Little Coo-coo.

Otago Witness, Issue 1156, 24 January 1874, Page 24

Little Coo-coo.

OR THE KHITMUTGAR'S REVENGE,

A TALE OF TIIK IKDIAX MUTINY, IS FOUR CHAPTERS,

CHAPTER I. — FOB A SMILE OF GOD THOU

Twenty-five years ago, dears (what an age that must seem to some of you young folk !) I married your uncle Edward, and accompanied him shortly after to India. We were both of us young and hopeful then, and had a shadowy idea that we were going to shake the Pagoda-tree, realise a handsome fortune in less than no time, and return to old England to spend it. Ah, well, few persons have their ex* pectations fulfilled in this world, and we were among the disappointed ones. A captain's pay is easily told — far_ more easily spent— and we had heavy claims on our slender purse, both at home -and abroad, which effectually precluded our banker's account from ever showing a comfortable balance in our favour.

After several moves, in the coxirse of which we had many hardships to encounter and trying climates to contend with (for India, my dears, is by no means the paradise some of you believe it to be), my husband's regiment, 133 rd, was ordered to Feringheabad, a pleasant healthy station about seventy miles distant from Cawnpore ; rather isolated, but we did not mind that ; conduciveto economy, for living was very cheap there ; and having for me the additional charm of being situated on the well-wooded banks of a beautiful river. We all thought ourselves very fortunate, the more so that we had heard a whispered rumour that the 133 rd were first on the roster for England.

Not very long after our arrival at Feringheabad, a young officer, a lieutenant, Fred Wilson by name, who had been absent on a two years' furlough to Europe, rejoined us with his wife and child. Estelle Wilson was a lovely little Frenchwoman of two-and-twtsnty, though^ she looked far younger ; very petite, with a glorious mass of dark curly hair, and a pair of brilliant velvety-brown eyes, which could look very lovingly into yours, and take your heart by storm if their owner so willed it, and could also flash and sparkle very ominously when the little woman's ire was aroused. She had been a ward of Frederick's mother, one of the old noblesse of France, who resided in seclusion at the family chateau in Brittany. There Fred, while on a visit to his mother, had met her, and the results were those which not unfrequently ensue when two young people of opposite sexes— both good-looking, lively and attractive, and with many tastes in common— are thrown daily into each other's society. There was, however, no imprudence in the marriage which followed, for Estelle de Vigny was an heiress, and brought her husband no mean dowry. Leave the army to be dependent on his wife's fortune, Fred would not; and indeed, Estelle, for her part, was nothing loth to visit the so-called gorgeous East. They were a well-matched couple. Fred idolised his Fairy Queen, as we called her and seemed to shink of nothing but her comfort, and how to lessen for her in every possible Avay the almost inevitable discomforts of life in a marching regiment. As for Estelle, I think she .literally did worship, little Pagan, the ground her husband trod on ; and all other husbands, no matter how estimable, suffered by comparison with "mon Frederic." At first I used to get impatient with the little thing, and tell her she would certainly spoil the man if she made so much of him to his face. However, one day, when I had, 1 suppose, been rather too severe in my strictures, the little creature burst into a passionate flood of tears, saying, in her pretty broken English, " O, Madame Bur<wne, you do not really think that Jrederick has begun to love his poor foolish little wife the less because she would willingly die for him, and tells him so J After that I felt thoroughly ashamed of myself, and for the future, 1 blush to own it, rather encouraged her m the beliel that « < mon Frederic " was little short of a, demi-god. He was in reality a very oralnary young Englishman, thoroughly good and kind-hearted, not very clever^ and 1 fear easily enough imposed on ; but sincere, honest, and high-principled. Ho was, moreover, a very giant for strength, six feet two in his stockings, and broad in proportion ; curly-headed, blue eyed, a good shot, excellent horseman— when no could get a horse to carry him— and a " stunner " at all manly sports. I believe it was partly for his muscle that his wife ndoredhim. Women, little ones especially, entertain considerable reverence for strength, probably beoause it is one of tho

