-#Jim_Corbett #Lalajee

(Relationship between a English Doctor and a poor Indian merchant)

Lalajee was once flourishing grain merchant of Gaya. By mistake Lalajee had taken a partner for his business about whom he had known nothing. For a few years his business prospered and all went well. One day when Lalajee returned from a long journey he found his shop empty. To his utter dismay and shock he discovered that his partner had run away with all his wealth. The little amount of money he had with him was only sufficient to pay his personal debts. The circumstances forced him to leave his house where he lived until everything went well. He had no other option left with him but to seek an employment with some other rich merchant to take care of his family comprising his wife and a son. He worked for a merchant with whom he traded. For the next ten years he worked on seven rupees for a month.

Lalajee had come into contact with cholera in the train when he was on his way from Muzaffarpur to Gaya on his master’s errand. His condition grew worse on board of a ferry steamer. He slowly disembarked from the steamer and crawled close to the sacred waters of Ganges and prayed for his death. Jim Corbett, the author of this short story, had pity on this stranger lying on the banks of the sacred Ganges.  Immediately, Jim Corbett took him to an empty punkah coolies’ house next to his bungalow and placed him on the bed. He identified that the sick man was infected with cholera and there was no hope for his recovery. As there were no doctors nearby, the author started his crude method of treatment. He instilled faith in Lalajee that his treatment would definitely cure his disease. The next day the symptoms of improvement were shown in Lalajee had raised the hopes of Jim Corbett. At the end of the week he was able to get up and tell his story to Jim Corbett.

In the meantime, Lalajee recovered completely from his illness and stayed with the author for a month. He gained strength and prepared to go back his home. He approached Jim Corbett to seek his permission to leave for Gaya. While listening the story of Lalajee, the author Jim Corbett suggested him to resume his business rather than being servant to some master. Lalajee confessed his inability to start his business that he had neither money nor securities to provide surety for his loan. No one can believe a servant of seven rupees for a month to offer a loan five of hundred rupees that he required to start his business.

On the day when Lalajee was leaving for Gaya, Jim Corbett bought him a ticket and gave him five hundred rupee notes. The amount of five hundred rupees was almost a greater part of his entire savings. Lalajee was extremely happy and assured that he would return five hundred rupees within a year. The author, Jim Corbett had thought that it was beyond his capacity and forget about it later.

Lalajee started his business steadily and cautiously with meagre profits from transaction of three bags food grains per day to thirty tons of food grains and managed to get good rates of commission. He returned to Jim Corbett within the expiry of the time that he set himself. The author was very happy to hear that the successful story of enterprise and how his son settled in life by marring rich man’s daughter.