Not all the opinions expressed concerning the dead man were so favourable, however. On the evening of his funeral two Pathan soldiers from one of the relieving regiments met Ismail Bakhsh near the cemetery, and saluted him with marked friendliness.
“O brother,” they said, “we have heard that the famous general, Sinjāj Kīlin Sahib Bahadar, is wont to ride abroad upon this border by night. Is this so?”
“It is true,” returned the old trooper, “and I myself have heard him, not once nor twice. And, moreover, what these eyes of mine have beheld, it is not wise to relate.”
“Pray, brother, tell us when these things may be seen and heard? We have a great desire to make proof of them for ourselves.”
“Nay,” said Ismail Bakhsh, with a lofty smile, “for that ye must wait awhile. It is only when there is trouble on the border that the General Sahib rides, and”—with a wave of the hand towards the new-made grave—“the troubler of the border lies there.”
THE END
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES.
Sydney C. Grier was the pseudonym of Hilda Caroline Gregg.
This book is part of the author’s “Modern East” series. The full series, in order, being:
The Flag of the Adventurer
Two Strong Men
The Advanced-Guard
His Excellency’s English Governess
Peace With Honour
The Warden of the Marches