KASHMIR VALLEYS 25 



during the day worked the long, heavy wooden pestle 

 with astonishing energy as she crushed the grain in her 

 wooden mortar with long, regular movements. The 

 child toddled up to say, " Salaam, Sahib," nearly falling 

 over its own toes in its efforts to bow with reverence 

 and elegance, while clutching tightly a bunch of great 

 purple iris, recently gathered from a Mahomedan 

 graveyard, covering the whole of a small mound 

 near by. 



