A Woman's Journey Round the World Part 28

CHAPTER XV. JOURNEY FROM DELHI TO BOMBAY CONTINUED.

TRAVELLING ON INDIAN CAMELS--MY MEETING WITH THE BURDON FAMILY--THE DIFFERENT CLa.s.sES OF WOMEN AMONG THE NATIVE POPULATION IN INDIA-- UDJEIN--CAPTAIN HAMILTON--INTRODUCTION AT COURT--MANUFACTURE OF ICE-- THE ROCK TEMPLES OF ADJUNTA--A TIGER HUNT--THE ROCK TEMPLES OF ELORA--THE FORTRESS OF DOWLUTABAD.

14TH February. The camels were ordered at 5 o'clock in the morning, but it was not until towards noon that they came, each with a driver. When they saw my portmanteau (twenty-five pounds in weight), they were quite puzzled to know what to do with it. It was useless my explaining to them how the luggage is carried in Egypt, and that I had been accustomed to carry very little with me on my own animal: they were used to a different plan, and would not depart from it.

Travelling on camels is always unpleasant and troublesome. The jolting motion of the animal produces in many people the same ill effects as the rocking of a s.h.i.+p on the sea; but in India it is almost unbearable, on account of the inconvenience of the arrangements. Here each animal has a driver, who sits in front and takes the best place; the traveller has only a little s.p.a.ce left for him on the hinder part of the animal.

Dr. Rolland advised me at once to put up with the inconvenience as well as I could. He told me that I should fall in with Captain Burdon in the next day or two, and it would be easy to obtain a more convenient conveyance from him. I followed his advice, allowed my luggage to be carried, and patiently mounted my camel.

We pa.s.sed through extensive plains, which were most remarkable for some considerable flax plantations, and came to a beautiful lake, near to which lay a very pretty palace. Towards evening, we reached the little village of Moasa, where we stayed for the night.

In those countries which are governed by native princes, there are neither roads nor arrangements for travelling; although in every village and town there are people appointed whose business it is to direct travellers on their way and carry their luggage, for which they are paid a small fee. Those travellers who have a guard from the king or aumil (governor), or a chepra.s.se with them, do not pay anything for this attendance; others give them a trifle for their services, according as the distance is greater or less.

When I reached Moasa, every one hastened to offer me their services-- for I travelled with the king's people, and in this part of the country a European woman is a rarity. They brought me wood, milk, and eggs. My table was always rather frugally furnished: at the best I had rice boiled in milk or some eggs, but generally only rice, with water and salt. A leathern vessel for water, a little saucepan for boiling in, a handful of salt, and some rice and bread, were all that I took with me.

15th February. Late in the evening I reached Nurankura, a small place surrounded by low mountains. I found here some tents belonging to Captain Burdon, a maid, and a servant. Terribly fatigued, I entered one of the tents directly, in order to rest myself. Scarcely had I taken possession of the divan, than the maid came into the tent, and, without any observation, commenced kneading me about with her hands. I would have stopped her, but she explained to me that when a person was fatigued it was very refres.h.i.+ng. For a quarter of an hour she pressed my body from head to foot vigorously, and it certainly produced a good effect--I found myself much relieved and strengthened. This custom of pressing and kneading is very common in India, as well as in all Oriental countries, especially after the bath; and Europeans also willingly allow themselves to be operated upon.

The maid informed me, partly by signs, partly by words, that I had been expected since noon; that a palanquin stood ready for me, and that I could sleep as well in it as in the tent. I was rejoiced at this, and again started on my journey at 11 o'clock at night. The country was indeed, as I knew, infested with tigers, but as several torch-bearers accompanied us, and the tigers are sworn enemies of light, I could composedly continue my uninterrupted sleep. About 3 o'clock in the morning, I was set down again in a tent, which was prepared for my reception, and furnished with every convenience.

16th February. This morning I made the acquaintance of the amiable family of the Burdons. They have seven children, whom they educate chiefly themselves. They live very pleasantly and comfortably, although they are wholly thrown on their own resources for amus.e.m.e.nt, as there are, with the exception of Dr. Rolland, no Europeans in Kottah. It is only very rarely that they are visited by officers who may be pa.s.sing through, and I was the first European female Mrs. Burdon had seen for four years.

I pa.s.sed the most delightful day in this family circle. I was not a little astonished to find here all the conveniences of a well- regulated house; and I must take this opportunity of describing, in few words, the mode of travelling adopted by the English officers and officials in India.

