A Journey through the Kingdom of Oude, Volumes I & IISleeman, W. H. (William Henry), Sir
History
A Journey through the Kingdom of Oude, Volumes I & II
Sleeman, W. H. (William Henry), Sir
Oudh (India) -- Description and travel
Soon after his master, Sanaollah, returned to Lucknow, and threatened
Janoo to turn him out of his service unless he let go the boy. He
persisted in taking the boy with him, and his master relented. He had
a string tied to his arm, and led him along by it, and put a bundle
of clothes on his head. As they passed a jungle the boy would throw
down the bundle and try to run into the jungle, but on being beaten,
he would put up his hands in supplication, take up the bundle and go
on; but he seemed soon to forget the beating, and did the same thing
at almost every jungle they came through. By degrees he became quite
docile. Janoo was one day, about three months after their return to
Lucknow, sent away by his master for a day or two on some business,
and before his return the boy had ran off, and he could never find
him again. About two months after the boy had gone, a woman, of the
weaver caste, came with a letter from a relation of the Rajah, Hurdut
Sing, to Sanaollah, stating that she resided in the village of
Chureyrakotra, on his estate, and had had her son, then about four
years of age, taken from her, about five or six years before, by a
wolf; and, from the description which she gave of him, he, the
Rajah's relation, thought he must be the boy whom his servant, Janoo,
took away with him. She said that her boy had two marks upon him, one
on the chest of a boil, and one of something else on the forehead;
and as these marks corresponded precisely with those found upon the
boy, neither she nor they had any doubt that he was her lost son. She
remained for four months with the merchant Sanaollah, and Janoo, his
kidmutghur, at Lucknow; but the boy could not be found, and she
returned home, praying that information might be sent to her should
he be discovered. Sanaollah, Janoo, and Ramzan Khan, are still at
Lucknow, and before me have all three declared all the circumstances
here stated to be strictly true. The boy was altogether about five
months with Sanaollah and his servants, from the time they got him;
and he had been taken about four months and a half before. The wolf
must have had several litters of whelps during the six or seven years
that the boy was with her. Janoo further adds, that he, after a month
or two, ventured to try a waist-band upon the boy, but he often tore
it off in distress or anger. After he had become reconciled to this,
in about two months, he ventured to put on upon him a vest and a pair
of trousers. He had great difficulty in making him keep them on, with
threats and occasional beatings. He would disencumber himself of them
whenever left alone, but put them on again in alarm when discovered;
and to the last often injured or destroyed them by rubbing them
against trees or posts, like a beast, when any part of his body
itched. This habit he could never break him of.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account