In an inauspicious moment Shaibalini came into this world and in an inauspicious moment Chandra Shekhar accepted her hand. We shall gradually say what Shaibalini was, but however that may be, Foster's attempts did not succeed.
Later on, Foster unexpectedly received an order from Calcutta, that as another man had been appointed for the factory at Purandarpur, he was to leave for Calcutta immediately—he would be deputed on a special duty. The man who was to relieve him, came along with the order. Foster, therefore, had to start for Calcutta forthwith.
Shaibalini's beauty had completely captivated Foster's mind. He could feel that he was to leave the place giving up the hope of getting Shaibalini in this life. In those days, the Englishmen who came to live in Bengal were incapable of two things only—they would never plead inability and could never overcome temptations. They could under no circumstance make up their mind to say that they had failed to do a thing and so they must desist from it, and they would never admit that a certain thing was wrong and should not, therefore, be undertaken at all. In this world, there was, perhaps, never seen a class of men more
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