Though Rough And Uncouth,
However, I Found The Natives, As A Rule, Hospitable And Kindly.
It was
only in the far interior that any unpleasantness was experienced.
This
was, perhaps, only natural, seeing that seventy miles of the journey
lay through a region as yet unexplored by Europeans, the inhabitants
of which were naturally resentful of what they imagined to be
intrusion and interference.
Owing to the nomadic nature of the Baluchis, the barrenness of
their country, and consequent absence of manufactures and commerce,
permanent settlements are very rare.
[Illustration: SONMIANI]
With the exception of Quetta, Kelat, Beila, and Kej, there are no
towns in Baluchistan worthy of the name. Even those I have mentioned
are, with the exception of Quetta (now a British settlement),
mere collections of tumble-down mud huts, invariably guarded by a
ramshackle fort and wall of the same material. The dwellings of the
nomads consist of a number of long slender poles bent and inverted
towards each other, over which are stretched slips of coarse fabrics
of camel's hair. It was only in the immediate neighbourhood of Gwarjak
that the native huts were constructed of dried palm-leaves, the
fertile soil of that district rendering this feasible.
Attended by Chengiz Khan in a gorgeous costume of blue and yellow
silk, and followed by a rabble of two or three hundred men and boys, I
visited the bazaar next morning. Chengiz had preceded his visit with
the present of a fine goat, and evidently meant to be friendly,
informing me, before we had gone many yards, that the Queen of England
had just invested the Djam of Beila (a neighbouring chief) with the
Star of India, and did I think that that honour was very likely to
accrue to him?
The trade of Sonmiani is, as may be imagined, insignificant. Most of
the low dark stalls were kept for the sale of grain, rice, salt, and
tobacco, by Hindus; but I was told that a brisk trade is done in fish
and sharks' fins; and dried fruits, madder, and saffron, sent down
from the northern districts, are exported in small quantities to
India and Persia. In the vicinity are some ancient pearl-fisheries of
considerable value, which were once worked with great profit. These
have been allowed to lie for many years undisturbed, owing to lack of
vigour and enterprise on the part of those in power in the state. Here
is a chance for European speculators.
By a well in the centre of the village stood some young girls and
children. The former were decidedly good looking, and one, but for the
hideous gold nose-ring, [B] would have been almost beautiful. Here, as
elsewhere in Baluchistan, the women present much more the Egyptian
type of face than the Indian - light bronze complexions, straight
regular features, and large, dark, expressive eyes. None of these made
the slightest attempt at concealment. As we passed, one of them
even nodded and smiled at Chengiz, making good use of her eyes, and
disclosing a row of small, pearly teeth.
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