The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1865-11-27
- 80.
a visit to the ChlerBrahmin..sOrien
tnI GI...ao..... - E....-..

a tai Customs In Modern Days.
The London Morning Post publishes
a curious account OF a state visit paid
to the Chief Brahmin at Poona, on the
sth of August, by Sir B, Frere, Govern
or of Bombay. The writer says: ls
1.-THE whole party proceeded on foot
to the residence of Talia AIaharai, The
Malkwas neither short nor an agreea-
pc one, and twas some minutes before
thegate of the Chief Brahmin'sre Is residence
was reached. Here, at a small door open
ing into a courtyard, we were met by the
important individual whom the Gov
'ernor was about to honor with a visit.
he was a little old man, apparently
about eighty years of age, and extreme
~ inhrm4! He. snbsequ quently informed
us he was but si1ty-fiVe.- The Governor
then presented each member of his suite
by name to the Chief Brahmin, who
shook bands with all The joke of this
part Of the ceremony was, that after
the old man! had welcomed the Govern
or, and had all his suite presented Iby
his EXCEL lency, he. turned round, very
limo Oesntly, to the SoTiental fntarpretsr
OF the government, and asked, which
islthe Governor2t
"The ceremony of presentation,i in the
courtyard being ffinishedI athfS, CHIEF
Brahmfn took the Governor by the
hand and led him into the. house, all
the suite and attendants following.
All the GoYernor's domestics, dressed
In soarlet and gold haftans,i and bear
ing long and massive silver sticks with
large Knobs to them, entered the court
yard and house with us, although both
these places were apparently filled with
native friends of the host, who, doubt
less, had been invited to witness the
honor done@Jto their Chief Brahmin.
The house was q ramshackle old place,
not over clean, but decidedly pictur-
esque. The interior courtyard, or quad
rangle, Jhad been covered in with can
vas, and dozens of elongated glass
lamps ofvHrfous coIoFS were suspended
from this temp porary roof. Il go.
Round the center of this extempori-
zed noOms leaving an open space in the
middle ofabopt, thirty feet by fifteen,
sofas were arranged, one being placed
crossways at thetop ds the place Of honor
tor the Governor, towards which he and
the Chief Brahmin advanced and took
their seats there side by side. G5y5.- e. u
1.-THE COmmander-inC Chief was on the
Governors lefb, on d chair, and thecor-
responding chdir on the Chief fBrahmin's
right was left vacant. entared the
roomj OF course, among the last : the
Governor, however, sent to request me
to occupy the vacant seat on the Brah-
minis right, aud again introduced me
to him; no doubt he wondered who the
guest was to whom SO much honor was
done. E1lIsts7 llu. 6-E .iET1
/, CATER a few minutes conversation in
Hindostani between the Governor dnti
Chief Brahmin, tha CHIEF Brahmin's
attendants brought in about twenty
silver dishes or walters, on which were
fruits and sweetmeats, and placed them
In the centre Of the floor on strip of
white canvas, which extended along the
carpet from thed sofa on which the
Governor. was seated to the end of the
apartment. Wheh, the dishes were all
placed the Ghieft Brahmin rose from his
seat Ito effect .thfs, hOweverhe had to be
assisted by the Governor, and steadied
when on his feet to prevent him from
lfRlling1 The attendants then placed in
his hands a smal-slver vase with a
long neck, and a sort of pepperabox top,
filled with some peculiar scent; with this
scent he first annoihted the Governor.
then the Commander-in-Ch and the
members ofcounci1, and afterwards the
rest of the Governors suit, walking, or
rather totteringy round to eacn, supper
ted by couple of his people. This
part of the ceremony ended, dozen
more servants came In, each bearing a
large silver dish filed with wreaths OF
jessamine, mixed with roses. These
wreaths were each about two yards long,
and sleeveletS made after the same fash
ion; also slaves about two feet long OF
the same, with bunCheS of roses at the
top. The old Brahmin, when these trays
of flowers We're all brought in, recon-
menced his labOrs of Eastern hospitali-
ty. He invested the Governor with the
biggest of these wreaths, as thick as
your wrist, placing it over his head and
on his neck Thsn he placed the small
lest Wreaths or sleeYelets on each OF Sir
Bartle's wrists, and finally gave him a
huge baton of flowers to hold in his
hand, and then poured rosewater on
the bouquet of roses at the top.
ut was irreSistibly dro1 to see her
Majesty g representatives dressed up in
this grotesque style, and submitting to
it all with an impertur rbability of coun-
tenance which was admirable. We
should not have. laughed at his Excel
lency, for we all had to submit to the
same ordeal; fancy twenty grave and
reverend seignors, governors, Judges,
members OF council, etc, dressed out
like a chimney sweep on q ATay-Clay,
After the investiture with flowers, each
guest was given nuts and spices, neat
ly wrapped up in particular leaf
These you take and then hand to the
servants and dependents of the great
man behind your chair, the whole room
being crowded to suffocation with men
in every variety of turban. The fruits
in the dishes were then handed round
in, the like manner, and similarly dis
posed of to the servants, who seized the
protfered gifts with aRvidity. Not one
of the guests partook of any of the
delicacies (9l offered them,
Sir Bartle Frere was talking to me
while this farce was going on and ex-
planning to me all about it; he told me
that our host was hereditary Chief
Brahmin. Ithen inquired whether the
little boy standing behind the sofa was
the Brahmin's son. No. was the Gov
ernor's reply; that is the poor old mans
grievance; he has no son to succeed
him, only a nephew After the sweet
meats and fruits had all been disposed
of in the manner I have suited, the old
Brahmtn made another tour OF the
room, sprinkling all the guests with
rose water from a large silver vase.
These silver trays and vessels were very
handsome and curiously chased, but
they looked like lead, no attempt hay-
ing been made either to clean or to
polish them. aar lgFal . w
SAT last the Governor rose to take
leave, when a simultaneous shout from
the assembisge said something which /
was assured was very complimentary
to the Queens representative, although,
of course, could not understand a
word. The Chief -Brahmin then took
the Governor by the hand and led him
out In the same manner as he had en-
tered. The Chief Brahmin shook hands
with each Of us again on leaving the
outer court yard, and we marched out
into the crowded lane bedecked with
the flowers that had been heaped upon
us, the etiquette forbidding us to divest
ourselves of them while in the pres
ence or close to the residence Of the
host; before reaching our carriages.
however, we had disposed of all our