If there should be another Afghan war, how many of them would be alive by the time it was over?He knew that even now, after all these years, the bleached bones of General Elphinstone's demoralized army still littered the defiles where they had been trapped during the retreat from Kabul, and slaug...
‘No, of course I cannot send any of my men into Bhithor. Such an action would be quite out of order; nor, I may say, would I do so if it were not. Matters of this nature are best left to the civil authorities or the police, and not to the army; though I would advise you against bursting in on any...
And as we explored the Ridge and its ruins, played in the dry moat that encircled Shah Jehan’s walled city, or strolled along the battlements above the battered Kashmir Gate, I had only to ask any casual passer-by (and I was always doing that) why there were so many holes in the wall and who made...
‘Those silly little edges. They aren’t rails at all! But I still don’t see how she could have done it, even in the dark. You’d think anyone would be extra careful in the dark, wouldn’t you?’ ‘I suppose she must have felt faint,’ said Tyson. ‘In fact that was probably what she was coming down for....
I didn’t know there was anyone on board. Don’t cry, dear. It’s all right now. There’s nothing to be frightened of now.’ No, there was nothing to be frightened of now. All at once Sarah knew that. The terrors and confusions and doubts that had haunted her since that white night in Gulmarg when she...
I don’t suppose they ever realized you were British. You say the woman spoke to you in French, so the odds are that you answered her in the same language.’ Miranda nodded. ‘I expect so. I spoke more German and French than English in those days.’ ‘Then that’s the answer. You were a stray child and...
And with every passing year the old Fairy Crustacea’s gift became more and more noticeable, as the seventh princess became more and more ordinary. No one ever called her by her grand name now. From the townsfolk in the city down to the smallest page at the palace, she was always known simply as “...
Olive Targett was already packing up to leave for Bombay and England, to be married and become Lady Something-or-other to do with biscuits, and since she had not yet seen the Taj, Bob arranged a Last Weekend Visit to Agra as a farewell party for her. I’ve forgotten which of her many swains she ch...
Alex turned away from the window of the sparsely furnished dâk-bungalow room and dropped the split-cane curtain back into place. ‘Is there need?’ ‘Great need,’ said Niaz, busy with the straps of a dusty valise. ‘It was not advisable to speak while there were many to overhear, but now—’ ‘Here also...
Above them the wide sweep of the sky glittered with stars as bright and as numerous as the houris of Paradise, while from below, muted by distance, came the sound of palm fronds rustling in the wind, the crash and croon of the surf and all the many night noises of an Eastern city. &nb...
But since we sailed on an evening tide, we were once again to pass through most of the Inland Sea and the Thousand Islands by night. Watching our friends wave goodbye as we drew away from the docks, I did not realize that I was among the privileged number of foreign tourists who had seen Japan wh...
The shadows of the stately birds flicked across her and were gone, and she leaned weakly against the gate in the plumbago hedge and fought for control. It was absurd and childish to allow herself to become so hag-ridden by fear that the mere passing of a flight of birds could set her flinching an...
How interesting,’ said Copper; managing with considerable difficulty to turn a yawn into a bright social smile and wishing that Mr Shilto would not talk so much. She wanted to give all her attention to the queer, wild, fascinating country that was flicking past them as the big car whirled along t...