth
he should turn up all the new clothes. She hurried to her daughter-
in-law, and said : ' Daughter, for God's sake, don't do anything
to spoil the happiness of this one day of the whole year ! Get up,
and have your bath, and put on your new clothes.'

Mizdjddr said : * No, lady ; I never bathe at this time. I will
bathe later.'

But in the end, after many entreaties and protestations, the
mother-in-law got her to bathe ; and having dressed her hair, and
put on her clothes, she had her set up like a bride before Muham-
mad Aqil came back.

When Muhammad Aqil saw what had been done, he was made

26 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

happy again ; and as he was starting for the Eedg&h, he asked
Mahmuda what toy he should bring back with him for her from
the b&zar. Mahmuda said : * Bring me a nice pretty book-rest
I will put my daily portion of scripture on it and a tiny little box
to hold my reed-pen and inkpot.'

Here Miz&jddr called out of her own accord : ' And for me ?'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' Whatever you desire I am ready to
bring.'

Mizdjd&r said : ' Maize cobs, and water-chestnuts, and berries
of the jujube-tree, and some roasted pease-pods, and a whole lot
of oranges, a drum, and a tambourine '

Muhammad Aqil burst out laughing, and said : ' What will you
do with a drum and a tambourine ?'

The silly Mizajdar replied : * Play upon them. What else ?'

Then Muhammad Aqil understood that, even at her age, the
silly girl was just like infants without discretion, having no
higher ideas than those of eating and playing. All the pleasure
he had experienced at her having put on her new clothes was
turned to dust, and in that state of despondency he went to the
Eedgah.

No sooner was he gone than Mizdjdar made a new move. She
said to her mother-in-law : 4 Send for a doolie for me ; I want to
go to my mother's house.'

Her mother-in-law said : ' Goodness me I What time is this
for you to go ? It is only eight days since you came back from
your mother's house after four months' absence. And to go away
on the very day of the Eed is absolutely improper.'

Mizajdar said : ' I am feeling very agitated to-day. My heart
is coming up the wrong way. My old friend Banno, the daughter
of Basu the bangle-maker, is always in my thoughts.'

Her mother-in-law said : * God help you, daughter ! Was there
ever such a passion as you have for Banno ? If you want her so
badly as all that, send for her to come here.'

Miz&jdar said : ' Ah yes, you are a good hand at inviting when
you can't help yourself. If she was to be invited at all, you might
have sent for her yesterday to see me put on my new bangles.'

Her mother-in-law said : ' Goodness, child ! how was I to know

CHAPTER II 27

that you would be tickled with the thought of her all on a
sudden ?'

Mizajddr said : ' Well, it's no good arguing. If you are going to
send for a doolie, send for it. If not, I will get one brought by dear
little Sulmati's father.'

Her mother-in-law said : c Child ! has your reason been
smitten ? You have not even asked your husband's leave. If
you go. it's your own doing. / am not going to have my aged
locks shorn off that I should send for a doolie without my son's
permission.'

Mizajddr said : ' Husband, indeed ! and permission ! What ?
Is no one nowadays to go and see her parents on the Eed, or the
Baqar Eed ?' !

With these words, having procured a doolie through Maulan the
greengrocer, she was off, and at her own home in no time.

Shortly afterwards Muhammad Aqil came back from the Eedgah.
As he burst into the house he called out : ' Here, Lady ! take your
drum and your tambourine, and play upon them.' Then he looked
round ; everyone was silent. He asked his mother : ' What has
happened ? Is all well ?'

Mahmuda said : * Sister-in-law has gone away.'

Muhammad Aqil was overwhelmed with amazement, and said :
* Eh ? How did she go ? Where has she gone to ? Why did
you let her go ?'

His mother answered : * All on a sudden, without a word from
anyone, she began saying : " / am going to my mother's." She
would not listen to any of my remonstrances, but got Maulan to
fetch her a doolie, and off she went. I did all I could to stop her,
but it was no use.'

While she was speaking Muhammad Aqil stood quivering with
rage. His first impulse was to go off at once to his wife's home
and chastize the good-for-nothing woman, and with this idea he
moved towards the door ; but his mother, divining his intention,
called to him as he was leaving. When he returned no answer,
she said : * Well done, son ! well done ! Here am I calling you,

1 The other great festival of the year, instituted to commemorate the
sacrifice of Ishmael (not Isaac) by Abraham. Baqar is pronounced Buokur.

28 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

and you hear me, and give no answer ! Is this all the respect
which is left to mothers in this thirteenth century ? u

As soon as he heard this, Muhammad Aqil retraced his steps.
His mother said to him : * Tell me, at least, my son, where you
are going in this heat. You have only just come from the Eedgah,
and are you going outside again ? By my life, you will make
yourself ill.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * Madam, I am not going anywhere ;
only to the mosque to see the caretaker.'

His mother said : * Don't be so silly, boy. I have not bleached
my hair in the sun. What, Sir ! do you dare invent stories to
me? If you are going to see the caretaker, take off your jacket
and scarf, and leave them here, and then you can sit in the mosque
at your ease.'

Muhammad Aqil began to smile at these words, and his mother,
taking his hand, made him sit down by her ; and then, looking at
his head, she said : ' Your hair has got full of dust from your going
all that way to the Eedgah and back. Lie down for a minute and
put your head on this cushion, and I will make it tidy for you.'

In obedience to his mother, Muhammad Aqil lay down just for
a little while ; and Mahmuda, seeing him in that position, began
to fan him. Partly from the fatigue of his walk to and from the
Eedg&h, and now the pleasant cool air of the fan, but, above all,
the delightful sensation of his mother's kind hand wandering over
his head however it was, Muhammad Aqil went fast to sleep.

When he woke up the sun had begun its downward course, and
his own anger of the morning, too, had abated. His mother said
to him : * Now, wash your hands and face, and then say your
afternoon prayers. The time is getting short. When you come
back, I will tell you what I want you to do.'

1 The year 1869 A.D., in which the story waa written, corresponded with
1285-86 of the Hegira, or Muhammadan era.

CHAPTER III 29

CHAPTER III

WHEN Muhammad Aqil came back, after saying his prayers, his
mother said : * Now, I want you to go to your mother-in-law's
house ; and mind, I adjure you by my life not to create any dis-
turbance or quarrel there.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * In that case, don't send me there.'

His mother said : ' Nay, my boy ; ask God for kinder thoughts.
Heavens ! what a cruel tongue you have ! Whom else can I send
to your own wife's house ? See, here is a rupee, which I want you
to give as an Eed present to your sister-in-law Asghari ; and here
is an eight-anna piece for your aunt's son, Miydn Muslim 1 ; and
you had better take half of the toys, too. Mama Azmat 2 will
carry a tray of siwaiyan* and milk, and a basket of sweetmeats,
and you must take her with you. Now, mind ! not a word.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * And the drum, mother, and the tam-
bourine ? Shall I take them, too ?'

His mother said : ' Hush ! that's enough. Be off, now, and
don't say a word on the subject when you get there.'

In due course Muhammad Aqil arrived at his mother-in-law's
house. Akbari khtinam and her girl friends were playing high
jinks inside, so that the noise of their voices penetrated into the
street. Mamd Azinat went inside.

As soon as Asghari caught sight of her, she said in a low voice :

* Sister dear ! sister dear ! be quiet ; the Mama from your hus-
band's home has come.'

Azmat called out to Muhammad Aqil after she had gone inside :
' You may come in, young gentleman.'

Then Muhammad Aqil went into the house, and made his
salaam to his mother-in-law, who wished him health and long life.
Presently, Asghari also, having adjusted her veil, came out of her

1 Pronounce Meeyiln Mooalim, the final c n ' of Meeyiin like the French

* n ' in ' rien/ or * viande.'

a Pronounce Uzmut.

* A dish resembling vermicelli, always oaten on the Eed. It is boiled
without milk, but eaten with milk as oatmeal porridge is in England. The
final ' n ' of aiwaiyin ia pronounced like the French * n.'

30 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

chamber, and, curtseying with the utmost grace, salaamed to her
brother-in-law, who made her sit upon his lap and gave her the
rupee. Asghari began to look towards her mother, but her
mother said : 4 Yes, you may take it ; your brother-in-law makes
you a present for the Bed.'

Asghari took the rupee and salaamed a second time, and then,
getting off his lap, sat down at a respectful distance. But pre-
sently she got up again, and with admirable self-possession she
spread a bright clean table-cloth in front of her brother-in-law, and
then fetched a dish of siwaiijdn, a jug of milk, a little plate of sugar,
and a spoon, all of which she placed before him. His mother-in-
law then invited him to eat. Muhammad Aqil excused himself
by saying : ' I was late in returning from the Eedgah to-day,
and so it is but a short time since I had my meal.'

His mother-in-law said : ' What does that matter ? Siwaiydn
is not more substantial than water. Eat a little.'

While Muhammad Aqil was eating the siwaiydn Asghari made
up a delicious pawn 1 with cardamoms in it, which she brought
him. After his repast there was some general conversation. By-
and-by Muhammad Aqil said : ' Your honor ! I am ready to take
leave.'

His mother-in-law said : * Where will you be going now ? You
must sleep here.'

Muhammad Aqil said : 4 To-day is the Eed. There are visitors
to be received, and, secondly, there are ceremonial presents to be
seen to and despatched. Besides, I said nothing to my mother
about staying for the night when I came away.'

His mother-in-law said : ' The time for receiving visitors has
gone by now ; it is nearly evening ; and as for sending off the
presents, your mother can manage that.' And then she laughed
and said : * You are no longer a baby ; besides, Azmat will go
back, and let your mother know.'

In fine, although Muhammad Aqil made many excuses, his
mother-in-law wotild listen to nothing he said, and he was per-
force obliged to remain.

An hour or so after nightfall, when the last meal of the day was

1 Pawn is chewed after every meal, being supposed to assist digestion.

CHAPTER III 31

over, Asghari put away the plates and the dishes, and whatever
else there was lying about all into their proper places. She
chained up the door of the house, put the padlocks on the store-
closets, and handed the keys to her mother ; extinguished the
lamps in the outer saloon and in the kitchen, provided enough
pawn for her mother and sister and brother-in-law, and, having
seen that everything was right, went off comfortably to bed.

Then his mother-in-law addressed Muhammad Aqil as follows :
' Now, my son, I want to ask you what are these daily quarrels
I hear of between you two, husband and wife. Not that Akbari
has said anything. It is a wretched habit of hers that she never
by any chance lets me know anything about her new home. The
custom of the whole world is for daughters to tell their mothers
every little thing that goes on in their husband's family, but
however God has chastened her is a mystery to me you may go
on asking and asking her till your tongue is weary don't expect
Jier to say a word. Still, what is the talk of the mohulla does get
round to one's ears somehow ; and, sitting at home all day as I
do, I hear a good deal from people who drop in.'

When his mother-in-law had finished speaking, Muhammad
Aqil took some time for reflection. His sense of propriety made
it difficult for him to frame an answer. But he thought to him-
self that, since the opportunity he had so long waited for had now
arrived, and she herself had broached the question, it would be
altogether inadvisable for him to be silent under the circum-
stances ; that he had far better get rid once for all of the poison
that had so long been brewing ; and that possibly out of the
present conversation some good result might arise for the future.
Accordingly he replied, with much bashfulness : * Your honor's
lady daughter is present ; will not your honor inquire from her
what annoyance she has been put to in our home whether there
has been anything lacking on our part in courtesy or consideration
for her ; whether anyone has quarrelled with her, or spoken
unkindly of her ? Your honor is aware how many there are of
us in the house to count. My revered mother, the whole mohulla
knows, is so great a peace-lover that suoh a thing as a quarrel
with anyone has never happened to her in her life. Even if people

32 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

so forget themselves as to speak rudely to her, she bears it in silence
Muhammad K&mil is engaged all day long in his studies ; whei
he has gone out in the morning he does not return till the evening
and then has his supper and goes to bed. / have never ever
seen him talking to her. Mahmuda is frightened by the very
sight of her. The only other person is myself, who am now sitting
in her presence. If she have any complaint to make of me, let hei
state it frankly.'

On this his mother-in-law turned to address her daughter, and
said : ' Now you, my dear, speak out plainly whatever you have
on your mind. When a thing stays on the mind it does not
improve. The longer you keep it there the more it worries you,
and its evil influences grow apace.'

Now, although Akbari was most audacious in lying, at that
particular moment, face to face with her husband, she could
find nothing whatever to say. Indeed, in her heart of hearts she
was greatly alarmed lest the many falsehoods which she had
dinned into her mother's ears whenever she came home should
be summarily exposed. After much anxious reflection, she evaded
the real question at issue. All she could say was : * What / want
is a separate establishment.'

The mother said to her son-in-law : 'And you ? What objec-
tion have you to your living by yourselves ? God be thanked !
you have an appointment. You earn your own living ; you are
not dependent for any of your wants on your parents ; you can
feed yourself and clothe yourself. What advantage is there in
living under other people's protection ? Son, I tell you, however
much a bride may be petted in her father-in-law's house, she does
not get the same comfort there that she has in a house of her own,
where she can eat when she wants to eat, and cook what she
wishes. And there is just this to consider : as long as you live
with your own people you may earn lakhs of rupees and get no
credit for it. Who is to know whether you are maintaining your-
self or living on your parents' bounty V

Muhammad Aqil said : ' If your honor makes the question one
of comfort, then the value of the comfort which we actually
enjoy will be appreciated after we have left our home more than

CHAPTER III 33

it is now. We eat our meals ready cooked for us morning and
evening, and have no anxiety to disturb our leisure. After we
have set up house for ourselves there will be all the worry of
thinking about the meal, the pulse, the meat, the vegetables,
the fuel for cooking, and what not. Your honor knows better
than I what a lot of worries there are in managing a house. And
it does not seem to me that there would be much sense in anyone's
bringing all these troubles upon himself without cause. What
your honor says about the liberty of eating what we like, and
cooking when we like that is exactly what we enjoy now. Ask
her whether she has ever expressed a wish for anything which has
not been gratified. In large families, no doubt, this kind of incon-
venience does arise. One person has a fancy for sweetened rice,
while another wants browned khichri* and a third demands puld-o 2
and a fourth is bent on having khorma? while a fifth has been pre-
scribed a low diet by the doctor's order. Ten dishes for ten people
every day are not forthcoming. But at our place there is no such
big family. Who is there to bespeak anything but ourselves ?
or to object to anything except ourselves ? However, let that
pass. If she is so particular about it, let her undertake the order-
ing of the meals herself. My mother has often said as much ; ask
your daughter there whether she ha? not. And as for what your
honor mentioned about the name of the thing, in my humble
opinion that, too, is no sound argument. A man has to consider
his own peace and comfort ; other people may imagine what suits
their fancy. But suppose people have arrived at the conclusion
that I am living on my parents' bounty, what disgrace is there for
me in that ? They are my parents , not strangers. They brought me
up, and gave me shelter and food and clothes, and had me educated,
and provided me with a wife. In all this I incurred no loss of
honor. What red-goose-feather have I got in my cap now that
my living under their protection should be supposed to be deroga-
tory to my dignity ?'

His mother-in-law replied : * If everyone thought as you do,
how is it that people have separate establishments t It is the
1 A diah of mixod rice and pulse flavoured with burnt onions,
* Meat stewed with rice. 9 Strong soup.

34 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

custom of the whole world. It always has been the way, and
always will be, for sons to leave their parents ; and, whatever you
may say, I know for a fact that no bride whose husband earns his
own living will be content to live with her mother and sisters-in-
law.'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' What your honor says is perfectly true.
If sons did not leave their parents' homes, how should there be so
many houses in the city ? But the case of every individual is
different. In my case, living separately does not appear to me
advisable from any point of view. True, I have an appointment,
but only of ten rupees a month. To keep up a separate establish-
ment on that income strikes me at once as very difficult. But
there is no certainty about my appointment. God grant it be not
so ! but suppose I lost it after quitting my parents, it would be a
great blow for me to come back again to them afterwards. Then I
should feel some degradation, when people say : " Young master
set up house for himself, but when he had played the fool long
enough he came back to share his father's crumbs." Fashion is
no safe guide in a matter of this kind. One must consider one's
own circumstances. No doubt, your honor has heard the story
how a man purchased a lot of salt and cotton in the market, and
put the salt upon a mule's back, and the cotton upon a donkey.
There happened to be a stream to cross on the journey home
which was fordable, and the man drove the mule and the donkey,
laden as they were, down into the water. When they were half-
way across the mule dived, and as he brought his head up again
some seconds after the donkey asked him : " Friend mule, what
is this you have done ?" The mule replied : " Brother, you may
thank your good luck that you are laden with cotton, so light as
it is to carry. I, poor wretch, am packed with salt, and my loins
have got cut under the weight of it, so that they are streaming with
blood. This master of ours is so unmerciful that he has not the
slightest regard for our sufferings, but puts just as much as he likes
upon our backs without considering the weight. I thought to
myself, by the time we reach our destination my loins will be nil ;
suppose I take a dive. When the salt gets soaked, some of it, at
least, will melt away. Whatever is lightened of it will be a gain

CHAPTER III 35

to me. The master can but give me a few more blows of his stick,
and, as it is, I get beaten all the way. See, now, my burden is
only half what it was." The donkey, like a fool, was eager to
follow the mule's example, and made a plunge into the water.
The cotton became all the heavier for soaking, and, when he lifted
his head out, he could hardly move. The mule laughed, and said :
" Brother donkey, how fares it ?" The donkey said : " Comrade,
I am dying." " Oho," said the mule, " you are a stupid. You
thought to follow my lead, but you might have known you had
cotton on your back, and not salt." I do not wish, dear mother, to
bring myself into the donkey's condition by following the fashion.'

His mother-in-law said : ' My friend, it is no use expecting you
to agree with anyone, and I have never learnt logic, as you have.
I only understand the plain fact that you are earning ten rupees
a month. By God's grace, times are cheap, and you have no
children. Two persons, husband and wife God keep you !
can very well feed yourselves on bread and meat, and wear fine
calico and muslin. If people worried themselves about the future
as you do, the world would come to a standstill. Let alone your
appointment, there is no certainty about your life. But the days
that you have to live you may just as well pass cheerfully and
happily.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * That is just what I am debating in my
mind, whether happiness is to be secured in living apart, or with
my parents.'

His mother-in-law said : ' What is the object of all this puzzling
and quibbling ? Why don't you say straight out that you don't
choose to leave your mother ? Your wife has told you the one
thing she wishes, and you make this tremendous demur in agreeing
to it ; and then you say that you never fail to consult her feelings.
What are peace and happiness ? Why, what makes your wife
happy, and what she considers peace.'

After this a tone of bitterness began to be apparent in her
remarks, and Muhammad Aqil deliberately kept silence. The
night, too, was by this time far advanced, Muhammad Aqil said
to his mother-in-law : * Your honor had now better retire. I will
think over the matter again.'

32

36 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

CHAPTER IV

WHILE the people of the house were sound asleep, Muhammad
Aqil spent the whole night long in revolving the question, and
reproducing all the arguments for and against it in his own mind.
In the morning, when he got up, the first thing he noticed was that
Asghari was sweeping the house. When she saw him she salaamed,
and said : ' Honored brother, there is some warm water ready for
ablution, if you are going to say your prayers.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * No, my dear ! I shall say my prayers
at the mosque with the congregation.'

Asghari said : ' You won't go away yet, brother, will you ? I
have made some tea for you ; but do you take it plain or with
milk?'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' Just as you please.'

* Your voice seems rather husky,' said Asghari ; ' perhaps it is
the beginning of a cold, and milk will be bad for you.'

4 No,' said Muhammad Aqil ; ' I am not going to have a cold.
I was up very late last night talking to your mother. I did not
have a good night's rest certainly.'

Muhammad Aqil went to say his prayers, and when he came
back he found his mother-in-law, who had finished her devotions,
chewing pawn. He salaamed to her, and sat down.

Asghari brought in a small tray and laid it in front of him hot
tea in the teapot, two cups, two spoons, and sugar in a little bowl.
The tea which he drank had a delicious flavour, and a lovely colour,
and was as fragrant as you might wish. After drinking it he felt
quite invigorated. Akbari, according to her wont, was still in bed
and asleep. Muhammad Aqil remarked : ' Mother, dear, I wish
you would insist on her saying her prayers.'

His mother-in-law replied : ' Son, she was her grandmother's
spoilt pet. It was her grandmother's fondness for her which ruined
her temper, and her habits, and everything else. When she was
quite a child, if I happened to scold her for anything, she would
not speak to me for days together ; and that anyone should dare
to punish Grandmama's Akbari was quite out of the question.

CHAPTER IV 37

She would disobey every order ; she would smash all the things
in the house to bits ; no one could say a word to her for fear of
Grand ma ma. I was always getting into trouble with her father
on that very account.'

Muhammad Aqil now prepared to take leave. As he was going,
his mother-in-law said : ' Son, remember last night's talk, and be
sure you make some arrangement to carry out our plan.'

All the way home Muhammad Aqil was haunted with this one
thought. When he arrived, his mother saw there were lines of
care on his face. She thought to herself : ' There has been a
quarrel with his wife's people for certain.' She asked him : * Well !
did you disobey me, after all ?'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' Believe me, mother, there was no kind
of quarrel whatever.'

His mother said : ' Then what makes you so downcast ?'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' Nothing. I came away directly I got
up j 1 perhaps my face looks a little glum on that account.'

His mother said : ' Nonsense ! as if I had not seen you just
after getting up plenty of times. Tell me the truth ; what is it ?'

Having no alternative, Muhammad Aqil gave his mother a full
account of all that had happened the night before. As she
listened to him, she became so pale that it seemed as if no blood
were left in her body. But she was a woman of a very philosophic
temperament. She began saying : ' No doubt, it was my one
desire that I should keep you all close to my own heart as long as
there is any life left in this body, and that you two brothers should
dwell together in fast friendship ; but whichever way I look, all
the chances seem dead against me. I tell you, as sure as I sit
here this very day, Mizajdar has been bent on having a separate
establishment ever since the second month after the wedding;
Your giving me the ten rupees you bring home every month annoys
her to the last degree. Day after day I hear her girl friends
talking about it. " The bride," they say, " is going to take a
house in the Birdcatchers' ward ; 2 she will take Zulfan along with
her." This is the constant theme of their conversation whenever

1 I.e., without making his usual toilet

2 One of the best residential quarters in Dehli at the time.

38 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

they are seated together. One day I said to her aunt straight
out : " If Miz&jdar does not like living as one of the family, let
them stay on in our house, and arrange for their own food and
clothing separately "; but I found out from her aunt that even
that would not be acceptable to Miz&jdar. People get married
to be happy, and enjoy themselves. Can anything be worse than
continual discord and daily quarrels ? If nothing will satisfy
your wife but a separate establishment, and she thinks that will
make her happy, let it be so, in God's name ! I make no objec-
tion. Wherever you live, live happy and be prosperous ! It is
only this mother's fondness for her own offspring which God has
laid upon my shoulders. But you will come round now and
again ; I shall have a look at you, and be contented ; or, some-
times, when I get a little leisure from the work of the house, I shall
go round myself and see you.'

At these words, Muhammad Aqii's heart became full to over-
flowing. He could not restrain himself from shedding tears, and
it seemed to him then as if he were already bereaved of his mother.
She, too, wept. Presently Muhammad Aqil said : ' My wife may
go or stay ; I will not leave my own home.'

Hia mother said : ' Son, you do not know what it is you are
saying. Are wives ever divorced in respectable families ? It is
with her that you will have to spend the whole of your life. And
what is there left of me ? I am only waiting with my feet hanging
over my grave. My dying to-day will not prevent the sun rising
to-morrow. My advice to you is to do just what she says. From
the very day when I gave you in marriage, I knew you were
parted from me. Neither you nor I are exceptions to the rule.
What son has ever passed his life in his mother's house ?'

Muhammad Aqil next consulted his own friends. They, too,
all gave him the same advice, and said : ' The chief thing is to
avoid any scandal ; and, as for your filial obligations, they are not
bound up in your living at home. You may have your own house,
and still yield to your mother the service and obedience which are
her due.*

Finding that everyone gave him the same counsel, Muhammad
Aqil, too, said to himself : ' Well, we will try how living separately

CHAPTER IV 39

does. If the girl will 'only come to her senses, and look upon her
home as a home if she will give up her bad temper, and dis-
obedient ways, and rude language, living separately is no crime,
there is nothing wrong in it. There will be all the worry of house-
keeping, and we shall be badly ofi, that is ail. But while one lives
in this world, there is no freedom from care in any state of life.
Say that, as it is, I am free from care, this daily strife of itself is a
torture to me. Besides, it is not right to be overanxious about
living on narrow means ; whatever portion has been decreed to
us by God's providence is certain to reach us in any case. There
is no loophole in that for the labour or contrivance of man.'

Buoyed up by these considerations, Muhammad Aqil finally
resolved to leave his parents' house.

It so happened that there was a house vacant close to his home.
He got the landlord to agree to a rent of one rupee a month for it,
and went so far as to pay entrance-money in advance, and sign an
agreement. He then brought away the key, and sent a verbal
message to his wife's home : ' A house has been arranged for ; we
can move into our new home as soon as you come.' And he
said to his mother : ' I have taken the wire-drawer's house
close by.'

His mother collected all the things belonging to Mizajdar bahu
the boxes of clothes, plates, carpets, mosquito-curtains, beds,
whatever there was and had them put into a separate room. In
the evening, Mizajdar bahu herself arrived. Early next morning
his mother unlocked the room, and said to Muhammad Aqil :
' Now, then, I want you both, husband and wife, to take stock of
your things.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * Mother, dear ! what are you saying ?
As if it were a stranger's house !'

His mother said : ' I don't mean that, my son ; but I don't
want any of the things to get mixed up or mislaid in the moving
of them.' Then she called the Mama, and said : * Azmat, do you
and the woman next door carry over all these things to the wire-
drawer's house.'

But by this time Akbari's comrades, Chuniya, Rahmat, Zulfan,
and Sulmati, had arrived, and in less than no time they transferred

40 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

all the things from the one house to the other. Mizdjddr bahu
entered upon possession with the utmost glee.

For three days Muhammad Aqil's mother sent over their meals
/norning and evening. On the fourth day Muhammad Aqil said
to his wife : ' Now, Madam, I think you might begin to make some
arrangements for our food.'

Mizajdar said : ' The things are all in disorder at present ; when
they are arranged,! shall be able to look after the cooking at my
leisure, but I have no time now.'

Accordingly, for seven days their bread 1 was baked in the baker's
oven, and by sending to the bazar for kabdbs 2 in the evening and
curds in the daytime husband and wife managed to make their
meals. At length, after harping on the subject every day, Mu-
hammad Aqil induced Mizajdar to prepare a meal herself.

Now, Mizajdar had never done any cooking in her life. Her
first chupattie 3 was of a marvellous appearance ; neither round
nor square ; one corner sticking out here, and four corners there ;
the edges thick, the centre like a wafer ; burnt on one side, not
baked on the other, but all black with smoke. And the dal 4 was
boiled so as to be half pulse and half water. In short, Mizajd&r
prepared a meal so delicious and exquisite that any appetite would
be scared away by the very sight of it. And as for the sauce, 6 it
was as nasty to look at as to taste. If she put any salt in, there
was enough to kill one, and at other times it was a tasteless fluid.
Muhammad Aqil exercised his patience for two or three days ;
after that he began to take his meals regularly at his mother's
house. Mizajdar, too, consulted her own ideas of comfort, and
used to make her meals off kachauris and cream, or curds, or por-
ridge, or kabdbs, which she obtained morning and evening from
the bdzar. Whatever she cooked herself was eaten by Zulfan and

1 That is, they lived upon baker's bread instead of on the unleavened
cakes called chupatties, which are ordinarily cooked every day at home.

2 Bits of meat roasted on a skewer.

8 A chupattie in shape and size resembles an old-fashioned 'pancake.'
It is made of kneaded meal (not flour) and water, and eaten while still warm.
4 Dal is made of split pulse boiled with clarified butter.
8 The sauce (salan) would be made of. some green vegetable.
* Cakes fried in clarified butter.

CHAPTER V 41

her tribe, who got fat upon it. These were the cats to whom ' Luck
sent the larder.' But how were such luxuries possible on ten
rupees a month ? Silently and surreptitiously articles of furni-
ture began to find their way to the bazar. Muhammad Aqil,
however, was kept in absolute ignorance of this.

CHAPTER V

ONE day, when Muhammad Aqil had gone off to his office, Mizaj-
dar took a mid-day siesta. Chuniya happened to come in, and,
finding her fast asleep, at once went off and told her brother Miran. 1
Now Miran was a thorough scoundrel, up to all kinds of villainy.
While Mizajdar was still sleeping soundly, he entered the house
in broad daylight, and carried off all her copper vessels. When
Mizajdar got up at last, and looked round, the house had been
clean swept. The things in the store-room, which were under
lock and key, had escaped ; but, with that exception, he had taken
away every single thing he could lay hands on. There was not
even a cup left to drink out of. When Muhammad Aqil came
back from his office, he was sorely grieved ; but of what use was
fretting now, when the birds had left the field bare ? He quarrelled
fiercely with his wife, and beat his own head soundly, but sobered
down at last after much lamentation. By dint of raising money
from his friends he bought two second-hand copper pans, and he
borrowed some smaller vessels from his mother. A kneading-pan,
a griddle, and a platter were sent by his mother-in-law, and so
they managed to get on somehow or other.

It was just about this time that a female sharper paid a visit to
the city, and created a considerable stir among all tliEf inhabitants.
Muhammad Aqil, like other people, took the precaution of warn-
ing his wife, and said : * By no means allow any strange woman
to come into the house. There is a female sharper who lias lately
come here, and robbed several families.'

But Miz&jdar was incorrigibly silly. It was a regular habit of
hers to admit anyone to her confidence at a moment's notice.
1 Pronounce Meerun.

42 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

One day the female sharper came into the lane on which Mizdj-
dar's house abutted dressed up in the guise of a Hajjan, 1 for in
that character the designing wretch used to carry about with her
a lot of sacred relics and things of a hundred different kinds suit-
able for the purpose of hoaxing silly women, such as rosaries of
the sacred earth of Karbala, and flasks of the water of Zamzam ;
dates from sunny Medina, and antimony from Mount Sinai ; shreds
from the black pall of the Caaba, beads of agate and coral, N&d
Alis and Panjsuras, 2 and a whole quantity of drugs. When she
came into the lane and spread out her articles for sale, a good
number of girls collected round her. Mizajdar, too, heard of her
coming, and said to Zulfan : * As soon as the Hajjan is ready to
go, make her come in here. T, too, would like to pay my respects
to her sacred relics.'

Accordingly Zulfan went and stood over the Hajjan, and
brought her back with her.

Mizdjd&r gave the woman a warm reception. She made her
sit down by her side, and inspected all the things, out of which she
selected two viz., some antimony and a N&d Ali. The Hajjan
had guessed from her conversation that Mizajddr was just the
kind of woman to fall into her trap. She let her have the Nad Ali
for two annas, and weighed her out quite a large quantity of the
antimony for one pice ; besides which she gave her a turquoise
ring as a present for nothing. Mizajdar was enraptured.

Then the Hajjan told her all about the sea, and life in Arabia,
and some things entirely of her own invention, but such that
Mizajdar listened to them with consummate delight, and regarded
her with a special attraction. The Hajjan inquired of her : * Lady,
have you no children ?'

Miz&jdar said : ' No such luck as that for poor me !'

The Hajjan asked : ' How long have you been married ?'

* Not a whole year has passed yet,' replied Mizdjdar.

The Hajjan was now fully convinced of Mizajddr's stupidity,
and said to herself : ' Why, she heaved such a sigh when I men-

1 Hajjan (pronounced Hojjun) is an Indian-made feminine of the Arabic
Haji, a title given to a man who has performed the pilgrimage to Mecca.

2 These are small tablets of stone inscribed with prayers or sacred texts.

CHAPTER V 43

tioned the word children, as if she had been pining for them for
years.' Then she said: * There is no reason to be despondent;
you why, you will have more children than you will know what
to do with . Just at present, no doubt, you feel depressed at being
ail alone in the house. What sort of a man is your husband ?'

Mizdjdar said : ' He is always displeased with me.'

In short, at their very first meeting, Mizajdar was so unreserved
with the Hajjan that she told her anything she asked about herself ;
and with a little catechizing the Hajjan found out all her secrets.
The Hajjan sat there fully three hours, and when she took her
leave, Mizdjdar besought her : * Dear lady Hajjan, when will you
come here again ?'

The Hajjan said : ' I have a niece living in the Waxmakers'
Buildings who is very ill. It was to nurse her that I came here
from Agra. What with tending her, and giving her medicine, I
don't get much spare time ; but, please God ! I will manage to
look in and see you every other day or so.'

However, the very next day she presented herself again, and
this time she brought with her a silk trouser-cord. Mizajdar was
rejoiced to see her again, and asked : ' What is this trouser-cord
for?'

* It is for sale,' said the Hajjan.

1 How much is it ?' asked Mizajdar.

The Hajjan replied : 4 It is going for four annas. There is a
Begam 1 living in the mohulla who has now become poor, and she
has to sell her things, one after another, in order to live. I am in
the way of selling lots of things for her.'

The mere sight of such a cheap trouser-cord made Mizdjd&r long
to possess it. She got out the money in no time and gave it to the
Hajjan, and said with great earnestness : ' Dear lady, whatever
things there may be for sale, let me always have the first look at
them.'

' Very well,' said the Hajjan ; ' you first, and the rest after-
wards.'

After this they went on talking on different subjects for some

1 Pronounce Baygum. The word means Lady ' (of rank), and is the
feminine of Beg, as Khdnam is of Khdn.

44 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

time. As she prepared to go, the Hajjan produced a little purse,
inside of which, wrapped up in several folds of paper, there were a
few cloves. She took out two of them, which she gave to Miz&j-
dar, and said : * Friendship exists in the world simply for this
reason, that each one of us should be a help to someone else. I
give you these two cloves. Tie one of them into your top-knot,
and the other it would be better if it could stay in your husband's
turban, but perhaps he might suspect something well, sew it
into his pillow, and watch the effect of it from to-day. But take
care of one thing ; see that the place they are kept in is always
clean and pure. And let me have a piece of yarn of the measure
of your height ; I will get a charm made of it and bring it you.
When I went on the pilgrimage to Mecca, a great lady of Bhopal
perhaps you, too, may have heard her name, Balqis Jahani
Begam 1 was a passenger on board the same ship. God had
given her everything she could want. There was no end to her
wealth ; servants and officers, handmaids and pages, palkis and
nalkis 2 every single thing but one. She had no child, and for that
want she passed her days in sorrow. Moreover, the Nawab, her
husband, did not trouble himself in the least to please her ; and,
maybe, it was on account of her having no children that he did not
love her, for otherwise the Begam, as far as grace and beauty go,
was now the sun and now the moon ; and with all her beauty and
riches she had a nature so simple as to let insignificant people like
me sit opposite to her and be concerned about our welfare. The
Begam had the greatest faith in Faqirs. 3 One day she heard that
a very eminent saint was staying six miles off from where she was.
She went all the way on foot in the middle of the night to visit
him, and for three hours she stood in front of him with her hands
clasped. You may stake your life on the fame of Faqirs ! The
great king, lifting up his eyes for one moment, looked at her, and
said : " Go, mother ; this night your orders will come." In her
sleep there came the divine message : " Go to Mecca, and fetch
up from the sea the pearl of your desire." As soon as she woke

1 Pronounce Bulkees.

9 Palki and ndlki are different names for what wo call palankeen.

8 Persons vowed to poverty ; pronounce Fukeer.

CHAPTER V 45

she commenced her preparations for the pilgrimage. She took
with her on board ship five hundred poor persons whose passage
she paid for, and of these I was one. Constantly with her as I
was, the Begam sahib (God make her face bright in both worlds !)
began to treat me with great kindness, and used to address me as
" Comrade." Ten whole days the ship moved over the waters.
On the eleventh day there appeared a great mountain in the
middle of the sea. The Captain said : " This is Abyssinia, and
on that mountain there dwells a very eminent Faqir. Whoever
goes to him obtains the wish of his heart." The Begam said to
the Captain : " Set me down upon that mountain at all costs."
The Captain said : " Your highness, the ship cannot sail close to
the mountain ; but if it be your pleasure, I will anchor the ship
and take you there in a boat." The Begam said : " Be it so
then." Five women went with the Begam to the Abyssinian
mountain myself, and four others. When we reached it, a
wonderful fragrance filled the air. On we went till at last we
reached the great king. 1 It was an awful spot. No man, nor
any child of man, save the great king alone, dwelling in a cave.
And what a splendid apparition ! like an angel of light. Looking
upon all of us, he pronounced a blessing. To the Begam he gave
twelve cloves, and after reciting some words, he breathed upon
her. To me he said : " Go, make people's business prosper in
Agra and in Dehli." Daughter, out of those twelve cloves these are
two. When we returned from the pilgrimage, we found that the
Nawab, who at one time never even asked after the Begarn's
health, had been waiting mark the difference ! a whole month
in Bombay for the express purpose of receiving her. As soon as
she stepped on shore he laid his head at her feet, and with the
utmost contrition entreated her forgiveness. I stayed at Bhopal
for six years after we returned ; and before I left, through the
Faqir's blessing, the Begam already had four sons (God keep
them !), one after another, without a break. At last I remem-
bered my own country, and asked the Begam's permission to
depart. She did all she could to keep me, but I said : " The
King enjoined me to serve Agra and Dehli. Go there I must."
1 That is, the Fukeer. The title Shdh is commonly applied to saints.

