The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-08-21
rAe CITY OF the SUN.
Destroyed b. the Great Earthquake d

THE CITY OF THE SUN.
Destroyed b the Great Earthquake In
Cashmere.
Ssrinagar. or literally Surgia Magyar,
the City of the Sun. is the capital of the
beautiful and romantic valley of Cash
mere. one of the most charming spots
| in the whole earth. It is some seven
years ago that in my wanderings I
visited this happy valley. A lonely
march of about 100 miles along the
banks of the Jhelum River, the ancient
Hydaspes, brought me to the smooth
waters of the Cashmere Lake. Here I
hired . boat covered with mating. and
so arranged that the stern of the boat
formed cooking kitchen. both for the
crew and passenger. Ny crew con-
sisted of full-srown man, an under
| grewn boy. an old woman. two small
! children and & young mother and a
! plamp baby. The whole party. except
the plump baby, took their turn at the
ears and towing rope. and l managed
I to get along;at the rate OF tzo m 'es an
hour.
Z 1t wa, a slear morning. snd beautiful
/ beyond description was the panoramic
view as We wound along the river in its
circular course. All around the country
was rich with verdure. Rising at dis
lance We're the snowy ranges of the
Himalaya Mountains. many of thera as
much as $1,000 feet above the sea leTel.
To quote the words IF the traveller.
Vigne: .'Softness mantling over the
sublime, snugness generally elsewhere
Incompatible with extent, are the pre-
vailing characteristics of the scenery of
. Cashmere" In the center of this love.
" scenery is the City of the sun. which
was recently destroyed by an earth
quake.
Serinagar is 3 considerable city Of
some 100000 inhab tants. of whom 20.
900 are Hindus and the remainder Mo-
hammedans The houses are built
entirely of wood, and are usually three
stories high. The streets are narrow
and dirty. The people were dirtier
than the streets. No pen could possibly
depict the real sanitary condition of
Serinagar. and consequently one regrets
that. as the city had to perish. it did not
succumb to the purifying element of fire
rather than the upheavings of an earth
quake.
The city Of Serinagar is on an island
in the midst of the Cashmere Lake. 1t
has seven bridges. all made of wooden
logs Some of the bridges are occupied
with shops. like old London bridge,
which are extremely quaint, although
unsightly structures. There are no cabs
or carts or carriages in the city of Seri-
magyar. and therefore nd conveyances
rumble aleng its narrow. dirty streets.
I 1t is a wise dispensation of Providence
that wheeled conveyances have not been
/ introduced in the capital of Cashmere.
| for the people would be too lazy to get
! out of the way. The Cashmeree never
walks or works if he can help it. In re-
cent famines they preferred dying to
/ either. And vet they are skilled work
men. The manufactures of Cashmere
are well known. Cashmere shawls have
| a worldwide reputation. although the
/ trade is not as prosperous as it used TO be.
I A Cashmere shawl has been sold in
Paris and London for fi.oo0. and even
I bracelets and necklaces is perhaps I'M
equaled in the world, for It has pc
cular unfinished stvle of its own which
can not be initiated The copper work
is very antique in its appearance. The
painted and inlaid woodwork. errone-
Ously called by Europeans paper-mache.
is exceedingly beautiful. 1t is an inter-
esting fact that the well-known Cash
mere shawl patterns. which finds ey-
preston in all art cles of Cashmere
manufacture. has its origin in the pc
culiar windings of the river Jhelum
along the valley.
The women of Cashmere are re-
nowned for their beauty. They are ex-
ceedingly fair for Orientals. In former
years they We're seized aud sold as slaves
for the seraglios of Eastern monarchs.
And even in modern DAYS the Cashmere
beauty has found place in the atfec-
tons of Indus European rulers and
warriors. Physically the men are
very fine race. and the calves of the
Cashmere coolie would give effect to
the very best arrangement in knicker-
bockers The chronological develop
ment of both sexes is good. But still
the Cashmere is hopeless individual.
At first when you look at him you be-
lieve in him. His fine development OF
head. chest and calf. win your respect.
But from the day that one of their num-
Der ate five of my loaves of bread. and
another purloined bottle of preserved
currantS. and another appropriated
leatherE strap. [ lost confidence in the
race. After very careful inquiry 1came
to the conclusion that the Cashmere
comes very low down in the scale of
humanity. He won't work if he can
help it. and to beg he is never ashamed.
Such is the race that inhabits one of the
fairest and most productive provinces
on earth.-Cor " Y. Sun.