The Outcaste Read online

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  Cover art]

  THE OUTCASTE

  BY

  F. E. PENNY

  AUTHOR OF

  "THE SANYASI," "THE RAJAH," "THE MALABAR MAGICIAN," ETC.

  SPECIAL EDITION

  For sale only in India and the British Colonies

  LONDON

  CHATTO & WINDUS

  1912

  [_The Portrait on the Cover is reproduced from a Miniature by G. I.Penny_]

  _All rights reserved_

  DEDICATED

  TO THE

  STUDENTS OF HINDU THEOLOGY AND ETHICS

  WHOSE WRITINGS

  HAVE ASSISTED ME TO TELL

  THIS STORY

  _The scene is laid in the Native State of Chirakul._

  CHIRAPORE . . . Chief Town of Chirakul.

  ANANDA . . . . . A Convert to Christianity.

  BOPAUL . . . . . Friend of Ananda, and of the same Caste.

  COOMARA . . . . Married to Bopaul's Sister.

  DR. WENASTON . . Principal of the Maharajah's College at Chirapore.

  EOLA WENASTON . His Sister.

  PROFESSOR TWYFORD

  MRS. HULVER . . Housekeeper to Dr. Wenaston.

  DORAMA . . . . . Ananda's Wife.

  PANTULU . . . . His Father.

  GUNGA . . . . . His Mother.

  SOOBA . . . . . His Uncle.

  MAYITA . . . . . Coomara's Widow.

  THE OUTCASTE

  CHAPTER I

  The aviation ground was thronged with spectators. Eyes were turnedskywards and men held their breath. Women uttered ejaculations, drawnunconsciously from them in their intense excitement. The wind blewgustily with an upward sweep that sent dead leaves and fragments ofpaper into the air. A furious blast heralding the coming storm seizedone of the aviators as he was in the act of turning. It seemed toshake him with a living enmity. Under the violent motion the tips ofthe delicate wings of his machine snapped. He recognised theseriousness of the accident; and the breathless multitude watched hisefforts to avoid impending catastrophe. As well might the dying bird,winged by the October sportsman, try to sustain its arrested flight.The machine ceased its horizontal movement, folded its broken planesabout its struggling guide, and dropped almost vertically to the ground.

  Some, fascinated by the horror of it all, stared at the falling wreck.Others withdrew their gaze, but could not shut their ears to the thudand crash in which the earthly life of a human being came to an abruptend.

  The hush was followed by a murmur as emotion found expression in speechand exclamation. Many of the women shed tears; some screamed; a fewfainted. Ten minutes later there was a general stir as the sightseers,sick at heart, began to depart.

  Eola Wenaston beckoned to her brother, who stood at a little distancetalking to a couple of men. He approached the motor car into which shehad just stepped. Before she could speak he hastened to reassure her,anticipating the question that was on the lips of all.

  "It's all right; the man is not dead. Of course he has had a shock,falling from such a height, and the machine is smashed to atoms. Youneed not be nervous----"

  "I'm not nervous. It was a horrid sight, but I'm not troubled withnerves. The man must be dead after such a fall."

  "Well, no one can say how----"

  She interrupted him with a touch of impatience born of anxiety.

  "Would you mind going home by train? Mrs. Greenford is thoroughlyunhinged. She is in that tent over there crying her heart out, and sheought to be taken away at once."

  "She doesn't know him, does she?"

  "Yes, slightly. It appears that he dined with her and her husband lastnight."

  "What do you wish to do?"

  "Drive her home at once; but it leaves you to go by rail. You won'tmind giving her your seat in the motor?"

  She did not doubt for a moment that he would object. The car was a newpurchase made by Wenaston on his arrival in England on furlough. Heintended to take it back to India on his return to his work.

  "Not a bit," he replied readily.

  "I can't ask Miss Stuart to give up her place in the car."

  "Of course not; I'll join Ananda and his friends. They are travellingup by the special leaving in about an hour's time."

  "You need not journey in their company. Now-a-days, when our blood iscurdled by assassinations----"

  He interrupted her.

  "They are all right--three of the nicest fellows I know."

  She made a little grimace, not noticing that a Hindu, faultlesslyfrock-coated and top-hatted, had approached on the other side of themotor, and was waiting for an opportunity to speak, waiting with thecourtesy of good breeding that happily is not the monopoly of theEuropean.

  "Still, one cannot forget----" she mentioned the name of a well-knownpublic man who had been done to death by an Oriental fanatic.

  The blood rushed to the temples of the Hindu. He raised his hat as hesaid quietly--

  "You must not suppose that we are all assassins, Miss Wenaston, anymore than I may suppose you English to be all murderers like----" andhe in his turn named a notorious criminal who had recently beenconvicted of a murder perpetrated under circumstances of peculiarcruelty.

