Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1875-07-16
Lahoul Women.

A recent traveller in the province Of
Iahoul, between India and Thibct says:
"Near each village was a carefully.cul.
tivated willow orchard (all pollard trees),
and also patches of carefully-irrigated bar
lev and buckwheat. In the fields women
were working; from the house-tops women
stared at us, and women carried our bag
Rage. Where, then, are the menP We
found. on inquiry, that all the able bodied
males pass the summer in transporting
merchandise between Ladak, Chumba and
Kulu. and sometimes further, on strong,
well.shaped, surefooted ponies; and not a
few, no doubt, spend the simmer months
in contraband traffic on their own ac-
count.
with the ladies, therefore, the summer
is busy time. They have TO sow, to
reap and 30 garner; to stack frewoOu Tor
winter on the fiat house-top, and look after
the children, and last-not least-to carry
the baggage of chance Englishman for a
march or two (but this last occupation is
of such rare occurrence that il has all the
charms of novelty for them), so that when
the good mea return home from their
travels they have nothing TO do but to
smoke their pipes, and hibernate through
the months of ice and snow in the enjoy
ment of the good things their helpmates
have provided for them.
"These women were the strangestspeci-
mems of womankind IL had been my lot to
see-at once the most dressy and ugliest
Of their sexl Their costume, how shall |
describe itP Their surprising ugliness,
how portray? Their hair, of a rusty black,
is plated into a number of tails, which
reach TO their waist, and of which the ex-
tremities are collected together and tied
under a small bit of mother-ofpearl shell,
from which again hang rows of beads and
small bells of metal These jingled as
they moved like bells of a carriers team.
A band of red cloth or leather, about two
or three inches broad, reaches from the
forehead back over the crown of the head,
and falls as far as the waist This is
studded with rough turquoises, large but
ill-shaped and full of flaws. Their color,
too, is green, not blue, and they are of
little value. This is the fashionable head
dress. Some (but these may possibly have
been suffering from neuralgia) wore flaps
of black sheepskin over the ears-oretl-
tcttes, in fact; and they all of them added
as many beads of amber Of mother-of-
pearl and coral as they came by. Neck
laces of amber, carnelian coral and glass
generally the latter hung around their
amulets of silver; nor were armlets and
earrings forgotten. A coarse, warm
jacket of woolen cloth, petticoat of
divers colors principally blue, red, yellow,
and green), and glass shoes or sandals
completed the costume. A few of them
too wore undresscd sheepskins hanging
down over their shoulders and fastened in
front across the breast by skewers--the
most primitive of mantles. They all car
ried small baskets slung at their backs
ready for load, and most of them had a
baby in arms, which, when the able
bodied matron who owned it had decided
what baggage she should carry, was hand
ed over to the care of one of the bigger
children.
Their sunken features, broad, fiat,
square visages were well worthy of their
ignoble setting; the eyes, narrow, small
and twinkling, seemed eternally endeav-
oring but in vain to squint over the prom
inent cheekbone and peep at the flat,
broad nose below. The mouth, wide and
thick-lipped though it was, was the re-
deeming feature, for it was generally on
the broad grin and gave an expression of
good nature to the otherwise dull, vacant
face, Their figures, squat short and
broad, were the reverse of graceful, but
they walk away under the burdens which
the men of Sinia would have grumbled at
the weight of. 1t was quite a jour de tete
for them and they had brought their
whole family with them to share in its de-
lights. They were by far the best coolies
we had had, were these sturdy, good
humored ladies of I.ahoul.m ,