मेरा आजीवन कारावास / माझी जन्मठेप (स्वातंत्र्यवीर सावरकर - काले पानी का ऐतिहासिक संस्मरण)

Naral"-that is a coconut fruit full of curd-milk-sweet Inside it. Presently, he saw the fruit secreted in the hand of a Madrasi man who was a recent arrival in that prison. Straightaway my Pathan warder went up to him and said, "O, you scoundrel, hand over that fruit to me." But the Madrasi man seemed to be recalcitrant. He was the most notorious dacoit in his part of the country He was a Tamil and, before being sent here for transportation, he had seen life in many a prison and many tames in his own province He was sentenced here for only ten years' imprisonment which he treated as a trifle. He did not know Hindusthani and could very well put off the importunate warder by pretending not to understand him He faced up to him and ejaculated "Ille, Ille"-meaning that he had no fruit with him. That was his peculiar way of putting off any one who happened to press him He had secured the particular fruit by palming off an anna worth of good tobacco to the prisoner whose business it was to break the coconuts. How can then a hardened criminal like him part with his booty to this Pathan Warder? But the haughty warder was sure in his self-importance, that a mere Hindu dare not deny him what he had asked. The warder abused the Madrasi prisoner and ordered him to part with the coconut forthwith The Tamil man at first proceeded on the principle of discretion being the better part of valour. Piteously he wailed, "I have not it, surely, I have not it", pretending ignorance and feigning madness. The Pathan was furious. He flew into a rage. As the quarrel was with a Hindu, it soon turned into a question of religion, and fanaticism put the fat into the fire. He showered abuse after abuse upon his victim. He called him names. "Kafir, scoundrel, let me uproot his tuft of hair', were some of his choicest epithets. "A Hindu, a villain, yes, I must pull it out", so he went on And he put his hand to the Tamil man's sacred tuft of hair. Being ignorant of Hindusthani, he seemed to be confounded by the Pathan's ejaculations and outburst. He thought that the Pathan was asking him to do some good piece of work, and that he was angry because the latter was not doing it. But when the Pathan treed to wrest the fault from him, tile Madrasi prisoner came to close grips with him. It was a veritable wrestle and tug of war between the two None of them cried out halt after it had begun. For both of them had fastened their attention on the bone of contention which was the "curd-milk-coconut".

The whole crowd was enjoying the scene and the Pathan was having the worst of it. The crowd began to titter and Jeer, and the game was getting too hot for my warder. Instantly, he lifted his bludgeon and gave a heavy blow on the Tamil man's head. He also wrenched his turft of hair and had almost uprooted it. The Pathan kept on raining blow after blow, and showering abuse after abuse 'Kafir, scoundrel" was the constant refrain. All of a sudden, the scene changed The prisoner had lost his temper. Without uttering a word and putting his hand straight to his antagonist's beard, he lifted him bodily off the ground and dashed him down in the dust. The Pathan measured his full length upon the earth and the Hindu prisoner sat firmly on his chest. He planted his knee upon it, and gave slap after slap Into his face. The crowd watched the fight with gaping eyes. It did not raise any alarm, for the Pathan man was extremely unpopular with one and all of them. I was watching the whole show from my room, and I was nearly bursting into laughter. The Fez which the warder wore, his turban thereon, all lay in the dust on the ground. Muttering within his laps, the Tamil prisoner was stall belabouring him. He had held fast his beard, and was slapping him in the face. The Pathan broke down completely. No more abusive words danced on his lips. The coconut? There was no more of it.