  "Of course not! I beg your pardon, Mr. Ananda. I ought not to havesaid it."

  In her contrition she turned and held out her hand. She felt thenervous close grip, momentary as it was, and the friendliness of theEnglishwoman warmed towards the exile.

  "My brother proposes to travel home with you by rail and give his seatin the motor to Mrs. Greenford, who is upset by the accident. Have youheard how the aviator is?"

  "I am afraid from all accounts he is in a bad way. The committee hasdecided to stop the competitions for to-day. Visitors ought to have noobjection."

  "It is sad to have an ending like this!" She turned to Wenaston."Please go and find Mrs. Greenford; Miss Stuart is with her. Bringthem both here. Tell them I am in a hurry to start. I should like toget Mrs. Greenford away before she hears worse news. Oh! I wish hehadn't attempted that last flight! It was quite unnecessary, and noton the programme--a mere show to please the people."

  Ananda stood by the motor whilst Wenaston went to do his sister'sbidding.

  "You take these things too seriously, Miss Wenaston. If you were afatalist you would believe that it was preordained by the gods; and youwould be resigned. It is of no use to fight against fate. He had tomeet it whether he flew upon an aeroplane or whether he remained in hisown house. We are taught that we cannot escape the fulfilment of ourdestiny."

  She looked at him, her attention suddenly rivetted.

  "You are taught, you say; but do you believe your teacher in these daysof greater enlightenment?"

  A reply was not immediately forthcoming. Perhaps he would have leftthe question unanswered if she had not uttered an interrogatory,"Well?" in a tone that held something more than mere curiosity.

  "I am trying to retain my belief in all that my guru instilled into mymind before I left India."

  "You find it hard to keep the old faith unshaken?"

  "Not exactly. The difficulty is to graft the new teaching on the old.We of the advanced school cannot stand still; we must progress."

  "And then comes the difficulty of putting new wine into old bottles."

  She glanced in the direction of the tent, and he knew that he had losthalf her attention. Wenaston was visible in the distance with Mrs.Greenford and Miss Stuart. The sympathy that was so marked acharacteristic in Eola had tempted the Hindu to say more than was hiswont. It was deflected from himself and turned towards the unnervedwoman, whom she was charitably befriending.

  Mrs. Greenford was allowed no time to plunge into fresh tears andregrets. She
was prevailed upon to enter the car without delay.Wenaston gave his orders to the chauffeur and the motor glided from thefield.

  "It is too early in the day to make gala shows of this aviationbusiness. An accident such as has just happened upsets the women withtheir highly strung nerves. Even men feel it to be a bit of a shock,"remarked Wenaston, as he glanced round at the white faces of thespectators.

  "Anyway, women should not be present where there is a likelihood ofaccidents," replied Ananda. "It seems to me that you Englishmen go tothe opposite extreme from us. We shut up women and overdo the purdahbusiness. You give them too much liberty."

  "My dear fellow! They take it without asking our permission!"

  They were slowly moving towards the exit. There was no need of hasteas their train was not due to start for another half-hour, and thestation was but ten minutes' walk. Before Ananda could reply they werejoined by two more Hindus. In appearance these men were like Ananda,although there was no blood relationship between them. Theircomplexions were of the wheaten tint that frequently goes with highcaste and good birth. They were equally well dressed in the latestEnglish fashion, without extravagance or display. To Wenaston theywere well known, and he greeted them as old acquaintances.

  "The show is at an end, Dr. Wenaston. It is reported that the poorfellow is dead. It only remains for us to go back to town," said onewho was called Bopaul by his friends.

  "I am sorry it has ended fatally. I suppose every new scientificventure must have its victims. The claims of aviation will be everywhit as heavy as were the claims of steam and electricity," respondedWenaston.

  "The death dues of the gods!" murmured the other, known as Coomara.

  Bopaul laughed lightly but Ananda turned a pair of serious eyes uponWenaston.

  "You don't believe that the higher power ruling our destinies requiresto be propitiated by a holocaust of victims, do you?" he asked.

  "Certainly not. Accidents occur through the imperfection of machines;and with each accident it is only natural that an important step ismade towards a more perfect knowledge."

  "Exactly so," rejoined Coomara, eagerly. "In return for a life, theFountain of all knowledge in his justice and rectitude gives knowledge."

  "Life is not demanded in exchange or in payment for knowledge,"objected Wenaston. "Knowledge might be acquired without loss of lifeif men were more careful and less rash. The death of the experimenteris due to his own ignorance, to his rashness, or to the imperfection ofthe machine in its inception."

  "You do not believe that it is the direct act of God?"

