The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1889-07-26
~ExTRAvAoANT FELLOWS.


an Indian RsJah Lives.
There Is in Hindostan a territory
nearly one-lfth tho size OF the United
States. and containing a population OF
more than So. 600. 600. which Is gov
erned by rajahs. These rajahs have
power OF life and death. They have
revenues OF their own, levy taxation
as they please. and organize their
people and armies on a different basis
from the English portions OF India
They are subject, in a certain sense.
TO the English. and most Of them have
English officers connected with their
establishments. They are feudatory
states TO England. and England does
not allow them TO make war upon
each other. mol can they have any re-
~lations with foreign states. II a rajah
m~isgoverns his people or Expresses
them, the viceroy OF India rcproves
him. and X he does not come TO time.
secures his removal. These states.
however. have none OF the new cus-
toms of English India. Few for
eigners visit them. and the peo-
pie are substantially the same as
they were years ago-bcfore the
railroad and the English desire
for business came In TO grind
them up in the mortar OF modern civ
~ilization. Onc-third Of the whole ter
ritory OF India is possessed BY such
rajahs. and their subjects make up
one-fifth OF the inhabitants Their
united armies amount to 800. 900 men,
and their gross yearly evenu are
about $50, 900. 900. These rajahs live
a. grandly as did the Kings OF Northern
India in the past. and the English mer-
chants OF India cater largely to their
wants. Here, at Jeypore. the rajah's
palace covers a great area. and the
palace garden. with its flowing rivers
OF water. formed by fountains squirting
out Of a stone bed. would be large
enough for a farm. / was shown
through court after court OF marble
and taken through room after room
furnished with rich Persian carpets
and with s-atin-covercd chairs and di.
vans OF European make. In one palace
there was an immense billiard rooT-
and in this and the room adjoining the
skins OF tigers and leopards were scat
tered about by the hundred. They lay
in great piles on the floors. They were
hung on the walls. and some OF the
divans were upholstered with them l
went through room after room filled
with such skins. and | was told thai
the beasts were all killed by the rajah.
who is very fond Of tigcr-hunting. and
who Is an excellent shot.
was also shown the outside OF the
palace containing the harem. and the
arrangements for keeping 1t cool struck
me as rather peculiar. Outside OF the
main hall, and running along me
length Of the palace. was a series Of
great fanning-miils not unlike those
used BY the American farmer. These
were turned by half-naked men. and
they thus kept pumping up draughts
into the rooms beyond.
I visited the rajah's stables, and
took a look at his horses. There va
a court for exercise which covered, !
Judged. something like ten acres. and
around this was built an arcade OF
stalls rooted ovcr with a thick, heavy
roof to keep of the sun There was
about a hnlf-mile OF these stalls.
and each Of them was occupied by a
fine bloodcd stccd. There were horses
from Arabia, from Europe, America
and India, and the tying Of each was
difercnrfrom any thing ] had ever seen.
There was a strap from their halters,
which was fastened 10 rings just
above their heads. and each OF their
forc feet had a separate rope which
was stretched out toward the tour
corners in front and behind them and
tied. at a distance Of perhaps six feet
away. 10 a post. Tho ropes were
loose enough 4 permit them to move
their legs up and down. but they
could MOI kick nor stand on their hind
legs. Prank q. Carpenter, in Louis.
vile Courier-Journal.