RAJPOOT LADIES. 267 



dom and degradation which is the reproach of the Hindoo 

 husband. The ladies of rank are, indeed, somewhat se- 

 cluded ; but more from state than jealousy : they are well 

 educated, and often possess a large share of information. 

 Colonel Tod, who had the opportunity, though separated by 

 a curtain, of conversing with several of the Ihyes, or prin- 

 cesses, found them extremely intelligent, and well acquainted 

 both with their own interests and those of their country. 

 Wrongs sustained by females of rank have been among the 

 chief causes of their frequent wars. One custom is pecu- 

 liarly stamped with the refined and romantic gallantry of the 

 middle ages. A young princess, who fears an impending 

 danger, sends to any youth whom she esteems the present 

 of the rahhi or bracelet, with some simple ornaments fast- 

 ened to it. He becomes then her " bracelet-bound brother," 

 whose pride it is, at the peril of life, to defend a maiden 

 whom probably he never saw. Yet the very dignity attached 

 to the sex involves them in singular calamities. Scarcely 

 have their eyes opened to the light, when a large proportion 

 of the female children are doomed to death by their unnat- 

 ural parents. This dreadful crime has been imputed to 

 superstition ; but Colonel Tod traces it solely to the diffi- 

 culty, and, above all, the expense of marrying young ladies 

 of this high rank. To remain single is considered worse 

 than death ; but the spouse of a Rajpoot must be of pure 

 and high blood on both sides, and must not bear to him the 

 most distant relationship. Whether a match in these and 

 all other respects suitable will be procured, becomes a mat- 

 ter of extreme uncertainty. Even if it is found, there 

 remains another consideration calculated to excite serious 

 uneasiness. Marriage is the occasion on which every Indian 

 makes his greatest display of pomp, wealth, and generosity. 

 Not only must all the ceremonies be costly and splendid, but 

 Bramins, bards, and others attend, who expect to be loaded 

 with magnificent gifts. The prince feels that his reputation 

 depends on the manner in which he is celebrated by these 

 august personages, who assure him that while his treasury 

 is emptied, the world is filled with his praise. A single 

 nuptial feast is sufficient to involve a flourishing exchequer 

 in bankruptcy. One prince, indeed, made an attempt to 

 check this profusion by a law, enacting, that the expendi- 

 ture on euch an occasion should not exceed one vcar's entire 



