On the first morning after his arrival, the Rajah himself introduced him to the palace school, held in that room which, in the old Rajah’s day, had been a theatre:—the place where the slave Fidá had first looked upon poppy-crowned Ahalya. Whatever its former glories, this room, on the morning that Oman first beheld it, presented a pleasanter picture. Save for a great rug upon the floor, and the teacher’s cushion on a daïs at one end of the room, the place was quite unfurnished. On the floor sat an orderly company of young men, between the ages of fifteen and twenty: all of them clad in white, with scarlet sashes around their waists, and red shoes on their otherwise bare feet. These youths were engaged in a variety of occupations: some of them studying manuscripts of various kinds, many simply sitting in meditation, still others indulging, rather surreptitiously, in games. Among them, without any distinction as to dress or position, was Bhavani’s son, Viradha, the heir of Mandu: a pleasant-faced youth, but not remarkable for any special wit or wisdom; for he had inherited the disposition of his grandfather, and was fonder of the chase and the table than of reflection on the doctrine of atoms[9] or the working of the primordial soul. [9] The foundation of the Nyaya system, originated by Kanada. Up to to-day, the palace school had been conducted on a very irregular plan, Bhavani bringing various men of wisdom or holiness to lecture one or two days a week, the rest of the time being occupied with indiscriminate reading from philosophic or poetical manuscripts. On this day, as soon as the youths had assembled, Bhavani and Oman made their appearance together. The Rajah offered a few words of introduction and explanation: setting forth the fact that at last they were to have a permanent master, who would reduce their hours of study to some sort of system and order. During his speech, every eye in the room was fixed upon Oman’s tall, gaunt figure, clad in white garments, his serene face, with its deep-set eyes, and his broad, lined brow, on each side of which fell masses of thick, black hair. At the end of the introduction Oman came forward a little and the young men advanced to him, and, one by one, kissed his hand. Then they returned, expectantly, to their places; and Bhavani, able to spare no more time from matters of state, hurried away, leaving Oman to his new task.