Show w I e f r Worlds World's Greatest f Short Stories f N No o. o v v. I fJ THE TIE MAN WHO WOULD V BE KING c. c k c f M ir T By y Rudyard Kipling r r t K Twenty four famous authors were x asked recently to name the best hest to t short story in the English language The choice of Irvin S Cobb was t l' l I The Man Who Would Be King Icing by Rudyard Kipling Three other a aU U 1 t noted authors think this is the 7 best short story 1 I J RUDYARD KIPLING IRVIN S. S COBB f PART 1 j i HD III beginning of everything was wasa 1 iP T TIlE In a railway train upon the J road roM to from 0 There had been a deficit In the r Jt Lud budget et which necessitated traveling ti nut not second class dass which Is only half as a i f. f l' l dear II as ns first class cluss but by Intermediate i which Is very awful Indeed J My I. particular Intermediate happened to tl lie It empty till till I reached ft when a huge e gentleman g In shirt sleeves a r and amI following the custom of l x passed the time of day t. t i lie Ill was a wanderer and a a vagabond Ilk III like myself but hut with educated 1 an taste r fur for whisky He lie told tales of things he r. r t had st-eri st I u d done dune of out of the thel way tl tl coiners I of the empire Into which he Jk hail had penetrated and of adventures ad In j h h lie he risked d his life lite for a few days' days ff f food ud Kf t My ly friend wanted to send a n telegram eo it If I hack k from Crom the Y i next lIest station to Ajmer 1 whit h is II the turning off ocr place from the 1 t t Bombay to the line as you travel trav tray 1 i tf el el II westward My Iy friend had bad no money I i. i r H S annas which he be wanted for r dinner and 1 I ba had bad no money at all an owing ow Ij In hug ing to the hitch bitch in the budget before t I tL mentioned i j A a at Did you say tay you are traveling back bak t t J t along allu this line lint within any days asked f be Le r Within ten I 1 saidI said I vs Cant you ou make It eight said heMine he 1 i. i Mine N k I rather urgent business business fi i I I 1 cIt cat 11 vend scud your telegram within ten days davs u. If that tha t will serve serre you I 1 said I. I T. T iJ q y couldn't I trust till thc wire to fetch YI y him blot now I think of it Its It's this way Hf HI- leaves Delhi on the for nO BornS Born Bom I S bay That means hell he'll be running J through Ajmer about the night ht of the I a Y r 3 Il r But Im I'm Int the des des de ir t ert I 1 explained r Well and good be he said be bet 0 t I changing changing- at lit Junction to get et w i Into ore you territory territory you must do doi r i I that that and and hell he'll bell be coming through Marr Mar Mar- j e I war wat JUU Junction in the carl early morning of or X time the by the tile Bombay mall mail Can Cnn you I r rr beat jit Junction that tb time 1 I would take It more than kind Ind of you If q you was to come out of ot central India t In time to catch him at Junction Junc J r tints tion mind and say to him tie He has bas gonei gone south tb week Hell He'll know what t i j r. r for for the Ij f Z that means means wenns Hes He's a big man with a u red I. I beard and a great swell be he is You'll find him sleeping like a gentleman with witha Jt 14 t a I all nil his I luggage rou round nd him in a second f 7 f class compartment 1 I ask you as a e stranger going going to the west west he said lt with emphasis from said I l Ito Y Where have buve you come From Irom the east east said he hc and I am ami ami i to will him helm the message mes- mes roes roes- i f hoping that you give gI for the sake of my sage sag on OJ the square square for t ti mother ns nil well as your own own y f A Englishmen are not usually sotte softened ed I by appeals to the memory of their rut i mothers but for tor certain reasons which rry t r will be fully apparent I saw fit tilt to tor r a agree ree f i Ill give tb the message if It I catch catchI I Ate him I s Ild and for the t sake ake of ot your yourn Jj n mother as aR well vell as mine Ill I'll give you a word w of advice Dont Don't try to run the t Central Centra I I India udla states Just now as us th the thi of or the Backwoodsman 1 correspondent ii kno knocking about here bert Theres There's a ureal real one r i a and it might lIt lead to trouble Thank you fOU you said he be simply Andr And r when will the swine swint be bt gone gom I 1 cant can't I Ii gf- gf work i starve because e hes he's ruining m my v 1 I wanted to get hold of the r. r down here about his fathers father's widow and give him u a jump a I What did be he do to his fathers father's w 1 1 widow then 1 Filled her up with n red d pepper and death as nR she hung her to 1 15 i from a n beam benm I found that out m myself f and Im I'm the only man that would dare if J going into int the tilt state to get et hush racing mony T t I the man at IH for It lint But you'll 11 give rt j. Junction m my message e r 1 sC iff He lie got ot out at nt II a little roadside sta 1 i f x J tion When hen I left Ift the train I did 1111 W and In eight with divers divers' kings I t ness L n chauges tJ R ul III i ilife through many I t 7 day passed p- p life r J Then ihen I beaded fur fill the great Indian t desert upon the proper date a- a I hail had J 1 promised 1 mind aud lid the night mill mail II set tt me nag down dO at ul Mf Junction