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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
(SEPTEMBER, 1891.
Thus thought the minister, and for a moment care fled from his face. He imagined that he had already successfully accomplished his object; when, suddenly, his face again changed colour, as he thought he had landed himself upon new ditficulties.
“Where to find the substitute ?" thought he. “First of all, he must be young and beautiful, and he must be a perfect stranger to this place, and he must be entirely at our mercy."
But how to find him and where P For the time was fast approaching ! In this state of mind the minister came out of his house on the night on which our hero went to sleep on his verandah.
The minister was so ferocious a personage, that no one dared to approach him or speak to him when he was moody or occupied with his own thoughts. His servants knew him very well, and avoided him always on such occasions. So on the night in question, he was standing all alone in front of his house, near the tenth ghatiká, just as people from several directions were walking to the dining-place behind the pandál, bent on feeding at another's expense. By and by the bustle of the hastening crowd calmed down, and eating commenced ; but the minister's mind still continued agitated. He still saw no hope of his getting out of his difficulties. This brought on such a feeling of disappointment over his mind, that he was almost weeping as he stood there alone. While thus lost in sorrow and misery, he thought he heard some one snoring in a corner of his long verandab.
“Who could it be, sleeping there so soundly? What must be the audacity of the fool, who had chosen this house to sleep in ? Bạt let me see. It may be a poor Brâhman, who has lingered here for a meal and fallen asleep. I will awake him, and send him to the dining-hall."
Thus thinking, the minister slowly walked up to the spot. There was a light in the verandah, but the face of the sleeper was covered with a cloth.
Ab, I see. It must be one of my servants, who has thus fallen asleep at his duty of watching the house. I have caught the wretch now, and will dismiss him."
Thinking thus, the minister removed the cloth from the face. The exhausted Atirûpa never stirred an inch. He slept on, and what did the minister see? A beautiful face, fairer than his own son's, and thus approaching almost the representation he had given to the king. Again, the age of the boy, who was asleep, was almost equal to that of his son. So perfect a duplicate was be, as the minister thought, of his own son, that he was charmed at the discovery. To crown his great success, the boy appeared to be a stranger to Chandragiri.
" Has fortune conducted me to this boy to-night?” thought the minister, and at once roused him from his sloop."
" Who are you, Sir ?" asked the minister, and the boy did not reply.
“Do you know Telugu ?” asked the minister. The boy nodded his head to indicate that he did not know it.
" Sanskrit ? " asked the lord of the house. "Yes," said the boy.
The minister was overjoyed to find that the person was a perfect stranger, and, without wasting any time, the minister secretly took the boy inside, and told him that he would help him in every way, if he only promised to obey his orders. All that Atirûpa wanted was a sum of money large enough to enable him to continue his journey to Banaras, and perform the intended ceremonies there. That the minister promised, and Atirupa was well fed and left to rest for the night.
Next morning the minister explained to him his plan, and asked Atirapa to take the place of his son and celebrate the marriage with the princess. But he must not reveal the secret to anyone, and as soon as the marriage was over he was to proceed on his journey to
