232 Indian Racing Reminiscences. 



parade ground ; while, in the season, it is a certain 

 " find " for snipe. The river Berak flows behind the 

 station. A considerable portion of the surrounding 

 country is low-lying, and is occupied by rice fields ; 

 while the higher ground is taken up with tea gardens, 

 the planters of which are a pleasant, hospitable set of 

 men, though unfortunately they lack the good-fellow- 

 ship of their Tirhoot and Wynaad brethren, the reason 

 being that they are split up into various cliques : in fact, 

 there are actually three clubs of fifteen or twenty mem- 

 bers each at Cachar, or rather at Silchar, which is the 

 correct name of the station, although both designations 

 are used indiscriminately for it. One institution is 

 sacred to the use of proprietors and managers, who arc 

 far too august to " mix " with their assistants. The 

 " collar club," as it is called, " draws the line " at ruling 

 that its members must wear linen, cotton, paper or 

 celluloid round their necks. The third and more demo- 

 cratic society " careth for none of these things." Instead 

 of having one good club like the indigo sa/a'ds possess 

 at Mozuffcrpore, or the jovial coffee planters boast of at 

 Manantoddi, where one can get a good dinner, game of 

 billiards, and rubber of whist, the tea growers in this 

 district arc restricted to three miserable little shanties 



