That two of his servants,
having gone into the village to purchase food, had been set upon,
beaten and robbed; that the conflagration had been caused by the fire
from a gun that one of the debased villagers had poked through a hole
in the roof to shoot his servants.
"As my name is Ragganath, it is a visitation upon these scoundrels,"
the merchant declared.
"It is indeed, Sethjee."
Ajeet had diplomatically used the "Sethjee," which was a friendly
rendering of the name "Seth," meaning "a merchant," and the wily Hindu,
not to be outdone in courtesy, promoted Ajeet.
"Such an outrage, Maharaja, on the part of these low-caste people in
the presence of the sainted one, and the pilgrims upon such a sacred
mission to Mother Gunga, has brought upon them the wrath of the gods.
May the village be destroyed; and the _patil_ when he dies come back to
earth a snake, to crawl upon his belly."
"The headman even refused to give the holy one the gift of
silver--tendering instead threats," Ajeet added.
The merchant spat his contempt: "Wretches!" he declared; "debased
associates of skinners of dead animals, and scrapers of skulls; Bah!"
and he spat again.
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