No matter . Maybe thy written report shall save thee further bondage ; and God He knows we need men more and more in the Game . ' They marched , jaw-bound against blowing sand , across the salt desert to Jodhpur , where Mahbub and his handsome nephew Habib Ullah did much trading ; and then sorrowfully , in European clothes , which he was fast outgrowing , Kim went second-class to St Xavier 's . Three weeks later , Colonel Creighton , pricing Tibetan ghost-daggers at Lurgan 's shop , faced Mahbub Ali openly mutinous . Lurgan Sahib operated as support in reserve . ` The pony is made -- finished -- mouthed and paced , Sahib ! From now on , day by day , he will lose his manners if he is kept at tricks . Drop the rein on his back and let go , ' said the horse-dealer . ` We need him . ' ` But he is so young , Mahbub -- not more than sixteen -- is he ? ' ` When I was fifteen , I had shot my man and begot my man , Sahib . ' ` You impenitent old heathen ! ' Creighton turned to Lurgan . The black beard nodded assent to the wisdom of the Afghan 's dyed scarlet . ' I should have used him long ago , ' said Lurgan . ` The younger the better . That is why I always have my really valuable jewels watched by a child . You sent him to me to try . I tried him in every way : he is the only boy I could not make to see things . ' ` In the crystal -- in the ink-pool ? '
demanded XXXXX .
Afghan Ali Creighton European Jodhpur Mahbub Sahib horse-dealer ink-pool outgrowing