98
THE WRECK
Ratnesh swallowed this rebuke and hurried off in search of the required implements. He could not find exactly what was wanted but he managed to borrow an iron pestle and a mortar from the crew. These were hardly what Kamala was accustomed to but she had to make shift with them. Ramesh suggested get- ting some one else to pound the spices, but she scouted this proposal and fell to work with alacrity. Her struggle with the unfamiliar instruments entertained her hugely, and she only laughed when the spices shot out of the mortar and scattered in all directions; Ra- mesh found her hilarity infections and joined in.
When the spice-pounding episode was over, Kamala kilted her skirts and fenced off a corner for her cook- ing operations. A large earthenware receptacle which they had brought from Calcutta to hold sweetstuff served the purpose of a cooking-pot. Having set this on to boil, Kamala suggested that Ramesh should take his bath at once and by the time he returned his break- fast would be ready. He did accordingly and found on his return that the food had been cooked. The next question was, what to use as a plate?
Ramesh made the halting suggestion that he might borrow a dish from the Mahommedan deck-hands, but Kamala was horrified at the idea, though he confessed to her in an undertone that it would not be the first time that he had committed this offence against Hindu ceremonial purity.
"You can't undo it now," was her comment, "but you must never do it again. I couldn't bear such a thing," and she took the flat lid of the cooking-pot. cleaned it thoroughly, and laid it down in front of him. "You must use this to-day; we'll get something better when we can,"
Ramesh fetched water, washed down a portion of the deck, and sat down to his meal, satisfied that he had complied with his ceremonial obligations.
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