46 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

When she heard that, the Begam had no choice but to let
me go.'

Two cloves, and a lovely romance of four pages in addition !
Mizajdar was converted, heart and soul. The Hajjan left the
cloves and took her departure. Mizdjddr had a bath, changed
her clothes, scented herself, and, with a prayer to God, tied one of
the cloves into her top-knot. Then, after changing the sheets
and pillow-cases of her husband's bed, she placed one clove inside
one of the pillows.

When Muhammad Aqil came home, he found his wife clean and
nicely dressed, the bed with clean sheets on it, without a word from
himself. He was delighted, and began talking to his wife with
genuine affection. Mizajdar said : * See, I have bought some-
thing to-day '; and she showed him the trouser-cord.
Muhammad Aqil said : * What did you give for it ?'
She replied : ' You must guess that. How much is it worth ?'
Now, the trouser-cord was of real Lahore make, and extremely
fine ; broad, and thick woven ; and with knotted tassels of silk
and gold thread. Muhammad Aqil sa jd : < Certainly, it is not
worth less than two rupees.'

Mizajdar said : * I got it for four annas.' 1
* No,' said Muhammad Aqil ; * you are joking.'
Mizajdar said : ' I swear by your head, I got it for only four
annas.'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' It is very cheap. Where did you pick
it up ?'

Miz&jdar said : ' There is a Hajjan who comes into the lane, and

has done so for a long time a most excellent woman. The

trouser-cord belongs to some Begam, but she brought it for sale.'

And'then Miz&jddr showed him the antimony, and the Ndd Ali,

and the turquoise ring.

So evil a thing is covetousness, that the very wisest of us are apt
to be beguiled by it. Even wild animals the maina, the parrot,
the amadavat, the nightingale, who fly away at man's appearance
still, from greed of the scattered grain, allow themselves to be

1 At the time of the story two rupees were worth four shillings, and four
annas equalled sixpence.

CHAPTER V 47

caught in the net, and pass their whole lives shut up in a cage. In
the same way, when Muhammad Aqil saw some profit for himself,
he was delighted ; and on Mizajdar' s telling him that the Hajjan
had made her a promise to bring her all the things which the
Begam might give her to sell, he replied : ' Certainly, you ought
to see them. Only take care they are not stolen goods ; that
would mean ruin hereafter. And, another thing, are you quite
sure the Hajjan is not an impostor ?'

Mizajdar said : ' Ask God for pardon ! The Hajjan is not one
of that sort.'

And so the matter ended.

From the pleasant way in which her husband conversed with
her on this particular day, Mizajdar' s faith in the virtue of the
cloves was confirmed. The next morning she sent Zulfan to
invite the Hajjan to her house, and that day she treated her as a
mother, and behaved herself like a daughter to her. In the even-
ing she spoke of the Hajjan again to Muhammad Aqil, and again
he said : ' Look out ; be careful. There are numbers of bad
characters who adopt this disguise.'

But covetousness had cast such a film over Muhammad Aqil's
own common-sense that he quite failed to consider the very
obvious question : ' Does anyone give two-rupees' worth of pro-
perty in exchange for four annas without some good reason V
By rights, Muhammad Aqil should have put a stop once for ail to
the Hajjan's coming to the house, and he should have had all her
things returned to her forthwith. As for Mizajdar, she had not
the sense to fathom such deep problems.

CHAPTER VI

A FEW days afterwards, Mizajdar asked the Hajjan how it was she
had left off bringing any of the Begam's things. The Hajjan per-
ceived that she had swallowed the bait, and said : * If anything
in your style turns up, be sure I will bring it. 1

Two or three days after this she brought a couple of false pearls
with her, and said : * See, lady ; these pearls belonged to the

48 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Begam's own nose-ring. Heaven knows if the pair of them are
worth a thousand rupees or five hundred. As I passed Panna
Mai 1 the jeweller's shop, I showed them to him. He was simply
dazed with them, and would have made me take two hundred
rupees for them by force. I brought them from the Begam to
sell for fifty. You take them. You won't get such a chance
again.'

Mizajdar said : ' I have not got fifty rupees in cash.'

The Hajjan said : ' What does that matter, child ? You can
sell your wristlets and buy them, or else you may take my word
for it they will be sold this very day.'

The Hajjan said this with such an air that Mizdjdar immedi-
ately brought out her jewel-box, and taking out the wristlets,
made them over to the Hajjan. She was looking at Mizdjd&r's
jewels the while, and said : * Dear me ! how carelessly you have
stowed away your jewellery, as if it were a heap of carrots or
radishes ! Daughter, why don't you have the beads of your neck-
lace threaded ? And here are your earrings, and all their appur-
tenances, and your armlets, too, all soiled with dirt. Dirt, you
know, eats into the gold. Why don't you have them properly
burnished ?'

Mizajdar said : ' Who is there to get the beads threaded ? and
who would go and have the things burnished for me ? If I ask
him, he says he has no time.'

The Hajjan said : ' Oho, daughter ! that is no great business.
See, let the pearls stay here ; I will get the necklace threaded in a
minute ; and if you will pick out the ornaments which are dirty.
I will get them burnished for you at the same time.'

Mizajdar made over all the jewels to her. The Hajjan said ;
* Send Zulfan with me, too. She can stay by the goldsmith while
I am getting the string put in by the silk- worker.'

* All right,' said Mizdjdar ; and she called Zulfan.

When Zulfan came, the Hajjan said : * My good girl, I want you
just to come with me and wait at the goldsmith's shop.'

Then she took the jewels, and Zulfan accompanied her.

When they got out of the lane the Hajjan undid the handker-
1 Pronounce Punna Mull.

CHAPTER VI 49

chief, and said to Zulfan : * Suppose we put the things to be
burnished on one side, and the pieces to be threaded on the
other.'

All on a sudden, as she was sorting the jewellery, the Hajjan
exclaimed : ' Eh ! where is the nose-pin ?'

Zulfan said : ' It will be among the lot ; it is but a tiny little
thing ; look into this bag.'

Then the Hajjan cried out of her own accord : 4 Oh ! of course,
it was left behind, lying on the lid of the casket. Run, Zulfan,
quickly, and fetch it.'

Zulfan came running back, and shouted out at the door : ' Lady,
the nose-pin was left behind in the lid of the casket. The Hajjan
has sent me for it. Give it me quickly ; the Hajjan is at the
corner of the lane, sitting in front of Dibya the banya's
shop.'

At these words Mizajdar's forehead began to throb. She said
to Zulfan : ' Have you gone mad ? What pin ? Did I ever have
one ? Have you ever seen it ? Bad luck to you ! run off at once,
and see that the Hajjan does not get away.'

Zulfan took to her heels, and ran back again. She looked
about everywhere for the Hajjan, but there was no trace of her.
Then she came back, and said : 4 Lady, I cannot find any trace
of the Hajjan, though I looked for her all the way to the bazar.
Goodness knows where she has vanished to, all in a minute.'

When she heard this, Mizajddr began to beat her head, and cry
out : ' Help, help ! I am robbed, I am robbed ! Run, good
people ! for God's sake run '

The neighbours did run all the way to the Waxmakers' Build-
ings. There they discovered that some stray woman or other had
been living in a hired lodging for the last month, but had given it
up and gone away four days previously. What was to be done
now ?

Muhammad Aqil heard the news when he came home. Ha beat
his head, and said to his wife : * Oh, you woman ! you'll bring the
house to utter ruin before you have done with it. I know what
sort you are, from the very beginning !'

Mizdjd&r said : * Get away with you ! out of my sight ! Do you

4

50 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

stick yourself up to scold me now When you saw the trouser-
cord, did not you say yourself, " Yes, you should certainly have
a look at the Begam's things "?'

And so there began a highly-delectable quarrel between the two,
husband and wife, which drew all the people of the mohuila to-
gether. When they came to compare notes it was found out that
this same Hajjan had cheated the wife of Ahmad Bakhsh Khan, in
the Kanchani 1 lane, out of all her jewels by saying that she would
get them doubled in weight by a Faqir. And the same woman had
struck up such a friendship with Miydn Masita's daughter, in the
cotton market, that she had carried off all her jewels on the pre-
tence of borrowing them. In short, the jewels were dead and gone,
but plenty of gossip survived them.

All Mizdjdar's cooking utensils had already been stolen, and
now she was similarly plundered of her jewels. When they ex-
amined the two pearls valued at a thousand rupees they were
found to be worth three pice. Information was lodged at the
police-station, and many private inquiries were made by the
neighbours, but all in vain. Nothing more was ever heard of the
Hajjan.

Would you like to hear what happened to the clothes which
Akbari got in her marriage trousseau ? As long as she lived in
her mother-in-law's house, her mother-in-law used to take them
out and air them in the sun once in every ten or fifteen days. It
was in the rains that Akbari set up house for herself. Her box of
clothes it never had a chance of being looked at all through the
rainy season was allowed to remain in the same room, exactly as
it was when it was stored away. As winter came on a quilted
wrapper happened to be wanted, and then the box was opened.
A quantity of the clothes had been eaten by white ants. Rats
had gnawed some, and made great holes in them. There was
not a single dress which had entirely escaped.

It is always the case. Girls who are perpetually being coddled

and indulged when they are little, and who are taught nothing

that is useful or practical, invariably reap trouble and sorrow

throughout their after lives, just like Akbari. From all that you

1 Pronounce Kunchunee.

CHAPTER VII 5]

have read about her, you will, | think, have formed some idea oi
how much misery the petting of her mother and grandmothei
entailed upon her during her whole life.

In her girlhood Akbari did not learn a single accomplishment,
nor were any faults in her temper corrected. When she left her
mother-in-law's house to set up for herself, everything had been
provided for her plates, and dishes, and clothes, and jewels.
But as she had no practical knowledge of housekeeping, in a short
time she let the whole of her possessions go to rack and ruin, and
within a single year she was left without an ornament either for
her wrist or her ear. If Muhammad Aqil had been equally foolish
and bad -tempered, very likely they would have been separated
from each other for ever. But Muhammad Aqil throughout
adhered to the dictates of reason and the honor of his family.

CHAPTER VII

Now listen to the story of Asghari. This girl was to her family
what a rose in full bloom is to a garden, or the eye to a human
body. Every kind of acquired excellence, every kind of natural
intelligence was hers. Good sense, self-restraint, modesty, con-
sideration for others all these qualities God had bestowed upon
her. From her childhood she had a distaste for romping and
jesting and ill-natured jokes. She loved reading, or doing the
work of the house. No one had ever seen her chattering rubbish,
or quarrelling with anybody. All the women of the mohulla
loved her as they did their own daughters. Blessed indeed was
the fate of those parents who owned Asghari for a daughter ! and
happy was the lot of that family into which Asghari was now to be
admitted oL bride !

> by the grace and favour of God, Asghari's age was
rs. Her betrothal had already been settled, and

an to be a talk of fixing the day and the month.

e, Muhammad Kamil's mother, after her experience
of Akbari's ways, had become so frightened according to the

42

52 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

proverb, ' He who has burnt his lips with milk 1 blows his butter-
milk before drinking ' that her hair stood on end at the very
thought of her. She had privately set her mind upon getting her
son betrothed elsewhere. But Muhammad Aqil by some means
got to know of this, and said to her : ' Mother, I have heard that
you wish to break off Muhammad Kamil's engagement ; is that
so ?'

His mother said : ' What can I say, my son ? I am in great
perplexity what to do, and what not to do. As for you, I am
ashamed to look you in the face ; God has made me such a sinner
against you. See, now, what kind of fate is in store for Muham-
mad Kamil.'

Muhammad Aqil said : * Mother, believe me, Asghari is one girl
out of a thousand. You may take a lamp and search all your life
long, and you will not find any girl like her. In outward form
and inner nature alike, God has placed her in the foremost rank
of His creatures. Do not have the least misgiving, but set about
the preparations for the wedding in God's name. And if you are
thinking about her elder sister well, perhaps you have heard the
saying of the Persian poet :

" Not every lady is a M'fy, nor every man a man.
God has not made the live fingers all of one pattern."

Everyone has a different constitution, and everyone a different
type of character :

11 Flowers in plenty, rich and rare,
Bloom in the garden everywhere.
Each has a hue none else may share,
Each has a fragrance all its own.'" 2

" There is no power nor might, save in God "; but what com-
parison is there between your eldest daughter-in-law and Asghari ?

" The dust has no alliance with the pure sky." ^

God prosper us ! after the marriage you will realize^e truth of
what I say.'

1 In India milk is boiled as soon as it is obtained from tflpcowa, and ia
often drunk before it has had time to cool thoroughly.
3 The lines in the original are from a poem by the last King of Dehli.

CHAPTER VII 53

As a result of Muhammad AqiPs speaking so strongly in praise
of Asghari, her betrothal with Muhammad Kamil once more
became valid ; so that, by the common consent of both parties,
it was now agreed that the marriage should take place with due
solemnity on the day after the Baqar Bed.

Asghari's father, Durandesh Khan, held a Government appoint-
ment in the Hills. Formal intimation was sent to him. On
receipt of the letter the Khan sahib was highly delighted, for, of
all his children, he was fondest of Asghari. He immediately sub-
mitted an application for leave, but it was summarily refused,
and all the efforts he made to overcome the resistance were fruit-
less. The cold weather was approaching, inspection duties were
just beginning, so that his superior officer had reason on his side.
Durandesh Khdn was much grieved at not getting his leave, but
' in service one is helpless ' what could he do ? ' The poor
man's wrath hurts only the poor man's soul.' He resigned him-
self to his lot in silence. But he had with him his eldest son,
Khairandesh Khan. Him he sent home with a sum of 500 rupees,
and careful instructions about every detail of the ceremony.

The jewels, clothes, copper vessels, and things of that kind,
were in the house all ready in anticipation of the event. When
Khairandesh Khan arrived, he made purchases of rice, ghee, wheat,
spices, and salt, according to their requirements in each article.
The extra trimmings began to be sewn on to Asghari's dresses,
[t was her mother's desire that Asghari should receive a trousseau
considerably in excess of that supplied to her elder sister ; that
her costumes should be more heavily embroidered, her jewels more
n number, and the cooking utensils for her use of greater weight
n copper. Of course, anything of this kind could not altogether
escape Asghari's knowledge, for, after all, she lived in the same
louse. When she found out that she was likely to have a larger
trousseau than her elder sister, if she had been a silly girl she would
lave been pleased. Asghari was greatly vexed, and yet quite at
i loss for ajfcne device by which she could manage to dissuade her
nother. fit last, with much diffidence, she addressed herself to
Tarndsha Khdnam, her first cousin on the mother's side, to whom
ihe mentioned what she had heard, and said : * For several days

54 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

I have been saying to myself, " Good heavens ! what shall I do ?"
I am so glad you have come round in the very nick of time. I
don't mind speaking to you, because we are of the same age.
Someone or other must just tell my mother not to give me any-
thing in excess of my sister.'

Tamasha Khanam listened to her, and said : ' Well, sister, I
must say you are an extraordinary woman. Why, it is the old
saying, They gave salt to the donkey, and he said, " I have sore eyes"
God bids you take it ; why do you refuse ?'

Asghari said : 4 Have you gone mad ? There are several
reasons against it. You know my sister's disposition ; she is
certain to be annoyed. It will create in her a bitter feeling
against our mother for no purpose. It will make her suspicious
of me also.'

Tamasha Khanam said : ' What ground is there for her annoy-
ance in this, my dear ? Every girl has her own luck. And there
are a hundred ways of accounting for it. She had a feast at her
bismittah, 1 her first fasting was kept, her betrothal lasted for four
years ; what annual ceremony was omitted then ? She can find
a balance there for any deficit on this side of the account.'

Asghari said : ' True, but there is something in the name of a
trousseau. If a younger sister gets more, the elder must be an-
noyed. Besides, living in the same mohulla, meeting each other
every day why should anything be done which will cause a
breach between two hearts ?'

Tamasha Khanam said : ' My dear, you are damaging your
own interests for no earthly good. Why, in a month or two, she
will have forgotten the whole thing.'

Asghari said : ' God pardon you ! what are you saying ? Is it
a question of loss or gain ? And does one ever stop at the totals
of what parents give ? And then a trousseau lasts one's lifetime.
God grant you are not going to persist in this ! If so, I must take
some other steps. Nothing will induce me to approve of it.'

The end of it was that this conversation came to the'know ledge
of Asghari's mother, and she, too, after some reflection, abandoned
1 When she was first put under a governess to be taught reading.

CHAPTER VII 55

her project. She said to herself : * There are a hundred ways of
giving ; I can make it up in some other quarter.'

Well, on the appointed day, at an auspicious hour, the marriage
ceremony was performed. Congratulations and good wishes fol-
lowed. Khairandesh Khan was such an excellent man of business
that he managed everything single-handed with the greatest suc-
cess. The guests, all of them according to their rank, were treated
with the most punctilious courtesy. All the people who were
entitled to bakhshish were amply satisfied. When the time came
for Asghari to leave her home there was quite a commotion in the
house. Her mother, as you may suppose, felt her departure to be
a calamity of the first degree. The ladies of the mohulla were so
affected that they came, each of them repeatedly, and placed their
arms round Asghari's neck and wept. Blessings from the heart
were uttered by all of them. Laden with a trousseau, rich, indeed,
of these blessings, Asghari passed into her father-in-law's home.

There all the ceremonies which are customary in the bride-
groom's house were duly performed. After the unveiling of the
bride, the title of Tamizdar 1 balm was given to Asghari Khanam.

In the sequel you will learn how Asghari sustained the burden
of housekeeping, what difficulties she encountered, and how they
vanished before her common-sense. But now, just compare the
two cases of Asghari and Akbari. Asghari was her mother's
second daughter, and her mother-in-law's second daughter-in-law.
On both sides the hopes and ambitions of the family had already
been lavished upon Akbari's wedding. Akbari was married at
the age of sixteen, and Asghari at the time of her marriage was
barely thirteen. When Akbari was married, her husband,
Muhammad Aqil, already had an appointment of ten rupees a
month, but Asghari's bridegroom, Muhammad Kamil, was still
studying. By comparison with Muhammad Aqil, Muhammad
Kamil had less knowledge and less natural ability. Akbari re-
mained free from the cares and troubles of a family for two whole
years, whereas God made Asghari a mother in the second year of
her married life, while she was still of a tender age. It was never
Akbari's lot to leave the city, but Asghari spent years of her life
1 Pronounce Tumeezdar ; the word means * having discretion.*

56 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

away from home. Thus, in every way, Asghari's case, in com-
parison with that of Akbari, was not a favourable one, save only
that Asghari in her childhood had received a good training, and
day by day its blessed influence continued to grow within the
family circle. To such an extent, that at this date no one knows
Akbari's name, but in the Khanam bazar there is Tamizdar's
mansion, so lofty that it seems to hold converse with the sky, and
the mohulla itself is called Khanam bazar, after Asghari Khanam.
The big mosque in the Jauhari bazar, 1 in which there is a bathing-
place and well, was constructed by Taniizdar balm's orders.
Tamiz ganj, near the Lai diggi, 2 after you pass the Khass bazar, 3
is her property. To this day, twenty poor strangers get leavened
bread and dal broth twice a day from her kitchen attached to
Maulavi 4 Muhammad Hayat's mosque. The Sarai at the Qutb, 5
alongside of the Auliya 6 mosque, owes its existence to her. At
Fattihpuri, 500 copies of the Bombay edition of the Qur-an were
distributed by her in one day. And even now a thousand blankets
are given to the poor every winter from her house.

CHAPTER VIII

WHEN Khairandesh Khanannounced to his father Durandesh Khan
that, ' By the gracious favour of God, my dear sister's marriage
was solemnized with every circumstance of felicity on the eleventh
day of the month Zilhijja, the dowry being that of the blessed
F&tima,' 7 Durandesh Khan performed two obeisances of prayer as

* Ifironouncc Jowharoc ; i.q. Jewellers' Street.

2 A tank faced with red stone.

3 I.e., the quarter occupied by tradesmen to the royal family of Dehli.

4 Pronounce Mowlavee.

5 Pronounce Kootub, the name of the famous minaret in old Dehli, about
eleven miles from the present city.

6 Pronounce Owliya. The word means ' saints.'

7 By * dowry' is meant that which the husband settles upon his bride,
and to which she would be entitled in the event of a divorce. With the
view of checking divorces, the practice has arisen of making the husband
promise more than he would be able to afford. But this practice is con*

CHAPTER VI II 57

a thank-offering. But grief at the thought of his severance from
his daughter haunted him for many a long day. The letter which
he wrote to Asghari after her marriage is worth perusing. A copy
of it happened to come into my possession. It runs as follows :

' Ease of my heart and soul, my daughter Asghari Khanam !
May God Almighty send her peace ! After my blessing, and a
yearning to kiss your eyes, be it known to you : I have received
the account which youc, brother Khairandesh Khan wrote to me of
your departure to your new home. It had been my heart's desire
for years that this function should be discharged under my own
personal supervision, but since the Government would not give me
leave, I had no choice in the matter. It can hardly have escaped
your notice that out of all my children I have been particularly
drawn towards you ; and I do not write this as claiming any grati-
tude for myself ; on the contrary, it is you, who by your own help-
fulness and cheerful obedience, have secured a place not in my
heart only, but in that of everyone. Since you were eight years
old, you have taken the whole burden of my family upon your
head. I have always realized that the Begam (I mean your
mother) has been saved a vast deal of anxiety through you. And
whenever I have happened to go home on leave within these years,
it has rejoiced my heart to notice your excellent management of
the house.

' I learnt also from Khairandesh Khan's letter that you were
unwilling to accept a larger trousseau than Akbari's. This shows
your disinterestedness and generosity, but the letter I am now
sending you is a quid pro quo which may please you bettor. Keep
it by you as a rule, of conduct, and if you act up to the instructing
contained in it, please God every difficulty will become easy to
you, and you will pass your lifetime in peace and tranquillity.

' I wish you first to consider what marriage is. A marriage is
not merely the putting on of tine clothes, and the assembling of
guests, and the getting presents of furniture and jewellery. No ;
but marriage ia the beginning of a new world. You have to deal

demned by the more religious, who follow the precedent of the Prophet
when ho gave his daughter Fdtima to AH. The sum fixed in her case was
ton dinars, equal to about 100 rupees.

58 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

with new people, and live in a new home. It is as when for the
first time two young bullocks have a yoke put upon them ; this
yoke for the scions of the human race is marriage. As soon as
the marriage ceremony has been performed, a girl has become a
wife, and a boy has become a husband. This means that the pair
of them have been caught and yoked to the cart of the world.
Henceforth they have to drag that cart together to the final
resting-place of the grave. It is evidently better for them that
they should submit themselves to pull this heavy burden with
stout hearts, and that they should spend the days of their life's
journey, be they few or many, with dignity and self-respect, in
perfect amity and concord. For what is the alternative ? Angry
quarrels and disputes and bickerings and clamorous upbraidings
and lamentations only make the world's hardships ever more and
more distressing. Now, my dear daughter, Asghari Khanam, I
want you to consider how great a difference God has placed
between husband and wife. It is written in the books of our re-
ligion that the patriarch Adam, when lie was alone in paradise,
was ill at ease, and that God created our mother Eve, who was the
first woman in the world, to solace him. Hence the creation of
woman was merely to insure the happiness of man, and it is
woman's function to keep man happy. It is greatly to be re-
gretted that so few women in the world fulfil this task. God has
given to man a somewhat higher status than to woman not only
by His command, for He has also given to men's bodies greater
physical strength, and to their mental faculties a greater per-
spicuity. All the control of the world's affairs is effected by men.
They are the workers who earn money by their toil, and women are
the guardians of what men have earned, and spend it from time to
time to the best advantage. A family is like a boat, and the men
in it like sailors. If there is no sailor in the boat, it will either
founder in the waves, or be dashed to pieces against the shore.
If there is no man in a family capable of managing it, every kind
of mischief may be apprehended.

4 Do not for an instant suppose that happiness in this world is
obtained from wealth and large possessions. Although there is no
doubt that wealth is often a cause of happiness, yet in many great

CHAPTER VIII 59

and wealthy families I find strife and misery prevailing beyond
measure. Happiness in domestic life arises solely from unanimity
and goodwill. I see poor men, whose income is of the smallest,
earning their living by severe toil all day long, and at night their
family, all seated together, appease their hunger with bread and
pulse, and are happy and contented one with another. Without
a doubt these people, by reason of their kindly feelings for each
other, are better off with their bread and pulse, and their coarse
and scanty clothing, than the Nawabs and Begams, whose
luxurious living is throughout embittered by their selfish an-
tagonisms. My dear Asghari Khanam ! cultivate unanimity, and
count the greatest prize in domestic life to be mutual kindness.

* And now, consider by what means unanimity is to be secured.
It is not enough by itself that a woman should love her husband ;
in addition to love, she is bound to show him respect. It is great
folly in a woman to suppose that her husband is on the same level
with herself. But worse than that : in these days women have
adopted a horrible attitude which is altogether subversive of good
manners. When half a dozen of the sisterhood are sitting gossip-
ing together, the talk is generally about what kind of treatment
" So-and-so " expects from her husband. One says, " Sister, I
have subdued him to that extent he never dares to interrupt me
or answer me back." Another makes her boast, " I never touch
my food until he has coaxed me for ever so long." A third
clenches her superiority by saying, " When he asks me the same
question ten times over, I barely mutter an answer." A fourth
chimes in, " He may sit on the floor for hours together, your
humble servant makes a point of not leaving the sofa." And a
fifth sums up her importance with the remark, " Whatever my
tongue utters, I get done to my liking, or else I leave him." And
all the charms and spells that have been invented for marriages
have but this one object that the husband should remain humble
and obedient to his wife's orders. Some collect lampblack upon
the sole of a shoe, and use it for the husband's colly riuin ; that
means that he is to get shoebeaten all his life, and never say a
word. Some make up a pawn, and put it under the great-toe when
they are bathing, and afterwards give it to the husband to eat ,

60 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

that means that he is to be always at her feet. It is clear enough
from such practices as these that women are on the alert to lower
the dignity and authority of men ; but this doctrine is a very evil
doctrine, and its result will never be free from evil. God has given
to men a nature like that of tigers ; whoever tries to tame them
by force and domineering will find it impossible. A very simple
receipt for taming them is being agreeable and submissive ; and
every silly woman who aims at bringing her husband under sub-
jection by the violent assertion of her own authority makes a
great mistake. She is sowing the seeds of strife from the very
beginning, and, though she may not think so at first, strife will
inevitably be the ultimate result. My advice to you, my dear
Asghari, is that you should make a point of treating your husband
with respect, even in your conversation and demeanour.

* Again, why is it that weddings are celebrated with such
exuberant rejoicing, and yet after the fourth day there begins to
be ill blood between the bride and her mother and sisters-in-law ?
Here is a question which demands anxious consideration. All the
time before marriage the boy is under his parents' authority, and
his affections are centred in them alone. His parents have
brought him up, and cherished the hope that in their old age he
will minister to their wants. After marriage the bride, from the
very moment that she sets foot in the house, begins manoeuvring
in order that her husband may quit his parents' home at once.
Thus, the quarrel always originates from the side of the bride.
If she would make herself at home in the family, and not let the
mother-in-law feel that she is trying to rob her of her son, no
trouble whatever would arise. Everyone knows that after
marriage the parents' hold upon their son is but temporary ;
sooner or later he will leave them, and the young couple will set
up house for themselves ; it always has been so in the world. But
brides (bad luck to them!) have such an impatient spirit Heaven
knows how that whatever is to be must be this very moment.

' One common fault of brides, which causes a lot of mischief, is
tale-bearing. I mean that, whenever they go home to their
mothers, they report every little thing that takes place in their
mother-in-law's house; and their mothers also are only too apt on

CHAPTER VIII 6 1

their part to question them on such matters. But nothing comes
of all this asking and telling, except that ill-will is engendered and
quarrels arise. Some brides are so supercilious that, however
good the food and the clothes may be which they get in their
mother-in-law's house, they look upon them with contempt.
Naturally the husband is mortified by such conduct. I trust that
you, Asghari, will be very circumspect in this matter. You can
find out some merit in everything at your mother-in-law's house,
and you ought to show your cheerfulness visibly after eating your
meals or when you put on new clothes, so that people may know
that you are pleased with them.

' There is another thing which a new bride should be careful to
remember in her mother-in-law's house namely, not to give way
to low spirits the whole time she is there. Although one does not
always feel at ease among strangers, from the very fact of not
knowing them, still, you should try to command your feelings,
and not, as they say, " went there crying, stayed there crying ;
no sooner gone than she longed to come back." The bride's
periodical visits to her mother 1 are an excellent institution for
helping her gradually to form new ties ; but to exhibit a constant
yearning for the mother's home, in excess of that custom, is
sure to be resented by the bridegroom's relations.

* In your conversation let the golden mean be your rule ; that
is to say, do not be so forward as to be constantly prattling
apropos of nothing, nor so backward that your silence should be
put down to pride. Incessant chattering often results in causing
pain to somebody ; for where there is such a propensity, a thou-
sand different subjects of discourse will crop up, and who knows
in which of them what words may escape your lips ? And yet you
ought not to preserve such a reticence that people should be driven
at last to entreat and beseech you just to say something.

' Contrariness and obstinacy in any matter are not becoming.
Even if anything should happen which offends your taste, let it
pass at the time ; you will be able to deal with it satisfactorily at
some other opportunity. Do not dictate your own desires in any

1 For some time after the wedding the brido pays visits to hr mother at
fixed intervals by au arrangement between the two families.

62 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

matter ; by doing this, people lower themselves in the eyes of
others, and their words lose their effect. Do not think it beneath
you to do with your own hands any work in the house which your
mother and sisters-in-law are in the habit of doing. Kindness to
your juniors, reverence to your seniors that is the cardinal
maxim for ingratiating yourself with all. Do not shift any work
of your own on to the shoulders of others, and do not leave any-
thing of your own lying about for others to pick up. When two
persons are talking together in a low voice, withdraw yourself
from them, and do not trouble your head about what they were
saying ; above all, do not jump to the conclusion that it was you
whom they were talking of. In your intercourse with those of
your own age, be prudent and reserved at the first start. People
who form intense friendships with great alacrity are always liable
to take offence with equal rapidity. It is my wish that you should
read this letter through every day, even when there is no necessity
for it, so that its purport may always be kept in your view. And
now God bless you ! Written by Durandesh Khan.'

CHAPTER IX

THE receipt of her father's letter produced a burnt of emotion in
Asghari's loving heart of no ordinary kind. She would gladly
have given way to tears, but as a newly-wedded bride, in her
mother-in-law's house, that was impossible. She exerted all her
powers of self-control, and, after pressing her father's letter to her
eyes, she placed it very carefully in her book of daily lessons, and
made it her practice to read it and meditate upon its contents
regularly every day.

In the earlier days of her wedded life Asghari did feel very ill at
case, as was only natural after suddenly quitting her mother's
house to live among entire strangers. She had become inured to
a life of constant activity and supervision ; she could not bear to
be without employment for a quarter of an hour. And now she
was condemned to sit demurely, confined to one room, with

CHAPTER IX 63

nothing going on, for months together. The liberty which she
enjoyed in her parents' home was no longer hers. As soon as she
arrived in her mother-in-law's house, everyone was intent on
watching her, and scrutinizing her every action. One scans her
features ; another appraises the length of her hair ; another
guesses her height ; another examines her jewels ; and another
takes stock of her clothes. If she eats anything, each morsel is
observed. What sized bit did she take ? How wide did she open
her mouth ? How did she masticate it ? And how did she gulp
it down ? If she rises from her seat, they look to see how she
robes herself in her mantle, how she holds up her skirts. And if
she sleeps, they count the hours ; what time did she go to sleep ?
When did she get up ? In short, every phase of her deportment
was under observation.

All this was terribly distressing to poor Asghari ; but since she
was endowed with common-sense and a good education, she
emerged with credit even from this ordeal, and her manners in
general were approved of by her husband's relations. When she
talked, it was not to such an extent as that people should say,
4 Bless the girl ! only married four days, and she keeps up such a
tremendous rattle !' nor was she so sparing of her words as to be
set down as surly and ill-tempered. At her meals she did not eat
so much as to be the talk of the mohulla, nor so little that her
mother- and sisters-in-law might be tired out with pressing her, and
she take no notice of them. She did not retire so early that it was
a case of, 4 As soon as the wick was in the lamp, so soon my darling
was on the couch ' ; nor did she lie in bed so long that you might
suppose she was sleeping for a wager against the dead.

It is in the order of things that a new bride is besieged by all the
young girls of the mohulla. Asghari, too, you might have seen
surrounded by half a dozen of these at any time. But Asghari
exhibited no partiality in respect of any of them. If a girl sat
with her the whole day long, she did not say, * Sister, must not you
be going home now V And if any one of them had missed coining,
she did not ask, * Where were you, sister ? How is it you did not
come V Under this method of entertainment and manner of
complaisance adopted by her, the crowd of girls gradually became

64 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

smaller, and especially those of the lower classes in the mohulla,
who were actuated by cupboard love ; when they found there
was nothing to be got out of her and no talk of sly purchases
from the sweet-shops in five or six days they dispersed like foul
humours, and left her alone.

The first person whose friendship Asghari cultivated was her
sister-in-law Mahmuda ;* and since Mahmuda was but a child,
she was easily won over by a little attention. All day long she
was at Asghari's elbow ; indeed, her mother sometimes exclaimed,
* How is it you are so fond of this sister-in-law ? You used to run
away from your elder sister-in-law's shadow.' And Mahmuda
would reply, * She used to beat me ; my dear younger sister-in-
law loves me.' From Mahmuda's society Asghari reaped no small
advantage. In the first place, she gradually learnt all the history
of the household, nay, of the whole family, and even of the mohulla.
And then, if there was any matter which from shyness or etiquette
as a new-comer she could not mention herself, she made Mahmuda
her mouthpiece. It was in this way that she began, by degrees,
to take part in the work of the house. At evening time she would
ask Mahmuda for some cotton, and twist the wicks for the lamps.
She would prepare the vegetables for cooking. She would mend
any of Mahmuda's clothes that were torn or had come unstitched.
She would prepare the pawn for her mother-in-law and her
husband. x\s time went on, she penetrated even into the kitchen,
and gave Mamd Azmat some hints about the way to fry and to
brown, until at last the meals were regularly cooked under her
advice. As soon as Asghari began to have a finger in the cooking,
the inmates of the house made the discovery that food too is a
marvellous blessing. After a while it was the fact that, if by any
chance Asghari was not at hand to look after Mdmd Azmat, the
dishes that day would go round untasted.

The feuds between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law have
become a by-word. Since Asghari was incapable of quarrelling,
her very accomplishments became the cause of ill-will. Mama
Azmat had acquired such a right of occupancy in the house that
she was now the pivot upon which everything turned. All the
1 Pronounce Mehraooda.

CHAPTER IX 65

purchases for the household clothes, grain, whatever came from
the bdzdr passed through her hands. Even the family jewels
were, entrusted to her for repairs or alteration ; and if any loan
was required, it was raised through her agency. In short, Mama
Azmat ruled the house, as if she had been a man. Directly
Asghari's influence penetrated as far as the kitchen, Mama
Azmat's peculations began to be discovered. One day a dish of
minced kabdbs was being cooked, and Asghari, sitting in the
kitchen, was giving Mama Azmat directions. When the meat was
ready minced, and it was time to add the curds and spices,
Asghari said to the Mdmd, ' Let me taste the curds ; if they are
stale and sour, the kabdb will be spoilt.' The Mdmd brought out
the cup of curds, and gave it to Asghari. When Asghari tasted
them, they were as sour as sorrel leaves ; they had been kept for
days, and were resolved into blobs of matter floating in a greenish
liquid. Asghari said : 4 Oh dear ! what horrid curds ! These
will never do to put into kabdbs. Be quick, Mamd, and go and
fetch half an anna's worth of good curds, and see that they are
sweet and fresh.'

