A Horse and Two Goats 1970) R. K. Narayan of them bul with brick and cement aimed hiny hues. only rilant yellow 1m ne all ver with gorgeous carvings of gos sal gaguyls on shasta wa wn asthe Big Howse. The eee hao, dnb in Tour sees, wete generally af oath. sta, mod an eer unspecified materi, Mins was the Ls hows fn the fourth strcet. beyond which seished the feds In his psperoms days Mot had oe ck of Fy ns and sale fon every moming diving the Nock around érook at the end of & stent she could pve him in onder tobe hepin the third sreet. He satan an upturned packing case hslow the platform of he shop. The shopman the poxtman’s wife who hd eloped tothe sy some months before “Phe shopman fer most pleased to ear the worst ofthe postman, who Yad cheated him, Being an itnerant posit, Be etuned home 10 Ketan only once inten days and payment later. Some days the sopman was i 3 good mood and gave in we his erp sieny ad hack Mun for daring 10 ask un sont he woul credit This war such day. and Nun cad not progress beyond two tem sted br cena component The shopian was aso displaying remarkable mem Tor od fact and figures an took out an oblong ledger 1 support his observations. Muni Fel ipeled to rse and flee. But hiv soreypec het i his seat and made im sen Have you a daughter” sneered the shopman, “And she is sending you noney'Forhe lt his ead and look wp. He urge! and blithe gost uti hey meandered long the foot ofthe horse statue on the edge of the village. Hest mi pes for the the lores and buses pass throgh tothe hls, anal gave him sense of Deloging arger word. The pedestal ofthe sate was boa enough far him to move around ss the Sn yaveled up and westwar: r he could also crush wader the ily ofthe hase he horse was nearly life-size. moulded out of clay. ake. burn, and brightly ed. and reared ts hea prow. prancing sts fore in the stand rising is have beens white a6 dhobrished host and ha mits ack a cover of pure brocade of re and black fee. matching the mulk-colouel x aroun the mas of the rior But none inthe village remembered the splenur 3s n0 one Po nistence, Even Muni. who spent all his waking hous ts oo. never bare took Knives and wed to tole off milestones sd inserted lewd designs on he wll This fhe popotation of the village atofe was wondering how to deseribe er when i sptered an stoped in front of hin. A red-faced foreigner who had been driving it got down and went ound it stooping ing and poking under the vehicle then he siaightened himself yp. looked at the Astor, sed in Mun's direction, and approached him. “Excuse me is thee 8 38 station nearby. or do Ihave fo wat unt nother car comes—" He saenly Tooked up The lay hare and ened Marvellous” without completing his sentence. Mui ft should get up and run say, and cused his age. He cout not reais put his limbs int mv years go be could outun schistah, as happened ones when he went wo ie Forest to cat fel andi was then that two of his sheep were raed ~ a sign that bao times mere coming. Tog he ened, Re old not easly extricde himself from his fer faced man wore Khaki hte ~evidetly a policeman or 1 soldier Mani sid himself “He will chase or shoot i I tat running. Sometimes dogs chase only those ‘sho run -- O Shiva prtcet me, I don't know why this man should he after me. Meansie the foreigner ered Macelhan” again, nodklng his hea He paced aroun the statue with his eyes fixed i, Muni sit frozen fora eile. an then idgted an tried to edge avay. Now the other man sablnly pressed his palms gtr ina sal Ach Mun spoke the only English expressions he had lea “Yes 9.’ Hang shaused his English vocabulary, he sated in Tami: “My name k Muni. These two cats ae mine and mo one ean gina it~ hough ur village fal of slander these thys who wil now hese to sy tha what bongs to aman dose Blog 16 i.” He rolled is eyes and shaded atthe thought of evminded men aad women peopling shite tthe two goats and The rocks, and with pvzled expresso took ow his ser Ciautt-case and lia cigar, Suddenly remembering the cores of the sea, he wed. ‘Dy you smoke?” Muni answered, "Yes, no” Whereupon the ed faced manthe lighter open an offers light Man. Muni fl so enfin sve oo ek eg he blew om i ad put ito. Theater pled bat andaumte. Douro his igh resented it agui, and lit Muni's cigarette. Muni drew a deep pul and sraned cough sabe he ‘pe is eyes ae tok st he station. understanding tht the ctr ma was sway from 2 man who gave hin such a poten stoke: His head war wating te th fet of ne ofthe some Atencancigretcn mae wth neste ‘id “come fom New York.” tok oat a wallet om his pp rest him. Reware of