qualities which they find it quite hopeless to dispute with the other sex. One other object shared Estelle's heart with him; this was the child, a lovely little Titania, who took more after her father than her mother,- being blue-eyed and golden-haired. She was just fourteen months old when she arrived, and from that moment was installed as "Daughter of the Regiment." Never child ran so fair a chance of being spoilt. From the rough soldiers and their wives— terrible viragoes some of them — to Colonel Rose, who had always been regarded as a childeating ogre by most mothers (of obnoxious children), little Coo-Coo was considered a precious thing to be petted and cuddled, humoured and made much of, and on which the breath of heaven must not blowtoo roughly. Antoinette was the child's real name, but her father had called her I Coo-Coo from a low dove-like sound she j used to make when lying a baby in her cradle ; so Coo-Coo she remained. Estelle loved the little one with a fierce passionate love, which almost made me shudder, for I knew only too well, how precarious a child's life is in the Indian climate. I think she would have been bitterly disappointed hadjher little daughter not met with the notice and admiration she excited, yet i she was jealous and fearful lest Coo-Coo should love any one better, or even as well as herself. With me it was different. tM believe the dear little woman remembered that I was a mother and yet childless, for all that remained to me of my own bonnie winsome bairns were two little brown mounds in the graveyard of Mooltan. Anyhow she used constantly to send Coo-Coo and her black nurse over to our bungalow, until the child won our hearts with her pretty ways, and my husband and I came to love her as dearly as though she had been our very own. She was a sweet little child, and always so nicely dressed. No little princess could have had a more exquisite wardrobe, and many a bit of delicate costly lace of her own did Estelle sacrifice to deck some dainty garment of her darling's. I used to laugh, and say, "Ah, my dear, when you have half-a-dozen children you will be less particular ; plain long-cloth will do for them." Then she would pout her pretty lips, and reply with some saucy speech that made us laugh. I grew very fond of mother and child ; and, indeed, no one could help loving Estelle— she was so bright and tenderhearted, always ready to do a kind thing for any one. If there were illness in a house, or trouble, there she was sure to be found ; and somehow her very presence seemed to make sorrow lighter. She was no angel ; far from it ! Indeed, I believe she on more than one occasion horrified the chaplain by starting some peculiar theological theories of her own, and utterly refusing to be convinced by him of the error of her ways. She was merely a deliriously free, impulsive, loving morsel of humanity, without a spice of selfishness in her whole composition, who, if she offended you by some careless impetuous speech, would come back the next moment and flinging her arms round your neck, cry till you forgave her, which process did not usually take long to accomplish. She was milliner and mantua-maker in chief to the station ; and if we wanted new bonnets, or were in difficulty as to the colour of the dresses to accompany them, Estelle was called in and settled the knotty point peremptorily in five minutes. She would also bustle about among the women of Fred's company, scolding the unruly, bestowing advice where it was needed, and generally leaving some tangible trace of her presence behind in the shape of a basm of soup for a sick child, or some little comfort for an ailing mother. One strong trait in this girl's character was that she could never bear to see cruelty or tyranny of any kind exercised. Any helpless thing, whether child or animal, found its way at once to her great loving heart ; and legion were the homeless and starving Pariah dogs who'got fed at her expense. I remember so well one day, as we were strolling past some native huts, we suddenly heard the cry of an animal in distress, and, on proceeding farther, came upon a wretched little black boy who had erected a gallows in miniature, from which dangled, its tongue protruding, its eyes starting out of its head, a poor half-stran-gled cat. The little fiend, stark-naked, save for half a yard of string round his waist, was yelling and dancing round his agonised victim, while a crowd of village children, in a similar light and airy garb, seemed thoroughly to appreciate this new and attractive entertainment. Estelle sprang forward, her eyes gleaming, tore down the gibbet, freed the poor animal, and then, turning to the amateur Calcratt, who had been too much astonished to run away, bestowed on him, with her little plump well-gloved hand, half a dozen resounding smacks which sent him howling to his mother. That accomplished, she picked up pussy, gave her into my charge and, tearing off her gloves, threw them into the adjoining jungle. " Peste, she exclaimed, "how i hate these natives, the

from their cradles." How cruel, how cowardly, she was yet to learn, poor child!