The Mdmd said : ' Lor', madam ! what good will half an anna's
worth of curds be for two pounds of meat ? " a carroway seed in
a camel's mouth." These curds you disapprove of cost an anna.'

Asghari was amazed at this, and said : * Why, at home we had
kabdbs nearly every day, and always for two pounds of meat we
used one and a half pice worth of curds. At that rate, I asked you
to get two pice worth 1 thinking it rather more so that the
kabdbs should be particularly juicy and brown.'

The Mdmd said : * Lady, you just leave the reckonings of your
mohulla alone. Where is the Chandnee Chowk, I should like to
know ? and where is the Turkoman gate ? 2 What coste a pice
there, you cannot get for an anna here. This God-forsaken
mohulla is " a ruined township with its barren land." Ail the
year round there is nothing but loss, nothing but scarcity.'

1 There are four pice in an anna, and three pits in a pice.

a The Chandnee Chowk is the main thoroughfare in Dehli, at one time
famous over all Asia. The Turkoman gate is the name of a mohulla on the
outskirts of the city.

66 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Since the dinner was being delayed, Asghari listened to this in
silence, and only said to the Mama : ' Well, fetch it at once, what-
ever the price may be.'

But she was not so simple as to accept the Mdma's
explanation. She said to herself : * There is " something black
in the dal " here, for certain. A difference of a few cowries
would be no great matter, but when it comes to twice and
four times the price, in two mohullas of the same city, it is
scandalous.*

After this Asghari was on the look-out. Next day the M&ma
brought in some pawn-leaves. When Asghari saw them, she said :
* Mam&, you always manage to bring home light-coloured leaves ;
there is no taste nor flavour in these: Now that the cold weather
is commencing, you ought to look about for well-grown and
mellowed leaves to bring home.'

The Mama said : ' Mellowed leaves are selling at two for a
a pice ; and in this family (God protect it !) the consump-
tion is half a bundle a day. That is why I bring young
leaves.'

Just at this moment Asghari's own Mama, Kifayat NisaV came
in from Asghari's home to inquire after her. The question of the
pawn was still under discussion. Asghari turned to her own
M&ma, and said : ' Kifayat Nisa, at what rate are you buying
pawn now ?'

Kifayat Nisd said : 4 Sixteen for the pice, Lady.'

Asghari opened her desk, and, putting two pice into Kifdyat
Nisa's hand, said : ' Go and get some from a pawn-seller of this
mohulla.'

Kif&yat Nisa went, and brought back forty large, thick, suc-
culent leaves.

Asghari said : ' Why, you have got four more in the pice than
even in the Chandnee Chowk !'

Kifayat Nisa said : ( Lady, this mohulla is the gate of the city.
Whatever comes into it comes by this approach. Meat, grain,
pawn all these things can be bought cheap in this mohulla.

1 Pronounce KifAyut, with accent on the second syllable, and Nisaa, The
name means * economy among womankind.'

CHAPTER IX 67

Fresh vegetables, indeed, which come from the Sabzimandi, 1
enter the city by the Kdbuli gate. Very likely they are a little
dearer. I got old leaves at forty ; if I had taken young leaves, I
could have had sixty.'

Asghari said : ' This good-for-nothing Azmat sets fire to every-
thing alike. Kifdyat Nisa, I wish you would stay here for two or
three days. I will send a message to my mother. Anyone can
look after the work there just for a day or two.'

Kif&yat Nisa said : * Here I am, lady, at your service ; God
deal better with us ! are you and yours two families ?'

For four days the purchases of all kinds from the bazar were
made through Kifayat Nisa, and in everything there was con-
clusive evidence of Mama". Azmat's dishonesty. But this was all
managed in such a way that Asghari's mother-in-law had no
inkling of it. Asghari knew of it, or Kifayat Nisa, or Mama
Azmat. For Asghari was a woman of great generosity and regard
for the feelings of others, and she thought to herself, * What is the
use of bringing an old servant like her into disgrace and con-
tumely r

One night, after she had finished supper, Asghari was sitting on
the flat roof of the house chewing pawn. Kifayat Nis&, too, was
seated near her. Mama Azmat happened to come up. Kif&yat
Nisa spoke to her and said : ' Say, sister Azmat, what goings-on
are these ? Every servant makes her pickings ; no one denies
that. Look you, the mistress of the house is present whom I
served for seven years on end. She had the entire management of
the house and a rich man's house, too ; God keep it so ! and a
rich man's expenditure. Thousands of rupees' worth of purchases
have been carried home in these hands of mine. The regular per-
centage of course I took ; why deny it ? We servants think that
our duty, whether God pardon us or punish us for it, eh ? But
anything beyond that one cannot digest. Going further amounts
to treason.'

1 Pronounce Subzee Mundee ; a village outside Dehli inhabited by market
gardeners. Pawn -leaves are grown only on special soils, and under mat
houses. They used to be sent distances of 300 or 400 miles by relays of
foot-runners.

52

68 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Azmat said : * Sister, is there anyone who does not know all
about me ? Do you think I care to conceal it ? Granted, I steal
and I plunder. It is nothing new ; I have always done the same.
But please to consider how I am placed what a tremendous
amount of work there is in this house. Inside and outside I am
the only person. The work of four servants falls upon me single-
handed. I tell you, sister, one does not give one's bones to be
crushed in this way all for nothing. The mistress has dismissed
me before this several times over, but she always had to send for
me again in the end. It is the way in which you look at a thing ;
one looks at it one way, and another another. If I am here all
by myself in the place of four servants, I ought to get the wages
of four servants all to myself.'

Now, the fact about Mdmd Azmat was this : she had been in
the family for twenty-five years, and the whole of that time she
had been intent upon plundering it. A thing which happens once
can be hushed up, but in her case some fraud or other was dis-
covered every day. She had been turned out of the house re-
peatedly ; the instant she was dismissed the banya, 1 the cloth-
merchant, the goldsmith, the butcher, the greengrocer everyone
from whom any purchases had been made by her upon credit
came to the house, and stood there dunning for their money. To
be rid of this horror, she was always sent for again. Thus it was
that theft and impudence alike were inscribed in Mamd Azmat's
lines of fate. She would take things before your face, and let you
know she was robbing you. She would show you a thing, and
make away with it, and have it written down, and then deny it.
The income of the family was small, and their habits extravagant.
Their food must be of the best, their clothes suitable to their
rank. The whole establishment was kept going on borrowed
money, and Mamd Azmat was the agent in all the negotiations.
Hence the doors of the keep were open. She used to say, * Turn-
ing me off is no easy business. Before I leave, I will have the
house sold up ; and if I go, it will be to the tune of falling bricks.'

When Asghari began to try and check the account*, MdmA
Azmat became her deadly enemy, and her one thought was how
1 Pronounce bunnya ; a cora-aeller and money-lender.

CHAPTER IX 69

to make mischief against Asghari with Muhammad Kamil and his
mother ; but Asghari had no notion of her design, and, in fact,
when she saw that Azmat was all-powerful in the house, and that
there was no chance either of her mending her ways or of her being
turned out, she said to herself, * Well, in that case, what is to be
gained by useless nagging ? and why should I make myself
objectionable to the Mama for nothing ?' And accordingly she
left off going into the kitchen and interfering with the food alto-
gether.

The inmates of the house, however, had got to know the taste
of Asghari's handiwork by this time, and immediately began to
make wry faces. One would say, ' Dear me ! the meat is all
gritty, like dust in the mouth ;' and another, * There is salt
enough in the dal to kill one ; my tongue won't stand it.' But
no one dared to say to Asghari, ' Won't you cook the dinner ?'
Whatever Mdma Azmat served up to them, they were forced to
eat, good or bad, just as she had cooked it.

CHAPTER X

ONE day in the rainy season there was a thick mass of clouds
overhead, and tiny, tiny drops of rain were falling amid cold gusts
of wind Muhammad Kamil said : 4 1 should so like a karhd-i 1
to-day, but only on condition that Tamizdar bahu superintends
the cooking.'

Now, Asghari spent most of her time upon the roof ; 2 she had
not the slightest notion that Muhammad Kdmil had expressed a
wish for the karhd-i. Mdma Azmat went out and procured the
ghee, the sugar, the gram- flour, and other ingredients, and said to
Muhammad Kdmil : * Here you are, young master ; I have
brought in all the purchases. Shall I go now, and summon the
lady bride V Then she went up on to the roof, but she did not so

1 A 'karhd-i* means originally ' a largo ataw-pan,' and has become the
name of a particular kind of stew.

s a The roofs of Indian houses are flat, and surrounded by a parapet, so
that women can enjoy the air without violating their privacy.

70 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

much as mention the karhd-i to Asghari ; she came down again
without a word, and reported : ' The bride says she has got a
headache.'

Mamd Azmat herself could not cook an ordinary dish decently ;
what earthly chance was there of her cooking a karhd-i ? She
served up the ingredients all messed together and utterly spoilt.
Muhammad Kamil had been looking forward, I can't tell you how
much, to his wish being gratified. After eating his nasty meal,
he was proportionately disappointed. When he went up on to
the roof, he found his wife engaged in sewing a pair of paij&mas 1
for herself. He felt aggrieved, and said to himself, ' Eh, she is not
too ill to be sewing, and yet when I asked for a karhd-i, she made
the excuse of a headache.'

This was the first time that Muhammad Kamil had ever been
annoyed with his wife, and it is just from petty little things like
these that ill-feeling between husbands and wives ordinarily
arises. Since marriages usually take place at a very early age,
it follows, by God's grace, that sweet counselling reason is to be
found neither in the husband nor in the wife. If either of them
has taken offence at any little thing, you find the husband sitting
sulking by himself, and the wife by herself lying on the sofa with
her face averted. Considering that they have to live together,
always in the same place, what wonder is it if very trifling matters
in which they disagree with each other are of constant occurrence ?
But this antagonism, increasing with every instance of its re-
petition, produces in time a great collapse in their attachment and
mutual friendship. Deference and loyalty disappear on either
side, and the two pass the rest of their lives aft if they were walking
with peas in their shoes. The safest plan is for husband and wife
to preserve their intercouse with each other unclouded from the
very commencement, and not to allow even petty grievances to
be formed ; for otherwise, out of the accumulation of these petty
grievances a huge amount of ill-will and misery is eventually
created. And the secret of preventing any grievance from being
formed is this : whenever anything occurs, however small, which
gives you offence, not to bury it in your mind, but to speak it out
1 Pyjamas i.e., trousers.

CHAPTER X 71

face to face, and get clear of it. If Muhammad K&mil had known
of this maxim, and been possessed of common-sense, he would
infallibly have taken his wife to task, and asked her why she could
not do such a little job for him, but must needs tell a lie, and plead
a headache. In that case the whole business would have been
settled at once by a few words, and Mma Azmat's roguery would
have come to light. But Muhammad Kamil put a seal on his lips,
and inscribed a whole volume of complaint upon his heart.
Muhammad Kdmil's coldness of manner made Asghari alarmed.
She thought to herself, ' God help us ! here is the beginning of a
quarrel in prospect.' When she saw her mother-in-law, she found
her too looking gloomy. She was still more amazed at this, and
said to herself, ' Good Heavens ! what can it be ?'

But before this matter could be explained, M&m& Azmat had
aimed another blow. It was near the Ramazan. Muhammad
K&mil's mother said to Mama Azmat : * Mama, the Ramaz&n is
coming on ; you must begin at once to make preparations. All
the copper vessels, big and little, want tinning ; it is a whole year
since the house was whitewashed. Tell Hazri Mai, 1 the banker,
that he must manage somehow or other to let me have fifty rupees,
since all the expenses of the Eed are falling on my head.'

Mdmd Azmat said : ' Tamizdar bahu will be invited to her
mother's house, and I have heard the Tahsildar, 2 too, is coming
home ; of course, he will send to fetch both his daughters. Be-
sides, I did hear somewhere that it is Tamizddr balm's intention
to go back with her father ; if she goes, no doubt the young
master will go too. In that case, lady, you will be all alone in the
house ; what will you want with whitewashing ? and what good
will it be to have the vessels tinned ? As for Hazdri Mai, bad
luck to him ! He has got so crusty that his man waits at the door
every day dunning for his money ; how should he lend any
more ?'

When Muhammad KAmil's mother heard this, she was chilled
to the heart, and the facts were enough to make her so. From
the day when her husband went to Lahore he had not returned

1 Pronounce Huzaree Mull.

1 /,., Asghari's father, a (subordinate) 'collector.'

73 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

even to see what his home was like. Once in six months once
in a year, when he happened to think of it he used to send her a
remittance ; but, except for that, he had ceased to trouble himself
about her. Muhammad Aqil, as we have seen, had left his
mother. The only one who remained to keep the house going was
Muhammad Kamil. After his departure, the prospect was blank. 1
She asked the Mama abruptly : ' Eh ! Tell me the truth ; are
you sure Tamizdar bahu will go ?'

The Mam& said : ' Lady, as to her going or not God knows ; I
only told you what I heard.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother asked : ' Eh ? Bad luck to you !
From whom did you hear ? How was it discovered V

The Mama said : * How did I come to hear ? Well, I asked
Kifayat Nisa to lend me two rupees, and she said she would let
me have them, but she was likely to be going to the hills. Then
I inquired all about it, and found that everything had been settled
to a * T.' They are waiting till the Tahsildar comes that's all ; the
morning after the Bed all these folk will start off. And why wait
for hearing ? " Though God be unseen, man's reason discovers
Him." Do you mean to say, Lady, that you draw no conclusions
from Tamizdar bahu's own proceedings ? Don't you see how she
used to be always looking after the house-work at first, and now
one would think her under an oath never to come down from
the roof. Letter after letter is despatched to her father's
address. What other business is there between them of such
importance unless it be her going away ?'

After this talk Muhammad K&mil's mother was left in a state
of consternation, and she was still sitting wrapt in thought when
Muhammad Kamil came home. She called him to her, and said :
' K&mil, I have something to ask you ; will you promise to tell me
the truth r

Muhammad Kamil said : * Goodness, mother ! is there any-
thing I should be likely to conceal from you V

His mother then repeated to him word for word all that she had
beard from the Mdma.

Muhammad Kamil said : * Mother, I tell you truly that I have
1 Lit, ' the horizon was clear/

CHAPTER X 73

no knowledge whatever of this, nor has Tamizdar bahu ever
mentioned the subject.'

His mother said : * Go away, you hypocrite ; do you try to
impose upon me ? A matter of that importance, and you to
know nothing about it !'

Muhammad K&mil said : * Well, if you won't be convinced, I
swear by your head that I know nothing about it.'

Just then the Mama, too, came in. Muhammad Kamii's mother
said : ' How is this, you Azmat ? Kamil says he knows nothing
about it.'

The Mdmd said : * Young master, you may like it or lump it ;
your lady is making her preparations to go. Very likely she is
keeping it dark from you. She is no Mizajdar, who could keep
nothing to herself ; this is Tamizdar bahu, who lets no one into
her secrets.'

Muhammad Kamii's mother then asked him : * Well, Kamil,
if this thing should be true, what do you intend to do ?'

Muhammad Kamil replied : 4 Why, you don't suppose it pos-
sible, do you, that I should go away and leave you all alone ? And
Tainizd&r bahu too it is altogether out of the question that she
should go away without saying anything or asking permission. I
shall inquire of Tamizdar bahu this very day what is the meaning
of it all,'

His mother said : ' Can we trust this wretched Mamd's words ?
Don't say anything to your wife about it as yet ; when we are
quite certain, we will see.'

By tricks of this kind, M&m Azmat hoped to render Asghari
obnoxious to her mother-in-law and husband ; and, although
neither of them said anything about it to Asghari in so many
words, yet even she could not help perceiving from their looks that
there was some embarrassment. In Mahmuda Asghari had an
admirable scout on her side. From little things that Mahmuda
told her, Asghari gradually unravelled the whole of Mdmd Azmat's
villainy. But Asghari was not so silly as to give way at once to
idle resentment ; the conclusion she came to was that it would be
unbecoming for her to initiate any discussion upon the subject ;
for, after all, the truth would be known some day, and then she

74 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

could trust herself how to act. In her own heart she said : ' Just
you wait a bit, Azmat ; please God ! even you shall see how
smooth I will make you. Your brains have taken such a high
range now that you think to set the whole family at enmity with
each other. Please God ! I will smite you where no water is j 1
and I will so cast you out that never again shall any luck bring
you into this mohulla.'

CHAPTER XI

AZMAT'S evil genius was now well astride of her. She de-
livered a third blow at Asghari. It was Hazdri Mai's custom,
whenever he saw Azmat passing by in front of his shop, to call out
to her in a fussy way, 'How now, Mama ! have you any thought of
paying my account?' and once a week or so he would send some
dunning message to the house. One day, when Mama Azraat was
on her way to the bazar to make her purchases, as usual, Hazari
Mai hailed her.

Mama Azmat said : ' Lala ! 2 what new custom is this you have
adopted of molesting me ? Whenever you see me, you begin
dunning me. Why don't you ask those you lent the money to ?
They are the people to dun. What have I, poor wretch ! a lone
woman, with two pice a day to live on what have I to do with
great bankers' accounts ?'

Hazari Mai said : ' What's that you say ? Nothing to do with
it ! You take the money from the shop. " The hand knows the
hand." It is you, whom I know, and it is on your assurance that
I lend the money. What do I know of the people of the house V

The M4ma said : * Oh, Lala, stop that nonsense ; you are not
such a born fool as that. What did you ever see in me to assure
you ? I have no lands ; I have no money. And you have given
me hundreds of rupees with your eyea shut ! Well, if you gave

1 A proverbial expression for taking a person at a time when he can make
no resistance.

2 The meaning of ' Ldla ' is something equivalent to the slang term
' Duckie !' but it has long since become a term for addressing men of
sedentary occupations, such as money-lenders and shop-keepers and clerks.

CHAPTER XI 75

them to me, go on, and get them from me. Sell up my mansions
wherever they are standing. Stop the issue of my pension from
the palace if I have any.'

Hazari Mai was quite taken aback at the Mama's outburst of
temper: He endeavoured to pacify her by saying, ' It seems that
you have had a quarrel with someone to-day before you came out.
Tell me what it is. Has your mistress said anything ? or has the
young master been angry ? Come in, won't you ?' And while
he spoke thus to the Mama, he put a pice into the hand of the boy
who was looking after the shop, and said : ' Run and get two
leaves of pawn made up, with some dry tobacco in them, and
bring them here at once.' Then, when the Mama was seated, he
said to her again, with a laugh : * You have certainly been
quarrelling with someone ; that is plain enough.'

The Mama said : ' God forbid ! Why should / begin to quarrel ?
You spoke, and I answered accordingly. When a thing is true,
why do you take offence at it ?'

Hazari Mai said : * Sure enough, my account for the money is
with the master ; but does it pass through your hands, or does it
not ? I have neither note nor receipt ; whatever you asked me
for in your master's name, I gave you.'

The Mama said : * Yes, stick to that ; when am I likely to
deny it ? I will vouch for whatever I have taken before any
number of people ; and my mistress too (blessings on her from
every hair of my body !), she, poor dear ! never disputes
anything.'

Hazari Mai said : * You are right there, Mamd ; the Begam
sdhib is a most noble lady. Bless her ! there is no doubt of that.'
And then in a low voice he asked : * Tell me about the young
bride ; what is she like ? Is she of the same complexion as her
elder sister, or of a different disposition ?'

The M4ma said : * Don't ask me about her, Lala. The girl is
of a noble family true ; but she is very stingy at heart. Even
a farthing's worth of anything she won't approve until she has
returned it four times. Ah, yes, in talent and accomplishments,
God keep her ! she is far ahead of most married girls. Her
cooking is better than the best, and in needlework she could beat

y6 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

professional tailors and Mughlanis. 1 But oh, Lala ! she is not
what you call well bred. At first she began to fuss and meddle
even with me. You know, Ldla, how spotless my work is. She
soon got tired of that. As for the Begam sahib, she is a saint ; it
is the saving grace of her life and conduct that keeps the family
going. And we unfortunate creatures only hold on to her skirts.
People have often tried to frighten the Begam about me, but
God keep her in peace ! her heart was never clouded. She never
took in a word of all their talk against me.'

Hazari Mai said : ' I have heard the young bride had a very
grand trousseau.'

Before he had finished speaking, the Mama said : * Rubbish !
Not so fine even as the elder one's.'

* That is very odd,' said Hazari Mai ; * the Khdn sahib was a
Tahsildar, too, when she was married. He ought to have given
her more than the elder sister.'

' Ah,' said the Mama, ' but it was not the fault of the Tahsildar.
He, poor man ! had made grand preparations. It was this little
ill-bred pretender ; she made them cut the items down, one after
another, on the score of consideration for her parents, to win their
favour.'

Hazari Mai said : * If that is the case, she, too, will be wanting
to keep house for herself, like her elder sister.'

4 Keep house for herself,' said the Mama ; * she will make bigger
roses blossom than that. The elder sister was ill-tempered no
doubt of that ; but she was open-hearted ; and this girl is smooth-
tongued, but she is not sound at the core. One may wear out
one's life in working for her, and give no satisfaction. And what-
ever she will say to you, be sure there's something more at the
bottom. Her words mean one thing, but her heart purposes
something else. No, my little father, this girl is not the one to
get on with anyone for a single day. At this moment she is
making her arrangements to go to the hills, to her father.'

' Has any letter come from Lahore lately V asked Hazari Mai.

1 I.e., women servants maintained by rich families to do fancy needlework
and embroidery. The word is an Indian made feminine of Mughal, our
'Mogul/

CHAPTER XI 77

The Mama said : ' A letter is expected every day, but for some
reason or other, I don't know why, none has arrived yet. The
mistress is casting about to find money for the house. It was only
yesterday or the day before she was saying to me, " Go and get a
loan of fifty rupees from Hazari Mai." '

At the word ' loan ' Hazdri Mai started back, and said : * If she
could find out some way to pay the old debt then I would not
mind lending again ; but my partner won't hear of it now. You
tell the Begam sdhib, Mamd, and see that she understands you ;
she must pay up the old debt, whatever she does, or else don't
let her blame me.'

The Mama said : l Well, if God should get your money out of
them for you, you will get it. How is the Begam sahib to pay ?
She is in debt, every hair of her. The cornfactor is worrying her
life for his money, and the cloth-merchant is crying out to get his.'

' What have I to do with her other creditors ?' said Hazari
Mai. * The Begam sdhib will have to pay my firm's account,
anyhow. Personally, I have a great regard for the Begam sdhib's
dignity ; but my partner, Chidamilal, does not agree. If he were
to hear what you have just said he would institute a suit this
very day.'

The Mama said : * Well, I will repeat all this faithfully to the
Begam sdhib. But I know every single thing about the family.
You may bring a suit, or go into court, if you like. There is no
money to pay, nor the means of raising any. If there were any
money, why should they be asking for a loan ?'

After the conversation had reached this point, Mdmd Ajemat
took leave of Hazari Mai. When she got home at last with her
purchases, Muhammad Kdmil's mother asked : * How now ?
Mdmd, when you go to the bdzdr, you let your thoughts run so
that you forget all about cooking the dinner ! Can't you see
how late it is ? At what time will the meat be put on the fire ?
When will it be cooked ? When shall we get our dinner ?'

The Mdmd said : * Lady, the delay was all in arguing with that
scoundrel Hazdri Mai. The wretched creature has taken to stop
me every day aa I pass by. To-day I fired up, and said to him :
"Why do you make it a rule to treat me every day to this

78 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

insolence ? What puts you in such a fright ? Have a little
patience. Let the remittance come from Lahore ; then all your
account from first to last will be paid off." The creature made
at me, andbegan wrangling and abusing me in the broad street.'

Muhammad KamiPs mother said : ' What has come over
H&zari Mai ? He was never like that before. He has kept our
accounts for years, and sometimes we have paid him early and
sometimes late. He has never made any difficulty.'

The Mdma said : ' Lady, some other banker has become a
partner in the firm. He has made this to-do about getting the
debts in quickly, the wretch ! He has been realizing straight off
from all the clients, and those who did not pay he has filed suits
against. Hazari Mai told me to say to you, with clasped hands,
on his own behalf, that he had no voice in the matter ; and to ask
you to find some way of paying the money within two or three
days, however you can manage it. Or else Chidamilal will file a
suit for certain.'

Muhammad K&mil's mother was terribly disconcerted at hear-
ing this news. There was, indeed, a younger sister of hers, Amir 1
Begam, living in the Khanam baza>, who was tolerably well-to-
do in the world. Muhammad K&mil's mother said to the Mama :
' No answer comes from Lahore, M&ma 1 ; not even a letter. What
hope is there of any remittance ? If Hazdri Mai should really file
a suit, what can be done ? Even the furniture of the house in
my possession is not sufficient for me to meet the debt with if I
should sell it. And then the mere fact of paying after a suit has
been filed is a disgrace. Our reputation will be damaged all over
the city. Go and fetch a doolie. I am going to Amir Begam.
Perhaps some plan will be discovered there.'

The M&ma said : * Lady, the suit is as good as filed. When
a man has said a thing with his lips, it does not take long for him
to do it. And where is the young Begam sahib to get money
from ? She is embarrassed herself nowadays.'

Muhammad K&mil's mother said : * Anyhow, something most
be done. 9

The Mama went up to her, and said in a low voice : * If Tamizdar
1 Pronounce Umeer, with the accent on the last syllable.

CHAPTER XI 79

bahu were to lend you her bracelets, just for one month, then the
business might be put off. By pawning the bracelets only for the
time, a half of a third of Hazari Mai's money would be made good.
Within the month, either the master might send a remittance, or
I could get you the money from some other banker.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : ' What ! are you mad ?
Take good care you don't let such a proposal pass your lips again.
Should the house we live in be put up to sale, I would accept
even that ; but I have not the face to ask my daughter-in-law.'

The M&ma said : ' Lady, it was only that I thought she is your
daughter-in-law you may say daughter no stranger ; and I had
no intention God forbid ! of selling outright. Just for a
month well, the things are not in her jewel-box ; they are
deposited with the banker. She might be perfectly at ease in
her mind.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : ' Yes, but still there is a
great difference between a daughter and a daughter-in-law. And
a newly-wedded bride, too. Could anyone even mention such a
thing ? Take care, and don't let such a thing cross your lips again.
Why, fancy, if it were to come to Mahmuda's ears, and she should
go and tell her sister-in-law !'

The Mama said : l The young lady was standing here just now,
and listening. But she is a child. What does she understand
about such things at her age ?'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : 4 Go and fetch the doolie.
At all events, I will go to my sister. We shall see afterwards what
plan we can arrange for the best.'

CHAPTER XII

MUHAMMAD KAMIL'S mother got into her doolie and departed to
the Khanam bazar, and Mahmuda went off and rehearsed the
whole conversation to Tamizdar bahu. Only one course seemed
open to Asghari. She sat down at once and wrote the following
letter to her elder brother, Khairandesh Khan :

80 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

c To his excellency, my gentle brother, the honored, the revered,
health and peace ! After my benedictions, I make known to you
an urgent request, as follows : For a long time I have not written
anything about myself to your honor, because I felt sure that the
communications which I have in duty addressed to my honored
father would also pass under your eyes. But now a special
matter has arisen, of such a kind that I think it proper to be
made known to you in particular. It is this : Since I came to
my father-in-law's house, I have experienced no kind of annoy-
ance ; and those matters about which my elder sister used to com-
plain through your prayers, nothing of the kind has happened
to me. Everyone treats me with affection, and I myself am
happy. But at the hands of one Mama Azmat alone I experi-
ence such annoyance as would not befall me from a cross-tem-
pered mother-in-law, or a scolding sister-in-law. This woman
is an old servant of the family, and all the business of the house,
inside and outside, is in her hands. She has been plundering the
family, and brought it to the verge of ruin. The debts now
amount to such a sum that no means of paying them off are
visible. There is no kind of management. I took it upon my-
self for a few days to look into some of the ordinary items of
housekeeping ; peculation and fraud were discovered at every
turn. This interference on my part has made the Mama my
enemy, and she has ever since been set upon stirring up some new
cause of ill-feeling every day. She has not been successful so far
in doing me any real injury. Still, I have the strongest objection
to this Mama's staying on in the house. But, on the other hand,
to get rid of her is no easy matter. All the indebtedness to the
different shops has been incurred through her agency. If she
heard a rumour of her impending dismissal, she would go off and
excite a panic among the creditors. And then the debts are
neither by bill nor by book. The whole of the traffic is done
orally by guesswork. What I want is that the accounts of all
these people should be investigated and put into writing, and that
in each case instalments of a due proportion should be fixed for
future payment, and the practice of borrowing henceforth be
abolished, and that the Mdmi should be dismissed. I take it for

CHAPTER XII 8 1

granted that you, too, will come home with my honored father
for the Ramazdn. All I ask is that you should be so kind as to
come round by Lahore, and that by some means or other you will
induce my good father-in-law to come home with you for a fort-
night at the very least. When all of you gentlemen are present,
the whole of this business will be settled admirably.

* I write this letter in a state of grievous disquietude. The
Mdmd recommended that my bracelets should be pawned. My
dear mother-in-law has just this moment gone to my dear aunt's
house to make arrangements for some money. No more.'

At the same time that Asghari wrote this letter to her brother,
she sent a verbal message across to her aunt, saying that she was
alone, and asking her aunt to let Tamdsha Khanam come and
stay with her for a couple of days, since she had heard that
Tamdsha Khdnam was at present on a visit to her mother. Ac-
cordingly that same evening Tamdsha Khdnam duly arrived. As
she got out of her doolie she called out : ' Upon my word, Madam
Asghari ! I did not think anyone could be so unfriendly. I sent
a message to ask you for uncle's letter, and you never let me
have it !'

* You don't say so ?' said Asghari. ' Who came with the
message V

' Well, you can see her yourself,' said Tamdsha Khdnam. * She
is here ; this Mdmd Azmat. Say, old woman that Friday you
came to our house did I tell you, or not ?'

Azmat said : c Yes, Lady ; it is true. She did tell me. I forget
everything now, worse luck ! By the time I reached this place
it was driven out of my head by the housework.'

' Yes,' said Asghari in a low voice ; ' you only recollect how to
plunder and how to sow strife.' Then she said to Tamdsha
Khdnam : * The letter is here, and there is another new book just
come, full of interesting passages ; you can take that home with
you when you go.'

Asghari related to Tamdsha Khdnam the whole story of
Mdmd Azmat's misdeeds in detail. Tamdsha Khdnam was a
girl of a very hot temper. She was on her feet directly, with her

6

82 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

shoe in her hand, eager to give the Mania a beating. Asghari
caught her by the arm, and made her sit down again, saying :
' Sister, for God's sake ! no such violence. Don't be in a hurry
yet awhile ; everything will be spoilt.'

Tamasha Khanam said : * You allow yourself to be set at
naught with this circumspection of yours. Sister, if I were in
your place, by God's oath ! I would make this carrion so smooth
after shoe-beatings that she would remember it all her life long.'

Asghari said : * You will see. Please God ! in a few days' time
God's judgment will fall on this dishonest woman.'

After that Tamdsha Khanam asked : * What is the reason of
your mother-in-law going to her sister's house ?'

Asghari said : ' She, too, poor thing, all owing to this ill-con-
ditioned M&ma, is driven about in despair from door to door.
There is some banker to whom a sum of money is owing. The
Mdma came back to-day, and said he was about to file a suit.
She has gone to contrive some plan for his money/

Tam&sha Kh&nam asked : l Who is the banker who is going to
sue her ?'

Asghari said : * I don't know his name.'

Tamasha Khanam asked the Mama : * Azmat, what banker
is it V

Azmat said : * Hazari Mai, Lady.'

Tamasha Khanam said : * What ? The Hazari Mai whose
shop is in the Jauhari b&zar ?'

* Yes, Lady yes,' said Azmat, * it is that Hazari Mai.'
Tamasha Kh&nam said : ' Why, he keeps the accounts of my
husband's family. My goodness ! what nerve has that wretch
got to file a suit ? I will tell your cousin 1 when I leave this place.
You will see how he will settle matters with him.'

Tamasha Khanam remained two days with Asghari. On the
third day she took her leave, and as she was starting she said :
* Asghari, dear, I adjure you by my head when your father-in-
law arrives, and all this affair comes on for trial, mind you make
them send for me, and then you just put Azmat under my charge.*
In the Khanam bdzar Muhammad K&mil's mother was hoa-
1 Meaning her own husband.

CHAPTER XII 83

pitably detained by her sister, who said to her : ' Dear me, sister !
it is but once in a way that you have come here. Now, you must
stay a week at the least.' But one of the servants was sent to
the house every day to inquire after Asghari.

Mdmd Azmat incontinently achieved afresh piece of villainy.
The Lieutenant-Governor's camp was expected just at this
time, and great pressure was being brought to bear by the
magistrate in the matter of conservancy. Notifications were
stuck up in every street and mohulla calling upon the in-
habitants to make their streets and alleys tidy, to have the
fronts of their houses whitewashed, and to keep all the drains
and sewers clean, with the warning that, should an accumulation
of refuse be found anywhere, the premises would be put up to
public auction. 1

A notification of this kind had been stuck up on the gateway of
our friends' mohulla among others. Mama Azmat went by night
and tore down this notification from the gate of the mohulla, and
furtively stuck it up over the doorway of the house. Then, just
before dawn, she ran off to the Khanam baz&r to give Muhammad
Kdmii's mother intimation. The doors of the house had not yet
been opened when she cried out to her at the entrance. Muham-
mad KamiPs mother recognised her voice, and said : * Ho there !
run, someone, and open the door. Whatever makes Azmat come
posting here at such an unearthly hour ?' When Azmat appeared
before her, she asked : 4 Mdmd, is all well ?'

Azmat said : * Lady, there is a 'ttachment a natchment what
do they call the thing ? stuck up on the house. It seems Hazdri
Mai has filed his suit in court.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said to her sister : ' I am going,
my dear ; good-bye. If I go, I can send for Hazari Mai, and
remonstrate with him. God send pity into his heart !*

Her sister said : * My dear, I am very much ashamed that I
have not been able to arrange for the money. But here is this
gold chain off my neck ; take that with you. If the business can
be settled by pawning it, so much the better ; but sell it if you
must.'

1 This ia a joke at ' non-regulation procedure.'

84 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Muhammad Kdmil's mother said : ' You are very kind, dear.
I will take the chain. But his money has reached a terrible
amount ; one chain will not go far.'

Her sister said : * Come, my dear ; you know he 1 promised
that he would procure you a loan from another banker. Get
into your doolie, with God's name on your lips. He will be back
directly, and I will send him after you.'

In due course Muhammad Kamil's mother arrived at her home.
As she got down at the entrance she saw the notification posted
on the doorway. In a state of dismal depression she went in
silently and sat down. When Asghari heard of her mother-in-law's
arrival, she came down from the roof and paid her respects. See-
ing her mother-in-law in trouble, she asked : ' Mother, dear ! your
face looks very said to-day.'

Her mother-in-law said : ' Yes ; the banker has filed his suit.
I cannot see how to raise the money any way. Amir Begain, too,
has disappointed me, and now a notice has been stuck on the
house. What will become of me ?'

Asghari said : ' Don't let your honor have the least anxiety.
If Hazari Mai has filed his suit, it is no harm. He has dealings
with Tam&sha Khanam's husband's people also, and she pro-
mised me that she will take him to task. And if he does not give
in, some way will be found of raising the money. What is to be
gained by fretting over it ?'

Her mother-in-law said : * If Kamil were here, I would send
him to Hazari Mai.'

Asghari said : ' Of course, that is as your honor pleases ; but
in my opinion it is not proper at all to show any fear of the banker,
for otherwise he will have greater boldness in the future, and be
holding out the threat of a suit every day. Far the best plan will
be to make no sign from here, but to bring some influence to bear
on him from outside, so that he may abandon the prosecution of
his claim. 9

Muhammad K&mil's mother said : ' Tam&sha Khdnam is still
only a girl. What does she know about the law courts and offices ?
How would it be if the business went wrong through relying upon
1 I.e., her own husband.

CHAPTER XII 85

her, while the time for doing anything slipped out of our
hands ?'

Asghari said : * No doubt Tamasha Khanam is a girl, but I
made it all thoroughly certain, and I have every confidence.'

