I must know what they do , and what they are about to do ; and adding the tail to the trunk , as the saying is , I make up the whole elephant . Is there a green branch and an iron ring hanging over a doorway ? The old Mugger knows that a boy has been born in that house , and must some day come down to the Ghaut to play . Is a maiden to be married ? The old Mugger knows , for he sees the men carry gifts back and forth ; and she , too , comes down to the Ghaut to bathe before her wedding , and -- he is there . Has the river changed its channel , and made new land where there was only sand before ? The Mugger knows . '' `` Now , of what use is that knowledge ? '' said the Jackal . `` The river has shifted even in my little life . '' Indian rivers are nearly always moving about in their beds , and will shift , sometimes , as much as two or three miles in a season , drowning the fields on one bank , and spreading good silt on the other . `` There is no knowledge so useful , '' said the Mugger , `` for new land means new quarrels . The Mugger knows . Oho ! the Mugger knows . As soon as the water has drained off , he creeps up the little creeks that men think would not hide a dog , and there he waits . Presently comes a farmer saying he will plant cucumbers here , and melons there , in the new land that the river has given him . He feels the good mud with his bare toes . Anon comes another , saying he will put onions , and carrots , and sugar-cane in such and such places . They meet as boats adrift meet , and each rolls his eye at the other under the big blue turban .
The old XXXXX sees and hears .
Anon Ghaut Indian Jackal Mugger cucumbers day melons silt sugar-cane