The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1824-09-30 00:00:00

Report from the Superintendent of Polies.

Damajee Kutchcra7, a respectable merchant from Kutch, ini
ate it is very true, that the Jahrejah tribe in the district of lied*
Co very generally put their female children to death the instant Lk.
are born; the Rajah of Kutch follows this practice in his Camay,:
as also the Rajah of Samnugger. the Rajah of Aloorbes.,
and the others in general; sane, however, among the tribe, limo
a sense of the wickedness of the crime, and being good moral that,
c presee their female children, but these are few in number ; disk,
Tenon, a he ha, heard, for this abominable practice 6, that the 1
timbers tin not wish their daughters to °bet. their husbands, being
of a bold domineenng proud spirit ; on being asked where the mew
of this tribe get wives, he Ind:wins me, from the other Upset
tribes; on bring asked how their infants ere destroyed, be says be
sa v
has heard that when a woman is fa labour, • lac pm of milk id
brought and placed in the teem, and if an un female is
produced, the nurse inantsdansi, pats it into the pet milk um"
drowns it. That he las tentllkaillsil *termer dam of this
tribe how they put thsk Ilinlan ar dank is" 'be,' have
i.tways answered, by main thent&ii....l2.alluding to tom,
bi.:ag thrown into the pot stmiiiit. are the only
imissivi4pil sons accessory to this riii desk .;ruki-m.- --- imams. 40
Las never known any Jahmjelt MAW in 1 flat Wes
little or no trade, seldom re ehemmL, Tot /VW Or the
FrOilUtt: of their hada. ami-assnliilma, . In
.........11114
Iron. the district of Kutch, ens
ed as a nurse in any of that Ihitlnt dieticiNet,
tier grandmother was, and she her alien thlidate, that
whenever a female child was been, the unfortunate infant was pat
auto • cud ieree pot of milk, with its heed tindermast. along wide!
rite after-birth, and thus immediately destroyed. On thecootrary,
a hen a son was born, great rejoicings was made by feasting their
mend!, &e. She declares she knows ne arise bow this extraordi-
nary custom arose; but has head that bsi a tribe of the Reboot
caste, they do not wish that their remake teswld obey any one • in-
dependent of this, no one likes to take a female of this tribe into
their faintly, as it is reckoned very unlucky to have any thing to do
with them, anti in general it is but too often verified.
This is the result of my inquiries.
(Signed) -
__ .

S. HALLIDAY.

Ite!stion by Sunderjee Sheeler, of the Poet of Mandaree, In the
country of Kutch.

It is notoriously known to be the established practice among
those of the Jewish tribe in the country of Kutch, and adjoining
districts of Kattewar (in the peninsula of Outerao, not to bring
up their daughters, but to put them to death at their births. The
legend that 1 hue heard, u accounting for this strange practice, is
as follows :

" I n former times it so happened, that to one of the head men of
those Jahrejahs several female children were born; and as among
the II indoor it is incumbent to provide husbands for their daugh-
•tvs whilst these latter areyd in their non.age, the Jahrejah chief.
lair. above-awned applied amedinsly. to his family Brahmin, to
ruratte the noomeary ineloweee foe pain the said Jahrr.lol.6 fe-
male chridom osoneesed - s with the sons of his equals in
tribe, and of Wm velour and as he possessed.
'• 11w Biahmin, after making every inquiry, and going about to
.every place in quest of 'nimble watches for these children, re-
turned without effecting his ohjoetomorting thereon to the chief.
aain in qi estion. that although he hog dewed all his endeavours
ve Ind proper alliances for his lamb diners, mill he (this Brah-
man ) harinot trawl any one who teaad t qualifications to
ire his sun-in.law wherefore (added den • ). once to retain
these prat feinalhinigeiegiadis hoiltbasse, after their arriving
at the age of vronesnised, is isairtory m the rules of religion, I
will take them with me, mil mil horn them in the fire, on condi-
tion that it be stipulated on poor port, to destroy et their birth all
issue of the estate sex that skankersafter be born In your fitniily,
laying hereon, as I now do, my Mann malediction both here and
hereafter on you and yours, If fail so perform the tame : In
such manna, that if you shall preserve any of your future daugh.
tors, they shaft pass their lives in penury and want; nor shall
good attend the father or the mother of such children."
It i* further reported, that after this' speaking, that Brahmin
took away those innocent girls, and consumed them in the lames;
a:.! that in conformity to the stipulation and denunciation afore.
said, the people of the .lahrejah tribes, dwelling in the country of
Kutch, and in the Pergunnahs of Haller, and ether places within
the contiguous Peninsula of Ouzerat, have to this day continued
to alhcre to the practice in question, whereby, whenever a daughter
is to them, they do forthwith put these helpless babes, with.
cr..t compassion or pity, to death, placenta caper Karst anne in-
e:onle,:tr, without allowing of their surviving foe the shortest