110 WOMEN. 



that by the next generation the bitterness of 

 the story will be forgotten. 



In their villages the Puharries live upon 

 terms of the most perfect equality, for 

 although there is in each village a head-man, 

 whom the Rajah holds responsible, he only 

 acts when required, and resides amongst his 

 fellow villagers as an equal. 



The women are said to be occasionally 

 handsome, but those that I have seen, were 

 certainly, to say the least of it, not so ; but 

 perhaps the belles of the hills, unlike their 

 European sisters, will not appear before 

 strangers, or, I may have been unfortunate. 

 They work very hard, and from constant 

 exposiu*e to the weather, soon become 

 haggard and much older in appearance than 

 in years. In some parts of the hills, they 

 do all the laborious work : in Koonawur, for 

 instance, they carry the loads, whilst those 

 idle rascals, the men, do nothing. 



Marriages are simple affairs, a mere 

 question of sale and purchase ; the aspirant 

 for matrimonial bliss presenting his future 



