'Up the Country': Letters Written to Her Sister from the Upper Provinces of IndiaEden, Emily
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'Up the Country': Letters Written to Her Sister from the Upper Provinces of India
Eden, Emily
Eden, Emily, 1797-1869 -- Correspondence; India -- Description and travel
Europeans have been driven, by the failures of the banks here, to take
that line, and amongst them are several thorough gentlemen. There were
at least fifty of them in one camp attached to Government, and I never
saw better behaved people. Some had horses, some gigs, and some their
nice little wives in their nice little palkees; two wives and two
families packed up together, for economy, with the two husbands riding
by the side of the carriage. And then in the evening we used to hear A.
and B., &c., disputing and lamenting that they could not allow Mr. V.
and Mr. Z., and so on, to sit down in their presence. Well! I dare say
it is all right, or at least we are all equally wrong, for they are not
allowed to enter Government House; and I see how it would be impossible
to ask a _white_ Mr. and Mrs. Smith, though they are better looking than
half the people we know, without hurting the feelings of a half-black
Mr. Brown. Even at the theatres they have distinct places. Now they have
wisely taken to the stage, a great many of the _gentry_ were even above
going to see them act. However, we went, and lent them the band, and the
house was quite full--and they really acted remarkably well, one
Irishman in particular. There is a son of Mr. F.'s amongst them. We
always in camp used to call him Sophia; he looked like an actress
dressed up in men's clothes--little ringlets, and a little tunic, and a
hat on one side. They have got Sophia to act their heroines, and she
looks quite at her ease restored to her female style of dress, and is, I
dare say, equally a good clerk in General C.'s office. The play was over
soon after ten.
Wednesday, June 13.
The weather is very hot here now, much hotter than an English summer; at
least nobody can go out after seven or before six, and the nights are
very close; but of course everybody says it is a most extraordinary
season, as they always do in India. It must end in rain soon; if it does
not, the famine of this unfortunate country will be worse than ever.
Captain M. and Mr. B. have both been ill with the dreadful heat at
Adeenanuggur, and Dr. D. seems very anxious to get them away from there.
I am quite sorry for the doctor. He left his little terrier here at his
own house; it was a particularly clever little dog, and he doted on it,
and there is very little doubt that it was eaten up, but whether by
leopard or hyena remains a mystery. He will be wretched about it, and it
places the happiness of the owners of little dogs generally on a
wretchedly insecure footing.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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