Half an hour passed away. The time came for changing the guard. One of the men rose, sauntered along the wall, disappeared through a narrow opening in the tower, and presently emerged on the summit. Apparently he had a brief altercation with the man he had relieved. In five minutes Coja came from the tower along the wall.
"Wah! you may mock, dafadar," he said; "but I declare by the beard of my father I saw a speck--a black speck moving."
"You have chewed too much betel, Coja," said the dafadar with composure. "I too have seen dancing specks when my stomach was out of order."
"Yes, but do those motes in the eye grow larger? Do they swell from the size of a pinpoint to the size of a little bird, and then to a great one? I thought at first it was peradventure an eagle of the mountains, but, inshallah! no eagle could look so large such a great way off. Is there a bird bigger than an eagle? Speak out of your great knowledge, dafadar."
"There is none, foolish one--none that flies, though I have heard of a great bird that runs upon the ground swifter than the iron horse that runs on rails; the mem-sahibs wear its feathers in their hats."
"Hai! what was this great thing, then? I saw it, and rubbed my eyes, and lo! when I looked again, it wheeled about, and soared away towards the Afghan country, and passed behind a crag yonder, and I saw it no more."
"Wonderful eyes you have, Coja, and a wonderful tongue! Do we not know your tales? What of the tiger with two heads you saw once in a tree? and the elephant that caught you up and put you on his head? and that time when you swallowed a cherry-stone, and leaves began to sprout among your hair? Wah! we know his stories, my children; we know how the lies flow out of his mouth like water from a spring."
"Mashallah! Do I not speak truth?" cried the man indignantly. He was a by-word for romancing among his fellows, and, like all liars, resented any imputation on his veracity. "There is no wisdom in you. Many a great thing that I have told you you have believed: now when I tell you a little thing, you say 'Wah! he is a liar.'"
"But it was a great thing you saw, Coja-ji--bigger than an eagle, said you, when we know there is nothing bigger than an eagle that flies. Wah! at least when you are on duty, you must resist these promptings of the Evil One, else it will end in Jehannum. And look you, Coja, when your turn for watching comes again, keep your eyes on the ground, my friend; do not look for the stars in daylight."
Highly offended, the man walked away, descended the steps within the wall, and retired to sulk, like Achilles, in his tent.