The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1881-02-09
IpNDOo CASTE.
What Makes a Man in India-Fakirs De-
scribed.

Scribed.
A correspondent III Calcutta, says:
Our party was going to Jamalpoor.
Some of the natives were going to Bin
,apoor, others to Mirzapoor, many to
Allepoor, some to Cawnpoor, while
many looked too poor to go any place.
But appearances must not be accepted
as evidence of mans financial stand
ing in India A miserable looking,
tangle- headed, barefooted, naked fel-
low, who sits legged Or Hoogly
Bridge and with grin of satisfaction
smokes his black hoeka, may be worth
a lac OF rupees; while man attlred in
"a gaudy apparel may only live at the
hive of industrious friends. Te show
the power and prejudice of caste dom
ination among these people, | will men
tion an incident witnessed at this sta
ton at Howard. A Hindoo, orgetting
into the station, was jostled against
Mohammedan. This had, according
to Hindoo belief, defiled him, and
without further order he ran out OF the
station down to the Ganges and plung-
ed in, then hurredly divested himself
of his contaminated attire and returned
in time to take his seat for Benares.
Standing in groups about the plat
form during this Babel of noise, j no.
ticed dozen or more of those quiet,
mysterious fellows, to be met with in
all parts of India, called "fakirs," or
religious mendicants. They are invest
ed with the right to beg, and are sup
posed 20 possess the power to heal the
sick and perform miracles among their
foolish brethren. They allow their
hair and beard to grow to great length,
and never wash their face, but paint
them ard their bodies in variagated col
,ors. There is some excuse for this, as
they wear no clothes. One fellow had
painted his body yellow, his face white
and his beard lovely carnation. An
other was exhibiting a pea green beard,
with white hair and blue ears. and a
third was conspicuous for effective cob
'oring--pmk hair, solferino whiskers
and drak nose. The ladies were got up
in more retiring shades, displaying
with much taste lavender hair, mauve
ears, white noses and blue eyebrows.
They wore rings in their noses and
brass ornaments encircled their arms
and legs. Each one carried blue,
green or yellow umbrella, and they all
emitted rare and ight-impelling per-
fume. 1t is caste that makes the man
in India. 1t is ''like father like son.
There is no advancement, no retroces-
sion. Latent talent is not allowed to
develop, and if man be born of a
Mata Wallah, the le west caste kRown,
he is doomed forever after to sweep
floors, and would feel aggrieved and in
suited were he asked to do other
work.
The process of repossessing Hindoo
of his lost caste is interesting. When
the offender gives manifestations OF re-
pentance he is washed in holy Ganges
water, which is supposed to absolve
him from his first degree of sin, He
must then do penapee, which entails a
nominal fee, according to the height oi
his caste, after which he is compelled
to entertain his fellow caste men at a
dinner of curry and rice and pungent
ahee, which is combination of putre,
scent fish. bad rice and decayed butter
The host, being in disgrace, remains
outside OF the house, with his face
turned to the wall, while his friends
sit on the floor within and proceed tC
dine at his expense. They all eat out
of one vessel, and shoot the food down
their throats with their thumbs and
foreiingers, after the manner OF boy
Judging his favorite 'taw" at an cppo
aent's marbles