The Mystic Masseur Part 19

Finally, it was announced that the Inaugural Meeting of the Hindu League was to be held at the residence of Pundit Ganesh Ramsumair in Fuente Grove. The meeting was to be private.

That Sat.u.r.day afternoon about fifty men, most of them former clients, gathered in the ground floor of Ganesh's house. There were solicitors and barristers among them, solicitor's touts, taxidrivers, clerks and labourers. Leela, taking no chances, gave them diluted Coca-Cola in enamel cups.

Ganesh sat on orange cus.h.i.+ons on a low platform below a carving of Hanuman, the monkey G.o.d. He recited a long Hindi prayer, then used a mango-leaf to sprinkle water from a bra.s.s jar over the meeting.

Partap, sitting cross-legged on a charpoy charpoy next to the boy, said in Hindi, 'Ganges water.' next to the boy, said in Hindi, 'Ganges water.'

The boy said, 'Go to France!'

Ganesh made them all swear a terrible oath of secrecy.

Then he stood up and tossed his green scarf over his shoulder. 'What I want to say today is very simple. We want to use the money given us well, and at the same time we want to stop Narayan making more trouble. He says he is competent to handle the money. We know that.'

There was laughter. Ganesh took a sip of Coca-Cola from a prutty prutty gla.s.s. 'To get the money, we mustn't only remove Narayan, we must form one united Hindu body.'

There were cries of approval.

'The Hindu a.s.sociation isn't a very large body. There are more of us here than in the Hindu a.s.sociation. The a.s.sociation wants to get new members and I have called you here today to beg you to form your own branches of the Hindu a.s.sociation.'

Murmurings.

The boy said, 'But I thought we was going to form the Hindu League League today.' today.'

Ganesh raised his hand. 'I am doing this only for the sake of Hindu unity in Trinidad.'

Some people cried in Hindi, 'Long live Ganes.h.!.+'

'But what about the League?' the boy said.

'We are not going to form the League. In less than three weeks the Hindu a.s.sociation is going to hold its second General Meeting. Many officers will be elected and I hope to see all of you among them.'

The meeting clapped.

Swami stood up with difficulty. 'Mr President Ganesh, sir, may I ask how you is going to see that happen?'

The meeting clapped again and Swami sat down.

'This is the problem: how can we win the elections at the General Meeting of the a.s.sociation? The solution: by having more delegates than anybody else. How do we get delegates? By forming more branches. I expect the fifty of you here to form fifty branches. Every branch will send three delegates to the Meeting.'

Swami rose again. 'Mr President Ganesh, sir, may I ask how you is going to give each and every one of we here three delegates, sahib?'

'It have there are hundreds of people who are willing to do me a favour.'

The boy got up amid applause for Swami and Ganesh. 'All right, it sound all right. But what make you feel that Narayan not going to do the same thing as we?'

Murmurs of, 'The boy little but he smart, man,' and, 'Who son he is?'

Swami got up almost as soon as he had sat down. There was more applause for him. He smiled, fingered the letter in his s.h.i.+rt pocket, and held up his hand for the ovation to cease. 'Mr President Ganesh, sahib, with your permission, sahib, I is going to answer the boy question. After all, he is my own nephew, my own sister son.'

Thunderous applause. Cries of, 'Shh! Shh! Let we hear what the man saying, man.'

'It seem to me, Mr President Ganesh, that the boy question sort of answer itself, sahib. First, who go take Narayan serious now? Who go listen to him? Mr President Ganesh, I is the editorin-chief of The Dharma The Dharma. That paper make Narayan a laughing-stock. Second point, sahib. Narayan ain't have the brains to do anything like this.'

Laughter.

Swami held up his hand again. 'Third and last point, sahib. The element of surprise. That is the element that go beat Narayan.'

Shouts of, 'Long live Swami! Long live Swami's nephew!'

Partap asked, 'What about transport, pundit? I was thinking. I could get some vans from Parcel Post '

'I have five taxis,' Ganesh said. 'And I have many taxi-drivers who are friends.'

The taxi-drivers in the gathering laughed.

Ganesh made the closing speech. 'Remember, is only Narayan we fighting. Remember, is Hindu unity we fighting for.' And before the gathering broke up he rallied them with a cry, 'Don't forget you have a paper behind you!'