A The Tilt Bombay mull mall from Delhi make u II short ban ball nt at I Site She hp arrived II as I got ot lu vim a and nd I had Just tl time m in ta y f hurry burr to her Iter plat 11 hh down dutt n the carriages p There tern I one Inc second n tin tin- H WillI win Will window ry i tI claw class Ut t on th thO train I t do dow do und mind ll looked dt 11 I II a I r red heard half revered covered h bv by a n i. i i rug nig i Ticket again t 1 said he q of fin Vo o. o said 1 I. I I am an 11 la to tell vou that shut f f wroth weep week lie Dc n Is It fot th the Y t he t Is one gone i gone g gone ci south fu for the week k it O I The train had bad begun to move out The fhe red man rubbed his eyes He lIe has gone south for tor the week he be repeated Now that's just like his Did he say that I was to give you anything any thing Cause I wont lIe He didn't I said and dropped Later on I reflected that two gentlemen gentlemen gentle gentle- men like my friends could not do any good if It they foregathered and person personated personated correspondents correspondents- of newspapers and might if they stuck up one of the little rat trap states of f central India India Indin In In- dia din or southern get et themselves themselves them selves into serious difficulties I therefore therefore therefore there there- fore took some trouble and succeeded so I was later informed in having them headed beaded back from the De bord borders rs Then I became respectable and returned returned re re- returned turned to an office where there were no kings and no Incidents except the dally daily manufacture of ot a newspaper A newspaper office seems to attract every conceivable sort of person to the prejudice prejudice prejudice udice of discipline But that Is the amusing part of the year There are re other six months wherein none ever come to call and the thermometer walks Inch by Inch up to the top of the tile glass Jt It was in that season and a remarkably remarkably remark remark- ably evil season that the paper began running the last issue of or the week on Saturday night which is to say Sunday Sunday Sun Sun- day morning after atter the custom of ot a London paper One Saturday night It was my pleasant pleasant pleas pleas- ant duty to put the paper to bed alone It was a pitchy black night as stifling as a's as a n June night can be and the loo the red hot wind from the westward was booming among the tinder dry trees and pretending that the rain was on Its heels It was a a. shade cooler in the pr pressroom m th than the theoffice office tl so f r sat there while the the type ticked and clicked and the night jars booted hooted at the windows window and the all but naked compositors wiped the sweat from their foreheads and called for water Then the roar and rattle of the wheels shivered the quiet into little bits I rose to go away but two men In white clothes stood In front of ot me meThe meThe The first one said Its him The second said So It is And they both laughed almost as loudly as the machinery machinery ma ma- chinery roared and mopped their fort fore heads The smaller of ot the two was the man 1 I had met In the train and his fellow was wis the red be bearded bearded man of Junction I was not pleased because I 1 wished to go to sleep not to squabble with loafers What hat do you want I asked Half an nn hours hour's talk with you cool imd mind and comfortable In t the e office said the red bearded man mien Wed like some drink the drink the doesn't begin yet Peachey so you needn't look look but but what w we really want Is advice We dont don't want mone money We ask aRk you as a favor because e you jon did us a n bad turn about 1 I led from the press room to the stifling office offiC with the maps on the wall and the red haired man rubbed his hn hands something like 11 said he h. This was the proper shop to tome come to to Now sir let me Introduce you to Brother Peachey that's him and Brother Daniel that Is I uie rul and und the less said about our profession the better for we have been most must things S In our time Is usher sober and so Kit am men I. I Well ell take one oue of ot your cigars apiece e and you shall see sel us UR light r 1 I wall bed the test The men were II absolutely so sober her so I t Aa gave t them each nh n tI tepid pI peg pegWell Well ell mind and good said of fir I the e eyebrows wiping the froth troth from his mu mustache Let tt me talk now Dant Dan We Wt- here have derided decided that India I Isn't nt hl big hig enough for tur such as III us UN j They certainly were Irl too big for time the theoffice omit office continued ont Tbt The country isn't half worked out nut because bt th they that thit governs us wont won't let you touch II It Therefore furl such midi as It Is IR we Wt will wilt let t It Shot alone and go gu away to some lume other plate place where n a man Isn't t crowded d and can ran dame to tit his own wn We WI are arl nut not little men ii and tat I there her I Is not hi blue tin that weare we Wt weare are II afraid of r except t lt drink and we Vl have t 1 1 n II r on un that Ihil There fare we Wt art are coin away ma-iv to be ht kings Kings I In III our own right muttered Om vat Yes Yea M ut lit it course courNe I 1 said Youve Youn been triumphing In lit the tilt sun shim mind and Its It's it a very warm night