Every City Or Great Town In India Has Markets Twice A-Day, In The Cool
Of The Morning Just After Sun-Rise, And Again In The Evening A Little
Before It Sets; And In These They Sell Almost Every Thing By Weight.
In
the heat of the day, every one keeps within doors, where those of any
rank lie on couches, or sit cross-legged on carpets, having servants
about them, who beat the air with fans of stiffened leather, or the
like, to cool them.
While thus taking their ease, they often call their
barbers, who tenderly grip and beat upon their arms and other parts of
their bodies, instead of exercise, to stir the blood. This is a most
gratifying thing, and is much used in this hot climate.
The Mahometans and Hindoos are much to be commended for their
truthfulness as servants; for a stranger may safely travel alone among
them with a great charge of money or goods, all through the country,
having them for his guard, and will never be neglected or injured by
them. They follow their masters on foot, carrying swords and bucklers,
or bows and arrows, for their defence; and so plentiful are provisions
in this country, that one may hire them on very easy terms, as they do
not desire more than five shillings each moon, paid the day after the
change, to provide themselves in all necessaries; and for this small
pittance give diligent and faithful service. Such is their filial piety,
that they will often give the half of these pitiful wages to their
parents, to relieve their necessities, preferring almost to famish
themselves rather than see them want.
Both among the Mahometans and Hindoos there are many men of most
undaunted courage. The Baloches are of great note on this account
among the Mahometans, being the inhabitants of Hjykan, adjoining to
the kingdom of Persia; as also the Patans, taking their denomination
from a province in the kingdom of Bengal.[236] These tribes dare look
their enemies in the face, and maintain the reputation of valour at the
hazard of their lives. Among the many sects of the Hindoos, there is but
one race of warriors, called Rashbootes, or Rajaputs, many of whom
subsist by plunder, laying in wait in great troops to surprise poor
passengers, and butchering all who have the misfortune to fall into
their hands. These excepted, all the rest of the natives are in general
pusillanimous, and had rather quarrel than fight, being so poor in
spirit, in comparison with Europeans, that the Mogul often says,
proverbially, That one Portuguese will beat three of them, and one
Englishman three Portuguese.
[Footnote 236: This is a strange mistake, confounding the city of Patna,
in Bengal, in the east of Hindoostan, with the Patans, a race of
mountaineers between Cabul and Candahar, far to the west of India,
called likewise Afgans, and their country Afghanistan. - E.]
In regard to arms for war, they have good ordnance, which, so far as I
could learn, were very anciently used in this country.[237] I have
already described the iron pieces carried on elephants. They have
smaller guns for the use of their foot-soldiers, who are somewhat long
in taking aim, but come as near the mark as any I ever saw. All their
pieces are fired with match, and they make excellent gun-powder. They
use also lances, swords, and targets, and bows and arrows. Their swords
are made crooked like faulchions, and very sharp; but, for want of skill
in tempering, will break rather than bend; wherefore our sword-blades,
which will bend and become straight again, are often sold at high
prices. I have seen horsemen in this country, thus accoutered, carrying
as it were a whole armory at once; a good sword by their sides, under
which a sheaf of arrows; on their back a gun fastened with belts, a
buckler on their shoulders; a bow in a case hanging on their left side,
and a good lance in their hand, two yards and a half long, with an
excellent steel head. Yet, for all these weapons, dare he not resist a
man of true courage, armed only with the worst of all these. The armies
in these eastern wars often consist of incredible multitudes, and they
talk of some which have exceeded that we read of in the Bible, which
Zerah, king of Ethiopia, brought against Asia. Their martial music
consists of kettle-drums and long wind-instruments. In their battles,
both sides usually begin with most furious onsets; but, in a short time,
for want of good discipline, they fall into disorder, and one side is
routed with much slaughter.
[Footnote 237: Vertoman says the Portuguese who deserted at the first
discovery of India, and entered into the service of the native princes,
taught them this art. - Purch.
I have somewhere read, many years ago, but cannot recollect the
authority, "That, when Alexander besieged a certain city in India, the
Brachmans, by the power of magic, raised a cloud of smoke around the
walls, whence broke frequent flashes of lightning, with thunder, and the
thunderbolts slew many of his soldiers." This would infer the very
ancient use of fire-arms of some kind in India. - E.]
The Mahometans have fair places of worship, which they call mesquits,
well built of stone. That side which looks to the westwards is a
close-built wall, while that towards the east is erected on pillars, the
length being from north to south. At the corners of their great mosques,
in the cities, there are high turrets or pinnacles, called minarets,
to the tops of which their molahs or priests resort at certain times of
day, proclaiming their prophet in Arabic, in these words, - Alla illa
Alla, Mahomet resul Alla; that is, There is no God but God, and Mahomet
is the ambassador of God. This is used instead of bells, which they
cannot endure in their temples, to put religious persons in mind of
their duty.
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