In the first place, they have tents which are so large, that they contain two or three rooms; one which I saw was worth more than 800 rupees (80 pounds). They take with them corresponding furniture, from a footstool to the most elegant divan; in fact, nearly the whole of the house and cooking utensils. They have also a mult.i.tude of servants, every one of whom has his particular occupation, which he understands exceedingly well. The travellers, after pa.s.sing the night in their beds, about 3 o'clock in the morning either lie or sit in easy palanquins, or mount on horseback, and after four or five hours' ride, dismount, and partake of a hot breakfast under tents. They have every household accommodation, carry on their ordinary occupations, take their meals at their usual hours, and are, in fact, entirely at home.

The cook always proceeds on his journey at night. As soon as the tents are vacated, they are taken down and quickly removed, and as quickly re-erected: there is no scarcity of hands or of beasts of burden. In the most cultivated countries of Europe, people do not travel with so much luxury and ease as in India.

In the evening, I was obliged to take my departure again. Captain Burdon very kindly offered me the use of his palanquin and the necessary bearers as far as Indos, but I pitied the people too much, and declared that I did not find travelling on camels unpleasant; that in fact, on account of the open view, that mode was to be preferred to palanquins. However, on account of my little portmanteau, I took a third camel. I left the sepoys behind here.

This evening we went eight miles towards the little town Patan.

17th February. It was not till this morning that I saw Patan was situated on a romantic chain of hills, and possesses several remarkably handsome temples, in the open halls belonging to which are placed sculptured stone figures, the size of life. The arabesques and figures on the pillars were sharply executed in relief. In the valleys which we pa.s.sed through, there was a large quant.i.ty of basaltic rock and most beautifully crystallized quartz.

Towards evening, we reached Batschbachar, a miserable little town.

18th February. Rumtscha is somewhat larger and better. I was obliged to put up my bed in the middle of the bazaar under an open verandah. Upon this road there were no caravansaries. Half of the inhabitants of the town gathered round me, and watched all my motions and doings with the greatest attention. I afforded them an opportunity of studying the appearance of an angry European female, as I was very much displeased with my people, and, in spite of my slight knowledge of the language, scolded them heartily. They allowed the camels to go so lazily, that although we had travelled since early in the morning until late in the evening, we had not gone more than twenty or twenty-two miles, not faster than an ox- waggon would have gone. I made them understand that this negligence must not happen again. I must now take occasion to contradict those persons who affirm that the camel can travel on the average eighty miles daily, and that even when they go slowly, their steps are very long. I examine every circ.u.mstance very accurately, and then form an opinion from my own experience, without allowing myself to be misled by what has been written about it. Before commencing a journey, I observe not only the princ.i.p.al distances, but also those between the individual places, arrange a plan of my journey with the help of friends who are acquainted with the subject, and by this means have the advantage over my driver, who cannot persuade me that we have gone forty or sixty miles, when we have not gone more than half this distance. Moreover, I was able, while travelling from Delhi to Kottah by the ox-waggon, to observe several camel equipages, which I fell in with every evening at the same night station. It is true that I had most excellent oxen, and that the camels were ordinary; but in this journey, with good camels, I did not go more than thirty, or at the utmost, thirty-two miles in the day, and travelled from 4 o'clock in the morning until 6 in the evening, without any other stoppage than two hours at noon. A camel which is able to travel eighty miles in a day is an exception to the general rule, and would scarcely perform such a feat the second or third time.

19th February. Ranera is an unimportant place. I was here offered a cow-stall to sleep in. It was indeed kept very clean; but I preferred sleeping in the open air.

Till a late hour of the night this town was very lively: processions of men and a number of women and children followed the noise of the tam-tam, which they accompanied with a wild, howling song, and proceeded to some tree, under which an image of an idol was set up.

We had on this day to cross several ranges of low hills. The uncultivated ground was everywhere scorched up by the sun; {209} nevertheless, the plantations of poppies, flax, corn, and cotton, etc., grew very luxuriantly. Water-d.y.k.es were let into the fields on every side, and peasants, with their yokes of oxen, were engaged in bringing water from the wells and streams. I did not see any women at work.

In my numerous journeys, I had an opportunity of observing that the lot of the poorer cla.s.ses of women in India, in the East, and among coloured people generally, was not so hard as it is believed to be.