  Wenaston did not reply. They were threading their way through thecrowd that had gathered near the exit of the field, and conversationwas not easy. On all sides they heard comments upon the accident.Regrets were expressed freely that the new cult had lost one of itscleverest pioneers. His death--by this time it was known that thefallen aviator had breathed his last even as they carried him from thefield--his death was sad from every point of view. He was a good, athoroughly good fellow; clever beyond most men. Married? no; but therewas a girl--he was living at home with his people, and he was going tobe married shortly. Money? Oh yes, plenty, or he could not haveexperimented as he did. And the cause of the accident? Ignorance ofair currents and the power of the wind. His wings were broken, andthere was no hope from the very first of salvation. Although hestruggled with the machine he must have been aware that he had nochance of escape. The next thing to invent must be some life-savingapparatus.

  Among their acquaintances the three Hindus were spoken of as A, B, andC; or as Ananda, Bopaul, and Coomara. In addition to these names theypossessed others unfamiliar to the English ear and difficult ofpronunciation. The men were of good birth and high caste; theybelonged to a native State south of Poona, called Chirakul, the chieftown being Chirapore. Under pressure of modern times theparents--people of substance and wealth--had sent their sons to Poonaand Bombay to be educated. Later on, arrangements were made for avisit to England. It was due to the friendly offices of Wenaston thatthey entered the house of Dr. Twyford, professor of oriental languages.Their future was assured without the necessity of taking up any of theprofessions. It was the intention of their parents to make homes forthem under the ancestral roof, where they would lead the life of theleisured Hindu landowner. If any occupation were adopted it would beof a political nature--some appointment of importance and trust underthe Maharajah's Government.

  Although the three men were alike in dress, complexion and features,and belonged to the same caste, they were very dissimilar in characterand temperament.

  Ananda was gentle and speculative. His nerves were finely strung, andhe shrank like a woman from physical pain and discomfort, and fromanything that was of a rough and discordant nature. The timidity ofthe Hindu peeped out on various occasions, a timidity that was not somuch cowardice as an inbred loathing of coarseness and brutality. Thestrong religious instinct, which seems to bring the Asiatic close tohis strangely conceived deities in worship and propitiation, underlaidall his actions.

  In early youth he had been married to the sister of his friend Coomara.The marriage had been consummated, and there was a child, a son fouryears of age; and during his absence mother and son found a happy homewith his parents.

  Bopaul was a fair specimen of the product of modern education.Untainted with disloyalty towards the ruling power, he was never likelyto become a disciple of disaffection, and join with ambitious men oflower caste. Aristocratic to his finger-tips, he believed in hisPrince, and hoped to find a place on his council at some time in thefuture.

  By nature he was sunny and buoyant, taking life as he found it. Eagerto listen to the latest theories and ready to argue, he neverthelessproved elusive and disappointing to the serious propagandist.Tolerant, without being weak, courteous and even-tempered, he seemed tobe flexible; but when it came to uprooting inherited beliefs, he provedimmovable. The casual observer accused him of flippancy andinfidelity. His host and guardian, Professor Twyford, knew better.

  "Bopaul is an extraordinary fellow," he used to say. "I introduce himto all the latest theories, to all the facts most recently revealed byscience; he receives them with intelligence and avidity, not toexchange new lamps for old, but to graft them on to the old Hindustock. I can understand when I look at Bopaul the wonderfulreceptivity of the Hindu nature. It has preserved the caste system forthe last three thousand years, a unique survival that has no equal inthe history of the world. The Hindus absorb and orientalise theoriesthat ought to deal their social and religious system a death blow. Ican see Bopaul fitting the latest and most revolutionary ideas intoniches in his mind without permitting any conflict with the tenets ofhis ancient faith. He is a very interesting character."

  Coomara was unlike either of his companions. He held to the letter ofhis faith; listened courteously but without interest to modernteaching; wherever it clashed with the teaching of the Vedas, herejected it as being incompatible, and therefore useless to himself.He refused to discuss the subject of religious differences. It waswaste of time if nothing else. When he first fell under the influenceof the professor he showed a disinclination to speak on religion atall. Gradually he gained confidence as he discovered that Twyford hadno design of converting him to the Christian faith, and became morecommunicative. Somewhat to his astonishment he learned that theEnglishman possessed a greater and more intimate knowledge of thesacred books of his nation than himself. As his confidencestrengthened, he became more communicative and less afraid of listeningto other doctrines.

  Coomara had been married to Bopaul's sister when he was ten years old;hence the link that bound the three men together. The period of exileappointed by their respective parents was within a few months of itstermination, and they were looking forward to their return to Chirakul,when the ceremonies necessary to restore their caste would be performedand Coomara's wedding be completed; for his marriage had beenpractically only a betrothal from the European point of v
iew. Thehoneymoon had yet to be spent.