“What object have you in these rides of yours?”
“I am a murshid [religious leader], as the Commissioner Sahib knows. I gather my disciples together and exhort them to good deeds.”
“Are all the tribes of the desert your disciples?”
“Nay, they follow but at a distance, in hope of the rewards of discipleship.”
“And you have promised them the plunder of Nalapur? Complaints reach me continually of your intrigues.”
“Why should I intrigue against Wilayat Ali and his accomplice? They will receive from Allah the reward of their evil deeds in due time. What good would Nalapur be to me? I would not sit on the gadi were it offered me. My disciples are many and faithful, I have a shelter for my head and bread to eat, I can sometimes help my friends. What more do I need?”
“You must understand that in no case will you be permitted to invade Nalapur from British territory.”
“Why should I invade Nalapur? The Commissioner Sahib may be assured that I will make no war without the consent of Sinjāj Kīlin Sahib.”
Mr Crayne was baffled. “If you wish to please the Company,” he said, “you will leave your fort in the hills and settle down to cultivate a piece of irrigated land. You shall be allotted sufficient for your servants, according to their number, and rank as one of the nobles of the province shall be granted you.”
“And I and my servants shall become subject to the ordinance that forbids the carrying of arms? Nay, if that were so, the Company would soon be seeking a new tenant for the land. When one of the Commissioner Sahib’s own house helps a Nalapuri spy to plot against me, am I a lamb or a dove that I should refuse to defend myself?” He pointed fiercely at Ferrers, who was dumb with astonishment.