And now I must relate to you a little incident which bears strongly on my story which was, in fact, the primary cause of all the trouble which followed. The Wilsons had a head-servant, or khitmutgar, by name Alladeen, for whom I conceived the greatest aversion. Why, I really could not tell ; I suppose it was on the old " Dr. Fell' principle ; but I could not endure the man. He had been brought up from boyhood by General Wilson, Fred's late father, and had been the latter' s dressing-boy and general factotum up to the time of his marriage, when he was immediately installed as butler-in-chief. Fred thought him perfection, and congratulated his wife on the possession of such a treasure. Estelle detested the " treasure," because he evidently looked upon her as a child (and that only a female one), and on one or two occasions actually referred her orders to his master for confirmation. This, feminine flesh and blood could not brook ; so Estelle, in a fury, marched off to Fred, and demanded the instant dismissal of his protdge. At this Fred laughed, and told her it was impossible ; she must not think of such a thing — he would as soon think of dismissing her (this last jokingly). She left the room in high dudgeon, and encountered Mr. Alladeen in the verandah. He had evidently been eavesdropping, for he could not, well regulated as the native countenance generally is, repress a slight smile of triumph. Very slight it was, scarcely perceptible ; but Estelle never forgave him for it. I felt very angry with Fred for not upholding his wife's authority ; a most necessary thing to do in an Indian household, and in a land where women are so thoroughly despised, the status of a fair one in that benighted country being incomparably below that of a horse, and slightly above that of a cow. However, it seldom answers to interfere between married couples ; so I was silent, merely advising Estelle to have as little to do with Alladeen as possible. To tell the truth, I was afraid the little lady's temper would get the better of her ; and that my fears were far from groundless was shortly apparent. One morning I went over to have a chat with Estelle on some business connected with our regimental school, and was persuaded to stay to tiffin. At that meal, which is to my mind the pleasantest and most social of the day in India, Alladeen stood with folded arms behind his master's chair, Mrs. Wilson sitting opposite. The man was a fine-looking Mussulman, tall, erect, with a long black beard and a pair of piercing evil-looking dark eyes. A decidedly striking individual on the whole, his face and figure showing to advantage in the spotless white robe and green-and-gold turban in which he was clad. During a pause in our conversation, devoted to the consumption of a peculiarly tempting soufflet, I happened to raise my eyes suddenly from my plate, and intercepted such a glance of malignant hate directed by the servant at his unconscious mistress that I felt cold from head to foot.

After lunch, when Fred had gone off to smoke a cheroot, I told Estelle what I had seen, and asked her in what way she had managed to offend Mr. Alladeen. She coloured, looked annoyed, and at last said : —

" Dear Mrs. Burgoyne, if I tell you, you'll promise not to tell Major Burgoyne or — or Fred."

" Surely not," said I ; and forthwith o at it all came.

It appeared that two or three days previous Alladeen had flatly disobeyed some trifling order of his mistress with regard to a particular dish for dinner, quietly substituting some ooncoction of his own, which, he said, * ' master would like better. " After dinner, Estelle sent for him, and in her anger, forgetting how matters stood, exclaimed, "If you ever dare to disobey me again, I will discharge you at once." The man folded his arms, looked at her contemptuously, as a giant might regard a pigmy, and said calmly, "Yes, missus send away, master call back." The cool insolence of the reply was too much for Estelle's fiery southern blood ; and, in her anger, scarcely knowing or caring what she did, she took off her dainty little high-heeled shoe, and struck the offender with it on the mouth. (This, I must explain, is, in the estimation of a Mussulman, the ne plus ultra of insult ; and from a woman's hand is simply unbearable degradation:) Estelle said he looked as if he could have killed her, and for the moment she felt frightened at what she had done. However, an instant after, AUadeen disappeared, muttering some Hindustani words which she could not understand. She thought he had gone to complain to Fred, and she rather quailed ; for, with all her affection for him, she stood in awe of her big husband. It was soon, however, evident that such was not his intention ; in fact, his whole manner altered towardaher from that day, and he became per-