While they were still talking, Miyan Muslim gave a shout at the
door. Asghari said : ' See, there is Muslim come. He will have
brought some news about the matter for certain.' Then she
made a gesture to Mahmuda, who went into one of the side-rooms. 1
And she called Muslim inside, and asked him : ' Muslim, what
news have you brought ?'

Muslim said : * My sister sent you her salaam, and asks after
your health, and told me to say that she had Hazari Mai sent for,
and gave him a thorough good frightening, and he made a promise
there should be no suit.'

When she heard this, Muhammad Kamil's mother was com-
forted to some extent. But Asghari was amazed. How could
this be, that Tamasha Khanam should send such a message, and
yet Hazari Mai have already filed a suit independently of it ?
And then the circumstance of the attachment was altogether
extraordinary, for she was in the house all the time, and heard
nothing about it. If it had been an attachment issued by the
judge, surely some chuprassie, 2 or office- runner, would have called
out to the inmates and given them notice.

CHAPTER XIII

WHEN Muslim had taken leave, Asghari said to Mahmuda : * Go
quietly, and tear ofi the paper which is affixed to the outer door.'
Mahmuda tore the paper off and brought it in. When Asghari
read it, the order was about conservancy ; there was not any men-
tion of a suit in Court. She guessed at once that this, too, was
Azmat's trickery. She did not, however, make this fact known

1 Mahmi'ida and Muslim being contemporaries and approaching marriageable
age, it was not etiquette fgr them to see each other.

9 A ohuprassie is a man who carries a badgo (chaprds) with his employer's
name on it.

86 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

to her mother-in-law ; but she assured her in the most positive
manner that there was no fear whatever of a suit, and that she
might remain perfectly at ease.

Her mother-in-law said : * As far as the suit is concerned I feel
more easy from what you tell me ; but the Shabebarat 1 and the
Ramazan are coming on to worry me. In both of these festivals
it is nothing but spend, spend. From Lahore, even letters have
stopped coming. The anxiety about this makes my very blood
dry up.'

Asghari said : * There are a good many days yet before the
Ramazan. God is called " the Causer of causes "; by that time
some provision from the unseen will be made manifest. True,
there are only four days left now before the Shabebarat ;
but that is not a festival on which any great expenditure is
required.'

Her mother-in-law said : ' In my house, year after year, twenty
rupees goes at the Shabebardt. You can ask for yourself ; this
Azmat who spends the money is present.'

4 Her spending,' said Asghari, ' is nothing to be astonished at.
But there are some expenses which cannot be avoided, and
there are others which can. And there is nothing so urgent
about the Shabebarat to involve the expenditure of so much
money.'

Her mother-in-law said : * Sister, the Fdtiha 2 for the saints
and the prophets, the great men and elders of our race is of the
first importance, and then there is the sending about to people's
houses most necessary. Why, it is but a small matter to men-
tion I must have five rupees, if there are to be fireworks enough
to satisfy your husband and Miss Mahmuda. Muhammad Kamil
is married, but what of that ? God preserve him ! his nature is
as foil of childish fun as ever it was. Until he has got a hundred

1 Lit, ' The night of immunity (from sin and sorrow)/ a festival analogous
to our All Hallows' Eve. It falls in the month preceding the Ramazdn.
Pronounce Shubbay burrdt, with the accent on the laat syllable, and the
' a ' sounded as in * art. 1

9 Fatih* is the name of the opening chapter (seven short verses) of the
Qur-in, but the expression here means food consecrated by the recitation of
the Fatih* over it, and then distributed.

CHAPTER XIII 87

fire-fountains 1 and twenty bundles of crackers out of me, he will
worry my life out ; and Mahmuda, too, will make herself ill with
crying.'

Asghari said : ' Five seers 2 of sweets will be quite enough for
the Fdtiha, and as for the sending about, what comes to us can be
despatched elsewhere. And I will talk to Mahmuda ; she shall
not plague you for crackers this time. You shall see, I will
manage the business of the Shabebarat all right somehow. Leave
it to me, and do not worry about borrowing money on that
account.'

These were her words to her mother-in-law, but Asghari herself
was in some trepidation as to how she could keep her husband
away from his fire-fountains and crackers. At last she hit on the
following plan for conveying her wishes to him so cleverly that she
managed to say all she wanted, and yet he was not in the least
annoyed.

In Muhammad K&mil's presence she herself broached the sub-
ject to Mahmuda by asking : ' Well, sister, what are your plans
for the Shabebar&t ?'

Mahmuda replied : * When my brother brings home his fire*
works, he will give some to me, too.'

Before Muhammad Kamil could put in a word, Asghari said :
4 You don't suppose your brother will bring you such silly things t
What pleasure is there in fireworks, Mahmuda

Mahmuda said : ' Sister dear ! is it not splendid when they
go ofi

* Well,' Asghari said, * there will be hundreds of them let off in
the mohulla ; you will be able to watch them from the roof.'

* What !' said Mahmuda ; * and we not let ofi any
' Are you not afraid said Asghari.

Mahmuda said : * / ? I don't let them off with my own
hands.'

1 Called anar ; lit., pomegranates. They are cupa of earthenware about
the size of a pomegranate, filled with powder and steel filings. There is *
very small aperture at the top, and when the cup is set on the ground and
lighted the effect is that of a fountain of fire.
J* A * seer ' is about two pounds*

88 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

4 Very well,' said Asghari ; ' just as you look on when your own
are let off, so you may look on when those of the mohulla are let
off. And listen, Mahmuda ; it is a very bad sport. There is the
danger of being burnt. Once, in my mohulla, a fire-fountain
burst in a boy's hand ; his eyes were blown up, and left quite
blank in their sockets. If you want to look on, you should do so
at a distance. And, Mahmuda, do you notice your mother's
condition ? Is she sad, or happy V

Mahmuda said : * She is sad, I know.'

Asghari asked : * Have you ever considered why she is sad V

Mahmuda said : ' I know nothing about that.'

4 Oh !' exclaimed Asghari ; * and yet you say that you are very
fond of your mother !'

Mahmuda asked : * Please, dear sister, why is dear mamma
sad?'

Asghari said : ' There's a difficulty about money for the house ;
the banker won't advance any^ She is thinking : " If Mahmuda
insists upon having fireworks, where am I to get the money from
to give them to her ?" '

Mahmuda said : ' / won't ask for fireworks.'

4 Well done !' said Asghari ' well done ! You are a very dear
sister.'

And she took Mahmuda to her breast and caressed her.

Muhammad Kamil, who was sitting close by, listened to all this
without saying a word. Since it was quite reasonable, his heart
admitted the force of it, and he immediately went downstairs, and
approached his mother, and said : ' Mother, I have heard that
you are troubling yourself about the Shabebardt7 and I {^une to
ask you not to worry about me. / don't want any fireworks, and
Mahmuda, too, says she will not ask you for any.'

In this way one item of the expenditure was reduced.

As for the F&tiha, a fine assortment of confectionery was pro-
duced at a cost of two rupees. The sending about Asghari took
under her own control. When a portion came to the house she
did not allow it to be put by. As soon as the man who brought
it had gone away, she said : ' Take this portion to such and such
a place. 9

CHAPTER XIV 89

To one after another of all the^persons on her list entitled to
receive a portion a portion was duly sent. The Shabebarat was
kept well for an outlay of two rupees.

Azmat was consumed with rage at this arrangement, and no
wonder, since a great item of her perquisites was abolished.
Whatever used to come from outside she used to take, and of what
was sent from the house she used to purloin half, and for months
afterwards she would munch the dried-up sweetmeats that she
kept from the Shabebarat instead of a cordial.

CHAPTER XIV

WHEN the Shabebarat was over, the time drew near for the arrival
of Asghari's father, and the next few days passed in no time.
Four days before the Ramazan Durandesh Khan sahib arrived in
Dehli.

Asghari had taken care to mention her father's coming before-
hand, and had settled with her mother-in-law and husband that
on whatever day the Tahsildar should arrive she should go home
to see him. As soon as she received intimation of his arrival, she
at once ordered a doolie, and was set down at her father's house.
Her father clasped her to his breast, and was moved to tears ; for
a long time he kept on asking about her, and giving her an account
of himself, and then he said : ' Khairandesh Khan has gone to
Lahore in accordance with your honor's order, and, please God,
will arrive here to-morrow or next day with your father-in-law. 1
A letter from him readied me on the road. Your father-in-law
has obtained his leave.'

So that whole night and all the next day Asghari remained at
her mother's house. Shortly before the evening she said to her
father : * If your honor will accord me permission I will now go
away.'

Her father said : ' Eh /my dear, you must stay a week. I will
send a message to your mother-in-law.'

1 Lit, with my 'oo-partner in fathership/ The English language has no
term for the connexion between the parents of a bride and of a bridegroom.

90 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Asghari said : ' I will do whatever your honor determines, but
I think it will be the correct thing for me to be in the house before
my father-in-law arrives.'

Her father reflected for a bit, and said : ' Yes, that is quite
right.'

Accordingly Asghari took leave of her father, and was at home
again before sunset. Next day, exactly at the dinner-hour,
Muhammad Kamil's father, Maulavi Muhammad Fazil, suddenly
appeared on the scene.

I must mention here that the Maulavi 1 sahib was estate agent
to the chief of Lahore. He had a fixed salary of fifty rupees a
month from the estate, and the chief was responsible for his house
and travelling expenses. Khairandesh Khan had gone to Lahore
in accordance with Asghari's written request, and had shown her
letter to the Maulavi. When the Maulavi read it he was over-
joyed, and though in the ordinary course of things he would
probably not have taken leave, yet now in his eagerness to see his
daughter-in-law he exerted himself to persuade the chief so as to
get a month's leave, and he accompanied Khairandesh Khan on
his journey home.

Since Asghari had not yet appeared before her father-in-law
after her marriage, when she saw him arrive she went up on to the
roof, and stayed there out of bash fulness. Muhammad K&mil's
mother was in a state of bewilderment, not understanding why
her husband had come. When the meal was over they began to
talk. The Maulavi said to his wife : ' Listen to me, madam ! your
younger daughter-in-law has dragged me hither.' And then he
informed her of Asghari's letter, and of Khairandesh Khdn's
coming, and then he said : * Fetch the daughter-in-law in.'

The mother-in-law went on to the roof, and said : ' Come,
daughter, you need not be bashful ; why, you used to play in
hi* lap.'

Asghari got up at her mother-in-law's bidding, and went with
her, and having made a most respectful obeisance to her father-
in-law, sat down.

1 This word, pronounced Mowlaveo, is equivalent to our Doctor (of Divinity
or LAW).

CHAPTER XIV 91

The Maulavi said : ' Listen, my brother I 1 I came here only
because you sent for me, and when I saw your letter my soul
rejoiced within me. God send His blessing on your youth and
grace ! In very truth it was a happy day for us when you entered
our house. Now I feel sure that better days are in store for it,
and to-morrow, please God, we will arrange matters in accordance
with your wishes and your judgment.'

For two or three days, however, the Maulavi as was only
natural in a man just returned to his home was occupied in
seeing his friends, and after that, for the first few days of the fast,
he did not feel disposed to attend to house affairs on account of
his fasting. But one day he sent for his daughter-in-law, and
made her sit beside him, and then called to Mama Azmat, and
said : ' Mama, while I am here you must make out all your
accounts. Let me take down in writing all the debts which are
due to or from anyone. Then I can pay to each of them what
may be fitting, and if there is anything left over, I can arrange for
paying that by instalments.'

The Mama said : * If it were one man's bill, perhaps I might
keep it in my head to tell you straight off. But the banya,
the cloth - merchant, the butcher, the greengrocer, the con-
fectioner there is money owing to all. And Hazari Mai's
account is separate. Whatever your honor may be willing to
give to any of them let me have it, and I will go and give it them ;
the money shall be placed to your honor's credit in their books.'

The Maulavi sahib was a good, simple-minded creature. He
was on the point of paying the money over to her. Asghari
said : * What is the use of paying sums on account in this fashion ?
First of all find out what is really owing to each, and then pay each
one of them after due consideration.'

The M&ma said : * When I get leisure after dinner I will go round
and ask them/

4 What will be the good of your going to <uk f said Asghari.
* Let each man who is to be paid come here and give in his
account.'

1 The uae of this term shows that he wished to put her am an equality with
himself.

92 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

The Mamd answered : ( Lady, you have said what is easy to
say. How am I to go wandering about calling people here at
this time ? And do you suppose they are likely to leave all their
business in order to come with me ?'

Asghari said : ' It is not a question of sending for them every
day, Mdmd. It is only for one day. Go and ask them to come.
Some arrangement shall be made for the evening meal ; you do
no other work to-day but this. And as for the creditors, they
will run when they hear of payment. Haz&ri Mai went to the
Court a distance of four miles ; are his feet swathed in henna
bands 1 for coming here ? And what distance is it ? The green-
grocer, the butcher, the banya, and the confectioner all live in
this lane. It is only the cloth-seller and Haz&ri Mai who are at
any distance. Keep them over for to-morrow, and let the odds
and ends of the accounts be settled to-day.'

It was not Azmat's wish by any means that the accounts
should be gone through at all, but Asghari so overwhelmed her
with arguments that she had not a word to offer in reply. First
of all the confectioner came. It was asked : * Well, L&1&, what
have you to receive ?' The confectioner said : * Thirty rupees.'
It was asked : * What things came from your shop ? The thirty
rupees you talk of is a great deal too much.' The confectioner
said : * Sir, is thirty rupees such a large sum ? Why, fifteen
rupees' worth of things was had this very Shabebar&t. There is
one item alone of ten seers of sugar.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother exclaimed : ' Oh you ! what
sugar ? All that was used in the house this time for confectionery
was bought for ready money in the baz&r.'

When Mdm4 Azmat heard this she grew quite pale ; she said
to the confectioner : * What made you enter those ten seers of
sugar to their account? I took that for another family, and,
moreover, I told you as much.'

The confectioner said : ( You never mentioned anyone else's
name to me. You took it for this gentleman's house. What
good should I get from entering another person's things to his

1 Henna it applied to the feet (of women and children) by means of
bandage* (something like a poultice) kept on during the night.

CHAPTER XIV 93

name ? Besides, I have not an account with any other gentle-
man's family.'

The Mama was reduced to mere incoherent expressions of her
anger. The Maulavi sahib said : ' Well, let the item of the sugar
stand over. Tell us the other things. 1

Accordingly the man named in the same way a whole number
of other things which had never entered the house in its lifetime.
Four seers of bdlushdhp for the 4 Illustrious Birth,' and the best of
it was that in this family no one had ever held a birthday assem-
blage/ 2 In the end some six or seven rupees alone were found to
be correct, and the rest all false.

The Maulavi sahib's soul took fire at this, and his wrath knew
no bounds. He cried out : ' How now, you rascally Azmat, have
you contrived to put the debts of the whole world upon this
family ? Have you levelled this house with the dust simply
for fun ?'

When the confectioner was done with the greengrocer came.
He said : * Master, my account is a standing one two annas'
worth of vegetables a day.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother exclaimed : * What's that ? Only
one seer of vegetables comes to this house. Is that two annas
a day ?'

The greengrocer said : * Your highness, the M&m& takes three
seers from the shop.'

The M&ma said : * Yes. I take three seers one seer for you,
one seer for my daughter, and one seer for another family. Do I
deny it ? This wretch charges the whole of it to you.'

The greengrocer said : ' Eh, you wicked, dishonest old woman !
you have been taking that amount for years against the account
of this family, and whenever I have got my money it has been
from this family that I got it.'

When the butcher's and banya's accounts were gone into a
thousand frauds were discovered in them also, and it was proved

1 A kind of sweetmeat, so called from its powdery surface, balu meaning
sand.

<J A gathering, partly social and partly religious, at which certain texts
and prayers are recited in commemoration of the birth of the Prophet

94 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

that the Mm& had been helping to keep her own daughte;
Khairatan, and the families of two or three neighbours out of th<
purchases for this one family ; nay, she would have a purchas<
debited against the house, and then sell it elsewhere. But tx
proceed all the petty miscellaneous accounts were finished bj
the evening ; there now only remained those of the cloth-mer
chant and Hazari Mai. The Maulavi s&hib said : * Have don<
with it now for to-day ; we will see to the rest to-morrow.' Bui
he added in a low voice : ' It won't do for Azmat to run off.'

Asghari said : * It is hardly likely she will run away now anc
leave her family and all her belongings, and her house and children
True, if she has any sense of shame she may eat or drink some
thing, 1 but if she were of that sort how should she act in such a
manner ? Certainly she ought to be looked after, but only sc
far that someone should keep a watch over her when she is going
backwards and forwards.'

Orders were then given privately to one of the servants who had
come with the Maulavi to keep an eye upon the M&m&'s move-
ments.

CHAPTER XV

WHEN the dinner was well over the Mam& got up stealthily and
went outside. The servant followed behind. First of all the
M&m& went to her own house, and from thence, having thrust
something under her arm, she went as straight as an arrow to the
house of the cloth-merchant, and hailed him. The cloth-merchant
came out astonished, and said : * You here at this time, old lady !'

Azmat said : * The Maulavi s&hib has come home. The accounts
of everyone whom he has to pay are being gone through. To-
morrow you too will be summoned, and then don't you say
anything that may bring about my disgrace. 9

The cloth-merchant said : * What is there in the accounts that
should cause disgrace to you ?'

I.e., take poison.

CHAPTER XV 95

The Mdma replied : * Lala ! can't you understand ? this wretched
covetousness is a bad, bad thing. In the master's name I have
taken for myself too, now and again, from your shop a piece of
long cloth, or muslin, or English stuff.'

The cloth- merchant said : * How am I to know what things
you have taken on your own account ?'

The Mamd said : * I have not my wits about me at this moment
to reckon it up, but four pieces of English stuff, and some rolls of
muslin, and ten yards of red calico will be the outcome of what is
mine. Here, take these four bangles off my own wrists
they are sixteen rupees' worth perhaps one rupee less now for
wear knock off fifteen rupees from the total against their name,
and if there should be a few more rupees found due from me I am
prepared to pay them.'

The cloth-merchant said : c Well, I will take the bangles, as
you give them to me. But it is night now ; my books are at the
shop ; without looking at them how can I tell what is gone, and
how much is due to me ?'

Azmat said : ' This time my honor is in your hands. Screen
me however you can.'

After leaving the cloth-merchant she went straight to the house
of Hazari Mai. He too was amazed, and said : ' What ! you
here at this time of night !'

She fell at his feet, and, bursting into tears, began saying, * I
have done something wrong.'

Hazari Mai said : * What is that ?'

* Oh, promise me,' said Azmat, * that you will forgive me, and
then I will tell you.'

Hazari Mai said : * Say what it is, can't you ?'

Azmat said : 4 Four months ago some money for the house
came from Lahore, and the Maulavi sahib sent one hundred
rupees for you. All of that money I spent, and out of sheer fright
I never made it known to the master's family. Now the Maulavi
s&hib has come, and he will send for you to reckon up with him.
I will make some arrangement to secure those rupees, but I want
you not to let the amount be known.'

Hazari Mai said : * If it were a matter of two or three rupees I

96 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

could keep it dark, but a lump sum of a hundred rupees could not
be hushed up whatever I did.'

The Mamd said : ' What, is not my credit good even for a
hundred rupees ?'

Hazari Mai said : * The plain truth is that your credit is not
even good for a cowrie. When you have behaved in this manner
to a family whose bread you have eaten all your life, is it likely
you should prove an honest client to anyone else ?'

4 Ah, Lala,' said Azmat, ' when bad luck befalls a woman her
friends become her enemies. Well, then, if you will not trust me
here, take these bracelets and armlet of my daughters in deposit.'

Hazari Mai said : ' Yes, that is talking business. Only, if it
were daylight the things could be assayed, and then we should
know what they are worth. But, at a guess, the whole lot will
be worth from fifty to sixty rupees.'

Azmat said : 4 Oh, oh, Lala, don't be so cruel ! it is just four
months since I had the things made. They cost me a hundred
or a hundred and twenty- five rupees.'

Hazari Mai said : ' What is there to fret about ? Your
property it may be worth a hundred, it may be worth two
hundred no one is robbing you of it. But when I have got
it weighed, it will be known exactly what the value of it is.'

When she had made all these arrangements the Mdm& returned
to her house, and the Maulavi sahib's servant recounted all the
circumstances to him, as he was shampooing his feet. 1 Asghari,
too, was made acquainted with all the facts by Muhammad
Kamil's mother.

The next morning Hazari Mai and the cloth-merchant were
sent for. As the accounts proceeded objections began to be
raised. The Mama's voice grew louder and louder in the dis-
cussion. The cloth-merchant said : * Old woman, what are you
making such a noise about ? Here, pick up those bangles of
yours ; 2 you declared they were worth fifteen rupees ; they
value themllt nine in the b&zar.'

Upon thii Hazari Mai produced the bracelets, and armlet, and

1 To induce sleep.

8 This implies that he had thrown them down in front of her.

CHAPTER XV 97

laid them down before the company, and said to Azmat : * Excuse
me, madam, these valuables are of no good to me.'

The Maulavi sahib inquired of the two men : * How, brothers !
what is the meaning of these things ?'

Then both of them rehearsed the story of the previous night.,
and Azmat's face was as though it were slapped by a hundred
thousand shoes.

When all the accounts were finally settled, and the Maulavi
sahib had brought out the money for payment, he distributed to
each person one-half of the sum to which he was justly entitled,
and said : ' I have sent to Lahore for some more money, which
will arrive in a few days, and then the remainder shall be paid
in full.'

All the men asked : 4 And what has been found due to us from
the Mama from whom are we to get that ?'

It was during this conversation that MusKm passed by the
house on his way from school, and heard what was going on. As
soon as he got home, he said to Tamasha Khanam : * There is a
huge crowd collected to-day at the entrance to sister Asghari's
house. Her father-in-law is making up the accounts.'

Directly she heard this, Tamasha Khanam got into her doolie,
and went to the spot. As soon as she was set down, she began
scolding Asghari, and said : ' How now, madam ! you never let
me know after all ? What has happened ?'

Asghari said : 4 The accounts are still being settled. If all that
bother had been over, I would have let you know.'

To make a long story short, the Maulavi sahib told all the people
that what was due to them from the M&md they must get out of
the M&ma ; and then he turned to the Mamd, and said : * Your
highness ! pay these people their money.'

Azmat kept her eyes on the ground, and said : * My daughter's
ornaments are with me. Let them divide between them what
they can make out of those.'

All her daughter's ornaments, however, went in liquidating
one-half only of the claims of the greengrocer, the butcher, the
Uanya, and the cloth -merchant. For Harari Mai's hundred
rupees she was obliged to mortgage the hut she lived in. A deed

1

g8 THE BRIDE'S MIRRO&

was written out on stamped paper then and there, and four
respectable citizens attested it. *

Then the Maulavi s&Mb said to Azmat : ' Your honor will now
be phfjfeed to take your departure in peace. For a disloyal,
* treacherous, deceitful woman like you there is no room in my
house.'

Asghari said : * She possesses one other quality besides dis-
loyalty ; shall I tell you what that is ? She spent her time in
devising schemes for sowing mischief in the household. Eh,
Azmat, do you remember about the karhd-i which Mahmuda's
brother expressed a wish for, and you went and delivered a lying
message from me that " the bride says she has a headache"?
Speak out now, and tell us when did you mention any wish of his
to me, and when did I make the excuse of a headache ?'

Azmat said : * Lady, you were reading the Qur-dn on the roof.
I went up to tell you, but when I saw you reading, I came back
again. 9

* And the story of the headache,' said Asghari, ' was your own
invention V

Azmat said : * What I thought was this you had been reading
the Qur-an from the early morning to that time ; was it likely
you would bother your head about cooking V

Asghari said: \Weil, then, how do you explain your saying
that I was going to the hills ? Did I ever take you into my
confidence ? Did you ever hear me speak of such a thing ?' ,

To this question Azmat could make no reply. Then Asghari
produced the notification, and threw it down in front of the
Maulavi sdhib, saying : * Just look at that ; my lady Azmat here
is capable of this kind of thing. She herself tore off the notifi-
cation from the gate of the Mohiilla, and she herself posted it up
on this house ; and then she herself went running all the way to
my dear mother to tell her about it.'

While Asghari went on recounting these facts the Maulavi
sahib's countenance grew redder fend redder. On the other side
of the loom Tamasha Rhdnam was grinding her teeth. The
Maulavi said : * It is not enough to turn you out. You are a
thoroughly wicked woman.' And having said this, he shouted

CHAPTER XV 99

to his servant, and said : * Bah&dur ! take this unclean creature to
the police-station, and, stay 1 will write all her story in a note
at once.'

But Asghari said to the Mania vi sahib : ' It is enougk^jphe has
reached^her own punishment. Spare her from the police.' AnUr
she made a sign to Azmat to take herself off. Indeed she went
with her as far as the outer door.

So after all her pranks was Mamd Azmat turned out of this
house. When she got home her daughter fell upon her like a
fury, crying out : 4 Did I not say to you : " Don't, mother, don't
go in for robbing on this scale. If a hundred days last for the
thief, one day is sure to come for the merchant ; take care lest
one day you be caught ?" Whose words did you care for ? The
right thing has happened. As you did so you have received.
But don't make my name evil now in my husband's home. Go
away wherever your God may lead you. There is no work for you
in my house. As for the jewels, I have submitted to Providence ;
if it be written in my fate they will come to me again.'

CHAPTER XVI

IN this manner, after many prayers, Asghari succeeded in routing
her enemy, and freed the whole family from an incubus. When
Azmat's case had been decided, Asghari asked-permission a second
time to go to her father, which being gladly accorded, she took
leave, and arrived at her mother's house. There she stayed for
a whole week : and everything in which she desired her father's
advice was dismissed by her jn full. Her father asked, Has
Azmat been gottid of ?'

Asghari said : * By your honor's gracious favour everything
has turned out well. If my elder brother had not gone to Lahore
my father-in-law would never iiave come, nor would this account
of years have been settled, nor would Azmat have been dismissed.'

The Khan sahib asked : * And how will the management of the
house go on now !'

72

100 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Asghari said : ' As soon as the Mama was ousted I came here.
But there will not be any difficulty now in the management. It
was only Azmat who caused the trouble. Now I will look after
everything myself.'

The Khdn sahib asked : * What other plans have you started
there?'

Asghari said : * As yet I have not given my attention to any-
thing. From the very beginning I was encountered with the
difficulty about Azmat. I hope now to look into every matter
and set things in order ; and, please God, I will keep your honor
informed of whatever happens by letter.'

The Khan s&hib had made Asghari a monthly allowance after
her marriage of ten rupees. He now inquired whether he should
give her any money before his departure in case she should be
in difficulty about the household expenses. Asghari replied :
* Those ten rupees are really more than I require ; in fact, up to
date I have them all in hand, and if I took more, what should I
do with them ? If any need should arise I will ask your honor
myself.'

After this Asghari took leave of her father, and came back.
When she arrived at her mother-in-law's house she found her
mother-in-law busy blowing up the kitchen fire, and asked in
amazement : *Dear, dear ! has not a new Mama been engaged yet V
Her mother-in-law said : * As far as that goes several women
have come for the place, but when I heard the wages they asked
I had not the courage to engage any of them. Azmat was a bad
woman, but she served us for twenty- five years at eight annas 1 a
month. Now, whatever M&ma comes here, I find she will not take
less than two rupees and her food. I put it off till you should
come back.'

Asghari said : * There is a Mama whom / have in my eye, but
she too asks high wages Kifdyat Nisa's younger sister, Diyanat
Nisd. 2 She can cook, and do needlework, and all that; and
Kifdyat Nis& once told me that she was ready to go into service
if she could find a good situation?

1 In those days equal to one shilling, but now about eightpence.

2 Diyanat means ' Probity.'

CHAPTER XVI ioi

Muhammad KamiPs mother asked : * What wages will she
take r

Asghari replied : ' She said she wanted three rupees a month
and her food. But with a little talking over she will probably
be content with two.'

* If we are to give two rupees a month and food,' said Muham-
mad Kdmil's mother, ' there is Chuniya's mother (I mean Chuniya
the daughter of Bhondu the sutler) begging for the place, and she
lives across the way.'

Asghari said : * I would not take Chuniya's mother even at
four annas a month.'

Muhammad KamiPs mother said : ' Eh, why not T

Asghari said : ' It is not good to have a woman living close by.
Your eyes are off her for a minute, and she can pick up whatever
she fancies, and take it home and be back again in no time. And
with the houses so near to each other Chuniya's mother will be
always going home, and will very likely stay there all night.'

Muhammad KamiPs mother said : ' Bakhshu's wife has often
spoken to me on behalf of her daughter Zulfan, and Zulfan lives
in Saiyid Firuz's cottages.'

Asghari asked : * Is it that Zulfan who always dresses so finely ?'

Muhammad KamiPs mother said : * Yes ; does she dress so very
finely ? She is lately married ; she has rather a taste for good
clothing.'

Asghari said : ' That kind of person is not the sort to engage.'

Muhammad KdmiPs mother said : ' Zulfan's mother is willing
to take service herself.'

Asghari said : * She has a kite's tail sticking to her always in
the shape of her little daughter, who does not leave hold of her
mother for a minute. In that way we shall be said to have one
servant, but at meals there will be two.'

Muhammad KAmiPs mother said : * There is not anyone else
that I can think of.'

* Look here,' said Asghari, * I will send for that Diydnat Nis4.'

* And what about the wages ?' said Muhammad Kdmii's mother.
Asghari said : * To get an honest servant for small wages ia

impossible. It would suit us to give three instead of two rupees

102 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

to people of this kind ; but I do not fancy giving a woman like
Azmat even eight annas a month to let the house be robbed by
her. That saying is true enough : " Dear for a good reason,
cheap for a bad cause." '

The meal for that day was cooked by the mother-in-law and
daughter-in-law together. When it was over Asghari took
Mahmuda with her, and went up on to the roof. As long as the
Maulavi sdhib was in the house Asghari curtailed her habit of
coming down from the roof considerably ; moreover, she im-
pressed it upon Mahmuda that she was not to be always running
downstairs. Mahmuda was but a little girl ; she asked her sister-
in-law : ' Dearest, why not ?'

Asghari replied : ' People do not go running about as they like
in the presence of their elders.'

After dinner there began to be a quarrel between the Maulavi
s&hib and his wife over the accounts of the housekeeping. His wife
complained that he sent her far too small a sum for expenses ; that
upon her, living at home, fell all the arrangements for weddings,
the obligations to the family connections, journeys to and fro,
keeping up the feasts, and what not. The Maulavi sdhib declared
that twenty rupees a month was not too small a sum, that his
wife had not the gift of good management, and that was the
reason why such an unhappy state of things prevailed in the
house. In the middle of it all the Maulavi shouted out for
Mahmuda, and when she came, he said : ' Call your sister-in-law
here.'

When Asghari heard of her being summoned, she was amazed,
and thought to herself : ' Why do they send for me now ?' She
asked Mahmuda : ' What is going on ?'

Mahmuda said : ' There is a quarrel going on.'

When Asghari went in the Maulavi s&hib said : * You tell me,
sonnie, who will do the housekeeping now V

Asghari said : ' My dear mother will do it just as she always
has done.'

The Maulavi sahib said : ' I have seen what comes of her doing
it. Fancy a house getting twenty rupees a month, and a state
like this ! not a single cooking-pot fit to use, and nothing respect-

CHAPTER XVI 103

able. If one wants a teaspoonful of sherbet at any time, God
willing, you won't find the means of getting it in this house.'

Asghari said : * What fault of the mother's is there in that ?
That wretched Azmat ruined the house.'

The Maulavi s&hib said : * Azmat would have had no power
if she had had the sense to govern it. Azmat was a servant, not
the mistress of the family.'

Asghari said : * When a woman of her age, and of twenty-five
years' service in a house, girds up her loins to rob it, who can
discover her frauds ? One cannot suspect an old servant of that
kind.'

' But after all,' said the Maulavi s&hib, ' you did suspect her,
did you not ?'

Asghari said : * / suspect her ? It was her evil genius which
prompted her when she started that story about the lawsuit, and
so stirred up a nest of sleeping hornets.'

Here the mother-in-law intervened : * Out of fifty rupees you
keep thirty for your own single self, and here, for the whole family,-
only twenty P

The Maulavi sahib said : * There is no comparison between the
expenses of living at home and abroad ! You have counted me
as a single person ; what about the servants, the travelling equip-
ments, the house, the clothes ?'

His wife said : ' You get your travelling expenses and house
from the chief.'

The Maulavi sdhib said : * I get a horse, but I have to supply
the corn and grass for feeding it out of my own purse ; the groom
is four rupees a month. And the house has to be kept in repair:
Then I have to keep up a position befitting the chief's court, and
money going and coming a thousand worries. It is a wonder
to me how I get on at all.'

Asghari addressed her mother-in-law, and said : ' Mother
dear, what is the use of quarrelling about the twenty rupees ?
A thousand thanks for what we do get. If God will send a blessing
upon the dear father's earnings, that is worth thousands.'

Her mother-in-law said : * Daughter, the house cannot be kept
going on twenty rupees by me.'

104 THE BRIO'S MIRROR

Asghari restrained her mother-in-law by a look, and said to the
Maulavi s&hib : ' Your honor, if it please you, give two rupees
less even than you have been giving ; but whatever you are
pleased to give, let it arrive punctually month by month. When
at the right moment there is not a farthing forthcoming, one is
obliged to borrow, and through borrowing whatever vestige of
good luck remains to a family is blown away.'

The Maulavi sahib said : ' The rules for payment of salaries in
these Hindustani Courts are very bad. Sometimes they are dis-
tributed after six months, sometimes you only get them after a
whole year. That is the reason why one cannot regulate one's
expenses. But before I go, I will tell Hazari Mai to give you
twenty rupees every month regularly.'

Asghari inquired : ' Suppose the banker debits your honor for
the advances, will he not require interest ?'

The Maulavi sahib said : ' No, he will not take interest. He
has a standing account with the Chief's estate ; an order shall be
sent from there.'

Asghari said : ' Then that will be all right.'
Accordingly twenty rupees was fixed as the monthly allowance.
But Muhammad Kamil's mother did not like the arrangement,
and when they were alone together she complained to Asghari.

Asghari said : ' Please God ! I will manage the house upon
twenty. Don't let your honor be alarmed about it. And, as a
matter of fact, the Maulavi sahib cannot keep up his position
properly upon less than thirty rupees. In the profession of
agent, in the first place, there is no chance of any extraneous
receipts j 1 and if there were, you would not expect the Maulavi
*hib to take them, would you ? Thus it is a case of " the slices
counted, the soup measured." Suppose two or three rupees more
did come for the house, and the Maulavi sdhib should live in dis-
comfort himself, that would not be right.'

Her mother-in-law listened to this, and made no more ado.

Asghari sent for Diyanat Nisa, and after some conversation,

got her to agree to two rupees a month and her food ; and she

cautioned her in these words : 'Mind that you are careful, Diyinat

1 An euphemism for ' bribes/

CHAPTER XVII 105

Nisd, and do not let anything happen which might force us to
alter our good opinion of you. As your elder sister conducts her-
self in my home, so do you here.'

Diydnat Nisd said : * Lady, may God send my death to me in
that hour when I cast an eye upon what is not my own property !
If need be, I will ask you, and then eat ; but to taste even a pinch
of salt without your order I hold abominable.'

CHAPTER XVII

ON the day after the Bed, the Maulavi sahib started on his journey
to Lahore. Asghari at once laid in a stock of all the things that
were necessary, and henceforth she continued regularly to lay in
stocks of things at their proper season whenever she found they
were cheap. Chilies, onions, coriander-seed, grain, different kinds
of pulse, rice, sugar, firewood and other fuel, potatoes, yams,
turnips, fenugreek, fennel-leaves, and what not, were all purchased
in turn at the proper time. Including the Mama, the household
consisted of five persons. Twice a day a pound and a half of meat
arrived, out of which Diyunat managed always to provide two
varieties of fare. Sometimes she cooked half with vegetables,
and half plain ; sometimes she made one half into kabdbs ; and
once a day ddl, and every seventh day pnld-o, and sweetened rice
were standing dishes. Two or three kinds of chutney some
sweet, some flavoured with essence of mint, and some with
vinegar and several kinds of preserves, were made by Asghari
at home and stored. And in addition to these she provided one
bottle each of sherbet of pomegranate, syrup of lime-juice, sherbet
of violets, sherbet of lilies, and sherbet of falsa. 1 A supply of
everything that was requisite was regularly kept up, and notwith-
standing this abundance the expenditure in each month did not
exceed fifteen rupees. Out of the five rupees which were left over
there were gradually purchased two large platters, weighing five

1 The fiilsa is a shrub bearing a small purple berry, much esteemed for
making cooling drinks. The botanical name is Orewia Asiatic*.

