not take
long to capture the others. And after this, for a time, this part of
the Dacca district enjoyed peace from dacoits.

All for Nothing

A young and very high-caste Bengali lady was married to the son of a
rich man who lived near Hooghly, a small town within a short distance
of Calcutta.

Some years passed, but there was no sign of a son and heir. The
parents-in-law were fond of the girl. She had won her way into their
hearts and they sympathised with her. Yet they longed to see the old
name being carried down the years, and whisperings grew into talk
of a second marriage for their son. The girl's parents were anxious
and distressed.

Then a kindly Providence intervened, and after months of expectation
a little son lay in her arms, and both families rejoiced with the
girl and shared her pride in the boy baby.

When the child was about a year old, the young mother's brother became
engaged to be married. The date was fixed and invitations sent to
the girl and to the family of her parents-in-law. It was arranged
that she and her baby should attend the wedding.

Not far off, also in Hooghly, lived a widowed sister (of the girl)
in her father-in-law's house. She too was going to the wedding,
and it was settled that both sisters should travel in the same
boat to Calcutta. No male member of either family could accompany
them. Therefore, their father sent an old servant from Calcutta to
fetch them. This man was trusted and treated like a member of the
family, with whom he had been for years.

The girl put together her clothes. Her good mother-in-law unlocked the
great safe and took out the girl's best jewels. An Indian wedding
is the occasion for a great display of clothes and jewellery,
and a well-dressed and richly-adorned bow raises the credit of the
mother-in-law, especially if the wedding is in the girl's own family;
so a careful selection was made. Baby was not forgotten either. Tiny
gold bangles and chains had been showered upon him at his birth,
and this was his first public appearance.

They started early, so as to arrive during the afternoon. There was
to be a ceremony the next day and many guests had arrived at the
bride-groom's house, and all watched eagerly for the two sisters. But
the hours waned and still they tarried. Late in the evening, the old
servant arrived, agitated and all mud-bespattered.

Family, guests and servants plied him with questions concerning
the sisters. Not a word woul