carrying out her orders to the letter. This change of behaviour did not, nevertheless, reassure me, and I felt very uneasy about Estelle while the man remained under her roof. I knew a Mussulman would never forgive such an insult from one of the soulless sex, more especially as a fellowservant, a low-caste Hindoo, had been a delighted witness to his degradation. Besides, I had seen that awful glance, and I was not a little disquieted. I daresay you have heard how fond native servants usually are of their little white charges, foolishly fond ; for rather than let a child cry they will give it anything it wants, however unreasonable or injurious. They even look upon you as a perfect tyrant if you mildly suggest that playthings other than a valuable book or engraving might be foundforamischevious child of two or three years old ; your remonstrances, moreover, will not deter them from allowing missy baba, or the little sahib, to destroy your most cherished ornaments ; so in self-defence you are at i last compelled to lock up eyerything of a perishable nature ; otherwise your statuettes will bear a closer resemblance to the antique than is perhaps desirable, and the pages of your photographic album, which the native invariably looks at upside down, will be decorated with neat illuminated margins of dirty finger-marks redolent of cocoa-nut oil.

The effect of this treatment on yotmg children is most prejudicial, causing them frequently to transfer a large portion of their affection from the parents, who are kind but judicious, to the swarthy attendants, who are kind and injudicious, and whom the unreasoning little ones justly regard as stepping-stones to the region of forbidden happiness. I have often seen a child, when reproved by its mother for some little fault or act of disobedience, run to its ayah, or bearer, for comfort, being by her received as an injured innocent, and even the mother's cruel conduct commented on to its face.

Coo-Coo was spoiled in precisely this manner, and by no one so much as Alladeen, of whom she was passionately fond. He was continually bringing her queer toys of native manufacture, horrible sweetmeats made of coarse sugar and rancid ghee (clarified butter), which Estelle sternly interdicted, some oranges, or a few plantains or figs. He was perpetually inventing some new amusement for her ; and indeed, if the stern inflexible man were capable of loving anything, it was that bright sunny-haired English child. Her great delight was to sit with Alladeen in the early morning or cool of the evening in a little hut by the river-side, which he had made for her of green boughs. Here the pair would stay for hours, throwing stones into the water, or watching the rats and water-snakes, or the bits of drift-wood floating down stream to the Ganges far away. Now and then what looked like a great brown log would come sailing slowly along, and as it came closer the log would suddenly become endowed with life, and would open a great pair of fierce ugly jaws garnished with terrible teeth, andshut them again with a sound like the snap of a spring lock ; and then the child would cling closer and closer to Alladeen and hide her frightened little face on his shoulder, for she knew that a "mugger," or alligator had passed by. Then Alladeen would soothe her with plaintive weird Bengalee songs, which if she understood she was wiser than the rest of us.

I don't think Estelle at all approved of this attachment, but what could she do ? You cannot tell your own servant not to look after your own child ; and the man was really most devoted to the little one. What aggravated the mother chiefly was that sometimes, if Coo-Coo were sick or cross, and Estelle tried to take her, the child would push her away, saying, "No, no, Alladeen, me go to Alladeen ! " Once her mother would not give in, and sent Alladeen into another room while she tried to pacify the little girl ; but naughty Coo-Coo kicked and screamed and finally nearly oried herself into convulsions, at which juncture Fred interfered, Alladeen was recalled, and peace restored. In this way matters continued until the beginning of May 1857, when that "little cloud no bigger than a man's hand " appeared, to darken the horizon, and alas, alas ! to shut out for ever from the eyes of hundreds of our countrymen and countrywomen the light of an earthly sun. Strange rumours were afloat, and we knew not whence they came, and lik» the fiery cross, the chupatty circulated from village to village, and we knew not what the sign meant.

Besides our regiment (one wing of wbjtalh. was stationed at Lahore,) there w,ere a.t Feringheabad two regiment* of native infantry, full strength^ th,a 144 th and 175 th, a squadron of irregular cavalry, part of a field battery of artillery (Europeans), and. a, handful of native police. The Brigadier commanding the station, General Tillotson, a " Company's officer, was one of those foolish obstinate old men then, alas, only too common, whose ohief article of faith was the fidelity, loyalty, and maorrupUbility # % wtyalft iwtiyo