The next day, Sunday, the Sentinel Sentinel reported the formation of the Hindu League. According to the President, Pundit Ganesh Ramsumair, the League already had twenty branches. reported the formation of the Hindu League. According to the President, Pundit Ganesh Ramsumair, the League already had twenty branches.

On Tuesday the Sentinel Sentinel isn't published on Monday Narayan said that the Hindu a.s.sociation had thirty branches. On Wednesday the League said it had doubled its members.h.i.+p and had forty branches. On Thursday the a.s.sociation had doubled isn't published on Monday Narayan said that the Hindu a.s.sociation had thirty branches. On Wednesday the League said it had doubled its members.h.i.+p and had forty branches. On Thursday the a.s.sociation had doubled its its members.h.i.+p and had sixty. The League was silent on Friday. On Sat.u.r.day the a.s.sociation claimed eighty branches. n.o.body said anything on Sunday. members.h.i.+p and had sixty. The League was silent on Friday. On Sat.u.r.day the a.s.sociation claimed eighty branches. n.o.body said anything on Sunday.

On Tuesday Narayan stated at a press conference that the Hindu a.s.sociation was clearly the competent Hindu body and was going to press for the grant of thirty thousand dollars immediately after the election of officers at its second General Meeting that Sunday.

The Hindu a.s.sociation was to meet in Carapichaima at the hall of a Friendly Society, a large Mission-school-type building with pillars ten feet high and a pyramidal roof of galvanized iron. Concrete upstairs, downstairs lattice-work around the pillars. A large black and silver sign-board eloquent about the Society's benefits, including 'free burial of members'.

The second General Meeting of the Hindu a.s.sociation was to begin at one in the afternoon but when Ganesh and his supporters arrived in taxis at about half-past one all they saw were three men dressed in white, among them a tall Negro with a long beard who looked holy.

Ganesh had warned that blows might pa.s.s and as soon as the taxi came to Carapichaima, Swami, armed with a stout poui poui stick, sat on the edge of his seat and began shouting, 'Where Narayan? Narayan, where you is? I want to meet you today!' stick, sat on the edge of his seat and began shouting, 'Where Narayan? Narayan, where you is? I want to meet you today!'

Now he calmed down.

Ganesh's men quickly overran the place. Partap, showing an initiative that surprised Ganesh, went with the advance party.

'Narayan ain't here,' the boy said with relief.

Swami beat his stick on the dusty ground. 'Is a trick, sahib. And today today was the day I did want to meet Narayan.' was the day I did want to meet Narayan.'

Then Partap came back with the news that the delegates of the Hindu a.s.sociation were eating in a room upstairs.

Ganesh, with Swami, Partap, and the boy, walked across the dirt-and-asphalt yard to the wooden steps at the side of the building.

The boy said, 'All you better protect me good, you hear. If I get beat up here today it go have h.e.l.l to pay.'

Half-way up the steps Swami shouted, 'Narayan!'

He was on the top landing, an old man, very small, very thin, in a soiled and clumsy white-drill suit. His face was screwed up into an expression of great pain. He looked dyspeptic. He turned away and went to lean on the half-wall of the top verandah, staring intently at the mango trees and small wooden houses across the road.

Ganesh and his men walked noisily up the steps, the boy making more noise than any.

Swami said, 'Take my poui poui and hit him on he bald head while he looking over, sahib. Is the chance of a life-time.' and hit him on he bald head while he looking over, sahib. Is the chance of a life-time.'

Ganesh said, 'You ain't know how right you is.'

The boy said, 'You have three witnesses here that he just overbalance and fall down.'

Ganesh didn't respond.

The boy said, 'Gimme the stick. I I go settle Narayan.' go settle Narayan.'

Swami smiled. 'You too small.'

Ganesh's supporters were distributing The Dharma The Dharma right and left, to people pa.s.sing in the road, to the eating delegates, to the delegates walking about the yard. At first they tried to get four cents a copy but now they were just giving the paper away. right and left, to people pa.s.sing in the road, to the eating delegates, to the delegates walking about the yard. At first they tried to get four cents a copy but now they were just giving the paper away.

Partap said calmly, 'You want me go and abuse Narayan now, pundit? Is the sort of thing I mad enough to do, you know.' He suddenly became frenzied. 'Look, all you people better hold me back before I send that thin little man to hospital, you hear. Hold me back!'

They held him back.

Narayan stopped staring across the road and walked slowly towards the landing.

