Hindoo Tales | Page 9

refused.
Being determined to obtain her, he raised an army and besieged Pâtali,
the capital city. Víraketu finding himself unable to resist the enemy,
purchased peace by giving up his daughter, and Mattakâla, thinking
that the marriage can be celebrated with greater magnificence in his
own country, has deferred it till his return. He is now on his way home
with a small part of his army, the rest having been dismissed; and he is
staying at present near this forest to enjoy the pleasures of the chase.
The princess is not with her intended husband, but under the care of
Mânapâla, one of her father's officers, who is said to be very indignant
at the surrender of the lady; you may see his camp at no great distance
from the other."
While thanking the poor man for his information, a thought came into
my mind--here is a very poor and deserving man, I will give him the
jewel which I have found; and I did so.
He received the gift with profuse thanks, and set out immediately to try
to dispose of it; while I lay down there to sleep.
After a time I was awakened by a great clamour, and saw the brahman
coming towards me with his hands tied behind him, driven along, with

blows of a whip and much abuse, by a party of soldiers.
On seeing me, he called out, "There is the thief; that is the man who
gave me the jewel."
Upon this the soldiers let him go, and, seizing me, refused to listen to
my remonstrances, or to my account of the manner in which I had
found the ruby. They dragged me along with them, and having put
fetters on my feet, thrust me into a dungeon, saying, "There are your
companions," pointing at the same time to some other prisoners
confined in that place.
When I recovered my senses--for I was half stunned by the violence
with which I had been pushed in--I said to my fellow-prisoners, "Who
are you, and what did the soldiers mean by calling you my companions?
for you are quite strangers to me."
Those prisoners then told me the story of the King of Lâta, which I had
already heard from the brahman, and further said, "We were sent by
Mânapâla to assassinate that king, and broke into the place where we
supposed him to be. Not finding him, we were unwilling to come away
empty-handed; we therefore carried off everything of value within our
reach and made our escape to the forest. The next morning there was an
active pursuit, our hiding-place was discovered, we were all captured,
and the stolen property taken from us, with the exception of one ruby of
great value, which had disappeared. The king is exceedingly angry that
this cannot be found; our assertion that we have lost it is disbelieved,
and we are threatened with torture to-morrow, unless we say where it is
hidden."
Having heard the robbers' story, I was convinced that the ruby in
question was the one which I had found and given to the brahman, and
I now understood why these men were supposed to be my accomplices.
I told them who I was, how I had found the jewel, and had been
unjustly arrested on account of it, and exhorted them to take courage
and join me in an attempt to escape that night. To this they agreed, and
at midnight we managed to overpower the jailors and knock off our

fetters; and having armed ourselves with weapons which we found in
the prison, we cut our way through the guards, and reached Mânapâla's
camp in safety. The next day, men sent by the King of Lâta came to
Mânapâla, and said--"Some robbers, who were caught after breaking
into the king's dwelling, have made their escape, and are known to have
come here; give them up immediately, or it will be the worse for you."
Mânapâla, who only wanted an excuse for a quarrel, having heard this
insulting message, his eyes red with anger, answered,--"Who is the
King of Lâta, that I should bow down to him? What have I to do with
that low fellow? Begone!"
When the men returned to their master and told him the reception they
had met with, he was in a furious rage, and, disregarding the smallness
of the force which was with him, marched out at once to attack
Mânapâla, who was quite prepared to meet him.
When I entered the camp, after my escape, Mânapâla, who received
from his servants an exaggerated account of my coolness, dexterity,
and courage, had treated me with great honour, and now I offered my
services in the approaching fight. They were gladly accepted, and I was
furnished with an excellent chariot