Ruchi Ram Sahni describes his early life growing up in an affluent business family in Dera Ismail Khan. While his early years were spent in comfortable luxury, his father's business crashed suddenly when a number of boats loaded with goods drowned in the River Indus, and several of his creditors in the military were transferred out at short notice without repaying their dues. The family fortunes never recovered, and the rest of his growing years were spent in comparative penury. The chapter

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... udes an affectionate portrait of his parents and their attempts to cope with the changed family circumstances. It also provides a vivid account of life as a young boy in the 1860s and 1870s, relations between Hindus and Muslims, local events such as races and wrestling matches, the annual visits of nomads from Waziristan, and observations on caste, religion, and education.