106 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

and ten seers, a tray, some small spoons, two drinking-vessels,
one complete tea-set, and so on. Also she had two boxes made,
and two chests of drawers one for the kitchen, and one for the
store-closet and two new beds were furnished. In a word, out
of her twenty rupees, Asghari furbished up the house to such an
extent that in outward appearance it assumed a look of consider-
able grandeur. Thrift and good order were introduced by her
into everything.

In Azmat's time, three or four pice worth of goodies were
fetched from the b&zar every day for Mahmuda's sake, since
there was never a crumb left over from the family meals. Now,
at both meals three or four chupatties began to remain on the
tablecloth, and for Mahmuda she would sometimes set by a couple
of bits of egg apple, or she would let her have a pinch of coarse
sugar, or she would give her a slice of preserved fruit. The daily
sending to the bazr for sweets was stopped. Occasionally, for
a treat, if Mahmuda had set her heart on anything, it was sent for.

For a whole lifetime no poor man had ever received from the
family so much as a handful of meal, or half a chupattie. Now,
after each of the two daily meals, two chupatties were given away
to the poor. Whatever things there were in the house used
formerly to be left lying about in wonderful misarrangement, like
cabbage-leaves or radishes. Now everything was in the right
place. If you ask for the bundles of clothes, they are all tied up
and arranged in order, with the clothes neatly folded inside them.
Every vessel in the closet where the grain is stored, and water
kept, is carefully covered up. 1 The dishes, clean and bright, are
put away in their proper places ; those of china and those of
copper apart. It was as if the house were a machine, with all its
works in good order, and the key of the machine in Asghari's
hands. Whenever she turned it, the machine began moving of
itself.

As time went on, two rupees or four rupees began to be saved
every month, and Asghari credited them to a separate account as
a deposit on trust. The practice of borrowing had been forsworn

1 The grain (including pulse) and also the water are stored in largo earthen-
ware jars placed in a row.

CHAPTER XVII 107

from the day when Asghari took the management of the house
into her own hands. Not even by chance was a farthing's worth
of goods ever got from the bazar on credit. Asghari used to
write down all the accounts of the house in a book. When any-
thing came to be nearly used up, and Diyanat Nisa reported,
* Lady, there is only enough ghee for two days more,' Asghari got
out her book, and looked in it to see on what date what amount of
ghee was purchased, and how much the daily consumption was.
If the calculation did not tally she subjected Diydnat Nisa to a
cross-examination. It was not possible that any wasteful ex-
penditure should occur, or things be made away without being
accounted for. Even the reckonings of the corn-grinder 1 and the
washerwoman were duly entered in Asghari's book.

CHAPTER XVIII

As soon as everything was in working order, and some method
had been established in the house, Asghari turned her attention
to other matters. Muhammad Kamil was studying, but in the
desultory and half-hearted manner in which boys who are left to
their own resources and their own devices are apt to study. His
father, as we have seen, lived away from home ; Muhammad
Aqil, though he was the elder brother still, the difference be-
tween the two was not more than two and a half years at any
rate, he did not exercise any control over him. Muhammad
Kamil did his lessons morning anfl evening, but he also used to
play with the boys of his own age at cards, or chess, or draughts.
On several occasions, when he was engaged in some game, he
would not come home till three full hours of the night had gone.
Asghari knew all about this, but she was seeking for some oppor-
tunity that would enable her to speak about it in such a way as
not to give offence.
One day, Muhammad Kamil came home very late at night, and

1 The oorn is purchased whole and ground in the house under strict super-
vision by women called in for the purpose.

108 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

(possibly he had been winning before he came) he was in good
spirits. Directly he came in he asked for supper. Diydnat Nis4
ran to warm up the sauce. Muhammad K&mil thought it was
just being cooked, and asked : * Mamd, is not your pot off the
fire yet ?'

Asghari said : * It has been taken off and put on again several
times already. You eat your meals at such unreasonable hours
that the supper gets cold, and is perfectly ruined. Either make
some arrangement to take your meals in good time, or else get
your supper outside. At present your dear mother is put to
inconvenience every day with our waiting for you.*

Muhammad K&mil said : * Eh, do you people wait for me ? I
thought for certain you would have your own meals.'

Asghari said : * When there are men in the house, what need
is there for women to be gobbling up their meals ?*

Muhammad K&mil said : ' That might do if it were a matter of
a few days. But what is the use of insisting on it ? Eat your
own suppers in future.'

Asghari kept silence for the time. When they were on the roof,
Muhammad K&mil himself began talking on the subject in the
same way. Asghari said to him : ' It is an extraordinary thing
that you cannot do anything which is contrary to your habits,
and yet you wish us to act contrary to ours. Why don't you
come home earlier ?'

Muhammad Kamil said : ' One does not care to go out again
after supper, and sleep does not come to me till late. I get stupid,
stopping in the house without any occupation. That is why I
come home late, on purpose, so that I may go to bed directly after
supper.'

Asghari said : * Occupation is a matter within one's own power.
There are a thousand things to do if a man regulates his time pro-
perly. The one occupation of reading takes up plenty of time.
I used to see my eldest brother at his books often until midnight,
and if by chance he went to sleep he used to make a great lamen-
tation. You do not work hard enough at your reading ; that is
why you get so bored at the want of occupation.'

Muhammad K&mil said : ' How much harder ought I to

CHAPTER XV III log

work ? I do my lessons both times. I learn by heart what is
set me.'

Asghari said : 4 1 don't understand what it is that you do learn.
That day when Azmat's accounts were going on, your dear father
asked you some question about a sum, and you could not tell him.
I felt quite ashamed.'

Muhammad Kamil said : ' Accounts are a different branch of
study. I am reading Arabic ; that has nothing to do with
accounts.'

Asghari said : ' The object of learning things is that one's
business with the outer world should never come to a standstill.
My eldest brother has read a lot of Arabic and Persian, but he
cannot get an appointment. My father tells him that until he
learns how to keep accounts and do office work he need not expect
to be employed. Now Ma-alandesh 1 is studying at college, and
he knows more about keeping accounts than his elder brother.
My father is delighted with him, and says that if he goes on read-
ing at college for another two years, he will get him a place under
Government.'

Muhammad Kamil said : * They only take young fellows at
college ; I am past the age.'

Asghari said : 4 You are not bound to enter the college. Are
there not lots of private tutors in the city ? Just give as much of
your time to this as you now waste in gambling.'

Muhammad Kamil aaid : ' Why, come now, I am not gambling
all day and night. It is only now and then that I sit down to it
for an hour or so.'

Asghari said : * Gambling is a habit like opium eating. It
begins with a little, but goes on increasing until at length it
becomes a second nature, and there is no getting rid of it. In the
first place, these amusements are sinful ; but, besides that, they
lander a man from acquiring any other proficiency. Men of worth
and merit never gamble ; it is the good-for-nothing people who

1 There is a meaning in all these names. The father's name FH'irandeah
may be translated 'far seeing. 1 The elder brother's Khairandeah means
4 looking to the good/ and Ma41andeah may be translated as ' looking to the
main chance.'

110 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

kill their time in this way. However much a man may rejoice at
winning in these games, there is every bit as much grief in losing
at them ; and just as the joy of winning is unreal, so is the grief
at losing unreasonable. Often, too, when people go on playing
together, gratuitous disputes arise between them. If you will
take my advice, you will give up these games entirely. People do
not say anything about it in your presence, but behind your back
they have their jest. It was only the day before yesterday that
a young fellow came in search of you ; the Mdma answered from
inside that the young gentleman has gone out. The young fellow
said to his companion : " Come along to Master 1 Husaini's house,
we shall find him there in the crush over the chess." Your dear
father's name stands high in the city ; people have great faith in
him ; but going to such places gives a man a bad name ; and I
have heard your father, too, lamenting over his bad fortune that
neither of his two sons has grown up to be such as he would rejoice
to see them. He said of Aqil that, though he had been given a
good education, he had now forgotten what he learnt in the ab-
sorbing pursuit of his office work ; but he said of his younger son :
" He has no leisure from play and sport." Indeed, some one or
oteher had carried the information to my own dear father ; he
spoke to me about it ; but I said : " It is all a lie. If anything of
the kind went on I should be sure to know of it." '

This remonstrance of Asghari's had a very good effect upon
Muhammad Kamil. He left off gambling altogether, and began
to devote himself to his Arabic with much more zeal than for-
merly ; and he commenced learning to keep accounts, and other
things, from one of the schoolmasters out of school hours. God
has conferred a special blessing upon time. By spending his time
according to rule, Muhammad Kamil before many days were over
had made considerable progress in Arabic, and he had also read
through and mastered several books on mathematics.

1 ' Master ' here means ' schoolmaster. '

CHAPTER XIX III

CHAPTER XIX

WHILE Muhammad Kdmil was employing his energies in this
direction, Asghari had the opportunity of starting a new enter-
prise. In the mohulla in which their house was there resided a
personage of very great importance the Hakim Ruhullah Khdn. 1
The Hakim sahib himself was treasurer to the Maharaja in the
state of Patiyala, but his family and children lived in the mohulla.
What with the house, and the grounds, and the servants, and
dependants, it was a vast establishment ; and the family was
reckoned as one of the highest rank in the city. They had formed
alliances with the best families, and were in the pick of society.
The Hakim sahib's younger brother, Fatihullah Khan, was for a
long time manager-in-chief of the estate of the Ruler of Indore,
but when Munshi Ammu Jan's power was in the ascendant in
that State he thought it best under the circumstances to retire.
He possessed, however, lakhs of rupees of his own, and was quite
independent of service. He had purchased many thousands of
rupees worth of property in the city, and the monthly rents which
came in alone amounted to several hundreds. He lived in great
state ; there was a guard of sepoys at the entrance to his house,
and, inside and outside, some thirty or forty servants. Horses,
elephants, palkis, carriages, always ready, in case he should go
out.

Fatihullah Khan had two daughters Jamdlara and Husnara.
Jamdlara had been married to the son of the Nawab Isfandiy&r
Khan, but they got on so badly together that at last all intercourse
between them was broken off. Not (God forbid it !) that there
'was any divorce ; but still, there was no longer any pretence
of affection. Even the articles of the bride'a trousseau 3 had

1 The title of ' Hukecm, 1 which means ' Physician,' may have been hereditary,
since there is a great tendency in India to address people by titles earned by
their ancestors. Or it may be that each of the brothers had qualified himself
to bo a physician in order to give advico gratis to the poor, a species of
charity which is by no means uncommon among wealthy Masai mans.

9 These would include not only clothes and jewellery, but all the cooking
apparatus and a great deal of the furniture of the bride's apartments.

112 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

been sent back to her. Husndra had been betrothed into the
family of the Nawdb of Jhajjar. The Aunt on the mother's side
of these two girls, Shah Zamdni begam, lived in the mohulla in
which Asghari's mother resided, and in that mohulla Asghari's
ability was the subject of common talk. Shdh Zamdni, too, knew
all about her, and had also seen her upon several occasions at
weddings or other functions. Now it happened that Shdh-
zamani begam came to pay her younger sister, Husndra's mother,
a visit.

It is in the order of this world that no human being is exempt
from sorrow, and doubtless this has been so ordained by Provi-
dence, since if any person were happy in all respects he would not
remember his God even in his moments of leisure, nor think of
himself as only God's servant. Shah Zaimini's sister Sultdna
begam had every worldly gratification at her command, yet she
was a constant prey to feelings of mortification in regard to her
daughters. On the one hand, here was Jamdldra, after all the
ceremonies of her marriage had been fully completed, sitting
neglected at home. On the other hand, Husndra had developed
such a trick of ill-temper that she was on bad terms with everyone
living in the house. She had no reverence for her mother, nor
respect for her elder sister, nor fear of her father. There was not
a servant who had not some special complaint against her, not a
maid who was not asking to be protected from her. Hu.sndra
had raised the whole household against herself.

When Shdh Zamani arrived one would have supposed that
Husndra, conscious of the fact that this was her mother's elder
sister, would have sat quiet for half an hour or so. Not a bit of
it. Shdh Zamani had barely time to get out of her pdlki, when
she was assailed by a series of complaints one after another.
Nargis came up with tears in her eyes, and said : * Look, Begam
sahib, the young lady has torn my new dopatta to shreds. 1 Sosan
raised a complaint : ' Begam sdhib, the young lady has left the
mark of her teeth on my neck.' Guldb sobbed out : ' My ear ia
all red with blood.' 1 The nurse screamed : * Look at this I she

1 Nargii (Narcissus), Sown (Lily), and Guliib (Roue), are name* of the
female attendant*.

CHAPTER XIX 113

has hit my poor little girl such a blow with a stick that there is a
great weal on her arm.' And from the kitchen the Mdmd sent
up a cry : * See, she is throwing handfuis and handfuls of ashes
into the stewing-pans.'

Shah Zamdni begam called out to her : ' Husnd, come here !'

Recognising her Aunt's voice, Husndra did at last come forward,
but without any greeting or obeisance. Her hands covered with
ashes, and her feet all muddy just as she was she ran and
seized hold of her Aunt.

Her Aunt said : ' Husnd, you have grown very rude.'

Husndra said : ' This old hag Nargis has been telling tales, I
suppose,' and so saying she got away from her Aunt's lap, and
ran and pulled Nurgis's hair. Her Aunt called out * Oh ! oh !'
repeatedly, but sho listened to nothing.

Shdh Zamdni turned to her sister, and said : * Sister Sultdna,
for Heaven's sake got a governess for this child.'

Sultana begam said : * My dear sister, what can I do ? I have
been in search of a governess for months ; there is none to be had.'

Shah Zamdni begam said : ' Oho. sister ! is the old proverb true
of you also : " With the boy in her lap, Lost child ! cried all over
the city"? Why, in your own mohulla there is the young bride
just come to Maulavi Muhammad Fazil's house a governess who
is one in a hundred thousand,'

Sultdna said : ' I never heard about it till this moment. See,
I will send someone at once.' And then she called for the super-
intendent of the household, and said : * Mdni ji, there is some
Mauiavi sdhib living in this mohulla ; my dear elder sister says
that his youngest daughter-in-law is very highly educated. Look
you, if she is willing to take service as a governess, go and bring
her here. I am prepared to give her food and clothing, and ten
rupees a month, with pocket-money for pawn and tobacco ; and
when the girl shall have finished her first portion of the Qur-dn,
and shall have learnt good manners, I will give the governess
something to gratify her independently of her salary.*

Mdni ji went to the Maulavi sahib's house. She was received by
Muhammad Kdmil's mother, and after the usual courtesies, she
asked : * My good madam, are you the Maulavi sahib's wife V

114 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Diy&nat Nis& replied : * Yes,this is the lady ; come and sit down ;
where have you come from ?'

Mini ji said : * Where is your younger daughter-in-law ?'

Muhammad K& nail's mother replied : * On the roof.'

Mani ji asked : c Shall I go up there to her ?'

Diy&nat Nisi said : * Your honor will kindly tell us your
address and station. The lady-bride will come here to receive
you.'

Mani ji said : * I am come from the Hakim sahib's house.'

Muhammad K&miPs mother inquired after the health of each
member of the Hakim's family individually, and then said to
Mini : ' What is your business with Tamizdar Balm ?'

Mani ji said : ' When she comes I will tell her.'

It was now about the time for Tamizdar to come downstairs,
for it was her habit to come down after saying her afternoon
prayers, and she said her sunset and evening prayers, both of
them, on the lower floor.

When Mdni ji saw Asghari she had some scruples about saying
anything to her on the matter of taking service as a governess.
But in the course of conversation she mentioned that the Begam
s&hib was anxious to get her daughter educated, that the Begam's
elder sister had spoken to her about Asghari, and that the Begam
had in consequence sent her to the house.

Asghari said : ' Pray make many salaams on my behalf to both
of the Begam sahibs, and say that I never grudge what little
knowledge I possess to anyone. The only object of study is to
enable a person to benefit others, and the elder Begam s&hib is
aware, no doubt, that in my old home I taught many girls to read.
It would please me greatly to teach the Begam s&hib's daughter,
but what can I do ? The Begam s&hib will not send her daughter
here, and it is impossible for me to go there.'

Mdni ji, without actually mentioning the word salary, said in
a low voice : * The Begam sdhib is prepared to guarantee every
kind of expense, even of pocket-money.'

Asghari said : * That is all very good of her, and, moreover, it
is quite in keeping with her high position. But we too humble
folk as we are, living under her shade God doe not leave us

CHAPTER XIX 115

without food and clothing. I am ready to perform any service
for her as an unpurchased slave. And if she wishes for a paid
governess there are plenty to be found in the city.*

After this M&ni ji asked some questions about Asghari, and
when she learnt that she was a Tahsildar's daughter, and that
Maulavi Muhammad Fazil sahib, too, held an appointment of
fifty rupees a month, she felt abashed at the impropriety of her
having hinted at her taking service. But while she listened to
Asghari's conversation, Mani ji became enchanted with her.
Although she had been in the way of seeing semi-regal establish-
ments, the purity of Asghari's language struck her with astonish-
ment. She began to apologize, saying : ' Madam, pray forgive
me.*

Asghari said : * Why do you drag me over the thorns like this ?
In the first place, to take service is nothing wrong there is
nothing sinful in it, and besides, when you were not acquainted
with the facts, what harm was there in your asking ?*

After a time Mani ji took her leave, and when she got back, she
said : * Regain sahib ! she is a governess one out of a hundred
thousand, no doubt of that. To look at her face is enough to
humanize anyone, and to sit by her side is to acquire good breed-
ing. One might learn wisdom from being under her shadow, and
catch an air of refinement from breathing her atmosphere. But
she is not one to take service. She is a Tahsildar's daughter, and
daughter-in-law to the agent of the Chief of Lahore. They keep
a woman-servant in the house. There is a fine cloth spread in
the reception- room, and the seats are covered with embroidery
and cushions. They are well-to-do people living in comfort.
Bless you ! how should she care to take service ?'

Shah Zamdni Begarn said : * She is quite right. You sent
Mani there, Sultana dear, but I was certain myself that she would
never take service.'

M&ni ji said : * But she is such a dear good woman that she is
quite willing to teach for nothing. 9

* What ! and come here V asked Sultdna.

Mini ji said : 4 Why, Begam sahib, you cannot suppose that a
person who has no need to take service should care to come here. 9

Il6 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

SuhAnasaid: 4 How then I Do you mean that the child should
go there?*

Shah Zamani said : * Why, what harm is there in thatf The
house is only two steps off. And whatever makes you have such
a poor idea of the Maulavi s&hib ? His mother was first cousin
on the father's side to our Ali Naqi Khdn.'

Sultina said : * Ah ! then in one sense he belongs to our family. 9

Shdh Zamini said : ' There you are. God forbid you should
think him a mere common person ! In old days he was very
well-to-do in the world ; it is since the Chiefs fortunes declined
that the poor fellow has become impoverished. Still, they have
always kept a woman-servant in the house, and there are one or
two retainers at the entrance.'

Sultana said : ' So be it, then. Husnara shall go there.'

CHAPTER XX

NEXT day the two sisters, Shah Zamani begum and Sult&nn
begam, called at Asghari's house, and took Husri&ra with them.
Although the appliances at Asghari's command were of a humble
character, still, by reason of her tact and good management, she
arranged for their reception so successfully that everything wanted
was forthcoming without any fuss. Two kinds of attar, 1 a box of
unguents in four compartments, some cardamoms, prepared betel-
nut, and tea made their appearance with no interruption to the
conversation. Some pawn leaves of excellent flavour were pre-
pared. The two sisters said to Asghari : ' It would be such a
kindness to us if you would give your mind to this girl's
education.'

Asghari said : * To begin with, it is not so very much that I
have acquired myself, but what little I have acquired through the
kindness of my elders, please God ! I will not spare myself in
explaining to her to the best of my power.'

As they were about to take leave, Sultdna begam offered to put
a gold mohur into Asghari's hand.

1 /.., ' Otto ' of ro9C9 % and of some other flower.

&WAPTER XX 117

Asghari said : * I do not want this. Surely you do not suppose
it possible that I should take any fee from your honor V

Sultdna said : ' Hea^" n f^fend ! I never presumed to offer
you a fee. This is for sweets for the BismiUahS

Asghari said : ' Ah, yes, it is the custom to distribute sweets
for good hick at the beginning. But that won't come to a gold
mohur. A pound or two of confectionaries will be ample for the
children to sweeten their mouths with,' and so saying she made a
sign to Diydnat, who fetched a large dish from the store closet,
and filled it with comfits. Asghari herself recited the Fatiha over
them, and gave some to Husnara, and then told Diyanat to take
up the laden dish and distribute the rest among all the children.

Sult&na said : * My dear, you have put me to shame.*

Asghari said : * What are we poor humble folk fit for ? But
whatever there is iu the house is all your honor's property. One
thing indeed will be my giving if I teach Husuara begam, and
may God bring about the day when I shall be made proud of it
by your honor !'

After this interchange of complimentary phrases Shdh Zamani
begam and Sultana begam returned home, and left Husnara
behind them in Asghari's charge. I shall have to make a separate
book about the manner in which Asghari conducted Husn&ra's
education ; if the whole of that story were written down here this
book would be too large. But what I wish to say now is, that
directly Husndra became Asghari's pupil Asghari was besieged by
the whole mohulla. Every woman you see is taking her daughter
to Asghari. But Asghari picked out those who were born of good
parents, and found some pretext for putting off the others. She
said she might any day be going to vstay with her mother, and that
schooling was of no good unless it were continuous. For all that,
some twenty girls became regular attendants ; but it was against
Asghari's principles to take pay from any girl. In fact, she was
in the habit of spending a rupee or two upon them out of her own
allowance. From morning till noon there was reading, and then
two hours' leave was granted for dinner. After dinner there was
writing, and for the last three hours of the daylight needlework.

The needlework was a source of profit. For it was not merely

Il8 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

sewing that was taught, but lace-making of every kind, and fine
stitching, and all kinds of cutting out, and the making and stitch-
ing on of embroidery. At the commencement Asghari laid out
ten rupees in getting together the necessary materials, but after-
wards there began to be a surplus even after that expense. What-
ever things the girls made Diydnat used to take privately to the
b&z&r, and get them disposed of, and in this manner there gradu-
ally accrued quite a large sum to the credit of the school. Out
of this fund clothes were made and books were purchased for
those girls who were poor. A woman was retained as servant
specially for the girls to give them water, and to pull their
punkah, and her wages, too, came out of the fund.

As for the girls, they used at one time to be frightened out of
their wits at merely going near their governesses, but Asghari's
pupils were enamoured of her. They began dropping in of their
own accord, even before she had finished dressing, and stayed in
a body till a watch of the night had passed, and would hardly go
then. The reason of this was that Asghari had a genuine affection
for all of them, and had devised such an excellent method of
teaching that the children got educated in the course of conversa-
tion. There was nothing here of that sing-song drone like a
spinning-wheel, which begins in the morning and is not over by
sunset. 1 Asghari taught her pupils just as her father had taught
herself, and hence the girls were not only the most diligent of
pupils, but the most genial of companions. When any girl's
marriage took place some little bit of jewellery was included
among her wedding-presents at the coat of the school fund. If
Asghari had desired to increase her numbers all the girls' schools
in the city would have been deserted. Hundreds of women
made overtures to her on behalf of their daughters, and girls, too,
came running themselves from all quarters, for the simple reason
that in other schools there is nothing but restraint all day long,
and the harshness of the governesses, and the minimum of learning

1 The ordinary method of instruction ia for a monitor to read a few words
of ^ the prescribed book, which all the other children repeat together over
and over again, till they get the cue for a few more words, and so on. The
meaning of the words is never explained.

CHAPTER XX 119

with the maximum of beating and taskwork. Suppose they have
read all day in one of those it is but a few words ; from morning
to evening the same dull repetition, and if any girl is silent for a
minute, and the teacher's eye falls upon her then woe betide her !
But if you inquire what sort of tasks they perform first of all,
when they arrive in the morning, they sweep out the house, then
they fold up the bedding of the mistress and of the master, 1 and
of some ten or twelve little monitors of the school nay, perhaps
of the mistress's neighbours ; and then four or five of them together
will move out of the way the big heavy bedsteads, bad luck to
them ! 2 When that is over, some of the girls whose ill-fate has
come speedily must sit down to their scripture lesson, and no
sooner do the words fall from their lips than the teacher begins
to flourish her wand. And some who saw a good man's face
when they first got up 3 must do all the housework. One of
them holds the schoolmistress's little boy ; her elbow is breaking
under his weight, but her neck is fiend-ridden by the dread of a
beating, and so she walks up and down, beguiling the time. The
cries of beaten children fall on her ears. What is throbbing inside
her is her own trembling heart. She esteems her own affliction a
relief from that torture. Another has begun burnishing yester-
day's dirty cooking-potxS. Already her joints are swelling, and
her shoulders refuse their work ; but her little sister is getting a
beating, and is screaming out, 4 Mercy, teacher, I am dying ! Mercy,
I am pledged to you ! Mercy for God's sake ! Mercy for the
prophet's sake ! Mercy ! I am the monitor's handmaid. Oh !
oh ! mother, mother ! sister, sister !' And the sister ? is here
scrubbing pots as fast as she can to the tune of * jhain jhain.' 4
Then, when they are quit of these duties, the time has come for

1 The mistress's husband is called 'master,' and their children 'monitors/
sarcastically.

1 The bcidsteads would have been moved into the open courtyard iu the
middle of the house for people to sleep on, and in the morning they would
be set up on end in the verandas, so as to take up as little room as possible.

8 Which is held to confer good luck for the day.

4 The pots, which are of copper or brass, are burnished with a moist cloth
covered with ftne sand or ashes. Of necessity they have to be kept sornym-
lously clean. ' Jhain jhain ' is an expression imitative of the noise made in
burnishing.

120 ,THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

the spices to be ground, for the meal to be kneaded, for the fire
to be lit, for the meat to be browned. Then at mid-day, if you
ask for the teacher she is fast asleep, and little innocents are
employed in fanning her, and in their hearts are praying to God
that she may sleep so soundly as never to get up again.

That is the kind of misery which prevails in other schools. 1
But under Asghari's rule there was neither beating nor scolding.
It was a great threat of hers if she said : ' Listen to me, sister, if
you do not learn your lessons my school will get a bad name on
your account. I shall send for your mother, and say to her :
" Your daughter is not learning anything here : you had better
place her with another governess." ' No need to say more. The
girl was in despair, and at the next lesson everything was on the
tip of her tongue. Or suppose any girl did not remember her
lesson correctly, it was said to her : ' Sister, you have not learnt
your lesson to-day ; this afternoon the other girls will do needle-
work, and you reading.' That was quite enough to make her get
her lesson by heart in no time.

The two monitors in the school were Mahmuda and Husnara.
There was no sweeping the house, no folding up of bedclothes,
no moving of bedsteads, no cleaning of dirty vessels, no carrying
about of budding monitors. On the contrary, the girls had a
servant of their own. It was a reign of love and peace, and only
three things to work at reading, writing, and sewing. The girls
took the keenest pleasure in gaining the instruction they received.

CHAPTER XXI

BY way of giving you some notion of the method of Asghari's
teaching I insert here the following anecdote of the school.

There was a certain woman named Safihan, 2 whose daughter
Fazilat was about ten years old. This Fazilat had a natural pro-

1 This book was written more than thirty years ago, and probably lias had
as great an influence on public opinion in India as ' Nicholas Nickleby ' had
in England.

2 Pronounce Sufeehuu, with the accent on the second syllable. The word
means ' ignorant/ Fazilat (Fuzeclut) means ' pre-eminence.'

CHAPTER XXI 121

penalty for reading and writing, and all sorts of needlework.
Safihan, on the contrary, wanted Fazilat to do all the sweeping
in the house, to wash the floors, and burnish the cooking vessels.
Fazilat used to chafe at any work of this description. She would
do it, certainly, when her mother expostulated with her, but even
then in a perfunctory manner. One day, when Safihan had lost
her temper with Fazilat, she took her off and placed her in Asghari's
school, and said : ' Mistress, this daughter of mine is a useless
girl. She flatly refuses to do anything that I tell her. Pray
give her a training of such a kind that she may take an interest
in doing her work in the house.'

When Asghari looked at the girl, she saw that she could make
something of her ; on the other hand, Fazilat had found in Asghari
a governess after her own heart. She would come to the school
at break of day, and not go home to her dinner till noon. Then,
when she had finished eating her food, she would rush back again,
and drink her water after she reached the school ; T and however
early she came in the afternoon, she would stay on till some time
after nightfall.

Safihan used to call at the school occasionally to see after her t
and it happened several times that she found her playing at dolls
with the other girls ; two or three times she found her cooking
dolls 1 feasts. One day, some time after nightfall Fazilat being
late in coming home Safihan went to fetch her. When she
arrived at the school, what does she see but Mahmuda engaged
in telling stories, and all the girls of the school sitting round her
listening, and the mistress herself, too, sitting among the girls,
and listening to the stories.

Then, indeed, the soul of Safihan took flame, and burnt itself
to ashes. She called out : * My word, madam ! you are a fine
schoolmistress, bringing these girls to ruin ! All the times I have
come to see Fazilat I have never once found her reading. Call
this a school ! It is a regular playing-house ! That is why the
girls are all so eager to come here !'

Asghari said : ' Sister, if your daughter is not being educated

1 It is a common expression for speed in travelling to say that one has
eaten at one place and drunk water at another.

122 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

in accordance with your wishes, it is in your power to remove her.
But do not cast imputations unjustly upon the school. Tell me,
now, How many days was Fazilat reading at the Md-i ji's 1 school V

Safihan said : ' I put her there when the moon of Miranji 2 was
young. She read all through Madar, and continued reading
through Khw&ja Mu-inuddin. She is with you from the beginning
of Rajah.' 8

4 Well,' said Asghari, 4 how far had she read at the Ma-i ji's ?'

* During the three months,' said Safihan, * she read the whole
of " And the good women," 4 and half of " God doe* not love the
utterance of evil words" '

Asghari said : ' One portion and a half in three months ; that
is half a portion a month. Your daughter came here in Rajah,
and now it is the new moon of the blank month 6 that is four
months. She has just finished the whole of " And I do not justify
myself " that is to say, she has read altogether seven and a half
portions, and her account now stands at about one portion a
month double what it was at the Ma-i ji's school. And when
Fazilat came here, she could not even draw a straight line with
ink ; 6 now she writes her name, and considering her age, she does
not make the letters so badly. She did not know how to count up
to twenty properly, and now she can multiply by fifteen. And in
sewing, she could not hem a border straight. Look at her handi-
work now. Here, Aqila ! just bring me the work-basket: Show
her some of Fazilat's stitching in that coat; and while you are
about it, bring some of Fazilat's fancy work, edgings, fringes,
flowers, embroidery, lace-work, 7 anything you can find.'

1 Pronounce Ma-ee jee : the word means ' mother. 1

9 She names the three months Rabiuasuni, Jumndalula, and Jumada-
lukhrd by the saints whose holidays occur in them.

1 Pronounce Rujjub.

4 The words between inverted comma* are the opening sentences of
' portion* ' of the Qur-an, of which there are thirty.

' I.e., without a saint's day. The month Shawwal.

6 The first step in learning to write Persian is to practise drawing a horizontal
line from right to left the whole space of the board which serves as a copy-book.

7 Twelve different kinds of fancy work arc enumerated, for which it would
be impossible to find exact equivalents in English.

CHAPTER XXI 123

Fazilat said : * Mistress, may not I go and fetch them V

Fazilat ran off, and came back laden with her productions.
Safihan, who had got ten answers for every one of her doubts,
was dumfounded.

Asghari said : * Speak out, sister. You have some idea of
justice. What else did you think your daughter would learn in
four months* time ?'

Poor Safihan was as much abashed as if pails of cold water had
fallen on her. She did not dare look the mistress in the face. All
this time Mahmuda's interesting story had been interrupted by
her sudden advent. All the girls began looking at her with big
reproachful eyes. She said : * Mistress, what did I know of this ?
Fazilat stays here all day long ; she comes home so late, there is
only time for her to get her supper and go to bed. I never have
a chance of asking her anything. On the few occasions when I
have happened to come here I have found her, sometimes playing
with dolls, sometimevS playing at cooking, and sometimes listening
to stories. That gave me the impression that she was wasting her
time in play and nonsense. Forgive me the words which just
now escaped my mouth. 1

Asghari said : ' Certainly. Your anxiety was not unnatural.
But it is in these very amusements that I teach the girls things of
real use. In their games of cooking the children learn the way
of preparing every kind of dish. They get to know the propor-
tion of spices, to judge the amount of salt, and to test things by
their flavour and odour. Eh, Fazilat ! yesterday was Friday
tell me, what amount of zarda 1 did all of you girls cook
together ? Let us hear how it was prepared, and what the
account came to.*

Fazilat said : * The accounts were all written down by Mah-
muda begam in her book. But, as your honour told me, I paid
particular attention to the receipt for preparing it, and I have it
well in my mind. There was one seer of rice. First of all we
soaked it in the large pan. I think we sent for half a pice worth

1 Pronounce Zurrdti. It means a diah of rioe coloured yellow (in rich
houses with saffron).

124 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

of h&rsinghar 1 stalks, but a pice worth came. We put them to
boil in about a seer and a half of water. When they came to the
boil, and the colour had gone out of them, we strained them out,
and threw the rice, after draining off the water, into the liquor.
When the rice was half soft, and just a grain of hardness remained
in it, we spread it out on a cloth, so that all the moisture might
evaporate. Then we took two chitacks 2 of ghee and made it
frizzle in a degchi with a seasoning of cloves, and emptied the
rice into it. Then we poured over the whole an equal weight with
the rice of coarse sugar, and just as much water, by guess, as
would soften whatever was left hard in the rice. Then we frizzled
in some ghee one chitack of raisins, and when they were well
swollen, threw them into the rice ; and afterwards we made it
all hot with live coals above and beneath the cooking-pot.'

Asghari said : * The ingredients are all right, but when 7 saw
the rice it had got caked. I fancy that, when you spread it out
on the cloth, you did not douche it with cold water.'

Then Asghari turned to Safihan and said : ' Well, sister, did
your daughter cook the zarda properly ? That is all by favour
of the dolls' feasts. And now, Mahmuda dear, let us hear the
accounts of your zarda.''

Mahmuda went and fetched her account-book, and said :
' Mistress, rice, at six seers the rupee, one seer of it, two annas
and three-quarters. The h&rsinghdr-stalks and cloves together,
one pice. Ghee, at two seers the rupee we ordered three chi-
tacks ; two were used with the cloves for the seasoning, and one
at the finish in frizzling the raisins altogether one anna and a
half for ghee. Sugar, at four seers the rupee, one seer, four annas.
Raisins, one pice. Charcoal, two annas. 3 The total came to ten

1 The Nyctanthes arbor tristis, an unsightly shrub whicli produces in tho
night lovely flowers that are shaken off by the wind at dawn. The }>etala are
white and the corolla a deep orange colour. The latter is used for dying, and
instead of saffron for colouring rice.

2 There are sixteen chitacks in a seer, so that a chitack is about two
ounces.

8 This last item is not in the original as published, but has been added to
make the total correct. Some item must have been omitted when the work
was in the press. THANHLATOR.

CHAPTER XXI 125

annas and three pice. Ten girls shared the expense. I gave an
anna and three-quarters, and Fazilat one, Aqila two, Husnara
three, Ummatullah four, Aliya five, Sulma six, Ummunnabin
seven, the two sisters Shakila and Jamila nine each of them one
anna/

Asghari said : ' Mahmuda, you let yourself be cheated.'

Mahmuda reflected, and then said : ' Yes, mistress, there were
some cowries over from the rice j 1 that wretched banya pocketed
them. Dear me ! if the stalks and the cloves had been included
for that, we should have saved one pice. Run, Diyanat, and
recover the cowries from the banya.'

Asghari said : * Eh ! eh ! what are you about ? A matter of
cowries, and it happened two days ago ! Say nothing about it
now. It's a punishment for your mistake, to put up with a little
loss like that.'

Asghari now addressed Husnara, and said : ' Now we know
how the zarda was made, and what it cost. Tell me, what did
you all do with a whole seer of zarda after it was cooked.'

Husnara replied : * We put a pyramid of it on each of two
middle-sized dishes, and sent them to the mosque for the poor,
and with the rest we filled thirteen little plates. There are
twenty-five girls in the school ; one plateful was allowed for
every two, but the thirteenth plate I had by myself.'

4 What ?' asked Anghari ; * did you take a double share ?'

Husnara said : 4 No, not that. I had a half-plateful. Ask
any of them.'

