MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 
seldom put on any clothing at alls 
and after that season, a small piece 
of cloth covering the middle, is the 
whole attire of the lords of the 
creation in this country. Washing, 
to Europeans in this country, is 
performed by a servant, hired by 
each individual, at the rate of from 
eight to ten pounds annually; a 
very small sum if you advert to the 
quantity of work. Here our whole 
‘dress is white cotton, and must, on 
account of the heat of the climate, 
be changed twice or thrice every 
day. 
The superstition of the country 
‘occasions another profession, not 
‘common in your villages, that of a 
shaver. Part of the beard, the 
arm-pits, &c. are regularly shaved, 
‘even among the lowest classes. As 
one person in this capacity can ac- 
commodate a considerable number 
of individuals, his wages are settled 
_‘at one ana, or two pence sterling 
per anninn ; a plough giving twenty 
seer. 
The greater part of cooking uten- 
sils, and vessels for holding water, 
are of earthenware ; sevcral of these 
‘are in daily use in each family, and 
‘from their frangible nature, the con- 
‘sumption of them is considerable. 
This occasions the trade of a potter’ 
-to be universal in every village of 
the country. The potter receives 
of each plough his three sheaves in 
the three successive harvests ; he is 
paid besides for each pot, according 
to its size; only the zemindar has 
his at half price: aud custom also 
obliges the potter to provide uten- 
sils for the soldiers, or such tra- 
'vellers as may pass the night in the 
village. Karthen pots are very com- 
mon through all Asia; and by what 
we read concerning the ‘* potter’s 
field,” they seem to have been in 
. 3 , 
905 
use in Judea, and have had an al- 
lotment of ground for their manu- 
facture. In India the ground is 
furnished by the proprietor, and for 
this reason he is supplied at an ins 
ferior price. 
The lowest and most despised or- 
der of tradesmen in India are the 
Chumars, or leather cutters. The 
Chumar receives, in the harvest, 
three sheaves from each plough 5 
but, besides this annual fee, he is 
paid for every set of ropes or har- 
ness he furnishes for a plough, two 
seer and an half of grain. For each 
pair of shoes the customary price is 
ten seer of grain: tradesmen pay 
two anas, which is deemed, in ordi- 
nary times, a high price; but they 
pay no part of his annual fee of three 
sheaves; when cattle die the hide 
goes to the Chumar. 
The bad police of the East im- 
poses the necessity of employing 
watchmen, during the night, to pro- 
tett the property of individuals, and 
to preserve the peace. This busi- 
ness is committed to the Dussauds er 
-Chockidars, several of which are 
required even in the sequestered 
villages. The nature of their em- 
ployment invests these people with 
some power, resembling that of a 
constable. ‘They apprehend delin- 
quents, or report disturbances to 
the magistrate, like all other ser- 
vants of the public in this country, 
the chockidars have an annual fee of 
three sheaves from each plough dur- 
ing the harvest; ten biggah’s of 
ground are allowed to each for ‘his 
support; and as several are neces- 
sary, the police of the country, im- 
perfect as it is, constitutes a heavy 
burden on the community. In the 
vicinity of Europeans there is a 
greater circulation of property, and, 
of consequence, greater temptation 
to 
