Thus the day passed vainly; the night brought no more success. The two
following days brought no tidings, though nothing was neglected in the
search. Of the male searchers, scarcely any one knew Surja Mukhi by
sight; so they seized many poor women and brought them before
Nagendra. At length the daughters of respectable people feared to
walk along the roads or on the _ghats_. If one was seen alone, the
devoted Hindustani _Durwans_ followed, calling out "_Ma Thakurani_,"
and, preventing them from bathing, brought a palki. Many of those who
were not accustomed to travel in a palki seized the opportunity of
doing so free of expense.
Srish Chandra could not remain longer. Returning to Calcutta, he began
a search there. Kamal Mani, remaining in Govindpur, continued to look
for the lost one.
CHAPTER XXIV.
EVERY SORT OF HAPPINESS IS FLEETING.
The happiness for which Kunda Nandini had never ventured to hope was
now hers; she had become the wife of Nagendra. On the marriage day she
thought, "This joy is boundless; it can never end!"
But after the flight of Surja Mukhi, repentance came to Kunda Nandini.
She thought: "Surja Mukhi rescued me in my time of distress, when but
for her I should have been lost; now on my account she is an outcast.
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