always fighting in India. There were Company's Sepoys and
white troops, and one night the most sacred bracelet of the great god of
our temple was stolen."

"Good Heavens!" Mark exclaimed, laying down the letter. "Then it has
been Ramoo who has all this time been in pursuit of the diamonds; and to
think that my uncle never even suspected him!"

Then suddenly he continued, "now I understand why it was my life was
spared by those fellows. By Jove, this is astounding!" Then he took up
the letter again.

"Two of the Brahmins under me had observed, at a festival the day before
the bracelet was lost, a white soldier staring at it with covetous eyes.
One of them was in charge of the temple on the night when it was stolen,
and on the day following he came to me, and said, 'I desire to devote my
life to the recovery of the jewels of the god. Bondah will go with me;
we will return no more until we bring them back.' 'It is good,' I said;
'the god must be appeased, or terrible misfortunes may happen.' Then we
held a solemn service in the temple. The two men removed the caste marks
from their foreheads, prostrated themselves before the god, and went
out from amongst us as outcasts until the day of their death. Two months
later a messenger came from the one who had spoken to me, saying that
they had found the man, but had for a long time had no opportunity of
finding the bracelet. Then Bondah had met him in a lonely place, and
had attacked him. Bondah had lost his life, but the soldier was, though
sorely wounded, able to get back to his regiment. He had died, but he
had, the writer was convinced, passed the jewels on to a comrade, whom
he would watch. Then I saw that one man was not sufficient for such a
task. Then I, too, the Chief Brahmin of the temple, saw that it was my
duty to go forth also.

"I laid the matter before the others, and they said, 'You are right; it
is you who, as the chief in the service of the god, should bring back
his jewels.' So again there was a service, and I went forth as an
outcast and a wanderer, knowing that I must do many things that were
forbidden to my caste; that I must touch unclean things, must eat
forbidden food, and must take life if needs be. You, sahib, cannot
understand how terrible was the degradation to me, who was of the purest
blood of the Brahmins. I had taken the most solemn vows to devote my
life to this. I knew that, whether successful or not, although I might
be forgiven my offens