matter to dwell in her mind a single
moment.

Late one afternoon Bathurst walked into the Major's bungalow just as he
was about to sit down to dinner.

"Major, I want to speak to you for a moment," he said.

"Sit down and have some dinner, Bathurst. You have become altogether a
stranger."

"Thank you, Major, but I have a great deal to do. Can you spare me five
minutes now? It is of importance."

Isobel rose to leave the room.

"There is no reason you should not hear, Miss Hannay, but it would be
better that none of the servants should be present. That is why I wish
to speak before your uncle goes in to dinner."

Isobel sat down with an air of indifference.

"For the last week, Major, I have ridden every day five and twenty to
thirty miles in the direction of Cawnpore; my official work has been
practically at an end since we heard the news from Meerut. I could be of
no use here, and thought that I could do no better service than trying
to obtain the earliest news from Cawnpore; I am sorry to say that this
afternoon I distinctly heard firing in that direction. What the result
is, of course, I do not know, but I feel that there is little doubt that
troubles have begun there. But this is not all. On my return home,
ten minutes ago, I found this letter on my dressing table. It had no
direction and is, as you see, in Hindustanee," and he handed it to the
Major, who read:

"To the Sahib Bathurst,--Rising at Cawnpore today. Nana Sahib and
his troops will join the Sepoys. Whites will be destroyed. Rising at
Deennugghur at daylight tomorrow. Troops, after killing whites, will
join those at Cawnpore. Be warned in time--this tiger is not to be
beaten off with a whip."

"Good Heavens!" the Major exclaimed; "can this be true? Can it be
possible that the Rajah of Bithoor is going to join the mutineers? It is
impossible; he could never be such a scoundrel."

"What is it, uncle?" Isobel asked, leaving her seat and coming up to
him.

The Major translated the letter.

"It must be a hoax," he went on; "I cannot believe it. What does this
stuff about beating a tiger with a whip mean?"

"I am sorry to say, Major Hannay, that part of the letter convinces me
that the contents can be implicitly relied upon. The writer did not dare
sign his name, but those words are sufficient to show me, and were no
doubt intended to show me, who the warning comes from. It is from that
juggler who performed here some six weeks ago. Traveling