nham or a
Clifford, those sympathetic spinners of delightful tales of a race whose
childish faith so lends itself to story, I might here find material for
pages of a charming romance. But in reality there was little romance
about Usoof, rather a sturdy honesty and affection, as he brought his
poor mother in her humble attire and presented her to his Tuan, who, at
that moment, bored to death by his kind host, who would not cease to
entertain him by sitting by him in attentive silence, would have
welcomed any diversion as a boon.

But the poor lady, according to the custom of the country, could only
prostrate herself outside the house nor venture nearer than some dozen
yards, probably regarding her new-found son, who stood upright, as some
knave who courted death.

This system of obeisance had been rather embarrassing to X., since all
the retainers of his host stooped low and crept about while his own
attendants had maintained their usual attitudes with occasional lapses
from the perpendicular. For there had been intervals over night when,
realizing his conspicuous position, Abu had wandered about awkwardly
doubled up, and offered cigarettes and liquid refreshment from somewhere
among the legs of the table, startling his master by his sudden cat-like
appearance in unexpected places, while there was that in his eye which
said, "Do not expect this sort of thing to continue when we get you
home."

CHAPTER XIX.

A VILLAGE HOME IN JAVA.

To Usoof and his mother the great Wodena was kindness itself, and
conversed with them in Javanese with much affability. X. wishing to see
a real country village, and obtain speech with its people, away from the
all-subduing eye of the local authority, promised to go that afternoon
and visit the good lady in her ancestral home, and a few hours later he
took the train for the next station, Tambak. No European had ever done
such a thing before apparently, and there was quite a fuss at the
station to find a first or even a second-class ticket. And during the
search the railway officials displayed the most naive curiosity, and
questioned the traveller without restraint. Arrived at Tambak X.
descended, and immediately the station-master hurried forward and
politely assured him that he had made a mistake, since Gombong, the
large town, was the next station but one. He obviously could not believe
it possible that any European should get out at Tambak on purpose, and
regarded the polite