In the towns where Europeans reside, for example, their linen is washed and prepared by men; it is very seldom that it is necessary for women to take part in out-door labour; they carry wood, water, or any other heavy burdens only in their own houses. At harvest time, indeed, the women are seen in the fields, but there also they only do the lighter kind of work. If carriages with horses or oxen are seen, the women and children are always seated upon them, and the men walk by the side, often laden with bundles. When there are no beasts of burden with the party, the men carry the children and baggage. I also never saw a man ill use his wife or child. I heartily wish that the women of the poorer cla.s.ses in my own country were treated with only half the consideration which I saw in all other parts of the world.

20th February. Udjein on the Seepa, one of the oldest and best built towns of India, is the capital of the kingdom of Sindhia, with a population of more than 100,000 souls.

The architecture of this town is quite peculiar: the front walls of the houses, only one story high, are constructed of wood, and furnished with large regular window openings in the upper part, which are securely closed by beams, instead of gla.s.s. In the interior, the apartments are built very lofty and airy: they have the full height from the level of the ground to the roof, without the interruption of an intermediate arch. The outer walls and beams of the houses are painted with a dark brown oil colour, which gave to the town an indescribably dusky appearance.

Two houses were remarkable for their size and the uncommonly fine execution of the wood carvings. They contained two stories, and were very tastefully ornamented with galleries, pillars, friezes, niches, etc. As far as I could learn from the answers I received to my questions, and the numerous servants and soldiers walking about before them, they were the palaces of the aumil and the Queen Widow of Madhadji-Sindhia.

We pa.s.sed through the entire town; the streets were broad, the bazaars very extensive, and so overcrowded with men, that we were frequently compelled to stop; it happened to be a large market.

Upon such occasions in India, as well as at great festivals and meetings of people, I never once saw any one intoxicated, although there was no lack of intoxicating drinks. The men here are temperate, and restrain themselves, yet without forming into societies.

Outside the town I found an open verandah, in which I took up my quarters for the night.

I was here a witness of a deplorable scene, a consequence of an erroneous religious belief of the otherwise amiable Hindoos. Not far from the verandah lay a fakir, outstretched upon the earth, without any signs of life; many of the pa.s.sers-by stopped, looked at him, and then went on their way. No one spoke to or helped him.

The poor man had sunk exhausted on this spot, and was no longer capable of saying to what caste he belonged. I took heart, approached him, and raised the head-cloth, which had fallen over a part of his face; two gla.s.sy eyes stared at me. I felt the body; it was stiff and cold. My help came too late.

The next morning the corpse still lay in the same place. I was informed that they waited to see if any relations would come to carry it away, if not it would be removed by the pariahs.

21st February. In the afternoon I reached Indor, the capital of the kingdom of Holkar.

As I approached the dwelling of the Europeans, I found them just about to ride out. The equipage of the resident, Mr. Hamilton, to whom I had letters, was distinguishable from the others by its greater splendour. Four beautiful horses were harnessed to an open landau, and four servants, in Oriental liveries, ran by the side of the carriage. The gentlemen had scarcely perceived my approach, when they stopped, and sent a servant towards me; they, perhaps, wished to know what chance had thrown a solitary European female into this remote country. My servant, who already had the letter to Mr. Hamilton in his hand, hastened to him directly, and gave it to him. Mr. Hamilton read it hastily through, alighted from his carriage immediately, came and received me very cordially. My shabby clothes, faded by the sun, were of no account to him, and he did not treat me with less respect, because I came without much baggage, and without a train of attendants.

He conducted me himself to the bungalow, set apart for strangers, offered me several rooms, and remained until he saw that the servants had properly provided all conveniences. After he had given me a servant for my own exclusive use, and had ordered a guard before the bungalow, in which I was about to live alone, he took his departure, and promised to send for me to dinner in an hour.

A few hundred paces distant from the bungalow is the palace of the resident; it is a building of very great beauty, constructed of large, square stones, in a pure Italian style of architecture.

Broad flights of steps led up into halls which are peculiarly remarkable for their magnitude and beautifully arched roofs, the latter being finer than any that I had yet seen. The saloons, rooms, and internal arrangements corresponded to the high expectations which the sight of the outside raised.

It was a Sunday, and I had the pleasure of finding the whole European society of Indor a.s.sembled at the house of the resident.

It consisted of three families. My astonishment at the magnificence surrounding me, at the luxuries at table, was yet more increased when a complete, well-trained band of musicians commenced playing fine overtures and some familiar German melodies. After dinner Mr.

Hamilton introduced the chaplain to me, a Tyrolese, named Naher.

This active man had established his chapel in the s.p.a.ce of three years, the congregation consisting chiefly of young natives.

