Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1885-07-16
TRAINING NAuTCH GIRLs.
A Visit to school Where the Famous
Dancing-Girls of India Receive
Their Training.

In recently published work by Mrs.
Leonowens occurs the following with
regard to the famous dancing girls of
India:
The Nautchnees' establishment was
a curious building surrounded by a
high wall. We entered through a gate,
and were at once conducted by couple
of old women across paved courtyard
planted all around with the mongree,
oleander, and tall red and white rose
trees. Passing this we were introduced
into great bare hall. with low seats
ranging around the walls, curtained all
along the farther end of the room, into
which inner chambers seemed to open.
Here we took our places. One of the
old women staid by us, while the other
went off to announce our visit to the
head lady of the establishment.
The great slave markets which we
have all read SO much about, where
tender young girls arc bought and sold
as if they were cattle, no longer exist
in British India, but the amount of
traffic of the kind that is still carried
on is incredible, although the fact is
vigorously denied by both the buyer
and the seller. In many cases these
Nauchnees are not bought, but hired
for term of years. for money paid not
the girls themselves, but to parents or
friends. In the course of time the
parents die or move away, and the
girl, after having given her best days
to her employers, finds herself without
money, friends, or social ties, and is
glad enough to spend the remainder of
her life in instructing the younger
members of the establishment of which,
with the fidelity Sc. natural to Oriental
women, she considers herself mem
Der, and, therefore, bound for life, to
promote its interests.
After few minutes Sadah Bebee
came in to greet the Lady Kesineh.
She salaamed most deferentially to us
and took her place on the floor. She
was woman of about so years and
native of Afghanistan, tall and finely
formed. She spoke of difficulty in Sc
curing respectable young girls to fill
the places of those who ran away, were
sold to certain rich admirers for wives
or concubines, or died. 1t would APP
pear that the lowest, or Cusban class,
was fast diminishing. On my question
ing the old lady about the average life
no clear estimate, but intimated very
decidedly that they generally died
young.
At my special request we were shown
into the exercising-room and almost
over the entire establishment. There
were over one hundred girls, of all
ages and shades of complexion, from
dark-brown to pale, delicate olive,
going through their exercise at the
time. The hall was composed of bam-
boo treilis-work, and was light, spa
cious, and airy enough. From the
roof hung all sorts of gymnastic appa-
ratus, rude, but curious-ropes to
which the girls chung as they whrled
around on tiptoe; wheels on which
they were made to walk in order to
learn peculiar circular dance called
'chakranee" Orom '.chak' Il wheel;
slip-knots into which they fasten one
arm or one leg, thus holding it notion
less while they exercised the other;
cups, revolving balls, which they
sprang up to catch, and heaps of fra
gile cords, with which they spin round
and round, and if any one of these
snap under too great pressure they
are punished, though never severely.
Altogether, it was strange sight
Most of the girls from 10 to Il had
nothing on but a short, tight pair of
drawers; the older ones had tight
short-sleeyed bodices in addition to the
drawers. and those rnder 10 were
naked. They were all good-looking;
few here and there were beautiful. The
delicate and refined outlines of their
fn ba onft flint ~ bas,. ~,
plexions, the dreamy expression of
their large, dark, quiet eyes, added to
great symmetry of form, made them
strangely fascinating.
The teachers were all middle-aged
women. some of whom looked prema-
turely old.
The dormitories in this establishment
were bare rooms; the girls all slept on
mats or cushions on the floor. Each
had a lota, or drinking-cup, q little
mirror, and native box in which to
keep her clothes. The more finished
and accomplished Nlutchees had rooms
to themselves. | went into one of these.
1t was matted and very simply fur
nished A tier of boxes in which her
jewels and robes were kept, a cot, a
few brass |, tas, fans, coias, or water
holders, with some tiny looking glasses
ranged along the wall-and this was
all.
inquired for the beautiful Nautch-
nee who had interested me. Her name
was Khangce; she was a Soodah-
nee by birth. The Soodahs are a mill
tary race or tribe nhabiting parts of
the province of Clutch; they find their
Oh .,f lAl. a. e q
daughters. and for one of the Sooslah-
nees a rich Mohammcdan will pay from
$1,000 to $4,000. Rajahs, wealthy
Mohammedan merchants. and proprie-
tors of dancing girls often dispatch
their emissarics TO Clutch, kabool,
Cashmere, and Rajpootana in search of
beautiful women. The fame of Cash
merriam and Soodah women has spread
far and wide, and often some beautiful
creature is picked up out of the novels
of Thur, Body. or Cashmere and
transported to the gorgeous pomp of a
royal harem. The Rajpoots intermarry
with the Soodah and Cashmerian NO.
men, and, being naturally handsome
race, they have preserved by this means
that physical beauty of which they are
SO justly proud.
Very little was known of Khangee's
history beyond the fact that she was
Soodahnec by birth. She was bought
| at an early age from her parents, who
were poor and occupied howell in the
village of Thur in Clutch, and sold TO
this establishment when in her 9TH
year. and was almost as ignorant of her
parentage as a newly-born babe. AT
the time of our visit she had been hired
with party of Nautchnces to assist in
the marriage celebration which was to
take place at the house of a rich Bun
yam, or Hindoo, grain merchant.
These NautchneeS often marry well
and become chaste wives and mothers
of large families. The four requisites
for a Nautchnee are bright eyes, fine
teeth, long hair. and perfect symmet-
| nv of form and feature. A small black
mole between the eyebrows or on either
cheek will enhance her value to an ex-
traordinary degree.