Asghari said : * And how did it happen that you were outside
of the family f

Husnara was silent.

Ummatullah said : * Mistress, she is too proud to eat with all
of us:

Husnara said : ' No, mistress ; it has not anything to do with
pride. I came^ast of all the girls to the tablecloth ; that is why
I was left by myself. Let your honor ask Mahmuda begam,'

1 There are 16 annaa in the rupee. One-sixth of 16 annas ia 2|, not, aa
Mahmuda calculated, 2j. She should have received the change in cowries
for 1*1 th of an anna, about equal to Jrd of a farthing.

126 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Ummatullah said : * Why, just now, not so very long ago, you
quarrelled with me over drinking the water I had left, did not
you?'

4 Do you call that quarrelling V said Husn&ra. * All I said
was that you ought to take only so much water as you wished to
drink. It is bad manners to leave water in a glass after drinking
part of it.'

Asghari next inquired of Mahmuda : ' That book which I gave
you " A Variety of Dainty Dishes " have you tried all the
dishes in it by cooking them or not yet ?'

Mahmuda took a little time to think, and then said : * To the
best of my belief, I have had all of them cooked, and some several
times over. All the elder girls know how to make the usual
everyday dishes ; and, besides that, there have been cooked
more than once all the different kinds of pulao, 1 rissoles, pastry,
fritters sweet and savoury cakes, and puddings and sweet-
meats ; and all the girls have seen them being cooked, and have
lent a hand in the cooking. And as for that, your honor knows
that in our school doll-feasts are only the name. Whatever we
cook is fit to be served up to a well-to-do family. And I forgot
Husnara has a fondness for making chutnies and preserves.
Excepting her, these are tilings which the other girls do not know
much about.'

After this Asghari said to Safihan : ' iSister, you will have
understood by this time the use of dolls' feasts as they are prac-
tised here. It is very lute now, and some of the children's homes
are a good way off. If you will come to-morrow, we will let you
inspect the dolls ; and if you stay till the evening, I will get the
girls to let you hear their stories.'

Everyone then dispersed. Safihan, as she was going off, put
her hands together, and said : ' For mercy's sake, mistress, for-
give me my mistake !'

1 Eleven different kinds of pulao are enumerated, and fourteen other dUhea
are named for which exact equivalents in English cannot be given.

CHAPTER XXII 127

CHAPTER XXII

ON the next day, when Safihan arrived, Asghari showed her
specimens of the girls' embroidery, and the gold stripings they
had braided, the gold knobs they had twisted, the borderings and
flowers they had made, and the clothes, both men's and women's,
which they had cut out and sewn together, all of which excited in
Safihan, when she saw them, the utmost astonishment. After
that, Asghari showed her the girls' doll-houses.

In these houses there were all the appurtenances of a household.
Carpets, cushions, spittoons, basins, ewers, trunks, curtains, sun-
shades, ceiling-cloths, punkhas, mosquito-curtains, beds, all kinds
of cooking vessels, and quite an array of ornaments, and every-
thing properly arranged in its own place. And the dolls were
dressed up exactly as if there were an assemblage of guests in a
house celebrating some festival. When Safihan had done look-
ing at the dolls' houses, Asghari said to her : * Of all the children's
amusements, I think most highly of their dolls. By their means
the girls acquire a knowledge of sewing, and stitching, and cutting
out clothes, and of housekeeping, and ol all kinds of ceremonial
functions, such as the sixth day, 1 the taste of rice, the weaning,
the first reading, 2 the first fast- keeping, the betrothal, the feasts
and holidays, the creams and cakes of the Muharram, the Hindu
festivals, the weddings, and all the ceremonies which occur before
and after a wedding. Sister Safihan, it is but a few days since
your daughter began coining here, but the girls who have been
with me for some time such as, well, Ummunnabin, 3 who Is
sitting here, or my sister-in-law Mahmuda, or Husnara I say it
in all humility : if the management of some big, well-appointed
household were committed to them at once, they could discharge
it as well as the most practised and experienced woman could do.

1 When the mottor first receives the congratulations of the friends admitted
to see her.

Elsewhere called the Biamillah.
1 Pronounce OommoonnubWn.

128 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

It is not only their reading which I insist upon ; I try to make
them useful for the business of the world, which will fall upon
their heads before many days are over.'

After this speech Asghari called Husnara, and said : * Sister,
your dolls' house is very finely appointed. I notice only one
thing amiss your dolls do not seem to possess any coloured
costumes. Perhaps you have not learnt the art of dying.'

Husnara said : 'Oh yes ; Mahmuda begam has taught me
many ways of dying. It was my own fancy not to dye their
clothes.'

Asghari said : * Well, tell us some colours.'

Husnara said : * Mistress, colours for the rainy season : red,
orange, pomegranate-blossom, peach-blossom, melon colour, rice-
green, maroon ; and for the winter : marigold colour, yellow
ochre, crimson, grass green, dusky brown, purple, black, dark
blue, rose colour, saffron, slate colour, light brown ; and for the
hot weather : light green, steel colour, caw/>aA:-colour, cotton-
flower colour, almond colour, camphor white, milk white, poppy-
seed colour, fdlsa-colouT, sandal wood colour, and bright red.
And there are plenty of other colours beside these. I have only
mentioned those which are usually worn.'

4 Come, now,' inquired Asghari, 'you have enumerated the
names of a great variety of colours ; are we to understand
that you know how to produce all of them in dying ?'

Husn&ra said : 'I have only mentioned those that I myself
know how to dye.'

* Well, 1 said Asghari, ' tell us how you dye melon colour.'
Husnara said : * You must get half a yard of kohl qand* of good

deep colour, and, having boiled it well in water, you put in some
alum and mix with it. The alum will make the colour of the
qand come out, and then you can dye your cloth.'

* And suppose there is no qand procurable ?' said Asghari.
Husn&ra said : ' Then if you boil up the flowers of the dhd k-

tree 2 and mix ground alum with them you will get melon colour,
but light, more like cotton-flower colour ; you cannot die melon

1 A coarse dyed cotton cloth imported from Turkey.
1 Butcafrondosa.

CHAPTER XXII 129

colour well without qand, and if, instead of qand, you get the
colour out of woollen stuff, you have such a dye as you may thank
Heaven for. But nowadays magenta has come so much into
fashion that it beats all the other dyes ; not only for clothes
the gotas 1 for the Muharram are coloured with magenta, and very
well coloured. My elder sister sent us some zarda she had cooked
coloured with magenta ; it was better than saffron.'

Asghari Khanam asked with amazement : * Why, Husnara,
surely you never ate that rice, coloured with magenta !'

Husndra said : ' 7 did not eat any ; but why, mistress, is there
any harm in it ?'

Asghari said : 4 Why, my dear, there is arsenic in magenta.
Mind what you do ! you should not put anything coloured with
magenta on your tongue.'

Husnara said : 4 In the Muharram I ate lots of golas that had
been coloured with it.'

Asghari said : 4 What of that ? It only takes the least morsel
of it to colour a large number of yvt<M. That is how you came to
no harm. But for all that, remember that there is poison in it.*

Husnara said : 4 Why, people eat maunds of magenta-coloured
sweetmeats.'

Asghari said : * They do very wrong. Any poison, if it reaches
its own climax, is certain to have its effect.'

As the evening drew on the girls, after putting carefully away
all their needlework and books, came and sat down together as
usual to amuse themselves, and tell stories, and ask each other
riddles. Asghari said to Safihan : ' The stories we have here are
not all about cock-sparrows and hen-sparrows. We have a
capital story-book containing a great variety of excellent tales,
and the author has conveyed some piece of instruction in every one
of them. Moreover, the language of the book is extremely refined.
The girls will now divert themselves with stories out of that book.
They acquire a clear elocution by rehearsing stories, and become
more and more practised in the art of expressing themselves
correctly ; moreover, when I have leisure, I join with them, and go
on putting questions to them in the middle of their stories, and

1 Small cakea eaten during the Muharram.

9

130 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

they give me such answers as their reason suggests. If their
answers are incorrect I explain the matter to them. And guessing
riddles tends to increase their reasoning powers, and to sharpen
their wits. But do you now sit down with them and look on. /
have been summoned to-day by Aliya^s mother. Her baby is not
well, and she sent me very urgent messages to come to her. If I
do not go she will take it ill of me, and besides, I could not
bear myself, not to go.'

Safihan said: 'Yes, I too have heard that her little boy has not
taken his milk for days, and she, poor thing! is in terrible anxiety.
Dear, dear ! God grant the poor little creature may survive ! He
is the child of many prayers. After ten years of longing God
showed her this sign of His mercy. There has only been one boy
since Aliya was born. Mistress, no doubt she has sent for you to
find some cure for him ?'

Asghari said : * Curing is not in my province at all. But it so
happened once before that the boy refused his milk ; I told her
of a few remedies, such as bezoar, bamboo manna, rose pollen,
small cardamoms, cummin seed, cassia buds, purslain ; it pleased
God that the child did recover.'

Safihan said : * Mistress, you are crammed full of every virtue !'

Asghari said : ' What virtue is there in that ? At my mother's
home they bestow a deal of thought upon the different medicines.
When I was a child I used to clarify and make up whatever drugs
came to the house, and paid some attention to it. In that way I
have a few hearsay prescriptioas by heart, and I have told them
to anyone who was in need of them. Women, as a rule, are the
people who have to prescribe for the ailments of children. But
when such a crisis as this befalls them they take them to a
hakim.'

Safihan said : ' Mistress, you have been so kind as to show me
all the arrangements of your school ; for Heaven's sake, put off
going, just for a moment, so that I may see how the girls tell their
stories, and how you manage to teach them as the stories are
going on/

Asghari said : ' Sister, I am already very late, but still, it is
for your sake. Well, whose turn is it to-day of the girls ?'

CHAPTER XXII 131

Ma h rmi da said : ' It is Ummatullah's turn ; but why not make
Fazilat recite V

Asghari said : * Very well, Fazilat, tell us some short story.'

Fazilat began to recite : ' There was a certain king '

Asghari asked : 4 Whom do they call " king " V

Fazilat said : * A man like Bahadur Shah was in Dehli.'

Asghari : * Your description is such as anyone might under-
stand, if only he was acquainted with Dehli and with Bah&dur
Sb4h.'

Fazilat : * They call a man " king " if he is a ruler.'

Asghari : * Then the chief officers of the police are kings V

Fazilat : * No, they are not kings, they are the king's servants.'

Asghari : * How ? Is not the chief constable of the city a
ruler ?'

Fazilat : * He is a ruler, but a king is ruler above all, and issues
orders to all.'

Asghari : * Who i.s our king ?'

Fazilat : * Since the English arrested Bahddur Shah, and trans-
ported him, there is not any king.'

All the girls burst out laughing when they heard this.

Asghari said : ' Fazilat, you are very dull. You have said your-
self that if anyone is the biggest ruler, and gives orders to all, he
is king, and you are aware that the English arrested Bah&dur
Shah and transported him ; then have the English become king
or not ?'

Fazilat : * Yes, they have become king. I suppose so.'

Asghari : * Well, then, tell us who is our king.'

Fazilat : * The English.'

Asghari : ' What, is 4i The English " the name of any particular
person ?'

Fazilat : * No, there are hundreds and thousands of English. 9

Asghari : * Then are all the English kings ?'

Fazilat : * What else V

When they heard this the girls laughed again.

Asghari beckoned to Husndra, and said : * You give tho
answer.'

Huanara said : * Mistress, our king is Queen Victoria.'

132 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Asghari : ' A man or a woman ?'

Husndra : * A woman.'

Asghari : ' Where does she live ?'

Husnara : * In London.'

Asghari : ' Where is London ?'

Husn&ra : * It is a very large city in the country of the English.'

Asghari : * How far off is it ?'

Husnara : ' I read in a book that it is live thousand kos. 1

Asghari : * And how much is a kos ? J1

Husnara : * Mistress, they call it three kos to the tomb of
Nizamuddin.' 2

Mahmuda laughed now, and said : * A kos is one thousand
seven hundred and sixty yards.'

Asghari asked Mahmuda : ' Do you remember that time when
I went to the Qutb sahib, 3 and you went with me, and saw there
were stones sunk into the road at moderate distances, and there
was something written on them what kind of stones were
those ?'

Mahmuda : * I supposed that they were the stones to mark the
koses, but the carriage went so fast that I could not steady my
eyes to look at them ; I was not well able to read what was
written on them.'

Asghari : ' Those were not kos stones ; they were mile-stones.
A mile is the half of a kos, and there is a stone fixed at each mile,
and there is written on it that from here to Dehli is so many miles,
and to the Qutb so many.'

Asghari then turned to Husndra again, and asked : * Yes,
sister, and in which direction is London ?'

Husnara : * It is in the north.'

Asghari : * Is that country hot or cold ?'

Husndra : * I do not know that.'

Mahmuda : ' It is very cold. The further north you go the less
heat there is, and as you go south the heat becomes greater and

1 Pronounce like the first four letters of 'coast/
9 A celebrated saint whose tomb is outside Dehli.
3 The great minaret so called. Pronounce Kootub.

CHAPTER XXII 133

Safihan : * I say, mistress, is a woman a king ?

Asghari : * What is there to be astonished at in that ?'

Safihan : ' Eh ! not to be astonished at ? What can she do if
she is a woman V

Asghari : * She does exactly the same things that men do who
are kings. She governs the country ; she protects her subjects.'

Safihan : * What is a woman to do ? It will be the English
who do it all. Probably they have made a woman king for the
sake of the name.'

Asghari : 4 All these English are the Queen's servants. Each
has his own duty, and each has a separate amount of authority.
All are bent on doing their special work to the best of their ability.
And when it is men who are kings, even then their ministers and
officials transact all the business.'

Safihan : * I cannot bring myself to believe that a woman by
nature can do king's work.'

Asghari : ' Have you never heard of the Begam of Bhopdl ?'

Safihan : * Heard of her ! of course I have. My own father-
in-law is in service in Bhopal.'

Asghari : ' Well, then, you may look at it in this way. Bhopal
is a tiny little country, and Queen Victoria rules over a large
Empire. Just as the Bcgam of Bhopal administers her little
territory, so does Queen Victoria direct the affairs of her great
Empire. Bhopal is a small state ; the officials are few, and they
draw small salaries. Queen Victoria's Government is one of very
lofty rank, with huge establishments, and lakhs of officials drawing
high pay.'

Safihan : ' Say, has the Queen any husband ?'

Asghari : * Yes, but against death there is none whose strength
may prevail. God has set a blot even upon the moon. It is
some years now since the Queen became a widow.'

Safihan : * Has the Queen any children ?'

Asghari : ' Yes, God preserve them ! heirs of all kinds sons
and grandsons, and daughters' daughters.'

Safihan : * Say, why does the Queen not come to this country V

Asghari : ' She has a large territory there too. She has not
leisure from her duties there. But the Queen's son is coming

134 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

here shortly. 1 Great preparations are being made. So I saw in
the papers.'

Safihan : * Say, what can the Queen know about this place,
living thousands of kos away ?'

Asghari : * She knows every little thing. Why not ? Day
and night news is travelling to her by post and by the telegraph.
Thousands of newspapers go to Europe.'

Safihan
Asghari

portrait.'
Safihan
Asghari

Have you
Safihan
Asghari

4 How could I manage to see the Queen ?'

4 How can I tell ? But at all events you can see her

* Well, if I could only see that /'

* Sister, are you saying this to make me laugh ?
never seen a rupee ?'

4 Of course I have.'

4 The lady's face which appears on that is the Queen's

likeness. It is on all the postage stamps. But I possess another
very excellent portrait of the Queen. Some Englishman gave it
to my father, and he sent it to me. Mahmuda, would you just
bring me my box ?'

Asghari took the picture out of her box, and showed it, and all
the children gazed with the utmost delight upon the portrait of
The Queen.

Safihan : * What a lovely picture ! There is the Queen standing
like life.'

Asghari : * Yes, indeed. This portrait is an exact likeness of
the Queen. Put it by the side of the coin, and look what a
difference ! This likeness is not made by hand. There is a sort
of looking-glass upon which they put some preparation, and then
hold it opposite. All of itself the reflection, just as it is, is taken
off upon it.'

Safihan : ' Husndra said that London was five thousand kos
off. To go from here to there must take travellers several
years.'

Asghari : * No, they reach it in a month easily across the sea.'

Safihan : 4 Dear, dear I do you have to go by sea ? What
hearts these English people have ! Are they not afraid of the
1 This refers to the Duke of Edinburgh's visit

CHAPTER XXII 135

sea ? Why, it makes all my hair stand on end to hear the name
of the sea.'

Asghari : * What is there to be frightened at ? You go com-
fortably on board a ship, and there is a fine beautiful flying-car
ready-made for you.'

Safihan : * Oh, mistress, the wretched danger there is of drown-
ing ! I tell you, it only happened last year my mother-in-law's
sister went to Mecca with the Nawab Qutbuddin Kh&n. She
departed in such an evil hour that she never had the good luck
to return. 1

Asghari : ' Yes. it depends on circumstances. Now and again
it does happen that a ship founders. And if, God forbid ! they
foundered every day, no one would think of travelling by sea. But
now the sea routes are more frequented even than the land routes.
Thousands and lakhs of ships are constantly going and coming.
The English, and their wives, and their children, and all the
English goods everything comes here by sea.'

Safihan : 'What talk is there of English women ? They are
altogether a different kind of women. How are we to take after
them ? They gad about outside the house. I hear they send
their little tiny children to Europe, and their hearts are not dis-
tressed. Goodness knows what kind of mothers they are ; whence
they derive comfort for their souls. But there you are they go
about out of doors, and they have hearts of iron ; what is the sea,
to them ? It would be nothing difficult for them to fly in the air.'

Asghari : * When you talk of their gadding abroad you must
remember that in their country the custom of the purdah does
not exist. In the Mutiny time our family took refuge in a village 1
where there was no custom of the purdah ; all the young married
girls went about outside the house. But I lived there four
whole months, and I observed such a modesty and propriety of
demeanour among those women going about as they did, as I
would that God might grant to us women of the purdah. And
why should you infer from their sending their children to Europe
that they have no love for them ? True, the love which these
women have is tempered with reason. It is not a mad fondness
Probably a Jat village.

136 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

like that of mothers here, who prevent their children from reading,
and deny them the chance of acquiring any accomplishments.
You may call that love, but in reality they are sowing thorns for
their children to reap. They allow their children to grow up ill-
disciplined, and bring discredit upon the very name of love.'

When the discussion had reached this point there was silence
on all sides, and Fazilat again commenced repeating her story.
* The king had no son ; his only child was a daughter. Giving
heed to the fact that after him his daughter would be sole heir to
the kingdom, he had her well instructed in reading and writing ;
he took pains to teach her the laws and regulations under which
the country was governed, and he entrusted to her the business of
the State in his own lifetime '

Fazilat had only got so far when Asghari said : * Sister, you are
rattling on with your story at a great rate, and I have a whole
heap of questions to ask you in my mind ; but I am helpless.
The daylight is drawing to a close, and it is absolutely necessary
for me to go to Aliya's house. It is against the rule to visit a sick
person at anyone's house after daylight. I cannot stay a minute
longer, but you girls may go on with your stories by yourselves. 1
And then she said to Safihan : * God bless you, sister, I am going.
You may sit here as long as you like now, or come here again to-
morrow. The same thing goes on here every day.'

Accordingly Asghari Khanam set off on her visit to Aliya's
house. Safihan was so enraptured that she stayed on .sitting
with the girls until a watch of the night had gone. After Asghari
Khanam's departure Mahmuda and Husnara raised many an
interesting discussion as the story proceeded.

From this narrative you may gain a very fair notion of the
discipline which prevailed in Asghari's school, and of her methods
of instruction. It goes without saying that Asghari was very
fond of Husndra, though still more HO of her own sister-in-law
Mahmuda. So admirably was Husnara taught by her that in two
years' time she commenced the study of Persian, and conducted
all her correspondence herself in the vernacular. Nothing was
left now of her old peevishness and pugnacity. She had become
a very gentle, studious, accomplished, and lovable daughter;

CHAPTER XXIII 137

And through Asghari's good offices it pleased God to restore the
home of Jamdl&ra, which had been lost to her so many years. All
of that story will be written in another book, but the gist of it
here is that the Hakimji's whole family, old and young alike,
were ready to kiss the dust of! Asghari's feet. Stiltana begam
devised a thousand plans for remunerating her, but this handmaid
of God refused to take any gratuity. When Husnara's marriage
was about to take place the elder Hakim sahib brought Maulavi
Muhammad Fazil's pressure to bear on her, and gave her a pair
of jewelled bracelets valued at a thousand rupees. In doing this
he said : ' Listen to me, my dear ; you are the same to me as one
of my granddaughters ; I do not make you this present as a gover-
ness, but because I regard you as a child of my own.' On his
side the Maulavi sahib reassured her, and at last Asghari accepted
the bracelets.

CHAPTER XXIII

I NOW enter upon a now phase of my story. We have seen
Asghari busily occupied with her school. But Muhammad Kamil
all this time was getting bored merely for want of employment.
One day he broached the subject to Asghari, and said : * I am
weary to death of this kind of life ; if you approve 1 would like to
go to the hills, to the Tahsildar sahib, and look out for some
Government appointment under his auspices.'

Asghari took a little time to reflect, and then said : ' Certainly,
it is most important that you should get some appointment, for
you see yourself what narrow means we have to keep the house
with. My dear father-in-law is now an old man, and it would
only be right for him to stay at home, and for you to be earning
some money, and doing your duty by him. Besides that, Mali-
muda is growing to be a big girl. I am looking forward to her
betrothal, and it is my wish that she should marry into a family
of very high rank. Indeed, I have a scheme for her in my head.
Please God, her betrothal shall be arranged before another year
is over. But for that we shall require a host of preparations, and
up to now there is not a thing ready of any kind. Your dear

138 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

brother to begin with, he has left the family roof ; but anyhow,
his salary is so small that he can barely make both ends meet
what can he give to others ? There is no help for it that I can
see, except that you should take service. Still, I do not like the
idea of your going to the hills. Of course my father will do his
utmost for you, and ib is not unlikely that some good post would
be found for you pretty quickly, but to hold an appointment by
clinging to the support of someone else is not the correct thing. A
man's earnings, no matter how small, should be those of his own
right arm. Although my father is not a stranger, and in the chain
of relationship his hand is loftier than you, so that there is no harm
I don't say in accepting there is none in asking his assistance;
still, may God preserve you from being under an obligation to any
one ! That makes the eyes downcast for ever. Suppose that he
has never said a word about it, there are a hundred others in the
family (God keep it !) who won't say anything to your face perhaps,
but will certainly talk behind your back " Ah, there goes the
man who got his appointment through his father-in-law !" '

Muhammad Kami! said : 4 What shall I do, then ? Shall I go
to Lahore ?'

Said Asghari : * What is there at Lahore ? The Chief's own
fortune is ruined. It is a marvel how he can give your father,
with all his regard for his past services, as much even as fifty
rupees a month. There is no room at his court for a new-comer.'

4 Well,' -said Muhammad Kamil, * there are plenty of other
courts.'

* Since the English rule was established,' said Asghari, * all the
native chiefs are much in the same state of decay. Although
they all keep up something of their former grandeur, and a few
representatives of the old days are to be found still clinging on to
them, yet, after all, what is it but dust ? Their salaries are in
arrear for years.'

4 Well,' said Muhammad Kamil, 4 something must be done.
What is it V

4 Look out for some appointment under the English Govern-
ment,' was Asghari's reply.

Muhammad K&mil said : * Those appointments are not to be

CHAPTER XXIII 139

had without interest and favour. Why, there are thousands of
men, far better than I, who are wandering about in despair, and
no one asks after them.'

* Yes,' said Asghari, * that is true enough. But when a man
once determines upon any course of action he must leave the
issue to God, and not admit a thought of despondency into his
mind. Granted there are thousands of men wandering about
vainly in search of employment, still, the men who do hold govern-
ment appointments are men just like yourself, and one thing,
which is equal to a hundred, is this, that men get them by decree
of Providence. Very able men are longing for work, and are left
in the lurch, and yet. if it be God's will to give it is no question
of interest or ability He breaks through the roof and gives.
People send for them to their homes, and confer appointments
upon them.'

4 Then,' said Muhammad K&mil, * the upshot of it is that I
should stay at home and do nothing ?'

4 No, indeed,' said Asghari, 4 that is not my meaning at all. A
man must use his own endeavours, necessarily, as far as he can do
anything of himself.'

Muhammad Kdmil said : * But that is just the difficulty.
What sort of efforts am I to make ?'

Asghari said : * Get acquainted with the officials here. Make
friends with as many of them as you can. By their means you
will be kept informed of any appointment that is going, and with
their help you may obtain access to one of the H&kims.' 1

Muhammad Kamil acted on this advice, and began to cultivate
the acquaintance of the different officials. Gradually he was to
be found calling upon such personages as the Tahsildar and Sar-
rishtaddr. From his paying court to them it became known to
everyone that he too was a Candida te for Government employ :
and at length Banda Ali Beg, who was a deposition writer in the
Kachahri,* one day said to him : 4 Young gentleman, if you are

I Hakim, 'a man hi power,' was the term usually applied to European
officials at the date of the story,

II Otherwise written Cutcherry. 1 The word means an office of any kind,
but is especially used of tho Courts of Law.

140 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

seeking Government employment, come to Kachahri every day
with me. Be an apprentice for a time, and acquire some practical
knowledge of the work ; let the Hakims get to know your face.
In that way something or other will turn up one of these days.'

Muhammad K&mil began to attend Kachahri, and to assist
Banda Ali Beg with his work. In time he came to submit the
papers requiring signature to the European officers, who began to
know him by sight. During this time he was allowed to act more
than once as a substitute for one or other of the lower grade
officials. If any of these were obliged to take leave he would
name Muhammad Kamil as his substitute, and give him one-half
or one-third of his pay. Till one day it so happened that a diary
writer on ten rupees a month went away on three months' leave,
and at the end of the three months sent in his resignation. Maulavi
Muhammad Kamil was appointed permanently to the post.

In his conversations with Asghari, whenever the subject of his
appointment cropped up, Muhammad Kamil always spoke of it
with contempt. ' What a trumpery service !' he would say,
* grinding all day long, and ten rupees a month ! No takings on
the sly ; no hope of future promotion. I shall give it up.'

These and such-like vagaries Asghari would invariably reprove.
' You show a terrible amount of ingratitude,' she would say ; ' have
you forgotten those days when it wa.s not your good fortune to
be even an apprentice ? Or, now that you have made so good a
start, do you begin to misprize it ? Is ten rupees a month so
little ? and you living comfortably at home ! Look at your elder
brother, who held on for years in a merchant's office on ten rupees
a month. And if you are so discontented with your post, what
kind of work, save the mark, will they get out of you ? The end
of it will be that the place will give you up. Besides, it is from
small beginnings in this way that big pay comes. My father was
a copyist at first on eight rupees a month. Now, by God's grace,
he is a Tahsilddr, and if it please God he will get higher promotion
still. As for takings on the sly, don't hanker after such a source
of income even in your dreams. Ill-gotten gains bring no pros-
perity. A man can have nothing beyond what has been allotted
to him by God. Why, then, should he suffer his own integrity of

CHAPTER XXIII 141

purpose to be capsized ? If there is more to come to him than
what he is getting now, God can provide it for him of that which
is lawful.'

In short, it was Asghari's task to keep Muhammad Kamil up to
the mark, and this went on until one day the English officer under
whom Muhammad Kdmil worked was transferred to Siyalkot.
This gentleman had shown Muhammad Kamil much kindness.
On the evening of the day when the news was first made known
at Kachahri, Muhammad Kamil came home in a lamentable state
of depression.

Asghari asked him : ' Is all well ? why are you so sad to-day V
Muhammad Kdmil answered : ' What am I to say ? James
sdhib has been transferred to Siydlkot. He was the one man who
treated me kindly. Now I shall have no more pleasure in attend-
ing Kachahri.'

For some time Asghari kept silence. By-and-by she said :
* No doubt James sahib's transfer is a thing to be grieved at, but
not to such an extent as you are carrying your grief. Someone
else will come in his place, and whoever it is God will put mercy
into his heart also. It is not for man to place his confidence in
man.'

Presently Asghari asked : * When will James sahib leave ?'
Muhammad Kdmil said : 4 He is to start by dawk garry to-
morrow evening.'

Asghari said : ' You have not been to his bungalow, have you ?'

Muhammad Kdmil said : * What is the use of going there now ?'

* Well,' said Asghari, ' you are a queer man ! This is just the

very time to go. If nothing else comes of it he will give you some

letter or certificate before he goes.'

4 All right,' said Muhammad Kdmil, * I will go to-inorrow
morning.'

142 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

CHAPTER XXIV

MUHAMMAD KAMIL dressed himself betimes in the morning, and
took his way to Mr. James's bungalow. Mr. James said to him :
' Muhammad Kamil, I am going to Siyalkot now. I liked you
very much. If you care to go, come to Siyalkot with me. I will
give you a place there ; or, if not, I will give you fifteen rupees
a month out of my own pocket.'

Muhammad Kamil thought for a while, and said : * I will
present myself again to your highness, and bring my answer. But
first I must ask my mother.'

Accordingly, when Muhammad Kamil came home again, he
reported : ' James sahib wants to take me with him.' His
mother, when she heard these words, raised an outcry, and
Asghari too was aghast. After a time Muhammad Kdmil asked
them : * Well, ladies, what answer shall I take back to
him?'

His mother said : c What, now ? why should you take any
answer at all ? Will he be waiting there for you ? or has he
sent any constable after you ?'

Muhammad Kamil said : ' No, madam, but I gave him a
promise. He will say to himself : " What selfish people these
Hindustanis are ! he told me a lie when I was going away." '

His mother said : ' Well, go and tell the sahib that your going
away with him is impossible.'

Muhammad Kamil asked Asghari : ' And you, lady, what is
your advice V

Asghari said : ' Advice is one thing, and the heart's desire is
another. My heart's desire is that you should stay here. You
are the only person left to look after the family, and, whatever
people may say, there should be some man in a house. But if
you ask my advice, it is right for you to go. When a H&kim
unasked himself invites you to go with him, it is certain that he
will treat you handsomely when he reaches his destination.'

Muhammad Kdmil said : * What f a journey of two or three
hundred kos for the sake of five rupees extra ! / have no par-

CHAPTER XXIV 143

ticular desire to go. It is the old proverb : " Half at home, not
all abroad." '

Asghari said : ' Of course, the decision rests with you. But a
chance of this kind has been sent you by Providence ; it won't
come again. And who is there who does not go away from home ?
My father your father why, they have spent most of their lives
in foreign places. And five rupees is what we hear now ; later
on you will see how many the five are. Anyhow, if you don't go,
you must not let people see you any more in low spirits at getting
ten rupees.'

Muhammad Kamil said : 1 1 had better send in my resignation
here, then, at once. But suppose after all nothing has turned up
there. I shall have been a loser in both places.'

4 In the first place,' said Asghari, ' it is against all common
sense to suppose that nothing will turn up there. A great Hakim
like .Fames sahib and he wants to give you employment, and yet
cannot see his way to it. That is beyond my comprehension.
And why send in your resignation ? Take leave for a month
or two.'

Muhammad Kdmil said : ' Yes, of course, leave is sanctioned at
a moment's notice.'

Asghari said : 4 What difficulty will there be about its being
sanctioned ? You have only to speak to James sahib ; he wil
write a letter.'

In short, Asghari put the yoke on Muhammad Kamil by force
and made him inclined to go. She gave him out of her owi
money fifty rupees in cash, and got half a dozen new suits o
clothes made up for him. And she engaged Div&nat's son Rafic
to accompany him. Maulavi Muhammad Kdmil went off ii
state to Siy&lkot.

On her part Asghari wrote an account of all this in a letter t<
Maulavi Muhammad Fdzil, and she added the following words
* On his way to Siydlkot, James sdhib is sure to pass throng]
Lahore. If it can be managed that your honor should meet hin
there, and get the Chief too to say a word of recommendation, i
will be of great advantage.'

The Maulavi sahib looked out for Mr. James, and since th

144 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Chief possessed some villages in the Siyalkot district, he sent an
official letter of welcome, and arranged that Mr. James should
break his journey for one night at the Chiefs villa residence.
After dinner, when the Chief and Mr. James were sitting together
engaged in conversation, the Maulavi sdhib addressed Mr. James,
and said : ' The people of Dehli are in great sorrow at being
deprived of your honor's presence. Although your honor re-
mained there as Hakim for two years only, your justice and your
consideration for the feelings of the better classes had given great
satisfaction to all the residents. A son of your humble servant
was in attendance there upon your honor. His letters kept us
informed of every circumstance.'

4 What !' asked the sahib, 'was one of your honor's sons in my
Kachahri ?'

The Maulavi sahib replied : ' Muhammad Kamil.'

4 Why, he is coming with me,' said the sahib. ' Is he your
son ?'

4 Your honor's slave,' said the Maulavi.

Here the Chief took up the cue, and said to Mr. James : ' The
Maulavi s&hib is a very old servant of my state, and his advance-
ment is in every way an object of my sincere desire, but, as your
honor is aware, I have no resources left. Hence, if your honor
should be pleased to befriend his son, you will be laying myself
under an obligation.'

Mr. James was already well disposed towards Muhammad
K&mil. The Chiefs intervention was so well timed that it sank
deep into his mind. Muhammad K&mil had now acquired all
these claims upon his notice : first, he was young ; secondly, of
good birth ; thirdly, recommended by the Chief ; fourthly,
attached to the sdhib's own person ; and, fifthly, a man of ability.
On the very first day that Mr. James took his seat in Kachahri
he appointed Muhammad Kdmil to be Nd-ib Sarrishtadar 1 on
fifty rupees a month, and he wrote in a letter to Maulavi
Muhammad F&zil sihib : ' At present I have given your son
an appointment of fifty rupees a month, but before long I hope

1 Ka-ib means 'deputy/ A Sarrishtadar ia the head of the whole
vernacular department in an office.

CHAPTER XXIV 145

to promote him ; your honor will kindly inform the Chief
of this.'

The Maulavi s&hib duly sent a letter of thanks couched in suit-
able terms ; and Muhammad Kamil the man who not so long
ago had been begging for an apprenticeship ; who had been glad
to work as a substitute for petty officials ; who became a diary
writer on ten rupees, and was induced only by Asghari's per-
suasions to accompany Mr. James to Siyalkot on a promise of
fifteen that same Muhammad Kamil was now installed at a
minute's notice into a post of fifty rupees a month. Even his
mother, though she had been so disheartened at the outset, was
radiant with delight when she heard of the fifty rupees. The
prosperity in the house was fourfold. Asghari's management, and
sixty rupees coming in instead of the former twenty what more
could they ask for ? As it happened, however, within that very
year Muhammad Kdmil became Sarrishtadar. 1 Alas ! up to the
date of his getting that appointment he kept his head ; his remit-
tances to the family arrived regularly ; his letters followed quickly
one after another. But after all, he was a young man, and he
was living under no restraint but his own ; evil company beset
him, and he went astray. There began to be a falling off in his
letters. Asghari, who had plenty of common-sense, perceived
that there was something wrong somewhere. For many days she
considered anxiously what plan she could devise ; at last she
came to the conclusion that there was no other course for her to
take but to go to him herself.

CHAPTER XXV

ALTHOUGH Asghari had fully made up her mind that she would
go to Siyalkot, she sent for Tamasha Khaimm to take counsel with
her, and told her all the circumstances. Tamasha Khanani said :
' Sister, has one of us gone mad ? The idea of your leaving the
city to go wandering about to Siyalkot !'

Asghari said : * What have I to do with the city ? My city is
where he is with whom my life is bound up.'

1 When his pay would be doubled.

in

146 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

' Dear, dear !' said Tamasha Khanam, ( and what will all the
relations say ? No one out of our family has ever gone away
from home to this day.'

Asghari said : ' There is nothing for them to be shocked at.
And, after all, what will they say ? Why, " If she has gone to her
husband, what harm has she done ?" that's all. And if you talk
about the family custom well, in former days there was no dawk,
nor railway, nor were the roads frequented with passengers ; it
was a very difficult matter for women to travel that is why they
did not move about. But now, what difficulty is there ? I take
my place in the dawk to-day, and, if God speed me, the day after
to-morrow I am at Siydlkot. It is as though I went to
Meerut.'

Tamasha KMnam asked : * Has any letter come requesting you

to go r

* No,' said Asghari, ' no letter has come.'

Tamasha Kh&nam said : ' It is not proper for you to go without
being asked.'

Asghari said : * You look to what is proper and improper, and
I tell you that if I do not go my home will be wrecked for my
whole lifetime.'