I was invited to be present on the following morning at the first operation performed here, by a European surgeon, on a patient under the influence of ether. A large tumour was to be extracted from the neck of a native. Unfortunately the inhalation did not turn out as was expected: the patient came to again after the first incision, and began shrieking fearfully. I hastily left the room, for I pitied the poor creature too much to bear his cries. The operation indeed was successful, but the man suffered considerable pain.

During breakfast, Mr. Hamilton proposed that I should exchange my apartments in the bungalow for a similar one in his palace, because the going backwards and forwards at each meal time was very fatiguing. He placed at my disposal the rooms of his wife, who was deceased, and appointed me a female servant.

After tiffen (lunch) I was to see the town, and be presented at court. I employed the intermediate time in visiting Mr. and Mrs.

Naher. The latter, who was also a German, was moved even to tears when she saw me: for fifteen years she had not spoken with a fellow-countrywoman.

The town of Indor contains nearly 25,000 inhabitants; it is not fortified; the houses are built in the same manner as those in Udjein.

The royal palace stands in the centre of the town, and forms a quadrangle. The middle of the front rises in the form of a pyramid, to the height of six stories. A remarkably lofty and very handsome gateway, flanked on both sides by round and somewhat projecting towers, leads into the court-yard. The exterior of the palace is completely covered with frescoes, for the most part representing elephants and horses, and from a distance they present a good appearance. The interior is separated into several courts. In the first court, on the ground floor, is situated a saloon, surrounded by two rows of wooden pillars. The Durwar (ministerial council) is held here. In the first story of the same building a fine open saloon is appropriated to the use of some sacred oxen.

Opposite this cattle-stall is the reception-room. Dark stairs, which require to be lighted in broad daylight, lead to the royal apartments. The stairs are said to be equally dark in almost all the Indian palaces; they believe it is a security against enemies, or, at least, that it makes their entrance more difficult. In the reception saloon sat the queen, Jeswont-Rao-Holcar, an aged, childless widow; at her side her adopted son, Prince Hury-Rao- Holcar, a youth of fourteen years, with very good-natured features and expressive eyes. Seats, consisting of cus.h.i.+ons, were placed for us by their side. The young prince spoke broken English, and the questions which he put to me proved him to be well acquainted with geography. His mundsch, {212a} a native, was represented as a man of intelligence and learning. I could not find an opportunity, after the audience, of complimenting him upon the progress which the prince had made. The dress of the queen and of the prince consisted of white Dacca muslin; the prince had several precious stones and pearls upon his turban, breast, and arms. The queen was not veiled, although Mr. Hamilton was present.

All the apartments and pa.s.sages were crowded with servants, who, without the slightest ceremony, came into the audience-hall, that they might observe us more closely; we sat in a complete crowd.

We were offered sweetmeats and fruits, sprinkled with rosewater, and some attar of roses was put upon our handkerchiefs. After some time areca nuts and betel leaves were brought on silver plates, which the queen herself handed to us; this is a sign that the audience is at an end, and visitors cannot leave until it is made. Before we got up to go, large wreaths of jasmine were hung round our necks, and small ones round our wrists. Fruits and sweetmeats were also sent home to us.

The queen had given the mundsch directions to conduct us round the whole of the palace. It is not very large, and the rooms, with the exception of the reception-saloon, are very simple, and almost without furniture; in each, cus.h.i.+ons covered with white muslin lie upon the floor.

As we stood upon the terrace of the house, we saw the prince ride out. Two servants led his horse, and a number of attendants surrounded him. Several officers accompanied him upon elephants, and mounted soldiers closed the procession. The latter wore wide white trousers, short blue jackets, and handsome round caps; they looked very well. The people raised a low murmur when they saw the prince, as an indication of their pleasure.

The mundsch was good enough to show me the mode adopted for making ice. The proper time for this is during the months of December and January; although, even in the month of February, the nights, and especially the early hours of the morning before sun-rise, are so cold, that small quant.i.ties of water are covered with a thin sheet of ice. For this purpose, either shallow pits are dug in earth rich in saltpetre, {212b} and small shallow dishes of burnt porous clay are filled with water, and placed in these pits, or when the soil does not contain any saltpetre, the highest terraces on the houses are covered with straw, and the little dishes of water are placed up there. The thin crusts of ice thus obtained are broken into small pieces, a little water is poured over them, and the whole is put into the ice-houses, which are also lined with straw. This mode of obtaining ice is already practised in Benares.