Khaki, one part of his mind warreds Take all te bang or whatever is offered. but don't set cn one git ra, Pt umendeed hatever came. He could only war ol able by Ik So he nent on a in the chase Tamil for which Krtam was fans (Even the worst decor cou ‘one could sy wheter age.) Out of this heige the Tai langues ished through Muni inn unimpeded flow He sad omited. whoever didi wil not escape. Bhiwani all-eeing Don't kine slo i know nothing” A body hal bee find mutate and tows under stansod nat atthe boner between Kritam and Kuppam ‘over there will sop et thing The fi Muni reacted tothe slased amonphise by smiling himself, and plead,“ away sir. know nothing. | promise we wil hold him Tor you Wwe nee aay ea ‘haricter around, and we will bury im up 10 bis neck in cashout pt the mee lage “Please. please. 1 will speak slowly. please ty to linerstand me. Cant you understand even a sinpie word ol Engiah? Eases i tne ountry seems 19 know English, Thave go" son with Eagish everyhete in thi oun. ft yo don't speak. Have ‘Muni made some indistinct sounds his thst a 3d man, explaining. “You se, la hy had the hotest summer in history. and T wan wornConnecticut. 1 Yokd my wife Rath, We will vn Inia this winters dime 4 look wher ciisations. Next day’ she ile Phe travel gsr ist Ming a tl hin ft inl so here Iam. Rath came sith me bit saying tack at Srinagar. and Tam the ‘Muni looked vefective atthe en ofthis long perration and ier febly. Yes. 10 ask, “oy. what isthe sett of your teth? How ol ate yt The old man forgo what he fal ste to say abd remarked. “Sometimes we tn love our cattle, Jackals oF chetahs ut sometimes i is just tel from over inthe nest ili, andthe esl know who fas Gone 1 Ove priest tt imple can seein the camphor Nae the ace ofthe thi, and shen bef eh The American watched his hands imenily and said, 1 know wha: you mean, Ch something? Mayhe | am Boling you wp and you want to chop wax? Whee is your xe? Hand i to me and show me what ho chop do enjy i, yo ROW us ‘We get a fol of driftwood song the hackwater near my house, and on Sundays | ming but chop wood for the fireplace I ely fee diferent when {watch the ie in Muni fel oul confused bi Ss the Bes thing woul be to nake an temp away from this place. He tried 4 eget saying. “Must home” and turned The ether sized his shoulder and std despertly. Is there no oe. absalutly 90 ne here, trinlite for me?” He lke up aml dwn the wa. wh as deserted in this hot afiernoon; a sodden gust of wind chured up the dust and dad aves ontheshed ad a, How am | trnaprting Ica ph he sa hack and make roo nowhere and look for nothing.” His thoughts went back to the nas. “The first avatar ws in he shape of litle fish ina ost of water, bl everyvo help the Five Brothers regain their Kingdom, When Krishna was bay he dances the thosand-hooded sant serpent and trampled itt death andthe he stekled the sts ofthe demones and lef hen flit ss dis though when she eame 10 him her ms were le, ike mounds of eur on he banks ofa dugup canal He indicated ‘ruil, We have come tothe point when we should be feady to talk ines. ‘When the tenth avatar comes, do you know where you and | will be™ asked the bea good man, willing w say beside Tone to tlk to except when somebody stops to ask fora pce of taco, But Iseldom have i tobacco i not What Hed beat ne time, and Ihave given up chewing. I cannot alfa it nowadiys" Nang the hers interes in is speech. Mut felt encouraged o ask, How many children have 1?" with appropriate gestures with his hands, Resiing that queton ws being asked, the eed man replied I said a hundred.” which encouraged as. How many of our ehildren ae boys and how many srs? Where ae they? Is our daughter mare It ificult to finda sonindaw in your county als In answer 1 these questions the red man dashed his hand ino his pocket and brought forth his walt in onder to take immedie advantage ofthe bearish tend in The market. He Mourished a hundred-mipee currency note and asked, “Well this is What I The old man now realise that some financial element was entering their alk. He pore closely atthe currency’ noe the like of which he had ever see i hs He: he new the five and ten hy ther clos although avy in other peopl’ ans while his ‘own earning at anytime ws in coppers and ck, What was this man note for? Perhaps asking for change. He laughed to himslt atthe ton of anyon Ask our village headman. who i also 4 moneylender he can change even a lakh of rupees in gold sovereigns you prefer i that way. he thinks ry kn. hat di th oor of his poja room and your head will reel at the sight af the hyn. The man