ept in Hamilton's shop was standing in his cell. Everybody gazed at it
dumbfounded. The _almirah_ with its contents must have weighed 50
stones. How it got into the cell was beyond comprehension.

All the big officers of Government came to see the fun and asked Hasan
Khan how he had managed it.

"How did you manage to get the show-case in your drawing-room?" inquired
Hasan Khan of each officer in reply to the question.

And everybody thought that the fellow was mad. But as each officer
reached home he found that one show-case (evidently from Hamilton's
shop) with all its contents was standing in his drawing room.

The next morning Hasan Khan gave out in clear terms that unless Messrs.
Hamilton and Co. withdrew the charge against him at once they would find
their safe in which were kept the extra valuable articles, at the
bottom of the Bay of Bengal.

The Jewellers thought that prudence was the best part of valour and the
case against Hasan Khan was withdrawn and he was acquitted of all
charges and set at liberty.

Then arose the big question of compensating him for the incarceration he
had suffered; and the ring with the single ruby which he had fancied so
much and which had caused all this trouble was presented to him.

Of course, Messrs. Hamilton and Co. the Jewellers, had to spend a lot of
money in carting back the show-cases that had so mysteriously walked
away from their shop, but they were not sorry, because they could not
have advertised their ware better, and everybody was anxious to possess
something or other from among the contents of these peculiar show-cases.

It was in connection with this case that Hasan Khan became known to most
of the European Government officials of Calcutta at that time.

THE BRIDAL PARTY.

In Benares, the sacred city of the Hindus, situated in the United
Provinces of Agra and Oudh, there is a house which is famed pretty far
and wide. It is said that the house is haunted and that no human being
can pass a night in that house.

* * * * *

Once there was a large Bridal party.

In India the custom is that the bridegroom goes to the house of the
bride with great pomp and show with a number of friends and followers
and the ceremony of "Kanya Dan" (giving away the girl) takes place at
the bride's house.

The number of the people who go with the bridegroom depends largely upon
the means of the bride's party, because the guests who come wi