Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1900-01-08
Curse of Caste.

retain their caste even when employed
carrying loads of bricks on their heads
| in the scorching sun. A woman S
wages for such work is the equivalent
of 10 cents United States money per
day. They work from $50 a. m. until
$50 p. m, with one hour, II to l p. m,
in which to eat their breakfast at their
homes or of street vendors.
One servant enters your apartments
followed by another, the first, of high
er caste, directs the other and feels
away above him. The first would not
think of sweeping and arranging hotel
apartments; he is of higher caste, and
only blacks your boots and such.
The coolies that row you and your
luggage ashore would never carry
your luggage; lower-caste coolies must
do that The dirty driver of BULLOCK
cart will take your luggage to the no
tells, but it must be loaded and I'M
loaded for him by separate sets OF
coolies.
Every native who sees you arriving
or departing will crowd around you
and extend his hand, expecting a fee.
In the streets the young and old greet
you with their salaam (salutation) and
ask aims.
The people are neither energetic nor
ambitious and prefer to lounge arounG
rather than to work. They stroll
around or work in the boiling sun
bareheaded, apparently unmindful OF
| oh, ic f71I
and dangerous to Europeans if exposed
to it's direct ways.
Foreign Nationalities.
All nationalities of Egypt and India
are in Colombo, but there are absolute
ly no Cinnamon whatsoever, the Chi
nese not being able to compete with
native labor and grow rich. The jim
rikishamen are natives. The national
tiles from Egypt and India swarm the
chief streets, on which are located
their small shops. Their incessant
vail and salutation is II am waiting
for thee" "You promised me, y "Come
inside, just to look not to buy and
so on. A dozen, all at once, persist in
calling every European passer-by.
They are very amusing, at times an
noying, but always so polite as to pre-
clude taking offense. Precious stones
and jewelry are their chief articles of
trade.
They are great prevaricators, very
willy and exceedingly shrewd in palm
ing off almost worthless stones in
cheap alloy settings upon passengers
from the various steamships.
All the Cingalese, with few excep-
lions, chew the betal leaf and arrac nut
combination. White lime, obtained
from the burnt shells is spread upon
the betel leaf and chips Of dried arrac
nut (grown on the arrac palm) is put
with the leaf and chewed. The COM
bination results in a deep-red juice,
which colors the lips, the saliva, the
gums, ETC., a. bright red. The chewers
appear to have a mouthful of blood.
It is very hideous at first, but one soon
fails to be impressed with the sight.
The betel leaf (there is no betel nut)
is the leaf of tropical vine (creeper).
Light pink tinted lime is fad in
dulged in by few. Some add several
cloves, cardamon and a pinch Of leaf
tobacco as a special favoring.
An Elephant Hunt.
Ceylon has no tigers, but it has
large tiger cats, elephants and snakes
galore. The deadly cobra, adder and
python are the most dreaded of the
reptiles.
In the interior of Ceylon l had rather
novel experience, that of witnessing
an elephant kraal.
Several weeks previously two herds
of elephants had been surrounded by
some $500 native coolies under the
orders of their Ratamahatmayas, pre-
paratory to the kraaling. The plot Of
wilderness and jungle surrounded by
the circle of coolies extended over an
area of about 5000 acres.
Every night, by firing blank ammu
milton, kindling fires, beating tOmtoms
and loud shouting, the elephants were
driven several hundred yards nearer
to an improvised stockade. This was
repeated nightly until the elephants
were half a mile or less from the
mouth of the stockade. This chase
sometimes requires more than two
months.
The circle of coolies then opens and
incloses within it's ranks the entire
stockade. This stockade was built of
stout tree trunks deeply and firmly i'm
bedded in the ground at distance Of
two feet apart. These treeposts pro-
iected some IA feet above the eartn
and we're reinforced by three parallel
lines of horizontal crosspieces, secure
ly tied to the posts with wild vines and
creepers. The whole was further
strengthened by a series of slanting
| braces firmly fixed in the ground and
having horizontal crosspieces also
bound to them. The stockade OF
"kraal' was about 500 feet square, and
built in the jungle, with it's entrance
disguised to appear as the thickest
part of the jungle The entrance for
wac from IN 10 IN Foot xxyifJS