and hm hadn't h In 1 you vat Netter better lit sleep over r time the notion t. t Neither drunk nor said We t have t slept 0 over 01 1 the nation notion notion no no- tion half a II 1111 gaud and require to see books and atlases and we wt have t d dec eid Id f. f ed d d that then I Is only one 1111 place glade now MW In iii Inthe the world that two tro lI then men tim cau whack Sara The They call It I f By my reckoning It Its It's the top rl rig 11 ii I hand band corner of f tunic than WO 00 wiles from ruin Will Tile The they t a two mind aud thirty heathen Idols there and well we'll be Ill the tilt thirty third II Ill I- I us country nod and the th women II are very er h beautiful But that I is provided pro U against in the said aid Ca Neither elther women nor or Daniel And Aud that's all ull we know kno except that no p one lt has ball gone goue there and nud they tight figh and und In any place where the they fight a 11 aman aman man who knows how to Mil men can cnn always be a U We t shall go Ao to those parts and say Hay to any king we ve find want ant to vanquish your foes roes and we ve will show him how bow to drill men memi for that we know better than anything else Then we will wUl subvert that king king- and l seize etze his throne and establish es es- es- es a 11 dy You II be cut to pieces before youre you're fifty miles across the toe border I said said You have to travel through Afghan Afghan- to get Jet to to that country Are you youat youat at lit all iu In earnest A little t said uld sweetly Now as liS big a map as you have got even If It Its It's all blank blunk where blank where Is is and any books youve you've got R We e e can read though we arent aren't very educated I uncased the big thirty two miles to the Inch map of India and two smaller I frontier maps hauled down volume volume kan of the Britannica Britan Britan- nica and the men consulted them See here said his thumb on the map Up Dp to Jagd ey and me know the road We was wa there with Roberts' Roberts army Well We'll have bave to turn off to the right at through territory then we get g-et among the hills feet It will be cold work there but It dont don't look took very ery far on the map I smoked while the men pored over Wood the maps and the En En- There Is no use your waiting said politely Its about 4 o'clock now Well We'll go before 6 o'clock If It you want to sleep and we wont won't steal any of the papers When weve we've got our our kingdom In going order well we'll let you yon know and y you u can come up and anI help belp us ns to govern It It Would two lunatics make a con con- track like that asked with subdued pride showing me a greasy half halt sheet of note paper on which was wa written the following I copied It then and there as a curiosity This contract between me and you persuing persuing per- per suing In the name of ot God God God- Amen and so forth One That That me and you wilt will settle this matter together together-I. e. e e. e to be Kings of ot Kaa- Kaa Two That Two That you and me will not while this ibis matter Is being settled look at any liquor nor any woman black white or brown so as to get mixed up with one or the other harmful Three That Three That t we conduct ourselves with dignity and discretion and If one of us Ul gets Into trouble the other will sta stay by him I Signed by you and me this day Peachey Taliaferro Daniel Both Gentlemen at Large I left them still poring over the ma maps ps and und making notes on the back of tb the n Be sure to come comedown down to the Semi Sergi tomorrow to say goodby were vere their parting words The Seral Is the great four square sink of ot humanity where the strings of camels and und horses or cs from the n north load rth load and unload In tb the afternoon afternoon I went down there to see bee whether my friends Intended to keep their word vord or were lying about drunk A priest attired in fragments of or ribbons ribbons rib rib- ribbons bons and rags stalked up to me tae gr grave gravely grave ve- ve ly Iy twisting a It childs child's paper whirligig Behind him was his bis servant ser bending under the load lond of ot a II crate of mud to toys s The two were loading up two camels camel and the Inhabitants of or the Seral Herl watched watch watch- t ed d them with shrieks of or laughter The priest Is mad said a u horse dealer to me He Ie I Is going up to Ka Kabul Kabul bul to sell toys to the ameer He will either be raised to honor or have his head cut off ofT He lie came ame in here bere this this morning and has been hen behaving mally ever since From Room Roum ba have ve I conic come shouted Ib the priest waving his whirligig from from Crom Houm blown h bv by the breath iff df a II bundred bun hums dred devils lIs across the sea ea Who will tn take ke the protected of flail Hoel od to the north nort IJ tl to sell 1111 charms that are art never r still to the amir Ho He Ha ar Mir Khan be he yelled to his Ills servant drive I out the camels amels but let me first mount my myown own He leaped on th the back balt of his beans beat beast t as ns it knelt and turning round to me cried tome Come thou nl also o. o sahib a little along the road rond and I will t sell ell thee a it charm an amulet that shall make thee king of or Ia n Then the tbt light broke upon upun me and I followed the two |