nd I
should keep my eye on him while he did.

He got out a machine for propping the axle, and lifted the wheel off the
ground.

"Make the wheel go round," he said.

I didn't like it much, but I gave the wheel a turn. He looked at it till
it stopped.

"You lose match if you take that car," he said, "you take my car, Sar."

"What do you mean?" said I, pretty sharply.

"Look here," he said, setting the wheel going again. "You see here, Sar,
it die, all in a minute, it jerk, doesn't die smooth. You see _my_
wheel, Sar."

He put the lift under his own, and started the wheel revolving. It took
about three times as long to die as mine, going steady and silent and
stopping imperceptibly, not so much as a tremor in it.

"Now, Sar!" he said, "you see I speak true, Sar. I back you two hundred
rupee, if I lose I'm ruin, and I beg you, Sar, take my car! can no win
with yours, mine match car."

"All right!" said I with a sort of impulse, "I'll take it." And so I
did.

I had to start just under the arch of the Cashmere gate, by a pistol
shot, fired from overhead. I didn't quite care for the look of the
pony's ears while I was waiting for it--the crowd had frightened him a
bit I think. By Jove, when the bang came he reared straight up, dropped
down again and stuck his forelegs out, reared again when I gave him the
whip, every second of course telling against me.

"Here, let me help you," shouted Biddy, jumping into the trap. His
weight settled the business, down came the pony, and we went away like
blazes.

The three umpires rode with us, one each side and one behind, at least
that was the way at first, but I found the clattering of their hoofs
made it next to impossible to hold the pony. I got them to keep back,
and after that he went fairly steadily, but it was anxious work. The
noise and excitement had told on him a lot, he had a tendency to break
during all that six miles out, and he was in a lather before we got to
Sufter Jung's tomb. There were a lot of people waiting for me out there,
some ladies on horseback, too, and there was a coffee-shop going, with
drinks of all kinds. As I got near they began to call out, "You're done,
Paddy, thirty-four minutes gone already, you haven't the ghost of a
chance. Come and have a drink and look pleasant over it."

I turned the pony, and Biddy and I jumped out. I went up to the table,
snatched up a glass of brandy and filled my mouth with it, then went
back to the pony, took