'Come, my little chap,' said he gently, 'you are English, are you
not?'

Sunni nodded.

Then you must serve the English Queen. She has sent me here to
punish the Maharajah for killing the padre-sahib. You must help
me.'

'The Maharajah DID NOT kill ee-Wobbis,' cried Sunni excitedly. 'I
have already once said that. The Maharajah he LIKE ee-Wobbis. I
am English, but the Maharajah is my father and my mother. I cannot
speak against the Maharajah, burra sahib.'

There came a light into the Colonel's eyes which was not kindled by
anger. He found himself liking this slip of a ragged urchin with
fair hair, who defied him--liking him tremendously. But the crisis
was grave; he could not sacrifice his men to a child's scruple; he
could not let himself be defied. He took out his watch, and made
his face hard.

'Then,' said he coldly, 'you are either the Maharajah's deserter or
his spy. If you have deserted, I am disposed to send you back to
him, since you are of no use to us. If you are his spy, it is my
duty to have you shot. I will give you five minutes to save your
skin in.'

'But--but you are my COUNTRYMAN, burra sahib!' There was a sob in
his voice.

The only possible answer to that was a hug, so it went unanswered.
Colonel Starr set himself to think of his Midlanders.

Sunni lifted his blue eyes entreatingly to the Colonel's face, but
he had turned it away. He was watching a little brown lizard
sunning itself outside the tent door, and wondering how long he
could keep his disciplinary expression. You could hear nothing in
the tent but the ticking of the watch. Sunni looked down at the
lizard too, and so the minutes passed.

Three of them passed. Colonel Starr found himself hoping even more
that the boy should stand firm than that he should speak. Colonel
Starr began to say softly within himself, 'I am a brute.' The
fifth minute was up. 'Will you speak?' asked the Colonel.

'Burra sahib, no,' said Sunni.

At that instant Lieutenant Pink galloped up to the door of the
tent.

'They've come to their senses at last, sir. Six mounted men have
just left the north gate, signalling for a parley.'

The Colonel jumped to his feet and gave half a dozen orders without
stopping. The last one was to Sunni. 'Stay here,' he said; 'you
shall soon go back to your own country.'

The Chitan horsemen had ridden out to announce the coming of the
Maharajah, so that the English officer might meet him hal