"Two," said the officer.
"That is not enough, Sahib; I should like eight."
"Very well, you will have them."
"Thank you, Sahib," replied the condemned man cheerfully. Then with a firm step he mounted the scaffold. As the rope was adjusted round his neck, he looked down at the adjutant and called out to him with a smile:
"Salaam, Sahib. Good-bye."
CHAPTER XIII
IN AN INDIAN HILL STATION
To Darjeeling—Railway journeys in India—Protection for solitary ladies—Reappearing rivers—Siliguri—At the foot of the Himalayas—A mountain railway—Through the jungle—Looping the loop—View of the Plains—Darjeeling—Civilisation seven thousand feet high—Varied types—View from the Chaurasta—White workers in India—Life in Hill Stations—Lieutenant-Governors—A "dull time" in Darjeeling—The bazaar—Types of hill races—Turquoises—Tiger-skins for tourists—The Amusement Club—The Everlasting Snows—Kinchinjunga—The bachelors' ball—A Government House ball—The marriage-market value of Indian civilians—Less demand for military men—Theatricals—Lebong Races—Picturesque race-goers—Ladies in India—Husband hunters—The empty life of an Englishwoman—The dangers of Hill Stations—A wife four months in the year—The hills taboo for the subaltern—Back to Buxa.