army. "By George, sir," the old fellow would say, with occasionally a much stronger expletive, "you think Jack Sepoy would mutiny, do you 1 Then by George, sir, I tell you I -would rather trust him — a thousand times rather — than your beggarly British troops, your fine gentlemen -who were reared in cabins "with the pigs ; and now, forsooth, nothing is good enough for them, and foreign service is a d — d hardship, and they must have everything done for them and live like fighting cocks, the lazy good-for-nothing soors (pigs), d — n 'em ! " And the old officer would get so red in the face and so puffy in the wind — those were the days of tight stocks — that he had it all his own way ; for the officers were afraid of his going off in a fit of apoplexy before their faces ; and with all his pig-headedness they liked the old boy, and never dreamed of quarrelling with him for riding his favourite hobby a little too often. Mrs. Tillotson, his wife, was one of the most charming, as well aa one of the ugliest, women I ever met. She was very tall, bony, and angular, a straight-up-and-down sort of figure, with large hands and feet. Her eyes, which were the best part of her, were dark gray, large and clear, the one good feature of her face, but her nose was preternaturally long, and her mouth very wide, displaying, however, when she laughed, which was pretty often, a set of white regular teeth. Anent that same nose, the first Sunday after our arrival, as our men were coming out of church, one of them was overheard to say to his comrade, ' ' [ say, Bill, did yer see the she - brigadier ? Be'ant her nose like a sword-scabbard 1 " Somebody had the effrontery to repeat the story to Mrs. Tillotson, indeed I believe it was her husband, and the dear old soul was mightily amused thereat, and laughed till she cried. Nature had certainly been unkind to her as far as externals went, but had, perhaps in a fit of remorse for her clumsy workmanship, endowed the possessor of a plain face and ungainly body with a great soul and a noble intellect such as rarely fall to the lot of women. You entered Marjory Tillotson's drawingroom thinking, "Dear me, what a hideous creature ! What could her husband have seen in her V And you left it saying, ' ' Where on earth did that woman get her wonderful power of fascination, her sparkling wit, her fund of anecdote and information ?" Shfli was a seooni Madame de Stael, as clever, as witty, as plain, but far more amiable. Forty she was if a day, and yet men would leave the side of younger and fairer partners; for the sake of ten minutes' chat with clever Mrs. Tillotson. Her wit, like poor Sydney Smith's, never hurt? any one. Gentle Margery would not willingly have harmed a fly, far less a human being. She was of a singularly cheerful happy disposition, though there had been many crosses in her early life, and the kind motherly woman was childless ; still from the time she mrde up her mind that it was the will of God that for her no young voices should ever make sweet music, nor little feet patter over her silent floor, from that time she was resigned, and devoted herself to her old husband, her books, and her music with redoubled energy.

The other residents in our station were ordinary people enough, such as one meets by scores all over India : there were the collector, Mr. Thornton, with, his pretty little wife, a bride of eighteen : the judge and his wife, Mr. and Mrs, Darrell ; and the civil surgeon, Dr. O'Brien, a rough-and-ready Irishman, with very original and startling notions on the subject of medicine and surgery. He had an easy time of it, good man ; for the caution given to all new-comers was, "Well, if you particularly value your life, don't send for O'Brien ; we won't have him for a sick cat. "

What medical practice there was, therefore, chiefly devolved on our regimental surgeon, Dr. Newton, who was worshipped by all anxious mothers, for he would turn out of his bed at any hour of the night, and not even grumble when he found that the attack had no more serious origin than "too much plum-cake." O'Brienj. on the other hand, would go a mile out of his way to avoid mother or child ; bo> he was only too rejoiced to give up his legitimate calling and amuse himself by killing quadrupeds instead of bipeds, merely substituting a " Westley Richards" or a " Sam Smith for a prescription or a lancet. On the whole, I believe he found the former quite a»s, effective in their own way as he Aud been the latter, and the only person who suffered by the change ■vsra^,— the station undertaker. Several other people there were, but as their- names do not appear in my story, I spare you an introduction. On the 10th of May, 3ome surprise was occasioned by the non-arrival of our postal runner, as the carrier of her Majesty mails is called j however, such a thing had sometimes happened before, owing in one instance to the presence of a man-eating tiger in the neighbourhood, who, with very little regard for her Majesty's messenger (I daresay he would have madia uHpyt woty Qi Jot Majesty 1 * own umi

