The East India Vade-Mecum, Volume 1 (of 2): or, complete guide to gentlemen intended for the civil, military, or naval service of the East India Company.Williamson, Thomas
History
The East India Vade-Mecum, Volume 1 (of 2): or, complete guide to gentlemen intended for the civil, military, or naval service of the East India Company.
Williamson, Thomas
India -- Social life and customs -- 19th century -- Handbooks, manuals, etc.
The duty of a _g’horry-waun_ is confined to the charge of his cattle; he
seeing them properly rubbed down, and supplied with provender, which
usually consists of the small chaff from various kinds of pulse, or of
the stems of _badjra_, _jewar_, &c. (various kinds of millet,) or of the
_bootah_, (or Indian-corn,) which, being purchased in bundles, he chops,
with a common bill, on a log of wood. When bullocks are allowed _gram_,
(already mentioned,) the usual portion for each is about two, or, at the
utmost, three seers each; the seer weighing about two pounds
avoirdupoise. It is indispensably necessary that this servant should
understand how to load his carriage to advantage, and be able to repair
such parts as may not actually require the aid of artizans. Thus, he
must be competent to sew _saleetah_, or large sacking cloth spread at
the bottom of the _hackery_, and lapping up, over every part, so as to
prevent articles from being lost; and, in some degree, keeping them from
being injured by the weather. He must likewise be able to take off a
wheel, and above all things, he must be a careful, steady driver. This
is the more necessary, owing to the distance between the wheels in all
Hindostanee carriages being very small; and the load being placed, in
most instances, above the level of their upper fellies; causing the
gravity to be thrown very high in a _hackery_ laden with bulky articles;
and, consequently, very liable to be overturned. On the whole, few
accidents of this kind happen; which, considering how much night
travelling prevails in India, is rather surprizing. Possibly this is
owing to the deepness of the ruts on roads frequented by carriages;
whereby the wheels are presented in their course, so as to prevent the
bullocks from deviating. As to the distance a _hackery_ can travel in
the course of a day, that must depend entirely on the state of the road,
the strength and condition of the cattle, the heat of the weather, and
the weight to be drawn: under fair circumstances, from fourteen to
sixteen miles may be effected; but the latter distance is considered a
forced march. To the weight of the carriage and its load, that of the
driver must be added: he usually sitting immediately behind the
bullocks. When the load is unavoidably rather too heavy behind, so as to
cause a tendency to tilting, he sits more forward, between the cattle,
and even occasionally upon the yoke itself. It is evident the latter
position must be extremely oppressive to the cattle; but in _hackeries_
laden with cotton, where the burthen necessarily occupies a great space,
hanging over the rumps of the cattle, such a position is nearly
inevitable.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account