The Humour and Pathos of Anglo-Indian Life: Extracts from his brother's note-book, made by Dr. TicklemoreMayer, J. E.
General
The Humour and Pathos of Anglo-Indian Life: Extracts from his brother's note-book, made by Dr. Ticklemore
Mayer, J. E.
British -- India; India -- Social life and customs
For the sake of getting rid of Mr. James and his bride, though it
anticipates the dénouement considerably, I will state now what happened
five months after the date of the said Lucretia's marriage. At that time
she presented a little Miss James to her husband, who blandly remarked,
in reference to the occurrence: 'That it was an extraordinary instance
of what does sometimes happen, and of the wonderful powers of nature.'
Mr. G., who happened to be present when the news was reported, made a
somewhat cynical remark, which my brother declares he could never quite
understand, though, in illustration of his meaning, Mr. G. indulged in
making sundry grotesque contortions of his features, and in applying the
index finger of the right hand to the side of his nose; which departure
from strict decorum must, my brother presumed, be set down to his love
of fun, and keen appreciation of the ridiculous.
This young person's career was what might have been imagined from its
commencement, and more than fulfilled my brother's anticipations. The
wretched old man died within a year from the date of the event I have
recorded.
Let us now pass from the consideration of the Eurasians to that of the
native races to be found at Tollicherry. The Hindoos there located are
called Nairs and Teers. They possess good features, and are well formed
and proportioned. They seem to have the same usages as other Hindoos,
the same kind of temples, the same division into castes, and the same
reverence for Brahmins, snakes, and monkeys.
The costume of these people, as far as relates to the men kind, does not
differ much from that of the male Hindoos of other parts of India; that
of the women is a little peculiar, as they wear nothing over their
shoulders or busts. Their dress consists chiefly of a cloth, which they
wrap round their waists so as to form a becoming sort of petticoat, or
what serves the purpose of one. In the absence of any upper garment,
they set a grand example to the great majority of the ladies of this and
other civilized countries, where these feminine divinities use every
conceivable art and contrivance to help to display the last hair's
breadth that custom will allow.
The dwellings of the Nair and Teer people are pretty to look at, as they
all have a small piece of ground that is well cultivated. They grow
cocoa-nut trees, and other palms, pepper, vines, and plantains; and
those who possess a larger portion of land raise rice and other grains.
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