to nurse
her, and so we wanted a happy photograph for her sake; but nothing was
further from Pyarie's intentions, and instead of smiling, she scowled.
Our first attempt was in the compound, where a bullock-bandy stood.
Pyarie and Vineetha, a little girl of about the same age, were very
pleased to climb over the pole and untwist the rope and play see-saw;
but when the objectionable camera appeared, they stared at it with
aversion, and no amount of coaxing would persuade Pyarie to smile.
"Can't you do something to improve her expression?" inquired the
photographer, emerging from his black hood; then someone said in
desperation: "_Do_ smile, you little Turk!" Vineetha, about whose
expression we were not concerned, obediently smiled; but Pyarie looked
thunderclouds, and turned her head away. She was caught before she
turned, poor dear, so that photograph was a failure.

Once again our kind friend tried. This time he gave her a doll. Pyarie
is most motherly. She is usually tender and loving with dolls, and we
hoped for a sweet expression. But in this we were disappointed. She
accepted the doll--a beautiful thing, with a good constitution and
imperturbable temper; and she looked it straight in the face--a rag face
painted--smiling as we wanted her to smile. Then she smote it, and she
scolded it, and called for a stick and whacked it, and called for a
bigger stick and repeated the performance. Finally she stopped, laid the
doll upon the step, sat down on it, and smiled. But she was hopelessly
out of focus by this time, and it was weary work getting her in. She
smiled during the process in a perfectly exasperating manner, but the
moment all was ready she suddenly wriggled out; and when invited to go
in again, she shook her head decidedly, and pointing to the camera with
its glaring glass eye, covered at that moment with its cloth, she
remarked, "Naughty! Naughty!" and we had to give her up.

[Illustration: "DISGUSTING!" SHE REMARKED IN EXPLICIT YOUNG TAMIL, AND
LOOKED DISGUSTED.]

"Perhaps she would be happier in someone's arms," next suggested the
long-suffering artist; and so one morning, just after her bath, she was
caught up, sweet and smiling, and played with till the peals of merry
laughter assured us of an easy victory. But the camera was no sooner
seen stalking round to the nursery, than suspicions filled Pyarie's
breast. That thing again! And the photograph taken under such
circumstances is left to speak for itself.