that Mullahs and faqirs who pretend to have the power of
making charms for all known diseases, and sell them to the people at
large, are often able to enrich themselves far more rapidly than a
doctor who confines himself to the ordinary methods of treatment.

Once, when I was in camp, I came across a mountebank who was making
quite a large fortune in this way. He had travelled over a large
part of South-Western Asia, but did not stop long in any one place,
as no doubt his takings would soon begin to wear off after the first
days of novelty. One of his performances was to walk through fire,
professedly by the power of the Muhammadan Kalimah. A trench was
dug in the ground, and filled with charcoal and wood, which was set
alight. After the fire had somewhat died down, the still glowing
embers were beaten down with sticks, and then the faqir, reciting
the Kalimah with great zest, proceeded to deliberately walk across,
after which he invited the more daring among the faithful to follow
his example, assuring them that if they recited the creed in the
same way and with sincerity, they would suffer no harm. Some went
through the ordeal and showed no signs of having suffered from it;
others came out with blistered and sore feet. These unfortunates were
jeered at by the others as being no true Muhammadans, owing to which
they had forfeited the immunity conferred upon them by the recitation
of the creed. One young Sikh student, calling out the Sikh battle-cry,
ventured on the ordeal, and came out apparently none the worse. The
Muhammadans looked upon this as an insult to their religion, because
Muhammadans oftener than not heard that cry when the Sikhs had been
engaged in mortal combat with them, and this action of the young
Sikh appeared to them to be a challenge as to whether the Muhammadan
or the Sikh cry had the greater magic power. However, some of the
more responsible persons present checked the more hot-headed ones,
and the affair passed off with a little scoffing. Every morning and
afternoon the faqir prepared for the reception of the patients,
who were collected in great numbers on hearing of his fame. Each
applicant had to give 5 pice to the assistant as his fee. He was
then sent before the faqir, who remained seated on a mat. The faqir
asked him one or two questions as to the nature of the illness,
wrote out the necessary charm, and passed on to the next. Three or
four hundred people were often seen at one sitting. Thi