The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1850-11-06

tents depending upon the palate and custom
| OF the person. The meal hcing prepared, a
| small quantity is placed before the idol to
propitiate his favor. The wife then puts
| upon the floor of an interior room a brass
plate, or what is more usual, leaf (two or
more sewed together, If one be not OF sutii-
cient size (upon which goodly quantity
Of the boiled rice is then piled, and above it
| the bcfore-named fragrant and delicious
curry. Having brought dish for her lord
to lave his hands, hc takes his lowly seat for
the enjoyment Of his repast. Then follows
a brief prayer-which foreigners insinuate
| it would be we'll for Americans to follow.
| AS there were wanting table, chair, plate. or
| The lIndoo has what ia far more natural
and convcnien,-hs fingers! With these
upon his right hand, he mixes the ingretIi.
cnls Of his savory dish, and rolling small
quantity in'o ball, losses il dcrferiously
into his mouth, great care being taken lest
auy portion fall back into the plate, since
that mishap would dcfic the remaining
mass. The reason of this extreme iast,d-
iousness is the notion that the suliva is n
very impure secretion. A lIndoo who is
regardful OF religious proprcly never cx-
pcctora'cs within doors. Ga custom to he i'm
ported aso,) nor, if rigid adhercnt Of tho
rules of caste, will he touch letter which
has been sealed by wafer rnOstcned by
I the tongue.
| III no stranger he present, the women
wait on The men, but a Iiindoo woman new
or sits down to eat with her hushand-sh
and her daughters sit patiently by, and then
| rcgale themselves upon wh0t is lctt. The
meal over, h's thirst qucnchcd by water
| again brought TO him. he rctlrcs 10 his
couch, there tn chew betcl. entertain visi.
tors. and thus lounge the hours away until
time for retiring arrives, which is usually
from to 8 O'Clock. Ii the weather be
not too warm he rG;ires To an inner apart
ment, but if very sultry he chooses the ve-
randall, and even The sandy roadside,
| where he converts the dress he has worn
| during the day into covering whercwth
| to shelter himself from dew, rnisquilos, and
vcrmin-soon rclapsing into sound sIum.
bcr A stranger, when entering a llindoo
village ut an curly hour Of the day, il
strangely. affected s.Jhe spcctaclc-multi-
| tiidcs oil sie"1a'c-alsNslg by the roadside,
wrapped in lheic White clothes, and present
| ing the appearance OF 80 many cOrpscs
dressed in the hahiIimcnts OF the toub-
Rising AT dawn, the IIIndoo goes to "A neigh
boring tank, where, with religious care hc
clcanscs his teeth, performs his sacred ahlu
tons, iinprIn,s the cmblCns of his ial,iI mp.
on his forehead, arm, and breast, visits the
idol for morning worship, returns home to
| take repast from the congo drawn oil
from the boiled rice of yesterday, and then
is prepared for the duties of the dav.
Snch is a view of the dwellings, and do
mestlc economy OF respectable !l,ndos. Dcs-
cending to the lowest III scale we see the
AL Il t,l
ed hut, with walls Of mud and covering of
palmyra lcavcs-whosc food consists of a
few vegetables, pulled from an adjoining
| field, to which are added few small fish
| taken from neighhoring tank, or the bones
| OF carcass which he divides with the
| carrion crow and the prowling jackall. Ris-
| ling TO the highest station, we see the dwell
| ing Of the rich and honored OF the land,
large and imposing built al brick, and with
| the top tcrraccd TO a lIo v Oi the morning and
| evening promenade. Within, the apart
mcnis are OF sufficient size for domestic
| purposes religious pictures decorating the
walls; tables and chairs indicating an ac-
| quaintancc with the more tasteful foreign
| cr, while the meal. thong Ii partakcn of in
| the same lowly manner, and with the
s" natural implements, is rendered more
q .cious by pickles, chitncys, and Other
{ condiments that tempt the appetite ol
| IIndoo cpcure.
The price of moderately sized clay
| house (not including the rem, o!thc ground)
Is about SS ID, and the annual repairs no,
far from $40. The repairs are usually
made just before the fall rains set in, and
II delayed too long, the destruction of tho
entire building is The inevitable result.
| There are many custums respecting The
| locality Of Ilindoo dwellings,, and arrange.
| mcnts pertaining thereto which are worthy
OF notice. While the building is in pro-
| cess OF construction. there may he seen
near 1t pole stuck into the ground, upon
whoh Is placed an carihern jar. covered
with white spots, having for It's desjgn to
| Keep eli The erH ew," which would, other
wise be harmful TO the builder or owner
| III person meets will, msloriunes in a
| particular house, he concludes that some
bones are buried under ii, and accordingly
| leaves II Tor another more fortunate spot.
| When SUM of money has hecn stolen from
a dwelling, and 1t ia quite certain that some
| one among its inmates is the thief, the Hin-
docs, in some places, rub the thumb nails OF
all the persons IN the house, imagining that
the name of the thief viii become lcgiblc
on tho nail Of the offender. Scarcely any
ii'ndoos attach Tower gardens to their
houscs--In that respect differing widely
from the Mahomrncdans, before whose
doors roses and cvcrgrecns may be seen IN
abundance. The cause of this contrast
have never hcarl assigned; but the fact
arrests attention in the streets Of city or
village. The Ilindoo rents his small lot
surrounds II (cxcept it adjoin other dwell
i'ngsO with mud wall--constructs gate
with an archway and earthern lounge
pulls h's house in the ccntre-digs his well
--rcars his chickens--and If he can obtain
employment sufficient to meet his daily ex-
penses, has but the snaIles, amount of ap-
rent care and trouble. If his house has
been paid for, salary of So so per month
VIII amply suffice to clothe and feed him.
sclt, wife, and several children. The re-
qn'sIies for lhc table of Hindoo ure
bought in the market (bazaar) and paid for
daily. except milk, sugar, oil, &c, which
are brought to the house by tho seller,
VINO receives his payment monthly. These