orant little beggar you are!
You was brought up in the gutter, wasn't you?'

'Oah yess. Tell me something about England. My father he came from
there.'

Though he would not say so, Kim of course disbelieved every word the
drummer-boy spoke about the Liverpool suburb which was his England. It
passed the heavy time till dinner--a most unappetizing meal served to
the boys and a few invalids in a corner of a barrack-room. But that he
had written to Mahbub Ali, Kim would have been almost depressed. The
indifference of native crowds he was used to; but this strong
loneliness among white men preyed on him. He was grateful when, in the
course of the afternoon, a big soldier took him over to Father Victor,
who lived in another wing across another dusty parade-ground. The
priest was reading an English letter written in purple ink. He looked
at Kim more curiously than ever.

'An' how do you like it, my son, as far as you've gone? Not much, eh?
It must be hard--very hard on a wild animal. Listen now. I've an
amazin' epistle from your friend.'

'Where is he? Is he well? Oah! If he knows to write me letters, it
is all right.'

'You're fond of him then?'

'Of course I am fond of him. He was fond of me.'

'It seems so by the look of this. He can't write English, can he?'

'Oah no. Not that I know, but of course he found a letter-writer who
can write English verree well, and so he wrote. I do hope you
understand.'

'That accounts for it. D'you know anything about his money affairs?'
Kim's face showed that he did not.

'How can I tell?'

'That's what I'm askin'. Now listen if you can make head or tail o'
this. We'll skip the first part ... It's written from Jagadhir Road
... "Sitting on wayside in grave meditation, trusting to be favoured
with your Honour's applause of present step, which recommend your
Honour to execute for Almighty God's sake. Education is greatest
blessing if of best sorts. Otherwise no earthly use." Faith, the old
man's hit the bull's-eye that time! "If your Honour condescending
giving my boy best educations Xavier" (I suppose that's St Xavier's in
Partibus) "in terms of our conversation dated in your tent 15th
instant" (a business-like touch there!) "then Almighty God blessing
your Honour's succeedings to third an' fourth generation and"--now
listen!--"confide in your Honour's humble servant for adequate
remuneration per hoondi per annum three hundred rupees a year to one
exp