"How did you like that forty miles in a camel train over the salt
desert? That made you sit up a bit, eh?"

"It was awful. The heat and the glare off the sand nearly killed me. You
say there is no society here?"

"Society? The only Europeans here or in the whole State, besides those
of us in the regiment, are the Resident and his wife."

"What is a Resident, exactly?"

"A Political Officer appointed by the Government of India to be a sort
of adviser to a rajah and to keep a check on him if he rules his State
badly. I shouldn't imagine that our fellow here, Major Norton, would be
much good as an adviser to anybody. The only thing he seems to know
anything about is insects. He's quite a famous entomologist. Personally
he's not a bad sort, but a bit of a bore."

"What's his wife like?"

"Oh, very different. Much younger and fond of gaiety, I think. Not that
she can get any here. She's a decidedly pretty woman. I haven't seen
much of her; for she has been away most of the time, that the regiment
has been here. She has relatives in Calcutta and stays a lot with them."

"I don't blame her," said Wargrave, laughing. "Rohar must be a very
deadly place for a young woman. No amusements. No dances. No shops. And
the only female society the wives of the Colonel and the Doctor."

"Luckily for Mrs. Norton she is rather keen on sport and is a good