Tamasha Khanam said : * My dear sister, why do you abase
yourself like this ? What does he matter to you ? God keep
your school safe, you can provide food for ten mouths.'

Asghari said : ' My goodness, do you look at it in that light ?
Why, I founded the school merely for my own amusement ; it
was never my object to make money out of it. God knows,
whether you will credit it or not I have not .spent a single pice
of the school money upon myself to this day. Fifty rupees in
cash, and twenty for clothes, I certainly did give to your cousin,
when he was going to Siyalkot no more, and that is entered as a
loan ; and for the rest, I have an account of every cowrie written
down; Why, look you, are women's earnings any earnings at
all ? If families are to be reared upon women's earnings, why
should there be men ? Let my own hearth rest happy, and I
would not trouble over ten such schools being ruined.'

Tamasha KMnam said : ' But how are you to travel now in

CHAPTER XXV 147

the middle of the rains ? Wait for the cold weather, and then
think about it when there is a clear sky.'

* Ah me !' said Asghari, * it is the waiting that I dread. What
can be done now by a little expostulation will never be accom-
plished hereafter by endless controversies.'

Tamasha KMnam said : * Dear, dear ! does not your heart
ache, sister, at the thought of leaving your family ?'

* Of course it aches,' said Asghari. * Am not I a woman ? But
which is better to fret for a while at present, or to be in purgatory
for a whole lifetime ?'

Tamasha KMnam said : ' Have you got permission from your
mother-in-law ?'

Asghari said : * You think she is likely to give it ? But my
mother-in-law, poor dear ! is a simple-minded soul. When I make
her understand, I am certain she will not detain me.'

As a matter of course Asghari did explain to her mother-in-law
what her intention was, and what causes had led up to it. The
thing was quite reasonable ; who could find anything to say
against it ? The date of Asghari's departure was fixed. She
went one day and explained things briefly to her own mother,
and took leave of her. As for the school, she instructed the girls
that she was going away only for a couple of months, that Mah-
miida was quite competent to go on teaching them, and that they
might all continue to attend as usual.

In the course of paying her farewell visits she went to her
sister's house. Muhammad Aqil asked her : * Well, brother
Tamizdar bahu, so you are going away ; what are you going to
do with the school when you go ?'

Asghari replied : 4 I bequeath the school and the house, both
of them, to your honor's care.'

Muhammad Aqil said : ' That is a fine thing to say. I have
no connection with the house, nor any interest in the school.
What can I do for either of them ?'

Asghari said : ' It is in your honors discretion to keep up the
connection or not to keep it.'

* Such a speech as that,' said Muhammad Aqil, ' is not becoming
to your lips, Tamizddr bahu. You know well enough what choice

148 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

I have in the matter. The home I was made to abandon by
your elder sister ; and as for the school, it is a girls' school ; if it
were a school for boys I would willingly undertake to teach all of
them.'

Asghari said : ' Why should not my elder sister, and your honor
too, come home with me now, and live there ? The dear mother
is all alone/

Muhammad Aqil said : ' You must talk over your sister. 9

Asghari said : 4 What need is there ? My elder sister herself
understands, and is reasonable. You are not comfortable here
all by yourselves. There is no one to undertake the children or
to look after the house. Sorrow and joy go hand in hand with
everyone. It is not the right thing to keep aloof from your
friends if it can be avoided. And those old stories are things of
the past. Why should there be any discord in the family, and
what is the sense of keeping up an old quarrel V

Akbari had tasted quite enough of the pleasures of separate
housekeeping by this time, and was only seeking some excuse for
anyone to ask them back again to live with the family. She lost
no time in expressing her assent, and Asghari took both of them
back with her to the house. Muhammad Kdmil's mother, who
had been overwhelmed with grief at the thought of Asghari's
leaving her, was comforted by the reflection that she still had
another daughter-in-law to take her place. Mahmuda, indeed,
was under great apprehension of what might happen, but Asghari
cheered her up, and assured her that Akbari's temper was no
longer what it used to be. At the same time she warned her elder
sister that Mahmuda was now grown up, and that she must take
care not to make any rude speeches to her. As for the school,
she contented herself with explaining to Muhammad Aqil that
Mahmuda would carry on all the instruction and such matters if
he would only keep an eye on the external arrangements, and see
that Mahmuda entered the accounts of the school fund regularly
in the book.

The day came for Asghari to depart. She got into her dawk
garry, and arrived at Siy&lkot without any delay on the road,
Muhammad Kdmil was intensely astonished at her sudden arrival

CHAPTER XXV 149

He said to her : ' Is all well ? You have not quarrelled with my
mother, have you ?'

Asghari said : * For shame ! What ! is your dear mother upon
an equality with me that I should presume to quarrel with her ?
Or during these four years have you ever seen me quarrel either
with her or anyone else ?'

Now Muhammad Kdmil had quite let himself adrift at Siyalkot,
and had fallen into the worst kind of society. A crowd of toadies
had assembled round him in whose hands he was a perfect fool.
Bribery was rife. He had no scruples left even against nautches
and dissolute plays. His surroundings were luxurious, and his
ordinary expenditure amounted to four times his pay. If this
state of things had lasted a very little longer it must needs have
excited Mr. James's suspicion, and in the end Muhammad Kamil's
appointment would have been lost to him. Asghari arrived in
the very nick of time. She at once set to work to stop up ail the
leaks, and she took him to task severely, saying : ' God has given
you an appointment of a hundred rupees a month. Is this your
way of thanksgiving that you cannot be contented even with
that ?'

Muhammad Kdmil said : 4 If a man gives me anything of his
own free will what is the harm ?'

Said Asghari : ' I extol the perfection of God I 1 Is money a
thing that anyone will give away of his own free will without a
reason ? Why, men have such a craving for money nowadays
that they take no care even for their own honour, but they will
not lose hold of a rupee. A man may form a guess of that from
his own practice when he considers how much he is by way of
giving to anyone. It is only the compulsory religious almsgiving 2
which is still observed. Out of every hundred once a year the
fortieth part two and a half rupees and giving that takes the
breath away. Where have the people got any such Koran's 3

1 /.r., ' in that He has created a man capable of making so silly a use of the
reason with which He endowed him.'

* Galled ' zakat,' the fortieth part of the year's profits, which every
Musalman is bound to give in charity at the very least.

a Qiirdn, the Korah of the Bible (Num. xvi. ), ia supposed to have been a
miser, with vast hoarded wealth.

150 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

treasure-chest brimming over with money that they should come
and give it you without any object ? It is when they see their
affairs are going wrong if they don't give something their case
will be spoilt then, in despair, they go and borrow money, or
sell their wives' jewels, and give bribes.'

Muhammad Kamil said : * I don't take the money myself.
There is nothing to be afraid of.'

Said Asghari : * In the first place, bribery never can be hushed
up. But, apart from that, and if we take it for granted that it
has escaped the notice of men, God, who sees all that is hidden,
He has known of it. That His servants should heap up sins, and
aggravate the indictment they must answer at the last day, argues
a great fearlessness.'

By exhortations of this kind whenever she had a chance Asghari
got Muhammad Kamil to repent of his evil ways. After she had
been there some little time, she one day asked her husband : * Who
are those four men for whom meals are sent out of the house
every day ?'

Muhammad Kamil said : * They are applicants for service.
Poor fellows ! they are strangers here. I told them they might
live at my expense until they could get some appointment.'

4 And has not any appointment been found for them yet ?'
asked Asghari.

Muhammad Kamil said : * There are appointments, but not up
to their social rank.'

Said Asghari : ' When their condition has come to this, that
they are feeding themselves at another man's expense, what
question is there left of their social standing ? Let them do any
work they can get, small or great.'

Muhammad K&mil said : * God knows what you are saying !
How can they do anything derogatory to their dignity ?'

' What ?' said Asghari ; * is there a loss of dignity in their
taking a low -grade appointment, and no loss of dignity in spong-
ing upon another person's earnings ? If these people have not
even that amount of self-respect, you may be sure that their other
habits arc perverted. It is not good to have them about you.
Depend upon it, they, too, are taking whatever they can get in

CHAPTER XXV 151

your name. Tell them they must either accept some appoint-
ment, or be off.'

Muhammad K&mil replied : ' It would be a slur on my gene-
rosity if I were to send them away.'

Asghari said : ' When there is no generosity in them, why
should you make a point of being generous ? If we have more
money than we want, there are plenty of poor people in the family
who have a prior claim. What is the use of giving to strangers ?
and, above all, to such strangers as these ? There is no necessity
for you to dismiss them with harshness. You can make them
understand in some way or other.'

Now, the real fact of the matter was that these very people
were Muhammad K&mil's evil geniuses. By judicious manage-
ment Asghari succeeded in having them turned out. Those of
the servants who were ill-conducted were got rid of one by one.
Asghari stayed there for a year and a half, and put everything
inside and outside the house into proper order. By that time,
Miyan Muslim's marriage was about to take place. A letter was
sent to summon Asghari to the ceremony, and Tamasha Khdnam
wrote to her an urgent appeal. Since a great many days had
passed, Asghari made up her mind to return to Dehli. But she
thought to herself that it would never do to leave Muhammad
Kamil solitary. She said to Muhammad Kamil : 4 It is not the
right thing for you to be alone at this distance from home. There
certainly ought to be some member of the family with you ; and,
in my opinion, you might well send for your cousin on the mother's
side, Muhammad Sdlih. He will learn office work with you here
while he is continuing his studies, and possibly some place may be
found for him.'

A letter was despatched to Amir begam, and while Asghari was
still at Siy&lkot Muhammad Salih arrived. This lad was worthy
and amiable in the highest degree, and only two years junior to
Muhammad Kdmil. Asghari'a mind was now set at rest, and
having bid adieu to Siy&lkot, she arrived at Lahore. Here she
broke her journey for a whole week at the house of Maulavi
Muhammad Fazil s&hib.

The Maulavi was now nearly sixty years old, and the business

152 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

of his agency involved great labour. What with attending the
different courts of justice, and looking after the Chiefs cases,
every day without fail, and then visits morning and evening to
the various officials when the poor Mania vi sahib came home at
night he was quite worn out with fatigue. Asghari said to him :
4 Father dear, your honor's age is not equal to ail this toil now.
The time has come for your honor to think about retiring into
private life. I read in a book once that a man should divide his
life into three portions the first portion for his childhood, the
second for the administration of his worldly affairs, and the third
for rest and remembrance of God. Your honor surelv might well
come home now and live comfortably.'

The Maulavi sahib said : * In the first place, the Chief would
never let me go. And in the second place, there must be some-
one, at any rate, who could do the work in my place.'

6 If your honor pleads that your strength is failing,' said Asghari,
c very likely the Chief will give in. And is not my dear brother
fully competent to do the work ?'

The Maulavi said : 4 What does he know about the ways of the
courts, and of the Darbar ?'

Asghari said : 'Send for him to come here for a time, and let him
be with you ; he will pick up all that when he sees how it is done.
Why, he is a learned Arabic scholar. There are Hindus who begin
doing Kachahri work after reading two or three books in Persian.'

Asghari's notion approved itself to the Maulavi sahib, and
shortly after she arrived in Dehli he summoned Muhammad Aqil
to join him. After some little time Muhammad Aqil took the
whole of his father's work upon his own shoulders, and greatly
pleased the Chief by his diligence. Then the Maulavi sahib said
to the Chief : ' Now, if this boy may remain here in the service of
your highness, it might please your highness to set me at liberty.

" Not rarely the arbiters of homage
Set free the retainer in his old age." M

The Chief was at heart a most liberal man. He allotted the
Maulavi s&hib a pension of twenty rupees a month for hia lifetime,
and he appointed Muhammad Aqil as his successor on full pay.
1 A quotation from the Oulistdn of Saadi.

CHAPTER XXVI 153

CHAPTER XXVI

As soon as Asghari got back to Dehli, she resumed her plans for
Mahmuda; Husnara was now at her old home on a visit from
Jbajjar, and Jamal&ra had come from her father-in-law's house
at the same time in order to meet her younger sister. You will
remember that the whole of the Hakim's family were devoted to
Asghari. As soon as they heard of her arrival, both sisters were
in a hurry to call on her. All kinds of greetings went on. Ja ma-
la" ra said : ' Mistress, I cannot tell you how my heart was set upon
meeting you. To be sure, Husnara is your pupil, but I owe you
more than any of your pupils. It was you who restored my
desolated home to me.'

Asghari said : ' What merit have I ?'

4 Come, now, mistress,' said Jamalara. ' At all events, / shall
never forget your kindness as long as I live. But what can I do ?
You do not accept any service that we people can render you.
Were it not for that, if we gave you our skins to make your shoes
of, even then maybe what is due to you would not be paid.'

* In the first place,' said Asghari, ' it was not so very much that
I was able to do ; but if by virtue of your princely nature your
honor has regarded any act of mine with approval, well, Begam
s&hib, God has placed your honor in a position of unlimited
power. To make poor people like us happy will be no great task
to you.'

Husn&ra suid : * Eh, mistress ! what words are these from your
lips ?'

4 Listen to me, sister Husnara,' said Asghari. * The relations
of mistress and pupil between us are all over now. They lasted
only while you were at school. Now (God keep you !) you are a
married woman. And here are you, noble from your very birth,
and at present the crowning jewel of a noble family ; and there
is she, the daughter and daughter-in-law of princes. At this
moment there is not one other family of higher standing than you
in the city. If anyone should reach your gate, and be denied,
surely it is his fate that would be at fault.'

154 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Husnara said : * Come, mistress dear ; what is it V
Asghari said : ' Sister, it is a very difficult matter. Promise
me that you will not let me be disappointed, and then I will tell
you.*

Husn&ra and Jam61&ra thought that she was going to ask for a
place in their household for some one or other. Both of them
said : ' By Heaven, mistress ! for your sake we are ready heart
and soul. It was our one great wish that you should make some
request of us.'

Asghari said : ' It is a matter which seems great to me ; but if
you two ladies are both prepared to help me heartily, it is no very
great thing after all.'

Both sisters replied : ' Mistress, God knows if it is anything we
can do we will not spare ourselves in the least.'

When Asghari had thus secured a distinct promise from them,
she said : * The one object of my ambition is this : that you will
accept Mahmuda into your family as a daughter of the house.'

On hearing this, both sisters kept silence. Other topics of con-
versation were broached. When the two were about to get up to
go, Asghari caught hold of Husn^ra's veil with one hand, and of
Jamalara's veil with the other, and said : ' I intend to take my
fee now by main force. I swear by Heaven I will not let you go
until my prayer is granted.'

Husn&ra said : ' Why, mistress, what power do you think we
have in the matter ? Arjumand is only a boy as yet. And,
besides, in matters of this kind, while the parents are alive> how
can sisters interfere ?'

Asghari said : 4 When they are grown up and married, sisters,
too, become on a level with their mother. Besides, family alli-
ances are never entered into without the approval of all the
members. It is not possible that you will not be consulted.'

Husndra said : ' Up to this time there has been no question of
an engagement anywhere that we know of.'

Asghari said : ' Perhaps you are not aware, then, that a letter
of proposal was sent to Ulwi Kh&n's house. That was subse-
quently withdrawn.'

Jamil&ra said : ( If you have heard so. mistress, no doubt one

CHAPTER XXVI 155

was sent ; but not a word was ever said to us about the matter.
I wonder what there was amiss with Ulwi Khdn ? Heaven knows
why the proposal should have been withdrawn.'

In this way the conversation again began to drift elsewhere.
Asghari said : * Ladies, my request is being left in the background.
Be so good as to let me have an answer " Yes " or " No." '

Jamal&ra said : ' My dear mistress, how can we take your part ?'

Said Asghari : ' Wealth, good qualities, good looks, these are
the three main things. As for wealth, there is none left to us
poor people even to mention. As to good qualities, you, sister
Husnara, know Mahmuda well ; you and she were companions
for two whole years. Come, tell us the truth now ; are modesty,
consideration for others, good manners, amiability, self-posses-
sion under all circumstances, every kind of accomplishment
reading, writing, needlework, cooking I say, are all these things
to be found in Mahmuda or not ? That she is my sister-in-law
and my pupil has nothing to do with it. No, the girl herself was
created full of all good qualities by God. Is it not so ? If I am
telling falsehoods, do you speak, sister Husnara.'

' Mistress/ said Husndra, ' can anyone throw dust upon the
moon ? Mahmuda begam, such was the will of God, has not her
equal in any of the great houses. My goodness ! could any of
them hold a candle to her ?'

4 And as to good looks,' continued Asghari, * a nose, two ears,
two eyes, such as people ordinarily have, Mahmuda has also. She,
too, is of Adam's stock, and as good as others are. When she
reaches maturity her beauty will be more developed.'

* Mistress/ exclaimed Jamdldra, * do you call Mahmuda begam
a child of Adam ? By Heaven ! she is a child of the Houria. For
my part, I have never seen a really good-looking girl in any big
house. It is a case of " tall shop and tasteless viands." Here
are we two sisters I declare there are many slave girls hand-
somer than we are. And Mahmuda is " now the sun and now
the moon." Where does one ever see a woman of her beauty V

' In that case, sister/ said Asghari, c what is there amiss in m
except our poverty ? You may think it " little mouth and big
words " of me to say so, but not so many generations have passed

156 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

since All Naqi Kh&n found mercy with God ; and, after all, we,
as well as you, reckon him among our ancestors.'

Both sisters said : ' Mistress, you are the jewel of our family.
Are you and we two ? One race, one blood !'

* Then why this hesitation ?' said Asghari. * Make me happy
by granting my request.'

Husnara said : ' All right, mistress ; I will mention the matter
to my mother this very day.'

Asghari said : ' It is not the mentioning ; I can do that myself.
What I want is that you should give me your hearty co-operation,
and now that the proposal has been broached, that you will see it
brought to a successful issue.'

Both sisters gave her their word, and said : ' Please God,
mistress, it shall all be managed as you wish.'

This being settled, the two sisters took their leave for the time.
The next day Asghari went herself to call on Sultana begam, and
presented her with a kerchief of very fine shawl-work, worth 200
rupees, which she had brought from Siydlkot. Sult&na begam
said : * Mistress, you quite put me to shame. I ought to be dis-
charging my obligations to you, and not, on the contrary, to be
taking presents from you.'

Asghari said : 4 1 had this kerchief made to order expressly for
your honor, and I hope your honor will be pleased to accept it.
For a whole year and a half I had it tied up in my bundle, hoping
that I should one day come back to Dehli and lay it before your
honor.'

Sultana begam said : * I must take it, then, for the good luck-
it will bring me ; but, by Heaven, I do feel ashamed ! I would
your honor had only asked something of me once in a way, so that
my soul might be rejoiced.'

Having got this encouragement, Asghari stood up with clasped
hands, and made known her desire. Sultana begam said : * Very
good, mistress ; but pray sit down, won't you ?'

Asghari said : * I will only sit down now, when I have obtained
itty wish.'

Sultana begam caught her by the arm, and made her sit down,
and then said : ' To arrange the affairs of one's sons and one's

CHAPTER XXVI 157

(laughters is no light matter. When people are buying a cup
from the potter, worth the eighth of a farthing, they strike it to
see how it rings before they take it. And this is a bargain, in-
volving all that their whole lives are worth to them. One dare
not conclude it without anxious thought, and much advice and
deliberation. Your honor has mentioned this matter to me ; now
I will consult the boy's father, and my elder sister, and one or two
other members of the family, and then, whatever seems best, we
shall see. At present Arjumand is but a boy ; what hurry is
there for him to be married ?'

Anghari said : 4 1 have made a venture of my hopes far beyond
my merits, just as in Egypt there was an old woman who ven-
tured to bid for the patriarch Joseph with nothing in her hand
but a hank of the cotton she had spun. Like her, I possess
nothing, save poverty and humility, to offer in the transaction.
Your honor's good nature is now my only resource.'

Although Sultana begam did not say anything, it was evident
from her demeanour that she was not displeased at the proposal.
When Asghari took leave, she said to Jamalara and Husnara as
she passed them : 4 The success of this matter is now in the hands
of you two ladies.'

CHAPTER XXVII

AFTER Asghari had left both the sistors lauded Mahmuda to the
skies. Sultana was already half won over, but it happened that
Shah Zamani begam too had a daughter, Dildar Jahan, and Shdh
Zamani had cherished the idea of betrothing her own daughter to
Arjumand. Luck was so far on their side that Shah Zamani had
never actually spoken to her sister on the subject up to that date.
When Asghari mooted the project of an engagement with Mah-
muda, Sultana begam sent to inquire of Shah Zainaui begam what
waa her opinion in the matter. Shah Zamani was greatly dis*
concerted when she heard about it. Her endeavour now was t#
arrange HO that the proposal for Mahmuda should fall to the
ground, and then she would secure a definite engagement with

158 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Dildar Jahan. At the time she merely returned a verbal message
that she would think over the matter and send an answer.

Next day she presented herself at the house in person, and when
the conversation was brought round to this topic, she said :
* Sister, where are you ? and where is the Maulavi sahib ? What
bond is there between the earth and the sky ? Who brought this
message here ?'

Sultana said : * It was the mistress.'

Sh&h Zamani said : 4 1 shall go myself to the mistress at once.'
Accordingly she took Husnara with her, and went to see Asghari,
and said to her : ' Mistress, considering that you are a person of
such great intelligence, did it never even occur to you that family
alliances are usually made with people in one's own rank of life ?
The reason why the note came back from Ulwi Khdn's house
was that they would not accede to a gold bedstead. And what
will you give to Mahmuda, I should like to know !'

Asghari said : ' Begam sahib, I simply made a proposal on
behalf of the girl's marriage. I left no message that there was
any girl for sale. Although the code of morals in this city has
greatly deteriorated, I have never yet heard of a betrothal being
made a mercantile transaction. Pray, if a man gives his daughter
away is he to make a profit out of her ? There remains the question
of rank, and certainly, if wealth be taken as the standard, it is
manifestly the case that we are out of the reckoning. We have
not even the fourth part of what Ulwi Kha*n has. But your honor
is marrying a boy ; what does the trousseau signify to you ?
When a girl is being given in marriage, her people may well be
anxious, and wonder how their daughter will fare hereafter. Or,
should the other side be poor, and reduced to supporting them-
selves by pawning the incoming bride's trousseau, I can under-
stand such a family being anxious about it. But your honor is
taking a daughter, not giving one, and in your honor's house there
is everything provided of God's free gift. All that behoves your
||pnor is to find a girl, and here is a girl brought up under your
Honor's own eyes ; not a circumstance about her is concealed
from your honor. And what there is good or bad in her nature
your honor well knows.'

CHAPTER XXVII 159

Sh&h Zamdni said : * What then ? I still say that when be-
trothals are being made people look to equality.'

* I beg your pardon, Begam sahib,' said Asghari, ' I forgot.
We must not think of equality now. Those were the days of our
equality when All Naqi Khan gave his own sister in marriage into
this family, and now the very same family is not considered equal
for a daughter to be taken from it ! What, have maggots attacked
this house ? It lacks wealth, forsooth ! But such proud boasting
is not pleasing to God.'

Asghari had taken her up so briskly that Shah Zamani was at
a loss for an answer. She said : 4 Mistress, you are getting angry.'

Asghari said : * Begam sahib, is it in my power to be angry
with you ? I was in hopes that your honor would assist me in
this matter, and not to find that you yourself are displeased
at it.'

Shah Zamani said : * Mistress, if I offend you I cannot help it,
but the match is not an equal one.'

4 As far as wealth goes,' said Asghari, * our side is no match for
yours. In birth we claim an equality. In accomplishments,
please God ! your side will not be adjudged equal to ours. What
then ? Your side fails in one point, and our side fails in one
point. But a bride such as ours you may go, lamp in hand, over
the whole world and search for but never find.'

* Mistress,' said Shdh Zamani, * why do you not invite proposals
on behalf of Iqbdlmand Khan's boy ?'

Asghari said : ' I heard there were negotiations on foot in your
honor's family, and so I never entertained the idea. Besides, what
lack is there of proposals ? There are plenty of boys for the girls,
and plenty of girls for the boys. The way I reasoned was this :
here is a combination of wealth and ability ; the latter quality is
suitable for rich people, and they confer a certain grace upon it ;
if a -betrothal be arranged it will be good for either party. How-
ever, if your honor disapproves, why not have him betrothed to
Dildar Jahan '

' Dildara,' said Shah Zamtini, ' is still a child, and I wish to
marry her elsewhere.- Marriage between relations is not alto-
gether free from objection. 1

160 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

When she had said this Shah Zamani took her departure, but
Husnara did not get up to go. Her aunt even said : * Come,
child !' but Husnara besought her to go first, saying that it was
many years since she had met the mistress, and she wanted to
have a talk with her. When Shah Zamani had left the house
Husnara said : * Mistress, my mother approves ; it is she who is
bent on spoiling the business. She may say what she likes to the
contrary, but her real object is that the betrothal should be deter-
mined with Dildara.'

Asghari said : ' It is for Providence to decide now. After all,
what does my opinion stand for against her ? But, sister Hus-
nara, it was not such a bad notion of mine. It seemed to me that
the two exactly fitted each other. Think what a great house
yours is, and only this one long-wished for .son ! Whatever there
is of money and possessions all belongs to him. The mere keeping
up of such a vast establishment demands great mental ability,
and great tact too is necessary. Muhnukla comes of a poor familv,
but what of that ? God keep her ! Her courage and tact are
such as befit princes. Suppose some girl with no tact came into
your family, and brought cart-loads of trousseau with her, of
what use would they be ? She would find it difficult to manage
her own wealth discreetly. How would she be able to rule your
family ? Mahmuda, so (iod has ordained, is capable of ruling a
kingdom. Then, again, sister, one thing which ought to be con-
sidered is, for what purpose are alliances made ? In this world
we ought to extend our social intimacies as far aa possible. If you
have kept every fresh alliance that is made within the walls of
your own house, what have you gained ? Whenever one arranges
a marriage it should be outside the family.'

* Mistress,' said Hu.snAra, * both my elder sister and I have
spoken to our mother clearly on every point, and now I will go
and tell her all you have just been mentioning as well. I am in
good hopes that our side will win.'

And BO Asghari, having fully coached her up in her part,
allowed Husnara to take leave.

At the other house, when Shah Zamani came back, she said to
Sultana : * Sister, I have told the mistress plainly to her face that

CHAPTER XXVII l6l

it is no match between your family and hers, and that it behoves
people not to let such proposals come from their lips without
thinking. 9 But Shdh Zamani was in this strait, that she herself
could not advocate her own daughter's engagement with her own
mouth. In her heart this engagement was what Shah Zamani
desired, but she was under the impression that the agreement
would be settled by the gentlemen of the family. For the present
she could only dilate on the objection to Mahmuda on the score
of poverty. In the end Sultana begam retired apart from Shah
Zamani, and took counsel with her own two daughters, when
Husnara said : * Mother, the real truth of the matter is that our
good Aunt is designing to keep the betrothal for Dildara.'

Sultdna said : * Well, why not ask Arjumand himself about it
as if you were saying it in fun, you know.'

Jamdlara called her brother, and said : ' How, brother! there
is a discussion going on about your marriage. Have not you
anything to say about it ? Say on, would you like Dilddr Jahan ?'

Arjumand was too shy to say anything out loud before his
mother, but by a gesture to his two sisters he expressed a denial.
Jamaldra and Husnara found a new argument in his refusal.

* Good looks, a good figure, good brains, and natural tact,' said
Husndra ; * these things, sufficient even for a makeweight against
Mahmuda, you will not find in any girl. Of course, if you want a
gold bedstead to be provided, that is a thing which is beyond the
reach of poor people like them.'

* Sister,' said Sultana, ' the chief thing to look at is the girl.
By God's grace we have no lack of anything in the house as it is.
What do we want with a big trousseau ?'

'Well, then,' said Jamaldra, 'why hesitate? Proceed with
the matter in God's name.'

* And although they are badly of!,' said Husndra, ' the mistress
is a woman of many expedients. What if she does not talk much
about it ? When the time comes she will do a great deal more than
is expected of her.'

Sultana said : * Very well, when your father comes home we
will see what he thinks about it.'

When the junior Hakim sAhib came in, Jamdlara and Husnara

162 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

put Mahmuda's case before him just as pleaders in Kachahri plead
the cause of their clients, with the result that he, too, approved of
the betrothal with Mahmuda.

At once the two sisters rushed off, heedless of their dignity, to
Asghari's house. Muhammad Kdmil's mother, who was in abso-
lute ignorance of all that was going on, called out to them :
' What is it, Begam sahib ? what makes you in such a hurry ?
You should hold up your skirts as you go.'

Husnara said : * Nothing ; we are only going to the mistress. 1

The instant she saw Asghari Husndra cried out : ' My benison,
mistress ! my benison on you ! And now see about giving me my
reward.'

Asghari said : ' May God send His benison on all of you ladies !
But as for a reward, with what face can I offer you anything ?
My prayers are all I have to give, and you know that I pray for
you night and day.'

' That won't do, mistress,' said Husndra ; ' I insist upon having
my mouth sweetened by you to-day.'

* Very well,' said Asghari, ' but sit down ; you shall have some
sweetmeats.' Then she called Diyanat, and, taking out five
rupees, gave them into her hand, and said : ' Go at once and fetch
some of her best sweetmeats from the bellwoman's shop, and some
lumps of delight from the corner of the Dariba, and some pearl-
drops from Shah Tdra's lane, and almonds from tlie Chdndni
Chowk, and roasted dal from the Nil ka k^tra, 1 and whipt cream
from the Khdnam's bdzdr.'

Meanwhile she entertained them both with pawn, but it was
not long before the basket of good things arrived. Asghari,
Akbari, Husndra, and Jamdldra ate heartily of them together,
and what was over they sent into the schoolroom. When the
two latter ladies were about to depart, Asghari said : ' Up to this
moment I have not spoken a word of this to the dear mother. I
will now go and mention it to her, and, please God, the day after
to-morrow is a good day, both of the month and of the week ; the
customary ceremonies shall then be performed.'

1 Pronounce Neel ka kuttra ; the meaning i 'Indigo mart/ but it is the
name of a mohulla.

CHAPTER XXVIII 163

CHAPTER XXVIII

THE two ladies took their departure. Asghari said to her
mother-in-law : * Mother dear, have you devised any plan for
Mahmuda ?'

Her mother-in-law said : ' What plan can I devise ? If only
a message would come from somewhere ! My thoughts don't
go beyond one place. I shall marry Mahmuda to Muhammad
Salih.'

Asghari said : * Where is Muhammad Sdiih, and where is
Asghari ? Brother 1 Muhammad Salih 9 s age will not be much
less than that of our own dear brother.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother said : * Yes, Aqil is six months
older than Muhammad Sdlih ; they were both born in the same
year.'

4 Well,' said Asghari, ' that is not much difference.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : 4 We are barely on calling
terms anywhere else.'

4 I have thought of a plan,' said Asghari ; 4 if your honour
approves, we will talk it over.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother asked : 4 What is it ?'

Asghari replied : 4 With the son of the Hakim Fatih ullah
Khan. 9

Muhammad K&mil's mother said : * My goodness, daughter,
to live in a hut and dream of palaces ! Where is the Hakim ji's
family with such wealth at their command nowadays that
there is no one in the city to compare with them ? and where are
we poor creatures, who have not even a decent cottage to live
in ? Would it ever enter their heads to mate with us ? To
propose anything so indiscreet would only result in our humilia-
tion.'

Asghari said : ' If they are rich it is all for their own good.

Do we, God forbid it ! depend at nil on their bounty ? If they

are revelling in puldos and zardas, we too are enamoured of our

crushed grain and pulse. In birth we do not yield a jot to

1 Really 'cousin.'

164 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

them. And as for worth good heavens ! there is more of
that in our Mahmuda than ever fell to the lot of their elders,
I expect.'

* Sister,' said Muhammad Kamil's mother, ' worth before wealth
stands up with folded hands. If I could order the making of a
gold bedstead, then perhaps I might set about making such a pro-
posal. No, my dear, you may put that out of your thoughts
altogether. Why, tell me, what was there amiss in Ulwi Khan?
After they had sent a note to his house they recalled it. Sister,
poor folk must rely on poor folk for their custom.'

Asghari said : * Beauty alone is a fortune worth thousands.
May any evil eye be averted ! I say they may search among all
their kindred for anyone better looking than our Mahmuda.'

* Sister,' said Muhammad Kamil's mother, 4 you talk just like
little girls. Even beauty is taken into account only when it
appears in someone of equal rank. And then, is it a thing to say
with one's own lips, " Our daughter has a pretty face " ? Besides,
for my part, I don't understand what curse there is upon beauty.
I have seen very beautiful women who were not valued at the
price of their shoe-leather, and there are hideous creatures who
are cherished as the dearest of the dear.'

Said Asghari : * Beauty too is a thing which people do well not
to be infatuated with ; but it often happens that people whose
outward appearance is lovely are inwardly vicious and aggressive
in their tempers. Being vain of their personal appearance, they
take no pains to soften the asperities of their inner nature, and so
their evil temper beats down the price of their beauty. You may
compare them, say, with a horse faultless in colour, and clean-
limbed, free from all blemishes, and sound in every joint, but ill-
broken and a biter, and given to kicking as well, rearing when-
ever he is mounted, and falling over ; what use could a man make
of such a brute though he bought him for his beauty ? But if, in
addition to his outward attractiveness, he is well trained, and
clever in moving, and gentle withal, then he is an article beyond
all price. Like our Mahmuda, whose beauty of face and sweet-
ness of disposition are only to be matched, praise God, the one by
the other.'

CHAPTER XXVIII 165

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : * For all that one must have
something at least to give with her. Why, just now, one of the
girls in your school was reading

4 " Yd makun b4 fflbdndn dosti,
Ya dare -afraz bar bala-e pil," 1

which means, I take it, that either you should not cultivate the
friendship of elephant riders, or, if you do, then you must raise
the doorway of your house so that an elephant may go in and out.
Where are we poor people to find the means of interchanging
presents suitable to their rank ? and what need have we to
expose ourselves gratuitously to their laughter ? Besides, say
that the betrothal has actually been effected, and then the girl is
looked down upon by all the people of her new home " Your
labour is lost, and your neighbours jibe." '

' Esteem and contempt/ said Asghari, * are not determined by
the bride's trousseau. The affection between husband and wife
is something of a very different texture. Did Jamal&ra take a
small frrousseau with her ? And yet it was not her luck to remain
a single day in her husband's home. You need not go so far as
that for an instance. My elder sister had a trousseau quite as
good as mine, and yet why are they quarrelling every day ? It
is a question of each individual's tact and good temper.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother said : * Yes, I admit that. True
love between husband and wjfe does not depend on the trousseau.
But all the rclatigns and kinsfolk will they be content without
having their say ? And suppose the boy takes no heed of their
talk what then ? The mother-in-law and sisters-in-law can
find opportunities to drop some ill-natured remark in the mere
course of conversation. After all that does gall the feelings. A
girl's parents have to lower their heads enough as it is, and to
provide even a tolerable show of trousseau and presents is an extra
calamity. No, sister, I don't see how this creeper is going to
cover the trellis.'

' We may leave the kinsfo|k out of the question,' said Asghari ;
* she won't have many of them pitting with her daily. True, the

1 This is a couplet from the Gulistan of Sa-adi. The meaning is given in
the following lines.

It>6 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

constant naggings of a mother-in-law and sisters-in-law are a
terrible thing to face ; but Husnara and Jamdlara is there any
need to speak of taunts or sarcasms ? They will be kissing the
dust off Mahrnuda's feet. The world has not gone dark all on
a sudden. Or do you suppose they will thrust potsherds over
their eyes directly she is married ? Your honor can see for your-
self how great an affection Husnara bears for Mahmuda. There
is still Jamalara God knows the secrets of her heart, but to all
appearance she lays herself out to be kind to her whenever they
are together. And, after all, I am here still alive ; if they behave
badly to Mahmuda, with what faces will they appear before me ?
And one thing which counts for a hundred I am perfectly
certain of this : that mothers-in-law and sisters-in-law look which
way the wind blows. If they see that the boy is in love with her,
not one of them will dare to raise her eyebrows at Mahmuda.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : ' Still, I don't see what you
are aiming at. Am I to have her wedded over a cup of sherbet ?'

