A EUX THROUGH KATIIIAWA1!. 253 



Xot being either neglectful or impolite, I became 

 one of the Bhayacl, or brotherhood of the Kathi 

 chiefs ; and I fancy they were much more communi- 

 cative with me than usual, or ever since they had 

 been visited by Colonel Walker. The theory that 

 they are of a northern race is well borne out by their 

 physical characteristics, especially by their large 

 bones, capacious chests, and blue or grey eyes, and 

 also by certain peculiar customs to which I shall 

 presently allude. But when they are set down as 

 Scythians, as is usually done, we get on very uncer- 

 tain ground. I have been at some pains to go into 

 this point, and to trace out how the idea that the 

 Kathi were Scythians arose. Colonel Walker, who 

 was not much given to theorising, only traced their 

 recent history, in the modern annals of Kathiawar. 

 William Erskine, in his ' History of India,' noted the 

 resemblance between the peculiar form of the Kathi 

 horse and that of the horses on Indo-Scythic coins. 

 Colonel James Tod, author of the 'Annals of Rajus- 

 than,' appears to have the merit of originating this 

 idea that the Kathi were of Scythian origin. The 

 feat was not remarkable, but the author of it was, 

 and also the general scope and penetrating character 

 of his views in regard to Indian antiquities. I can- 

 not turn over the pages of these two great quartos of 

 Colonel Tod on Eajusthan and Western India with- 

 out a feeling of reverence of that reverence which 

 we have for great men who approach great discover- 



