THE FIRST BAG
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When I was in my father's house, I was in a better place." They were putting Punch to bed--the ayah and the hamal, and Meeta, thebig Surti boy with the red and gold turban. Judy, already tuckedinside her mosquito-curtains, was nearly asleep. Punch had beenallowed to stay up for dinner. Many privileges had been accorded toPunch within the last ten days, and a greater kindness from the peopleof his world had encompassed his ways and works, which were mostlyobstreperous. He sat on the edge of his bed and swung his bare legsdefiantly. "Punch-baba going to bye-lo?" said the ayah suggestively. "No," said Punch. "Punch-baba wants the story about the Ranee that wasturned into a tiger. Meeta must tell it, and the hamal shall hidebehind the door and make tiger-noises at the proper time." "But Judy-Baba will wake up," said the ayah. "Judy-baba is waking," piped a small voice from the mosquito-curtains."There was a Ranee that lived at Delhi. Go on, Meeta," and she fellasleep again while Meeta began the story. Never had Punch secured the telling of that tale with so littleopposition. He reflected for a long time. The hamal made thetiger-noises in twenty different keys. "'Top!" said Punch authoritatively. "Why does n't Papa come in and sayhe is going to give me put-put?" "Punch-baba is going away," said the ayah. "In another week there willbe no Punch-baba to pull my hair any more." She sighed softly, for theboy of the household was very dear to her heart. "Up the Ghauts in a train?" said Punch, standing on his bed. "All theway to Nassick, where the Ranee-Tiger lives?" "Not to Nassick this year, little Sahib," said Meeta, lifting him onhis shoulder. "Down to the sea where the cocoanuts are thrown, andacross the sea in a big ship. Will you take Meeta with you toBelait?" "You shall all come," said Punch, from the height of Meeta's strongarms. "Meeta and the ayah and the hamal and Bhini-in-the-Garden, andthe salaam-Captain-Sahib-snake-man." There was no mockery in Meeta's voice when he replied--"Great is theSahib's favour," and laid the little man down in the bed, while theayah, sitting in the moonlight at the doorway, lulled him to sleepwith an interminable canticle such as they sing in the Roman CatholicChurch at Parel. Punch curled himself into a ball and slept. Next morning Judy shouted that there was a rat in the nursery, andthus he forgot to tell her the wonderful news. It did not much matter,for Judy was only three and she would not have understood. But Punchwas five; and he knew that going to England would be much nicer than atrip to Nassick. * * * * * And Papa and Mamma sold the brougham and the piano, and stripped thehouse, and curtailed the allowance of crockery for the daily meals,and took long council together over a bundle of letters bearing theRocklington postmark. "The worst of it is that one can't be certain of anything," said Papa,pulling his moustache. "The letters in themselves are excellent, andthe terms are moderate enough." "The worst of it is that the children will grow up away from me,"thought Mamma; but she did not say it aloud. "We are only one case among hundreds," said Papa bitterly. "You shallgo Home again in five years, dear." "Punch will be ten then--and Judy eight. Oh, how long and long andlong the time will be! And we have to leave them among strangers." "Punch is a cheery little chap. He's sure to make friends wherever hegoes." "And who could help loving my Ju?" They were standing over the cots in the nursery late at night, and Ithink that Mamma was crying softly. After Papa had gone away, sheknelt down by the side of Judy's cot. The ayah saw her and put up aprayer that the memsahib might never find the love of her childrentaken away from her and given to a stranger. Mamma's own prayer was a slightly illogical one. Summarized it ran:"Let strangers love my children and be as good to them as I should be,but let me preserve their love and their confidence for ever and ever.Amen." Punch scratched himself in his sleep, and Judy moaned a little.That seems to be the only answer to the prayer: and, next day, theyall went down to the sea, and there was a scene at the Apollo Bunderwhen Punch discovered that Meeta could not come too, and Judy learnedthat the ayah must be left behind. But Punch found a thousandfascinating things in the rope, block, and steam-pipe line on the bigP. and O. Steamer, long before Meeta and the ayah had dried theirtears. "Come back, Punch-baba," said the ayah. "Come back," said Meeta, "and be a Burra Sahib." "Yes," said Punch, lifted up in his father's arms to wave good-bye."Yes, I will come back, and I will be a Burra Sahib Bahadur!" At the end of the first day Punch demanded to be set down in England,which he was certain must be close at hand. Next day there was a merrybreeze, and Punch was very sick. "When I come back to Bombay," saidPunch on his recovery, "I will come by the road--in a broom-gharri.This is a very naughty ship." The Swedish boatswain consoled him, and he modified his opinions asthe voyage went on. There was so much to see and to handle and askquestions about that Punch nearly forgot the ayah and Meeta and thehamal, and with difficulty remembered a few words of the Hindustanionce his second-speech. But Judy was much worse. The day before the steamer reachedSouthampton, Mamma asked her if she would not like to see the ayahagain. Judy's blue eyes turned to the stretch of sea that hadswallowed all her tiny past, and she said: "Ayah! What ayah?" Mamma cried over her, and Punch marveled. It was then that he heardfor the first time Mamma's passionate appeal to him never to let Judyforget Mamma. Seeing that Judy was young, ridiculously young, and thatMamma, every evening for four weeks past, had come into the cabin tosing her and Punch to sleep with a mysterious tune that he called"Sonny, my soul," Punch could not understand what Mamma meant. But hestrove to do his duty, for the moment Mamma left the cabin, he said toJudy: "Ju, you bemember Mamma?" "'Torse I do," said Judy. "Then always bemember Mamma, 'r else I won't give you the paper ducksthat the red-haired Captain Sahib cut out for me."
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