CHAPTER III
lawrence foster
HE East India Company had a silk factory at Purandarpur, a village very close to Bedagram. Lawrence Foster was in charge of that factory. When young, Lawrence was disappointed in his love for Mary Foster and came to Bengal as a servant of the East India Company. As Englishmen now-a-days become affected with various diseases when they come to India, so, in former times the Indian atmosphere used to disease their mind with a lust for plunder. After his arrival in India, Foster soon fell a victim to this evil influence. Mary's image, therefore, disappeared from his mind's eye. Once he had been to Bedagram on some business—his eyes fell upon the smiling lily-like Shaibalini, in the waters of the Bhima. Shaibalini ran away at the sight of a whiteman, but Foster returned to the factory reflecting all the way. Thinking on and on, he at last decided that dark eyes were prettier than pale-blue eyes and black hairs were finer than brown ones. All on a sudden,
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