Plain Tales from the Hills (1888)

Rudyard Kipling's early story collection follows Anglo-Indian society, soldiers, officials, and social entanglements in British India. (Open Library)

Watches

Waterbury watch: In "Watches of the Night", both Platte and the Colonel carry Waterbury watches, with the story joking that there is no difference between one Waterbury watch and another. The watches lie together on a shelf while both men hurry to dress at the club, and each takes the other's. Their similar appearance makes the accidental exchange possible. The Colonel's recognizable lip-strap guard matters because it can associate a watch with its owner even when the Waterbury itself looks interchangeable. (Project Gutenberg source text)

Source text: The Colonel had a Waterbury watch also, and for guard, the lip-strap of a curb-chain. Lip-straps make the best watch guards. (Project Gutenberg ebook 1858, "Watches of the Night")