The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1853-07-14
LIFE In BOMBAY,

on the steamer being all Indians, and the
passengers mostly belonging to the East
India service, many peculiarities of every
day life were already familiar to me.
had mastered the mysteries of curry;
learned to say 'tihin' from the verb ti1
! mn instead of 'lunch;' [ became accus-
toned to being addressed as 'sahib, and
even ventured so far into Hindustani. as to
! call out boldly at table: 'Dan5 dop or: 'sat
baSan AaSp Thus the first bloom of the
new land was lost to me-all those name
less slight peculiarities which surround
! you with an enchanted circle when you
first plunge yourself into another climate
and another race. Nevertheless, there
was enough left to make my landing on
India soil circumstance of no ordinary
character.
We come slowly up the splendid bay,
until within half mile of the town. The
shores being low, nothing but an array of
brown tiled roofs, and a small Gothic
spire, was visible behind the crowd of
vessels at anchor. On the other hand
however, the islands of Elephanta and
Panwell, and the ranges of the Mahratta
Ghauts, were gorgeously lighted up by
the evening sun. But little time was al
lowed for admiring them; the anchor
dropped, and a feet of boats, conveying
anxious friends and relatives, gather a
bout US. The deck was covered with
pyramids of baggage, all was noise and
confusion, here shouts of Joy and there
weeping, here meeting and there parting,
many scenes of the drama of life enacted
at the same moment. Finding myself
left wholly to my own resources, set
about extricating myself from the bewil-
dermcnt, and accepting the first native
who addressed me, [ embarked for the
shore before the other passengers had
thought of leaving. Rupees, said the
master of the boat, holding up three of
his fingers. 'Ek,' (one) l answered. Up
went two fingers. 'Ek' And so 1 went
ashore for one. We came to stone pier,
with long fight Of steps leading down
to the water. The top of it was thronged
with natives in white dresses and red tur-
bans. Among them were the runners Of
the hotels, and soon found the one !
wanted. At q small customs Office on
the pier, my baggage was passed unexam-
ined, on my declaring that | had but two
pounds Of Turkish tobacco. 4 line of
cabs, buggies and palanquins, with their
bearers, was drawn up on the pier, ard
in order to be as Indian as possible, l
took one of the latter.
1t was not a pleasant sensation to be at
full length in cushiondd box, and i'm
pose ones whole weight (and am by no
means a feather) upon the shoulders Of
four men. 1t is conveyance, invented by
Despotism, when mems neck's were foot
stools and mems heads playthings.-
[ have never yet been able to get into
it without feeling of reluctance, as if [
were inficting an injury on my bear
ers. Why should they groan and stag
ger under my weight, when have legs
of my own?-and yet, | warrant you,
nothing would please them more than for
me to use those legs. They wear pads on
the shoulders, on which rests the pole to
which the palanquin is suspended, and
60 forward at a slow, sliding trot, scarce
ly bending their knees or lifting their feet
from the ground. The motion is agreea-
bic, yet as you are obliged to lie on your
back, you have a very imperfect view of
the objects you pass. You can travel
from one end of India to another in this
style, but it is an expensive and unsatis-
factory conveyance, and [ shallnever use it.
As was borne along, [ saw, through
the corners of my eyes, that we passed
over moat and through heavy stone
gateway. then saw the bottoms of a
row of futed Grecian pillars-a church,
as | have since found then shops, very
much in the European style, except that
turbaned Hindoos and mitred Parsees
stood in the doors, and finally my bearers
came to a halt in wooden verandah,
where | was received by Mr.. Pallanjee,
the host of the British Hotel [ was
ushered up lofty flights of wooden steps
to the third story, and installed in small
room, overlooking wide prospect of
tiled roofs, graced here and there with a
cocoa-nut or brab palm. The partitions
to the rooms do not reach the ceiling;
there are no glass windows, but merely
blinds, and every breeze that comes sweeps
through the whole house. The servants
are mostly Portuguese, from Goa, but as
lndiais especially the country of servant
and master, every person is expected to
have one for his own use. | chose tall
Hindoo, with one red streak and two
white ones (the signs of caste) on his fore
head, who, for half rupee daily, acts as
guide, interpreter, messenger and valet
de chambre. Nothing can exceed the
respect shown to Europeans by the ma
tive servants. They go far beyond the
Arab and Turkish domestics of the East,
or even the slaves in Egypt. No Russian
serf could have greater reverence for
his lord As natural consequence OF
this, they are noted for their fidelity; the
ayahs, or nurses, are said to be the best
in the world.
Bombay, as a city. presents few points
of interest to a traveller. 1t is wholly OF