4 No,' said Asghari, ' that is not my meaning. Besides, among
the very poor, if even sherbet is not procurable, do they not
arrange their sons' and daughters' affairs ? To give and make
others give is a custom of the world everywhere. People stretch
their limbs as far as they can see their sheet. It is according to
one's means ; whatever can be managed is given, and what can't
be managed is not given. But there is no sense whatever in
letting a family drift into bankruptcy through hankering after
display. There is a girl named Sulma who reads in my school.
After the Mutiny her father received a reward from the Govern-
ment of ten thousand rupees. He had saved the life of some
English lady. Ten thousand rupees to him was so large a sum
that he might have lived respectably upon it for the rest of his days.
He only had one son and one daughter, whose marriage expenses
were still to be defrayed by him. But, yielding to his vanity, he
not only cleared off the ten thousand rupees given to him by the
Government, but spent several hundreds more which he raised by
loan. At the time there were grand shouts of applause on all
sides. Now, there is such scarcity in the house that they are at
a loss even for a meal. I, too, received an invitation to the wedding.

CHAPTER XXV III 167

It quite took my breath away to see the preparations. Indeed
perhaps Sulma's mother may have taken it ill of me I said to
her : " Sister, marrying a son or daughter is eyes' delight and
hearts' comfort, and where has the ghee gone ? Into the khichri ; but
still, one has need to take some compassion on one's own pot
also." That was all I said at the time, and afterwards I had
some compunction lest Sulma's sister might have thought that
the school- mistress, with whom she had nothing whatever to do,
was interfering unwarrantably.'

Muhammad Kamil's mother said : 4 Yes, it is true. But we
have to live in this world, bad luck to it ! What can we do ?
Where can we go ? A thing must be done, whether it ought to
be or not. If people would not do as the world does, no one
would be made a laughing-stock, and no one would be held up to
admiration. At the lecture which Maulavi Ishaq sdhib gave, I
heard that in the old times the Arabs used to put their girls to
death the instant they were born.'

* You need not go so far off as that, dear mother,' said Asghari.
* In our own country the Rajputs were guilty of the same horrors.
It has been put a stop to now since the English interfered, but still,
there are rumours now and then of murders done secretly.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother said : 4 What is one to think ? It
is revolting to the moral sense.'

Said Asghari : 4 In poverty the moral sense does not count for
much, and the majority of people in the world are very poor. If
to be poor is a thing to be ashamed of, there are many in the world
without shame. But, whether riches or poverty, each has his
own lot. And how should ail men be of one pattern ?'

* Heigh, heigh !' said the mother-in-law ; 4 for my part, I wish
some law against excessive expenditure on weddings were made
by the English Government. Then we should be rid of the
bother.'

Asghari said : * I saw in the papers that the English are going
to take some measures. Indeed, all the chief men of this city
were summoned to a meeting about it ; and I heard that some
limits to the expenditure had been fixed, the amount of the dowry
being taken as the standard. But these are things which ought

l68 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

really to be done by us people. If we were all agreed, we might
put a stop to every expense which is superfluous.'

Muhammad K&mil's mother said : ' But when you speak of
expenses as superfluous, for those to whom God has given the
means nothing is superfluous. I grant you, if a man has not a
cowrie in his pocket, then everything for him is superfluous.'

Said Asghari : ' Let not your honor say so. The really neces-
sary expenses at weddings are very small. An enormous amount
of money goes in superfluities. Of course, in our family, we never
think of having nautches and shows, and bands of music, and fire-
works, or big-drums and kettle-drums ; but among those who
allow such things hundreds and thousands of rupees are sunk in
them alone.'

Her mother-in-law said : ' The people who have nautches 1 and
shows may look after their own affairs. But take people like us.
What expenses that we incur are superfluous ?'

Asghari : ' Are there not plenty ? At the betrothal, the inter-
change of presents on festivals, the bridegroom's feast before the
wedding, the henna, the bridegroom's procession, the bride's pro-
cession, the feast of the fourth day, 2 the bride's visits to her
mother, and then the burdensome costumes, the jewelled orna-
ments it is all superfluous.'

Mother-in-law : * Why not say at once straight out that the
wedding is superfluous to begin with V

Asghari burst out laughing, and said : * No, weddings are not
superfluous. But all these accompanying formalities are mere
useless padding. 9

Mother-in-law : * But it is not only the ceremonies. You call
the dresses and jewellery superfluous.'

Asghari : 4 As far as mere clothes and mere ornaments go, they
are useful enough. But those heavily-embroidered costumes : I
ask your honor, of what use are they ? Why, my own are lying
there simply rotting. I hate putting them on, worse luck ! inside
the house. Now and again I have worn them at weddings ; or
perhaps on the Bed they have been taken out for an hour or two.

1 Nautches are condemned by strict Muaalmant.

1 When the bride IB taken in state to make her first call on her parents.

CHAPTER XXVIII 169

Except for that, there they are tied up in my bundle the whole
year round. Putting them in the sun, when I have to do it, gives
me a headache for the day which might well be avoided. And if
you should want to sell them, you don't get the value of the
material. People won't offer you the price even of the trimmings.
And it is just the same with the made-up jewellery. Did your
honor hear about the wedding of Maula vi Kif dyat ullah's daughter ?
That is the kind of wedding I would choose.'

Mother-in-law : * What Maulavi Kifdyat ullah is that ?'
Asghari : ' The superintendent of girl-school teachers.'
Mother-in-law : ' He is not a resident of the City, I fancy.'
Asghari : ' No, his home is somewhere near Agra. But he has
brought his wife and children with him here. His daughter was
betrothed within the City, and his wife was bent on their going
back to their own homo, and having the ceremony performed
there ; but the Maulavi sdhib managed to win her over to his
views. One day they summoned a few of their intimate friends
to the house. When the guests arrived, they learnt it was the
daughter's wedding-day ; and shortly after, the bridegroom's
father made his appearance, bringing his boy with him. The
wedding vows were recited according to the Muhammadan ritual,
and with the blessing it was all over. Presents and trousseau
were conspicuous by their absence. But after the wedding the
Maulavi sdhib brought five hundred rupees in silver, and laid
them before his daughter and son-in-law, and said : " One minute,
brother. See, the portion destined for you by Providence out of
my earnings was just this amount. If I had wished, I might have
entertained a lot of wedding guests out of it ; and, as the custom
of the world is, I might have made up for you one or two grand
suits of clothing. But when I thought it over, it seemed to me,
under the circumstances, that it would be far better to give you
the money in cash. Do you now take the sum, and make use of
it in any way you like." '

After listening to this story, Muhammad Kdmil's mother said :
' Yes, away from home the Maulavi sdhib could do as he pleased.
Who was there to say him nay ?'
Asghari : ' Who ? Well, at any rate, there was his own wife.

170 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

And must we always wait to be away from home ? It is courage
we want. The thing can be done well enough in the City if there
is a man prepared to do it. He has only to think of his own busi-
ness, and let those chatter who will.'

The mother-in-law : ' And is it this kind of dull, shabby wedding
that you have designed for Mahmuda ?'

Asghari : * Most certainly I would not pay any attention to
people's remarks. If I could have my own way, Mahmuda's
wedding should be the counterpart of Maulavi Kifayat ullah's
daughter's. In fact, he did invite a few guests, and, in my opinion,
even that was unnecessary.'

The mother-in-law : 4 Nay, sister ; for Heaven's sake, don't be
so cruel. In my old age I have but this one child to give away in
marriage. Shall I ever come back again from my grave to be at
anyone's wedding ?'

Asghari : ' But I don't say that anything of the kind is my
intention. Only there is one thing that I am quite determined
on, at least, in my own mind that not a pice of debt shall be
incurred, nor any property be mortgaged. Whatever money has
been saved up, whatever has been put by expressly for her, and
whatever, under Providence, may be in store for her at the time
of the ceremony, that, I say, is quite enough.'

The mother-in-law : ' Extolled be the perfection of God ! If
only it could be so, what a good thing ! But it depends on the
other party's co-operation.'

Asghari : * And suppose they should be willing ?'

The mother-in-law : * What nonsense, to think of their being
willing ! Why, he is their only son, granted after many prayers.
Goodness knows what aspirations they have for him in their
hearts. They will look about for some family equal in rank to
their own, and then get him engaged, and satisfy all their ambi-
tions.'

Asghari said : ' Ever since I came back from Siydlkot I have
been engaged in arranging this matter. It is fixed all right on
their side. Only just now Jamdl&ra and Husnara came over here
in a hurry to see me. The junior Hakim s&hib, too, has given
his approval. Shah Zamani begam made all kinds of plans for

CHAPTER XX VIII 171

the benefit of her own daughter, but, by God's grace, not one was
successful And now there is no time to be lost. The day after
to-morrow is a good day. From their side the sweetmeats will
be sent, and then the engagement will be binding. We can see
about the marriage afterwards.'

When Muhammad KamiPs mother heard this, she was lost in
amazement. She said : ' It is an excellent match certainly, far
beyond our merits. But it will be very difficult for us to make
the preparations suitable to their rank.'

Said Asghari : l God is the Causer of all causes. Since Mali-
muda's lot has grappled with so high a family, God of His might
will provide all that is necessary at the right time.'

Muhammad Kdmil's mother said : ' Wait till your father-in-
law comes home. I will see what he thinks about the sweet-
meats.'

In a little while the Maulavi sahib came in, and when he heard
about the proposed betrothal he was highly delighted, and said :
4 By all means, let the sweetmeats arrive.'

Asghari at once sent off a verbal message to Husnara. On the
appointed day five maunds of sweetmeats and one hundred rupees
arrived. One maund and a quarter of sweetmeats and a hundred
and twenty-five rupees were despatched. From both sides good
wishes and congratulations followed.

CHAPTER XXIX

No sooner was the betrothal arranged than the Hakim sahib began
to manifest an impatience for the wedding. He sent a message
to the Maulavi sahib couched iu these words : * For a long time
it has been my intention to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, and
now I am delaying it solely for the completion of this rite. Life
is uncertain. I should be glad if the marriage could take place
in the month of Rajab.'

The Maulavi sahib asked Asghari what he should do.

Asghari said : * For the present you had better reply in the

172 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

following terms : " The matter is engaging my earnest attention.
I am doing my best to make the necessary arrangements. If I
find it possible in so short a time to get together the few things I
desire to give I, too, have still before me that last obligation of
a Muslim the sooner the marriage can take place the better." *

In reply to this the Hakim s&hib sent another message to the
effect that he had not sought the alliance with any expectation
of dowry or trousseau, that all he begged of them was the bride,
and that they need not trouble themselves about her appurten-
ances. To this they answered : * Very well, the proposal for the
wedding to take place in Rajab is agreeable to us also.' The
twenty-seventh day of Rajab was fixed accordingly, and both
parties began to make their arrangements.

At this juncture the Maulavi sahib began to show signs of
perturbation. At one minute he was assuring himself that he
could raise a loan from Hazari Mai, and at the next he was debat-
ing in his mind whether he should sell the property known as the
butter market, or only mortgage it. Asghari perceived that he
was much disturbed in his mind. She asked him : * What has
your honor been projecting ?'

The Maulavi s&hib replied : * I wish I could tell you. Here is
the date of the wedding coming close upon my head, and any
means of procuring the money for it I cannot conceive. I asked
Hazari Mai ; even he put me off. Then 1 thought of parting with
the butter market, but no purchaser cornea forward.'

Asghari said : * It will never, never do for your honor to borrow
the money, and please do not sell any of your property either.
There is nothing worse than being in debt. And it is easy enough
to part with an estate, but very difficult to come by one.'

The Maulavi sAhib said : * I am not to borrow, and I am not to
sell. Do you suppose I am an alchymist ? or that I know the
secret of the hidden hand ? Where is the money to come from ?'

1 Let us first take stock of what there is in the house,' said
Asghari ; * most of the clothes have been ready some time ; a
few trimmings are still wanting, but among my robes there are
one or two very heavily-embroidered ones we can take some of
the broideries off them, and they will make good the deficiency.

CHAPTER XXIX 173

The copper vessels are in the house we don't want to buy any ;
as for the wooden articles, and all the little extras, I will give my
own. They are lying doing nothing, and will only get spoilt, for
I never use them. And then well, your honor has some money
in cash, at all events ?'

The Maulavi sahib said : ' Only five hundred rupees.'

' Well,' said Asghari, * that's plenty. At the time I started for
Siydlkot the school fund amounted to four hundred rupees that
is in deposit. While I was away two hundred rupees more were
made ; half of that my elder sister is entitled to, but Mahmuda's
share is one hundred ; with that added to it, the school fund
comes to five hundred. I wrote to Mahmuda's younger brother, 1
and asked him for three hundred ; my brother-in-law has written
to promise two hundred. You may say that we have fifteen
hundred rupees in cash at this moment. Then there are the
bracelets which were given to me at Husndra's wedding what
use are they to me ? I had intended to put them upon Mahmuda
at her wedding, but afterwards I thought to myself it would not do
for them to be returned to the same house from which they came,
so I shall sell them. I sent them to the bazar through Tamdsha
Khanam, and Panna Mai made an offer of thirteen hundred rupees
for them. If by Mahmuda's good luck we should find someone
in need of such articles, please God, they will realize fifteen
hundred. Another idea has come into my head. Your honor
might well go to Lahore in order to fetch my brother-in-law, and
when asking the Chief to grant him leave, might mention the
reason for it. The Chief is very generous. It is quite possible
he may help. This has been the custom of old with Hindustani
princes. They have always helped their faithful adherents on
such occasions.'

So it happened that Asghari sent her father-in-law to Lahore.
When the Maulavi sahib went to pay his respects to the Chief, the
Chief asked him : * Maulavi sdhib, what has brought your honor
here V

The Maulavi s&hib then submitted his request : * Your servant's
daughter is about to be married, and his object in presenting
1 /.., her own husband.

174 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

himself is to solicit the boon of a month's leave for Muhammad
Aqil. And your servant does not venture to ask that any member
of your Highness's family should take a part in the ceremony, but
if the agent, who is in Dehli, might grace the assemblage with his
presence as your Highness's representative, it would produce in
my behalf a great accession of dignity among my fellow-
citizens.'

The Chief not only granted Muhammad Aqil's leave, but also
defrayed the expense of the Maulavi sahib's journey to Lahore
and back, and he sent an order to the agent at Dehli to join the
wedding party as his representative, and to make a present, as a
guest's offering, of the sum of five hundred rupees. Here was a
fine windfall realized without anyone's stirring a finger, and all
through Asghari's advice. On the other hand, through Tamdsha
Khanam's good offices, the jewelled bracelets at last found their
way to the Nawab Hatim Zamani begam, who was captivated by
them at the first sight, and blindly made over two bags of a
thousand rupees each to secure them. Thus from all sides there
was a perfect rush of money. Under Asghari's management the
very finest costumes were made ready, and a fourfold vStock of
jewellery. Such a wedding had not taken place in the Maulavi's
family, at any rate, for many generations, and even the bride-
groom's relations were astonished when they saw the bride's
outfit. The articles of every kind were not only numerous but
costly, and everything of the newest fashion. Two of the cos-
tumes, indeed, came from the bridegroom's people one, for the
wedding itself, of stiff brocade, and one of an embroidered pattern
for the ceremony of the fourth day. As for the jewels taking
trousseau and presents together, there was no end to them
rings and pins for the nose, ornaments of several kinds for the
forehead, earrings, plain and jewelled, of all sorts and sizes, neck-
laced and chains and pendants for the throat, armlets and bracelets
of every device, rings for the fingers, anklets and rings for the
feet and toes. The number of dresses, of different fabrics and
textures, amounted altogether to fifty. There were two hundred
metal dishes, and other articles of furniture upon the same scale.
In short, the marriage ceremony was performed amidst the greatest

CHAPTER XXX *75

display of pomp. Thus Mahmuda took leave of her old home,
and in her father-in-law's house she received the title of Qamar
Astani begam. 1

CHAPTER XXX

THE Hakim Fatihullah Khan was a very sober, self-denying, and
God-fearing man. For years he had cherished the desire of
making the pilgrimage, but had been waiting to see Arjumand
Khan well married. After the wedding he still remained for a
time, bent upon watching the demeanour and behaviour of the
bride. There was not much need for that in her case. Mah-
muda had been polished upon Madam Asghari's lathe. There
was not an uneven speck left on her surface. No matter what
test he applied, the Hakirn sahib found his son's bride to be
thoroughly educated, and of great natural ability, and full of tact.
Like a melon, sweet of itself, and topped with the finest white
sugar to begin with, Mahmuda was good by her very nature, and
she had benefited besides by Asghari's teaching and advice.
What need to ask the result ?

In short, the Hakim sahib was satisfied beyond a doubt that
Qamar Astani would sustain the fortunes of his house to per-
fection. He forthwith commenced making preparations for his
journey to Arabia in the most determined manner. He had
bound himself to a pilgrimage ; he now resolved to make it a
migration. All the convertible property and cash which he pos-
sessed he put aside to take with him, but he had all the house
property, shops, markets, warehouses, villages, and sarais regis-
tered in his son's name. This was not done without the remon-
strances, as the custom is, of his own and his wife's relations ;
but the Hakim sahib had God's message ringing in his ear, and
was deaf to everything else. With the name of God on his lips
he stood up to go upon his mission, and he bequeathed all his
worldly possessions to his son and daughter-in-law.

Although Mahmuda was now a married woman, she regarded
1 ' Lady Full Moon on the threshold.'

176 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

Asghari with greater respect and reverence, if possible, than before,
and sought her advice upon the minutest points. It was now
that Asghari found the opportunity of putting her natural ability
to the proof. With a vast establishment, and business of the
most important nature to be dealt with, she directed everything
with such consummate ability that Arjumand Khan became, by
her means (God preserve me from lying !), like one of the kings or
wazirs of the age. No Chiefs court could vie with his in Dehli
no, nor in the country for many miles round.

How much further am I to continue this narrative ? Already
so much has been written, and yet, if you ask me truly, it is not
one chitack out of a maund to what I could tell you. All this
time Asghari has been living in a state of poverty. As the proverb
says : * Without clothes no woman can go bathing ; what is she
to wring out ?* 1 But now, God keep her ! power and affluence
have fallen to her lot. The fullest scope and opportunity have
been given her for the exercise of her administrative tact and
ingenuity. The things which she achieved under these conditions
for all that she was a woman will no doubt remain in the world
as memorials of her to the last day ; but unfortunately I have
not the leisure to set them down in writing. Still, if there be
anyone willing to accept instruction who can listen to a word,
and understand it, what has been already set down is not to be
despised. All kinds of new ideas, and all sorts of lessons, are
contained herein. We may call it a story for children, but in
sooth it is a sermon for their elders. Before I bring the book to a
conclusion, however, there is one other fact which I am bound to
record, which is that, while she was still of tenner years, Asghari
became a mother. All this while I have not made any mention
of her children. She had several, but, as God willed, few of them
survived their birth. The only one who lived to maturity was a
son, Muhammad Akmal, who in later days was united in marriage
to Mahmuda's only daughter Mas-uda. This boy came after
several other children, and, before he was born, one son

1 A woman must have two suite of clothes to go bathing. The proverb is
equivalent to our * making bricks without straw.'

CHAPTER XXX 177

named Muhammad Adil, and one daughter named Batul, had
died.

There was no lack of pains taken in the children's bringing up.
They were guarded alike from cold and from heat ; the very
times for feeding them were fixed, and the quantity of food given
was by measure ; the utmost care was taken to prevent their
putting into their mouth anything unwholesome or fit to be
thrown away ; when their teeth began to come their gums were
lanced lest the child should not win through the trouble of teeth-
ing ; at four years of age they were vaccinated to preserve them
from small-pox ; in a word, everything was done for them that
human ingenuity could suggest, but in the face of God's decree
the wisdom of the best of us avails nothing. Muhammad Adil
was four years old when he died. He had an attack of indigestion.
Some medicine was given to stop the purging. Fever super-
vened, and brought on inflammation of the brain. The mother
had to give up her boy whom she had nursed so carefully through
his infancy. While this sore was still fresh in her heart, Batul,
who had reached the age of seven, was taken ill. It was an out-
break of diarrhoea, so violent that, before its course could be
checked, it carried away her life. All kinds of medicines were
administered, but when does death yield to medicine ? In the
course of a single week the little girl gradually lost her strength,
and faded away. The shock of her death fell upon Asghari very
heavily. In the first place she was a girl, and then whether
because she was doomed to die early I do not know she was so
passionately attached to her mother that she would not be away
from her for a moment. When her mother was at her devotions
she would sit upon the prayer carpet ; she would accompany her
to bed, and get up with her at the same moment ; even if it was
her mother's medicine she must needs taste it; and such was
her application to study that, at that early age, she had already
begun the tenth portion of the vernacular translation of the Qur-&n;

When Muhammad Adil died, the women about her commenced
their efforts to sap Asghari's^faith. One of them would say :
4 He was begotten under some malign influence ; you must get
Mihr Ali Shah the faqir to cure him'; and another: ' Someone

12

178 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

overlooked his milk ; have a wave-offering placed on the cross-
ways *; and another : ' It is the rickets ; have him exorcised by
Ramazan Shah '; and another : ' There is something wrong with
the house ; get Mir Alim 1 to drive a nail into the floor for you';
and another : * You have been travelling hither and thither ; some
night-hag has seized hold of him ; go to Kachocha.' 2 Twists
and amulets, and spells and charms, and fetishes, from all quarters
of the world, were prescribed by this or that person. But, bravo,
Asghari ! you never ceased to be thankful to God for His mercy ;
no, not even when two of your children in succession were taken
from you ! To all suggestions of the kind she returned the same
answer : ' If it be God's will He is at no loss, even so, to show me
His bounty.'

CHAPTER XXXI

WHEN the news of Batul's death reached him, Durandesh Khan
sahib was very greatly distressed, and it was with a troubled
heart that he wrote to his daughter the following letter :

4 To my dear child, Asghari Khanam, after my blessing,
* Be it known :

'I have only just learnt, by letter from Dchli, that
Batul has been taken from you. It would be impossible for me
to pretend that this has not caused me pain, and yet my reason
has not gone so far astray that I should give way to useless repin-
ing, like those who are without knowledge. My great trouble is
for you. If this blow should seem to have fallen upon you with
terrible severity, it is no wonder. But in every state of life it
behoves God's servants to take counsel of their reason. God, in
His mercy, has given us our reason for this very purpose that
we should get help from it, whether in sorrow or in joy. The
facts of the world are such that we cannot avoid the necessity of

1 Pronounce Uleem.

2 A village in Oudh where is the tomb of a very eminent Saint, named
Saiyid Aahraf Jahrfngfr.

CHAPTER XXXI 179

pondering over them, and this kind of meditation is not devoid of
profit. This earth and sky, the mountains and forests, and
rivers, men, and beasts, and trees all the thousands and thou-
sands of different things that are in the world, they constitute
one vast machine of which the world is the habitation. The sun's
issuing in the daytime with steadfast regularity, and afterwards
the coming on of night, and the gleaming of the moon and of the
stars ; the summer heat at one time, the winter at another, and
the rains at another, and through the influence of rain the pro-
duction of fruits and flowers of many forms and many colours
every detail of tile universe is sufficient by itself to occupy a man's
thoughts for years. And to any human being his own condition
is no small subject for meditation. How a man is born, and how
he is nurtured and grows, and how there pass over him the dif-
ferent stages of boyhood and manhood and old age, and how at
last he sets forth upon a journey beyond this world that, indeed,
is a deep and difficult theme to entertain. The whole of this vast
machinery has been set in motion by God for some good purpose,
and will continue so to be in motion for as long as He wills. This
world is only some seven or eight thousand years old, and now its
time is but short, for the resurrection is at hand, and all that we
see around us is hastening to destruction. It has been proved by
statistics that three and a half thousand human beings die in
every hour that is to say, about one person at every moment
and an equal number, no doubt, are being born. You may easily
reckon that in a single month many hundreds of thousands of
persons are dying, and are being born into the world, and then
consider that this has been going on uninterruptedly for seven
thousand years, which means that an incalculable number of
persons have already died in this world up to the present. What
we call " death," therefore, is something normal and inevitable.
The greatest and mightiest kings, the most famous scholars, the
cleverest physicians, even great prophets men who had power
to raise the dead to life could not escape from death themselves.
Whoever is born into this world must one day die : such is God's
imperative decree. So that if on any particular day this decree
be put in force against ourselves, or against someone near and

122

l8o THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

dear to us, we have no excuse for complaint or lamentation.
These remarks are not mere platitudes. Think over them well,
and when you realize what the true meaning of death is, I am
certain you will consider as I do that to grieve for the death of
anyone is futile and unprofitable.

* Our grief at a person's death depends upon the strength of our
attachment for him. If I hear that the Emperor of China is dead,
the news does not affect me in the least, for the simple reason that
there was never any tie between him and myself. And if anyone
outside the family should die, even in the mohulla, unless I had
some special interest in him, it would cause me very little con-
cern. It is only when we are connected with the person by some
tie that we really grieve at his death, and the stronger the tie the
greater the grief. If a female cousin of my maternal grand-
mother's sister-in-law's sister's daughter-in-law die it is nothing
to me ; the relationship is too distant. In fact, it is not merely
relationship that has to be considered, for grief makes its presence
equally felt in the case of friendship or intimacy. Thus one needs
to settle which person it is in the world for whom we have the
greatest attachment, and for that there is no fixed rule. We
may imagine the closest relationship, and constant quarrels and
disagreements. Such relations are out of the reckoning. And,
on the other hand, an outsider, with whom there is no connection
by blood or marriage, but strong affection and a community of
interest, is often valued more than relations. But we may take
it that each individual, according to his bent, has some special
attachment of his own. Now, all these ties of the world's making
are based upon considerations of self-interest and profit. For if
my nearest relation should set himself to oppose my interest, it is
certain he would lose my affection ; and if an outsider should
bestir himself for my benefit, it is certain he would be esteemed
as dear as any relation. And it does not necessarily follow that
the benefits which create ties of this kind should be such as can
be estimated in rupees and pice, although, no doubt, this is
frequently the case. Sometimes a tie is created by the mere ex-
pectation of some advantage. I ha, ye many friends who do not
give me anything, but the mere prospect of their being willing to

CHAPTER XXXI l8l

help me, in the event of my requiring their assistance, becomes a
reason for my attaching myself to them. I might pursue this
topic to any length, and it is one which might be discussed at
great length with advantage, but it was my sole intention in this
letter to deal with the subject of parental ties, and if I have
leisure, please God, I will some day write a book about worldly
attachments and send it you.

' The ties which bind parents to their children are common to
all beings. No father or mother is exempt from them, not even
in the brute creation. From this it is evident that these ties are
not based merely upon self-interest and advantage. Nay, rather,
it is in harmony with the scheme which the All-wise Ruler of
the universe has ordained for the government of the world that
parents muM needs have a love for their own offspring. For
several years children depend wholly upon others for their
nourishment and support. In order that they should be pro-
perly nourished, God has planted in the parents such a love for
their offspring that they are constrained by its promptings to
cherish them, and bring them up, until such time as they are big
enough and old enough to fare for themselves in the world. That
is to say, parents are the body-servants of the"ir children for the
purpose of attending to their wants. Yes, to bring their offspring
up properly, that is the sole tie which lias been conferred upon
parents by God's ordinance. If we go beyond this, all those
worries, such as the longing to have children, and when there are
none the recourse to doctors and medicines, to charms and
amulets, or religious exercises ; or, supposing there are children,
the anxiety that they should be boys and not girls, or, whichever
they are, that they should be long-lived all these are merely the
flashes of human desire. And now we have to consider why this
hankering for offspring, which man has created for himself in
excess of God's will, should exist, and what is the cause of it.
Undoubtedly it is due to motives of self-interest and advantage,
but these motives are not all of the same kind. Some people
think that their posterity will hand their name down to future
generations, some look forward to being assisted by their children
in their own old age, and some cherish the notion that after their

182 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

death their children will inherit their estate, and manage their
property. We have only to examine these fancies to perceive
how absurd and erroneous they are.

* What is meant by transmitting one's name to posterity ?
Simply this : When people see a man, they are to know that he is
the son of So-and-so, or the grandson of So-and-so. In the first
place, when I myself am no longer in the world, what is it to me
whether anyone knows my name or not ? But, further, it is a
question how far one's name is handed down. Ask anyone the
names of his ancestors. Perhaps in most cases he will be able to
tell you as far back as his grandfather ; beyond that, even their
own posterity cannot tell you what mighty man was their great-
grandfather, or their great-great-grandfather. Besides, what
object have they in digging up the bones of their dead ones ?
Thus, if we assume that the name is transmitted, it is only for a
generation or two at the most, and then who cares ? But it is a
mere conceit to grant even that. Here am I, living in the Hills
for the last ten years. I know thousands of men here, and thou-
sands know me, but I doubt if any of them know who my father
was ; nor am I acquainted with their fathers, nor does the neces-
sity for giving or seeking information on the subject ever arise.

' The second reason for parents' desiring offspring is the ad-
vantage which they look forward to in being tended by their
children in their old age. This assumption, also, is the merest
folly. What assurance have I that I shall be alive when my
children are grown up ? or that they will survive until old age
comes upon me ? And if this coincidence be granted, even then
the children's being of any help to their parents is altogether
problematical. I do not find so many instances in these days of
children bent on showing respect to their parents, or anxious to
render them any service. Nay, so far from respect and service,
most children nowadays cause their parents annoyance and dis-
comfort. People long to have children, but when they come
they are a source of sorrow to their parents from first to last.
Think of the plague it is to rear them when they are infants. At
one time theii eyes give trouble ; then it is a pain in the chest ;
another time they are teething ; another time they catch the

CHAPTER XXXI 183

small-pox. After many woes they grow out of that stage ; then
there comes the anxiety of clothing and feeding them. No
matter what a man's circumstances are he may be in service
or out of employ but whether he has money in his purse or not
he must give to them, wherever it comes from. If the father
and mother go without their meals, so they may ; but the
children, even if they cannot buy their own sweeties, must have
a half penny -worth of parched gram every day. 1 Whenever the
Eed comes round, or the Baqar Eed, or there is a fair, or a festival,
" Now, brother, some new clothes," " Four halfpence to buy
sweeties with " if you get off with that you are lucky. And
now the parents desire that their boy should be learning some-
thing, and go to school ; and the boy is such a cub that he runs
miles away from the very mention of books, and nothing will
induce him to go to school until four of his schoolmates drag him
there by force ; and when he has got there, if the master loses
sight of him for a moment, he will be out on the crossways, or
playing tipcat by the edge of the canal, or throwing up dust in
the streets. When he grows a little older, he begins to set his
parents at defiance ; he makes friends with idle and dissolute
youths ; he does not scruple to go to nautches, nor shrink from
evil company ; he wanders about bringing disgrace on the family
name. And some there are who in this way go utterly to the bad,
and become thieves, or gamblers, or drunkards. Then, when the
daughters are old enough to be married, you go through the list
of all the houses in the city without being able to find a suitable
betrothal. The professional match-maker is worn off her legs.
Your acquaintances have given up the job in despair. You have
spoken to the heads of all the branches of your family one by one,
but no one will help you. Your very life becomes a burden. The
wretched mother goes about paying vows to the saints. She
stands and listens for some " omen of the voice." 2 She celebrates
a doll's marriage. All the five times she ends her prayers with
the cry, " God, from Thy hidden store send someone !" And

1 I.e., independently of their regular meals.

a /.., some chance word or phrase not intended for the listener, but striking
a chord in his inner consciousness.

184 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

when, after many tears, the betrothal has at last been arranged,
it is with such a family that here is the poor mother without a tag
of silver to her name, and the parents on the other side insist on
ear-rings of the most elaborate pattern. By hook and by crook,
after pawning all you are worth, the marriage becomes an accom-
plished fact. But, " The guests are not fain for the fine bird
you've slain." The trousseau goes the round of the family, and
is scoffed at by everyone. " Tchut !" says the bridegroom's
mother. " Fancy their giving things like these ! Why will
people have daughters if they are so poor ?" There is not a
single article which they approve of. One sarcastic remark
leads up to another. And when M r . your son-in-law honours
your house with a visit, there is no end to his arrogance. Until
he has seen that his father-in-law has put his shoes 1 where he can
easily step into them again he won't even wash his hands ;
you need not mention dinner. Then perhaps before the cere-
mony of the fourth day is over, the bride and bridegroom are ready
to shoe-beat each other. You have given away your daughter
in good faith, and secured for her nothing in return but a quarrel.
Nor is this a grief which passes in a single day. No, a wheel of
misfortune has been set going for the rest of your life. As soon
as such a daughter has children, her mother becomes an unpur-
chased slave, a nurse without wages. She has spent all her days
moiling and toiling to bring up her own children, and now, when
she hoped that fate had in store for her a year or two of the rest
she had prayed for, she has to undertake the nursing of her
daughter's little ones.

4 And suppose it is your son who has married and brought
home his bride the discord, the quarrels, which she brings
into the house by the bushel ! She does not value her mother-
in-law so high as her shoe-leather. She is always driving her
sisters-in-law to the verge of despair. She has no reserve before
her elder brother-in-law, and no respect for her father-in-law. A
woman and she knocks their turbans off the heads of the men.
God take them under His protection ! And what think you of
the undutiful son ? When his wife has created all this disturb-

1 The shoes are taken off before people enter a room that has a carpet.

CHAPTER XXXI 185

ance in the house, the renegade takes her part, and actually
quarrels with his own parents ! Until at last the wretched
father and mother are driven out of their house, and forced to
hire a lodging for themselves elsewhere. That is the goal to
which the young folk of this age bring their parents, and few
indeed t e 4hey to whom their children are a source of comfort.
When in ^iir folly we aio importunate to have children, we know
not what we are doing. It is as though we invited trouble and
calamity tn our prayers.

* There b only one more theory to dispose of viz., that there
ought to be someone to inherit the property, and therefore a man
must wish for children. How perverted, and senseless, and weak,
and flimsy an argument this is you can see at a glance. When
a man himself has bid adieu to the world, what does it matter
whether his estate is taken charge of by sons, or whether it reverts
to Government as unclaimed property ? The riches of this world
are of no value in the world to come, if we except, indeed, what a
man may give himself " in the way of God 5>1 before he dies, or
what may be given for him " in the way of God " after his death.
But if I have not employed my riches in this way personally, and
have left so important a duty to be discharged by my heirs, there
is no greater fool in the world than I. Children who obtain gratis
all that their parents have heaped together are most unlikely to
be frugal in their expenditure of it. A man knows the value of
that money which he has earned by the strength of his arm and
the sweat of his brow ; and to the money which comes to anyone
as a free gift you may well apply the proverb, Wealth without
toil y and a heart without compassion. No doubt the children will
scatter their inheritance freely enough upon nautches and shows,
and gadding about, and sight-seeing ; but when it comes to
having a prayer offered in their father's name over a small heap,
even of millet, for distribution to the poor, that is quite out of the
question. Are there not hundreds and thousands of instances in
the world of people accumulating riches all their life long by
meannesses and stinginess, and the instant their heirs have
got hold of it, so great has been their extravagance that
1 I.e., to widows and orphans and the very poor.

186 THE BRIDE'S MIRROR

the savings oi a father's lifetime have disappeared in a few
days ?

" Oh the farce of it ! and who squandered ? and who was he who saved t" 1

4 From this statement of the case it will be apparent to you
that all that exuberance of sentiment which men cf tj & own
perversity have developed in excess of the parental fcie works
infinite harm to themselves. Our orders are to observe this tie
so far : as long as children are in need of our assistance, we must
devote ourselves to their welfare ; but in doing this we are not
to give place in our hearts to the hope that, when they are grown
up, they will compensate us for our efforts by their devotion to
us. 2 To entertain this hope is the height of folly. Rather, we
ought to consider that God, who is our Supreme Master, has im-
posed upon us this duty of attending to their needs, and that, in
bringing up our children properly, we are performing His behest.
This orchard is God's, and we are the gardeners of the orchard
appointed by Him. If the Lord of the orchard give an order to
prune, or to cut down any tree, what right has the gardener to say,
" I have tended this tree with great labour, why should it be cut
down ?" or " Why should its branches be cut ofi ?" All the ties
which exist in the world have but one purpose that men should
be of use the one to the other. We have been sent into this world
for some good reason for a few days only, and while we are here,
God has made us fathers, or sons, or brothers, to other men, in
order that we should help others, and that others should help us,
and that we should serve the full period of lifetime allotted to us
amidst goodwill and kindliness. This world is not our home.
We shall have to go and live elsewhere. Nor is anyone here our

1 The original of this line occurs in a poem of Hfiz, but is commonly
quoted without reference to its context.

2 The tendency of human nature to demand compensations is the theme of
a quatrain by Hali (India's greatest living poet), of which the following is an
almost word for word translation :

'There is in th**^ of man, by nature, this disease,
That he seeks a compensation for each effort he makes.

Deeds, which I had done purely for God's sake, when I looked,
There was hidden in them even some selfish aim.'