After that, I couldn’t understand how that fellow managed to stitch the suit and hand it over to me in just five minutes. Or perhaps, among the ones already there, he picked out one that had been stitched for someone else, and since I was in a hurry, he thought he could just give it to me and make another one for the other person later! With this suspicion in mind, I wondered if that’s what he had done. But then I thought, “Why should I care how he manages? My work is done, isn’t it?” Satisfied, I folded everything neatly, carefully put it back in the box, and stored it safely. After resting for a while, I got up at one o’clock and prepared for lunch. At that hour, there was no one to be seen in the dining hall except me.

I assumed that everyone here must have gone off to their own work and probably eat at some hotel or the other. The attendant immediately served me some refreshments. After finishing the snacks, I went back to my room and lay down. I didn’t wake up from that bed until four o’clock. I wondered what sort of mad sleep had overtaken me! After washing my face and wandering about for a bit, I decided to step out onto the street. Afraid that I might lose my way if I went too far, I confined myself to that street, observing the shops, the passersby, the people rushing about, and the various vehicles. Without even realizing it, six o’clock had come around. I immediately returned to my lodging. Just then, Menon arrived.

“Is all the packing done? We’re traveling tonight, aren’t we?” he asked.

“I’m not late at all. We’re traveling tonight,” I replied.

“In that case, let’s have dinner. Come along,” he said. We finished dinner in fifteen minutes and returned to my room.

“Have you packed all your things carefully?” Menon asked.

“Yes, everything is packed,” I replied.

“Are the clothes all right?” he asked.

“Would you buy them if they weren’t?” I retorted. But I must tell you about my little predicament! I’m dying to know how that fellow managed to stitch the suit so quickly, I said. Menon burst out laughing and said, “They always have some ready-made ones—”

Barrister Parvateesam

They stitch and keep them like that. When new arrivals come, they give each person whatever fits them.

Generally, for a person of a certain height, the arms will be this long, the chest this wide, the neck this length, the waist this size, the legs this long—there’s a calculation for everything. They stitch accordingly. Except in rare cases, these standard sizes usually fit most people. With this explanation, he cleared my doubt.

“Did you put on the baniyan-like thing you bought this morning underneath?” he asked.

“No,” I replied.

“Then why did you buy it, my dear fellow? To wear, or just to keep in your trunk? You’ll be traveling at night. It’ll