ther you knew the
secret of the entrance to his father's private treasury. Not knowing I
couldn't say, but I can be mysterious too, and I told him there were
some things that couldn't be spoken about. He seemed to take that as
an affirmative, and I think he felt that to shut you up there to feed
on gold was about the only thing that would fit the case. But, by the
way, how is it that he leaves the palace to you to-night, if he
believes you know the secret?"

"He don't know it himself. I am the only living creature that does,
now, and you are the only living creature that I may reveal it to."

"An honour likely to be associated with sudden and painful death--eh?
But I'm game. And as your principal duty in connection with the
treasury will probably be to pay out of it Sher Singh's allowance as
fixed by the Ranjitgarh Durbar, I don't fancy you'll enjoy a bed of
roses."

[1] Treasury.

CHAPTER IX.

IN SLIPPERY PLACES.

Owing to the combined influence of Charteris's strong hand, Gerrard's
lavish promises to the army, and what Colonel Antony chose to style the
"moderation" of Sher Singh, the succession of Kharrak Singh to his
father's throne was effected without general bloodshed. The city was
evidently seething with all the possibilities of revolt when the
funeral procession entered and passed through the streets, but the army
was staunch for the moment--apparently from a sportsmanlike readiness
to allow Gerrard to redeem his promises if he could--and one or two
attempts at disturbance were ruthlessly put down. The women and the
corpse of Partab Singh were got safely into the palace, and Sher Singh,
who would have liked to edge in under cover of the confusion,
dexterously excluded. The walls were garrisoned by the loyal guard,
the disappointed Sher Singh quartering himself with his followers in
the house of a reluctant Armenian near at hand, and Gerrard and
Charteris spent an arduous night in getting up from the secret treasury
an amount sufficient to fulfil their obligations. The heads of the
goldsmiths' guild had been warned to be in attendance early in the
morning, and they came with a mixture of surly defiance and ostentation
of poverty that showed they expected Gerrard's financial expedient to
take the form of obtaining a forced loan from them. The sight of the
gold ingots softened them wonderfully, and though it would not have
been human nature had they failed to exact an exorbitant rate of