26 Captain Postans on the Bilicht Tribes inhabiting Sindh, 
tions of territory to preserves; but throughout the whole of 
Sindh, the poorest Biltch, if he can muster a pair of hawks, 
or a dog or two to assist him in his chace, will be seen pur- 
suing it. This is not so much the case beyond the river, 
where it is not easy to find game. Sindh swarms with every 
description, and hence, probably, the inducement. ‘They 
have no idea of firing at winged game, but knock it down 
with blunted arrows; and this they will do with great pre- 
cision, 
The courts of the Sindh Amirs, at Hyderabad and Khy- 
aptr, furnished striking characteristics of Bilichi manners, 
and were certainly peculiar. At the former resided the heads 
of the family, who, as is well known, divided the sovereignty 
of the lower Indus between them, and ruled conjointly under 
a singular participation of power. The leading features of a 
rude and semibarbarous state of society, were here exempli- 
fied ; the public durbars, or councils of the state, were attend- 
ed by a heterogeneous mob of Biltchis, (chiefs and wild re- 
tainers,) Persians, Affghans, Seikhs, Rajpits, and adventurers 
from every part of the East; and although the greatest 
respect, even to devotion, was intended by the biltchis to 
their lords, yet their manner of shewing it was little in ac- 
cordance with our notions of etiquette or propriety,—they 
spoke in the loudest tone, and by their uncouth manners and 
gestures, would appear to a stranger to be anything but obe- 
dient followers. Knowing no respect of persons outwardly, 
the lowest Bilach would unhesitatingly beard even the Amirs 
themselves in open durbar ; and as a brother, and by caste an 
equal, he could not be denied any vivd voce representations 
which he might have to make. In a corner of the same hall 
of audience, where the most important affairs were probably 
discussed, a group of nautch women would add to the din and 
noise by their inharmonious yelling; and, taken altogether, 
it was quite impossible to find anything in the East—where 
generally a ruler or chief is surrounded by so much studied 
etiquette—half so barbarous as a Sindh durbar. That of 
Khyrptl, in Upper Sindh, was much more primitive, and 
therefore barbarous, than the Hyderabad court. Yet the ef- 
fect of such a combination of savage and armed groups was 