person had she ventured into Ms district), swallowed up the unfortunate individual, mail-bags and all ; at any rate, they were never found. Another day — no post— and another, and then we became seriously uneasy. My husband and Mr. Thornton rode down to the postoffice, and the post-master, a Mussulman, either could not say more than that some accident must have befallen the runner. When pressed for further explanation he grew sulky, and even insolent, for which the gentlemen threatened to report him. From thence they cantered down to the telegraph-office, and there the half-caste clerk, with terror depicted in his face, told them that ho was afraid something was very wrong, for that on trying to send off a message to Delhi that very morning he had discovered that the wires were disconnected— cut, he feared ; and by whom? Edward and Mr. Thornton returned home, both determined to keep silence for fear of alarming the ladies, at least until something more definite became known. I knew by my husband's manner that he had heard disagreeable news, but as he generally sooner or later made me the confidante of all his troubles, I waited patiently, thinking he would do so on this occasion. That evening there was a large dinner-party at the General's, but somehow no one seemed in good spirits. My husband answered questions in the most absurdly irrelevant manner, and the usually amusing Mr. Thornton was as silent as the grave. At dessert, when the servants had been sent away, the conversation turned upon (what had been occupying all our thoughts at dinner) the uncomfortable state of things in the native army, and the indubitable ill-feeling which prevailed among the Brahmin and Mussulman Boldiers anent the greased-cart-ridge question. Was there any chance of a mutiny, a general one? And if so would we be able to hold our own? Quickly the gentleman remounted his "I tell you what it is," he said, "if any of you ladies are afraid (and what 3 ou are to be afraid of the Lord knows), and can't sleep at night, I can have some of the commissariat tents pitched for you on the ground facing the huts of the 175 th, my old regiment— true as steel, by Jove— and they'll take care of you, by George they will !" "I saw, and Margery's quick eyes saw also.alookof horror pass over my husband s face (Mr. Thornton was so taken aback that he put the shell instead of the kernel of a fine walnut into his mouth, and crunched it, to the lasting detriment of two back teeth), but he merely compressed his lips and answered quickly, " 1 don't think we need trouble you, General, thanks all the same ; our old 133 rd will, I trust, be equal to taking care of the women and children, though they are only British soldiers !" "Ay," said Colonel Rose, "they 11 be safer with us than with those " But my husband gave him a warning glance and he was silent, while ready Margery, with her woman's tact, quickly diverted the conversation into another channel. . After dinner, when we were taking our coffee in the verandah, Mrs. Tillotson asked my husband to examine with her some engravings lately sent her from Paris. As they were bending over the portfolio, she said softly, " Major Burgoyne, you have heard bad news ; tell me the worst ; you know I can keep a secret. " And he told her. After all there was not much to tell, but she looked grave, and after a pause said, "Listen to me, Major Burgoyne; I have no right to offer advice, but you have taken it from me before. On no account allow any reports you may hear j to reach the General's ears ; you know ■what he is, the good, kind, unsuspicious old man, and he might in the heat of the moment be guilty of some hasty injudicious act which would have the effect of hastening on an outbreak, if such indeed be contemplated, and place all our lives in jeopardy. My ayah only told me this anocning that an old Faquir had arrived tfrani Meerut, bringing news of a disturbance tiiere, in which several Europeans had loat their lives. Now, Major Burcoyne, thu may or may not be true ; you know how little reliance is , to be placed on the word of a native j still Ido think we ought to take come steps, so that we may not be altogether unprepared should anything serious occujr. It would be worse than useless to consult General ; you know his views on the sublet ; and if every other regiment in the service were to nuitiny, he would still place jmplicit faith in tho fidelity of his old corps,, the 175 th." , , . "The 175 th 1" aai<] my husband. ** Why only yesterday the Adjutant complained to me of the sullen, almost disrespectful, manner in which the men of one company in particular had .comported themselves on last pay-day ; and young Everett, one of their omcers, threatened, to report a havildar and four privates for having omitted to eatote fafen •wlwi «-

specting the lines. I feel there is very bad feeling abroad amongst the men. I will act on your advice at once, Mrs. Tillotson, and -will see Thornton and Darrell, and of course the Colonel, about it in the morning. Rose is the man for any emergency. Remember, not a word to any of the ladies ; I know I can trust you." She bowed her head, and crossed the room to ask Estelle some question about Coo-Coo, and shortly after the party broke up.

(To be continued.)