Swami said, 'You want me kick him down the steps, sahib?'

They held him back too.

Narayan glanced at them. He looked sick.

'Leave him alone,' Ganesh said. 'He finish, poor man.'

The boy said, 'He look like a wet fowl.'

They heard him going down the steps, clop by clop.

The delegates who had been eating came out to the verandah in small groups, tumbler in hand. They were remaining as calm as possible and behaved as though Ganesh and his men were not there. They washed their hands over the wall and gargled. They talked and laughed, loudly.

Ganesh's attention was caught by a short, stout gargler at the far end of the verandah. He thought he recognized the energy with which this man was gargling and spitting into the yard; and that over-all jauntiness was definitely familiar. From time to time the gargler gave a curious little hop, and that too Ganesh recognized.

The man stopped gargling and looked around. 'Ganes.h.!.+ Ganesh Ramsumair!'

'Indarsingh!'

He was plumper and moustached, but the weaving and bobbing, the effervescence that made him a star pupil at the Queen's Royal College, remained. 'h.e.l.lo there, old boy.'

'Man, you talking with a Oxford accent now, man. What happening, man?'

'Easy, old boy. Nasty trick you're playing against us. But you're looking well. Demn well.' He fingered his St Catherine's Society tie and gave another hop.

Ganesh would have been too embarra.s.sed to talk correctly with Indarsingh. 'Man, I never did expecting to see you here. A big scholars.h.i.+p-winner like you, man.'

'Catching h.e.l.l with law, old boy. Thinking of politics. Starting small. Talking.'

'Yes, man. Indarsingh was the champion debater at college.'

Swami and the others stood by, gaping. Ganesh said, 'I ask the pack of all of you to stand guard over me? Where Narayan?'

'He sitting down quiet quiet downstairs wiping he face with a dirty handkerchief.'

'Well, go and watch him. Don't let him start up anything funny.'

The men and the boy left.

Indarsingh took no notice of the interruption. 'Talking to peasants now. Different thing altogether, old boy. Not like talking to the Lit. Soc. or the Oxford Union.'

'Oxford Union.' Union.'

'For years, old boy. Term in. Term out. Indarsingh. Three times nominated for Library Committee. Didn't get in. Prejudice. Disgusted.' Indarsingh's face saddened for a moment.

'What make you give up law so easy, man?'

'Talking to peasants,' Indarsingh repeated. 'An art, old boy.'

'Oh, it ain't so hard.'

Indarsingh paid no attention. 'Past few months been talking to all sorts of people. Getting practice. Bicycle clubs, football clubs, cricket clubs. No ten-minute things, old boy. Give them something different. One day, at cricket elections, talked for so long gas-lamp went out.' He looked earnestly at Ganesh. 'Know what happened?'

'You light back the lamp?'

'Wrong, old boy. Went on talking. In the dark In the dark.'

The boy ran up the steps. 'The meeting starting to start, sahib.'

Ganesh hadn't noticed that the garglers had left the verandah.

'Ganesh, going to fight you, old boy. Don't like tricks. Going to break you by talk, old boy.' He gave a little hop.

They started down the steps. 'Story to tell, old boy. About talking practice. Man called Ganga supported some fool for County Council elections. I supported other man. My man won. A close thing. Ganga starts row. Big row. Clamouring for recount. Talked fifteen fifteen minutes against recount. Ah, meeting starting. Lots of delegates here today, what?' minutes against recount. Ah, meeting starting. Lots of delegates here today, what?'

'What happen?'

'Oh, recount. My man lost.'

The room was crowded. There were not enough benches and many delegates had to stand up against the lattice-work. The confusion was increased by the number of wooden pillars sprouting up in odd places.

'No room, old boy. Didn't bargain for so many of us, what? Not going to sit with you, though. Going to squeeze in somewhere in front. No tricks, remember.'

The delegates fanned themselves with The Dharma The Dharma.

Perhaps, if The Dharma The Dharma had not made him so ludicrous and the thirty-thousand-dollar grant so vulnerable, Narayan would have fought back. But he was taken so completely by surprise and knew the weakness of his own position so well, everything went smoothly for Ganesh. had not made him so ludicrous and the thirty-thousand-dollar grant so vulnerable, Narayan would have fought back. But he was taken so completely by surprise and knew the weakness of his own position so well, everything went smoothly for Ganesh.

But there were moments when Ganesh was worried.